Dutra, Rancho big news in 2014

It’s been a year of sudden endings and new beginnings.

From the demise of Rancho Feeding Corp, to the slaughterhouse’s rebirth as Marin Sun Farms; from the end of the legal battle of the Dutra asphalt plant, to fresh political faces after the November election, 2014 was a year that kept the City of Petaluma on its collective toes. Here were the stories that captured the most hits at Petaluma360.com and garnered the most discussion over the past year, presented in no particular order:

Homeless Deaths

It was a very difficult year for Petaluma’s homeless population, which has doubled to more than 900 since 2012, according to county estimates, as eight people believed to be homeless were discovered dead in 2014, the most in a calendar year in recent memory.

It brought the total of unattended deaths to 21 since 2010, leading police to conduct a review of the cases to determine whether there were any connections.

But the deaths - most of which occurred near the river, railroad tracks and other areas frequented by transients - appear so far to share few commonalities, except that they may have suffered afflictions typically associated with long-term homelessness, like substance abuse, exposure from living without shelter and untreated medical conditions, according to Petaluma Sgt. Ed Crosby.

“It’s sad, really, and tragic, but if you look at the totality of the circumstances, it’s not that big of a shock,” said Crosby, who heads the department’s violent crimes unit. “It’s the same circumstances that you find in homeless populations everywhere because they have a drastically reduced life expectancy. They tend not to get proper medical care, many abuse alcohol and drugs and when you add that they’re living outdoors without shelter and good hygiene, decent food, well, it all unfortunately adds up.”

During the past five years, Petaluma police conducted 255 death investigations, meaning that the homeless deaths represented about 8.2 percent of deaths overall. There were six homeless deaths in 2013, none in 2012, four in 2011 and three in 2010, he said.

“The one thing we can absolutely rule out is a serial killer,” said Crosby. “But overall, there was nothing significant that connected the deaths.”

At year’s end, three of the 21 deaths were still under investigation and a fourth was awaiting toxicology and other lab results.

Homeless advocates say the deaths are indicative of a larger, unsolved problem in all of Sonoma County from a lack of affordable housing.

Rancho Recall

A shock reverberated through Petaluma’s close-knit agricultural community when the long-standing Rancho Feeding Corp became enveloped in a series of improprieties that ultimately shut down the slaughterhouse.

It began in February, when the United States Department of Agriculture recalled 8.7 million pounds of beef - all of the meat the slaughterhouse processed in 2013. The USDA remained mum on the reason for the recall, much to the chagrin of local ranchers and politicians, who wanted answers. By the end of the month, the slaughterhouse was shut down but the business was quickly bought by Marin County rancher David Evans, who re-opened the facility as Marin Sun Farms on April 7.

Things remained quiet until Aug. 14, when former owners Jesse “Babe” Amaral and Robert Singleton, plant foreman Feliz Cabrera and yard person Eugene Corda, were all indicted on a variety of charges including fraud, selling “adulterated, misbranded or uninspected” meat and violations to the Federal Meat Inspection Act. The indictment claims that the four knowingly purchased and processed more than 200 condemned or sick cows, including slicing “condemned” USDA inspection stamps out of the animals, and switching diseased cow heads for healthy ones during postmortem inspections.

Singleton quickly agreed to help prosecutors in their case against the others, and in return received only one charge for selling “adulterated, misbranded or uninspected” meat. In October, Corda also pleaded guilty to the same charge, leading many to speculate that he, too, is aiding the prosecution in its case against Amaral and Cabrera.

Harassment Charged at the Fire Department

When Andrea Waters joined the Petaluma Fire Department in 2008, she was the first female firefighter hired in more than 40 years. In November, she filed a lawsuit against the City of Petaluma claiming that she experienced prolonged sexual harassment that forced her to leave the department. “Indeed, even before her first day of work she was told words to the effect that there were people in the Fire Department who did not want her there and that she should watch her back,” the suit states.

The Argus-Courier was unable to speak to Waters directly, but the two sources confirmed they had witnessed many acts of harassment against Waters. They said she was not given an appropriately private area to change clothes, and was repeatedly subjected to rude comments about her body and sexuality. One source said other fire house staff walked in on Waters in the shower, and that she was never treated like other firefighters.

“She really had to put up with a lot,” a source said.

In July, an internal memo circulated to fire department staff informing them of Waters’ plan to file a lawsuit. Staff was instructed to preserve all records, including emails and text messages, “whether or not Ms. Waters was the author or recipient of the communications and whether or not the communication specifically refers to her by name.” City officials have said they plan to conduct their own investigation into Waters’ claims, but for now have been focused on the lawsuit, which seeks damages for a loss of wages, harassment, discrimination and retaliation.

Violent Deaths

There were two violent deaths this year, including the first homicide in the city since 2012 when elementary school teacher Kimberly Conover, 43, was murdered by her husband outside her lawyer’s office in downtown Petaluma.

Police believe Arturo Hinojosa, 49, was shot to death in his home by acquaintance Mikol Wayne Stewart on Sept. 10. Stewart was arrested on suspicion of murder. While in jail, Stewart, 37, died after hanging himself on Sept. 28, in what authorities said was a suicide. The motive for Hinojosa’s murder was not revealed.

On Oct. 17, Thomas E. Judkins, 36, stabbed his roommate, nurse Jennifer Lutes, in a violent attack that nearly killed her before turning the knife on himself in what the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office labeled an attempted murder-suicide. Lutes’ young son was home at the time of the attack, but was not harmed. The young nurse faces months of recovery from the attack that left her with multiple stab wounds on her chest and hands. Her friends set up a donation site to help pay for medical expenses at gofundme.com/helpjenheal.

Teacher, District Dispute

For the second time in two years, the Petaluma City Schools District entered negotiations with the Petaluma Federation of Teachers on rocky ground. The schism began soon after negotiations began, when 65 teachers showed up at a negotiation session, seeking the right to observe the discussion.

District officials say that many observers is detrimental to the negotiating process, and should not be allowed. The teachers claim they have always had the right to observe union negotiations, and could not understand the district’s objections.

Since July, the two sides have not been able to resume discussions, still warring over how many observers are allowed to be in the room.

The teachers union has held several protest, demanding the district “return to the bargaining table.” For the second time in two years, the district asked the California Department of Education to assign a mediator to help the two sides come to consensus. The Federation of Teachers, in turn, filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the Public Employee Relations Board. As of this week, that complaint was still pending.

Once they get past the issue of how many people can sit in the room, the district and the teachers’ union will have much headier topics to negotiate, including raises for 430 teachers. The teachers have not had a cost of living adjustment since 2007, and initially sought a 7 percent salary boost, which they later dropped to 4 percent. Citing a tight budget, the district offered a 2 percent raise first, which they bumped to 2.5 percent.

Lakeville Highway Fatalities

Despite three deaths on Lakeville Highway in a three-month period, the county’s most collision-prone road was “on par with an average year,” said CHP spokesman Jon Sloat.

Still, county and state officials grappled with how to make the road safer after three deadly wrecks that took the lives of a 65-year-old grandmother, a 32-year-old father of two and an 83-year-old Granite Bay man between June 7 and Sept. 18.

In the first of the wrecks, Jesse Martin Cockrill, 25, of Petaluma was sentenced to five years in prison in November, after pleading no contest to driving under the influence in the head-on collision that killed Betty Osotonu, 65, a retired special education teacher who was driving home from a Santa Rosa church with her granddaughter. Cockrill had a blood-alcohol content at twice the legal limit and was on probation for public drunkenness and ordered not to consume alcohol.

Almost exactly a month later, a pizza oven broke free from the rear of a 1997 Chevy van driven by an employee of Rosso Pizzeria, a Petaluma restaurant and catering company, slamming into a Honda. Driver Dwayne Usher died at the scene, and his two sons, ages 4 and 8, and another passenger were injured in the freak accident which remains under investigation.

In September, Vernon Hamilton, of Granite Bay, was killed when the Lexus he was driving drifted over the center line and collided with another car. At a meeting in November, Sloat said there had been 31 crashes on Lakeville Highway, which is only slightly higher than recent years, with 30 reported in 2013 and 25 in 2012. However, Sloat said Sonoma County as a whole has seen a rise in accidents in 2014, which they suspect is a byproduct of the extensive construction work on Highway 101.

Drought

After one of the driest years in recent memory, ranchers in Petaluma felt the pinch particularly hard when they saw their reservoirs dry up at the same time the price of feed skyrocketed all over the state.

While Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency early in the year, Petaluma maintained its supplies by asking residents to voluntarily reduce their water use by 15 percent. In September, the city sought a mandatory 20 percent reduction, following the state’s call for additional conservation efforts.

The wet weather returned during the fall and winter months, and while the rains helped, experts say it will be years before the state makes it way out of extreme drought conditions. According to the National Weather Service, rainfall through Dec. 30, was 19.39 inches, representing 142 percent of normal. The prior December, it was 2.02 inches or 15 percent of normal, said forecaster Diana Henderson.

Dutra Decision

Opponents of the Dutra asphalt plant, including the City of Petaluma, were dismayed in February when the 1st District Court of Appeals unanimously denied their lawsuit that would have prevented the plant from opening along the gateway to the city.

Since the plant is to be located at Haystack Landing just outside city limits, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved its design in 2010, much to the chagrin of many Petaluma residents.

Environmentalists say its proximity to the Petaluma River and Shollenberger Park make the asphalt plant a threat to the area’s ecological resources. Critics were also unhappy with the fact that an industrial plant would be the first thing people see when driving into Petaluma.

The city, bolstered by donor dollars, filed a lawsuit in 2011 to prevent the plant from opening. When the judge sided with Dutra Materials, the city appealed that decision, which was again denied.

In February, company spokeswoman Aimi Dutra had said the plant could open early in 2015, however working through the county’s permitting process has taken longer than expected. If and when it does open, Aimi Dutra hopes to find common ground with the city after years of legal dispute. “I am hoping we can work together with the city to make this a good fit for the community, and I believe it can be a good fit,” Dutra said in February.

Election

Voters were disappointed on election night when they learned the mayor’s race between incumbent David Glass and challenger Mike Harris was too close to call, and results would not be available for weeks. When the dust settled shortly after Thanksgiving, Glass was a mere 84 votes ahead of Harris, enough to secure the seat. Political newcomer Dave King surprised many when he secured the most votes out of any candidate running. Incumbents Teresa Barrett and Chris Albertson also garnered enough votes to secure their seats, knocking challengers Ken Quinto and Janice Cader-Thompson out of contention.

After a back-and-forth debate that drew clear battle lines among the seven candidates for public office, Petaluma’s proposed 1-cent sales tax hike, Measure Q, was soundly defeated by voters in November’s election, leaving questions as to how the city will find a way to pay for aging infrastructure and safety improvements city officials say are badly needed.

More than 56 percent of Petaluma voters rejected the measure, which needed a simple majority to pass. Officials said the tax would have added $10 million a year to the city’s coffers that would have been earmarked for a $466 million, 30-year list of projects identified as priorities by the city council, including the long-planned Rainier Avenue cross-town connector.

Gas Station Ban

Safeway’s plans to build a 16-pump gas station at the Washington Square shopping center on South McDowell Boulevard were met with mixed reviews early in 2014. Supporters lauded its discount program, which can offer significant savings to regular shoppers. Critics said the station would create a traffic nightmare and put local school children at risk from exposure to emissions.

When the Petaluma City Council learned it would have limited say over the new development because it meets the city’s zoning requirements, they looked for alternative options in February. Led by Councilmember Mike Healy, the council considered a 45-day emergency moratorium on any new fueling station, which would have put Safeway’s project on hold. Safeway bit back with a 16-page letter that called into question the legality of the ban.

It proved effective - the moratorium needed the support of six out of the seven city council members, but garnered only four votes in March.

Safeway’s gas station project has since been making its way through a review by the Petaluma Planning Commission, which rejected early traffic and environmental reports as incomplete. Safeway continues to fine tune its proposal to meet the city’s concerns, but does not know when it will break ground on the new station.