8 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY MAY 28-JUNE 3, 2026 www.montereycountynow.com In a bid for a cattle grazing lease on a coveted parcel, five applicants were vying for the keys to Palo Corona Regional Park. Now, some bidders are questioning whether the recommended contract in the parcel’s first competitive selection process was selected fairly. Following a request for proposals issued on Feb. 13, the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District recommended Renz Livestock, a family-run cattle and rangeland management company based in San Benito County, for a five-year lease for $1/ year. The lease would begin July 1, replacing Emily and Luke Gardner of Paddock Land & Cattle (also called L&E), whose family has operated at Palo Corona since the 1980s. The recommendation goes to the MPRPD board on June 3. “There has been no transparency,” says Hannah Moon of Lonely Bull Cattle Company, one of the applicants. “The way it’s playing out, it looks like there’s some pretty significant inconsistencies with their stated scoring process.” Each proposal was evaluated on criteria including technical experience, land stewardship and natural resources management, with applicants receiving scores out of 100. Top candidates advanced to an interview process. In what Moon describes as a last-minute change, the District decided to not conduct on-site visits, placing greater weight on interviews—a shift she argues tipped the scale to favor Renz Livestock over Monterey County producers. Questions over scoring and the omissions of one MPRPD panelist’s scores from the evaluations have also sparked confusion among bidders. Luke Gardner, the current operator and also an applicant, says he’s concerned about finding new land for the 121 cattle currently at Palo Corona, saying the RFP came too close to the end of the lease. “The reality is, most of our cows will probably go to auction and be slaughtered, which is sad,” he says. At a time where beef prices are at record highs and grazing land is shrinking, more ranchers are chasing good grazing land, Gardner adds. The Park District has maintained that the process was fully transparent, adding that interviews and site visits were entirely optional elements. District officials say one of the panelists withdrew due to a conflict before the final evaluation, and an internal audit found the final selection remained unchanged with or without that panelist’s scores. “We’re directed by our board to open it up and get proposals to do something special out there,” MPRPD General Manager Eric Morgan says. “It was a competitive process.” spent up to six hours in the jail,” Masterson says. KCPD’s average staffing is two to three people per shift; taking a suspect to Salinas means the agency will be one officer down for at least half a shift. Masterson is sympathetic to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office in working to comply with its obligations, including those required by a class-action settlement agreement concerning health care at the jail. “There’s a lot of liability for the Sheriff’s Department in receiving inmates, and they want to make sure they’re doing it right,” Masterson says, noting the process has changed a lot since the time he started working 40 years ago. Soledad Police Chief Patrick Valenzuela has been on the job for under a year, after working in a more populated area in Maricopa County in Arizona. “My officers there got to the process a lot quicker than they do here,” Valenzuela says. In Arizona, he says, officers from the Sheriff’s Department might meet halfway to pick up arrestees. Fourteen law enforcement agencies, including California Highway Patrol, book suspects at Monterey County Jail, and they have to transport them to Salinas where the jail is located. In January, the jail switched its health care provider from Wellpath to Correctional Healthcare Partners, which has increased staffing. Since then, the booking process has two nurses instead of one on staff during daytime and has increased its intake stations to accelerate the process. “The booking times are getting better,” says Greenfield Police Chief Guillermo Mixer, noting the queue has dropped from eight hours to the three-to-five-hour range. “I haven’t had an eight-hour wait in a few months.” The civil grand jury recommended developing a guide on standard booking procedure and a comparative analysis between the current and former health care providers, as well as streamlining data collection among law enforcement agencies (or an analysis of why this is infeasible). Mixer says several police departments and the sheriff have already talked about a streamlined data system. “It would make everybody’s job so much easier, because we can input all the information here at once,” he says. The Sheriff’s Office is reviewing the report and declined to be interviewed, but will produce a written response to the report. Got Beef Questions surface over Palo Corona grazing lease recommendation. By Katie Rodriguez NEWS POLL POSITIONS Monterey County Elections hosts a series of voting opportunities throughout the county. “Books & Ballots” is a chance for residents to vote in-person, drop off ballots or register conditionally to vote. 3-6pm Thursday, May 28 at Big Sur Library, Highway 1 at Ripplewood Resort, Big Sur. 2-4pm Friday, May 29 at Pajaro Community Park, 24 San Juan Road, Pajaro. Free. (831) 796-1499, countyofmonterey.gov/elections. BUILDING BLOCKS Salinas City Council meets to adopt a plan that steers how to spend an estimated $2.2 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funds. Also, the council considers renaming the Intermodal Transit Center as the Salinas City Heritage Park. 4pm Tuesday, June 2. City Council Rotunda, 200 Lincoln Ave., Salinas. Free. (831) 758-7381, salinas.gov. ON THE DAIS Monterey City Council meets and, as always, accepts public comment. 4pm Tuesday, June 2. Colton Hall, 580 Pacific St., Monterey. Free. (831) 6463799, monterey.gov. GOVERNMENT IN ACTION Carmel City Council meets and accepts public comment. Learn about the latest in city government and share your feedback. 4:30pm Tuesday, June 2. City Council Chambers, Monte Verde Street between Ocean and 7th avenues. Free. (831) 620-2000, ci.carmel.ca.us. RATE ADJUSTMENTS Monterey One Water proposes changes to monthly wastewater service rates. Upcoming meetings provide information on the changes. 6pm Tuesday, June 2 at El Gabilan Library, Community Room, 1400 N. Main St., Salinas. 6pm Wednesday, June 3 at Community Center at Soper Field, 220 Coe Ave., Seaside. 6pm Monday, June 8 at Marina branch library, 190 Seaside Circle, Marina. Free. (831) 372-3367, montereyonewater.org/rates. STATE OF STAFFING Pacific Grove City Council meets to discuss staffing vacancies as well as recruitment and retention efforts. 6pm Wednesday, June 3. City Hall, 300 Forest Ave., Pacific Grove. Free. (831) 648-3181, cityofpacificgrove.org. COMMUNITY SERVICE Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo’s Young Supervisors Program is now accepting applications. High school and early college students learn how government works and gain leadership skills. Applications due June 20. Free. Apply at bit.ly/YoungSupervisors2026. (831) 755-5011, GomezJ@countyofmonterey. gov. Cattle grazing is viewed as an important ecological management tool at Palo Corona Regional Park, located near the mouth of the Carmel River. E-MAIL: publiccitizen@montereycountynow.com PUBLIC CITIZEN More ranchers are chasing good grazing land. SARA RUBIN JAIL continued from page 6
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