THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF SAN BENITO COUNTY
MARCH 29, 2019
A supplement to the Hollister Free Lance
Triplets inspire mom to break three world records
SAN BENITO MAGAZINE INSIDE THIS ISSUE
RULE OF THREE Local runner pushes the limits—and her triplets—in bid for world record P2
CITY UPDATES PLAN P2 | COLLEGE DREAMS P8 | ROCK-THROWER SOUGHT P11 CRUSH P5 | CALENDAR P8 | GETTING OUT P13
HOLLISTER • SAN BENITO COUNTY
A New SV Media publication
Friday, March 29, 2019
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Sheriff: Two sex offenders arrested for not registering JONATHAN FIDONE AND GAETANO ADDAMO LIVE IN UNINCORPORATED SAN BENITO COUNTY Staff report
Two local residents—one released from prison earlier this year and the other a downtown Hollister business owner—were arrested for failing to register as sex offenders with San Benito County authorities, according to the sheriff ’s office.
➝ Sex Offenders, 11
Submitted photo
Deputies March 20 arrested Jonathan Fidone, 29, and Gaetano Addamo, 46, because they were in violation of their requirement to register with the sheriff ’s office as sex offenders, Sheriff ’s Capt. Eric Taylor said in a press release. Neither of the men was registered as a sex offender at the time of their arrest. Both suspects live in unincorporated San Benito County. Taylor said authorities do not know how long the men had lived in the local community. Fidone registered as a sex offender in San Benito County Feb. 5, days after he was released from Kern Valley State Prison on a previous conviction that had been vacated by an appeals court. According
POMEGRANATES San Benito High School students and FFA club members Prezella Banuelos, left, and Fernanda Alcocer at Casillas Farms pomegranate presentation at 2019 Farm Day.
Celebrating Farm Day HOLLISTER FUTURE FARMERS HOST A ‘DAY AT THE FARM’ AT FAIRGROUNDS San Benito High School students who are
members of the Hollister Future Farmers of America participated in the annual San Benito County Farm Day at the Bolado Park Fairgrounds last week. The high schoolers welcomed and gave presentations to
local third-graders visiting the fairgrounds to develop an appreciation for agriculture and gain an understanding of how and where their food is grown, from lettuce to livestock.
City council accepts Avera resignation CITY COUNCIL AGREES TO USE HEADHUNTER TO SEARCH FOR CITY MANAGER CANDIDATES Jaqueline McCool Reporter
and do what I wanna do.” At the Feb. 19 meeting Avera told the council formally that he planned to step down Nov. 15, 2019. This week, the council agreed to hire a professional headhunting firm to find a new city manager. Mayor Ignacio Velazquez proposed finding an interim city manager who would assume the duties for six months and assess the city’s departments before installing someone to the position permanently. District ➝ City Manager, 4
Jaqueline McCool
Hollister City Manager Bill Avera is resigning after five years on the job, less than a year after he signed a threeyear contract. The former city development services director
surprised the city council with his retirement decision in a January closed session. Then on Feb. 19, he passed along his resignation letter during a routine staff report. The council decided March 25 how a successor will be named. Avera’s contract was to expire in 2021. He told the Free Lance on March 26 that there was no one factor that led him to retire, saying he wanted time to start a second career outside of city government. “I’m not necessarily money driven,” said Avera. “I wanna be happy
RETIRING City Manager Bill Avera