2019 BEST OF
BEST OF
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HOLLISTER • SAN BENITO COUNTY
A New SV Media publication
Friday, April 26, 2019
sanbenito.com • Vol. 147, No. 17 • $1
Brown water forces repairs CITY OFFICIALS SAY WATER IS SAFE TO DRINK Jaqueline McCool Reporter
DANCE TO EARTH A community celebration of Earth Day April 20
in Hollister featured dancing, songs and crafts.
Celebrate the Earth! Youngsters and families joined with dancers from Calpuli Itzpapalotl Danza Azteca at Veterans Memorial Park in Hollister on April 20, as the city celebrated Earth Day with San Benito County Integrated Waste Management and more than 15 community, school and business partners providing education and interactive Earth Day games and activities for all ages. The all-day event featured an “upcycled” art workshop, free yoga classes, free bike safety checks—even free secure on-site shredding and e-waste collection.
Robert Eliason
➝ SJB Water, 11
Robert Eliason
San Juan Bautista residents were surprised this past week when they turned on the faucets and saw their bath water running brown. Several residents took to social media, posting photos of bathtubs and glasses filled with brown water or writing posts concerned about the water’s safety on San Juan Bautista’s community Facebook page. The comments prompted a response from the San Juan Bautista city government, which said the water was not dangerous, and the situation was being addressed by installing an iron manganese treatment plant near one of the city’s existing wells. The city’s problems with drinking water quality are not recent. A moratorium was put in place in 2016 by the State Water Resource Control Board, Division of Drinking Water because the city’s well water had levels of nitrite that exceeded acceptable levels. According to a letter from the resource control board to the city, at the time the moratorium was put in place, the city was using three wells, two of which were found to have higher than acceptable nitrite levels. The moratorium was lifted in December 2018,
HER CREATIONS Bernadette Murray shows off bows she made at Earth Day craft show.
Hollister cannabis debate drags on COUNCIL WANTS ANOTHER PUBLIC FORUM BEFORE VOTING Jaqueline McCool Reporter
Two cannabis dispensaries are preparing to open in Hollister, but the City Council is still reluctant to approve the sale of recreational cannabis. No council member made a motion on the issue at an
April 22 meeting, preferring instead to schedule another public forum on the topic. The outcome of more than a year of wrangling may be a foregone conclusion, as council members voiced support for allowing cannabis sales to all adults in the city—but they continue to balk at taking a vote. Mayor Ignacio Velazquez said repeatedly during the April 22
meeting that he wanted to ensure the ordinance was “done right” before he would support a vote. A public input session on cannabis in Hollister was held March 14 at the Veteran’s Memorial building, but Velazquez and councilmember Rolan Resendiz didn’t attend. They said they had not been aware of the meeting. The pair, new allies on most issues, asked for
another public meeting ahead of any vote on the matter. City staff presented proposed changes to the city’s existing cannabis ordinance meeting. The biggest proposed change was the removal of the word “medical” from the ordinance. The staff ’s position is that there is no longer an explicit difference between medical and recreational use, following
the state law that allows the production, sale and use of recreational cannabis, with individual municipalities given authority to allow sales. Earlier this year, council members directed staff to come up with more specific proposed changes and to gauge public support. Despite an information session and a more ➝ Cannabis, 4