Guest view: Water district offers fall landscape tips
Autumn is here and your garden does not need as much water in October as it does in July.
Lawns require watering a maximum of three times per week in the hot summer months and one or two times per week in the spring and...
Guest view: Landfill is a vital community asset
There has been a lot of talk recently about the John Smith Landfill and the fact that San Benito County accepts garbage from Santa Clara County. As the President of the San Benito County Business Council and a former County Supervisor who was involved...
Guest view: Keep hospital discourse open and transparent
During December 2022, Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital first notified the County of San Benito of its untenable financial status. On Dec. 10, 2022, the San Benito Board of Supervisors was given a notice requesting a $10 million loan. The Board of Supervisors and staff...
Guest view: Trade policies leave workers even more vulnerable during pandemic
The economic downturn that the world is facing today as a result of Covid-19 may have been unavoidable. But the level to which so many of our neighbors are struggling today has been compounded greatly by the recent economic history of the United States, in which the economic security of working families has been sacrificed on the altar of corporate profits.
Guest view: Downtown businesses come together for Hollister parklets
As the name suggests, “small” business means the owner is, most likely, working. So, to see around 18 Hollister downtown business owners together at the Oct. 17 meeting was an unusual treat. Thanks to the Hollister City Manager, David Mirrione, and Development Services Director,...
Guest view: City Hall Pride Flag promotes love, acceptance
In 1978, an openly gay man named Gilbert Baker designed a Rainbow Flag that represents a symbol of pride for the gay community. It has been said that Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States of America,...
Guest view: Conserve water, all the time
California’s severe drought continues, and mandatory water conservation measures are in place. These climate conditions, along with our limited long-term water supplies, mean it is in our best interest to use water as efficiently as possible. Not just when we’re in drought, but ALWAYS!
On...
Guest view: Community has a voice in planning for second high school
Throughout the fall, San Benito High School District has engaged in an outreach effort to encourage community feedback regarding the need for a second high school.
To date, as we enter the second half of our K-8 Parent Listening and Awareness Sessions at 10 local...
Guest view: Honoring a South Valley ‘unconventional hero’
I rise today to adjourn in the memory of Marty Cheek—a beautiful soul, the publisher of Morgan Hill and Gilroy Life, an arts and science advocate, a man who loved his community, and his community loved him.
Marty was born in Hollister and was a...
Guest view: Farmworker housing should be priority
By Kollin Kosmicki
San Benito County must address the severe farmworker housing shortage.
As a journalist in the early 2000s, I examined heartbreaking farmworker housing conditions in Hollister. Multiple families, sometimes dozens of residents, often packed into small homes and poverty-stricken conditions.
The situation already reached a...














