$1
including tax
Winters FD seeking info on two-alarm structure fire News, Page 2
Celebrating Winters newest Eagle Scout Features, Page 1
Volume 139, Number 40 — Locally-owned since 1884
8th Nov TE VO
The hometown paper of Robert A. Paschoal
Winters, Yolo County, California, Wednesday, November 2, 2022
Richard Casavecchia for Winters City Council Endorsed by
Winters Downtown Business Association
Experienced Leader. Community Focused. Real World Experience. Day 1 Action Plan
Growth
1) Full public review of growth plan by February 2023 2) Identify & prioritize areas of improvement by July 2023 3) Estimate scope and cost of updates by October 2023 4) Draft implementation and funding plan by March 2024 5) Incorporate change plan into 2024-25 Budget
Finance
Goal: Rebuild city reserve fund over the next 4 years 1) Review finances for potential savings and issue 2023-24 budget guidance to staff by March 2) Cap expenses at budgeted FY23 amounts for 4 years 3) Seek out new revenue sources
Paid for by Richard Casavecchia for Winters City Council 2022 | FPPC # 1454483
richard4winters.com
Waggoner Elementary project over budget, Trustees approve second cost assessment By Jacob Hoffman Express staff writer The Winters Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees approved a second cost assessment on the Waggoner Elementary School construction project after the first determined the project would be $6 million over budget. Mary Fitzgerald, Senior Project Manager with Van Pelt Construction Services, presented the Board with three agenda items, with the second seeking the approval of an amendment to com-
mission Studio W, the construction company working on the school, to reassess the cost estimate provided by Cummings, their previous cost estimating firm. The first estimate on the eight-classroom project was found to be, “about $6 million over-budget,” Fitzgerald noted, but she and officials in the school district believe there is reason to view this current estimate as greatly overestimating the potential cost. In a meeting for
Measures R, D, P, and W planning, held earlier, the Board decided a second assessment was necessary, and this proposal brought by Fitzgerald represents the culmination of that decision. “A second estimate would provide the information needed to make the decision if the district will have enough funds to move forward with the eight-classroom buildings,” Fitzgerald summarized. But if the second assessment upholds
See COSTS, Page 5
Dixon Ridge Farms receives lifetime ag easements from Solano Land Trust By Todd R. Hansen McNaughton Media
EXPRESS
Russ Lester was about five years old, maybe six, when he climbed up into a tree fort nested in an apple tree growing on the family farm in Santa Clara County. From there he could see the agricultural expanse of the orchard-rich valley, and despite his age, he could also see his father’s vision for
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a future that would be quite different: a place where silicon chips would be grown instead of cherries and apricots and almonds. It was in that tree fort where Lester vowed to join his father’s fight to preserve agriculture as the “highest and best use” of prime farmland. Some 60 years later, Lester became quite emotional as he paid tribute to his father’s efforts to stem the evolutionary wave that crashed onto California ag land, washing over fertile soil with houses and
factories and pavement. Lester, on Monday, joined the Solano Land Trust and state conservation officials in celebrating the end of a nearly six-year journey to place his 913-acre Dixon Ridge Farms into a lifetime easement. “It’s a lifetime dream come true,” Lester said. The Winters-area walnut grower will be paid $4.075 million to keep his farm in agricultural production, protecting what is described as “prime
See LAND, Page 7
Index Features ........................ B-1
We at he r Date
Rain
High
Low
Oct. 21
.00
73˚
48˚
Oct. 22
.00
73˚
47˚
Oct. 23
.00
73˚
39˚
Oct. 24
.00
71˚
40˚
Eventos hispanos ....... A-6
Oct. 25
.00
78˚
42˚
Oct. 26
.00
79˚
45˚
Opinion ......................... B-3
Oct. 27
.00
79˚
45˚
Classifieds ................... B-4 Community .................. A-7
Real Estate ................... B-2 Sports ........................... A-3
Rain for week: 0.00 in. Season’s total: 0.99 in. Last sn. to date: 6.92 in. Winters rainfall season began 7/1/22. Weather readings are taken at 9 a.m.
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Winters students show Congressman John Garamendi and USDA Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt strawberries growing in the school garden bed.
Schools will receive over $23M to buy direct from local farmers By Crystal Apilado Editor-in-Chief Federal and state officials announced last Wednesday they have signed a cooperative agreement with California for more than $23 million to purchase products and foods from local farmers — to include producers in Solano and Yolo counties — to provide quality, nutritious school meals. The Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program gives the California Department of Edu-
cation the ability to purchase and distribute local and regional foods and beverages for schools in the state to serve children through the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. The products will be healthy and unique to each school’s geographic location, officials said. The big-picture goal is to improve child nutrition and build upon relationships between schools and local farmers. U.S. Department of Agriculture Under
Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt made the announcement at a gathering Wednesday at Waggoner Elementary School. Winters is her hometown and she attended Waggoner Elementary. “As someone who was born and raised here in Winters, and as we talk about this new program that we have at USDA — bringing local food to schools, enhancing the ability of schools
See FUNDS, Page 5
Winters Robotics Club wins big in competition By Aaron Geerts Express staff writer The Winters Robotics Club (WRC) was turning gears and winning gold at the competition it hosted last weekend, Oct. 22–23. Although it squared off against experienced teams from bigger schools, the WRC made its presence felt in this techno-showdown. Twenty-eight teams from around Northern California assembled at the Young Gymnasium early Saturday morning to kick off the high school division of the robotics competition. The opposition included the likes of Redding, Corning, Granite Bay, Fairfield, Oakland, Santa Clara, San Jose and more, with each eager to claim victory. Wherever they came from,
Courtesy photo
August Nelson, Holly Selleck and Andrew Coleman, the winning Winters Middle School robotics team, are ranked 18th in the state of California. however, the WRC teams were more than ready to take them on. “On Saturday, we had six teams from the Intro to Engineering class and another six teams from our competitive club. Everything went smoothly and (the) competi-
tion ended around 5 o’clock on Saturday. The winners were one of the teams from Granite Bay and another one from Oakland,” explained WRC coach Dianne Halsey. “The high school team
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