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WEEKEND JANUARY 28-29, 2012 Breaking news at: Stock Dog Sale Bull Sale Section www.redbluffdailynews.com See Pages 6A, 7A RED BLUFF T-Birds at Spartans SPORTS 1B Weather forecast 10A Sunny 68/37 By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer CORNING — A special meeting of the City Council Thursday resulted in the announcement that City Man- DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Corning city manager to step down in Feb. ager Steve Kimbrough will be stepping down. Kimbrough, who has been with the city for at least 15 years, will step down at the end of February due to the fact that his working part-time would jeopardize his retirement, said Mayor Gary Strack. In March 2011, the council approved Kimbrough and Corn- ing Police Chief Tony Cardenas going from full-time at will employees to a part time con- tract while drawing retirement. "This is a new law that Steve just made the council aware of, which says he's done at the end of February," Strack said. "We should come out with some- thing after Wednesday's meet- Making a difference ing. This is something that we have got to get done by the end of the month." The council will discuss appointing someone to fill the See CITY, page 9A Nearly $6 million to county roads The California Transportation Commission Friday allocated $347 million in new funding to 47 projects that will bolster the state's economy and provide con- gestion relief for motorists statewide. Two projects in Tehama County were among those that received funding. A traffic calming project on Highway 99E from Grant Street to Tehama Vina Road in Los Molinos was allocated $3 million. The project will install sidewalks, curbs, gutters, street lighting, drainage and thin blanket overlay. Bike buffers, landscape island and street lighting will be con- See ROADS, page 9A DUI enforcement planned for weekend Officers from the Red Daily News photo by Tang Lor Guadalupe Figueroa practices her reading skills with mentor Pem Lester during a mentoring session. By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer Mentors throughout Tehama County who are making a differ- ence in the lives of many students are being celebrated this month as January is National Mentoring Month. Among the mentors is Pem Lester, a volunteer with the Tehama County Mentoring program for 10 years. Lester has mentored at least four different students focusing on acad- emics and other social skills. "It gives me great satisfaction to help my mentees with reading," Lester said. "It's very important that they know how to read when they are adults, so I really like to help them read. I enjoy seeing how they grow and learn." For the past three years she has been working with Guadalupe Figueroa. The two meet each Wednesday afternoon at Olive View Elementary School where Guadalupe is a fourth-grader. Corning approves waste fee hike By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer CORNING — A reluc- tant City Council voted 3- 2 to approve a 5.23 per- cent increase, for Con- sumer Price Index (CPI) and fuel, to Corning Dis- posal and Waste Manage- ment following a lengthy discussion, including a few residents who object- ed. "We furlough, Bell Carter has done layoffs and we don't know what you've done to stay in business," Mayor Gary Strack said to Contract Manager Tim Magill. "I hate to raise the rate. I don't like to see it, but I would go along with it." Councilwoman Dar- lene Dickison and Coun- cilman John Leach voted against the increase. "I appreciate Waste Management," Leach said. "I've worked with you for several years across the United States. My concern is I agree with Theresa on the fuel and CPI. There's 14 per- cent unemployment in Tehama County. People have lost their homes. I don't think the senior citi- zens can take it. It's an awful increase on the seniors. Fifty cents is a lot of money to some. I don't oppose the CPI, but I do disagree with the fuel increase." Leach said he is on social security, but has had to work for two or three years to make ends meet. "I just got a raise (from Social Security), but Medicare is taking it away," Leach said. Dickison said Corning Disposal does a great job but too many people are unemployed and can't buy food, so putting through an increase, especially in light of the water and sewer increases going into effect, was too much. "Many of my cus- tomers can't afford this," said Councilwoman Toni Parkins who works at Safeway. "I have friends who have lost their liveli- 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 See FEE, page 9A Each hour-long session begins with some kind of reading. Guadalupe, an English language learner, has improved a lot, Lester said. "She's come a long ways since I've met her," Lester said. "She just grabbed a hold of it and does most of the reading by herself." Guadalupe said without Lester she would not have gotten the help she needed to learn how to read. Even though the session usually See MAKING, page 9A Bluff Police Department will be deploying addi- tional officers this week- end to stop and arrest impaired drivers in the Department's ongoing traffic safety campaign. "For those who don't care about their own safe- ty or the safety of others, beware," said Red Bluff Police Lt. Kyle Sanders. "We're looking for you. If we catch you behind the wheel of your car, truck or ride your motorcycle buzzed, you will go to jail this weekend." Red Bluff Police Department will be con- ducting another Zero Tol- erance DUI Saturation Patrol today, targeting those who still don't heed the message to designate a sober driver before their celebrations begin. Fund- ing for this program is through a grant from the California Office of Traf- fic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Statewide, overall traf- fic deaths declined by 23 percent, from 3,995 in 2007 to 3,081 in 2009. Total traffic fatalities are at their lowest levels in six decades. DUI deaths declined by 16 percent, from 1,132 in 2007 to 950 in 2009. Alcohol impaired deaths still make up the largest category of overall vehicle fatalities, with 31 percent of all deaths caused by a drunk driver. "Everyone in Califor- nia should be heartened with these declines," said Christopher J. Murphy, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS). "But as encourag- ing as this is, we can't let up on the efforts to encourage and support traffic safety. Please, help make your community safe; if you see a Drunk Driver Call 9-1-1." Protect yourself from stalkers By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer January is Stalker Awareness Month and to help the community become aware, Alterna- tives To Violence held a presentation Thursday at the Tehama County Department of Social Ser- vices. ATV Advocate Manag- er Maggie Michael asked participants to take a mul- tiple choice quiz in which they were asked to pick out which answer described stalking behav- ior or a stalker. "This is a crime that is difficult to prove and dif- ficult to prosecute," Michael said. "It's very frustrating for the victim. We had 600 clients last year and a third of them, 178 people, had stalking." In conversations with someone from Victim Witness in Tehama Coun- ty, only two cases were able to be successfully prosecuted, she said. Stalking can be every- thing from the serious down to a person being followed around a bit, she said. A really nerdy guy calling up to ask for a date four times even though you've never gone out is Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Alternatives to Violence Advocate Manager Maggie Michael speaks at a Stalker Awareness Month presentation Thursday at the Tehama County Department of Social Services. just a person being a pest. A man you went out with once who refuses to understand you don't want to see him again and phones you, sometimes dozens of times a day, for several months is stalking because his behavior frightens you, Michael said. Stalkers have been known to do everything from sending their target a bedpan and breaking into the home of a victim's rel- ative to killing the victims pet. Most stalkers are male, probably known to their victim and most likely a current or former husband or boyfriend. While one- third of stalkers become violent, nothing can pre- See PROTECT, page 9A