The Weekly Tally 05.25.17

WHO’S IN TOWN?

Outrigger canoes are believed to have come to Hawaii from Polynesia as early as 200 AD, but the technology – a main hull with one or two attached lateral support floats – goes back 10,000 years or more. In recent history, outriggers came to Monterey Bay in 1984 through the Northern California Outrigger Canoe Association. These days, the Ke Kai O’uhane Outrigger Canoe Center invites paddlers from all over the region to Monterey each Memorial Day weekend for canoe races. Paddling teams from children up to adults, ranging from novices to masters, face off in several races over two days. The day’s events on Saturday end with a hula demonstration.

Sat-Sun May 27-28. Del Monte Beach, 693 Del Monte Ave., Monterey. Free for spectators. board@kekaiouhane.org.

FREE SPEECH

The California News Publishers Association held its annual summit in Santa Monica and on May 20 announced the winners of its Better Newspapers Contest. The Weekly team had a successful haul, a moment for celebration. Art Director/Production Manager Karen Loutzenheiser won first place for cover design, columnist Mary Duan took first for Local Spin and the whole team earned first place for reporting on fire for coverage of the Soberanes Fire. Staff photographer Nic Coury claimed second for a news photo of a Bernie Sanders rally in Monterey – “The Sanders shot does a fine job of showing the rally’s borderline religious atmosphere,” the judges wrote. Senior Staff Writer David Schmalz won two honorable mentions for environmental reporting on the Cemex sand mine and for investigative reporting, recognizing his “exhaustive investigation with huge stakes for the community” about would-be Monterey Downs developer Brian Boudreau. Managing Editor Mark C. Anderson took honorable mention for agricultural reporting for his cover story on seaweed farming in Moss Landing. Leon Panetta spoke at the summit, and went big picture: “If we want to protect democracy, we need to protect the free press.”

GOOD WEEK / BAD WEEK

GOOD:

It’s been a good week for youth sports in several arenas. Two local mountain bike teams placed at the state championships, with the Monterey Bay Light Fighters taking third in Division 2 and the Salinas High School Cowboys coming in eighth for Division 1. Palma High School sophomore Matthew Saldana won the JV Division 2 race, making him the state champ. Meanwhile, there’s long-awaited progress on another front: soccer fields in Salinas. While funding remains elusive, a May 16 referral to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors should get a stalled lease agreement back in motion. Under the deal, which has been in the works for close to 10 years and survived a lawsuit and environmental review process, the county would lease 42 acres to the city of Salinas for 30 years (with an option to extend for another 20) and the city would then sublease it to the Salinas Regional Sports Authority to manage eight soccer fields. “It seemed to have got caught up in bureaucratic red tape,” says County Supervisor Luis Alejo, who’s attempting to unwind that tape.

BAD:

The clock is ticking on the dream to build a youth hostel in the former Fort Ord. On May 18, Seaside City Council voted to amend to the lease for the Fort Ord Hostel Society, which seeks to open on a hostel on city of Seaside property in the former Fort Ord. Now, the nonprofit has performance requirements written into the lease where it must show – before Jan. 16, 2019 – proof of having the financial resources to build the hostel, and must start building it by March 15, 2020.

(0) comments

Welcome to the discussion.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Post a comment
Stop watching this discussion.