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FRIDAY MARCH 2, 2012 Breaking news at: Food Drive Nets 4,000 lbs Community www.redbluffdailynews.com See Page 2A RED BLUFF City Champs SPORTS 1B Sunny 61/38 Weather forecast 8A By GREG WELTER MediaNews Group MINERAL — A Glenn County corrections officer is among several people who received minor injuries when a van from the Tehama Coun- 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 Inmate transport van rolls, injuries minor ty Sheriff's Office overturned in snowy weather on High- way 36, about 8:37 a.m. Thursday. The van was transporting five inmates from the Tehama County Jail to High Desert State Prison in Susanville, Corning optimistic at mid-year point By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer CORNING — In his last City Council meeting as City Manger, Steve Kimbrough announced Tuesday during discussion of the mid-year budget review that, provided there are no drastic changes, Corning appears to be coming out of the economic recession. "The goal is to end furloughs Dec. 31, 2012," Kim- brough said. "At this moment in time, it looks like we'll be able to." One of the key things to watch is the possibility of losing the Chevrolet dealership to Red Bluff, which was rumored to happen last year but has not so far, he said. In response to rumors the business might move, the city decreased its estimates of revenue by $200,000, which is not the actual number but is close enough to help the city better plan its budget, Kimbrough said. The price of fuel may spike, which could result in a loss of income as more people change their driving habits, he said. While water and sewer revenue is stable, but public safety could be affected if revenues decline due to the dealership move or fuel price spike. The city does not see a decrease in work that corre- lates to its drop in revenue, Kimbrough said. "We're very fortunate in Corning and very rare," Kimbrough said. "All 43 of the employees we have left have stood together throughout this process and taken that 10 percent cut with the furloughs to avoid layoffs." Sales tax revenue was at $1.5 million through Jan. 31, compared to $916,100 in 2011. Transient Occupan- cy Tax, which has one more quarter to be collected, is at $204,500 by Jan. 31, up from $196,100 for the same period in 2011. The city will be expending $255,725 more than it brings in for revenue, but that will be covered by the general fund reserve, dropping it from $960,000 at the beginning of the fiscal year to $704,355. This leaves $204,355 left in the reserve available for the 2012-2013 fiscal year, due to the $500,000 operat- ing reserve the council has set. The mid-year review included a summary of posi- tions to be filled once furloughs are ended. Once the $289,300 shortfall is eliminated it should take $264,000 to end furloughs, a total of $553,300, before the city can fill the first of five positions now vacant. "Our priority after ending furloughs should be to fill the Public Works director," Kimbrough said. "John Brewer cannot do both (Public Works director and city manager) for the long run without important planning See CORNING, page 7A and was just outside Mineral when it skidded off the road and landed on its side. The California Highway Patrol said the van had to be uprighted before the prison- ers could be taken out. Glenn County Jail com- mander Sgt. Jim Miranda said the injured officer is Lester "Buck" Squier III, who has been with the jail since 2002. Miranda said Squier called him shortly after the crash and reported he had bumps and bruises and would "prob- ably be sore tomorrow." Miranda didn't know Thursday whether the officer would need time off to recov- er. A replacement vehicle was See VAN, page 7A Mill Creek siphon Daily News photo by Chip Thompson Mill Creek just a few hundred yards before it drains into the Sacramento River in Los Molinos. County. Napa eyes Mill Creek water By ANDREA WAGNER DN Staff Writer An urban building project in Napa County could pull water from Mill Creek in Tehama County, if the developer's plan is approved. Some locals are trying to stop it from happening. The remote 65-mile stretch of Mill Creek, from Lassen Peak to Los Molinos, has remained relative- ly undeveloped and is home to many native species of animals, including the chinook salmon. Although Mill Creek is more than 150 miles from the proposed project area south of Napa, some of its water could be used there. The Orange Cove Irrigation Dis- trict, a public water management agency formed in 1937 that serves nearly 30,000 acres of eastern San Joaquin Valley's "Citrus Belt," bought surface water rights from some private farms along Mill Creek about 10 years ago. Mill Creek is a Sacramento River tributary with just two areas where water is diverted for agricul- tural uses. The Los Molinos Mutual Water Company helps manage the 134- square mile watershed that is almost entirely within Tehama Schools celebrate Dr. Seuss birthday Much of the watershed is pri- vately owned. With its allotted water rights on Mill Creek, the Orange Cove dis- trict has offered to sell water to the Napa Pipe project developers, said Burt Bundy, a board member of the Los Molinos Mutual Water Compa- ny and president of the Mill Creek Conservancy. The Napa project, proposed just before the economic downturn, has been in development since 2007. Developers want to build a new neighborhood of 2,050 dwelling units, including a 150-unit retire- ment home and care facility, a 150- See CREEK, page 7A Delta plan would build tunnels to pump water FRESNO (AP) — Cal- ifornia could soon build two giant tunnels to boost water deliveries to farms and cities and improve habitat for fish, according to documents released by the California Natural Resources Agency. The Bay Delta Conser- vation Plan is a federal and state initiative financed by California's water contractors. Its goal is to restore and protect the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta ecosystem and guarantee a stable water supply for millions of Californians. Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 Jackson Heights first-grader Mateo Vazquez takes one of 500 cupcakes prepared by Kristina Furrow based on Dr. Seuss' book "Horton Hears A Who" at Dr. Seuss Night Thursday in the school's cafeteria. The school's week-long celebration of Dr. Seuss ends today with Read Across America. The preliminary ver- sion of the 50-year plan released Wednesday calls for building two tunnels to divert water from the Sacramento River around the delta and keep water pumps away from fish. Documents show the tun- nels would ferry about 5.9 million acre feet a year to the pumps — an increase from the current 4.7 mil- lion acre feet. An acre-foot is enough water to cover one acre, one foot deep. That proposal, said Karla Nemeth, program manager for the plan at the Resources Agency, is the maximum capacity being considered, but the project has not been final- ized yet and its size could be reduced. The plan also outlines the creation of nearly 120,000 acres of new habitat to mitigate the tun- See DELTA, page 7A TEHAMA COUNTY GLASS MOULE'S AUTO GLASS A PROFESSIONAL AUTO GLASS INSTALLATION FACILITY -BOATS/RVS -TRUCKS/CARS -EQUIPMENT 515 Sycamore St. 529-0260