Good morning! It’s Tuesday, May 12. This is Rob.
Just hot: The National Weather Service heat advisory remains in place until late this evening with highs expected to crack the triple digits for the second consecutive day. But then Fresno should chill out a bit for the rest of the week. NOAA
Clerk watch: A special meeting of the Fresno City Council today might – or might not — end with Fresno hiring a new city clerk. Amy Aller has been serving as interim clerk since Todd Stermer left Fresno late last year. Fresno City Hall
Take a hike? Fresno is very close to building a trail extension to connect Woodward Park to Palm Avenue. Fresnoland
Slow train: After more than five years at the helm, Fresno’s Tom Richards steps down as chair of the high-speed rail authority. GV Wire
Retirement fights? California’s largest pension funds, serving thousands of retirees from all sectors of public service, are having something of an existential debate over which companies and industries make for appropriate investments. CalMatters
Local ICE update: The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office will present its annual Truth Act forum at 9:30 a.m. May 19 at the Hall of Records. Fresno County
UFOs? Bakersfield. 1948. De-classified documents. Kinda cool! KMPH
1. ‘The cost of everything.’ Fresno’s future voters looking ahead
The next generation of future Fresno voters grilled a small cast of current City Council politicians during a youth-oriented candidates forum Monday, Fresnoland’s Gisselle Medina reports.
Many of the questions came from young people not yet eligible to vote, who grilled the potential elected leaders on everything from housing and homelessness, to immigration and public safety.
Students involved with the Youth Leadership Institute and three other organizations spent months researching candidates’ backgrounds, political views, and ties to the district.
Margaret Yang: “We found so many interesting things about each of them,” Yang said. “We looked at their opinions on LGBTQ+ issues, how they view certain things, whether they’re Democrat or Republican, and even if they actually grew up here or moved to the district.”
2. Fresno Unified plows ahead with budget cuts, layoffs
At a special meeting on Monday, Fresno Unified’s school board formally reduced classified and certificated positions in the district as part of a reduction process that began in February.
Monday’s votes impact the equivalent of 201 full-time positions, district spokesperson AJ Kato confirmed.
Now, identified staff will receive a final layoff notice by May 14. The district’s chief of Human Resources, David Chavez, said that the “bumping” down process will begin and be offered to all affected staff after notices are issued.
—Diego Vargas
3. Fresno County’s latest culture war over Pride Month
A typically routine request for Fresno County libraries to participate in Pride Month in June will launch the latest culture war skirmish today at the County Hall of Records.
An online social media post from Supervisor Garry Bredefeld sparked the clash. Pride Month has been a frequent target for the self-identified conservative Christian politician.
Last year, Bredefeld led the charge on a split vote requiring county employees to get board approval before participating in community events, with Pride Month specifically identified by Bredefeld as a problem.
The county librarians, following the new policy, are now formally asking to participate and Bredefeld has already said he’s a hard ‘no.’
Public comments have poured into the county’s Board of Supervisors since Friday, with most showing an overwhelming support for Pride Month and the Fresno libraries participation.
Bredefeld and critics of Pride Month have described it as “indoctrination,” while supporters of Pride Month and LGBTQ+ children have noted that many taxpaying-parents of LGBTQ children believe their children also have rights to educational materials.
Today’s newsletter was edited by Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad.
