Sam’s Club appeal likely
The Visalia Planning Commission approved a Conditional Use permit for the developer of a Sam’s Club on S. Mooney Blvd by a four to one vote this week.
City planner Cristobal Carillo says neighborhood opposition to the project due to noise and traffic issues is likely to result in an appeal of the project to the Visalia City Council.
Carillo says that appeal could be heard in November perhaps November 18 when council meets.
The developer of the project has been trying to meet the concerns of the neighborhood by relocating the proposed gas station at the site to the east -away from neighbors as well as putting up a block wall to reduce noise issues.
The project includes a new 167,000sf Sam’s Club warehouse as well as a Chick-fil-A fast food restaurant.
GA Motorsports relocates store to corner of Burke and Mineral King
Automotive dealer Don Groppetti has remodeled the 20,000 square-foot former car show car showroom at the corner of Mineral King and Burke and has relocated his GA Motorsports motorcycle dealership to the remodeled building from their old location next-door.
A permit request has been filed with the city to demolish the old location at 730 East Mineral King.
Milk prices fall as bird flu cuts local production
Tulare County dairyman Tom Barcellos says milk prices in the past month have dropped about three dollars per hundredweight from $24 to $21 – a big hit to operators’ milk checks. To make matters worse, the impact of over 100 dairies in the Central Valley affected by bird flu has meant a 20% cut in production for some dairymen, says Barcellos. Latest Milk Producers Council newsletter adds to the concern.
“In California, which accounts for about 40% of U.S. NDM(nonfat dry milk) production, avian influenza is spreading rapidly, which suggests that fourth-quarter milk powder output could plummet. It’s difficult to overstate the scale of California’s dairy industry and how quickly the bird flu could spread through the world’s most important milk shed. A severe decline in California milk output could have an explosive impact on dairy product prices in an already tight milk market.”
While the state CDFA does not identify where the dairies infected by bird flu are- beyond saying they’re in the Central Valley – five of the six humans who have contracted bird flu in California are from Tulare County as a result of their contact at dairies.This county is a number one dairy production county.
Published reports have identified dead cows by the side of the road near a Tulare County dairy.
The flu hits the respiratory system of the cow that reports say takes a few weeks to recover from -if they recover. There is some research that suggests diminished milk supply for some of those that survive.
Authorities caution the public shouldn’t worry and that pasteurized milk is safe.
Meanwhile, there is some indication of where the virus may have come from.
“Genome sequencing on the strain of the virus in California cattle is most similar to the strain found in cattle in the state of Idaho,” wrote CDFA public affairs director Steve Lyle in a statement.