Red Line (Feb. 26)
All comments are edited for length and content. Due to content some comments may not be published. Some weeks, due to the number of comments and space, some may not be published.
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“Downtown is doing great,” said a woman. “They’re busy, they’re making some money and I think it’s great. Downtown is fantastic. It has a lot of people down there shopping. Who cares about the bright colors?”
“Thank you, Bill Coate, for Pieces of the Past,” said a woman. “Is there any way we can have more articles on Sheriff Barnett? It seems that present Madera doesn’t interest me a bit with the crime and filth downtown. The Social Security building is so filthy with gum all over the front walkways, and the post office, yuck.”
“All you have to do is go down to the county offices,” said a lady about “the restaurant on Road 26, and you’ll see there are permits for that restaurant.”
“I am livid,” began a lady’s call. About “a teacher at Madera High referring to a female student as a skank. There were other students around that heard the remark. Shame on you, you give all teachers a bad name. I hope the parents of this student step forward and do the right thing.”
“I just want to say something positive in the Red Line. There are too many negatives. All the callers have complaints, but no answers,” said one caller.
“I read Mr. Emo’s article this morning (Tues. Feb. 19) concerning the trust fund established for the Hollier family home remodel, so they can move back in after that terrible homicide. I think it is great of those volunteers to help. I moved here from a much larger city and this wouldn’t have happened there. I hope the people of Madera contribute to the trust fund set up for the home and the family at Citizen’s Bank. I will be.”
A man wanted a follow up on the proposed train station on Road 26 near Club Drive. “It has been at least two years since the city and county got together and spent taxpayer’s money on property. What became of that? A lot of people would like to ride the train.”
After reading “the article on the (Madera Unified) school district and the plan to put a 36-1 ratio in the classroom again, and 33-1 in kindergarten. I think that is the worst decision they could make concerning the budget. They have so much at the top they could cut with the administration. There are people they really don’t need at the district office.”
A male caller commented on the district’s saying it may close a school, “Where is our leadership at? It’s ridiculous. They brought in portable (classrooms) because they had overcrowding, now they want to shut schools down. Maybe they should just get rid of the portables. … (Also) they are thinking of getting rid of security and hiring a local security company. Come on.”
A man called saying he “just witnessed in front of Millview school one of our illustrious Madera police officers. It’s raining; he had his windshield wipers on and no headlights. This is a law in California. How do we enforce it when our local law enforcement don’t abide by the laws?”
“And the local Sheriff’s Department saying they don’t have to wear seat belts. Excuse me,” he said rather firmly, “I think they’re the one that should be setting the example.”
A woman who was looking at the Tribune’s feature “Madera County at Work, and you have a picture of our triplet mom.” She said, “you have the wrong name with the picture.” She gave the name that she thought was correct.
A man who said he “called a few weeks ago,” and asked again about “the state lottery and the Tribune doing an investigation on where our money is going. Why don’t you be the little paper in this big state and make them open up their books?”
A lady “just wanted to comment on whoever cut the trees at the Catholic church. They really butchered that one beautiful Genko tree. It is so upsetting. I’m sure they get enough donations. They charge enough for that school, and everything, you would think they would be able to afford a decent gardener. It’s kind of sad.”
Webmaster’s note: The tree you mention was trimmed by my father who is a very experienced tree trimmer. Your response is a common first reaction to his work but by springtime I suspect your opinion will be quite different. That also is a common occurrence. My dad has been doing this work for decades and truly cares for trees. He knows what he is doing.
“I wanted to thank the Farm Bureau for putting on a wonderful water conference on Thursday, February 21,” began a man. “It was interesting to see four directors from the Madera Irrigation District were there.” The caller “wondered where were all these people that ran for these (election) seats?”
Webmaster’s note: I could be mistaken, but I believe one of them, Fred Nix, was at the bedside of his wife, who was in the hospital.
A man called about a pizza establishment “in Madera that advertises ‘hot and ready’ for five dollars. They got one out of two right,” said the caller. “But you have to be ready to wait for 25 to 20 minutes. … They should advertise hot and ready to wait.”
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A visitor to www.MaderaTribuneRedLine.com — “Darlene” — writes, “They need to find a different place to drop off or pick up South High students instead of the parking lot by the stadium. … The high school kids are standing on the sidewalk and won’t move. … We should be able to walk our kids to school without going into (the) road to get there.”
An online reader, “Janet Campbell,” writes, “I can’t believe you are gone (Melina Sandoval). I miss your laughter, your crazy makeup and just knowing that you and Shandi are safe in Fresno shopping. You were a joy to have in my life and I’m glad I met you. I would also like … to say, know if your driver is sober — if not call someone else — I wish she would have called me.”
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Thank you for your calls. Remember, the Red Line is open for your messages 24-hours a day by calling 674-4478 or visiting www.MaderaTribuneRedLine.com.
Mr. Sibert should be ashamed of himself telling the teachers it is their fault the school district has to cut people. The school board and all those men in ties at district office should each take a 20 percent cut to give back all the money they’ve gotten in the last few years that the teachers didn’t. We need our teachers. We don’t need them. Shame on him.
… most parents have no respect for him (the head baseball coach at Madera South High School) …
… he recruited players from north campus, which is fine because they’re not that great and no great loss. We were happy about that. …
… Great example from the coach don’t you think!
Webmaster’s note: This comment was substantially abridged because it violated our posted rule against defamation (click here to view the rules and terms by which the public may use The Madera Tribune Red Line).
One lady recently wrote that “Downtown is doing great”, and that she “loves it.” It never ceases to amaze me that people in Madera are SO willing to “settle” for a downtown that is so run down, so “bargain basement” and so beleaguered.
If you REALLY want to see what a downtown CAN be like, come up to Merced. Our downtown still has a theater, has both Subway and Quizno’s, a Starbucks, several shops, plenty of shaded areas to sit and enjoy the day, nice sit-down restaurants, a water fountain, horse-drawn carriage rides, a Farmer’s Market (seasonal), music stores, etceteras.
Now understand something; I was born and raised in Madera. I spent 19 years of my life there. In that 19 years, Madera’s downtown has gone from halfway decent to just plain SAD. But then again, this is just a symptom of the apathy that pervades every aspect of the management of the city. Problems in the school district. Problems in City Council. Problems in the PD…and NO ONE working to SOLVE these problems. Every single time I drive down to Madera, I have to cry a little at what a sad state of affairs Madera finds it’s self in nowadays. Ladies and Gentlemen, Madera has been in “stay the course” mode for TOO LONG!
People, you SERIOUSLY need to push the old city fathers out of the way, clear out the cruft from city government, and get some fresh blood in the halls of power. You need to push for downtown revitalization, better representation, a more accountable police force, and change in the school district. If you are tired of settling for second best, the time is NOW to make yourselves heard, read and seen.
I was writing about the Head Baseball Coach not the Basketball coach Please reprint with the Head baseball coach from the Madera South Baseball Team….We all have lost alot of Respect for him which we didnt have much to begin with…..