Volume 14 Issue 7 riovistabeacon.com 925.550.7811 riovistabeacon@gmail.com February 16th

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WESTERN RAILWAY MU-SEUM ANNOUNCES TRAIN NAMING CONTEST

The Western Railway Museum is launching a new train this April that combines wild-flower watching with locally grown Suisun Valley wine, and they need the public’s

help to decide what to call it.

In the “Name That Train” contest, people vote for one of twelve choices and can also suggest a name for a chance to win 2 free tickets on the new train. Voting is open now through February 18, 2011 on the Museum’s website:www.wrm.org. The yet-to-be-named train will depart at 5pm on Saturdays in April to takeadvantage of the beauti-ful late-afternoon light. It will feature samples of outstanding local wines provided by members of the Suisun Valley Wine Co-Op. This new train is in ad-dition to the classic Scenic Limited wildflowertrains that are scheduled to

run on Wednesdays, Satur-days and Sundays inApril at 11am, 12:30pm, and 2pm. Both trains take visi-tors 5 miles down the old Sacramento Northernright-of-way. The trip lasts about an hour and passen-gers catch views of thenative wildflowers that cover the hillsides and fields. Museum docents areon board to point out what-ever happens to be bloom-ing along the way such aspoppies, goldfields, brass buttons, butter and eggs, and sheep’s sorrel.

For more information, visit the Museum’s website at www.wrm.org or call(707) 374-2978.

Ms. Adu-Poku, who began her work here in November, brings a rich background of experience and training as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Mas-ter’s of Social Work from San

Francisco State University and over 19 years experience working with children and families in Child Welfare at San Francisco Human Servic-es Agency. A San Francisco native, Ms Adu-Poku has extensive experience work-

ing in diverse situations with the multitude of resources needed to help families and children in crisis. Her work has included collaboration with doctors and hospitals, the legal system, and police to handle issues such as child abuse and neglect, substance abuse, forensic interviewing, teen issues, family interven-tions and family reconcilia-tion. This allows her to bring a wealth of contacts and networking with San Fran-cisco and Bay Area resources to the issues faced by families here in the Delta. In addition to her clinical experience, Ms. Adu-Poku brings experience as a trainer and mentor that provides her with the back-ground to oversee the post-graduate interns at the CARE Counseling Center.

Beyond her profes-sional qualifications is the concern and commitment that Ms. Adu-Poku brings to her work. When asked what she likes most about her job, she replied, “I enjoy the ability to connect with people and to help them overcome barri-ers.” She calls her primary technique “D and R,” that is treating every person with Dignity and Respect which she has found leads to success even within the most difficult situations. As for the most

RIO VISTA CARE WELCOMES NEW CLINICAL DIRECTOR QUEEN ADU-POKU

Ms. Queen Adu-Poku, LSCW has joined Rio Vista CARE in the role of Clinical Director. Executive Direc-tor, Araminta Blackwelder announced,

“Rio Vista CARE staff is so pleased to welcome our new Clinical Director, Queen Adu-Poku. In addition to her wealth of professional experience working with children and families, Queen brings a warm and joyful spirit to our non-profit agency. She has been welcomed in the local schools and is looking for-ward to becoming acquainted with our community at large.”

appealing aspect of working with Rio Vista CARE, Ms. Adu-Poku says, “I am excited because in this local organiza-tion, the clients come in the door because they see CARE as a place to receive help rather than being required to come in through the legal system. That means they have already overcome the first barrier to their success: They have taken the step to seek help. It is exciting that this community has an orga-nization that extends help and hope when it is most needed.”

Rio Vista CARE, founded in 1985, provides mental health and substance abuse counseling as well as crisis intervention for children, adults, couples and families. Since 1985, CARE therapists have served thousands of clients. CARE provides the community with professional counseling and therapeutic interventions to address and improve the qual-ity of life for individuals and families. The Family Re-source Center assists families with personal and practical ways to help with day-to-day issues through direct services and referrals. Donations to support the important work of this organization may be sent to: Rio Vista CARE, 125 Sacra-mento Street, Rio Vista, CA 94571.

Katie Schultz has been selected to receive the Soroptimist of Rio Vista Violet Richardson Award. The award, named for the founder of Soroptimist, annually recognizes a young woman for outstanding community service. As the club-level recipient, Katie becomes eligible for an addi-

tional cash awards to her and a chosen charity, presented at the regional Soroptimist level. The award was presented at the Janu-ary 27 Soroptimist meeting by Educational Services Committee Co-Chair Constance Boulware. A Rio Vista High School Se-nior, Katie is the daughter of “Dr.

Ted” and Kristi Schultz. Her brother Nick attends Humboldt State, and sister Carli is a fresh-man at RVHS. Katie’s award citation recog-nizes her service in a multitude of activities. At RVHS, Katie is a member of the National Honor Society, and works with that organization on an annual beach cleanup. As a member of Inter-act, she participated in clothing and Christmas gift drives, and the “Wreaths Across America” proj-ect to place wreaths on the graves of veterans each December. She is Secretary of the Associated Student Body, and through that organiza-tion was involved in the “Pennies for Patients” project to raise money for hospitalized children. As President of AFS, she helped to found an annual Halloween Carnival for

children through the latter organi-zation. She plays both basketball and volleyball, has assisted in clinics in these sports for younger girls, and coached a middle school basketball team. Katie says that her favorite school subject is math. Next year she will attend college, and hopes to major in Accounting. She says that she volunteers because “it helps me grow as a person,” and “conveys how much I care about Rio Vista and all of the support the community has given me.”

KATIE SCHULTZ RECEIVES SOROPTIMIST AWARD

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

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I was forced to laugh out loud (LOL) at the letter of com-plaint submitted by Tea Party members, Barbara Kish and Caroline Barnett. In it, they objected to the responses of a man and woman who attended the last Tea Party meeting in Rio Vista. Kish and Barnett complained that these two individuals “disrupted” their peaceful meeting and were “disrespectful” to the speaker. Really? Aren’t Tea Party members the wild-eyed group who at-tended Town Hall Meetings in the summer of 2009 with the expressed intent of disrupting a peaceful gathering? Con-servative blogs even offered instructions on “How to dis-rupt the Town Hall Meetings” by not allowing the speaker to talk. “Shout them down” were the instructions.

The Tea Party was founded on radical rallies and uncivil behavior. And now, “all they ask” is to be treated with “re-spect” and “courtesy”. That’s a real knee-slapper.Were it not for the unruly his-tory of the Tea Party, I would agree with Kish and Barnett that civility is a good practice. However, in the case of their guest speaker, Peter Fried-man, a racists and bigot, I might make an exception and employ the Tea Party tech-nique of shouting him down. Ugly intolerance, as preached by Friedman and those like him, should be confronted at every opportunity. The Tea Party Patriots continue to expose their true colors, and they are not red, white, and blue.Al EatonRio Vista

The Rio Vista High School Booster Club would like to take this time to extend their thanks to all those who made our dinner/dance a com-plete success. To those who crafted our menu were Chief Danny Origel, thank you for the wonderful side dishes, Eddie Woodruff and Kirk Coughran for cooking the new york strips and Marsha Montgomery and her culinary class at the high school for the detectible desserts. It could not have been done without the kitchen crew Dana Lira, Suzanne Malta, Jane Cronin, Dylan Coughran, Jack and Hannah Cronin. My reverse raffle and everywhere person Bruce Vieira, thank you. Ally Stiles and the AFS kids for helping serve; sell raffle tickets and cleaning up, you did a great job! The RVHS floral design class did a beautiful job on center-pieces. To all those amazing people in our community and businesses that donated silent auction items; Emigh Livestock, Joe & Vanean Gates, Duncan & Julie Mc-Cormack, Hello My Name is Yogurt, Gary & Kim Esper-son, Nancy Tillisch, Greg & Rita Lucas, Delta Pharmacy, Rio Vista High School Floral

Design Class, Regina Rubier, Coughran Mechanical, Abel Chevrolet, Rio Vista Floral Design, Lira’s Welding and Laurie Deez. Thank you to Dancing Coyote for your donation of wine and Susan Dole for designing the tickets and posters and to D & S Press for donating and print-ing of the tickets and posters. To Lira’s Supermarket thank you for your ongoing sup-port!! The Booz Brothers put on another great show for us they called out the reverse raffle numbers and the auctioned off the $100 bill. Thank you to Tim Lucas for his large donation of that $100 bill. The Isleton-Rio Vista Club for the use of the Portuguese Hall and my security Tyler Wink and Mike Vosefski. The Primates provided great music for dancing! To Principal Vicky Turk thank you for your ongoing support of the Booster Club. Thank you to all who bought tickets and enjoyed a great night out you helped raise money for ongoing projects for the high school and for our kids.

Lenese Coughran,RVHSBooster Club

PROTECTING OUR FUTURE AND SER-VICES BY BEING BUDGET-SMARTUpdate from Solano County’s 5th District

While many other counties throughout California face combined billionsof dollars in pension and other debt that future genera-tions will beforced to pay, Solano County has made the tough and responsiblechoices over the past decade to ensure a measure of

fiscal sanity by minimizing borrowing. The wisdom of this course was reaf-firmedrecently when we got the good news that we’ve retained our high credit rating from Moody’s reporting service, which means continued savings on the cost of money.

In December, we made another series of cuts toward reduction of our remaining $18 million structural deficit. We achieved another $1.7 million this fiscal year in lay-offs and pay reductions from one quarter of our unionized county employees. I’d like to highlight out how our public safety professionals have stepped up in this time of economic troubles - our Deputy Sheriffs agreed to a new three-year contract that saves the county $1.6 million ($384K this fiscal year),and we obtained another $410 K this year from our Correc-tions officers/supervisors. That’s all after taking another $1.5 million by eliminating bonuses and many cost-of-living increases as well asreducing taxpayer retirement and health benefit contribu-tions for management. I be-lieve strongly that all leaders must make sacrifices,so I’ve personally reduced my compensation by over 10%, with an additional reduction to be triggered by a parallel give back from ourlargest union.

So, what’s next? We’ll continue to keep costs down while maintaining services. We’ll monitor state govern-ment actions closely as they work to close a near $30 billion deficit that will impact all of us. Protecting our Ag Economy

Solano County farmers and ranchers produced more than

$251 million in crops last year, maintaining their strong impact on our local economy,while suffering a near 15 per-cent drop over the previous year. Protecting this critical part of our economy requires making sure land remains available and affordable to produce crops and raise live-stock. The Williamson Act, a 40-year-old method of of-fering property tax breaks for productive farmland, has been an important tool for us inmaking sure we can protect that land. That was the basis of our recent decision to maintain 10-year contracts for farmers and ranchers rather than save a small amount at their expense. This wasn’t an easy decision, since the state’s constant financial woes have left us footing all but $18 (yes, $18) of the total bill. But once that farmland is gone, we won’t likely get it back, so it was the rightdecision to make. Highway 12 Improvements Continue

Significant improvements to Highway 12 continue to stay on schedule. State Route (SR) from Suisun City to Rio Vista continues to see improvements in travel safety as Caltrans moves forward on two specific projects. The main objective is to repair failed pavement, reinstall recent improvements, and ex-tend ground-in rumble strips to enhance safety along SR 12 from Scandia Road to Currie Road. The repaired pavement will improve the ride quality

for the motorists andimprove mobility in the cor-ridor. The 8-foot standard shoulders will provide refuge areas for emergency vehicles, while the road profile will provide drivers with stan-dard vertical stopping sight distance. Also, the project will provide exclusive turn pockets for making left-turns at the local intersections. All in all, it will mean a safer path of travel for drivers between Rio Vista and Suisun.Construction on this stretch of roadway began in January 2009

Successes We’ve preserved the Williamson Act in Solano County, and with it thousands of acres of rich agricultural land and open space... The Sheriff’s team made 78 arrests in their fight against illegal drugs,removing more than $750,000 worth from the streets, along with 49 weapons... We invested $6.7 million in road improvements and mainte-nance, and partnered with STA and the City of Fair-field to open the new North Connector 4-lane parkway. scheduled for completion in October 2011.

Join me for Office Hours

One of the things I enjoy most about this job is the diversity of the 5th District.

From the suburban neighbor-hoods of Vacaville and Suisunto the farms of the Dixon Ridge; the beauty of Rio Vista and the Delta and the rich history of the May Fair - our small part of California issomething to be proud of. That diversity means there are a lot of issues that we need to work on together. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to join me at one of my office hours sessions throughout thedistrict - let me know what you think is important, what you think we need to be work-ing on, or if there’s an issue I can help you with.

Contact Me, I’d like to hear from you!

Supervisor Mike ReaganUpcomingOffice Hours

DixonMarch 153:00 - 5:00 p.m.Solano Baking Co.,1160 Pitt School Rd.

Rio VistaFebruary 233:00 - 5:00 p.m.Shelby’s Coffee, 1000 Hwy. 12

Suisun CityFebruary 163:00 - 5:00 p.m.Starbucks,193 Sunset Ave.

VacavilleMarch 23:00 - 5:00 p.m.Starbucks,1031 Helen Power Dr

You may have heard that the Rio Vista Chapter of the Solano TaxpayersAssociation(RVTA) has qualified an initiative for the purpose of rolling backthe water and sewer rates . The letter is written to inform you of some of thereasons why this initiative was necessary.1. The city has enacted a fiscally irresponsible water/sewer user fee structure. When any fee increase is enacted by a gov-erning body, that body has

the responsibility to consider the balance between the ben-efit to the communityand the economic burden on the community, and no evi-dence exists that theeconomic burden was even considered. Furthermore, because the fees wereincreased so drastically, it should have been mandatory that low-incomeresidents should have some financial assistance , and there is no evidence thatthis was considered.2. The city has failed to sub-stantiate the necessity of any of the CapitalImprovement Projects(CIPS) which were included in the user fees. Statementssuch as “Engineers have determined that the collection lines need replaced orthat water lines needs replaced” are meaningless un-less concrete evidence issupplied to support their al-legations.3.Most of the CIPS are the result of additional demands on the existinginfrastructure which were the direct result of development projects or

anticipated development projects.; consequently the developers should berequired to pay their fair share of the costs of the projects. Again, there isno evidence that the city has even considered asking the developers to pay their

fair share.4. The two sewer treatment plants( yes we have two) are now and have beenoperated by contracting per-sonnel. I believe Veolia makes about 1.4 milliondollars to operate the two treatment plants.. I t is antici-pated thatconsiderable revenue could be saved if the treatment plants were operated bycity personnel.5. The sewer fees are arbi-trary. Originally the opera-tional costs of the twosystems was kept in one fund; the costs were not kept sepa-rate. Consequently,when they instituted the two fee system, they really didn’t know which costswere associated with which system.6. According to city records, the city has NEVER exceeded the arsenicrequirement of 10 parts/bil-lion, but still they insist that we need two arsenicfilters.. As far as arsenic abatement is concerned, there couldn’t have been any

mandates since the require-ment was never exceeded. The only mandates I’m awareof are the city shut off man-dates to city users who can’t afford to pay theirbills.Elwin Beck, Member RVTA

REAL ESTATE Q&A

Sam Richards: Richards Realty

The Bankruptcy Alternative By Sam Richards

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When the homeowner filed bankruptcy, he gave control of disposition of his assets, liquidation or retention, to a court appointed referee who will decide how to best pay those people he owes, or if they get paid at all. Depending when he filed, and how that may af-fect clear title on the bank ownership, the bank may not be able to dispose of that property until title is cleared.How fast this all hap-pens also depends on the bankruptcy chapter filed; reorganization or liquida-tion, and what assets will be affected. Under chapter 13, he may be able to make a deal to keep the house, so that could be the hold up. In any case, it will take 6 to 9 months to get through a proceeding, so if he filed last summer, he could be coming close to signing off.More than likely, though, this is just another repos-session that the bank is slow getting on the market. The bank has to hire an asset management company who will in turn prepare

the property for sale, and choose a Realtor to transact the sale. Believe this, when the Realtor gets the assign-ment, no time will be wast-ed putting up a sign! So I would imagine the bank is making sure all their chain of title is correct and it will come up for sale soon.Q. I’m doing a short sale, and I have a first loan and a second that is a line of credit. Will both loans be absolved at time of sale? R.R. Rio VistaA. The first loan is on a trust deed, and that is clas-sified as a non-recourse loan. When the home sells for less than you owe, the bank absorbs the loss and you are not charged. The bank has to agree to do this, and would be con-vinced by your hardship letter explaining why you no longer can afford the home, and your financial documents to back up this claim. If you’re second was on a trust deed, it would be the same story as the first loan, but a Home Equity Line Of Credit (HELOC) is handled more like a person-al loan, and IS a recourse

loan. So, when the home sells, you will still have the HELOC to deal with, and hopefully you can negotiate them down to a manage-able payoff, or a payment schedule you can live with, but the HELOC will have to be paid.If your finances are such that paying this loan is not possible, then the only way to get rid of it would to file bankruptcy to be absolved of all unsecured debts. If you do this filing before a short sale is complete, then the sale would be cancelled and the home would pro-ceed to foreclosure.If, however, you can man-age the HELOC and do the short sale, your credit will recover in just over 2 years, while a foreclosure/bankruptcy is more like 4 years before you could buy again. The good news is the market will not have changed much in 2 years, so you could still get a smokin’ good deal on a house.

We can get you a loan, so buy now! 707-374-6491 or visit: www.richards-realestate.com

Q. I have been following a home I’d like to make an offer on; first it was listed, then last summer went to foreclosure. Now it is just sitting there, not a for sale sign, no number to call. Someone told me the owner filed bankruptcy, but the bank owns it so why isn’t it for sale? C.I. Walnut GroveA. Not being an attorney, I’ll probably give you a bad answer, but it won’t cost you anything!

The Friends, headed by president Donnie Huffman of Vacaville, will give away seven scholarships totaling $13,500. The all-volunteer groupis the fundraising arm of the Dixon May Fair and raises funds through the sale of beverages. The deadline to apply for the scholarships is 5 p.m., Tuesday, March 1. The scholarships are: the $3000 Ester Armstrong Me-morial Scholarship,memorializing the former Dixon May Fair chief execu-tive officer; threescholarhips at $2,000 each; one at $1,500; and three at $1,000 each. Only Solano County residents planning a career in agriculture of an agricultural-related field are eligible to apply. They must beenrolled in or accepted for enrollment in a four-year ac-credited college or university or an accredited community college located inCalifornia. The Ester Armstrong Me-morial Scholarship will go to the top applicantin the four-year college category, that is, someone who has been accepted into a four-year college or is already enrolled, said scholarship coordinator JoAn Giannoni of Dixon, secretary of theFriends. Applicants must be majoring in an agricultural-re-lated field, which can encom-pass dozens of majors, includ-ing agricultural business,forestry, pomology, nematol-ogy, plant pathology, viticul-ture, wildlifeand fisheries biology, and child, family and consumer science. Giannoni said the recipients are selected on their personal, civic and academic experi-

ence, academic standing, per-sonal commitment and goals,leadership potential, civic ac-complishments, and agricul-tural interests. Desired but not mandatory is 4-H, FFA or Grange experience. Each applicant must submit a personal statement of no more than two typed pages, double-spaced, explaining “why you are pursuing yourdesired career and what you hope to accomplish,” Gian-noni said. Applicants must have a minimum grade point average or 2.0 or be a student in good standing. They are to include a copy of their transcript (accumulative and current), along with two letters ofrecommendation. One letter must be from a professional educator. Each packet must include one set of originals and one set of copies of each of the required forms. Only official Friends of the Fair application forms will be accepted, Gian-noni said, and only completepackets will be considered. Continuing scholarship winners can re-apply up to four times. Other eligibil-ity criteria is on the Friends’ website at http://www.friend-softhefair.org/scholarship.php. Completed application packets must be postmarked no later than 5 p.m. on March1, and mailed to the Scholar-ship Committee, Friends of the Fair Scholarship Commit-tee, P.O. Box 242, Dixon, CA 95620. All scholarship checks will be paid directly to the recipi-ent upon receipt of proof of enrollment. All monies may be used only for tuition, fees, books, materials and supplies, housing and meals purchased on campus. Recipients will be notified by mail after April 15 and will

be announced at the Dixon May Fair. Last year Melissa DiFranceso of Vacaville, a UC Davis student studyingto be a surgical equine veterinarian, won the Ester Armstrong Memorial Scholar-ship. She is a 2008 graduate of Vacaville ChristianHigh School. Four other students shared $10,000 in the four-year col-lege category: Ashley Holton-Westhaver of Fairfield, a 2008 graduate of Armijo High School who is studying ruminant nutrition at California State University, Chico Charles Hamilton of Rio Vista, a 2009 graduate of Rio Vista High School, who is studying agribusiness/crop science at California StatePolytechnic University (Cal Poly), San Luis ObispoMolly Carlson of Fairfield, then a senior at Justin-Siena High School, Napa, with plans to enroll in Cal Poly, and pursue a veterinarian career Kenneth “Casey” Koch of Vacaville, then a senior at Vacaville High School, with plans to attend Cal Poly and pursue an agriculturalengineer major Two other students each re-ceived $1000 scholarships to two-year community colleges: Nathaniel Benning, then a senior at Dixon High School, with plans to attend American River College to study weld-ing and fabricating Rebecca Ann Ivanusich, then a senior at Dixon High School, with plans to attend Sacramento City College and become an agriculture teacher.

Melissa DiFrancesco, a UC Davis stu-dent from Vacaville, won the $3000 Ester Armstrong Memorial Scholar-ship last year. Solano County students

planning a career in agriculture or an agricultural-related field can reap some college funds if they’re-selected the winners of the annual Friends of Dixon

$13,500 IN COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS OFFERED BY FRIENDS OF DIXON MAY FAIR

- Melissa Difrancesco

If you recall, when a proj-ect is done by an RA within the designated redevelop-ment area (some cities have independent agencies, many more are like Rio Vista where the City Council sits as the RA Board), a portion of any increased property tax goes back into the agency which is then used for new projects or bond or other debt. The total tax increment available to the city is reduced by funds going back to the county or school district (“pass-through”). In Rio Vista, the pass-through is 32% of the total funds received for redevelopment, and 25% of funds received for Low/Mod housing support. Rio Vista receives $992,869 in tax increment for both re-development and low/mod housing. In addition to the pass-through, the Agency has an expenditure of $131,542 for debt service on bonds issued a number of years ago. Redevelop-ment Agencies have been a major driver of economic development for many cities. Rio Vista has not developed a significant project, but the city could bond for things such as assisting businesses to locate here, develop the vacant waterfront, help businesses revitalize their buildings downtown. Since our rede-velopment area includes the planned Riverwalk project, the potential for increased tax increment there, in the busi-ness park and from the wa-terfront is significant, which would allow more economic development to take place.

Last week I attended part of a hearing of the Senate Com-mittee on Governance and

Finance, chaired by Senator Lois Wolk. State Treasurer Bill Lockyer began with a statement that redevelopment agencies were “vampires” (his term exactly) taking money from schools, counties and the state that essentially was being wasted. Michael Cohen from the Department of Finance stated that hous-ing funds (Low-Mod Hous-ing) would not be touched

and could be transferred to a local housing agency (he did not say what would happen if a city does not have a local housing agency). He also does not think that dissolving the RAs would violate recently passed Proposition 22. The plan would also lock in place current obligations. If a jurisdiction wants to continue redevelopment funds, the voter threshold to sell bonds or establish a tax for redevel-opment would be 55%. The plan is for sales and gas taxes would substitute for the tax increment. A speaker from the Legislative Analysts Office discussed what they see as the true impacts of redevelopment

on economic development. (The LAO is a non-partisan agency providing unbiased analysis of both legislative and the governor’s proposals. The agency is truly non-par-tisan, but they don’t always get it right when it comes to negative impacts on entities outside the state.) The LAO did state that dissolving the RAs would be complicated and disruptive, but unavoid-able to allow the state to re-cover fiscally. I have provided each council member with a copy of the LAO report. It is available at www.lao.ca.gov.

The Solano County Mayors and Supervisors met last week also to discuss the im-pacts of the dissolution of RAs on cities in the county. The impact would be sig-nificant. It is estimated that every Solano city would lose from 26% to 70% of their net tax increment under the governor’s pro-posal (from what is known now). The percentage lost depends on how much debt is owed by the agency and the amount of pass through. The specific impact on Rio Vista is not known since it was not included in the computations provided at the meeting, but based on

the impact to other cities the loss could be as high as 70% of the current net increment. This is a critical issue for Rio Vista, as our ability to sup-port economic development is seriously limited now, and would only be further limited by the Governor’s current proposal. It is not known what the legislation will look like, but the City Council will discuss the issue on February 17th, and consider passing a resolution opposing the Gov-ernor’s proposal, which would be followed up by letters to all our State Legislators.

MAYOR’S CORNERRedevelopment - Again

The push to dissolve redevelopment agen-cies (RAs) seems to be picking up steam, but exactly the direction it will take is hard to tell.

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RAMBLING AROUND RIO

327 Main Street. Rio Vista

RIO VISTA FRIENDS OF LIBERTY MEETING NOTICEThe next meeting of the Rio Vista Friends of the Library will beThursday, February 17th, at 7:00 PM, in the June Rowan meeting room atthe library.

CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOKS AVAILABLE The Rio Vista Friends of the Library have a large selection ofchildren’s picture books on the Friends’ Book Sale Shelves and on acart adjacent to the shelves at the library. Thank you for your continued support. - Fred Mershon, RVFOL Treasurer.

RIO VISTA DEMOCRATIC CLUB MEETINGThe Rio Vista Democratic Club is holding a general membership meeting at The Point Waterfront Restaurant on the 17th of February 2011,starting at 6:00 PM. Guest speakers are Marci Coglianese and Dr. Ami Bera. Marci is the former mayor of Rio Vista, who is currently on the Army Base utilization committee. She will speak about the progress of the committee in attracting economically beneficial users to the Armybase. Dr. Bera is a Sacramento physician who recently ran for California’s 3rd congres-sional district. He will speak to the group about thebenefits of the new health care bill, as well as about his experiencesas a candidate and his plans for 2012.

All Democrats are invited. Please RSVP to Bob or Marie Johnson at:(707) 374-6650

CAMILLUS #128 YOUNG LADIES INSTITUTECamillus # 128, Young Ladies Institute meets every third Wednesday ofthe month. Refreshments at 7:00 p.m. meeting starts at 7:30 p.m.

St. Joseph’s Parish Hall, Fourth Street, Rio Vista. For moreinformation on YLI contact Grace deFlores 374-5468 or Janet Campbell374-5946.

LIRA’S “LOYALTY POINTS” CAN NOW BE DONATED TO RIO VISTA COMMUNITY SERVICES

Following up on a request from one of our RVCS volunteers, Lira’s staff got busy finding a way to trans-fer and deposit Lira’s “Loyalty Points” into the RVCS food pro-

gram account.The system is as easy as this: Customers simply tell the friendly cashier they want to donate their “Loyalty Points” - as they are checking out of the

store. The “Loyalty Points” are electroni-cally transferred and RVCS is notified of the “Loyalty Points” balance available for RVCS to redeem.From time to time we will let you know how this program is work-ing. Watch for updates in the local papers and Advocates website.... and Thanks to Every-one - for the Helping Hands !

Rio Vista Community Service (RVCS) announced that it has teamed up with Lira’s Market to allow customers to donate their

accumulated Lira’s “Loyalty Points” to Rio Vista Community Services.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH SAVING $1,000,000?The City’s plan to correct our remaining water problems includes two big projects:

1. Arsenic Abatement. The Federal EPA has determined that the arsenic level in

drinkable water must not exceed ten (10) parts per billion (ppb). We currently blend water from three wells, and this brings our delivered drinkable water within this EPA limit. We currently have a project on the books that will bring any offending water well within this EPA limit. The projected cost for this work is $3M, and it does not appear it would cost us anything if we were to hold off on this project for a few months.

2. Water Lines infrastructure. Rio Vista’s water system is basically a “loop”. The fresh water circulates around the entire system, and any “weak” parts in this system jeopardize the integrity of the entire system, not just for drinking water but for the fire hydrant system as well. Two weak areas were St. Francis Dr. and Virginia Dr., but the City has fixed them by replacing the 8” water lines on these streets with 12” lines to match the rest of the system. There are a number of remaining problem areas that were put out for bid last year. This resulted in 14 bids of which the four lowest were 66% of the City engineer’s original estimate of $3M (and these bids included a 2” pavement overlay on the streets!).

is accumulating the $3M needed before an Arsenic Abatement RFP can be issued, the City appears to be doing absolutely nothing! There’s nothing to point to… no ditches in the street; no money being spent; no tangible activity. The City’s just building up a big bankroll. Small wonder the Rio Vista Taxpayer’s Association and others in the city think the current rates are too high.

If the City were to tackle the water line projects first, it could divide the task into three separate $1M projects. These three projects could be handled individually or collectively. If the competing bids came in substantially below the City Engineer’s original estimate, the City could immediately begin the work. All indications are that this would be an opportunity for a great reduction in cost.

The Council and City staff are creating a major credibility problem by collecting all this money and giving the perception of doing nothing! City staff is stuck on the idea that the Arsenic Abatement has to happen first. This is not true. We need to replace water lines to save $1M first – and then we need to address the issue of Arsenic Abatement. The entire job will still get done in the same amount of time, but with a great savings.

Recommended TO DO: 1. Issue RFP’s for the water lines’ replacement throughout the city now. 2. Review the RFP’s and, if they come in well below estimates, START THE WORK before construction costs begin climbing again.

Benefits: 1. SAVES $1M.2. Demonstrates to the public that the work is getting done and money is well spent.3. While the water line projects are in progress, we continue to collect money to complete the arsenic abatement. 4. Raises a strong argument against the June referendum.

(Ed. note: If you think this idea has merit, drop a line to hdelarosa@ci.rio-vista.ca.us/)

Hale Conklin

TREASURER’S CORNERThis week, for a change, I offer a guest “editorial”, initiated by Howard Lamothe, a concerned Rio Vista citizen. The ideas presented, and most of the words, are his. But I share his viewpoint so thoroughly that I had to post it here.

The City decided last year that we would do the Arsenic Abatement project first, but that we would issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) on the work only after we had accumulated the entire $3M in the Water Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) money market accounts. The City’s interpretation of the Council’s mandated “Pay as you go” policy is that the City cannot issue an RFP until it has all the money in hand that the expected proposals will call for.

After Arsenic Abatement is done, the City would again start saving up money for the remaining Water Line projects and again not issue an RFP until we had accumulated the entire $3M originally estimated to be the cost.

It has been suggested by the Water Oversight Committee (WWEF) that the City reverse these projects. The City could issue the RFP’s for the Water Line projects immediately and, if the bids did indeed come in at a total of only $2M (66% of $3M), jump on these projects, get them done in seven months, and save $1,000,000! If the bids instead came in at $3M, then the City would continue with the old schedule and do the Arsenic Abatement first.

There is another advantage to doing the Water Line project(s) first. Right now, while the City

PAGE 5

BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER By Pastor Ella Ray Toscano

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There are times when a preacher is boring. Adults do not use the word boring as much as kids do. There is a story of a little boy who was sitting next to his sister in church. He nudged his older sister and said,” the preacher is boring!” His sister gave him a frowning look and said,”SHHH! He is supposed to be boring.” It has been said that a creative and intel-ligent mind will not ever be bored. There is always some-thing that can be salvaged or learned. Boring comes when nothing changes and there are no surprises. If we read the same scriptures every day with no application to life the words become dull. There is so much untapped power when people are satisfied with an acquaintance with Jesus and never allow him to love them and change their lives. Life is never boring once we decide to follow Christ and let his Holy Spirit dwell within our hearts. When we have the Holy Spirit boredom is replaced by love, hope, patience, kindness, faithful-ness, gentleness, self control. How can one be bored if he or she is blessed by the Lord’s presence? Following the person who turns water into wine, raises people from the dead, heals broken hearts and broken bodies and hangs out with those who live in the margins of life certainly leaves no room for boredom. Basking in his unconditional love changes how we live and react to others. It changes how we react to church. Church matters to God. There will be some sermons that are better than others but a sermon is not the vehicle of salvation. It can be the best sermon in the world but without the Holy Spirit it is just well planned words. The Holy Spirit can take unplanned words and use them to transform a life. God tells us in Psalm 119 that he will direct our ways. We are also reminded in Romans chapter eight that everything that is set before us is worth doing…because he makes ev-erything work together. Being bored is a personal choice.

Recently I found a list of things to do during a boring sermon. These are for the young who use the word bor-ing about school, practicing a musical instrument, playing scales on the piano. Do not try if you are an adult! Try yawn-ing and see if it is contagious. Devise ways of climbing into the balcony without using the stairs. Listen for the preacher to say words that begin with the ‘A’ then ’B’ and on through the alphabet. Sit in the back row and roll a hand-ful of marbles to the front. After the service give yourself ten points for every one that made it to the front. Whip out a hankie and blow your nose in timing to the hymn. Chew gum and if the sermon goes beyond noon start blow-ing bubbles. See if you can unobtrusively draw your arms up into your sleeves and turn your shirt around backwards. While people are locating the announced hymn step out into the aisle and wave your arms as if you are directing the song. When everyone is pray-ing count in a soft voice how many have their eyes open or an unbowed head. Drop your hymnal on the floor behind someone who is asleep. Use the church bulletin to craft paper airplanes. Raise your hand and ask to be excused for the restroom. As I wrote this list of things to do I was made shamefully aware that I did many of these things as a bratty preacher’s kid. I wasn’t bored. I was being creative!

Boring comes when we forget that God created us to have joy. If we cannot laugh, move and experience the joy of the Lord then the waters will never change. Experienc-ing childhood as a preacher’s kid I knew that my behavior would seriously influence my dad’s sermons. When I learned to pray for my Dad while he was preaching some-thing miraculous happened ,which is another story. Pray for your preacher while you sit in the pew this Sunday. Maybe a miracle will happen to you.

The Princess Ball was an opportunity for girls’ ages 5 to 12 to spend an evening with their father, brother, grandfather, uncle, or friend in an atmosphere that created a special time every girl will remember.The evening kicked off with each girl receiv-ing a wrist corsage and then having their picture taken with their escort. Once all the girls and their escorts arrived, they had an opportunity to check out the favors, balloons, and Teddy Bears that decorated the

table, before dinner was served. Well, what’s a party without ice cream? The participants were treated to ice cream with all their favorite top-pings, including whip cream and sprinkles. Of course, there were spe-cial door prizes given out through-out the evening.When Radio Rio pumped up the music and turn on the colorful lights, the girl’s energy level went from 3 to off-the-chart. To get the dance floor warmed up, the girls started line dancing. Once again, Radio Rio

changed the pace playing songs like, I Got A Feel-ing, Firework, Thriller, Love Me Tender, We R Who We R. Thank goodness, they put one in for the escorts to have that special dance with their date(s). Many escorts danced during all the songs, but it was interesting to see the girls having a great time dancing with each other. By the end of the dance, the girls formed a Conga Line and begin dancing around the dance floor. Big Fun!Back to the sweetness of a little girl, this evening was a wonderful experi-ence for everyone that participated. The spe-cial dresses, beautiful curls and bobs, and the matching ties showed the effort put into mak-ing this night special for the girls. Our thanks to

OH, WHAT A NIGHT

Sugar and spice and everything nice that what little girls are made of…. . Lions and Soroptimist of Rio Vista witnessed first hand the sweetness of little girls at the first Princess Ball held at St. Joseph’s Hall in Rio Vista on February 12, 2011.

the parents and all that helped make this night special. Lions Interna-tional and Soroptimist International of Rio Vista would like to thank you for letting us participate in such a special occa-sion. It was PRICE-LESS!

PAGE 7

Need a “Roll up the sleeves”

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The Rio Vista Sharks Swim team is now accepting

applications for swim coaches for the

2011 swim season. Applications can be picked up at 21 N

4th Street in Rio Vista or download from

the Sharks website www.riovistasharks.o

rg Applications can be faxed to 707-374-4999 or mail to PO Box 97, Rio Vista,

CA 94571Simonson Delta Swim Center

300 California StreetIf you would like additional information or if you have questions about the Rio Vista

Sharks Swim Team, Please contact Dan Schindler @ 374-5546

ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS

An Ounce of PreventionYou wouldn’t drive your car 50,000 miles without

an oil change and a tuneup, so why have you waited five years to have your mouth examined and your teeth cleaned?

At Dentistry of the Delta, our aim is to restore your mouth to a healthy state so you will look and feel your best!

A healthy mouth is an important part of a healthy you, and an attractive smile is one of your keys to success!

Regular visits to your dentist will help you avoid unwanted pain and costly repairs.

So, to look better, feel better, and save money, call our office today!

Dr. Mel Pearson

Dentistry of the Delta

(707) 374-6863139 A Bruning Avenue, Rio Vista

www.dentistryofthedelta.com

OPEN LETTER TO THE REAL ESTATE COMMUNITY OF R.V. In the February 9 edition of the Rio Vista Beacon, the Beacon ran, on page 7, an ad that began,”Trilogy Residents”. The ad asked residents to contact the local police department if resi-dents had “used” a local realtor and had items missing from the home. A phone number and contact person at the police department were given. The ad should not have been run. Verification of information from all parties was not obtained prior to going to print. The Beacon would like to express a heart felt apology to the real estate community for any discomfort that may have been experienced as a result of running the ad. Sincerely, Rio Vista Beacon

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We all know that the market has been in a downward trend over the last five years. Home values have con-tinued to drop in most parts of the country with a few exceptions. While you cannot protect yourself against a market correction, you can take small steps to help in-crease your home’s value and make it more marketable. Here are a few ideas which can help:

Make Repairs: Homes require regular maintenance and repairs are a necessary part of homeownership. Stay on top of repairs as they are needed. Be sure to address large projects before placing your home on the market to hasten the sale. Consider the roof, fence, carpet. If you replace the item, you will get more money than if you offer a credit.

Curb Appeal: Curb appeal is about a first impression. It is also about neighborhood value. A home with a manicured lawn, trimmed shrubbery and trees and flower boxes will reflect good care by the owner. A home with peeling paint, broken or missing screens, a cluttered yard will have a more difficult time bringing a good price. Updated Kitchen: Kitchens are a real selling point. Updated cabinets, counters, and appliances appeal to buyers. But, do your research before you remodel. Don’t over price yourself for the neighborhood. Granite and travertine are lovely, but if other homes in your area are selling with laminate, you may not be able to ask for a drastically higher price. Your goal should be to recover your cost and sell quickly.

Updated Bath: Bathrooms also hold much of a home’s value. New low-flush toilets cost as little as $100. And tubs and showers can be easily replaced or resurfaced. Be sure, above all else, that your bathrooms are clean for showings. Find a hiding place for all those bottles and jars of beauty supplies.

Energy Savers: Buyers are looking for homes that are energy efficient. Low-flush toilets, solar panels, water fil-trations systems, and insulated windows are all potential energy savers.

Evaluate and decide for yourself what may help your home retain its value. If you have any questions or would like objective feedback on your home environment, send an e mail to carlaharden@aol.com. Get a Free autograph with Minimum $10 Purchase.

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RIO VISTA LITTLE LEAGUE EQUIPMENT EXCHANGE

Rio Vista Little League will be hosting their first Equipment Exchange! The League is very excited to be offering this to our community. As we all know, children grow so fast! Sometimes you buy a pair of cleats and by the second month into the season, your child has outgrown them! Or you have a T-Ball child who moves up to minors and needs “big kid” gear now. What do you do with that leftover equipment? Come to the Equipment Exchange! Trade in all that t-ball, soft ball, or base ball equipment for things you need. No equipment to trade? No problem! Bring any non-perishable food item to donate to the Rio Vista Food Ministry and we will count it as credit for you! If you are looking for a place to donate that equipment you have but no longer need we would love to have it.

Saturday, February 19 · 9:00am - 1:00pmUnion Baptist Church - 125 Sierra Ave.

If you would like to help, need more information, would like to drop off old equipment before the Exchange or have any questions, please call League Representative, Chrissy Langlois by phone at (214) 587-0043 or email her at babylang01@gmail.com. See you there!