User Posts : Tehachapi News

What’s in your wallet?

Last Saturday the Kern County Planning Department hosted a workshop in Stallion Springs to gain public input on the Greater Tehachapi Area Strategic Plan. I appreciate the opportunity to participate in this important endeavor.

I was, however, appalled and dismayed when one individual spoke out against allowing any low income housing to be built on our mountain top. I was horrified when these sentiments received an overwhelming round of applause from those in attendance. This was applause for the premise that people of low income are thugs, thieves and vandals.

The content of a person's wallet does not measure the content of a person's character. Low income people in our community are janitors who clean our schools, offices and businesses. They are the meter readers, the ones down in that ditch fixing your broken water main, the low paid clerks, aides and laborers whose contribution is often far greater than the reward we offer them. They are you and me many years ago when we were young adults just getting started, and they are your children and grandchildren just getting started today. These are people who deserve a place to live within our community. They deserve better than to be vilified, much less vilified by a crowd that should know better.

I get the feeling that the interests of low income members of our community were not represented at the Planning Meeting. My hope is that Kern County Planning will factor this into any decisions they make in regard to land use in the Tehachapi Area as they continue the process of developing the Greater Tehachapi Area Specific Plan. After all, the goal is to accommodate all of the needs and desires of our community rather than just those of a few activists whose concerns are too narrowly defined.

— Adrian Maaskant

Why not?

I’m 79, but I guess I’m still too young to be a Republican. I still can’t accept the idea that large corporations, the super wealthy and fundamental churches have the right to decide what’s good for my country, what I should think and what our Constitution means.

And I still believe that warrants, habeas corpus and the right to have a lawyer are my best protection against powerful people who might decide that I’m a bad guy, just because I disagree with them . In addition, I still believe that the Geneva Convention and General George Washington were correct when they outlawed torture.

And even at my age I’m still naive enough to think that every American who works hard deserves a livable wage — even if CEO’s and board members have to stop squeezing their employees, over charging their customers, and polluting any land they’re not going to need for their fourth and fifth homes. Add to that the possibility that they might even show enough loyalty to American workers to stop outsourcing jobs for profit, under the disguise of competing in a world economy.

Even at 79, I still haven’t become sufficiently jaded to believe that medical care should have nothing to do with how much money you have in the bank; that it should be exactly the same for the poor as the rich — and that everyone deserves to have it.

Shortly before Bobby Kennedy died he said, “I see things as they could be and ask why not?” When I look at the United States, the way it is today, it’s beyond my understanding why we aren’t all asking that same question.

— Tony Marshall

TVHD hopes to find single contractor to speed up process

When our building program stalled because our prior architect was slow at producing plans and getting them approved by the state agency OSHPD, John Hicks volunteered to be our project manager to coordinate and prod the parties into getting the job done. John gave of his time and went to work with an intensity that will be hard to match. When the plans we received were found to be unsuitable, John recognized that we had a problem, and had experts investigate and demonstrated to us why the plans were inappropriate and too costly.

The prior plans were drawn up by an architect. We were then expected to take those plans and find a builder to construct a hospital using those plans. The plans were too complicated, too costly, did not meet our needs, and builders were reluctant to bid on the plans. To avoid repeating the same mistake, John Hick’s recommendation was that we get professional help and hire a project manager to guide us in designing a hospital.

We have now hired Norm Clendenin as project manager. He is in the process of finding out the various pieces (the number and types of units) that will best fill the needs of the Tehachapi Healthcare District, and is within our price range. When we have a firm idea of what we will need in a new hospital then we can take that conceptual plan and open up a bidding process.

Our current thought is that we would like to have companies that design and build hospitals to give us an idea what they can do for us. When a company designs a plan that they are going to build we can expect them to give us a firm price on the cost.

Using a design/build company will mean that we will have a single contract for the actual construction costs of the hospital. The results we hope for are a speedier process and an early idea of what the cost will be.

— Sam Conklin, M.D.
President TVHD Board of Directors

Thanks to volunteers for promoting civic pride

The Mountain Festival Committee begins work every January in order to make this community event successful, and our 45th Annual Tehachapi Mountain Festival® was no exception. Each committee member gives of themselves by providing valuable support to this community event and promoting civic pride. Being part of this committee, they were able to contribute significantly to the economic growth and awareness of our beautiful community, which encourages people to want to come to Tehachapi to live, work and raise their families. The Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce gratefully acknowledges the committee, for without them there would be no Mountain Festival: Carl Gehricke, Chairman; Susan Burt, Susie Atherton, David and Barbara Shaw, Dennis Stirk, Barbara Allen, Teri Kahn, Chief Jeff Kermode, Richard Perkins and Dave Burt.

Thanks goes to hard working Chamber Directors who volunteered for various tasks: Richard Henry, Lara Roma, Phillip Darling, Susie Atherton, Kathy Carey, Ed Duggan, Tim Kielpinski, Leslie Kimball, J.R. Spriggle and Mary Lou Vachon.

A special thank you to Lara Roma and the Bank of the West employees and their families; Mike Berard, Linda Shaffer, Kasey Dirado, Jackie Wood and Kathy Murray, for manning the carnival ticket booth; Chamber Ambassadors Carla Cook, Jeanne Waterworth, Stella Raymond and Kathleen Ryan; Mike Pera, Dimitry Geler, Maggie Ganczak, Stuart Smith for working at the Beer Garden; Chamber Ambassadors, Lisa Carmel and Mik Mikkelsen; and Vivian Chianello for working at the Chamber Booth; John Lunsford for the awesome job done as Sound Engineer and MC of the Mountain Festival Entertainment; David, Barbara, Taylor and Michael Shaw, Charley Wright, Jill Green, Nicky, Lisa Davis and from Coldwell Banker, Mary Lou, Shelly and Seenie for their work on the Mountain Festival Parade; The Bear Valley Police Explorer's Post 320 for the outstanding job keeping the park clean. Also, thanks to the volunteers from Daughters of the American Revolution, the Rotary Club and Tehachapi Community Theater, who manned Pepsi Booths in the park, while distributing their information.

The Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce would like to extend its appreciation to Chief Jeff Kermode and the officers of the Tehachapi Police Department, the guards of Mountain High Security for all of their hard work to insure that the Mountain Festival was a safe and enjoyable community event.

Carl Gehricke, Mountain Festival Chairman deserves a very special thank you. Carl worked diligently to make this festival the best one yet. He worked tirelessly at arranging the many details for the Carnival, he ordered, setup, delivered and worked on equipment all weekend. He tried to make an appearance at nearly every Mountain Festival event. Carl was particularly mindful of the volunteers making sure that they were provided for in special ways. Thanks Carl, great job!

It is difficult to name and to adequately express our gratitude and appreciation for each and everyone who has done favors, given assistance, offered special help and advice for the Mountain Festival, because surely someone would be left out. There are so many individuals and organizations to thank for helping to make our 45th Tehachapi Mountain Festival® an event that attracts thousands of people to our beautiful home. It is truly a community event and we sincerely appreciate your hard work. Our hats are off to you!

It has been a pleasure to work with such an outstanding group of dedicated individuals on the 2008 Mountain Festival Committee.

The Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce gratefully acknowledges you all.
If you know someone who has been a volunteer, please let him or her know how much you appreciate his or her commitment to our community.

— Ida Perkins, President
Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce

Spay and Neuter Clinic volunteers deserving of big thanks

On the behalf of the Feral Cat program I'd like to express my utmost gratitude to all the people involved in the Spay/Neuter Clinic on Aug 22. To the wonderful Dr. Billingsley and her excellent helpers Melissa and Ray for working lo-o-o-ng hours and fixing 20 cats. Also to Cristina Campbell, Jerry Seville and Cathy Guerra for driving the cats to and from Dr. Billingsley's, and to SPAN (Spay and Neuter Network) and Kern Humane Society for providing additional financial help.

Thank you so much everybody. You guys rock.

— Neide Franzen
Tehachapi Humane Society Feral Cat program

Chamber Thanks Mountain Festival Sponsors

The Greater Tehachapi Chamber of Commerce and the 2008 Mountain Festival Committee would like to recognize and express our appreciation for the following sponsors who supported our 45th Annual Tehachapi Mountain Festival®.

Benz Inc, Exclusive Parade Sponsor; Bank of the West, FPL Energy Operating Systems, Inc., GE Energy, Lehigh Southwest Cement Company and Oak Creek Energy Systems, Inc., Silver Mine Sponsors; Bank of the Sierra, California Portland Cement and Tammy Engel, Mortgage Advisor, Carnival Round Up Sponsors; 'hachapi Tees, Bright House Networks, Del Taco, Law Office of Phillip H. Darling and Red Hot Signs, Designs & Decals, Branding Iron T-Shirt Sponsors; 'hachapi Tees, J. Williams Personal Financial Planning, Inc., National Health Services, Red Hot Signs, Designs & Decals and tech-hachapi.com, Gazebo Entertainment Sponsors; The City of Tehachapi, Tehachapi Valley Parks and Recreation District and the Tehachapi News.
These business sponsors make it possible to do many of the activities that are part of Mountain Festival. As you patronize them throughout the year, please say thank you.
The community calls on them and they willingly support many activities and organizations.

Short street finally finished

A short stretch of Commercial Street in Old Towne that begins at Santa Lucia Street, crosses South Street, and until recently stopped several hundred feet short of Woodford-Tehachapi Road - much to the consternation of area businesses and shoppers - has finally been finished.

“It's easier to come in and out now,” said Art Schaefer, owner of Ranch Supply, which is located at the corner of Commercial and South streets. “We lost business in this area because of it.”

The new access also has created an easier, safer way to exit Highway 202.
Schaefer said the effort to finish off the short stretch of road, which passes through one contiguous parcel, began long ago.

“We've been working with the county for eight years to get this accomplished and they finally got it done,” Schaefer said. It took a petition, a Chamber of Commerce committee and a political push, he said, saying Kern County Supervisor Don Maben “is the hero involved.”

Maben said he started working on the project four years ago.

Maben declared that the road “makes a whale of a difference. You don't have to fight to get onto 202 anymore.”

The county resorted to exercising prescriptive rights to build the short portion of Commercial Street, he said.

The absentee owners of the property, Maben said, “would never respond.”

People have driven across the property on a makeshift dirt road for years, he said, opening the owners to prescriptive loss. If a property is used by the public without objection by the owners over a period of time, it becomes a right, he said.

The county engineered the road, graded it, smoothed out what used to be a dropoff at Woodford-Tehachapi Road and installed base and pavement. The construction took six weeks.

The cost, Maben said, was $85,000.00.

“And it came in a little under budget. It was a nice fix. I love those kinds of projects. The people benefit.”

New hospital none too soon

If there is an unused inch of space at Tehachapi Hospital, Alan Burgess would like to know where it is.

Crutches, medical machines and office machines are tucked into alcoves and hallways. Information technology equipment, jammed in the back of a subdivided room, hums along in open cupboards to stay cool. Offices the size of closets contain three or four desks. A floor-to-ceiling wall of patient records in tidy manila folders slides open to reveal another wall of documents hiding behind.

The operating room, while still licensed by the state, sterile and useable, is locked.

“I don't even keep a key,” Burgess said.

Financial and other offices inhabit trailers behind the hospital building, with mobile medical units parked alongside. Auxiliary services are jammed into old houses flanking the hospital at 115 West F Street.

Nevertheless, the hospital, built in 1954, is clean and fresh and functional and supplied with good medical technology.

Burgess, chief executive officer of the Tehachapi Valley Healthcare District, is maintaining the little community hospital at maximum load while planning for a new facility to serve the Greater Tehachapi area.

When he assumed the post of CEO a year ago, Burgess was expecting to oversee the construction of the new hospital, which was well into its design and approval stages.

Construction of the proposed new hospital, funded in 2004 with $15 million in bonds, ran off-track when the district's board of directors - concluding that the design was flawed -- fired the original design/build firm in June. The district is now working with the husband- and- wife strategic planning team of Kathleen and Michael Philps of Philps & Associates to help get the project back on track. The directors have named a new project manager, Norm Clendenin, who will take over immediately.

Burgess is nearly buried in business cards from vendors approved by the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development -- known as the dreaded “OSHPD,” pronounced “OSH pod.”

He has 428 vendor cards so far, he said, and material from 19 design/build firms who want to bid on the new hospital. Five have made presentations to the district board.

The multi-wing building plan presented by the original design/build company and nursed -- sometimes in an adversarial manner -- through the state approval process, Burgess said, “was a pretty design but not functional.”

There were too many inefficient outside walls, inadequate lab space and a layout that did not make sense, he said.

In the rejected design, Burgess said, a patient leaving surgery would have to be pushed through a series of non-sterile areas to get to the recovery area -- past the doctors' sleeping room, the triage area, gift shop, radiology, kitchen and loading deck, the labor-delivery-recovery-postpartum area and the skilled nursing facility with “swing” beds for either acute or long-term care.

“Once we got them thoroughly contaminated,” Burgess said, the patient finally would arrive at the medical surgical wing for recovery.

Recently, setting aside a copy of the jettisoned floor plan in his office, Burgess said, “I like to keep it away from my eyes. It just drives me nuts.”

The decision to terminate the contract after spending $1.1 million on it, he said, was the right thing to do.

“We could have easily bit a $15 million bullet. Instead, we dodged it.”

The original Tehachapi hospital was a 1918 boarding house, converted in 1936 to an acute care hospital. In 1952, the 7.5 Kern County earthquake leveled the two-story frame building. The hospital built in 1954 is the present one. Lack of documentation of the original hospital plans, Burgess said, prevents the state from authorizing a seismic refit.

Gone is what Burgess calls “The In-n-Out Burger” 50s-era sign, but still standing as sentinals at the front entrance are the great evergreen trees that existed when the earliest structure was built.

The hospital provides 24-hour emergency service, six beds for acute care and, at the moment, cares for 19 skilled nursing facility (long-term) patients.

The kitchen provides fresh meals and accommodates special diets for the long-term patients, who can stay as long as they need to. An activities director arranges music, workouts, tea and coffee, shuffle board, wheelchair basketball, barbeques, Bible study, table games and bingo for the long-term patients.

“They watch Dr. Phil every day,” Burgess said. “For some reason they love Dr. Phil.”

When the new hospital is built, Burgess said, the present facility will remain a skilled nursing facility.

Walking along a hallway in the hospital last week, Burgess came across an elderly patient sitting dejectedly in her wheelchair. He called her by name and received no response.

“What's wrong with Virginia?” he asked a nurse.

“She's upset because we had to move her to change her bed,” said a nurse.
Burgess smiled and said a comforting word to Virginia.

“We become very attached to our long-term patients,” he said. “It's a blessing knowing our patients by their first names.”

Tehachapi Healthcare District firms up finances and future

The financial health of the Tehachapi Valley Healthcare District is looking up after a year of tough decisions by the board, including firing the designer/builder of the proposed hospital in June, and closing the California City radiology office in July.
Also in recent months, Medicare has withheld reimbursements of more than $1.8 million in what that federal agency concluded were overpayments going back five years; and Medi-Cal payments to the district have disappeared until the California legislature approves a budget.

Nevertheless, Chief Financial Officer Joseph Demont, reporting Aug. 20 to the district's board of directors at the Golden Hills Community Services District meeting room, said, “By our calculations, we have lots of reasons to be happy.”

Demont, with his internal, unaudited projection of $27 million in gross revenues, $13.3 million in expenses and $15 million in contracted allowances for fiscal year 2007-2008, predicts the operating loss for the year will be approximately $752,000, which is less than the fiscal year 2006-2007 loss of $822,886.00.

He reported that the month of June showed an historic all-time record cash collection of $1.5 million — but, “We were a little slow out of the gate in August.”

There are two pieces to the district financial puzzle. The first is the hospital and clinics: “Everything we do in the way of providing medical goods and services to the community,” Demont said. “That piece of the district doesn't make money.”

The second piece of the puzzle is non-operating revenues from taxes, investments, interest and grants.

“We rely on non-operating funds to make money. All in all, the hospital district is in the black,” Demont said.

The completion of a budget for fiscal year 2008-2009 has been delayed for a month by the absence of the controller.

“We are scrambling to put together a budget by the end of September for board approval,” Demont said. “A budget is the blueprint for the kind of business development we plan to do for the coming year.”

Six months ago, the district hired Brenda Magee as the new director of billing.

“We are being more proactive,” she said. “We are taking the initiative.”

Hospital bills that make sense to the patient make collecting payments easier.

“Our focus is on billing accurately, quickly and efficiently,” Demont said. “If the bill is not accurate, that's when people dispute the charge and they don't pay.”

Payment plans include a sliding scale and discount for cash.

“We have a fairly well-established charity policy and a cash pay policy. If you get treated you get a 40 percent discount of the price of any of the services,” Demont said.

The billing department provides a patient counselor to review situations and recommend payment plans, he said.

“Because we are community-based mission, our focus is on fulfilling that mission.”
He said they are also “Getting better at collecting from contract payors,” such as Blue Shield and other programs.

In his report to the directors, Demont — who, like Chief Executive Officer Alan Burgess — came on board as administrators less than a year ago said, “Over the last 10 months we faced some of our most serious challenges — Having the courage to take action on letting go of Aspen Street Architects [hospital design/build firm] and having the stamina and capabilities to absorb large withholds from Medicare for prior overpayments. Letting go of Aspen Street took enormous courage on the part of the board and the CEO. But doing so finally helped set the stage for a new beginning and a positive direction towards our goal of a new hospital.”

He said that with the Medicare withholds, “We weathered and withstood one of our most serious financial hardships ever…but we are happy to report that during this same timeframe:

• We never bounced a check, stiffed a vendor or missed a beat;
• For the first six months of 2008, we raised operating cash by more than $1.5 million vs. the same period one year. While sales were up only 5 percent, cash was up 15 percent;
• We were able to secure a half-million dollar credit line, but never had to borrow a penny;
• We improved our healthcare coverage for our employees…We got better benefits, better coverage and set the stage for yearling savings of $100,000 a year;
• We restored our LAIF [investment] funds to amounts greater than they were one year ago and funded our company match for our employee deferred compensation program;
• We managed to still give a 3 percent across-the-board inflation adjustment increase for the entire 170-plus workforce; and
• We showed significant improvements in all measurable patient care areas, based on LUMETRA Survey on patient safety culture.”
In a later interview with the Tehachapi News, Demont said, “We have a positive story to tell. We are fixing many, many things.”

He said that new reporting methods enable better tracking of expenses for the district's four operations — the hospital in Tehachapi and clinics in Tehachapi, Mojave and California City. Demont emphasized that in California City, only the radiology clinic was closed, and the clinic remains open.

One result of keeping closer tabs on expenses has been a retreat from 24-hour staffing in the respiratory department. In 2006, the hospital began increasing the hours of staffing the department and by September of 2007 the department was staffed 24 hours a day, for an average bi-weekly pay of $11,078.

“We said, 'Let's take a closer look at how the staff was organized. We didn't have many patients between midnight and three to four a.m. There was not enough usage during the night.”

As of June, 2008, the respiratory department schedule is 12 hours “on,” or staffed, and 12 hours “on call,” with staff available at a moment's notice, for an average bi-weekly pay of $8,127.

“There hasn't been a degradation in service levels,” Demont said. “We are staffing the work force to meet the needs of the business. At a 24-hour WalMart, at 3 a.m. there are not a lot of cashiers and bag boys. They put the staff they need for the people they expect.

“Alan and I and the board feel the need to fulfill our community responsibility by doing so intelligently and not wasting money.”

The most recent audit of the healthcare district confirms its correct accounting on three levels: financial statements, internal controls and compliance with federal programs.

The receipt of more than $500,000 in federal money from a variety of payors in the course of a year triggered the need for an audit that was more detailed than previously. The audit dated June 30, 2007, conducted by outside firm TCA Partners, LLP, of Fresno, found that “the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Tehachapi Valley Healthcare District.”
The audit also found “no deficiencies in internal control over financial reporting that we consider to be significant deficiencies.”

Finally, the 29-page audit found that “the hospital complied, in all material respects, with the requirements referred to above that are applicable to each of its major programs for the year ended June 30, 2007.”

Man arrested for riding his bicycle...

Drunk driving is still drunk driving, even if you’re pedaling on a bicycle, a Tehachapi man learned recently.

Tehachapi Police Chief Jeff Kermode said on the afternoon of Aug. 17 police observed a man on a bicycle weaving left and right in an alley between Pauley and Currey Streets.

“His feet were coming off the pedals.” Kermode said.

An officer in a patrol car, observing that the bicycle rider neglected to stop at Curry and pulled out in front of a car, turned on its lights to make a stop.

“He rode into the curb, almost falling over,” Kermode said the officers reported. “There was a strong odor of alcohol.”

According to the police report, the bicycle-rider said he had ingested 24 ounces of Bud Ice and a pint of vodka. The officers asked the man to take a field sobriety test.

“I can’t pass them,” he allegedly responded. “I’m too drunk.”

Two Preliminary Alcohol Screening (PAS) tests showed the man’s blood alcohol level to be .20 and .24.

“That’s three times the legal limit,” Kermode said.

The officers arrested Edwards Louis Foley, 31, of Tehachapi, under section 21200.5 of the vehicle code, DUI on a bicycle.

Foley provided a blood sample and was released on a promise to appear.
Kermode said that a person also can be arrested for riding drunk on a horse, as a horse is considered a vehicle.

School board debates counselor conundrum

The Tehachapi Unified School District Board of Trustees deadlocked at their Aug. 26 board meeting on the matter of hiring a new counselor/dean based at Jacobsen Middle School who also would serve Monroe High School.

During the discussion, trustees expressed concern that filling the position would have a fiscal impact on a shrinking budget, while there was general agreement that the students are in need of additional counseling services.

“We need a decision,” Superintendent of Schools Richard Swanson. “We have a continuation school with no counseling services. If we are audited, we will lose funding.”

Chief Administrator of Personnel Bobbie Wieder, who put forth the agenda item, said the administration of Monroe High School “is very concerned that the students at Monroe are not receiving counseling services.”

Chief Administrator of Instructional Services Lisa Gilbert said most of the money is available in the form of a grant.

“I know we have the funding there and can only be spent in that way,” she said.

The discussion re-emerged after the trustees voted 3-3 on the original agenda item that combined the position of counselor and dean. Trustees Patty Snyder, Mary Graham and Kim Armbrecht voted no. Trustees Jackie Wood, Judy Walsh and board President Gary Warner voted yes. Trustee Holly Hart was absent.

The board agreed to revisit the matter at their next meeting and vote on two new agenda items separating the positions of counselor and dean.

“I came in ready to vote on this,” said Trustee Armbrecht. “Then when it's analyzed, it makes the staff look awkward. If we can't afford it, we can't afford it. I appreciate the urgency.”

In other business, public speaker Liz Fox asked the board to review the school bus rider policy to enable youngsters who do not ride every day to utilize the bus in case of need or emergency.

“There should be a procedure to address an 'as needed' ride system,” she said. “I suggest a punch card system.”

Fox, who had been calling the school district administration staff in regard to the matter, had earlier received a letter from Al Harris, attorney for the district, telling her not to communicate with the staff any more.

“I have also beenadvised that your demeanor during these contacts has been frequently rude and inappropriately hostile,” Harris wrote. “As I see it, your behavior has been unreasonable and your continued persistence is interfering with TUSD staff performing their duties. Accordingly, I have directed TUSD staff not to communicate with you regarding your reimbursement/transportation issues.”

Animal control workers detail findings at alleged hoarder's

The stories from animal control officers were stark. A do-not-enter sign is taped to the front door of the property Anita Gilbert rented in Tehachapi after it was raided by Kern County Animal Control in mid-July. Gilbert is facing felony animal cruelty charges.

Urine and feces leaked from the cat carrier where a female Chihuahua with atrophied hind legs huddled, trapped against the top of her cage by the sheer volume of trash and her own waste.

Rotting rotisserie chickens and cans of spoiled pet food sat amid piles of trash on the floor.

Animals' skin, eyes and noses had been burned by the ammonia from their urine. Fur was caked with the animals' own feces.

Animal Control officer Julie Sugg told a county hearing officer Thursday morning what she uncovered at the home of accused animal abuser Anita Gilbert on July 16.
She backed up the stories with 14 grim photos taken inside the warehouse during last months' animal control raid.

Gilbert's civil attorney Clayton Campbell, who was not allowed to cross-examine Sugg, offered no evidence to counter Sugg's story.

His client wasn't there to testify.

Gilbert, who faces two felony warrants for her arrest, did not show up for Thursday's hearing - which she requested in July in an effort to get her animals back.
If she had shown up, she would have been arrested.

Two Sheriff's deputies attended the meeting but left after it was clear Gilbert was not going to show up.

The warrants are tied to her failure to appear in court on criminal animal abuse charges and to an alleged threat she made against a Kern County public defender previously assigned to the criminal case against her.

Campbell said Gilbert has told him she is in a hospital undergoing cancer treatment.
But he only has contact with her by phone and does not know what hospital she is in, he said.

“I've advised her to turn herself in,” Campbell said.

Hearing officer Brian Pitts will now consider the testimony and determine if Sugg, other animal officers, Sheriff's deputies and veterinary officials were justified in seizing 34 cats and 18 dogs from Gilbert under a search warrant served that day.

The investigation into Gilbert's situation started with a public complaint about terrible odors that was made on July 14, Sugg said.

Sugg said she could smell the stench coming from the metal warehouse building on Bear Valley Road from 50 feet away when she visited the property on July 15.

She caught her first glimpse of Gilbert as the woman tried to shove pieces of cardboard into a window to block Sugg's view into the building.

Sugg said she talked to Gilbert and was allowed a glimpse inside the warehouse - where she saw trash, feces and animals.

When Sugg asked to tour the building, she said Gilbert told her to leave unless she had a search warrant.

The next day Sugg came back with the warrant, six other animal control officers and Sheriff's deputies.

Sugg described a small studio apartment where Gilbert was living in one portion of the warehouse. It had feces-covered kitchen counters, an overpowering smell of ammonia and flooring that was “spongy” with soaked-up urine and filth.

The rest of the warehouse contained dog runs, open areas and freezers with 12 animal carcasses wrapped in plastic or paper towels.

Sugg testified that she and other animal control officers seized Gilbert's animals because they were suffering in the conditions they had been forced to live in.

Three animals have been euthanized since the raid.

Campbell tried to postpone the hearing, but his request was denied by the hearing officer, who had already postponed it once at the request of Gilbert and her former attorney George Boyle.

At the end of the hearing Campbell argued that Gilbert's animals should be released to rescue groups or, at the least, Kern County Animal Control should promise not to euthanize any further animals.

His client is worried that animal control will put them to death.

County Attorney Charles Collins said the county will keep the animals, and keep them safe, unless a veterinarian determines a specific animal needs to be put down for humane reasons.

Ashley Rugh and Adam Phillips Engagement Announcement

Lori and Bob Rugh are delighted and proud to announce the engagement of their daughter Ashley Rugh to Adam Phillips, son of Christina Phillips and Scott Phillips, all of Tehachapi.

Ashley is currently attending Orange Coast College with a major in Anthropology and Adam is a Communications/Network specialist and Lance Corporal in the Marines. Their wedding is set for December 20, 2008 and they will reside in New Orleans, LA, which is Adam’s current duty station.

There’s always another ramp

The State Route 58 lane and ramp closures should be less confusing to
motorists after Tuesday (Aug. 26), according to the construction company
doing the work.

“Today’s [Tuesday] kind of a tough day because we have so many contractors
working,” said William Duford, paving superintendent for Granite Construction Company, of Watsonville, the primary contractor.

On Wednesday, he said, in the late morning and early afternoon, lane stripers will force the alternate closures of the eastbound ramps at State Route 202 (Tucker Road) and Mill Street.

“That’s pretty much going to be it,” he said.

Duford said that the changeable electronic signs tell motorists what is
closed, not what is open.

“Caltrans does not like us to put too much information on the boards,” he
said.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) assures motorists who
are confused by ramp closures on State Route 58 this week that contractors
are instructed not to close consecutive ramps.

“We don’t allow contractors to close two consecutive ramps in a row,” said
Jose Camarena, public information officer for Caltrans district 6 in Fresno. “They [motorists] need to know that the next one will be open.”

Duford explained that if the eastbound off-ramp at State Route 202 is closed, for example, “We have to leave the off-ramp at Mill Street open. If we close the off-ramp at 202, the only thing we can close at Mill is the on-ramp.”

Alternating closures may not follow a strict schedule.

“The nature of the work is dynamic,” Camarena said. The contractors will be working on the Tehachapi segment of State Route 58 for a week, he said, “working on all the ramps.”

Camarena said the signage is the responsibility of the contractor.

Dennis Wesley, branch manager of the Bakersfield office of Granite Construction, said, “They are moving from ramp to ramp. We can only close one ramp at a time.”

Wesley agreed that the rolling closures are challenging to motorists.

“I’ll talk to my people about the signage so it will be a little less confusing,” he told the Tehachapi News.

An Aug. 21 Caltrans Commuter Alert said the pavement rehabilitation project on State Route 58 will continue through Aug. 29 through the Tehachapi stretch of highway.

The alert read:

“The eastbound State Route 202 on/off ramp may be intermittently closed for up to four hours a day during construction the week of Aug. 25 through Aug. 29. In addition to the ramp closure, motorists should anticipate lane closures on SR-58 in the Tehachapi area throughout the week. Work hours are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

This $8.5 million project will rehabilitate a 30-mile segment of SR-58
about two miles east of State route 223 to the Cache Creek Bridge.

Granite Construction Company was awarded the project that began in early
June and is expected to be complete late September 2008. During construction, motorists will be altered to lane/ramp closures via construction signage and electronic message boards along SR-58 and near freeway interchanges within Tehachapi.

Caltrans thanks the motoring public for their patience as we work to
rehabilitate this segment of SR-58. Motorists are reminded to allow
additional travel time and drive with extra care through construction
areas.”

Four ramp interchanges provide access to the Tehachapi area from State Route
58 -- State Highway 202 (Tucker Road, exit 148), Mill Street/Capitol Hills
Parkway (exit 149), Monolith/Tehachapi Summit (gives entry to Tehachapi
boulevard, exit 151) and Sand Canyon (exit 156). There are several more
State Route 58 interchanges on the west side.

Daily closure Information from Caltrans will be posted on this web site as it becomes available.

Canine Creek earns a special treat

In its annual contest to find the best pet industry retailer, Pet Product News International, the leading monthly trade newsmagazine covering the issues and trends affecting all sectors of the professional pet industry, announced that Canine Creek Pet Wash & Boutique received one of the runner-up awards in its 2008-2009 Retailer of the Year contest.

Pet Product News International will profile the retailer in the December issue of the magazine. Runners-up are granted a seat to serve on the Pet Product News International Retail Advisory Board as part of the honor.

Canine Creek Pet Wash & Boutique is located in Tehachapi, Calif., and its owner, Susie Atherton, held the top honor of Retailer of the Year in 2006. Atherton continues to improve her pet wash and boutique business and stay involved in many community and pet-related activities. Atherton relocated her store and doubled the space to almost 3,000 square feet. She continues to manage Pet Industry Retailers, a 400+ member peer-networking group, founded a nonprofit pet rescue group, petitioned to build an animal shelter in her community and is working with the city to develop its first off-leash dog park. The editors of Pet Product News International are proud of Atherton and the work she does with her business, the pet industry and her community.

The Retailer of the Year Awards were created 12 years ago to recognize retail excellence in the pet industry. Candidates are initially selected from surveys distributed to retailers via the magazine and BowTie Inc.'s Retailer Sales force. Retailers are then reviewed and evaluated by a panel of Pet Product News International staff members on such criteria as employee training practices, promotion of companion animals and pet adoptions, involvement with professional and service organizations, innovative promotion, effective strategies in the marketplace, community impact and industry impact. This year there were almost 200 applicants for the award.

The Retailer of the Year contest is sponsored this year by World Wide Pet Industry Assn., the oldest pet industry trade association and sponsor of the annual SuperZoo trade show in Las Vegas.

Pet Product News International (PetProductNews.com) is the leading business newsmagazine covering the issues and trends affecting all sectors of the professional pet industry, including-but not limited to-retailers, manufacturers, distributors and trade associations. Pet Product News International is published BowTie Inc., the industry leader in consumer pet and veterinary trade publishing. You can find BowTie Inc. and its magazines on the web at AnimalNetwork.com.