Tehachapi's Online Community News & Entertainment Guide
Tehachapi's Online Community News & Entertainment Guide
Sorted by date Results 1203 - 1227 of 1547
On March 4, the Tehachapi City Council heard attorney Jesse Maddox of the firm Liebert Cassidy Whitmore report on their findings following an investigation of seven different complaints from a number of current and former city employees against Councilman Kenneth Hetge. The complaints listed were retaliation, intimidation, unprofessionalism, undermining the police chief and both gender and ethnicity harassment. The earliest complaint was dated April 2018. The City of Tehachapi belongs to a...
At the Feb. 26 meeting of the Kern County Board of Supervisors, I introduced a resolution calling on the California High Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) to abandon the High Speed Rail (HSR) project in its entirety. On March 12 the Supervisors voted four-to-one passing this resolution. At its best, this so-called "bullet train" was nothing more than a pie-in-the-sky idea sold to the California voters in 2008 as a way to produce more jobs, cleaner air, less congestion, etc. at a "modest" $9 billion...
At the March 6 Greater Tehachapi Economic Development Council, Aaron Falk, representative for Congressman Kevin McCarthy read a letter the congressman and five other members of Congress sent to President Trump on Feb. 28 recommending Kern County as the perfect place to base the new Space Development Agency. The letter stated that Edwards Air Force Base and Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and the extensive areas of restricted air space of Kern County are well-equipped to be the headquarters...
Legendary radio broadcaster Paul Harvey had a well-known feature that was heard by millions of Americans on radio stations across the country each week, it was called "The Rest of the Story." His features included more information on stories that were reported in the news media and throughout history. "The Rest of the Story" was Harvey's chance to tell everyone what really happened. It's been grossly-underreported over the last few weeks about what is actually being prioritized by the City of Te...
Last month, Cristin Lassen was appointed to the Tehachapi Valley Recreation & Park District Board by the Tehachapi City Council. The March 12 TVRPD Board meeting was Lassen's first meeting as a member of that Board. Michael Biglay of Sand Canyon argued that as far as he knew, the two County appointed members of the Board had not been reappointed when their term expired so there was no quorum. Chairman Laura Lynne Wyatt assured him that he could check the minutes of the February Kern County...
Sally Periman Lawrence and Andrew Atkins from Wood Family Funeral Home spoke to Tehachapi Rotary on March 6 about the importance of making your final wishes known to your loved ones before they are ever needed. Lawrence emphasized that having a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care and Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) were also a planning must. She reminded everyone how the stress of losing a loved one can cloud one's memory making it difficult to even remember the...
I had heard multiple comments over the last few months that it doesn't snow in Tehachapi "like it used to" or like "when I was a kid." I know my former classmate Jon Hammond even wrote about that sentiment recently as well. Thanks Jon, it seems like it hasn't stopped snowing since. The recent series of snow storms added to the charm of Tehachapi and brought back those memories of "real" snow. Not the one-inch icy varieties that became commonplace the last few years, but a real measurable snow...
This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor. If you were to receive a sizable inheritance, what should you do with it? This money could help you achieve some of your important financial goals – so you'll want to think carefully about your choices. Of course, everyone's needs are different, so there's no one "right" way to handle a large lump sum. But here are a few suggestions that may be useful: Pay off some debts. Depending on the size of y...
There's no doubt Tehachapi's parks are a major asset to the community. From quality of life enhancement to health benefits, our beautiful parks make life in the mountains more complete. For our team at Tehachapi Valley Recreation & Park District, keeping them safe and thriving is our passion. We are working on a list of repairs and rejuvenation projects for the 116-acres of park land and the five facilities under our care. But we need your help. Graffiti and vandalism cost us greatly. We spend t...
New Tea Donuts owner expands operation to Tehachapi - Feb. 19. The donut business is a family affair for new Tea Donuts owner Chantha Sokny Lay. Her family has owned and operated Foster's Donuts in Bakersfield for 15 years and now she's taking a swing at the donut world in Tehachapi. Sokny Lay is another example of a successful business owner in Bakersfield expanding their interests into the Tehachapi market. The Chester and Columbus Foster's Donuts being her education in the business, and now...
Beginning in February, City Manager Greg Garrett began a tour of civic organizations, presenting the City's "2018 Annual Review: Moments that Mattered." Although his initial audio/visual program at the Greater Tehachapi Economic Development Council encountered Wi-Fi problems, his second presentation to the Tehachapi Rotary Club on Feb. 7 went off without a hitch. The presentation began with a video welcome by Mayor Susan Wiggins. Garrett introduced a video of each department head who in turn...
Salvation Army Director Sandy Chavez appeared at the Feb. 12 TUSD School Board meeting to express her appreciation for the partnership the Salvation Army shared with the school district. She thanked them for the food donations for their pantry and coats from the elementary school Lost & Founds. The Salvation Army was able to provide 350 families with Thanksgiving dinner and Chavez said that they could not have done that without the school district. Superintendent Kaminski said it was reciprocal...
On Feb. 12 during his “State of the State” address, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a scaled-back effort for the California High Speed Rail project. As initially proposed, the City of Tehachapi was to be impacted by the rail line to connect Northern and Southern California. Although not considered for a stop, the rail project was proposed to run through the Capital Hills area, across Highway 58 and through Steuber and Tehachapi Willow Springs Roads. The new focus for the project fro...
Sage Ranch may be the largest planned community ever presented to the Tehachapi Planning Commission but, by the end of the presentation, the commission found that Tehachapi resident Stuart Natch and JZMK Partners had done their homework and presented a well thought out project that does fit within the City's General Plan for growth. In this initial presentation, the Planning Commission was only approving the preliminary plan which is strictly conceptual and allows them to go on to the next step...
The City of Tehachapi has joined several other stakeholders throughout Kern County in assisting the Kern Economic Development Corporation with a new talent, innovation and entrepreneurship endeavor. The end goals are to create a support structure for upstart businesses in Kern County and help them grow into major economic contributors in our area. At the kickoff meeting, Tehachapi representatives suggested one thing when it came to the 10-year goals for this organization, sustainability. What...
Pairing food and wine is an art. Our local chef Mano Lujan, owner of Red House BBQ, is a master at the art. He proved it once again at the Rotary Wine Pairing Dinner. Wine in California is plentiful, and I feel no hesitance in saying that it is mostly excellent. A group of 120 guests mixed, mingled and experienced a collection of wonderful, full, tasty wines brought to us by Loren and Pam Hoffman, Wine Ambassadors for the Boisset Collection. The Rotary Club of Tehachapi wants to thank Mano,...
12 has arrived and as the City Manager I have the privilege of spending some time in the coming weeks bragging about the accomplishments over the last 12 months in our soon-to-be-released 2018 Annual Report. For those that aren't familiar, each year we release an annual report that recaps the accomplishments by our City in the previous year and spend late January and February presenting the multimedia version of the report as a guest speaker at various community gatherings, including the...
At the Jan. 22 City Council meeting, Charles White, representing Main Street Tehachapi, presented Mayor Susan Wiggins with a check for $5,000 to help fund the new Christmas decorations that adorned the downtown street lights during the holidays. The City had purchased the decorations last year with the assistance of donations from downtown businesses and civic organizations. White said that he wanted to take a minute to familiarize the new council members with Main Street Tehachapi's purpose...
Tax season is here and the IRS is now accepting both personal and business returns. If you didn't get a chance to do some planning last year to reduce your income tax liability there are still a few things you can do to minimize the amount you'll owe. There are a lot of changes for 2018 since the passing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The TCJA is the most comprehensive revision of the tax code in decades and one of the main changes that most people are aware of is the new higher standard...
Have you ever been stuck trying to think of a unique theme for an adult or children's party; or perhaps you just need more party space for your event? Picture Perfect Parties can help you with that. Although the Picture Perfect Parties Photo Booth has been seen around town for much of last year, they will be celebrating the Grand Opening of their party space located at 20601 Hwy. 202, Ste. A103 on Jan. 28. Everyone is invited from 4 to 6 p.m. to help them celebrate. The Greater Tehachapi...
At their December Board meeting, Tehachapi Valley Recreation and Park District was asked to put a discussion of how Board members are chosen on the January agenda. The request was made by a group of Sand Canyon residents spearheaded by Michael and April Biglay, Dr. Beverly Billingsley and the group that was actively opposing Measure R on the November ballot. Historically all members of the TVRPD Board are appointed, two by the Tehachapi City Council and three by the Kern County Board of Supervis...
Before any other business was transacted at the Jan. 7 City Council meeting, new council member Joan Pogon-Cord was sworn in by City Clerk Tori Marsh. Pogon-Cord had been out of town at the time of the Dec. 17, 2018 meeting. That done, Councilman Kenneth Hetge nominated Mayor Pro Tem Susan Wiggins to be the next mayor. She was unanimously elected. Councilman Mike Davies nominated Phil Smith as mayor pro tem and he also was unanimously elected. Kim Nixon was appointed to complete the Planning...
I'm sure you share the pride I feel to live and work in Kern County. Our home is a special place! As we all begin 2019, I look forward to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Here are some of the highlights that the Board will tackle in the coming year: We are in the third year of our four-year plan to eliminate the county's General Fund structural budget deficit, originally pegged at $44.5 million, due to a drop in oil prices and steep increases in county employee pension costs....
Before any other business was transacted at the Jan. 7 City Council meeting, new council member Joan Pogon-Cord was sworn in by City Clerk Tori Marsh. Pogon-Cord had been out of town at the time of the Dec. 17, 2018 meeting. That done, Councilman Kenneth Hetge nominated Mayor Pro Tem Susan Wiggins to be the next mayor. She was unanimously elected. Councilman Mike Davies nominated Phil Smith as mayor pro tem and he also was unanimously elected. Kim Nixon was appointed to complete the Planning...
Look for construction to begin on a new Tehachapi hotel in the coming months. At their Jan. 14 meeting, the Tehachapi Planning Commission approved the architectural design, site plan and the environmental impact report for the TownePlace Suites by Marriott. The three story, 82 room hotel will be located on the southeast corner of Magellan Drive between Capital Hills Parkway and Athens Street. The project was originally submitted to the Commission by Tehachapi Lodging, LLC of Bakersfield at...
