taft chamber february 2015 newsletter
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400 Kern Street
Taft, CA, 93268
Phone: (661) 765-2165
Fax: (661) 765-6639
www.taftchamber.com
Our Gold Sponsors
Our Platinum Sponsors
FebruaryFebruaryFebruary
201520152015
Kern County Board of Supervisors Update
217 Pierce Street is now demolished, some dead trees need to be taken down, a small wooden fence will be
removed and the three tin sheds will be hauled off. Also, the property owner on 220 Cedar Street is making
good progress on removing debris from the front of his house facing cedar.
Code Compliance cases to open at 201 Pierce Street, 500 Van Buren, and 505/511 Philippine in Taft Heights
have been granted. County roads will also be removing some dead branches behind 300 pierce Street.
Wednesday mornings @ 9AM
Taft Chamber, 400 Kern Street
January 14, 2015—Jose Marin, of Valley CAN
Jose Marin, spokesperson and advance planner for the
Tune In and Tune Up campaign for the Valley Clean Air
Now initiative, visited Sit n Sip to inform the group of
the great opportunity for car owners to get their car
tested FREE for emissions, and if they fail the test, to
qualify for a $500 voucher to have their vehicles brought
up to code. The testing will take place at the Kern
County Raceway Park on Enos Lane at I-5, Saturday,
January 31, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The first 525
cars that qualify after the FREE emissions test will receive
a $500 voucher for repairs at a local participating STAR
smog shop. Our Taft Lions Club and Taft Kiwanis Club
will be assisting in this endeavor through food prepara-
tion and traffic control.
By Dr. Kathy Orrin, Executive Director
Executive Directions for Feb 2015
The news of the recent formation of the Downtown Business Association has been met with
mixed reviews and minimal information. Let us be clear: there is no “secession from the un-
ion”; no one is taking their marbles and leaving the game; no one is angry! Here’s the story:
For the past four years (basically the tenure of Shannon and Kathy) the Chamber has endeav-
ored to call attention to Center Street-- its issues (absentee ownership, code violations, blight)
and its possibilities (attractive storefronts, landscaping, Fifth Street Plaza). Many pieces have
been written about the importance of the Downtown to the life of any community; many
meetings have been held to discuss what our own downtown merchants visualize for their fu-
ture in business and what they see as their biggest impediments to success. Events and cam-
paigns have been done seasonally (the Tour of Trees during two Christmas holidays) and regu-
larly (First Friday Cruise Nights), instituted by the Chamber to bring folks downtown and to en-
courage them to spend their time, and their dollars, here in Taft’s downtown.
It also should be noted that shortly after the Chamber staff leadership changed, the Chamber
intervened when the Planning Commission was in the process of reviewing a request for a con-
ditional use permit on Center Street. The permit, if approved, would have enabled a non-profit
food distribution outreach to operate in the downtown business district between an antique
store and a café. The Chamber argued in public hearing, that the non-profit, although highly
respected and necessary to the well-being of many families in the Taft community, did not fit in
the central business district of our town. And we won.
After many years of association with the downtown, the Chamber staff has watched the mer-
chants come together. The Chamber’s contribution to the effort has been in providing venues
for folks to come together for meetings and support in getting the word out to the public about
the events and opportunities for fun and shopping provided downtown. The merchants have
done the rest. Perhaps the biggest, solidifying element for the merchants was threat to their
business from the timing of the Center Street repaving (the month of December!). The motiva-
tion for folks to talk to one another and to approach the City as one voice helped to re-acquaint
downtown merchants with the positive process for making their needs known. In any case, the
City listened and worked with the participating government agencies necessary to move the
date for the re-surfacing. Their one, united voice was heard.
Now the Downtown Business Association will be able to focus on the issues that are unique to
the downtown--Center Street and the immediate areas north and south of Center. They will still
support and be part of the Chamber, and they still will be supported by the Chamber. However,
now they will have the ability to sponsor events which will benefit the downtown areas specifi-
cally. The Chamber will continue to support them, providing the flow of information on issues
important to all business on the West Side and keeping them in the loop on the events, activi-
ties and opportunities open to local business. But if, for example, the downtown businesses feel
they need more trash cans and sidewalk benches, they will have the ability to raise money as a
committee of the Chamber to buy trash cans and sidewalk benches.
Will there be challenges in the future as we forge a new relationship between the Chamber and
the DBA? Undoubtedly! What happens when any new adventure begins? Can we work togeth-
er to resolve the issues as they arise? I’m betting we can. This is a good thing! Let’s work to-
gether to make it happen.
Wed. January 28, 2015
Photos by:
Sheri Horn-Bunk
and Doug Keeler
February 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
2 3
5pm, Service
Club Summit @
Taft Chamber
6pm, City
Council Meeting
4
9am, Sit n Sip,
Taft Chamber
6pm, Industry
Night, Taft
Petroleum Club
5
6pm, Chamber
Installation and
Awards
6
10am, Fireworks
Meeting
6-10pm, First
Friday Cruise
Night
7
WSRPD Father-
Daughter Dance
8 9
10
11
9am, Sit n Sip,
Taft Chamber
4pm, Together
We Can Meeting
12
13 14
Big Sax @ The
Bank Sports
Lounge
15 16
President’s Day
17
6pm, City
Council Meeting
18
9am, Sit n Sip,
Taft Chamber
6pm, Planning
Commission Mtg
19
10am, State
Board of Equali-
zation Townhall
for non-profits
meeting
20
21
22 23
24
25
9am, Sit n Sip,
Taft Chamber
4pm, Taft
Chamber Board
Meeting
26
5pm, The Fort
Spaghetti Dinner
27
28
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1
2 3
12-6pm Houchin Blood Mobil
6pm, City Council Meeting
4
9am, Sit n Sip, Paik’s-
City of Taft Transit Survey
5
Kern COG Awards Dinner
6
6-10pm, First Friday Car Cruise
7
12pm-3pm,
Freedom Homes Open House @Taft Chamber
8 9 10 11
9am, Sit n Sip, Taft Chamber
12
Ethics Training & Brown Act Course
13 14
15 16
President’s Day
17
6pm, City Coun-cil Meeting
18
9am, Sit n Sip, Taft Chamber
6pm, Planning Commission Mtg
19 20 21
Little League Grand Opening
March 2015
Taft Chamber presents:
Annual Installation &
Community Awards Reception
Thursday, February 5, 2015
6:00-9:00pm
Taft Fox Theater
Hollywood Game
Night—
“Bet on Taft!”
Featuring an old Hollywood Cocktail
Reception & Awards presentation
SAVE THE DATE!
Reserve your tickets @ 765-2165
April 2015
March 30-3 Spring Break 11-Arc BBQ @ Moose Lodge
18– TUHS Hall of Fame Dinner, Soroptomist Garden Tour
19– Downtown Business Association 5K/10K run—Center St.
24– Al Baldock Golf Tournament 28– Houchin Blood @ Taft Chamber
City of Taft Transit Survey
Persons interested in public transit in the community
are invited to voice comments and concerns on pos-
sible unmet public transit needs. This event is being
held on Wednesday, March 4 at 9am at Paik’s Res-
taurant. Anyone unable to attend may submit written
comments, to be sent to the address below. For tele-
phone testimony, please contact Christy Lowe at
(661)763-1222. Electronic mail may be sent to
[email protected]. Deadline for written, telephone,
and electronic testimony is no later than Monday,
March 2, 2015, at 5:00 p.m.
Christy Lowe
Administrative Technician
City of Taft
209 East Kern Street
Taft, CA
A light breakfast will be provided for attendees.
1st District Board Member George Runner and
the California State Board of Equalization invites
you to call in and listen or ask questions to ex-
perts at Board of Equalization. The subject is for
Non Profits and how to comply with complicated
sales and use tax laws. The date and time is Thurs-
day, February 19, 2015 at 10:00 a.m. You can
register online at www.boe.ca.gov/townhall. You
can also register by calling 1-916-445-3032. If
you need any other information please feel free
to contact me anytime. I look forward to work-
ing with you all in 2015.
The Taft Correctional Institution (TCI) is in dire need of
donations of yarn, fabric, and unused wood for the
toy program. Hand-made toys, crochet animals, and
blankets are made throughout the year by the of-
fenders. These items are later donated in December to
various resource centers in Taft.
We have listed a few preferable wood sizes and
wood types that would be helpful with our projects:
Pine, Ash, or Douglas Fir, please no chemically treated
or compressed ply-wood. Board sizes: 2”x4, 4”x4, 4”x10,
2”x6, 2”x8, or 2”x10 in any length.
Please contact Georgina Puentes at (661) 763-2510
ext. 1489. Your assistance is truly appreciated.
The Board of Directors of the Taft Westside Little League (WSLL) is excited to announce the start of the
62nd season of Little League baseball on the Westside. Along with a new partnership with the Westside
Recreation & Parks District (WSR&PD). The league has many exciting plans for the upcoming season--
including paly on a set of newly-renovated fields at a renovated park (both courtesy of the WSR&PD), as
well as the return of the popular Little League Parade as part of this years Opening Ceremonies for both
Little League Baseball and Softball.
Registration for baseball will begin Monday, January 12th, and is graciously being handled by the WSR&PD.
Packets (both for player registrations and volunteer/coach applications) can be picked up from and re-
turned to the Main Office or the Area Gym front desk. The WSSL will also make packets available online
at www.TaftWestSideLittleLeague.org. Registration fee are $60 per player in all divisions except for the
T-Ball, 50/70 (11-13 year-olds), and Junior/Senior divisions. For families with multiple children participating,
regardless of division, fees for additional registrants are $40 per player after the first. Scholarship opportu-
nities are available, also, for those who may need them.
The WSSL is also fundraising mode and on the search for team sponsors, sponsors who’d like to advertise
on the upgraded facility’s outfield fences, and all other type of sponsors/donors. Any interested businesses
or individuals are encouraged to contact the WSSL Board Members for details, Sponsorship information
will also be posted on the League’s website and Facebook page (www.Facebook.com/TaftWSLL). The
WSLL is a registered Non-Profit organization and donations are tax deductible.
Further information can be found by contracting WSLL Board Members at their e-mail addresses as listed
on their website, by way of the League’s Facebook page, or by contacting League President Josh Bryant via
cell phone at 661-477-3230.
Townhall for Non Profits Community REQUEST
WESTSIDE LITTLE LEAGUE KICKING OFF 2015 SEASON
2015 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President: Emmanuel Campos Monarch Fleet Services
Vice President: Jordan Miller Roger Miller Insurance Agency
2nd Vice President: Ron Sousa
Albertsons
Treasurer: Bart Hill United Security Bank
Devinder Bains
Taft Chevrolet—Buick
Glenn Black Black Hall Construction
Eric Burkhart
Total Western Inc.
Tony Cordova Synagro
Les Clark
West Side Recreation and Park District
Bob Hampton Westside Waste Management
Ed Herrera
Edward J Herrera Insurance Agency
Greg Hill Old’s Cool Antiques and More
Sharon Hill
Taft Union High School
Shawn Johnson David Jones Co.
Sandy Koenig
Westside Community Resource Center
Orchel Krier Tumbleweed Café
Dr. Dena Maloney
Taft College
Yvette Mayfield City of Taft
John Neumann
Accelerated Environmental
Dennis Schertz Asian Experience
Harry Starkey
West Kern Water District
John Swearengin Kern County Sheriff’s Office
Dan Tosti
Aera Energy LLC
Adele Ward Taft City School District
Rodney Wikoff
West Hills Church of the Nazarene
Executive Direc-
tions for Feb 2015
The news of the
recent formation
of the Downtown
400 Kern Street Taft, CA 93268
661-765-2165
www.taftchamber.com
OUR STAFF
Executive Director: Dr. Kathy Orrin [email protected]
Event Coordinator: Shannon Jones
TAFT OILDORADO
October 9-18, 2015
Civic Luncheon, Grand
Parade, Hot Air Balloons,
Music Festival, Car Show,
Gala, Whiskerino, Maid of
Petroleum, Hoosegow &
more. Contact Paul Linder
for info!
TAFT OILWORKERS MONUMENT
SPACE IS LIMITED!!
Call us at 661-765-2165 to order a
brick for that special oilfield
worker or family member to be
placed at the Taft Oilworkers
Monument.
4x8 Brick: $100—8x8 Brick: $175
SAFELY SURRENDER BABY AWARENESS MONTH
Again this year, the Safely Surrender Baby Coalition is planning a series of events
throughout Kern County to bring attention to this important law. On Tuesday, Febru-
ary 3rd, the Kern County Board of Supervisors will proclaim February as Safety Sur-
render Baby Awareness Month at 9:00 a.m., during their meeting held at 1115 Trux-
tun Avenue. The community is also invited to join us in celebrating the men and
women who make this law possible. A press conference will be held at Mercy South-
west Hospital, 400 Old River Road, Bakersfield, on Thursday, February 5th at 10:30
a.m., where we will also honor a family blessed with the adoption of a Safely Surren-
der Baby.
To date, 45 babies have been safely surrendered in Kern County since we began
tracking those babies in 2006.
The Safely Surrender Baby Coalition leads the effort of educating Kern County about
this law. This group of dedicated individuals represents a long list of departments,
non-profits, hospitals, and stakeholders. Our schedule of community presentations
take us this year to Arvin, Bakersfield, Delano, Frazier Park, Mojave, Ridgecrest,
Shafter, Taft, and Tehachapi.
We hope that you can assist us again this year in our efforts to educate our commu-
nity about this important option for any women and her baby in a crisis situation.