The following is the April 8 edition of the Abridged by PBS KVIE Yolo County email newsletter, by reporter Daniel Hennessy and the team at Yolo Local. Want it sent directly to your inbox? Sign up here.
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Hey, it’s Daniel! Let’s dive in.
A handful of times, I’ve seen the council chambers at Davis City Hall packed to the gills. When there’s a big-ticket item on the agenda, all of the seats are taken, standing space along the walls is hard to come by and even the seats in the hallway are occupied.
Last night was not one of those nights.
After proclamations and public comment were done, the chamber emptied and I was one of a handful of onlookers who stuck around for the city’s mid-year budget update.
What we heard painted a sobering picture of the city’s fiscal situation, with a structural budget deficit in the general fund and declining reserves.
Also this week, we’re bringing you a story from Abridged’s Senior Food Editor Benjy Egel about where to eat before A’s and River Cats games. I’m diligently working my way through the list.
And speaking of budgets, we’re also including a story written by Felicia Alvarez that shows that Davis isn’t alone in its financial woes.
We’ve teamed up with Yolo Local, a civic media initiative of Davis Media Access, to bring you this weekly newsletter. Here’s what you need to know today:
STORY OF THE WEEK
Davis contends with another tough budget. ‘Significant cuts … may be unavoidable’
“There’s not a lot of good news here, but this is where we are,” said Mayor Donna Neville.
BY DANIEL HENNESSY | dhennessy@kvie.org
In short: Davis is facing a structural deficit in its general fund and declining reserves. At a presentation to City Council on Tuesday, staff identified low development impact fees and lagging cannabis tax revenues as contributing factors.
A bit more: More discussions will be happening in May and June as the city develops this year’s budget.
NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Where to eat before Athletics, Sacramento River Cats games this season
For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash
A surprising roadside display of wildflowers bloom in a valley just north of Yolo County
Thank you for reading Abridged. We are here and our stories are free because people like you donate to PBS KVIE to keep our Yolo County strong. Join in — start donating at $10/month to keep it coming.
DISPATCHES FROM THE FARM
Agriculture is a central part of life in Yolo County, so I’ll be checking in each week with a farmer, rancher or other industry player for the latest ag updates. What are the people who help produce our food thinking about?
This week, Rachael Long in Zamora is keeping us in the loop:
- Canals across the county are filling with water, a sure marker of spring as farmers start to irrigate their crops.
- On Rachael’s farm, they are getting ready to plant processing tomatoes. Contracts for the lucrative crop are down this year, so they feel lucky to have one to support farm income. Part of Rachael’s farm floods in wet years, so they can’t grow higher value tree crops and commodity prices for corn, wheat and safflower are low.
- Rachael’s neighbor just finished planting sunflowers for the hybrid seed. The seed is exported around the world for its use in sunflower oil, a market that has declined precipitously in recent years. Yolo County used to grow 75,000 acres of hybrid sunflower seed, most of which went to Ukraine and Russia. Since the war began, that market has all but disappeared.
- Farmers and ranchers countywide are still trying to figure out how the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act will affect them. On Rachael’s farm, the new parcel tax to support groundwater modeling programs and planning will add $10 per acre on the property tax bill.
- Most beekeepers have moved their hives from the almond orchards and taken them to the coast or Sierra foothills where there a plenty of wildflowers for the bees to visit.
- Hedgerow Farms grows wildflower seeds, and their lupine fields are in bloom.
HEARING FROM YOU
The best way to learn about a place is to listen to the people who know and love it. Each week, we’ll feature a quote or tip from a community member that captures a slice of life in our county. Write to me with something interesting or ask a question about Yolo County!
This week, Carol Parker asked us a question about local cooling centers.
“In Yolo County we don’t have indoor malls like they do in some areas where people tend to congregate if they don’t have air conditioning. The mall in Woodland used to be a place people would bring their kids to play on hot days (they used to have a play area in the center of the mall). I understand that there are some indoor play places (I think in Vacaville) but they charge a fee. Are there any indoor places where people can take children for free in very hot weather besides the public library?”
Thanks for the question, Carol! We’ll work on finding an answer. If you have tips for Carol, email me.
UPCOMING MEETINGS & EVENTS
It can be hard to keep up with local government and community events, so we’ll continuously feature a few below. Have something you think we should highlight? Email me.
- Yolo County is hosting a free gardening class in Woodland to help people get ready for spring planting. Treva Valentine, UC master gardener, will be teaching on Saturday, April 25 from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Hanna and Herbert Bauer Memorial Community Garden in Woodland. More information about the garden can be found here.
- Yolo County is offering a free bicycle safety class in Woodland on April 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will be held at 25 North Cottonwood Street, and more information can be found here.
BEFORE I GO,
Thanks for coming back (and signing up) for this newsletter. Remember: I’m accountable to you. If you read a story and think there’s an angle I’m missing, I want to hear about it! Please reach out with your feedback and know that I take it seriously.
See you next week!
Daniel Hennessy joins Abridged from the California Local News Fellowship. He’s a reporter covering Yolo County.