Orosco Buys Weatherby’s Building
Monterey developer The Orosco Group has closed escrow on the purchase of the Weatherby’s building at the corner of Mooney and Walnut in Visalia.Realtor Marty Zeeb who represented the seller confirmed the deal. The building was not owned by Weatherbys furniture company who is said to have a lease at least until September. Orosco plans to demolish the building to accommodate plans by a new tenant say reliable sources. The 21,000sf building has little parking as is.The Orosco team developed Packwood Creek shopping center and more recently purchased the ToysRus property on Mooney. Weatherby’s store manager Jay Rankin says no official word has been given but was glum about the news.”We’ve been at this location for over 30 years “ he stated. In business since 1921, the Bakersfield-based chain has stores in Bakersfield,Porterville,
Patio Place, a small chain of patio furniture stores will open a 7500sf store at the Dicks Sporting Goods shopping center in February says developer Dave Paynter. Patio Place has Valley locations already in Bakersfield and Fresno.The new store will be located next to DWS in the center at Caldwell and Mooney. Paynter says the addition will mean the retail center is 100% full.
Former Citibank To Get Eateries
The vacant Citibank building on Mooney at Feemster is being developed for a new use. Representing the developer Jason Andrade of Commercial West in Fresno says the building will likely be tenanted by two new restaurants.”We will know more in about a month” he says.
Milk/Feed Costs Heading In Right Direction
Tulare County’s number one industry got some good news in recent weeks as dairy farmers are breathing a little easier. Milk prices are finally heading higher and feed costs going forward are falling fast. World milk futures prices are $1.5 to $2 higher and domestic sales of processed cheese for the food service industry are said to be reaching an all time high. Some say you can thank the popularity of Egg McMuffins. On the feed front – September corn futures prices have tumbled from $4.40 a bushel to $3.50 in the past few weeks apparently based on forecasts for good rainfall in the corn belt. USDA says corn acreage is up 7 percent when compared to last year to 94.1 million acres.
Woodlake Schools To Receive $1 Million Solar Loan
The California Energy Commission is expected to approve a $1 million zero interest solar energy loan to Woodlake Unified School District at their July meeting.The money would install a 324.4 kW DC rooftop-mounted PV panels at the District’s Maintenance, Operations, and Transportation facility. The District would save about $66,420 in utility costs each year.
Mortgage Rates Near All-Time Record Lows
Mortgage rates fell to just above the all-time low this week, extending an opportunity for homeowners to refinance.This week Freddie Mac released their weekly survey showing average fixed mortgage rates dropping further to new 2016 lows in the wake of the Brexit vote. At 3.41 percent, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is just 10 basis points from its November 2012 all-time record low of 3.31 percent. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.41 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending July 7, 2016, down from last week when it averaged 3.48 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.04 percent.
Press accounts say many homeowners who got a 30-year mortgage before summer 2011 have a mortgage rate higher than 4.5% and would benefit from refinancing if they have excellent credit. Not surprisingly, refinance applications were up 21% last week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Borrowers may want to move fast with market rally at the end of this week.
Visalia Home Building Permits Down – Multi-Family Up
June home building permits in Visalia were down for single family units but up in the Multi Family category. New home permits numbered 39 compared to 45 in June 2015.For the calendar year sfh permits are down 5%.Meanwhile there has ben a 200% increase in multi family with 102 units permitted through June 2016 vs 34 for for the same time frame last year. The total value of all permits are up 7% this year vs last including a 37% increase in value of new commercial projects.
California Exports Drop In May
Beacon Economics reports that California trade took a hit in May totaling $13.35 billion, 5.5% below the $14.13 billion recorded in same month last year. Important to the local economy exports of Agricultural Products dropped 17.6% from $3.73 billion to $3.08 billion. Food and Kindred Products exports were likewise off by 16.8% from $2.58 billion to $2.15 billion. Beacon ‘s analysis points out that” a strong dollar, it bears emphasizing, is not a positive development for California exporters even if our major trading partners were enjoying robust economic growth.”
Valley Farm Group Goes Back To Drawing Board On Anti-Rail/Pro-Water Storage Initiative
Kings County-based California Water Alliance announced this month the would give up efforts to continue collecting signatures on their proposed ballot initiative to yank money from the bullet train to build more water storage. That measure had received some criticism from fellow farm groups that it hurt the current effort to build Temperance Flat.Now the group plans to rework the language and resubmit a new ballot initiative The group had been trying to make a July 25 deadline to collect the required signatures to make the November 2018 ballot after missing an earlier deadline to get it on the ballot this November.Now they will redo the language and submit it to the Secretary of State.One big fan is Congressman Devin Nunes (R-Tulare). “I urge all Californians who want to restore the state’s dependable water operations to support the Water Priorities initiative.”
Micro Brewery Hearing In Visalia
The Visalia City Planning Commission will consider July 11 a request by the City of Visalia to amend zoning codes to allow a Microbrewery/Microwinery Overlay District making it easer to sell beer and wine in East Visalia without full restaurant service. Several pending projects await a decision.
Dinuba Transfer Station Plan Appealed
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, July 19, 2016, at 9:30 am regards an Appeal filed by Dinuba Citizens for Responsible Planning (DCFRP), the San Joaquin Valley Environmental Defense Center, Roger Wazdatskey and Richard Harriman to the plan by the Port of Ivory, near Dinuba, for Richard Best Transfer. That plan allows the installation of a hard car unloader, associated rail siding spur and a commodities barn on RBT’s existing Freight Forwarding Terminal on a 20-acre portion of a 46.97-acre parcel in the 110-acre POI Industrial Park, currently zoned M-2-SR (Manufacturing – Site Review Combining) Zone.An Addendum to the previously adopted Negative Declaration, adding traffic and noise studies and minor technical changes to the Negative Declaration adopted for Zone Change PZ 07-010 was found by the Planning Commission on May 11, 2016, to be consistent with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). But the environmental group disagrees.
