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On Monday evening, the entire cast of candidates running for seats on the Mono County Board of Supervisors gathered in Suite Z in Mammoth for a Candidates Forum hosted by the Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce.

Chamber President Brent Truax moderated the event and the public was encouraged to submit questions for the candidates.

Several hot button items, such as air service subsidy and the Bodie Hills WSA were raised. Questions also revolved around Mammoth’s current financial challenges (i.e. the MLLA settlement).

Candidates Fesko, Peters and Stump agreed that Mammoth is the economic engine of the County, and the Board should help the Town.

“A healthy Mammoth is a healthy County,” Fesko said.

Hazard and Bauer did not disagree but claimed that the Town needed to take the first steps toward solving its problems. The two current supervisors also pointed to consolidation of services as a top solution for the financial issues.

A fresh question asked on Monday evening was whether or not the candidates, if elected, would be willing to sit down and discuss the current property tax distribution agreement with the Town.

According to County Finance Director Brian Muir, the Town proper receives 4-5% of property taxes collected, but he added, if you look at the Town as a whole and what entities such as the school district, the water district and the fire district are receiving, the Town actually receives 42-43%.

Candidate responses:

Tim Alpers: I’d be hard pressed to change it, but I wouldn’t close my mind to a discussion. We should look at combination of services first.

Jan Huggans: I’d be willing to discuss it. It may be necessary to sit down [and have the discussion] depending on what happens.

Tim Fesko: The short answer is yes. We have to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks.

Bob Peters: You can’t just say yes. We can’t talk about the property tax split on its own. We have to look at the County services provided to the Town as well.

Fred Stump: For a mutual benefit, yes I would have the discussion.

Hap Hazard: Reality check – I would sit down for the discussion but there is no obligation on the County’s part to give any property tax back to the Town. That was decided with the Town’s incorporation. The Town has the flexibility to do other things like raise sales tax.

Vikki Bauer: I’d be willing to talk about it, but we’re asking the wrong question. We need to figure out how to grow the entire pie because it’s shrinking for both of us [Town and County].

See more about the candidates in upcoming issues of The Sheet and don’t forget to vote on June 5.

(Photo courtesy Mel Seator and Andreas Braun)

The sixth annual Pamper Pedal took place on Saturday, May 12, and as ride organizer Jeff Byberg wrote on Monday, “The planets were in alignment, the weather was spectacular, and good times were had by all. Thanks to everyone who participated and made the sixth annual Pamper a huge success (110 ladies, and countless man-slaves!).”

One of the highlights of this year’s ride was Anastasia Seator-Braun. At 10-years old she was the youngest rider to take on the event. According to proud parents Mel Seator and Andreas Braun, Anastasia (born in New Zealand and being raised in Mammoth) plans to continue to ride with the Eastside Velo Club throughout the summer.

“Yes, Andreas is the mad man that rides his bike to work every day, up the Mountain – so I guess it’s in the genes,” they wrote in an email.

Following the recent resignation of Eastern Sierra Unified School District Board member Matthew Baumann, the remaining Board members appointed Melinda Melendrez to fill the vacant seat, which represents the Tri-Valley area, this past Wednesday night. Baumann’s term did not expire until 2014, but according to ESUSD Executive Secretary Ashley Custer, a formal vote on the seat will be part of this November’s school board elections, which will also include the Bridgeport and Lee Vining seats. The terms of the Board members currently filling these two seats are actually set to expire this year.

Morro Rock in the mist. This iconic figure of the area was just one of many sights that several Mammoth writers enjoyed while participating in the Outdoor Writers Association of California’s spring conference. (Photo: Kirkner)

Local (and formally local) writers participate in outdoor conference

Over the past few years, Mammoth writers and photographers have infiltrated the Outdoors Writers Association of California (OWAC). This past week, a small, local contingent made its way to the coast to take part in the organization’s spring conference, held in Morro Bay.

OWAC is a non-profit association of media professionals who communicate the vast array of outdoor recreational opportunities and related issues in California and the surrounding western region.

Monica Prelle Carlton, David Page, myself, as well as former Mammoth residents Dana Nichols and Mike McKenna gathered at the conference and quickly became dubbed “the Mammoth group.”

McKenna introduced me to OWAC several years ago and encouraged me to join. He and wife Brooke, plus their sons Jack and Sam, as many people know, have since moved to Hailey, Idaho where McKenna took on the job of Managing Editor for Sun Valley Magazine.

While no longer a California resident, McKenna plans to stay involved with OWAC (he still thinks California writers are the best) and will attend the fall conference, which is being held in September, right here in Mammoth.

I was able to catch up with McKenna while in Morro Bay. He has settled into his work at Sun Valley Magazine, but pointed out that he is editing way more than he ever has, even compared to his work with Eastside Magazine. But don’t worry, he still finds time to write, and won three first place awards at the OWAC conference for his efforts (Prelle also nabbed a pile of awards for her work).

McKenna’s wife Brooke is working for the Hunger Coalition in the family’s new locale, while oldest son, Jack has begun to out-fish his father.

The coast-side conference included Eastside flair, not only because of the Mammoth attendees, but also because several of the speakers spoke about the Sierra Nevada (no surprise since Page helped coordinate this portion of the colloquium).

Beth Pratt, the California Director for the National Wildlife Federation, has also served as the Vice President/CFO for the non-profit Yosemite Association. She had much to say about climate change and the state of California wildlife, and used the dramatic shift in the Eastern Sierra from one of the wettest winters to one of the driest, as an image of what she called “the ghost of the future for the Sierra.”

“Hiking in January at 12,000 feet in shorts was cool, but scary,” Pratt said. “Things are changing.”

Another featured speaker was filmmaker Steven Bumgardner, producer of the popular web video series “Yosemite Nature Notes.” You may not know Bumgardner by name, but chances are you’ve seen his video, “Frazil Ice,” which went viral in 2010. Bumgardner distilled a Yosemite winter phenomenon that very few people knew about into a seven-minute film.

Look for talented people such as these in Mammoth this September. You’ll recognize them by the notebooks and cameras they can’t help but carry.

Ed. note: By the way, Kirkner grabbed a first, second and third place  award at the conference, but was clearly too modest to tell you. 

Tenaya Lake, viewed here from Olmsted Point, is completely ice free even though just four short months ago many people were happily skating on its frozen surface. (Photo: Kirkner)

Tioga Road reopened on Monday, heralding in a summer that many on the Eastside have been longing for on the heels of a rough, dry winter.

Tioga Road (or Pass) serves as a corridor between the east and west sides of the Sierra Nevada. Its opening unlocks a fresh stream of business for local Eastern Sierra operators, plus gives local Eastsiders easier access to the west.

The Pass, also known as Hwy 120, officially closed for the winter on Jan. 17, making it the latest closure date on the books. With the short time that elapsed between that closure and Monday’s opening, this season also marked one of the shortest windows of time the pass has been closed, according to Kari Cobb, Yosemite Public Affairs Officer.

Many factors go into the determination of when the pass can open, according to the National Park Service website.

“Once plowing of the Tioga Road is completed, additional work must be completed before the road can safely be opened,” the site said. This work includes checking and clearing the 26 potential avalanche zones, clearing trees that have fallen across the road, dealing with rock slides, road repairs and late season snow storms.

This year’s snowpack was approximately 50% of normal.

Planning Commission votes 4-1 in favor of firearms sales

With the belief that gun sales in the commercial zones of the Town of Mammoth Lakes would change the character of the town, Mammoth Lakes Planning Commissioner Elizabeth Tenney spoke against allowing this type of operation in this type of zone at Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting.

Tenney referenced the Town’s General Plan, which, she pointed out she helped write and knows very well, to support her feelings.

“Our codes need to be consistent with the General Plan,” Tenney said. She had reviewed the General Plan and could find nothing that would suggest the sale of firearms would support the vision for the Town as expressed in the General Plan.

The issue was brought to light in March when an individual approached the Town and made an inquiry regarding the permitting process to open a firearms sales business in the commercial or industrial zones of town. At the same time, a current firearms dealer, Eastern Sierra Armory, was looking to move its location from Sierra Manor Road to the Industrial Park.

Until that time, many individuals did not know that there was a firearms sales business already operating in town.

“I object to seeing a firearms dealer, it doesn’t go with my vision of Mammoth,” stated local, Wilma Wheeler. “I don’t have a legal reason, but it might change our community.”

Wheeler referenced the individual who shot a bear within town limits to demonstrate the improper use of firearms.

“A lot of people shoot first and ask questions later,” Wheeler said.

Mammoth resident Christian Van Veen followed up by pointing out that the topic on the agenda was not a gun control issue.

“That would be separate topic for a separate time,” he said. “This is just an issue of compliance with state and federal code.”

Van Veen added that Eastern Sierra Armory helps support the biathlon, which brings business to town.

Clayton Mendel, owner and operator of Eastern Sierra Armory was on hand to answer questions, and reiterated that much of his operation was supporting the biathlon, but he also completes other firearms transactions.

The person who had inquired about opening another firearms sales business had yet to file an application, according to Town Associate Transportation Planner Jessica Morriss. She clarified for the commission that the discussion did revolve around two separate individuals — Mendel, and the second person who had made the inquiry.

“Should I use the word damage … no, it would change the character of our town,” Tenney continued to press. “It is not consistent with the experience we are offering our guests.”

She added that her issues were not crime and gun control. Tenney also stated that she could support this type of business in the industrial zone.

Her argument, however, did not hold up among her fellow commissioners.

“Since when did we ban big box stores,” asked Commissioner Rhonda Duggan, stressing that if Scheels or Cabela’s were looking to set up shop in Mammoth, the Commission would not be having this discussion.

It was also pointed out that firearms used to be sold in some businesses right on Main Street, and that even today, ammunition is sold in commercial zones.

“It’s an activity that occurs in our community,” Community Development Director Mark Wardlaw said. “It’s consistent with recreation activities in the local area and it is already regulated.”

Wardlaw added that staff had researched this type of business in local surrounding areas such as Bridgeport and Bishop, and found firearms sales to be common in these other Eastern Sierra towns.

The Commission voted 4-1 (Tenney voting against) in favor of allowing the sale of firearms as a permitted use in the commercial and industrial zones based on the finding that the use is similar to and no more detrimental than existing uses in those zones.

Bill Anderson (Photos courtesy MLFD)

On Monday, April 30, just shy of 40 years of service, Mammoth Lakes Fire Department’s Division Chief of Training and Safety Bill Anderson took one for the team and retired.

Not immune to the bad economy, the Mammoth Lakes Fire Protection District has been experiencing some financial issues and looking to make changes. Anderson chose to step up to the plate and retire early so that others on the department wouldn’t have to suffer.

“I just turned 65, and I had wanted to retire in three years anyway so I volunteered to take a severance package,” Anderson explained.

Anderson first joined MLFD with his brother Tom in 1973 as a volunteer, but his ties to Mammoth go back even further.

“I worked at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in 1967 as a seasonal employee,” he remembered.

Then it was off to Vietnam and college for a while. He returned to Mammoth in 1971 and went back to work for MMSA year-round where he remained until 2005 when he took the full-time Division Chief position with MLFD.

“I just loved it,” he said of the reason behind his dedication to the department over the years. “And my family was great about putting up with it.” He described many a night when dinner was just about to be placed on the table, the kids, Scotty and Shelby would be a handful and suddenly the pager would go off and he would have to leave his wife, Val in the midst of it all.

MMSA was also very supportive of the fire department and would let him go on calls, he added.

The scariest memory he can recall while on the department was being on a structure fire (he doesn’t recall precisely which one) where the smoke was to the floor.

Goofing around in the old days (Anderson on right).

“I remember crawling on the floor thinking, ‘where am I’, and ‘do I want to be here?’”

But he remembers that the training he had been given prepared him and made him comfortable in situations such as these, which is why he was extremely proud of his Division Chief position.

“I’ll miss the trainings and teaching the rookie class,” Anderson said. “The training always made me comfortable and I like to think it’s the same now. I have to thank the guys and gals that show up to those Thursday night trainings. We have to be ready for the few fires that we get so we train, train, train as realistically as we can. I am mostly going to miss all of these very committed people.”

The department will not be refilling Anderson’s position in order to save the salary. Instead, Captains Robert Williams and Natalie Morrow will fill in the gaps. Ales Tomaier and Dusty Renner will also pitch in, as will the remaining Fire Marshal Thom Heller and Operations Chief Bob Rooks, Anderson said.

Anderson, arm raised, leads a training exercise.

“We’re going to miss Billy a lot,” said MLFD Fire Chief Brent Harper. “He’s been a great help to me and the whole department. He really loved the department and the people.”

Harper is the third Fire Chief that Anderson worked for. He came on under Jon Sweeny in 1973 and then served under Chief Harold Ritter when Sweeny retired in 1992. Anderson credits Sweeny with getting MLFD going, Ritter with getting the new station on Main Street built, and Harper with turning the corner in bringing full-time paid staff to the department.

Anderson’s last day was Monday and a retirement party was held in his honor on Thursday night. Friday morning he and Val took off for their trailer in Encinitas where they plan to spend the summer. They’ll return to Mammoth for the winters and Anderson plans to work part-time for MMSA as a ski and snowboard instructor.

“I love Mammoth and won’t ever leave for good,” he said. Anderson also plans to return for the annual Fireman’s Picnic and Canoe Races the last weekend in July to celebrate his retirement with two colleagues who have Mammoth ties and also retired this year.

It seems the Fesko family is in a bit of a feud, one not so easily solved by a kiss from Richard Dawson.

According to a civil suit filed in the Mono County Superior Court by Gregory Mark Fesko and Mammie Fesko, Greg’s brother, Tim (current candidate for District 4 Supervisor) Fesko and wife, Mary committed fraud in the sale of Meadowcliff Restaurant located in Coleville, Calif.

Greg and Mammie allege several things in their complaint. Allegations include alteration of the original lease to purchase agreement by Tim and Mary without the knowledge of Greg and Mammie. In the alleged fraudulent lease to purchase agreement, Greg and Mammie’s down payment of $38,000 is omitted, according to the complaint.

“The ‘detriment proximately caused’ by the Defendants intentional and tortuous conduct of omitting the $38,000 from the Lease to Purchase Agreement prohibited us from obtaining outside financing to purchase the restaurant property outright from the Defendants,” the complaint states.

“Additional intent on behalf of the Defendant as explicitly told to the Plaintiff was to deny the receiving of $38,000 to avoid paying taxes on money received for purchase of the restaurant,” continued the complaint.

The complaint also alleges that Tim and Mary “denied the Plaintiff’s buyer’s rights by failing to provide the required property disclosure statements of Natural Hazard Disclosures and faulty equipment that is mandatory by California law before closing escrow.”

In Greg and Mammie’s amendment to their complaint filed on Jan. 6, they stated the following injury as a result of the alleged fraud.

“(1) Plaintiffs loss of ability to purchase the business and property as originally intended. (2) Financial loss of down payment of $38,000, security deposit of $10,000, $15,000 derived from $625 over 24 months out of the monthly payment of $2,500 was to be applied towards purchase of property, loss of $6,087.84 property taxes paid for years 2009 and 2010. (3) Property insurance premium of $3,759.39 (from Feb. 1, 2009 to July 1, 2011) totaling an overall financial loss of $72,847.23.”

The Sheet attempted to call Greg and Mammie, but the number listed on the complaint documents was no longer in service.

When The Sheet contacted Tim Fesko to get his take on the matter, he said that since it is a legal matter he has to be careful with what he says. He sent The Sheet a written breakdown of his side of the situation.

According to Tim’s written statement, he and Mary entered into a restaurant lease agreement and lease to purchase agreement with Greg and Mammie in December 2008. “Greg and Mammie then took over operation/management of the Restaurant.”

In July 2011 Greg and Mammie failed to pay rent, according to Tim’s statement. “They were served with a notice to pay rent or quit. They did not pay the back rent.”

In August 2011, Tim and Mary filed an unlawful detainer (eviction) suit against Greg and Mammie. The matter went to trial and the judgment was found in favor of Tim and Mary, according to Tim’s statement.

“The judgment terminated Greg and Mammie’s lease and right to possession of the restaurant, awarded back rent due of $2,000 and late fees of $270. The judgment also provided that Greg and Mammie reserved the right to sue Tim and Mary regarding their disputes over the validity of the lease to purchase agreement.”

Greg and Mammie exercised this right in October 2011 and filed their suit against Tim and Mary.

Tim and Mary challenged the suit in December 2011 through a demurrer, which contended that Greg and Mammie’s complaint did not allege enough facts to show they were damaged. According to Tim’s statement, “the Court agreed and gave Greg and Mammie 30 days to file a revised suit,” which they did in January.

As of this date, the judgment against Greg and Mammie has not been paid, according to Tim’s statement.

The court has set a mandatory settlement conference for June 20 at 11 a.m., according to court documentation.

Canada with her running club in Kenya wearing shirts donated by Footloose Sports. 

Interested in joining the Peace Corps? Talk with longtime Eastern Sierra local Mary Canada, and depending on how old you are, she might just tell you to wait a few years.

Canada returned last fall from a 27-month Peace Corps experience in Kenya and felt that some of the younger, fresh out of college volunteers weren’t able to cope as well with the Peace Corps mission as their older counterparts.

“They didn’t want to socialize with the Kenyans,” Canada said, giving an example of the group’s going away party that did not include any Kenyans. Two of the Peace Corps’ three mission goals revolve around understanding the culture you are thrown into, and helping that culture understand Americans.

Canada became interested in the Peace Corps back in 2007 when she read a New York Times article that said the Peace Corps was looking for older volunteers. Today, at 65, she would definitely recommend the Corps to others, especially those of similar age.

“You get to do something different and learn something new,” Canada explained.

Her interest was piqued at a time in her life when she was restless.

“My kids were grown and I was ready to do something different,” she said.

Canada was stationed in an extremely rural area called Kadzinuni.

“It’s not on any maps,” she said. “It’s a collection of smaller villages.”

While there her general assignment was public health. She taught classes about HIV prevention as well as malaria.

“I had an interpreter when I taught younger grades,” Canada said of the country with 46 different language dialects. She was, however, able to speak to the older classes on her own as she slowly obtained a grasp on Swahili.

Besides teaching at the schools, Canada would also hold impromptu classes at the health clinic right next door to where she lived. Family planning was a big topic.

“There were an average of 6-8 kids in a family,” Canada said.

Even though she was the first white person to live in Kadzinuni, Canada said she never felt nervous or afraid for her safety.

“There are no guns,” she exclaimed.

She did, however, get tired of being stared at sometimes. Small children would often run away from her screaming.

“After about a year, people that I saw on a regular basis got used to me,” she said.

Besides bringing a new skin color to the area, Canada also introduced a bit of the Eastern Sierra active lifestyle.

Part of the Peace Corps assignment is for volunteers to initiate programs that will be ongoing when the volunteer leaves. Besides starting a library (which many Eastern Sierra locals helped get going with donations of books and money), Canada also started a running club.

“I wanted to be able to exercise,” Canada said. Eastern Sierra locals Carrie and Dan Meyers secured donations of shirts and running shoes to help get Canada started.

Even though it was often tough for some of the kids to participate in the club due to school and the need to go home after school to help with household chores, Canada believes it was success.

“When I was leaving, the headmaster at the school told me that the kids in the club were some of the better students,” Canada said.

Now back in her old stomping grounds, Canada feels she is more patient and a better listener then she used to be. The experience has also made her question the superiority of the US, and its consumerism and fast-paced lifestyle.

“Sometimes people are in a rush for the wrong reasons,” she said.

She continues to work with a non-profit called the Kenya Education Fund, which helps Kenyan kids interested in going to high school.

She is working for the Eastern California Museum, and was recently appointed to the Mono County Mental Health Advisory Committee. She’ll even be moving back into her home on Red Fir in the near future.

With things falling right back into place, it’s almost as if she never left!

With Mono County’s Benton Crossing Landfill set to close in 2023, and the Town of Mammoth Lakes in dire need of bringing its recycling numbers into compliance with CalRecycle, the stage has been set for the two agencies to work closely together.

“Recycling will reduce the amount of trash coming to the landfill,” pointed out Mono County Board of Supervisors Chair Vikki Bauer during a solid waste workshop between the Town and the County on Tuesday.

Mono County Solid Waste Superintendent Matt Carter agreed. “It doesn’t fit the economics of the landfill,” he explained. “A landfill has to receive a certain tonnage to be feasible.”

Carter stated that the tonnage should be about 50,000 annually, but currently Benton Crossing Landfill is receiving around 30,000 tons.

“The state changed it up on us,” Bauer said, referring to bills such as the new AB 341, which requires more recycling in local businesses and residents.

Trash connects the Town and the County because the County provides the landfill where Mammoth residents send their trash. In turn, the Town is the largest source of revenue for the County solid waste system due to the large amount of waste it disposes of at the Benton Crossing Landfill.

But private business, Mammoth Disposal, has offered some solutions to the Town that would allow it to break off on its own. Town Manager Dave Wilbrecht, however, does not see this as a feasible solution.

“It would be extremely problematic for the County if the Town ran its own system,” Wilbrecht told The Sheet. “And it would cause such bad feelings between the two agencies.”

Plus, Wilbrecht pointed out that many town employees, business owners, etc. live in the outlying county, not within the town limits. Whatever shift in costs transferred to the County by the Town breaking away and doing its own thing, would actually affect those who work in town.

“It’s worth it for us to put in the effort,” Wilbrecht said. “It’s better to work together as a region.”

The Town will, however, work with Mammoth Disposal in the near future to get its recycling numbers into compliance. As for any future work with Mammoth Disposal, Wilbrecht said the Town must perform its due diligence and really study and understand what the private business is offering.

One of the Mammoth Disposal options is to ship solid waste out of Mono County.

“It could costs us millions of dollars if it’s not well thought out,” Wilbrecht said of the whole scenario.

Back at the workshop on Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors was also in favor of taking things slow and really studying the best approach.

Supervisors Larry Johnston was not convinced that hauling the trash out of the County to landfills such as Lockwood, Nev. (one of the ideas under discussion), would be the best solution.

“That could quadruple present rates,” Johnston pointed out. He was in favor of studying not only other potential landfill sites, but also the possibility of purchasing Benton Crossing Landfill from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

“There is still more useful life left at Benton Crossing,” he said.

“Every option should be on the table, including partnering with the tribes and their lands,” said Supervisor Hap Hazard. “I’m concerned that the clock continues to tick on this.”

Supervisor Bauer pointed out that when the solid waste fees were reviewed and raised recently, they were not raised enough.

“We didn’t do a good job last time,” she said. She supported the consensus to put everything back on the table for discussion.

The Supervisors were in favor of creating a committee or task force to focus on the problem, but pointed out that the committee should have more weight than the task force that was used previously. Supervisor Byng Hunt suggested that it be made up of three supervisors and three Town Council members so that the decision makers would be sitting at the table.

Lisa Isaacs, a member of the former solid waste task force pointed out that someone from those previous discussions should also be on the new committee. Isaacs also expressed her concerns about shipping trash out of the area.

“We need to consider what shipping really means,” Isaacs said. “It’s not the answer to dump it [trash] off on someone else. Make sure you do your due diligence before choosing this path.”

Pat Fenton, owner of Mammoth Disposal, agreed that Isaacs’ comments were dead on.

“We don’t have much solid waste that belongs in the landfill, period,” Fenton said. “We need to capture and do something with recyclables other than send them to the landfill.”

Fenton was frustrated with the Board’s ultimate decision on Tuesday to have staff bring back recommendations on how to set up the new committee, who would be on it and when it would meet.

“That meeting was very disappointing and I see it delaying things another few years,” Fenton, who was ready to go this summer with ideas at Mammoth Disposal, told The Sheet on Wednesday. “Delays will jeopardize what I will be able to do,” he said in reference to long haul equipment that is available to him now, but may not be in a year or two.

“It will cost three or four times as much [in a few years],” Fenton said. “They are still just kicking the can down the road.”

To read more about Fenton’s plan, visit www.thesheetnews.com and click on the latest issue of the Green Sheet under special publications