january 12-18, 2023 montereycountyweekly.com LOCAL & INDEPENDENT storm damage 8 | del rey oaks at an impasse 12 | narrating the nfl 30 | fresh fruit 32 Farmers with the Real Organic Project are rethinking the food system, and bring their vision to the EcoFarm conference at Asilomar. p. 18 By Sara Rubin Let’s Talk Dirt
2 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY january 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com January 12-18, 2023 • ISSUE #1798 • Established in 1988 Merry Trucksis (Android Note 20) Winter weather means humans and animals alike must take advantage of each opportunity to get outside. Here, some fun in the sun during a moment of calm between storms, at Del Monte Beach. Monterey County photo of the week Send Etc. submissions to etcphoto@mcweekly.com; please include caption and camera info. On the cover: Javier Zamora of JSM Organics in North County shows the healthy roots of a lettuce plant. JSM is certified as USDA organic and Real Organic, which requires plants to be grown in soil. “The Real Organic Project is a way to remind people what truly organic food is,” Zamora says. Cover Photo by Daniel Dreifuss etc. Copyright © 2023 by Milestone Communications Inc. 668 Williams Ave., Seaside, California 93955 (telephone 831-394-5656). All rights reserved. Monterey County Weekly, the Best of Monterey County and the Best of Monterey Bay are registered trademarks. No person, without prior permission from the publisher, may take more than one copy of each issue. Additional copies and back issues may be purchased for $1, plus postage. Mailed subscriptions: $120 yearly, pre-paid. The Weekly is an adjudicated newspaper of Monterey County, court decree M21137. The Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Visit our website at http://www.montereycountyweekly.com. Audited by CVC. Founder & CEO Bradley Zeve bradley@mcweekly.com (x103) Publisher Erik Cushman erik@mcweekly.com (x125) Editorial editor Sara Rubin sara@mcweekly.com (x120) features editor Dave Faries dfaries@mcweekly.com (x110) associate editor Tajha Chappellet-Lanier tajha@mcweekly.com (x135) Staff Writer Celia Jiménez celia@mcweekly.com (x145) Staff Writer Pam Marino pam@mcweekly.com (x106) Staff Writer Rey Mashayekhi rey@mcweekly.com (x102) Staff Writer Agata Pope¸da (x138) aga@mcweekly.com Staff Writer David Schmalz david@mcweekly.com (x104) DIGITAL PRODUCER Kyarra Harris kyarra@mcweekly.com (x105) Staff photographer Daniel Dreifuss daniel@mcweekly.com (x140) contributors Nik Blaskovich, Rob Brezsny, Paul Fried, Jeff Mendelsohn, Adrienn MendonçaJones, Jacqueline Weixel, Paul Wilner Cartoons Rob Rogers, Tom Tomorrow Production Art Director/Production Manager Karen Loutzenheiser karen@mcweekly.com (x108) Graphic Designer Kevin Jewell kevinj@mcweekly.com (x114) Graphic Designer Alexis Estrada alexis@mcweekly.com (x114) Graphic Designer Lani Headley lani@mcweekly.com (x114) SALES senior Sales Executive Diane Glim diane@mcweekly.com (x124) Senior Sales Executive George Kassal george@mcweekly.com (x122) Senior Sales Executive Keith Bruecker keith@mcweekly.com (x118) Classifieds business development director Keely Richter keely@mcweekly.com (x123) Digital Director of Digital Media Kevin Smith kevin@mcweekly.com (x119) Distribution Distribution AT Arts Co. atartsco@gmail.com Distribution Control Harry Neal Business/Front Office Office Manager Linda Maceira linda@mcweekly.com (x101) Bookkeeping Rochelle Trawick rochelle@mcweekly.com 668 Williams Ave., Seaside, CA 93955 831-394-5656, (FAX) 831-394-2909 www.montereycountyweekly.com To read Monterey County NOW in your inbox daily, sign up at mcweekly.com/signup. We’d love to hear from you. Send us your tips at tipline.montereycountyweekly.com. MAKE A DIRECT IMPACT INSIDER MAKE AN IMPACT AT $15 PER MONTH Become an Insider today. montereycountyweekly.com/insider Our work is continuing to be made possible through the support of readers like you. Delivering local and independent journalism takes a lot of resources. Whether it’s for investigative reporting, covering the arts scene or offsetting the costs of distribution every dollar makes a difference.
www.montereycountyweekly.com JANUARY 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 3 Monterey Spine & Joint is hiring! We are looking for individuals ready to contribute to a positive and rewarding culture. At MSJ, we strive for excellence by providing the highest quality musculoskeletal care possible in a patient-focused environment as care and concern for the patient is at the core of all we do. ✓ Revenue Cycle Manager ✓ Physical Therapist ✓ SCulipnpicoarltaRnodleAsdministrative Visit us online at www.msjhealth.com/careers Ryan Ranch Office Park · 12 Upper Ragsdale Drive · Monterey, CA Ryan Ranch Office Park • 12 Upper Ragsdale Drive • Monterey, CA Visit us online at www.msjhealth.com/careers
4 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JANUARY 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com THE BUZZ FREE SPEECH Part of the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services’ storm response in recent days involved pre-storm outreach, encouraging residents to sign up for alerts and to obey evacuation orders. For the first time, those public service announcements included not just English and Spanish but also the Mexican indigenous language of Mixteco. On Jan. 4, the county released video PSAs about storm preparedness in two Mixteco dialects, Mixteco Guerro and Mixteco San Martin Peras. The medium was selected to reach a larger audience among Mixteco speakers, who are less likely than other Monterey County communities to know how to read. At a press conference on Sunday, Jan. 8, officials from Monterey and Santa Cruz counties convened in the North County community of Pajaro to reiterate their message about evacuations and preparedness, and they were joined by a Mixteco interpreter. With Mixteco interpretation, the county joins the city of Greenfield, which has worked with the Centro Binacional Para El Desarrollo Indígena Oaxaqueño to provide video PSAs during past emergencies, including during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Good: In recent years, Monterey Peninsula Unified School District has been developing innovative ways to serve students who struggle to find stable housing. These innovations include MPUSD’s agreement with Motel 6 to provide short-term emergency housing for students and their families, connecting them to resources such as long-term housing and food, and collaborating with other organizations including Monterey County Office of Education, the National Center for Youth Law and the Coalition of Homeless Service Providers. The latest development is that MPUSD obtained a $500,000, two-year grant from the California Department of Education to further help homeless students. “We have a very innovative program showing a lot of success,” Donnie Everett, MPUSD’s assistant superintendent, says of the multi-tiered systems of support. “This two-year grant tasks us to take our model and create a digestible toolkit for other districts to learn from.” GREAT: Great news for highway safety comes in the form of a $1 million federal earmark to the Transportation Agency for Monterey County for an auxiliary lane on Highway 101. The project is meant to address safety concerns and improve traffic flow between Airport Boulevard in South Salinas and the Main Street overcrossing in Chualar. The auxiliary lane will provide space for cars and trucks to accelerate when entering the 101 at Spence Road and to decelerate when exiting onto Eckhardt Road. The $1 million from the federal Appropriations Act joins $1.9 million in state funding and $317,000 from Measure X, approved in 2016. “The $1 million earmark is another example of TAMC’s ability to leverage Measure X funds using state and federal funds to deliver important transportation projects in Monterey County,” said Todd Muck, executive director of TAMC. Construction on the $3.3 million project is set to start this year and be completed in 2024. GOOD WEEK / GREAT WEEK THE WEEKLY TALLY The percent to which Lake Nacimiento has filled after recent rains, as of Jan 10. On Dec. 31, the reservoir was only at 27-percent capacity. Source: Monterey County Water Resources Agency 69 QUOTE OF THE WEEK “We’ve lived here 11 years and this is the worst flooding we’ve seen.” -Carmel resident Simon Bull, speaking on Jan. 5 about flooding in the Carmel River Lagoon (see story, mcweekly. com). ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES Stop By To Shop And Find Your Vintage Treasure OVER 100 DEALERS 21,000 SQUARE FEET The Largest Antiques and Collectibles Mall on the Central Coast 471 WAVE STREET MONTEREY (831) 655-0264 P M canneryrowantiquemall.com Open Daily 11am-6pm ’22 Voted Monterey County's Best Antique Shop SEASIDE’S FINEST THIN CRUST PIZZA SOURDOUGH PIZZA SALADS & CALZONES DINE IN OR TAKE OUT Tues – Sat 11am – 9pm Sunday 11am – 8pm 720 BROADWAY AVE. SEASIDE Phone 831-899-1762 DELIVERY AVAILABLE Pacific Grove Hardware 229 Forest Avenue • 646-9144 Locally Owned and Operated BEST Hardware Store THANKS FOR YOUR VOTES! Your Hometown Hardware Store ’09-’22 take $5 OFF ANY $25 or more regular items With this ad. Exp 1/31/23 One discount per transaction We’re Open! Mon-Sun 8am-5pm Martin Luther King Jr. Day March & Program Monday, Jan 16, 11 - 3 pm March with the Peace Coalition of Monterey County Assemble at Noche Buena St. and Broadway Ave. in Seaside. PEACE JUSTICE EQUALITY COMPASSION COMMUNITY NONVIOLENCE The march to Oldemeyer Center begins at 11 am Peace signs provided.
www.montereycountyweekly.com JANUARY 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 5 Cannot combine with any other offer. Must present coupon at time of service. Limited time only. THE WINTERIZER PACKAGE— $25 OFF full synthetic oil change, air filter, cabin filter service, wiper blades, and tire rotation DON’T GET CAUGHT IN THE RAIN MUD SNOW COLD! 1730 The Mall • Seaside (Auto Center) 831-233-3263 • SullivansAutoService.com Treating you like family since 1950 -Ryan & Angie Sullivan Connecting communities. Creating opportunity. Being kind to our planet. Congratulations to our employee of the year! FOR 12 YEARS, ALBERT GARCIA has served MST’s customers, employees, and communities with courtesy and respect and is an excellent example of selfless dedication to the values and overall mission of MST. As the local Amalgamated Transit Union president Albert served in a key role to assure his membership, the coach operators, and maintenance personnel, were taken care of and remained in good health throughout the COVID pandemic. He worked to ensure that his peers received the proper and needed Personal Protective Equipment to reduce the spread of COVID. He campaigned for direction on how many passengers would be allowed to board while remaining socially distanced. Albert also provided key input and direction on the purchase of driver safety barriers on the buses. He sat in countless meetings with the MST executive management team to collaborate on how to best address employee concerns to help our employees and passengers through uncertain times. More recently Albert was featured in a video that highlights MST’s award-winning contactless payment system and which has been presented at conferences throughout the US and United Kingdom and which can be viewed from the following link: employees of the month JANUARY David Bielsker FEBRUARY Nicano Linares MARCH Daniel Bruno APRIL Mickey Cajobe MAY Ed Goodin JUNE Hector Suarez JULY Ana Villanueva AUGUST Rex Sacayanan SEPTEMBER Michelle Di Pretoro OCTOBER Bill Casey NOVEMBER Courtney Neff DECEMBER Albert Garcia Congratulations, albert!
6 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JANUARY 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com 831 Jose Gil had a problem—a serious one, under the circumstances. As he recalls the moment, one concern reverberated through his head: “I hope my phone doesn’t run out of battery.” It was Dec. 16 and the occasion, in familial terms, was big. Gil’s son, Josue Gil-Silva, had just taken the floor for Stanford in a basketball game against Green Bay—his first appearance for the squad after being elevated from the student manager role a few weeks earlier. That Stanford had the game in hand and Gil-Silva spent just two minutes on court was of no consequence. Probably not for the last time, Gil was intent on recording a moment in his son’s life. But he was, for the first time, experiencing the joy and angst of a Division 1 college parent. “It’s a roller coaster ride, and I don’t like roller coasters,” he says. “But I’m enjoying this one.” Gil is not often ruffled by something taking place on a basketball court—or in life, for that matter. He grew up in an East Salinas listing dangerously under the weight of drugs and crime, worked the fields with his parents, helped Alisal High School to the 198889 league title as a senior under coach Jim Rear and returned in 1997 to helm the basketball squad himself. In 2010 Gil and his wife Eva Silva— also a basketball standout at Alisal— launched the nonprofit Gil Basketball Academy with the assistance of volunteers and local coaches. His son is a product of Alisal High and the academy. Meanwhile, his nephew Isa Silva is a guard at Stanford. Yet molding talented boys and girls into college basketball prospects is not at the core of the academy’s mission. “If it were all about basketball, we’d be going after the best players,” Gil says. Instead, the mission is to develop the character traits that lead to success in academics and life, to show young people potential through visits to colleges and other trips and let them know what it takes to achieve those goals. “There are teaching moments in anything,” he adds. “How can I make someone better?” Both parents teach at Alisal. Silva earned a degree in biology from Stanford, followed by a master’s in education. Gil’s route was not as certain. “When I was in high school, I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” he recalls. No one in his family had gone past high school. Hartnell College reached out to him about basketball. But high school counselor Pam Bernhard pulled Gil aside one day and ensured him that he could excel as a college student. “She changed my life,” he says. Gil earned a degree in applied art and design from Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, where his roommate was Francisco Silva, Eva’s brother, and an introduction followed. The couple made it a point to return home. “The community that raised you, we want to make a difference,” Silva says. “We both really wanted to teach at Alisal.” They describe Josue Gil-Silva as a motivated student. His mother read to him as a child. Gil-Silva credits his father’s interest in art—as well as a robotics course at Alisal—for an interest in imagining the possibilities between problems and solutions that led him into mechanical engineering studies at Stanford. As a student manager for the basketball team, Gil-Silva became adept at finding windows of time between practices and games, during flights or in hotel rooms to keep up with his studies. In the Gil Basketball Academy’s 13 years, Gil-Silva may not be the biggest success story. Rosters over the years have been filled with young people overcoming difficulties. But the lessons imparted of shooting for and reaching goals is part of his being. “Sports teach so many valuable lessons,” the Stanford senior says. “Resilience, trust the work you’re putting in—that translates to life.” A refrain of Gil as a coach is that no matter the outcome, one should never stop playing. “I’m not going to stop coaching,” he adds. Except when watching his son on the court in Stanford colors. “Now he’s being a dad,” Gil-Silva says. Family Matters When his son suited up for Stanford, Salinas coach Jose Gil watched for the first time as a father. By Dave Faries Nayali, Sammy, mom Eva Gil-Silva, Josue and dad Jose Gil pose after Stanford knocked off Loyola (Illinois) 75-62 at the Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz on Dec. 22. “It’s a roller coaster ride, and I don’t like roller coasters.” TALES FROM THE AREA CODE COURTESY JOSE GIL kazu 90.3 a community service of CSU Monterey Bay NPRsm for the Monterey Bay Area If you’d like to sponsor our next ad, please give us a call Crumb Crumb is a morsel of canine goodness. He is the most affectionate little guy and loves to be as close to his person as possible all day long. Crumb likes going for daily brisk walks and is very well-behaved on leash. Crumb is a 10-year-old, 14-pound, Neutered Male, Chiweenie Mix. If you’d like to meet Crumb, please fill out an online adoption questionnaire. P.O. Box 51554, Pacific Grove 831.718.9122 peaceofminddogrescue.org AD SPONSORED by Carolyn Martinez In memory of Kitty Ka Koo.
www.montereycountyweekly.com JANUARY 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 7 No grades. No exams. Just the pure joy of learning. Lifelong Learning Institute at Cal State Monterey Bay brings the joy and stimulation of lifelong learning to adults age 50 and o are interested in university-level education without exams or grades. At OLLI, members explore subjects that embrace ence, the arts, current events, and more, through interaction with outstanding faculty and vibrant minds. Join us today! 82.5500 or visit CSUMB.EDU/olli No grades. No exams. Just the pure joy of learning. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Cal State Monterey Bay brings the joy and stimulation of lifelong learning to adults age 50 and better who are interested in university-level education without exams or grades. At OLLI, members explore subjects that embrace history, science, the arts, current events, and more, through interaction with outstanding faculty and vibrant minds. Join us today! Call 831.582.5500 or visit CSUMB.EDU/olli No grades. No exams. Just the pure joy of learning. For more info or to view an online catalog: visit csumb.edu/OLLI The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at California State University, Monterey Bay is a dynamic learning community for adults age 50 and better. OLLI opens up a world of discovery with fresh, curated courses taught by CSUMB faculty and distinguished experts in their fields. Spring Registration Opens January 19 Federally Insured by NCUA | Equal Housing Lender 831.479.6000 • www.bayfed.com • 888.4BAYFED *Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is effective as of December 15, 2022. $1,000 minimum deposit required to open and maintain Certificate account. APY assumes the dividends are reinvested and remain in the account for the full term. Individual Retirement Account (IRA) Certificates are eligible for this offer. Penalty for early withdrawal. Bay Federal Credit Union membership required. This offer is subject to change without notice. Other terms and conditions may apply. For more information, visit any Bay Federal Credit Union branch or call us at 831.479.6000 or toll-free at 888.4BAYFED, option 3. Start earning on $1,000+ 6-MONTH CERTIFICATE 12-MONTH CERTIFICATE 3.05APY* % 4.08 APY* % Grow Your Savings Fast Start Your New Year with Us! DR. TERRENCE HACK 166 CARMELITO AVENUE, SUITE B, MONTEREY 831-387-4999 OR 831-705-3010 • MONTEREYAESTHETICSANDMEDICALSPA.COM REJUVENATE YOUR SKIN AND APPEARANCE State-of-the-art Opus Plasma Skin Resurfacing and Skin Tightening will reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, pore size, and loose and saggy skin with little or no down time. CONTACT US FOR A CUSTOMIZED TREATMENT PLAN TODAY.
8 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY january 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com news The most serious rainstorm in years descended on California this week, and Monterey County was not spared. Massive storm swells barreled into the coast from the Pacific, breaching the Carmel River Lagoon and flooding the adjacent Carmel Point neighborhood. In the North Salinas neighborhood of Bolsa Knolls, residents stacked sandbags to barricade their homes from the flooding of Santa Rita Creek. Dozens of people flocked to evacuation shelters to take refuge. The Arroyo Seco River was the site of dramatic scenes on Jan. 9, when a Coast Guard helicopter rescued a couple and their dog after their home was surrounded by floodwaters. Amid such conditions, Monterey County authorities sprang into action to ensure that they, and the public, were not caught off-guard. Starting Wednesday, Jan. 4, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office commenced what would be a string of flood evacuation warnings and orders through the next week—urging residents from Carmel Valley and Big Sur to Parajo and the Salinas Valley to be prepared to leave their homes if necessary. By Jan. 10, more than 18,300 Monterey County residents were impacted by the evacuation measures, according to county estimates. The string of storms are an early test in the tenure of Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto, who assumed her new role on Dec. 30. Over the course of the week, Nieto and other county officials stressed the degree of cooperation taking place between various local and state agencies—including daily “multi-county coordination meetings” with officials in Santa Cruz County and other neighboring jurisdictions, as well as representatives from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES). “We have a unified command working on this storm,” Monterey County Supervisor Mary Adams said at a Jan. 5 press conference in Carmel, where the Sheriff’s Office had issued an evacuation order earlier that day. While acknowledging the weather event was “an uncommon situation for us,” Adams said county authorities had “been prepared for a while” to deal with the fallout. That included liaising with CalOES to procure equipment such as four high-water rescue vehicles from the National Guard, which the county could deploy—along with jet skis and rescue swimmers—to aid those caught in the floodwaters. Nieto said Santa Cruz County had also secured two of the high-water flood vehicles, allowing the two counties to cooperate in deploying the six-vehicle fleet as needed. Frequently joining Nieto at public briefings during the week was Randell Ishii, Monterey County’s director of public works. “To weather this storm, this is an entire community collaboration,” Ishii said. In addition to operating four temporary evacuation points and four emergency shelters located across the county, the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services also looked to keep the public informed with regular updates on its website—including an interactive, color-coded map updated with the latest evacuation warnings and orders. Officials also took the outreach directly to people’s homes, including in some of the county’s more vulnerable communities that have been badly affected by storms in the past. On Sunday, Jan. 8, Nieto and Ishii were joined by county supervisors Luis Alejo and Glenn Church and County Administrative Officer Sonia De La Rosa in Pajaro, located just south of Watsonville. Nestled on the banks of the Pajaro River, the community was devastated by flooding in 1995, and officials stressed their desire to avoid a similar situation 28 years later. “There were things that went wrong in the ’95 floods, and we’re hoping not to repeat those,” Nieto said, citing an impending evacuation order for the area. She added that, if needed, law enforcement had the authority to arrest and remove residents who refused to comply with an evacuation order. “We do that because we care about you, your family and your pets,” said Nieto. As of Jan. 10, authorities had not arrested anyone for not complying with evacuation orders, according to a county spokesperson—though Weekly reporters encountered residents in various communities who did not heed orders and stayed in their homes. In Pajaro, officials including Alejo and Church led crews in a door-todoor canvassing effort to inform residents of the flood risks. “It was imperative that we come here and stress how important it is to be prepared for the worst-case scenario,” Alejo said. But there were also matters outside of the county’s direct control to account for. On Tuesday, Jan. 10, the Sheriff’s Office said that it was responding to the failure of multiple, privately operated earthen berms along the Salinas River in South Monterey County. The berms—raised barriers of earthen materials along riverbanks—are “not owned or maintained by Monterey County,” officials said. Neighbors and a property owner work to protect a house in Carmel Valley on Paso Hondo on Jan. 9, next to the Carmel River. They’d built a levee the river breached and worked to reinforce it between heavy rains, and pumped water out of the home. Batten the Hatches Faced with the biggest storm in years, Monterey County officials seek to present a coordinated public response. By Rey Mashayekhi “Be prepared for the worst-case scenario.” Daniel Dreifuss Daniel Dreifuss Flooding was widespread throughout Monterey County including in the North County neighborhood of Royal Oaks, seen on Monday, Jan. 9. According to the National Weather Service, more rain may be coming: “Storm door remains open.”
www.montereycountyweekly.com JANUARY 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 9 New to Medicare soon? Get the information you need to make good decisions about your health coverage! Call to learn more about our FREE service in your area! 800-434-0222 Join our In-Person Presentation: Thursday, January 26, 5:30pm-6:30pm Alliance on Aging HUB Conference Room 236 Monterey Street, Salinas This project was supported, in part, by grant number 90SAPG0094-03-00 from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration for Community Living policy. www.allianceonaging.org Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program - ‘HICAP’ MEDICARE QUESTIONS? MONTEREY’S PREMIER GERMAN CAR SPECIALISTS 249 DELA VINA AVE. MONTEREY 831.373.5355 CCREPAIRMONTEREY.COM R E P A I R PRESENTED BY
10 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY january 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com On Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 16, the city of Marina is hosting a celebration of the civil rights leader and what he achieved—and also holding a groundbreaking for the installation of an MLK bust. Leonard Page, a Marina businessman, donated the bust to the city in 2002 and it was the main piece at the Sculpture Habitat, a six-acre sculpture park at the Marina Airport. It was surrounded by black marble panels with MLK quotations inside a pool where people would throw coins and make wishes. Paige commissioned artist Barrington McClean, the first African American faculty member at Cabrillo College, to create the bust. In the late 2000s, Marina Coastal Water District officials were removing a large water tower and the sculpture garden was in the way. The garden was removed and the MLK bust was forgotten, placed in a hangar for storage. The sculpture came back to light after George Floyd’s murder in May 2020 and the worldwide movement it sparked against systemic racism and police brutality. The move to get the piece back on display was also a response to the widespread removal of statues that do the opposite and glorify racial injustice including slaveholders and imperialists, such as Cristopher Columbus and Confederate leaders. After Mayor Bruce Delgado became aware of the bust, he began a push to display it again. In June 2020, Marina City Council approved the city budget, but without funding for relocating the statue. After that, Delgado shared his frustration on social media, and people began to contribute, leading to nearly $20,000 in donations. In total, the project will cost $500,000 (including private funding). That will cover restoration as well as broader landscaping. During the pandemic, the late Terry Siegrist, Marina’s recreation services director, searched for potential places to display it. The design includes a pathway with lighting under cypress trees outside the Marina library. “The library actually is a perfect place as far as the vibe, because people go to the library to learn and expand their horizons,” Delgado says. The bust deteriorated after being in the hangar for 13 years. It was restored over the past year by McClean, the same artist who created it in Santa Cruz. A groundbreaking ceremony for the installation happens on Monday, Jan. 16 at 2pm along with an MLK Day celebration. (For more information about the event, see Hot Picks, p. 26.) As the Covid-19 pandemic enters the start of its fourth year, there are nagging problems for both patients and hospitals. For patients, finding an available doctor in Monterey County quickly can be challenging. Time is of the essence for receiving the antiviral medication Paxlovid, which needs to be administered within five to seven days of testing positive. With nowhere to go, patients wind up at local emergency rooms. “We’ve had people come in and say, ‘Nobody will take care of me,’” says Sameer Bakhda, an emergency room physician at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. The staff treats everyone who walks in the door, but it creates a potential for spreading the virus as well as longer wait times. The challenge prompted Bakhda and other doctors and staff at Montage Health, CHOMP’s nonprofit parent company, to craft a solution. Within the month, a telehealth service is scheduled to launch specifically to treat Covid, including prescribing Paxlovid. Anyone who tests positive for Covid, even with a home test, will be able to request help online and be seen virtually by a physician the same day or early the next day. “The real benefit is being able to have an appointment with a board certified emergency physician,” says Meg Dingae, Montage’s director of digital health. Added to the challenge for patients—especially uninsured or under-insured patients—is that free treatment for Covid, as currently required by the state of California, could disappear as early as this spring if the Biden Administration allows a March 2020 federal public health emergency declaration to finally sunset. The price of Montage’s program is still being worked out, but Dingae says there will likely be a low-cost, self-pay option. Currently, California offers information on how to find free treatment at covid19.ca.gov/treatment, or by calling 833-422-4255. The California Department of Public Health contracted with a New York-based tech company called Sesame to provide free Covid telehealth care at sesamecare.com/covid. New Home After 14 years in storage, Marina’s Martin Luther King bust will be back on display. By Celia Jiménez news Creek Side Help clean up Gabilan Creek with volunteers organized by Return of the Natives. Snacks and water are provided. The event will be postponed only if it is raining hard on the day of the event. Volunteer groups of 10 or more are asked to RSVP. 10am-1pm Saturday, Jan. 14. Gabilan Creek, E. Laurel Drive and Constitution Boulevard, Salinas. Free. Visit the website or call day for a voicemail recording to find out if the event is postponed due to rain. 582-3686, bcarrazco@ csumb.edu, csumb.edu/ron. Helpful Hiking It’s volunteer day at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. This month, the Monterey Bay Area Hiking Group is returning to Cypress Grove to remove sprouting panic veldtgrass before it can get re-established. Afterwards, take a moment to hike the reserve as a reward for yourself. Bring water, closed-toe shoes, sunscreen and a hat; work gloves and snacks provided. Inform the ranger at the kiosk you are attending the volunteer work day for complimentary admission. 9am-noon Wednesday, Jan. 18. Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Highway 1, Carmel. Free. volunteer. monterey@parks.ca.gov, bit.ly/ MontereyHikingGroup. Mental Wellness AIM Youth Mental Health is offering training and certification to help parents, teachers and counselors become confident in helping children and teens with mental health challenges. The goal is to create a county-wide safe space for Monterey County’s youth. The online course consists of two hours of self-paced content and five hours of instructor-led training via Zoom. Upon completion, adults are certified as youth mental health first aiders. 5:30pm-8pm Wednesday-Thursday, Jan. 18-19. $170 tuition; financial aid available, offering a discounted rate of $85. Contact Margaret D’Arrigo for financial aid at margaret@aimymh.org. Sign up at aimymh.org/mental-health-first-aid. 372-1600. Situational Awareness Stay up to date on storm-related alerts, including evacuation warnings and orders and shelter locations, by signing up to receive emergency alerts from Monterey County. You can also find more information about disasters and county response by visiting the website. Visit tinyurl.com/WinterStormMC for storm information. To register to receive alerts, visit tinyurl.com/ AlertMontereyCountysignup. Community Solution Montage Health is on the cusp of using telehealth to solve a Covid-19 treatment conundrum. By Pam Marino A rendering shows the placement for the MLK bust outside of the Marina branch library. The design includes a pathway with lighting in a place that is frequented by the public. e-mail: publiccitizen@mcweekly.com TOOLBOX The sculpture came back to light after George Floyd’s murder. City of Marina
www.montereycountyweekly.com JANUARY 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 11 PRINT | WEB | MOBILE Publishes January 26, 2023 Ad deAdline January 20, 2023 FOR MORe inFO: 831-394-5656 PLUS: Participate in Meet the Healthcare Professionals of Monterey County special section. Make your business POP in 2023 Health & Fitness Issue Advertise in the Weekly’s annual Health & Fitness issue.
12 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JANUARY 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com Despite its small size—or perhaps because of it—there’s rarely a dull moment in Del Rey Oaks politics. When Scott Donaldson edged out Alison Kerr in November to become the city’s mayor, it left the City Council with some unfinished business: Donaldson, who had been a council member with two years remaining in his term, left a vacant seat. Monterey faced a similar situation when Dan Albert Jr. lost his bid for mayor, vacating his council seat. City Council quickly filled it through an appointment process that saw 11 qualified applicants, and in a 4-0 vote, the council appointed Gino Garcia on Dec. 12. On Jan. 5, Del Rey Oaks City Council discussed how to go about filling that seat and the process became a point of contention. City staff offered two potential options, one being to appoint someone through a process at the council’s discretion, the other to put it out to the voters in a special election that wouldn’t occur until Nov. 7. Several members of the public showed up to the meeting to express their support for appointing Kerr to the open seat. Newly elected councilmember John Uy made a motion to directly appoint Kerr, which was seconded by councilmember Kim Shirley (both are Kerr supporters). Newly elected councilmember Jeremy Hallock said he couldn’t support the motion, noting a direct appointment of Kerr was not on the night’s agenda. “I’m not prepared to move forward this evening without a deeper dive there,” he said. Shirley said she was concerned the council would end up in a split 2-2 vote and not be able to decide on a candidate, adding that it would “warm her heart” if Kerr were appointed. “I’d like to see us all work together,” she added. But Donaldson expressed similar sentiments as Hallock, and felt it was important to open up the application process before appointing someone. After Uy’s motion failed, Hallock made a motion to accept applications until Jan. 18. That motion was later amended, at Uy’s suggestion, for the council to convene a special meeting in order to decide on a rubric by which to judge the applicants, as Uy expressed concern members would otherwise vote for their friends. “I want a set of criteria,” Uy said. “I want to know, as a councilmember, how I am going to choose the right councilmember.” That special meeting was scheduled for Jan. 11 at 6pm, after the Weekly went to press. While Shirley had expressed concern in the meeting about the council having a split vote, City Manager John Guertin says he’s confident the council will be able to come to a consensus on this matter and others. “My experience of all of these folks they put the best interest of the city first,” Guertin says. “When I got this job I was told there would be a 3-2 split, but the majority of business we got done the last few years was with unanimous votes.” After the rubric is established, the council will consider the applicants at a Jan. 24 meeting. Kerr says she is not yet sure whether she will apply. Even Number With a four-person council, the process to fill a vacant seat in Del Rey Oaks might get interesting. By David Schmalz “You want someone who’s got the ability, and who’s got the experience to do the job right off the bat,” said DRO Mayor Scott Donaldson at a Jan. 5 meeting. NEWS “I want a set of criteria.” DANIEL DREIFUSS 26200 Carmel Rancho Blvd 831-626-7555 Open 9-6 Daily TheRawConnection.com OFF FROZEN RAW FOOD 20% IN-STORE ONLY THRU JAN 31
www.montereycountyweekly.com January 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 13 Monterey County’s oldest nonprofit, the Monterey History and Art Association, took a detour in 2017 at the Stanton Center on Custom House Plaza in Monterey. Instead of featuring local history and art inside the building MHAA constructed on city land in 1992—as was agreed in a lease with the city, with $1 annual rent—it became a museum focused on a collection of Salvador Dalí art owned by a wealthy Ukrainian investor and art collector. The MHAA board saw the move as necessary since Monterey history and art wasn’t pulling in enough visitor donations to pay the bills. What it did bring was scrutiny by the Monterey County Assessor’s Office, which ruled that charging an entrance fee meant the nonprofit would have to pay fullprice property taxes. (A contentious appeal resulted in a reduction in 2021.) As it turns out, the Dalí art didn’t pull in enough visitors either, nor did a partnership with a production company that leased the Stanton Center’s theater for about a year to present professional magic shows. (The company left in August.) The Dalí art collection is now on its way out too, after nearly seven years, about the same amount of time the surrealist artist spent on the Monterey Peninsula in the 1940s. Last fall, MHAA President Gary Spradlin polled members asking which direction the Stanton Center should take next. The answer was clear: Bring back local history and art. The organization is now rebranding the site as “Monterey History and Art at Stanton Center.” Spradlin got to work pulling Dalí art from galleries and replacing it with pieces by influential 20th-century artists, including Jo Mora, whose entire archive was sold last year to MHAA by the Jo Mora Trust Collection for an undisclosed amount. “It’s really good stuff,” Spradlin says. “What we’re trying to do is get it back to the kind of museum it once was,” he adds. The plan is to include displays of artwork that MHAA has amassed since it was incorporated in 1931. In addition to the newly acquired Mora pieces, Spradlin and volunteers have brought in a display with artwork of mostly local scenes by Armin Hansen and Paul Whitman. In another gallery, MHAA is offering a rotating display of art by local contemporary artists. The Dalí pieces are going into storage, with hopes of one day selling some when the market is better, Spradlin says. (The original owner, Dmitry Piterman, donated half of over 500 pieces of Dalí art to MHAA, promising to donate the remainder later.) In March the theater will begin showing plays by New Canon Theatre Co. as well as history lectures. On Jan. 19, MHAA is hosting a free 92nd birthday party inside Stanton Center. In the meantime, MHAA is eager to negotiate its lease with the city. Currently they are required to maintain a public restroom at the rear of the building but the costs are difficult for the nonprofit to meet—toilet paper alone is $6,000 a year. Spradlin plans to ask Monterey City Council to remove the restroom requirement, among other things, to help Monterey History and Art at Stanton Center succeed. Goodbye Dalí The Monterey History and Art Association is transitioning the Stanton Center back to its roots. By Pam Marino Gary Spradlin in front of the historic printing press Armin Hansen used, in a gallery that now displays works by Hansen and Paul Whitman. A hand-painted globe by Whitman is also displayed. NEWS The answer was clear: Bring back local history and art. DANIEL DREIFUSS Friday, January 20, 4:45-8:45pm Elks Lodge • 150 Mar Vista Drive, Monterey The 11th Annual John “Spud” Spadaro Hospitality Awards Dinner501(c) (3) Tickets: $65 per person. This event will sell out. Order your tickets now! No-Host Cocktails 4:45pm • Dinner 5:45pm • Award Ceremony 6:30pm Raffle Tickets with Great Prizes For Tickets Go To ticketor.com/spadaroawards Proceeds from the event goes toward the John “Spud” Spadaro Hospitality Scholarships at Monterey Peninsula College For more information call (831) 649-1421 Hospitality Honorees Lifetime Achievement Honorees Humanitarian Award Rich Rosendale Flying Fish Carmel Tony Tollner Montrio, Tarpy’s, Rio Grill Rose Russo Woody’s at the Airport Cindy & Ted Walter Passionfish Pati Stevenson Poppy Hills, Spanish Bay Marie & Nino Favalora Favaloro’s Big Night Bistro Danny Aliotti Sardine Factory, Escargot Bozzo Family Gino’s in Salinas Al Siekert and Friends WE BRING OUR MOBILE SHOWROOM TO YOU! We are the #1 Customer Rated In-Home Flooring Company in America. Locally Owned and Operated. Mention this ad to get $250 OFF of your proposal CALL 831-583-8031 to make an appointment! Visit FloorMB.com to learn more Fully licensed and insured CSLB# 1051783 CARPET – LUXURY VINYL – HARDWOOD – LAMINATES
14 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY january 12-18, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com River Runs On-the-ground work on the Pajaro River Flood Management Project is expected to start in 2025. I would not be surprised if the delays are due to regulatory requirements and slow-moving bureaucracies. Hopefully the Pajaro community will not be washed away before the project is completed (“County issues evacuation warning for Pajaro community and closes parks,” posted Jan. 3). Joe J. Dokes | via web State of Emergency Just cleared the drains on my street. Hope it helps keep the water flowing away from our properties in my neighborhood (“Flash flood warnings issued; free bus transportation to evacuation locations is offered,” posted Jan. 4). Tiffany David | via social media Grab your sandbags!!! Ruth Pizano | via social media At the Pinnacle This was a great cover story (“Pinnacles is celebrating its 10-year anniversary of becoming a national park, but the park has been millions of years in the making,” Jan. 5-11). It brought back some great memories and many smiles. My wife and I visited Pinnacles National Park shortly after that magical site became a national park. Like yourself, we had recently relocated to the Central Coast. Our arrival was in summer 2013. Bea grew up at Grand Canyon National Park and was a proud Grand Canyon Phantom, graduating from their “in-park” high school. Back then the convention was to use the first two letters of the park’s name thus, GRand CAnyon=GRCA. I met her at GRCA when she worked for GRCA’s Natural History Association while I worked as a National Park Service ranger, stationed on the South Rim. We’d often hike the vast array of GRCA and nearby U.S. Forest Service trails, thus we could not wait to hike Pinnacles. Rafael Payan | Salinas Note: Payan is general manager of the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District. House Rules Everyone should be concerned about the new House majority, which couldn’t even select a Speaker without historic chaos (“The view from Congress on the second anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection,” posted Jan. 6). The House of Representatives is now controlled by MAGA Republicans. They will use their power to enrich their corporate donors and advance their extreme agenda—including threatening our freedom to vote, criminalizing abortion, and cutting Social Security and Medicaid. Judging by the election for Speaker, we should all be concerned about their ability to govern. MAGA cronies like Kevin McCarthy, Jim Jordan, Steve Scalise and Marjorie Taylor Greene have already indicated that their top priority in 2023 will be sham investigations into the Biden administration and other democracy defenders. We must call out their lies at every turn and combat their far-right agenda to protect our freedoms and our democracy. David Farwell | Carmel Highlands Two years after the deadly attack on our country on Jan. 6, 2021, it’s hard to ignore that the House of Representatives is now controlled by those who embraced and fueled Trump’s Big Lie. According to the Washington Post, over 70 percent of all House Republicans are election deniers—135 incumbents voted against certifying the 2020 election and at least 27 freshman members ran on the Big Lie. They might hold the title of “representative” but they have no intention of legislating on behalf of their constituents. We must speak truth to power in the face of all their lies. I’m pledging to do everything I can to protect our freedoms and our democracy against the House’s extremist attacks—I hope others will join me. Morag Elizabeth | Seaside BOND BATTLE Regarding the dispute about how MPUSD spends taxpayer-approved bond money that residents and neighbors voted for and have to repay, there are several facts not brought to light in many of the letters decrying the opposition (“Letters,” Jan. 5-11). If MPUSD had engaged the nearby neighbors in meaningful dialog in the beginning, the current scenario might have been different. While I agree that students deserve good facilities, Monterey High is located in a densely populated neighborhood and residents there deserve the same consideration. Contrary to assertions by some writers, these neighbors are not newly arrived NIMBYs. Many of the residents closest to the school have lived there for decades. All of them bought into the charm of a local neighborhood, complete with a school, without lights. CEQA is in place to ensure important guidelines and considerations are adhered to even when an applicant states “the local rules don’t apply to us.” The fact that the judge found the EIR so lacking is proof that CEQA is doing what it’s supposed to. Tony Tollner | Monterey Pot Shop I had the pleasure of visiting their shop just a few months ago. Very beautiful pottery on display (“A storied Pacific Grove pottery collective is enjoying the resurgence of interest in ceramics,” Jan. 5-11). Walter Wagner | via web Power of the Pen Editor Sara Rubin should be careful what she wishes for (“State invests in a journalism program that could become a template,” Jan. 5-11). Giving public funds to newspapers and journalists makes them beholden to those who pay them—politicians, bureaucrats, and government officials. Mussolini boasted that he did not have to imprison Italian news journalists. He simply paid them off with government money and they quickly became faithful servants of the Fascist state. The First Amendment represents the complete separation between government and free speech. Government payments to the news media will only lead us faster down an Orwellian road. Lawrence Samuels | Carmel Letters • CommentsOPINION Submit letters to the editor to letters@mcweekly.com. Please keep your letter to 150 words or less; subject to editing for space. Please include your full name, contact information and city you live in.
www.montereycountyweekly.com january 12-18, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 15 In modern, urban life, it can be easy to forget we have built many of our neighborhoods on top of waterways. Especially in California’s long dry seasons—coupled with a years-long drought— creeks and rivers can come to resemble ditches. But they are always there, a landscape of rivers and creeks, waiting to gush with water when water is there. That humans have constructed bridges, roads and homes is irrelevant to powerful, surging water. And when years go by without a major winter storm, people can forget how fast and fierce moving water is, hence the relentless drumbeat of advisories from public officials in the past two weeks: Be ready, and heed evacuation warnings. Indeed, human life is on the line. As of this writing, news reports attribute 17 deaths in California to the storms. County officials report 97 people are lodged in temporary emergency shelters at local libraries and fairgrounds on higher ground. While it’s too soon to know the scale of the damage—and floodwaters are still rising in some places—people at homes and businesses and agricultural fields in diverse neighborhoods across Monterey County will be assessing the destruction in the coming weeks. Whether they can get insurance to help cover the damage will be another question entirely, and most homeowners policies do not offer flood insurance. Instead, the Federal Emergency Management Agency manages the National Flood Insurance Program, a pool of more than 50 insurance companies, meant to minimize the cost to customers and in FEMA’s words, “help reduce the socio-economic impact of floods.” The socio-economic spread is broad. The locations of homeless encampments along the Pajaro and Salinas rivers just a few days ago are now under water. Developing in high-flood risk areas—on often flat, riverside land—is often a cheaper alternative for lower-cost housing. But there are also more well-off neighborhoods with river-front homes and access to nature. Most of the time, it’s an asset, not a burden. While FEMA emphasizes that every building is at risk of flooding, that risk level widely varies. “Floods can happen anywhere—just one inch of floodwater can cause up to $25,000 in damage,” the agency reports. At the peak of evacuation orders on Tuesday, Jan. 10, county officials determined more than 18,000 Monterey County residents were impacted. It is at once a significant number of people, and yet it’s less than 5 percent of the county’s total population. For the majority of county residents who live in more urban settings, the storm might feel like just regular rainy days. (Of course there are other related impacts that affect all of us, including fallen trees, leading to road closures and downed power lines.) This series of storms is leading to immense disruptions to regular life and safety risk and financial loss for many people. But we have chosen to build communities in some of the most highly impacted places. I remember interviewing former county supervisor Lou Calcagno upon his retirement and asking if there was anything he regretted in his 16 years on the board. “We approved the houses at Mission Fields at the mouth of the Carmel River. Those houses should’ve never been built there,” he said. There are ways to minimize flood risk to buildings, which are largely by restoring the natural shape of floodplains along waterways. Big Sur Land Trust is currently undertaking two such projects—one at Carr Lake in Salinas (one of those forgotten waterways that no longer looks like a lake, but residents around it are reminded of its history during a week like this). Another is near the Carmel River mouth with Carmel River FREE, to which FEMA is considering granting $25 million in funding, depending on its findings on how effectively the project mitigates flood risk. Of course, we have already built communities in these highrisk areas and we are unlikely to move 18,000 people. What we can do instead is take steps to prepare and accept that there is some amount of unavoidable risk. Whether you live in an area of serious flood risk or not, stay vigilant and stay safe out there. And I hope that even in the midst of the destructive power of the storm, you are able to join me in taking a moment to marvel at the power and drama of nature. Sara Rubin is the Weekly’s editor. Reach her at sara@mcweekly.com or follow her at twitter.com/sarahayleyrubin. Water Table Winter storms wreak havoc—and also remind us nature is still in charge. By Sara Rubin Wrist Slap…Squid knows it’s often easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, which is the only way Squid can pull off taking Squid’s bulldog Rosco P. Coltrane to the vet—Rosco loathes doctor’s offices. It’s also the strategy being deployed by local developer Nader Agha, owner of the Moss Landing Commercial Park. Since 2015, cannabis operations have existed in the park without a coastal development permit, and not just here and there—there are currently 23 structures housing cannabis operations. At issue is whether or not to grant the property an “after-the-fact” permit to make them legal. That question came before the Monterey County Planning Commission Dec. 7, and despite the recommendation by county staff to grant the permit, the Planning Commission had questions about the proposed “general development plan” for the property, and continued the hearing until Jan. 11 so that it could be revised. But now county staff are recommending the commission continue the discussion again (to Jan. 25) because, per a county report, a “revised GDP has not been received.” The Jan. 11 meeting took place after the Weekly’s deadline, so Squid doesn’t yet know if the commissioners delayed again. Perhaps a revised plan will be completed in a timely manner, but who knows— maybe whoever is revising it has been inhaling too many fumes on the property, and is too chilled-out for deadlines. Reply All…Squid still uses an old-fashioned paper calendar to keep track of appointments. Despite Squid’s personal preference, Squid thinks it is a pretty cool idea for government agencies to use modern technology in a practical way— for example, send Google Calendar invitations to public meetings. So Squid appreciates that the Monterey County Housing Advisory Committee does that, even if the beginning-of-the-year calendar emails had the effect of spamming Squid’s inbox—there were invitations to meetings on Jan. 11, March 8, May 10 and beyond, through Nov. 8, 2023. (Squid’s analog calendar is not booked up that far out yet.) Also on the e-invite list are all HAC members and county supervisors. On Jan. 3, committee member Esther Malkin sent an email to the whole list to ask: “I understand you’re very busy but is there a way to reduce the meeting emails please?” (Fellow committee member Raul Calvo had a simple idea: Don’t reply all.) Deputy County Counsel Sean Collins was also reading the email thread and chimed in with legal advice: Stop the chatter. Not only will it unclog people’s inboxes, it will prevent violations of the Brown Act, which forbids committee members from engaging in discussions outside of a public forum. Thanks to Collins, Squid’s spam filter seems to be working again. the local spin SQUID FRY THE MISSION OF MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY IS TO INSPIRE INDEPENDENT THINKING AND CONSCIOUS ACTION, ETC. “Those houses should’ve never been built there.” Send Squid a tip: squid@mcweekly.com
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