News & Notes (4-15-15)
HUGHSON MAYOR FACES OUSTER FROM LAFCO BOARD
Mayors of the nine cities in Stanislaus County on May 13 will consider removing Hughson Mayor Matt Beekman as a representative of cities on the Local Agency Formation Commission. A majority of mayors – six – called for the meeting after Beekman sided with county representatives in a March 25 LAFCO vote on an agricultural preservation policy. The 3-2 decision approved a controversial formula for calculating how much money developers should pay cities when replacing farmland with homes or other buildings. Cities say the price is too high, could skew land values and challenges their authority over land-use decisions. Farm advocates contend that the formula is fair and represents one among several options that cities can choose for preserving farmland. Altering LAFCO’s voting composition could tip the balance of power in favor of cities. The mayors’ selection committee will meet at 6 p.m. May 13 in the Turlock City Hall chamber at 156 S. Broadway Ave.
STOCKTON FORUM LOOKS AT RIVER, DROUGHT ISSUES
A symposium Thursday in Stockton will explore how the drought is affecting the four rivers that provide water to homes and farms in San Joaquin County. The free event, “State of Our Rivers,” will involve conservation groups, government agencies and other parties concerned about the health of the waterways. The county is supplied by the Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Calaveras and Mokelumne rivers. The event will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the San Joaquin Council of Governments, 555 E. Weber Ave. The council is sponsoring the symposium with the Friends of the Lower Calaveras River, Lower Mokelumne River Watershed Stewardship Steering Committee, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Defenders of Wildlife, River Partners, East Bay Municipal District, city of Lodi, San Joaquin County and Monster Design Studios. People planning to attend should RSVP to jterhune@riverofskulls.org.
PITMAN TEAM PROGRAMMING CHAMPS
The Pitman High Future Business Leaders of America captured the state title in computer game and simulation programming during a competition in Santa Clara on April 11. The Turlock team, composed of Dustin Halsey, Bryse Rochester and Colin Van Winkle, qualified for the FBLA national contest being held in Chicago on June 29. In other team results, Bryse Rochester took second place in Desktop Application Programming. Michelle Doo captured fifth in Accounting 1 and will also go to the national competition. Lauren Suratos was eighth in Intro to Business and Matthew Campa came in 10th in Insurance and Risk Management. The Pitman High School club is advised by business teachers Shawne Arnold and Anna Eshoo.
This story was originally published April 14, 2015 at 3:16 PM with the headline "News & Notes (4-15-15)."