KJUG series coming to Porterville

Will begin at the Porterville Fair

Porterville has been such a popular place for the KJUG free concert series, the radio station has added the Porterville Fair to its upcoming summer series.

At its meeting on Tuesday, the Porterville City Council also approved an action for the city again to serve as a sponsor of the concert series. The council also took the action to reschedule its meetings for June 6 and June 20 so the meetings won’t conflict with the concerts.

The KJUG concert series will again be held at Centennial Park with concerts beginning at 6:30 p.m. on May 26, June 7 and June 21. The council normally meets the first and third Tuesdays of the month and would have met on June 7 and June 21 but moved the meetings to Monday, June 6 and Monday, June 20.

City Manager John Lollis reported it would have been difficult for city staff to coordinate the concerts and council meetings that would have been held across the street at City Hall at the same time.

Lollis said it also wasn’t possible to move the concert dates as KJUG also has other acts coming to other cities as part of its series, plus the acts coming to Porterville are more notable and it wouldn’t have been possible for those acts to change their dates as well.

“It’s been showed it’s been that will received in the Porterville area,” said Lollis about the concert series.

Lollis described the acts coming to Centennial Park as acts with “a little

higher standing” who have songs on the charts.

That’s the case with the Porterville Fair which will run May 1115. Those with their paid admission who attend the fair on Thursday, May 12 will have the chance to hear two up and coming country artists in a free concert presented by KJUG.

Jackson Dean and Callista Clark will perform in the concert, beginning at 7:30 p.m. KJUG described them as “two of the most exciting new artists in country music.”

Dean is know for his song “Don’t Come Lookin’” which has been on the country charts and Clark is known for her song “It’s Cause I Am” which has also been on the country charts.

Cost of the city’s sponsorship of the series at Centennial Park is $6,750 and will be funded by the council’s community promotions account. HOROWITZ AND TATE

David Horowitz, owner of Horowitz Jewelery in downtown Porterville, responded to council member Lawana Tate’s comment “I can’t eat jewelry” at the April 19 council meeting in regards to the city vaccination incentive program. Horowitz again spoke during oral communications at the beginning of the meeting.

Horowitz continued to complain the vaccination program was unfair, saying many businesses, including his own, didn’t benefit from the program. In the program people were given $100 gift cards to Porterville business for being vaccinated. The program was funded by the City of Porterville through American Rescue Plan funds it received.

In making her comment Tate said the emphasis of the program was providing food for people in need. Horowitz began by thanking Tate for making the comment “you can’t eat diamonds.”

He also pointed out you can’t eat tacos, guns, uniforms, haircuts and fingernail polish. But he said businesses offering those services benefitted from the program. “All those people received money,” Horowitz said.

He added Chingons Tacos, didn’t benefit from the program. “You can eat tacos,” Horowitz said. He added Chingons “took money to your hospital to feed your nurses.

Horowitz added his point was “how unfair the distribution of the money was. The issue wasn’t the money. The issue was fairness.”

Horowitz continued to take exception two grocery stores, Town and Country Market and Grocery Outlet, received a bulk of the ARP funds even though they didn’t have to shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic while smaller markets that sold food didn’t receive any aid.

In her response during oral communications at the end of the meeting, Tate referred to Horowitz as “my friend who owns the jewelry store.”

“He’s been my friend for many many years,” said Tate, who has said she shops at Horowitz’s business. “I get David.”

Tate said city staff based on how they distributed the funds on recommendations from the community. “It was that simple,” she said.

She added as far as Town and Country and Grocery Outlet receiving a great deal of funds, “They were the ones that were always requested” by the community.

Tate added the program increased vaccinations in the community. “Obviously the program worked,” she said. “I feel real good about what we did. All of the money went back entirely into our community.”

MEISTER PRAISES STOWE

City Council candidate Greg Meister praised the man he could replace during oral communications on Tuesday. Meister is running to represent District II on the council. Stowe, who represents District II, said he’s not running for reelection in the November election.

“That kind of leadership is exactly what we need in this city,” said Meister about Stowe. “You don’t punch down to your constituents. You don’t belittle people. You lead by example. I thank you and respect you for that.”

OTHER BUSINESS

One consent calendar item was pulled from the consent calendar on Tuesday. Caltrans was set to enter into an agreement to install a sign at the Westwood roundabout on Highway 190 as part of the Mighty 190 Committee’s and city’s effort to promote tourism in the area. But the Caltrans has asked for more time for a further legal review of the sign installation.

All of the other consent calendar items were approved. A review of the major consent calendar items approved can be found in Saturday’s edition of The Recorder or at the following link:

https://www.recorderonline.com/news/temporary-libraryproceeding-to-opening/https://www.recorderonline.com/news/temporary-libraryproceeding-to-opening/article_30807c18-c7fa11ec-ac49-434dcc3fe0f3.article_30807c18-c7fa11ec-ac49-434dcc3fe0f3.html

The council also approved a policy covering how those are to be honored at the Fallen Heroes Memorial Wall at Fallen Heroes Memorial Park. The item was originally a consent calendar item but council member Kellie Carrillo had the item pulled so it could be put on the agenda as a scheduled matter so the council could more thoroughly review the police.

Carrillo serves on the Military Banner Committee that came up with the policy. The policy states those to be honored on the wall are military personnel who have died in active service, foreign or domestic, and law enforcement officers, firefighters or emergency medical technicians who died in the line of duty.

Those to be honored are those who were killed in action during military or public service safety service on or after 9/11, September 11, 2001. Honorees must have also lived within the Porterville Unified School District boundary.

Those now honored on the wall are Cpl. Brett W. Land, Pfc. Alejandro J. Pardo, Porterville Fire Captain Ramon “Raymond” Figueroa and Firefighter Patrick Jones.