Opinion

It is all but certain that the Hollister council will hire Bill Avera as permanent city manager. The longtime city planning official deserves a shot at showing he's the right person for the job, but the council should set a new standard and require Avera to pursue a public administration degree.

Regarding the Boy Scout flags that were stolen during the rally, Councilwoman Valdivia was right when she redirected their request elsewhere for assistance. The taxpayers should not be paying for this. However, the fact that nobody knows what to do with this small claim is somewhat disconcerting. The claim amount is really peanuts in the scheme of things. It should not even be an issue. Given the magnitude of the Biker Rally it is inevitable that more, and most likely larger, claims will follow in the years to come. For now it seems like Tyson, Howe, Velazquez, Corbin and friends could find the resources to reimburse the Scouts their $906 to replace the stolen flags. After that, the Rally Committee needs to have a process for handling these types of things and make that process known to the public. Hopefully the city and county are insulated against future liability and lawsuits arising from this event. I'm sure they did their homework.