September 2016 - Lemoore Chamber of Commerce

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE LEMOORE DISTRICT CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
It is the mission of the Lemoore Chamber of Commerce to be the leader
in our community for building sustainable economic growth, advocating for a
pro-business climate and enhancing Lemoore’s working relationships with
Naval Air Station Lemoore, City, Education, Tourism, Business and Agricultural Interests.
September 2016
300 E Street, Lemoore, CA 93245
(559) 924-6401
www.lemoorechamberofcommerce.com
www.yeausa.org to apply online or come by
tors, and entrepreneurs. It provides students
the Lemoore Chamber of Commerce and pick
with a focused introduction to the business
up an application (300 E St).
world that will help them transition successful- If you know a student who you believe would
ly to adulthood; pursue their dreams by harbenefit from and would like to participate in
nessing their creativity and energy; develop an the YEA! program please nominate them! You
entrepreneurial mindset and leadership skills can find the nomination form at: https://
based on personal principles and values; and
yeausa.wufoo.com/forms/yea-studenttransform their ideas into tangible enterprises nomination/
that create economic and social value for a bet- We will also be hosting an Information Session
ter world.
The YEA! academic year begins
Thursday October 13th, and continhe Lemoore Chamber of Commerce is in- ues throughout the rest of the 2016viting 6th through 12th grade students to 17 school year. Classes will meet
apply to their Young Entrepreneurs Academy Thursdays from 4-7 p.m. at West
(YEA). YEA! is for students who are creative,
Hills College Lemoore.
work hard to do their best both inside and out- Last year, the Lemoore YEA! Class
side of school, effectively communicate, and
graduated 5 local young entrepreare committed to improving their community. neurs, who are currently actively
YEA! will walk select students who fit this de- promoting and doing business. Our
scription through the entire business creation hope is to double that number this
process -- brainstorming ideas, writing busiyear!
ness plans, pitching to potential investors, and Students who are interested in parregistering with governmental agencies -- all
ticipating in
the way to actually launching and running their YEA! must complete an application that will
on Tuesday, September 13th from 6-7pm at the
business or social movement. Students interrequire them to respond to two short-answer Lemoore Chamber of Commerce, 300 E Street.
ested in the YEA program do not have to have questions and write an essay. Students
This is for anyone interested in participating in
any previous business experience to be sucwill also have to submit a current transcript
the program, parents, students, community
cessful nor do they have to have a business
and a letter of recommendation with their ap- members and business owners.
idea in order to join the program.
plications. All applications -- electronic or pa- For more information on the YEA! program
The YEA! curriculum is delivered by local lead- per -- must be submitted by Friday, Sept. 30th, please contact Brittany Reece at the Lemoore
ers of industry, community members, educato be considered. Students can go to
Chamber of Commerce: 559-924-6401.
T
Chamber Luncheon
Noon-1pm @ Vineyard Restaurant
Wednesday, Sept. 14th
Kings County Salute to Ag Banquet
6pm @ Fialho Family Hanger
Friday, September 9th
After Hours Chamber Mixer
5:30-7:30pm @ Family Eye Care
Wednesday, September 28th
Lemoore Chamber Newsletter
PAGE 2— Sept. 2016
A
fter nine Friday’s out under Lemoore’s
Arbor, it’s sad to see the summer come to
a close. Although we had one Friday cancellation due to scorching summer heat, 2016 was
our best year to date! It truly is a special sight
to see hundreds of people spend their Friday
nights together, enjoying good food and good
music with their neighbors. It’s also just one
more example of why Lemoore is such a great
place to call home.
As always, the Lemoore Chamber board and
staff have a plethora of local volunteers, sponsors, vendors, bands and community members to thank for the success of our Rockin’
the Arbor Summer Concert Series this year. It
should go without saying that these events
could not be made possible without a large,
dedicated group of people who care about a
sense of community. Here is a list of those
who have gone above and beyond for us this
year:
Event Sponsors: Budweiser (Bueno Beverage Co.), Recurrent Energy, Adventist Health,
Lemoore Van & Storage, Ramblin’ Rose Florist,
Josephine’s Joy Catering, Family Eye Care,
Modern Broker Real Estate Agent Gina Arcino,
Best Western Inn & Suites Lemoore, Fatte Albert’s Pizza Company, Kings Lions Club, & the
City of Lemoore.
Prize Sponsors: Fresno Grizzlies, Napa Auto Parts, Fattes, Chicken Shack, Lemoore Stadium Cinemas, Auto Zone, Lemoore Auto, Deli
Delicious, Continental Smog, HomeDepot,
Jeb’s Blueberry Hill, SaveMart, Blue Door Massage & Spa, Foster’s Freeze, Maaco, Sweet
Nostalgia, Les Schwaab, Rural Girls Soap, Anchors Aweigh Designs, Mama Made Lemoore,
South West Private Patrol, Billingsley Tire,
Best Western, Visalia Rawhide, AAA Ins., Lemoore Raceway & Pep Boys.
Volunteers: Larry Avila and the Set Up
Crew, Josh & Jansen Cunningham & the Kings
Co. Fire Department, Jim Castleman, Madeline
Jung, Jean Gordon, Family Eye Care, Judy Holwell, Michael Patterson, Best Western, Kiwanis Club, Kings Lions Club, Danny & Tami
Shannon, Rusty Derouin, Kandice & Dennis
Quindt, Lindsay Fuller, Chris Brazil, Richard
Martinez, Stretch Derouin, Estella-Best Buy
Market, Josh Davis, Roel Sefarra, Joe & Kathy
Neves, Terry Fellows, KOOL 104.5, Bill Munoz,
Danny Shannon, Jordan Yoakum, Bill Quilty,
and the Chamber Board.
Vendors: Chicken Shack, Toshikos, The
Vineyard Restaurant, Big Kahuna, Super Mercado Leon, Sweet Nostalgia, Big Orange, Oree’s
Fine Southern Cuisine, Rolling Cones, Fatte
Albert’s, Kettle Queen, Euphoria, Thirty-One
Gifts, Scentsy, GC Candles, Lemoore Lions
Club, Rural Girls Soap, Witchy Woman Soap,
Solar City, FJA Artistic Painting, Lemoore BMX,
Famous Vodka, Les Schwaab, Hammock Designs & Photography, Sweet P, LulaRoe with
Poonam Guinn, Cen Cal Extreme, Navy Ball
Committee, Lincoln Military Housing, West
Hills College, Kings Area Road Relics Car Club,
and Wild Over Wheels Car Club.
Bands: August, The Heat, the Danny
Millsap Band, The Fabulous Enchantments,
Prestige, Califas, Skull Crushing Madness, and
the Brian Vickers Band.
It also important for me to recognize two of
the most hardworking, dedicated ladies I
know; our Events Director, Brenda Martin,
and our Membership Director, Brittany Reece.
LEMOORE CHAMBER BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Executive Board
Chairwoman
Frances Perkins: Best Western Inn & Suites
Chairman-Elect
William A. Parry: Hammerschmidt Broughton
Vice Chairman
Amy Ward: Lincoln Military Housing
CFO
David Endo: Hanford Elementary School Dist.
Past Chairman
Victor Rosa: Lemoore Union Highschool Dist.
Directors
John Miller: Ramblin’ Rose Florist
Michele Costa-Ruble: DaCosta Farms
Dustin Fuller: TulareLake Drainage Dist.
Deanna Patterson: Tachi Palace
Jeff Babb: Agusa, Inc.
Jody Ruble: West Hills College Lemoore
Johnny Perez: Best Buy Market/IGA
Ex Officio Director
Marlana Brown: NAS Lemoore
Without their energy and organization of this event,
we couldn’t have
made it all possible.
And speaking of
our wonderful
staff, we’ve just
received confirmation that our Membership Director/
YEA! Program Manager’s family has been notified that they will be stationed in Lemoore for
another three years! Brittany is a Navy
spouse, which means there is rarely any real
guarantee for back-to-back tours in one location. So, we are lucky to continue to have Brittany with us for a few more years!
CHAMBER STAFF
Jenny MacMurdo
Chief Executive Officer
ceo@lemoorechamber.org
Brenda Martin
Events Director/Office Manager
events@lemoorechamber.org
Brittany Reece
Membership Director/YEA! Program Manager
staff@lemoorechamber.org
Lemoore Chamber Newsletter
A
s we get ready to honor our Agricultural community at our 22nd Annual
Kings County Salute to Ag Banquet, I had a
chance to sit down with Craig Pedersen,
owner of Pederson Farms and a wellknown advocate for our farming community.
Pedersen Farms was once known as SPS
Farms, and ran by Craig’s grandfather, father and his uncle. After his uncle stepped
down and his grandfather retired, Craig and
his father formed a partnership in 1986
and changed the name to Pedersen
Farms.
Craig Pedersen and his family are no
strangers to community involvement.
For instance, the Semas family, Craig’s
grandparents, and the Pedersen family
donated 107 acres of land to West Hills
College, and also donated land so that
Cimarron Park Housing could build a
playground for the neighborhood children. “I have always enjoyed the public
side of things and public policy, and I
felt like I had something to give back to
the community,” Craig stated, as he
mentioned being on the Board of Supervisors. Craig has served on multiple agricultural leadership boards, and helped
raise money for community organizations like the March of Dimes, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), and the
United Cerebral Palsy of Central California.
Craig has been recognized and received
multiple awards from different organizations and our community including the
“Kings County Agriculturalist of the Year”
award from the Lemoore Chamber of Commerce in 2002.
For many years Pedersen Farms yielded
many field crops including corn, wheat,
small grains and cotton. They also maintained approximately 600 dairy replacement cattle. In the early 2000’s when cotton
began to plummet and the dairy industry
boomed, Pedersen Farms transitioned to
PAGE 3— Sept. 2016
mainly alfalfa and corn. Walnut trees were
also planted in 2010. Right about the time
that they were going to plant 400 acres of
almond trees the State of California said
they were going to start instituting a
ground water management system. Craig,
like most small business owners, had to
start weighing the options on how to combat these new government sanctions. When
rules, such as ground water management,
are put into place they can affect each farm
differently. For Pedersen Farms, being
small in comparison to other farms in the
San Joaquin Valley, it created a very uncer-
tain future. After
much deliberation, Craig chose
to sell approximately
500 acres to a business that could potentially withstand the financial strain that these
government mandates are causing for our
farmers. That decision was the beginning of
the end of a third generation family farming
legacy.
The business of farming is not too different
than that of a regular mom and pop shop,
where constant consideration of how each
decision will affect the families of all involved. Everyone wants to support the
vision of a small family farmer but all
the excessive government mandates,
like the Ag overtime bill: AB 1066, add
up and our small town farmers cannot
compete with corporate farms. While
Craig will miss the “brotherhood” of the
farming community, he has known all
along that he had to protect his family
asset. An asset that was made over the
last 80 years, with nothing short of:
blood, sweat and tears. Craig noted that
Pedersen Farms would be nonexistent
without all of the help and support his
farm and family received over the years.
He expressed, “Thanks to all the people
that we did business with for all those
years. You know we’re all a part of a
community and it takes everyone to get
things accomplished.”
Just a small bit of advice Craig Pedersen
offers to up- and-coming farmers, although
I think it is applicable in our everyday
lives: “Find that person you respect,
someone with a good track record, and a
solid level of common sense to bounce
your ideas off of.” While the Pedersen
Farms legacy is coming to an end, the next
chapter for the Pedersen Family is just beginning. Thank you Pedersen Farms and
Pedersen family for all you have done over
the last 80 years. We look forward to the
continuing impact you will have on our
community.
Rentals are now available! Their new online The Lemoore UPS Store is now OPEN!
They are located at 161 Hanford-Armona
catalog and rental system is officially up
and running. catalog.unitedrentals.com
Rd., Suite J (the old Copy, Pack and Ship
Congratulations to Morgan and Slates on
building) Their
winning the President’s Award from the
store hours are
Kings County Economic Development Cor- 8 Lims Photography
Mon.-Fri. 8amporation! They will be presented the award has moved! They are
6:30pm, Sat.
at the EDC’s annual awards dinner October still downtown, just one
10am-3:30pm,
27th.
street over at 321 E St.
Closed Sundays.
They’re open for photo
United Rent- shoots, so give them a
als is excited call today: 816-8023.
to announce
that Online
Lemoore Chamber Newsletter
PAGE 4— Sept. 2016
G
8/23/2016
Business Journal staff
ov. Jerry Brown has signed legislation
from Sen. Andy Vidak that would give
previous owners of property in the path of
high-speed rail the opportunity to buy it back
if it’s not used.
SB 940 requires the California High-Speed
Rail Authority to notify previous property
owners when it plans to sell unneeded property, and requires the Authority to wait 30
days after the notification before selling the
property.
"High-Speed Rail Authority is trying to take
farms, land, businesses and homes, many of
which have been in the same family for generations," Vidak said in a statement. "Folks
deserve the opportunity to get back what belonged to them if the state plans to sell property it bought or seized to supposedly complete the High-Speed Rail project."
Brown signed another Vidak bill yesterday.
SB 1178 requires the state Superintendent of
Public Instruction to create a poster showing
children the phone number to call if they are
the victim of abuse or neglect. The poster
would be created in English, Spanish and the
other top three languages in the state.
C
8/29/2016
John Myers, LA Times
alifornians would have a new legal right
to be told whether their ballot was
counted under a bill that won final approval
in the Legislature on Monday.
AB 2089 won bipartisan support in the Assembly and now heads to Gov. Jerry Brown.
The bill's author, Assemblyman Bill Quirk
(D-Hayward), tweeted the news just after
the final vote.
In every election, a small number of
marked ballots aren't counted for a variety
of reasons -- from arriving too late to being
damaged or illegible and beyond.
AB 2089 would require county registrars
of elections to set up a free system enabling voters to check what the ultimate
outcome was of their own ballot and, if it
wasn't counted, why.
"Many of our constituents whose votes
aren't counted at a registrar's office never
know," said Assemblywoman Catherine
Baker (R-San Ramon).
T
8/30/2016
Jennifer Barrera, CalChamber
he Assembly yesterday passed a bill
that could drive up costs of commodities to consumers by removing the existing
overtime exemption allowed for agricultural employers.
AB 1066 (Gonzalez; D-San Diego) would
establish new overtime rules for agricul-
tural employers. Starting in 2019, employers
with more than 25 employees will be required to pay overtime after 9 and a half
hours of work. Each year thereafter, such
employers’ overtime burden will increase by
a half hour, until they are required to pay
overtime to employees who work more than
8 hours by 2022. This incremental increased
overtime mandate will not start for employers with 25 employees or less until 2022.
This bill is similar to AB 2757 (Gonzalez; DSan Diego), which failed passage on the Assembly Floor earlier this year.
A large coalition of agricultural employers,
grower and agriculture associations, local
chambers of commerce and the California
Chamber of Commerce are opposed to AB
1066.
In its letter to the Assembly, the coalition
highlights the following concerns with the
bill:
AB 1066 will hurt farmworkers:
 $1.5 billion in reduced wages;
 $4.5K in reduced income per farmworker;
 16% reduction in farmworker income.
AB 1066 will hurt farm production:
 $5.4 billion loss in crop production;
 The removal of 1.25 million acres of farm
land from production;
 2% decrease in crop production.
AB 1066 will hurt the economy:
 Up to 78,000 lost farm, processing, transportation, and support industry jobs;
$7.8 billion in lost income statewide.
Farmers in California must compete with
farmers in other states and countries that already have far lower wage costs. The buyers
of California agricultural products—big box
and traditional grocery chains, restaurant
chains—set the price they will pay farmers. If
California farmers cannot meet the stated
price, the buyers can and do purchase from
farmers in other states and countries.
California is already at a competitive disad-
vantage with other major agriculture production states. It is one of only a few states that
require any overtime pay for agricultural
workers, and the California requirement for
daily overtime is already the most expensive.
AB 1066 will only exacerbate that competitive disadvantage.
The coalition urges the Assembly not to view
this bill in isolation. California saddles its
farmers with the highest regulatory costs and
compliance burdens in the nation. Below is a
painfully partial list:
 Electricity costs for industrial users that
are 63.4% higher than the national average.
 Gasoline costs nearly one-third higher
than the national average.
 Diesel costs 14% higher than the national
average.
 The highest workers’ compensation premium rates in the nation.
 California-only restrictions on use of approved crop protection tools that increase
the risk of crop loss due to pests and disease.
Water supply costs driven by regulatory loss
of surface water supplies, forcing farmers to
drill new and deeper wells, pay more for energy to pump, and scramble to purchase expensive water (if it can be found and conveyed) from others.
Unfortunately, AB 1066 will end up hitting
many agricultural workers in the wallet.
Farmers may be forced to pay higher overtime costs during peak harvest, but for the
tens of thousands of workers who are employed year round (thinning trees, preparing
ground for planting, etc.) the pressures of
cost avoidance will translate to fewer hours
worked as farmers add additional employees
to avoid overtime costs, the coalition letter
states.
AB 1066 passed the Assembly 44-32 on August 29.
The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk.
Continued on page 5
Lemoore Chamber Newsletter
PAGE 5— Sept. 2016
VETERANS
CORNER
Retired Military Appreciation Day at NAS Lemoore
N
aval Air Station (NAS)
Lemoore is hosting its
annual Retired Military Appreciation Day on Saturday,
September 24, 2016 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm,
Wright
starting atJoethe
base theater. The purpose of
Veterans Services
the event is to provide updates covering benefits for military retirees and their spouses.
The Kings County Veterans Service Office,
along with representatives from the Naval
Hospital, Tri-Care, Social Security, Delta Dental, CALVET, California Telephone Access, Navy Gold Star, and others will be providing valuable information and will be available to answer questions from event participants.
All retired military, spouses and widows/
widowers are invited to attend. For more information call the Fleet and Family Support
Center at (559) 998-4042. To obtain access to
NAS Lemoore, it is important to have a current ID card. The Personnel Support Detachment is scheduled to be open from 0900-1300
to assist with new ID card needs.
The Kings County Veterans Service Office can
complete the DMV Veteran Status Verification
Form for the new California Veteran Designation on your driver’s license and also issues
Veteran I.D. cards to honorably discharged
veterans. Contact Scott Holwell if you would
like to receive periodic veteran’s information
by email. There are many state and federal
benefits and programs available to veterans
and their dependents. To determine if you are
eligible for any of these benefits, visit or call
our office. We can and will assist you in completing all required application forms. You
can get information on the Web from the
Kings County Veterans Service Office webpage
at www.countyofkings.com/vets.
Scott Holwell, retired Navy Master Chief Petty Officer, is the Deputy Veterans Service Officer for Kings County. Send your questions
to the Veterans Service Office, 1400 W.
Lacey Blvd, Hanford, CA 93230; call (559)
852-2669; or e-mail :
scott.holwell@co.kings.ca.us.
T
8/23/2016
CalChamber, Jennifer Barrera
Tentative Agenda Items for
he California Chamber of Commerce is
September
urging small business owners to contact
City Council
their legislators and the Governor to express
Sept. 6th
SS: Control, Regulate & Tax Adult Use of
Marijuana Initiative
NB: Quarterly Financial Report
Date TBD
SS: Transient Occupancy Tax
SS: Commissions & Boards Policies
SS: Shopping Cart Ordinance
SS: Sidewalk Ordinance
SS: Animal Control Cats Ordinance
SS: Fireworks Ordinance
SS: Massage Ordinance
SS: Water Operations
CC: Volunteers & Liability
CC: Delinquent Utility Billing Penalties
CC: Armored Transport
CC: New Collection Co. for Delinquent Utility
Billing Accts.
CC: Adoption of 2016 Building & Fire Codes
strong opposition to SB 654 (Jackson; DSanta Barbara).
The bill, identified as a job killer, threatens to
significantly harm small businesses in California who employ as few as 20 employees, by
proposing yet another protected leave of absence mandate. The proposal requires 6
weeks of protected employee leave for maternity or paternity leave, and exposes all employers to the threat of costly litigation.
Using the gut and amend process, SB 654 revives the language of a previously dead job
killer bill that failed because lawmakers recognized the harmful impact it would have on
California job climate. In the final weeks of
session and after some membership changes
to the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee, Senator Jackson has brought the
measure back. Businesses are outraged because the bill imposes significant burdens as
they attempt to manage a productive and
profitable business while also juggling the cumulative impact of all available protected
leaves in California.
This bill would make California the only state
in the nation to impose the lengthy list of protected leaves of absence available here. Existing programs California employees may access now include the Family Medical Leave
Act, the California Family Rights Act, paid
family leave, pregnancy disability, military
spouse leave, organ donation, bone marrow,
school activities, volunteer firefighting, reserve peace officer & emergency rescue personnel leave, civil air patrol and paid sick
leave.
The bill is now headed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee; no hearing date has
been set.
Lemoore Chamber Newsletter
PAGE 6— Sept. 2016
1
Furtado’s Welding &
Industrial Supply
Ribbon Cutting
10am
2
Vets/Seniors
Breakfast
7:30-9am Vets Mem Bldg
3
Community Swap
Meet
7am City Park
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
4
Mooney Museum
Open Noon – 3:00 p.m.
5
LABOR DAY
Chamber Office Closed
6
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
Lemoore Rotary Mtg
Noon-1pm
@ Sky Lemoore
City Council Mtg
5:30 & 7:30pm
11
Mooney Museum
Open Noon – 3:00 p.m.
12
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
Planning
Commission Mtg
7pm @ City Hall
Lemoore Lions Mtg
7pm @ Lemoore Vets
Mem. Bldg.
13
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
Lemoore Rotary Mtg
Noon-1pm
@ Sky Lemoore
Parks & Rec
Commission Mtg
7pm @ City Hall
18
Mooney Museum
Open Noon – 3:00 p.m.
19
Trendsetters
Ribbon Cutting
TIME TBA
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
Lemoore Lions Mtg
7pm @ Lemoore Vets
Mem. Bldg.
20
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
Lemoore Rotary Mtg
Noon-1pm
@ Sky Lemoore
26
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
Lemoore Lions Mtg
7pm @ Lemoore Vets
Mem. Bldg.
27
Chamber Board Mtg
7am
Lemoore Rotary Mtg
Noon-1pm
@ Sky Lemoore
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
25
Mooney Museum
Open Noon – 3:00 p.m.
7
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
BINGO
6 p.m. /Senior Center
8
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
Kings Lions Mtg
6:30pm@ Lemoore
Senior Center
14
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
BINGO
6 p.m. /Senior Center
Chamber Luncheon
Noon-1pm
Vineyard Restaurant
Kings Lions Mtg
6:30pm@ Lemoore
Senior Center
21
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
BINGO
6 p.m. /Senior Center
15
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
DMAC Mtg
6:15pm
Chamber Office
22
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
City Council Mtg
5:30 & 7:30pm
28
Senior Center Lunch
11:30am-Noon
BINGO
6 p.m. /Senior Center
After Hours Mixer
5:30-7:30pm @
Family Eye Care
Kings Lions Mtg
6:30pm@ Lemoore
Senior Center
29
Senior Center Lunch
w/ Bingo
11:30am-1pm
9
10
Vets/Seniors Breakfast
7:30-9am Vets Mem Bldg
Final Day of Scheduled
Legislative Session
SALUTE TO AG
BANQUET
6pm
Fialho Family Hangar
16
Vets/Seniors
Breakfast
7:30-9am Vets Mem Bldg
23
Vets/Seniors
Breakfast
7:30-9am Vets Mem
Bldg
God’s Bread Box
Packing
2pm @ Christ Church
30
Vets/Seniors
Breakfast
7:30-9am Vets Mem
Bldg
Community Breakfast
8:30am Tachi Bingo
Hall
17
Evening Under
the Stars
7:30-11pm
Downtown Lemoore
24
God’s Bread Box
Distribution
9-11am @ Christ Church
Barn Dance
6-9pm @
Lemoore Senior Center
Taste of the Valley
5-8pm @ Burris Park