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THURSDAY FEBRUARY 2, 2012 Breaking news at: House Of Floyd Concert Pastimes www.redbluffdailynews.com See Page 4A RED BLUFF Glory Days SPORTS 1B Sunny 66/34 Weather forecast 8B 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 Growing minds 15 years to life in molestation A Corning man has been sen- tenced to 15 years to life in prison for molesting a 7-year- old, according to the Tehama County District Attorney's Office. Doroteo Guitron Barajas, 57, was sentenced Monday in Tehama County Superior Court, according to court records. Barajas had originally been charged with seven counts of sexual penetration with a child under 10. He pleaded guilty to one count in January. During an investigation Corning Police officers determined Barajas had sexually molested the 7-year- old victim on numerous occasions. Barajas Meager Sierra snow worries officials, farmers Courtesy photo Students dig in the Vista Middle School garden where they are getting a hands-on garden-to- table food experience. No garden variety lesson plan at Vista Special to the DN Vista Middle School finds common ground with stu- dents and staff through gardening, and with the promise of a new crop the interest is palpable. Support in Vista's Garden Club continues to grow as students start on a winter garden. The garden is reaching out to the community as well. Students, staff and local businesses see the garden as a link to promote a common goal of eating health- fully. What started as a small garden club with two stu- dents last year has grown into a partnership of support from the Sierra Cascade Nutrition and Activity Con- sortium, a Walmart Distribution Center grant, dona- tions from local merchants and soil from McKinnon PG&E can charge customers to nix SmartMeters SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Pacific Gas & Electric Co. can start charging its customers fees of up to $10 per month if they don't want to have wireless ''smart meters'' installed in their homes, according to a decision Wednesday by California regulators. Four members of the California Public Utilities Commission approved a proposal that allows PG&E to charge residen- tial customers an initial fee of $75, plus $10 each month, to opt out of the company's highly contest- ed $2.2 billion Smart- Meter program. Critics contend Smart- Meters, which electroni- cally monitor a home's electricity and gas usage, emit harmful levels of radiation. PG&E main- tains that the meters are safe and will bring down the utility's meter reading costs. Dozens of opponents and advocacy groups from Fairfax to San Luis Obispo testified at the commission's meeting in its downtown San Fran- cisco headquarters. After the vote, they erupted into a chorus of chants of ''We say no fee, charge the util- ity'' before being led out of the hall by law enforce- ment officers. "We are allowing an opt-out option. We're not taking a step backwards," said CPUC President Michael Peevey, who drafted the proposal. "We want to empower cus- tomers, and we think this a major step to do so." Under the new plan, PG&E can charge its low- income customers an ini- tial fee of $10, plus an extra $5 each month to avoid installation of the See METERS, page 7A 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 POWER PRODUCTS DOLMAR Red Bluff Outdoor Power Nursery. Students find time to work in the garden during lunch and after school. Several students who participate in the SERFF program are part of the club. Seeds were donated by Red Bluff Nursery and stu- dents get hands on gardening advice from experts at the Red Bluff Garden Club. A winter garden is in the mak- ing after a tremendous summer garden bounty. No food is wasted from the garden. Vegetables are picked by students to take home, and cooking classes, called Foodlabs, have been established through SERFF to provide students a hands-on garden-to-table food experience. "Fear Factor," or spinach smoothies, were launched two years ago on Earth Day and continue to be an annu- al event hosted by the Garden Club. Vista's own "Tomato Jam" was introduced last sea- son by staffer Jan Beck. In the classroom, where Tania Earle is a para profes- sional, students have adopted their own garden bed and See MINDS, page 7A ECHO SUMMIT (AP) — California's Sierra Nevada snowpack mea- sured a meager 15 inches in some places, officials announced Wednesday, bearing bad news to a state that depends on snowmelt to meet the water needs of 25 million people and more than a million acres of farmland. Resorts are suffering as skiers turn up their noses at manmade snow, espe- cially after last year's pro- lific powder. And paltry snow means big worries this summer for farmers in the state's Central Val- ley who depend on snowmelt delivered through aqueducts to irri- gate the most prolific agricultural region in the nation. The arid great valley provides most of the nation's table grapes and 80 percent of the world's almonds, in addition to 400 other crops. The movement from annual crops like tomatoes and broccoli to permanent crops like tree nuts and grapes has farmers strug- gling in drought years to keep them alive. Electronic measure- ments taken this week estimate the statewide snowpack at 37 percent of normal for this time of year and 23 percent of the average reading on April 1, when the spring thaw starts. The 15 inches of snow measured at Echo Summit near South Lake Tahoe contained just 3.8 inches of water and bode ill for next year's water deliveries. The worrisome mea- surement also is ''a little misleading, because we only got most of the snow in the last few days and a couple of inches last night,'' said Frank Tehrke, chief of snow survey for the California Department of Water Resources. ''It's not encouraging for our reservoirs this summer.'' Tehrke described the mark as among the lowest See SNOW, page 7A Corning mulls city manager options By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer CORNING — The City Council came out of a special meeting Wednesday with at least three options being con- sidered in the replacement of City Manager Steve Kimbrough. "The council in closed session discussed options available for replacing the city manager as of the end of February," said Mayor Gary Strack. "We directed the city attorney to pre- pare a staff report for the council's Feb. 14 meeting, which will outline the dif- ferent options available to the council." Kimbrough became aware of and informed the council Jan. 24 of a new law, effective Jan. 1, that states his contract can only be for one-year with- out affecting his retire- ment. A special meeting was held Jan. 26 that led to Wednesday's meeting in order to determine what options the city has mov- ing forward. City Attorney Mike Fitzpatrick will look at hiring a permanent, full- time replacement and hir- ing an interim city man- Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb City Manager Steve Kimbrough, pictured here Wednesday, has been working since March 2011 as a part-time employee. ager, whose main role would be assisting in recruiting a permanent replacement. The last option is to move Public Works Director John Brewer into a combined position of City Manager and Public Works Director, bringing Kimbrough back as a con- sultant on a contract basis. If the latter option is chosen, Kimbrough would only be assisting in the area of budgeting, Strack said. Strack said it was a "strictly financial" deci- sion, looking to save the city money. "We have only dis- cussed it as John taking that position," Strack said. "We'll wait for the staff report before making a decision." The council will solicit public input at the Feb. 14 meeting, he said. There is a short time- See CORNING, page 7A