Jeff Eben's mayoral platform is interesting in that it leans heavily on his Clovis roots and his experience as a Clovis Unified school administrator.
For example: His mailer includes a picture from his days as the principal at Clovis East and endorsements from local sports figures such as Fresno State coaches Pat Hill, Steve Cleveland, Mike Watney and John Baxter. Also endorsing Eben are former Oakland Raiders star quarterback Daryle Lamonica, former Fresno State basketball standout Tyrone Bradley, Clovis Unified Superintendent Terry Bradley and developer Scott Ellis.
But there's a glaring problem with the brochure: many of the people endorsing him reside in Clovis, not Fresno -- a fact that will enable opponents to keep painting Eben as a carpet-bagger.
Continue reading "Jeff Eben's mayoral mailer" »
If you missed the Fresno mayoral forum Wednesday night at Bankers Ballroom, click here for The Bee's podcast and here for The Bee story by City Hall reporter Denny Boyles.
Next Wednesday night, the City Council candidates will square off in another forum at the same location. You can submit questions for the forum at www.fresnofusion.com.
You'll never guess who is one of two finalists for a superintendent's position in Georgia.
Former Fresno Unified boss Santiago Wood, who was fired here in 2004.
He is competing with John W. Thompson to become the interim/corrective superintendent of Clark County Public Schools, a one-to-two-year position that entails turning around the troubled system.
The district is the fifth biggest in Georgia with about 52,000 students. Clark County is south of Atlanta.
Thompson, the former superintendent of Pittsburgh (Pa.) Public Schools, is asking for $275,000 a year, 24-hour security and $2 million for his consulting team, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Wood told the newspaper that he would like $185,000 a year, a modest monthly expense allowance, a one-time $2,200 housing fee and moving expenses.
Wood lists many accomplishment during his tenure in Fresno. You can read the candidates' resumes here and the newspaper story here
This is your one-stop shop for info, news and analysis on the Fresno mayoral race.
If you want to see what the candidates are saying about themselves, check out these Web sites by clicking on the candidate's name.
Jim Boswell: http://www.jimboswellformayor.com/
Tom Boyajian: http://www.votetom08.com
Mike Dages: http://www.dagesformayor.com
Jerry Duncan: http://www.jerryduncan.org
Jeff Eben: http://www.ebenformayor.com
Henry T. Perea: http://www.perea2008.com
Ashley Swearengin: http://www.ashley4mayor.com
I couldn't find Web sites for Ignacio Garibay, Barbara Hunt, Henry Monreal and Doug Vagim.
If you know of Web sites for any of them, please post in the comments section below.
Thanks
Bee Editorial Page boss Jim Boren and I have teamed up on a weekly political podcast airing Monday afternoons on fresnobee.com.
 You can hear our first effort by clicking here. or by going to the home page of fresnobee.com and clicking on the multimedia header.
Our goal is to provide information and analysis on local and state topics while occasionally venturing into national issues and political races as well. If we do our jobs right, you'll find that "Boren and McEwen on Politics" is as good as NPR's "It's All Politics."
And, yes, we are getting rid of the cheesy packaged photos of us on fresnobee.com and replacing it with a fresh shot of us in front of Fresno's City Hall.
We focus on the Fresno mayoral race in this week's podcast. Here are my odds for each of the 11 candidates making it out of the June primary and into the November runoff to replace Alan Autry, who terms out in January:
Henry T. Perea -- 6-to-5
Ashley Swearengin -- 9-5
Jerry Duncan -- 11-5
Jeff Eben -- 5-1
Tom Boyajian -- 10-1
Mike Dages -- 25-1
Doug Vagim -- 500-1
Henry Monreal -- 1,000-1
Jim Boswell -- 10,000-1
Ignacio Garibay -- 1,000,000-1
Barbara Hunt -- 10,000,000-1
Here is the report of Bee reporter Russell Clemings on the proposed expansion of a gravel mine on the Kings River at Riverbend and Goodfellow avenues:
Continue reading "Commissioners reject Kings River mining expansion" »
Jeffry Long sends pictures of Jesse Morrow Mountain, along with a response to my March 6 column:
You can view the pictures here and here.
Here's what Jeffry had to say:
Continue reading "More on Jesse Morrow Mountain (with pictures!) " »
You can read my take on the Jesse Morrow Mountain mining proposal here.
But Michael J. Donahue, a retired environmental supervisor for Caltrans, says my "thumbnail analysis" of the proposed aggregate quarry in eastern Fresno County "serves to give a one-sided view of the proposal and does the public, decision makers, project proponents and the Indian community a disservice."
Here is his complete e-mail:
Continue reading "A different view of Jesse Morrow Mountain" »
Topics on this blog usually are serious.
Not today.
Check out this video on YouTube.
It was made a few years ago by a friend of mine -- Jerry -- who works out at the Blackstone Avenue Gold's Gym in Fresno and loves fast cars.
Keith Bergthold, a brainy guy who is second in charge of Fresno's municipal planning and development department, has been talking to people throughout the San Joaquin Valley about the importance of collaborative regional planning.
By Bergthold's count, he has made 30 presentations to city, county and Council of Government boards during the past five months -- each time outlining growth scenarios for our region. I've seen his thought-provoking talk and now I'm sharing it with Bee readers.
It's long. Probably the longest blog item in fresnobee.com history. It has footnotes. It's not presented in the most reader-friendly-format. But it's worth wading through, and I am looking forward to your comments.
Here it is:
Continue reading "Fresno planner's manifesto on the Valley's future" »
My Jan. 19 column -- "It's war on Prop. 93" -- struck a chord with readers, many of whom had been struggling to figure out if Proposition 93 is about term-limits reform or a scheme to keep state Democratic leaders Fabian Núñez and Don Perata in power.
You can read the column by clicking here, and you can do California a favor by voting no on 93. It's time to send the faux populists packing.
Click here to read more about Núñez and here for more on Perata.
 This was e-mailed to to me this morning with the explanation, "I quickly snapped this with my cell phone camera yesterday at a traffic light."
I don't know if the picture is genuine or a fake. Either way, it's funny.
The city of Fresno's motto, created by Mayor Alan Autry's administration, is "a culture of excellence where people get the best every day."
The driver of this vehicle probably has a Toyota truck in his driveway that says "YO" on the tailgate.
Poor Bob Waterston can't make up his mind.
One day he's saying he won't run for re-election to his Fresno County Board of Supervisors' seat. A few months later, he's running down to the elections office and pulling papers.
Continue reading "Sing along with Bob" »
We grow 'em tough here in Fresno.
We surely do.
Former Fresnan Victor Conte admits he was scared out of his gourd during the first 36 hours at his four-month federal sentence at the C.I. Taft Prison Camp near Bakersfield.
But, after that, he tells ESPN.com's Patrick Hruby, he was coaching fellow inmates and enjoying life in "a sports paradise" with a ton of athletic equipment -- but no guard towers or walls.
Continue reading "BALCO's Conte: Prison camp was 'sports paradise'" »
I'm going to tackle a 100-mile bike ride around Lake Tahoe again this June. It'll be my third time participating in "America's Most Beautiful Ride" as a member of Central California's Team In Training, a program of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Continue reading "Taking the Tahoe challenge (again)" »
It's not too late to make a New Year's resolution, and I've got a suggestion.
First, read this semi-recent column, and then go to your favorite city council, board of supervisors or other government board meeting.
Continue reading "You can improve local government" »
 Believe it or not, a story and photos of Stacy Johnson-Klein's 2002 wedding at the university-owned home of Fresno State President John Welty are still up for viewing on the school's athletic Web site.
Update: Guess what, readers? It took four days since my original post, but the photos have been removed from the Web site.
Click here to check out the former Bulldogs women's basketball coach and husband Chuck Klein when they were friends with Welty -- and $19.1 million poorer.
 A hot rumor swirling through Fresno Unified School District has Superintendent Michael Hanson trying to land the top position in San Diego Unified.
I wouldn't blame Hanson for trying. San Diego is a great city, his wife has family there and some teachers union activists are trying to chase him out of Fresno. Fanning the rumor: Hanson, as well as district trustees, will attend a conference in San Diego this week.
Continue reading "Hanson says he's staying put" »
The economy is muddling along, gas prices are soaring and the fires in Southern California are diverting donor attention from the San Joaquin Valley.
As a result, local nonprofits are struggling during this holiday season. Food banks lack goods to meet the demand, and agencies that rely on financial donations are seeing a slowdown.
That's why I challenged readers in October to participate in a food drive organized by the Sequoia Council of Boy Scouts and asked local politicians to match my $100 pledge to the Clovis chapter of the Salvation Army.
Continue reading "Food drive collects at least $1,100, more than 1 ton of food " »
Fresno's Christmas Tree Lane knocks the socks off of Peter Fish, author of Sunset magazine's Postcards and Western Wanderings essays.
Writes Fish in the December issue: For a long time, I saw the spirit of Christmas as a plump, white-bearded, Santa-ish figure — like Jack Black if you glued cotton to his chin. But now I know who the spirit of Christmas truly is. He is a 49-year-old engineer named Dean Alexander.
Continue reading "Magazine profiles Christmas Tree Lane " »
 Does he? Or doesn't he?
Have the governor's ear.
I'm talking about Fresno Mayor Alan Autry, who probably has spent more time in Sacramento than at City Hall the past seven years.
According to Bloomberg Markets Magazine, Autry is a member of Arnold Schwarzenegger's "universe" and a key part of a team that has raised more than $121 million in political contributions for the California governor.
In its December issue, Bloomberg Markets profiles Schwarzenegger and his ambitious plan to take California green with a progressive environmental agenda. Accompanying the piece is an illustration identifying Schwarzenegger's advisers. Autry, incredibly, occupies the same orbit as former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
To read the article "Pumping Green" and check out the chart, use this link. The chart is on the fourth page.
People want to know about my book, "It's a Dry Heat," and I'm happy to provide answers.
Continue reading "Everything you wanted to know about "It's a Dry Heat"" »
Here's more evidence of the San Joaquin Valley's inferiority complex: Merced County supervisors are flirting with the idea of changing the name of its airport to something with "Yosemite" in it.
Being considered are Central California Yosemite Airport and Merced County Yosemite Airport.
Excuse me, but doesn't the biggest airport in Central California -- the one in Fresno -- operate under the grandiose banner of Fresno Yosemite International Airport?
I understand why the supervisors are contemplating a name change. They've been told by by industry experts that Castle Airport needs a more recognizeable name to realize the economic potential of its former Air Force base runways.
Continue reading "All Yosemite, all the time" »
Fresno Unified teachers have complained for years during contract talks and in letters to the editor about getting a pittance from the district for classroom supplies.
The typical complaint sounds something like this: "I have to pay for paper and pencils out of my pocket and meanwhile the district is hiring yet another administrator. I only get $200 a year for my classroom."
Late Monday afternoon, district spokeswoman Susan Bedi told me that Superintendent Michael Hanson wants to raise the yearly classroom supply budget for each elementary school teacher from the current formula of $15.10 per student.
Continue reading "FUSD: Teachers will get more money for classrooms " »
Former Fresno Unified Superintendent Jerry Rosander e-mailed this letter today in response to my Sept. 16 column calling for the ouster of Fresno Teachers Association President Larry Moore:
Continue reading "No winners if teachers strike: Rosander" »
I guess I got under Fresno Teachers Association President Larry Moore's skin with my Sept. 16 column. Here's his version of events involving the union's stalled contract talks with Fresno Unified and his attack on three district trustees:
Continue reading "Teachers union boss responds to column" »
At lunch the other day, I mentioned to several of my younger colleagues that the MoviePlex cable channel is showing a well-done, warts-and-all, Sam Peckinpah documentary.
Their reply: Sam Who?
I explained that Sam Peckingpah was the great movie director who made the classic "The Wild Bunch" and other westerns like "Ride the High Country," "Junior Bonner," "Major Dundee" and "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid."
And that he was raised in Fresno.
Continue reading "Peckinpah on MoviePlex" »
Paraphrasing the sign-off of television's old "Naked City" police drama, there are 500,000 sprinkler stories in Fresno.
I wrote one of them Aug. 23.
And you shared yours, along with some tips, in return.
Continue reading "You bring the pipe, I'll dig the hole" »
I've offered up three editions of the Completely Unofficial But Absolutely Essential Rules to Valley Living ithe past five years, the latest in my Aug. 19 column. The rules, as the joke goes, are intended to help newcomers blend into Valley life and shed light on local politics and lifestyles.
Now it's time to for you to join the party by posting your rules. The funnier the better.
Here are suggestions phoned in by readers to start things off. Sadly, they're accurate portrayals of some of our worst behaviors.
Continue reading "Add your rules for Valley living" »
Paul Shigley, editor of the California Planning and Development Report, is no fan of downtown Fresno. In fact, he says ours is the worst of the Golden State's big cities.
You can read his rankings here.
It's hard to argue against him when you compare Fresno's downtown -- which rolls up the sidewalks at 5 p.m. weekdays and is closed on weekends -- against the excitement and attractions in San Diego, San Francisco and even Long Beach.
While other cities rebuild and enhance their downtowns, Fresno just keeps talking and planning -- and patting itself on the back for putting up government buildings. The buildings are nice to look at, and they're better than nothing, but the fact city leaders believe government offices represent progress suggests they're clueless -- or really don't care about downtown.
Continue reading "Downtown Fresno is state's worst: Planning expert" »
My column "Slaying says gang problems unsolved" brought this reply from a reader in Dallas, Texas about how middle schools promote achievement and get students thinking about their futures.
Here it is:
Continue reading "Dallas KOs gangs by keeping kids in school" »
The latest issue of Vanity Fair features a piece from the late David Halberstam dissecting attempts by President Bush's inner circle to potray the president as the second coming of Harry Truman.
America lost a giant of journalism when Halberstam died in a car crash in April. Here is his analysis of Bush's attempt to rewrite history and his handling of the war in Iraq.
Now that it has had time to think about the Lindy Vivas' verdict, Fresno State no longer is venting at the jury and the media -- although it plans to appeal the $5.85 million award. Here is a statement issued by Fresno State President John Welty Tuesday evening:
Continue reading "Vivas update: on second thought . . ." »
State Senator Dean Florez says he is concerned about "unconscionable" and "discriminatory" acts taking place at Fresno State during John Welty's tenure as president. Here is the letter he sent Welty on Tuesday:
Continue reading "Florez calls Welty on the carpet" »
Fresno State has to do something while it ponders how to challenge the $5.85 million judgment a Fresno jury awarded former volleyball coach Lindy Vivas, so it is attacking the media.
Here is the complete statement issued by the school following the jury's decision:
Continue reading "Shoot the messenger, ignore the problem" »
Can you guess the first two items on today's agenda for California State University trustees at their meeting in Long Beach?
Here's a hint: both are scheduled for closed session, away from the public's prying eyes and ears.
Continue reading "Timing is everything" »
My April 22 column about plans to build two mega-dairies near Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park sparked wide-ranging opinion. Here is a sampling:
Good Morning,
It's very [astute] of you to notice that the advertising campaign for California Cheese portrays a pleasant and unrealistic depiction of anthropomorphized dairy cows. Old Betsy has been transformed into the hip Janice and Diane Sisterhood. This showcases an alarming trend in advertising to sell products with sex, good feelings, and pandering to a person's desires for youth and well being. Why can't we go back to the good old days of the traveling medicine show when they only claimed that their product "cures what ails you".
Continue reading "Allensworth column sparks reaction" »
 These are pictures taken by the High Sierra Volunteer Trail Crew of marijuana sites in the Sierra National Forest. They were provided by trail crew founder Shane Krogen of Fresno. Volunteers do all the pot-camp cleanup because the Sierra National Forest lacks funding from Congress for restoration. Right now, there are about 200 sites in the area between Oakhurst and Balch Camp that need cleaning, Krogen says.
The volunteers repair and improve Sierra trails May through September and clean up pot farms October through March. The crews have about 500 volunteers, most from California but some from as far away as the Midwest. Crew workers learn hiking and high-country techniques whle helping the Sierra. Details are available at www.trailcrew.org.
This is the link to my column about the marijuana garbage pits spoiling the Sierra.
Continue reading "Sierra pot farms remains" »
I start off my March 15 column by asking, which states are smaller in territory and which states have fewer people than Fresno County?
Then I say you might win a bar bet by knowing the answers. To win that bet you're going to need the numbers. Here they are:
Continue reading "How Fresno County stacks up" »
A reader challenges my contention that Fresno's music scene is better than ever:.
"Really enjoyed your column today. Had to be a piece by Mayhew back in 2000 when I last saw "Crimson Castle" in print:-)
"But gosh Bill, in what century were the 70's you grew up in? Fresno being mainly a stop for bands on the way up/way down? A major touring act being big news in Fresno 'back then?'
Continue reading "E-Mail of the Day: Fresno's Golden Age of Rock" »
The Clovis Chamber of Commerce has company.
It has been joined by the Fresno Chamber of Commerce in opposing the 45-acre Campus Pointe project across from the Save Mart Center at California State University, Fresno.
The environmental impact report on Ed Kashian's project likely will be approved in Long Beach at a two-day meeting of the CSU Board of Trustees beginning Tuesday.
At least one of the trustees will have to recuse himself from the discussion and voting: Moctesuma Esparza. He is chief executive of Maya Cinema, which has agreed to operate a 14-screen theater at Campus Pointe.
Here is what the Fresno chamber -- not known for ruffling the feathers of powerful institutions such as Fresno State -- has to say:
Continue reading "Fresno Chamber opposes Campus Pointe" »
My March 4 column about the rocky relationship between the Fresno Unified school board and Superintendent Michael Hanson inspired cheers and catcalls.
Here are the contenders for E-Mail of The Day:
Continue reading "E-Mail of the Day: Hanson deserves support" »
Jim Daggs was Googling "Royal Prime Rib House in Fresno" and guess what came up?
This piece on the Portland (Ore.) Mercury Web site by a former Fresnan named Scott Moore.
"By every conceivable measure, Fresno, CA is a royal craphole," Moore says.
Continue reading "A fine Fresno rant spoiled" »
My job is to call them as I see them.
That's why I can write a column criticizing Fresno State for accepting $10 million from a casino operator for a library expansion and then turn around and praise the school for attracting a $2 million scholarship endowment from Boeing that will benefit the College of Engineering.
Continue reading "E-Mail of the Day: Where Will Boeing Gift Wind Up?" »
The first e-mail was simple enough. Howard McNair, the athletic director at Roosevelt High, was looking for alumni to become involved with the school's new TR Foundation, named after the original Rough Rider, the 26th president of the United States, Teddy Roosevelt.
Wrote McNair: " We are attempting to contact alumni for our first TR Foundation Dinner. The dinner will be April 21st, 2007 at the Sportsman Club. Can you help us contact alumni? We are seeking alumni to help in our TR Foundation. Contact Howard McNair at 253-5290 or e-mail hxmcnai@fresno.k12.ca.us. We need alumni to call or e-mail."
Now, the rest of the story.
Continue reading "New vision for Roosevelt" »
It's finally official: Fresno and Mayor Alan Autry have signed on to the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, joining 406 other cities with populations totaling 59 million.
I wrote about Fresno's absence in January and how the issue had been knocked around Autry's office like a ping-pong ball. During an interview about the issue, Autry conceded that he was trying to have it both ways -- against global warming and an attempt to do something about it.The mayor also said that he was willing to revisit the issue, and City Manager Andy Souza later said that Autry would endorse the agreement.
Continue reading "Fresno Joins Climate Protection Effort" »
A majority of readers responding to my Feb. 22 column agreed with my call for an end to Fat Tuesday activiities in the Tower District. But one reader wants me to pack up and leave the Tower District. Here is his take:
"Not sure how you can come up with this conclusion. The man in question, the shooter, as you state may not have even been in the Tower before 11 p.m.or for that matter even knew anything was going on. Nobody or business advertised for this night -- only for Sunday parade.
Continue reading "E-Mail of the Day: McEwen, move north" »
Let's have a shout-out for the Friends of Fresno State Wresting, a volunteer group that is trying to get the sport reinstated at the university.
I doubt Athletic Director Thomas Boeh imagined the sustatined uproar he would incite when he dropped wrestling last August -- after an athletic department budget that included wrestling had been approved and signed by Fresno State President John Welty.
Continue reading "Dial 'W' for Wrestling" »
Bear with me, readers, as I try to turn my blog into something worthwhile.
My latest idea is to post the best-email of the day. And here it is:
Dear Mr. McEwen,
I don't know who else to address this to, so "tag - you're it."
Continue reading "E-mail of the day: Soldiers face neglect" »
People involved with the lofts conversion of the old Security Pacific Bank Building on the Fulton Mall say that I blew it when I didn't mention the project in my column Feb. 15 on the need for more downtown housing.
Here is what they had to say in e-mails sent Friday:
Continue reading "Fresno Pacific Towers" »
We're not the only ones wondering about the viability of the $4.5 million PGA Tour golf tournament scheduled for the yet-to-be-completed Running Horse course in October.
Golf World magazine is asking questions and recycling stale Fresno jokes in the article "Running on Empty" at its Web site.
Flame Mail
Dear Mr. McEwen,
I am the University Librarian at Fresno State, a position I am relinquishing tomorrow due to retirement. I have worked with President Welty since he came here many years ago and am writing to say that your column today on him is grotesquely distorted and unfair, quite apart from you stretching a thin joke to the point of invisibility.
I know very little, and care less, about athletics, so I cannot comment on those comments of yours that pertain to them. However, I am very familiar with academics on this campus and in particular with the university's library. I have a specific comment and a general observation.
Continue reading "FAN TO FLAME: Sticking up for Welty" »
I haven't investigated the pros and cons of city ownership of the Gateway Ice Center in west-central Fresno, but the issue has gotten big play recently on ABC30.
At least one Bee reader -- his grandson plays ice hockey -- is convinced city should step in. Here are his arguments:
Continue reading "Reader wants city to save ice rink" »
Fan Mail:
Hi Bill,
I'm an avid reader, and you're column is spot-on most of the time. In regard to your Jan. 25 column, here's something for you to grade: County recycling -- a big "F."
First, a three-month transition with the haulers took over 15 months, during which we had no recycling services. 15 months! My son and I took all of our recycling to my office every week. It was a real pain, but we felt it was our responsibility. But, most of our neighbors are 65+ and I know most of them could not do the same thing.
Continue reading "FAN TO FLAME: An "F" for county recycling" »
I've started grading the Fresno County Board of Supervisors. The decision to issue a yearly report card -- the first will be issued in January 2008 -- was their vote to each hire an analyst at an annual salary of up to $71,968 annually.
Some people think this is a colossal waste of money. I disagree. This is a big county with nearly one million people. The analysts should help the five supervisors and their aides keep pace with issues and constituent demands.
Continue reading "First grade is in, and it's a "C"" »
FAN MAIL:
I was pleased to read in your column this morning that Nick Yovino is recovering.
I don't know if you've ever worked with Nick. He would make a great Secretary of State or or Secretary General of the United Nations.
Continue reading "FAN TO FLAME: Yes on Yovino, no on air column" »
Judging by my e-mail, readers liked my Jan. 11th column on Fresno State's shameless decision to put the name of a casino operator (Table Mountain Rancheria) on its new library tower in exchange for $10 million -- none of which will be used for scholarships.
Readers also shared the latest campus gossip: President John Welty will move int |
Jeff Eben's mayoral mailer
