Year in Review: Hanford government -- a year of controversy and change

The corn ethanol controversy hit home in Hanford in 2008. A distilling plant proposed by Great Valley Ethanol -- a $115 million project pushed by the boom -- was proposed in south Hanford. Despite concerns over its impact on air quality and water supply, it was approved, prompting a lawsuit. In February, prosecutors criminally charged a former director of the city-funded visitor agency for embezzlement. The prosecution came a year after a major financial shortfall and budget irregularities within the tax-funded organization came to light.

It was another year marked with a string of controversies that culminated in the closure of two separate criminal cases against two successive former city managers.

It was also a year of change. Marcie Buford -- the longest-serving city councilwoman -- retired after 20 years in office, while Sue Sorensen won a competitive race to replace Buford.

On a positive note, 2008 also changed a lot for Hanford residents in terms of economic, educational and recreational opportunities. The Hanford Joint Educational Center made significant progress, while the much-anticipated renovation of the old Sears building downtown got under way.

Here's a look at Hanford's top stories of the year:

Tucci scandal

The budget irregularity might have been fixed at the visitor agency, but a person allegedly responsible for it didn't get away with it.

In February, the Kings County District Attorney charged Ralph Tucci, former head of the city-funded agency, with felony embezzlement and grand theft charges.

The prosecution of Tucci, 67, of Fresno came almost a year after financial records were turned over from the agency for criminal investigation. Tucci retired in 2007 amid the agency's major financial shortfall.

Inspection of records by The Sentinel had found that Tucci had charged more than $15,500 on a Bank of America credit card, the existence of which had previously been unknown to board members. The records also showed repeated gas purchases by Tucci with the organization's credit card amounting to $3,000.

In October, Tucci pleaded guilty to misusing public funds.

The charge is punishable by up to three years in prison.

But a prosecutor in the case says he will be recommending probation to the court, given the fact that Tucci has shown remorse and is paying back the money.

Tucci's sentencing is scheduled to take place on Jan. 6.

Ethanol debate

Is grain ethanol really green? That question took center stage in the ethanol debate that began brewing in Hanford this spring.

As Bakersfield-based Great Valley Ethanol proposed to build a corn-ethanol distilling plant in south Hanford, neighbors and environmental advocates cried foul over the economic and environmental viability of the technology, and challenged city approval of the project.

After months of testimony and debate, Hanford decision-makers approved the permit application by the company for a $115 million plant in the low-tax south Hanford industrial park. The action denied an appeal by opponents who challenged the legality of the earlier decision by the Planning Commission.

The controversy didn't end there.

The following month, a citizens group advocating for better air went to court to try to stop the project.

The lawsuit came despite numerous mitigation measures adopted by the company to address concerns. For example, the company would pay a Kings County water agency for any water usage exceeding the historical use of water for the property. The company also signed a deal with the Attorney General's Office to pay $1 million over the first three years to the air board's pollution mitigation fund.

A settlement was reached this fall beween the environmental groups and the city.

City managers in court

Two city managers. Two criminal cases.

Both cases, which dragged out for more than a year, came to a close this year.

One received exoneration. The other did not.

Former City Manager Alan Christensen, who mysteriously resigned in May 2007 after only nine months in office, faced misdemeanor forgery and grand theft stemming from how he was reimbursed for moving expenses.

Under his contract, he was supposed to get three bids from different companies and take the lowest, but he didn't. Christensen admitted that he altered paperwork to take the middle bid in a hurry to move his family from Bakersfield.

Christensen stood trial in March. The trial resulted in a mistrial, but prosecutors vowed to pursue a second trial.

The case was brought to a close in May, however, when Christensen pleaded no-contest to a misdemeanor grand theft charge and was sentenced to probation and a fine.

Meanwhile, Christensen's immediate predecessor, Jan Reynolds, found closure for his situation.

In October, state prosecutors dismissed all charges against Reynolds, who had been awaiting trial on allegations of lying under oath to the grand jury. The state attorney general's office determined charges could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

The dismissal brought closure to the 2 1/2-year-old criminal case that could have sent Reynolds to prison if he were convicted. He has maintained his innocence all along.

Reynolds was accused of lying under oath to the grand jury during its investigation into a $200,000-plus severance package he had negotiated with the City Council when he was pressured into retirement in 2005. Grand jury findings led to his prosecution.

A breakthrough for Reynolds came in July, when the relentless defense by his attorneys convinced the judge to disqualify the entire district attorney's office from prosecuting him. The case was subsequently taken over by the state Attorney General's Office.

City leadership change

A new era for the City Council dawned in December with the retirement of a veteran councilwoman, the swearing-in of a new member and a reorganization of leadership.

Marcie Buford, a 20-year veteran on the council, retired, and Sue Sorensen came in to represent District B. Sorensen, a former city planning commissioner and former high school trustee, won the Nov. 4 election, beating out three other candidates who sought to fill the post being vacated by Buford.

Councilman David Ayers became the council's new chairman and mayor and Councilman Dan Chin, who was reelected in November, became vice mayor.

The city also announced the hiring of Hilary Straus as the city's new co-deputy city manager in December.

Straus, 37, is a former assistant to the city manager of Citrus Heights, a newly incorporated city of 87,000 near Sacramento.

Hanford had been without a co-deputy manager since April, when Tom Haglund left to take a top city administrator's job in Gilroy. Mary Lindsay is another deputy city manager.

Learning Center

The Hanford Joint Education Center is taking shape -- very quickly.

In March, the new 17-acre softball complex opened. The center is a replica of the well-known Buchanan High School complex in Clovis, but on a slightly larger scale, and is expected to put Hanford on the recreation map of the region.

The ballpark was the first of a series of projects completed for the 180-acre complex west of Centennial Avenue -- a joint venture 10 years in the making by the city, College of the Sequoias and the high school. The complex will bring together a new high school, COS campus, the sports complex and the vocational training facility in one location.

In November, the vocational training center -- another city project done in partnership with COS -- was completed. The center is scheduled to open to students in January.

Meanwhile, construction is humming along at Sierra Pacific High School, which is expected to open in the coming fall. In December, construction of the new COS campus -- the final installment of the educational center -- got under way as well. The COS campus is expected to open in fall 2010.

Old Sears building

A major renovation is pushing ahead on the old Sears building downtown.

Once a thriving cornerstone of downtown, the building has remained vacant for nearly a decade after Sears moved out to the Hanford Mall area.

The building has since changed hands twice.

Real progress came when FAST Credit Union purchased the landmark last year. The building dates back to the 1940s, when Sears was the retail giant in town.

FAST plans to refurbish the building into its former glory. A $5 million project, handled by a San Luis Obispo architect, is expected to give the building a look that will blend in with the historic look of downtown Hanford.

The renovation is expected to be completed by the fall of 2009.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2429.

(Jan. 1, 2009)