Police say the crash happened at 9:45 p.m. Saturday on Akers Street, just south of Judy Avenue. Officers say a car struck a 53-year-old man on a bicycle and then fled the scene before officers arrived. The bicyclist was taken to the hospital, where police say he died from his injuries Sunday morning. Anyone with information about the collision is urged to contact the Visalia PD Traffic Unit at 559-713-4037. VISALIA, Calif. (FOX26) — Three people were arrested after illegal gun manufacturing was found in a Visalia home. The Tulare Area Auto Theft Team (T.R.A.T.T.) and Visalia Police say that around 9:30 AM, they searched a home for a wanted person. The home was in a nearby neighborhood of N Neil Ave and S Linwood Street in Visalia. While searching the home, someone familiar to the officers unexpectedly ran into the house. The officers quickly secured the area and continued to search for the person inside. During the search, officers found several firearms and evidence suggesting the production of illegal guns. Further in the house, another suspect was found hiding in the attic. The officers resorted to using non-lethal tactics to safely arrest the suspect without injuring him. Once the home was fully searched, three individuals were arrested on outstanding warrants and weapon-related charges: This investigation is still ongoing by the California Department of Justice’s TARGET Task Force. The Farmersville Police Department’s K-9 Team also provided critical support during the operation. Related Story: Visalia Police to Hold DUI Checkpoint Friday the Tulare Area Auto Theft Team and the Visalia Police Department arrived at a residence near Rialto Avenue and Rova Street to apprehend a wanted suspect Related Story: Visalia Man Arrested Again in Child Exploitation Case After National Tip another individual known to law enforcement ran into the house prompting officers to secure the area and launch a search officers found several firearms and evidence of illegal gun manufacturing The second suspect was discovered hiding in the attic and refused to come out but officers used non-lethal tactics to arrest him Related Story: Visalia Driver Arrested After Running Stop Sign Causing Fatal Crash Three people were taken into custody on outstanding felony warrants and weapons-related charges: Austin Clark Langford The California Department of Justice’s TARGET Task Force is investigating the firearm manufacturing case Trump Orders the Reopening of Alcatraz Prison Saturday to a report of a collision on southbound Akers Street according to the Visalia Police Department Authorities said a vehicle struck the bicyclist and fled the scene before officers arrived The injured man was taken to Kaweah Health with serious injuries and later died Sunday morning Related Story: Visalia Police Cite 18 Drivers in Distracted Driving Crackdown The Visalia Police Department Traffic Unit is investigating the fatal crash Anyone with information is asked to call the department at (559) 713-4037 (FOX26) — There are great pro athletes that come from the Central Valley; sometimes Visalia Rawhide center fielder and Arkansas native Slade Caldwell is one of those names you need to know First thing to know - he wears a tattoo inspired by his grandpa "I just always embedded it," said Slade's grandfather Mike Branch "You can't hit the ball if you're not seeing it." "I just think it's God-given," Caldwell said "He's blessed me with an eye that knows the strike zone." Caldwell leads all of Minor League Baseball with a .524 on-base percentage His family made the trip from Arkansas to watch him play Sunday he graduated high school at Valley View in Jonesboro Even 1800 miles away from his parents and house "Visalia feels like Arkansas," he said Selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 1st round of last year's MLB Draft Caldwell is moving fast - figuratively and literally Caldwell is a blur on the basepaths; he's on pace for more than 25 stolen bases this season "I've done a lot of work with a speed coach but it's definitely genetics," Caldwell said The only thing more impressive than Slade's speedy baserunning is how fast he's risen up "Don't worry about the expectations that are on your back," Caldwell said "Just play for the person beside you." You can watch Caldwell and the Rawhide play this week at Valley Strong Ballpark in Visalia They open a six-game series against Rancho Cucamonga at 6:30 p.m a run and two RBI as the Visalia Rawhide took five of six games against the Fresno Grizzlies with a 5-0 victory on Sunday afternoon at Valley Strong Ballpark Visalia (13-14) used four pitchers to pitch their second shutout of Fresno (9-18) in this week’s series The Rawhide have pitched five shutouts on the season- the most of any California League team Grayson Hitt worked the best outing of his young pro career with four scoreless innings He tossed four strikeouts while working around two hits and three walks Braden Quinn earned his first win of the season with two shutout innings Rocco Reid made his season debut with two scoreless frames with two strikeouts Jake Fitzgibbons closed out the game with a harmless ninth inning allowing just one baserunner with one strikeout Caldwell was at the center of Visalia’s offense all afternoon He opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in a two run fourth frame A second run in the inning scored on an error Visalia added another two tallies in the fifth started by a Modeifi Marte leadoff double Juan Corniel walked with the bases loaded to bring home a run and Caldwell followed with an RBI single to center Caldwell scored the last run of the game in the eighth He led off with his third single of the day and came home on a Marte RBI single Adrian Rodriguez joined Caldwell and Marte with multi-hit days for Visalia Caldwell now holds a .524 On-Base-Percentage the best mark out of all qualified batters among the 120 full season MiLB teams Visalia wins five of six against their rivals from Fresno in the first of three series this season between the two sides Visalia continues the homestand starting Tuesday with a six game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers’ affiliate the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Tuesday is Dairy Appreciation Night presented by California Diaries Inc with a Cereal Bowl & Spoon Giveaway for the first 250 fans sponsored by Modelo & Pacifico with two street tacos for $6.25 Modelo & Pacifico draft or tall cans for $7.25 and $2 tickets in the 4Creeks Pasture Fans can purchase tickets on the Rawhide's website or at the stadium ticket office sponsored by Kaweah Health starting at Noon on weekend gamedays The Visalia Rawhide are a professional baseball team and the Single-A Affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks The Rawhide are celebrating 80 years of professional baseball in Visalia in 2025 as the “Year of the Oak.”   Stay up to date with the Rawhide on the team’s website and by following the Rawhide on Facebook, X, Instagram and Tik Tok The Rawhide play all home games at Valley Strong Ballpark located at 300 N Giddings Street Visalia CA – The Visalia Rawhide clinched a series win over the Fresno Grizzlies with a 5-3 victory on Friday night at Valley Strong Ballpark Visalia (12-13) bludgeoned Fresno (8-17) pitching with 12 hits to win their fifth consecutive game and fourth game to start the series Adbias De La Cruz hit the game winning two run homer run in the sixth inning as part of a three run frame Trent Youngblood and Adrian Rodriguez started the inning with walks Slade Caldwell advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt Youngblood then scored from third on a wild pitch back to the backstop De La Cruz capped Visalia’s scoring on the night by blasting a ball over the right field wall- his first home run since 2023 Fresno brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth inning but Jojo Gonzalez worked around trouble for a scoreless ninth inning and earned his fourth save of the season Adrian Rodriguez hit an RBI single in the second inning to tie the game at one Alberto Barriga bashed an RBI double off the left field wall in the third to give Visalia a brief lead Four Rawhide players had multi-hit games and every player reached base Yassel Soler had two hits and extended his on-base streak to a team-best 11 games Junior Sanchez tossed five strong innings in his start allowing just a run on four hits and two strikeouts The right-hander retired the final six batters he faced Adonys Perez allowed two runs but earned the win with three innings of work Visalia will play for their sixth consecutive victory facing Fresno on Saturday night at 6:30 PM The first 500 fans to Valley Strong Ballpark will receive a Sugar Skull Lowrider Bobblehead presented by Lowrider Magazine and Sequoia Apparel The night concludes with a postgame fireworks show presented by Spirit Radio Visalia will continue to play as “Los Toros de Visalia” as part of Copa Weekend at the ballpark a Stars & Stripes Saturday means fans can enjoy two cans of Budweiser Bud Light or Michelob Ultra for just $17.76 (FOX26) — A 30-year-old man has been arrested in Visalia following an investigation into child sexual abuse material (CSAM) The investigation began following a tip from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children [RELATED] Mariposa County man arrested with hundreds of thousands of images of child sexual abuse The Visalia Police Department's Youth Services detectives identified Gilberto Porras as the suspect after receiving the tip in February in collaboration with investigators from the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office and their detection dog "Tor," executed a search warrant at a residence in the 1500 block of North Cotta Street who had previously been arrested in a separate CSAM-related case was taken into custody and booked at the Tulare County Adult Pre-Trial Facility for possession of CSAM (FOX26) — Schools were temporarily locked down for a police investigation Friday morning in Visalia The Visalia Police Department says they are currently investigating a suspicious person and are conducting a follow-up at their house officers placed the surrounding area on lockdown Authorities emphasized that there is NO active threat to La Jolla or Linwood Schools (FOX26) — A bicyclist died from injuries sustained in a traffic accident in Visalia Saturday night Police responded to a report of a traffic accident on southbound Akers Street at around 9:45 p.m Police say the vehicle fled the scene before their arrival where they found the 53-year-old man on the ground The man was transported to a nearby hospital to treat serious injuries Police are still gathering information about the traffic accident If you have any information about the accident contact the Visalia PD Traffic Unit at 559-713-4037 it’s the start of another season full as hope There is always hope to start the season that the Rawhide will be competitive and in second place in the southern division of the California league This is actually a great improvement from previous years It shows as the overall number of errors are down and the team is not at the bottom of many of the California league stats there are a couple of players that we need to be paying attention to: Jake Fitzgibbons – Jake was drafted in the 14th round of the 2024 draft Jake is not listed on any of the top draft lists he pitched in 10 games and had an era of 5.93 He threw 31 pitches over 2 scoreless innings and had 2 strike outs Jake just looked very comfortable in this outing Slade Caldwell – Slade is listed as the 3rd ranked prospect on the Diamondbacks top 30 prospect list Slade has a 0.300 avg and an OPS of 1.039 These are both impressive numbers considering that this last month was the first time Slade ever played outside of high school it is very clear why he is ranked so high on the prospects list it is going to take a while for him to make it up the ladder Druw has slid to number 7 on the top prospects list Druw started off in 2023 and had a rough start with injuries and just developing as a professional baseball player each year Druw improved and now that he is in Hillsboro his batting average is higher than it was in Visalia what is impressive about Druw is watching someone with an absolute natural ability to play the outfield he still has some time to continue to develop I believe that this year will be the year that either he is going to prove that he was worthy of the first overall pick Christian Cerda – Christian is the catcher at AA Amarillo I will admit that Christian is not on any top 30 prospect lists Christian is only batting .236 with an OPS of .740 These numbers need to improve as he is going along they have been pretty consistent as he’s moved up What has been absolutely impressive about Christian is watching him play catcher Christian is a tough-guy catcher from years past seems to work really well with pitchers and has caught stealing rate of greater than 25% We’ll see how all these guys progress throughout the year CA – The Visalia Rawhide saw their five game win streak snapped as the Fresno Grizzlies rallied for a 4-3 victory on Saturday night at Valley Strong Ballpark Visalia (12-14) took the lead on a Yassel Soler solo home run in the eighth but Fresno (9-17) scored two runs in the top of the ninth to win Wilkin Paredes dominated on the mound tossing seven innings and allowing just three hits with five strikeouts and two runs After allowing a two run home run in the first frame he allowed just one baserunner Paredes retired the final 13 Grizzlies he faced Visalia scratched across a run in the first inning with Abdias De La Cruz walking and eventually scoring on a catchers’ error Adrian Rodriguez drove in Jose Alpuria on a sacrifice fly to tie the game in the second Neither team scored until Soler led off the eighth with a 397 foot blast over the left field wall Soler hit his second home run of the series and third of the season Visalia has now homered in seven consecutive games- the longest streak this season in the California League Adrian Barriga and Trent Youngblood both totaled two hits days Youngblood has reached base in the first three games of his career Visalia and Fresno wrap up the series on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 PM with a postgame Candy Dump presented by Party Works. All Tipper’s Kids Club members can participate as over 600 pounds of candy will be dumped onto the field. Fans can sign up for Tipper’s Kids Club at Guest Services during the game or on the Rawhide’s website before the game A Sunday Funday presented by Valley Children’s Healthcare and Spirit Radio also means $8.50 Kids’ Meals one of the greatest football players in Tulare County history which is considered by many in the Tulare County football community as the best football team in Visalia and state history He went on to play at UCLA and later in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers under the leadership of head coach Charlie Casale the Pioneers won the Central Section Yosemite Division championship Whitney's average margin of victory that year was more than 30 points the Pioneers defeated West-Bakersfield 30-13 in the opening round of the playoffs before routing Hoover 40-21 in the semifinals to claim the school's first section crown in football “He was a big part of what was going on,” said Casale who now resides on the Central Coast and still coaches football with former Mt Whitney coach Robert Dougherty at Morro Bay High School it’s not like we had great blocking up front I saw four or five guys have a shot at him He wiggled his shoulder and he just made it through there He just made plays for us — a big-play guy He was real exciting to watch from the stands There was really a lot of good players on that team but he was the best of the best.” Sanchez started off his football career at receiver and didn't play tackle football until his freshman year at Mt It wasn’t until midway through his junior season that he caught the eye of Casale and the offensive coaching staff Sanchez kept flashing against the Pioneers’ starting defense in practice “He was running all over our defense,” Casale said Why don’t we put him on offense?’ That happened in the middle of his junior year and he just took off from there where he started as a true freshman at cornerback in 1979 which is still tied for the fifth-most in Bruins history After starting his pro career with the USFL in 1984 Sanchez signed with the Steelers in 1986 and played in three NFL seasons appearing in 39 games with nine starts and four career interceptions including one he returned 67 yards for a touchdown in his NFL debut season Sanchez also served as a return specialist with the Steelers returning 35 kickoffs for 778 yards — an average of 22.2 yards per return He’s just one of those players who your heart reaches out to.” “There’s only one Lupe Sanchez,” Casale said More: College of the Sequoias softball earns No. 3 seed for state playoffs Whitney and NFL receiver who still holds the Visalia city high school record for most career receiving yards said the trajectory of his football career would not have been possible without Sanchez Young and Sanchez both played receiver until injuries thrust the latter into the starting lineup in the Pioneers' backfield That move freed up an open spot for Young and the rest is history Sanchez helped recruit Young to UCLA where they became roommates "The reason why I didn’t go to USC or Notre Dame was because Lupe convinced me to go to UCLA," Young said He was a major influence in my career path." Young spent 10 seasons in the NFL as a sixth-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Rams in 1985 When word started spreading about Sanchez's death Young received hundreds of messages from friends and ex-teammates via phone call They all expressed their condolences and shared their love and support for Sanchez More: Is the 1978 Mt. Whitney football team the best of all time? Charlie Casale thinks so Sanchez was remembered for his genuineness He was as good of an athlete as anybody in the NFL and a better person than 95% in the NFL and everybody knows that." very well," Young said of Sanchez's career post-football All you had to do was meet with him one time even when he was winning football games alongside Young "There's no debate on who was the best athlete," Young said CA – Ruben Santana hit a go-ahead grand slam in the fifth inning and the Visalia Rawhide defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 6-4 on Wednesday night at Valley Strong Ballpark Visalia (10-13) scored five runs in the fifth inning to defeat Fresno (8-15) for a second straight night to start the rivalry series The Rawhide entered the fifth frame trailing by three runs After two outs to start the inning Juan Corniel started the rally with a double to left field Slade Caldwell followed with an RBI double off the left field wall Santana bashed a ball over the left field wall to give the Rawhide a 6-4 lead Santana homered for a third consecutive night and his fourth home run in six games The Dominican Republic first baseman is now tied for the California League lead with five homers on the season Caldwell opened Visalia’s scoring with a leadoff solo home run in the first inning- his second professional longball The 2024 1st Round Draft Pick leads the league with a .511 OBP and 1.065 OPS after the sixth multi-hit game of his season Mervin Fell earned the win in four stellar shutout innings The right-handed reliever allowed just two baserunners Jake Fitzgibbons pitched two scoreless innings in his season debut and Joangel Gonzalez earned his third save of the season with a scoreless ninth inning The South Valley rivalry series continues on Thursday night with a Fedora Hat Giveaway presented by Estrella Jalisco for the first 250 fans 21 and older (FOX26) — The Tulare County District Attorney's Office has filed criminal charges against Visalia Police Captain Luma Fahoum She is accused of theft and embezzlement from non-profit funds associated with the Visalia Police Explorers program The charges follow a multi-month investigation initiated by the Tulare County District Attorney's Office at the request of the Visalia Police Department The investigation began after a department member alerted authorities to potential criminal activity by Captain Fahoum on September 19 Captain Fahoum was placed on administrative leave and the Tulare County District Attorney's Office was tasked with conducting its own independent investigation The Visalia Police Department has pledged full cooperation with the District Attorney's Office throughout the investigation and will continue to do so as the prosecution phase begins Visalia Police Chief Jason Salazar expressed deep disappointment over the situation I am heartbroken and disappointed with what led us to today’s criminal filing against Captain Fahoum." [RELATED]Selma mayor charged with electioneering violation at polling place The Chief highlighted the significant impact such actions have on the organization The Chief also extended an apology to the community particularly to those who supported the Explorer program and especially to those who generously invested in our Explorer program to benefit the youth in that program—I am deeply sorry." Due to the ongoing nature of the personnel issue no further information is available at this time The Chief reaffirmed support for the officers of the Visalia Police Department stating confidence in their ability to maintain the community's trust The suspected crimes were reported to the Office of the District Attorney by VPD leadership and an investigation was formally launched on September 30 The TCDA Bureau of Investigations assigned an assistant chief Investigators have so far executed 26 search warrants covering nine financial institutions One search warrant was conducted at Fahoum’s house in Visalia on January 16th with the assistance of investigators from the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office Investigators have obtained records from four casinos located in California and two casinos located in Las Vegas Fahoum traveled to Kern County on the evening of Friday and surrendered herself to the Taft Police Department on an active Tulare County arrest warrant She was booked and released on $100,000 bail She is scheduled for arraignment on the charges in Tulare County Superior Court on May 22 Fahoum faces 3 years in jail in addition to restitution these charges are not eligible for a state prison commitment A Visalia police captain is accused of stealing nearly $50,000 from the department’s youth program Her defense says she's ready to "vigorously" defend herself in court and will make every appearance oversaw the Visalia Police Explorer program from 2017 through 2024 the period prosecutors say she swiped money from the program’s bank account she also withdrew cash from the program’s checking account and solicited money from local businesses and then cashed checks for herself who works for District Attorney Tim Ward’s bureau of investigators recommended that prosecutors charge Fahoum with embezzlement and grand theft She is set to turn herself in and post $100,000 bail Ward charged Fahoum with five felony counts of grand theft and one petty theft charge for allegedly taking $500 from RLMK Inc. the Visalia-based franchise owner of McDonald’s locations across the Valley The Visalia Police Explorer bank account was funded by events donations and a vending machine placed at the police department’s headquarters District attorney spokesman Stuart Anderson said he couldn't "immediately" provide a statement but added that Ward would make a comment Monday The investigation was sparked after a Visalia police sergeant checked the organization's Bank of the West account on his cellphone’s app Fahoum was placed on paid administrative leave Fahoum was set to be among the finalists for Salazar’s job when he retires noting that hiring a local chief would be a priority for the next department leader She’s been with the department for more than a decade and worked her way up through the ranks Her total compensation in 2023 was $272,892.72 of which $168,754 is designated as base salary She received a stipend to help run the Explorer program "She's been an outstanding performer for this department She's done excellent work to get promoted to where she is," said Roger Wilson She started as a records clerk for Tulare Police Department and worked her way up after moving to Visalia Salazar told ABC30 that Fahoum's "passion and dedication never go unnoticed." she is empathetic and she cares about people," he told the media outlet Salazar released a video statement regarding the charges "I am heartbroken and disappointed with what led us to today's criminal filing against Capt "When something like this occurs it has a significant impact on the organization on our community and the entire policing profession Actions like these errode the trust that members of this community have placed in its police department That trust is something we place a great value on in policing and working to serve our community." Salazar apologized to the community and to those who donated to the Explorer program "I continue to support the men and women of the Visalia Police Department who serve this community and wear this badge with honor," he said "I know they will hold their heads high and we will continue to earn and maintain the trust of those we serve." The Explorer program is a career education program for young people and promotes career awareness and encourages youth to consider their future at an early age The Visalia Police Explorers are designed to connect community children with police officers It’s been a pathway for many future officers (This story has been updated with additional information.) CA – Denny Larrondo worked a perfect game into the sixth inning and the Visalia Rawhide defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 5-0 on Tuesday afternoon at Valley Strong Ballpark Visalia’s (9-13) starting pitcher Larrondo dominated on the mound versus Fresno (8-14) not allowing a baserunner until a two out infield single in the sixth inning Larrondo induced a pop-out of the next batter to finish his day by retiring 18 of 19 batters faced The native of Cuba struck out six batters in his six innings of work The Rawhide scored all five runs in the seventh inning Yassel Soler hit a two out two RBI single up the middle to break the scoreless deadlock Ruben Santana followed with a three run home run over the left field wall to extend the lead Santana hit a home run for the second consecutive game and has three long balls in his last five games played Victor Morales earned the win on the mound with two perfect innings and three strikeouts Darlin Pinales secured the Rawhide’s third shutout victory of the season with a scoreless ninth frame Adbias De La Cruz and Santana led Visalia with two hits apiece Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward has released additional details surrounding the arrest of a 51-year-old Visalia Police Department captain accused of embezzlement and grand theft who had access to the bank account used for the police Explorer program and often served as a liaison for donors to the department’s Explorer program is accused of stealing nearly $50,000 from the account She is charged with felony grand theft by embezzlement Fahoum surrendered herself on April 25 to the Taft Police Department on the active Tulare County arrest warrant She was booked and immediately released on $100,000 bail DA investigators said that Fahoum used Explorer money at casinos gas stations and retail stores for personal use from 2017 to 2023 She oversaw the program from 2017 through 2024 Visalia Police Chief Jason Salazar said that he was notified on Sept 19 by a sergeant of the possible misuse of funds Evidence was found that Fahoum embezzled money from the Visalia Police Explorers' Bank of the West account It's unclear what evidence pointed toward embezzlement An investigation was formally launched on Sept The Bureau of Investigations assigned an assistant chief a full-time criminal investigator and a forensic auditor to the case investigators have served 26 search warrants covering nine financial institutions One search warrant was conducted at Fahoum’s home in Visalia on Jan with assistance from Fresno County DA investigators Investigators said they have also collected records from four California casinos and two Las Vegas casinos Fahoum is scheduled for arraignment on the charges in Tulare County Superior Court on May 22 she faces up to three years in local jail under Penal Code 1170(h) in addition to restitution The Samaritan Center of Tulare County has permanently closed its doors A notice taped to its front door last month announced that the free clinic “will no longer be seeing patients after March 31.” The Samaritan Center offered health care and other services to its patients regardless of their financial situation The clinic closed as the result of “a three-pronged issue,” according to Dr who volunteered his medical services there “One is that the community support was not the same as in the past,” he said. “Number two, we were having more and more difficulty getting volunteers to provide service so did our funding because we were a completely free clinic More: Tulare County health officials say Medi-Cal cuts could close hospitals many Samaritan Center patients found other options for their health care needs in recent years “The state of California was extending Medi-Cal beneficiaries and it was a pretty broad net that they were offering this service to so a lot of our patients went on that program,” said Dr “We had somebody that worked in the Samaritan Center that hooked people up to these services “We were down to one day a week and we weren’t seeing the volume that we used to see,” he said “It didn't really make sense to keep it open,” Carstens said The new health care options also reduced the number of potential clinic volunteers you see this enormous group of buildings that are federally funded that provide care for the indigent,” he said I'm not as interested in volunteering at the Samaritan Center because there's probably no need.” provided social services and aid to the underserved in Visalia “She recognized that a lot of people weren't able to eat and that morphed into what is the current Bethlehem Center which was the start of the Good News Center.” Sister Ursula had a heart attack in 1984 and died later that year “When (Sister Kenneth) was running the soup kitchen she realized that people who couldn't eat had poor health care and her first concern was getting the children care,” Marconi said More: ‘Hands on Heroes’ honors changemakers in Tulare County Dr. George Tiss, a local pediatrician, started pediatric services at the Good News Center, according to Marconi.  “They were started in a trailer, very basic services, trying to get families to get their children in to get shots,” he said. “Then Dr. Tiss, as well as Sister Kenneth, realized that the families are going to want to come, so Dr. Tiss, the medical director at that time, tried to develop adult services.  “That's where I came in as one of the physician providers,” Marconi said. “The clinic started to morph into a really solid piece of service because we had attorney Mr. (Bob) Felts, who was working on legal issues. “We had Sister Kenneth, who was a social worker, putting all this picture together, and then we were having these very basic services being provided, and we were beginning to get more and more funding from the community,” he said. “The medical process grew and the community built a medical clinic,” Marconi credits the Mangano and Peters families, who were both in construction, for building the Good News Center.  In 1995, Tiss became critically ill and died, so Marconi became the medical director. The clinic continued to grow, offering women's services, pediatric services and adult services. The Tulare-Kings Dental Society supported the Samaritan Center by taking patient referrals.  “We had this symbiotic relationship of community organizations, and there was a number of physicians that volunteered in the clinic,” Marconi said. “We also had an ancillary group of volunteer surgeons and obstetricians and gynecologists and neurologists, all the ‘ologists’ that were not seeing patients regularly. They would see patients pro bono from the clinic, and so everything was going fine.” There was a difference of opinion between the sisters who served as nurses at the center and the Catholic bishop about how the Good News Center should be run—and who should be in charge, Marconi said. The result was that the sisters who had been serving the center were reassigned.   “We immediately lost $60,000 (annual) funding, and three nurses to help us out,” he said. “It was a real shock to try to provide the care that we had and we just couldn't do it.  “Then the board said, ‘No, we still need it. What are we going to do with these people? We've got to quickly find a way to support the medical services,’” Marconi said.   “That was the birth of the Samaritan Center," he said. Bill Whitlatch, a general engineering contractor and developer in Visalia, had long been involved with the Good News Center board. He called Marconi to tell him that he found a location for a new clinic — the former Bob Riley Juvenile Hall. “He said, ‘We can get this from the city (of Visalia) and we can open a clinic here,” Marconi said. “Come down, I'll meet you, and we'll do it.  “This place had, oh my gosh, black widow spiders and doors that weren't attached,” Marconi added. “As it turns out, the city leased us the building for a dollar a year. And then we went back to our community supporters, the builders, and they built us the internal portion of that building.” The Samaritan Center grew to offer a range of services, including primary care, pharmacy, medical, lab, dental, health education and diabetes prevention and testing. The clinic also offered free prescription medications, as well as free legal services. “We did a good job of keeping people from the emergency room,” Marconi said. “We provided medicines to our people. “There was a big issue during COVID, where people just couldn't get medications, so we opened our doors during COVID and opened our pharmacy to people that were in need of medications,” he added. “It's a wonderful charity,” said Whitlach, who was also involved in the fundraising for the clinic. “It was supported by the people of Visalia. When there was a Gottschalks, they used to have a fundraiser for us every year. There were certain businesses that sent us a lot of money.  “Our bank account was always over $100,000, and it didn't seem to make any difference what time of the year it was,” he added.  Times changed and the doors of the Samaritan Center of Tulare County are now closed. “It's worrisome and I would tell you, as complex as the history of the Good News Center and the Samaritan Center was, I can't imagine ever re-establishing such a clinic,” Marconi said. The checkpoint’s location is based on data indicating high instances of impaired driving crashes in the area The primary goal of DUI checkpoints is to enhance public safety by removing suspected impaired drivers from the road the department reminds the public that prescription medications Although medical and recreational marijuana are legal driving under its influence remains illegal Drivers charged with a first-time DUI can face an average of $13,500 in fines The DUI checkpoint is funded through a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety in partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The 41st annual Tulare/Visalia Pro-PT Baseball Invitational championship games are set It'll be an all-Tulare showdown in the tournament's upper-division title game Mission Oak and Tulare Western each went 3-0 during pool play and will meet in Wednesday night's invitational championship game at Mt General admission tickets are $7 for adults Monache and Tehachapi will play for the tournament's lower-division crown at 5 p.m The Marauders and Warriors went undefeated through the first two days of invitational competition Here are the scores from day two of the tournament (story will be updated as scores are reported): Title chase: See which teams are favorites to win EYL, WYL softball championships (FOX26) — A 44-year-old inmate at the Tulare County Sheriff's Department Pre-Trial Facility was found dead in his cell early Friday morning He died shortly after an earlier medical evaluation and treatment [RELATED] Convicted child molester found dead in his cell at Mule Creek State Prison According to the Tulare County Sheriff's Office correctional deputies and medical staff attended to the inmate after he reported feeling ill around 2:30 a.m Medical personnel evaluated and treated him in his cell keeping him under observation for approximately 30 minutes before medically clearing him the inmate was discovered unresponsive by a correctional deputy Emergency medical services responded and attempted life-saving measures The inmate was pronounced dead at the scene Tulare County Sheriff's Office detectives have taken over the investigation and an autopsy will be scheduled to determine the cause of death The inmate's identity has not been released The 41st annual Tulare/Visalia Pro-PT Baseball Invitational begins on April 14 at various sites in Tulare and Visalia Sixteen high school teams will be competing in the three-day tournament: The tournament championship games are set for Wednesday The lower-division title game is at 5 p.m. followed by the upper-division championship at 7:30 p.m Centennial is the defending upper-division tournament champion Porterville won the lower-division title last year Whitney51 Tulare County players to watchHere are 51 Tulare County players to watch at this year's Tulare/Visalia Pro-PT Baseball Invitational: National Siblings Day: Ficher brothers complete basketball legacy at Tulare Western League Realignment: 'We're ready to roll': CVC joins Tulare, Visalia high schools to form new league American Pickleball, a new indoor pickleball center on South Bridge Street in Visalia could be open to the public by the end of 2025 according to project developer Johnny George of J.F The center will open with 15 courts on the 700 block of South Bridge Street in Visalia Workers have already combined two attached buildings one 28,590 square feet and the other 11,657 square feet into one large building to house the new center the renovation process has been deceptively quiet for much of April George described it as “a very pleasant lull.” While there is currently no construction underway at the site of the future pickleball center there is a lot of work happening elsewhere “We have engineers that are drawing the sewer lines “All we need is one more transformer and that's done and the wholesale house has it ready for us to pick up “We have the pad people building the pads right now,” he added referring to the protection that will line the poles and lower walls of the center “The fence people are powder-coating all the posts,” George said “90 posts are being powder-coated right now A lot of work has already gone into the center’s flooring “Here we have an existing 30-year-old slab so we had to come in with diamond grinders,” George said as much as the floor cost to put in originally Pickleball: How playing indoors can benefit your outdoor game More: How to add pickleball to your holiday or birthday gathering Pickleball pro tips: Three key mistakes that will hurt your game “We’re waiting for the floor temperature to be 70 degrees for 30 days prior to them doing it,” George said “It's five coats and if the first coat doesn't cure (fully harden) and blue because this is American Pickleball and to make it so that you want to bring your family here,” he said “We’re going to paint all the outside of this building,” he added charcoal up four feet and then light gray from there up and ‘American Pickleball’ in big letters on the wall.”  Large video screens will soon be put into place high on the walls and on the poles you will know that you're in a sports arena,” George said “You will see maybe as many as 40 video TV screens – big ones You may be watching some sports events or news The center will have a pro shop selling pickleball equipment such as paddles and gloves There will also be lockers for purses and other items “We have bleachers coming in,” George said and the people can come from San Diego or Long Beach or Santa Maria or Santa Barbara and then they go down and stay in a local hotel George refers to one area of the center as “the academy,” because it will have four courts to teach people how to play pickleball “We have instructors that will be under contract,” he said George is also aware that people need to warm up before they start playing pickleball “We have athletic equipment coming,” he said “There's mirrors like in an exercise place There will also be an area with tables and seating near the courts where people can relax and socialize while they watch their friends play “Pickleball is about 25% social,” George said “People come and they're here 30 minutes to an hour before they play and they stay afterwards.”  The new center will accommodate other sports including cornhole “What we're going to do is keep one area of around 15,000 square feet where all of the nets are movable," he said "If they want to have a cornhole tournament .. and they could have a tournament here just by renting the overall space.” George said that all the food served at the center’s café will be healthy food but not fried chicken or whatever,” he said We have ice water that they can fill their ice water bottles.”  In addition to overseeing the remaining construction George needs to file more paperwork with the city “We have filed our conditional use permit,” he said Phase 3: Expansion of Visalia's American Pickleball arenaPhase 3 will make use of the remaining 15,000 square feet between the current construction and the parking lot at the south end of the property but no decisions have been made about whether to renovate it or tear it down for other uses “We're waiting to see the demand,” George explained It could be nine courts that have a shade over them There are also other possibilities for the space “I have been approached by beach volleyball so if you make it beach volleyball and there's only 150 in Tulare County that play it Whatever money is spent on the project needs to attract enough people to be worthwhile He also said that by renovating existing buildings the pickleball center will end up costing much less than constructing a new building Building an indoor pickleball facility from scratch would cost between $15 million and $20 million noting that a smaller pickleball center in Henderson had a price tag of $12 million and required a government loan The financial challenges of building an indoor pickleball center discourage many cities and private businesses from starting a similar project even though the sport continues to grow in popularity because it isn't the revenue we're looking at,” George said ‘Does it make sense?’ That's the only way it comes into play because my wife and I has been fighting a rare autoimmune disease known as chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) since December The condition has left him paralyzed from the waist down and reliant on a ventilator Olvera has been treated in four different hospitals recently with his latest admission to a Los Angeles hospital occurring on Wednesday explained the family's immediate goal is to strengthen Olvera enough to leave the hospital and begin a new medication called Vyvgart It's a new medication for people with CIDP He's approved for it but he's only approved as an outpatient," said Alonzo The family faces a significant financial challenge needing $80,000 to cover the cost of the medication they are unable to bill Medicare Part B for the treatment "We need $80,000 to cover the expenses for that medication," Alonzo said Olvera's four daughters are determined to secure the necessary funds believing the treatment will significantly aid in his recovery The family has started a gofundme. Here's the link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/fight-for-ernesto-overcome-cidp-paralysis A groundbreaking ceremony for the Lovers Lane Rehab Project was held on March 27 at Mill Creek Park on Lovers Lane in Visalia The project will improve the road quality of State Route 216 along Lovers Lane from Highway 198 to Houston Avenue and then east along Houston Avenue to just beyond McAuliff Street The project will also upgrade the offramps and onramps at the Highway 198/State Route 216 interchange Traffic at the Highway 198/Lovers Lane Interchange and its adjacent intersections are congested during the morning and evening peak hours Caltrans District 6 program project manager overseeing the Lovers Lane Rehab Project plans include reconfiguring the existing lanes which will enable the intersections to operate more efficiently who said that two new turn lanes would be added to the eastbound offramp at Lovers Lane Changes will also be made to the traffic signal system on Lovers Lane to improve traffic flow The project will change the routes for drivers heading west on both Highway 198 and Mineral King Avenue the offramp from westbound 198 will connect directly to Lovers Lane eliminating the current stop sign and the turn onto Mineral King drivers heading west on Mineral King will need to change their route Westbound Mineral King will stop at Buck Road Drivers are advised to either take McAuliff north to Mill Creek Parkway west to reach Lovers Lane or to take Road 156 south and head west on Walnut Avenue “The California Highway Patrol is asking for the public's assistance in keeping our road construction zones both safe for the workers and the motorists that are going to travel in the area,” said CHP Capt the equipment that's going to be in the area which is to be paid from State Highway Operation and Protection Program funds Construction is expected to be complete by summer 2026 A brief program preceded the ceremonial groundbreaking with remarks from officials involved in the project “The Lovers Lane Rehabilitation Project has been a target project for Caltrans for a long time,” Caltrans District 6 Director Michael Navarro said “We've listened to feedback from the residents and are taking action to alleviate the congestion that most of us experience here on a daily basis “Whether it’s parents with children attending schools on either side of Lovers Lane Lovers Lane is a vital connector across Highway 198 within the city of Visalia,” he said you will see a new interchange alignment that addresses congestion at the intersection with Highway 198.”  “This is one of the most heavily traveled corridors in the city of Visalia,” Mayor Brett Taylor said Caltrans is undertaking this project to reduce traffic congestion and delays and improve the undercrossing here at State Route 198 and bring these roadways to a state of modern repair and it doesn't come a moment too soon,” he said “This project will upgrade all sidewalks and ensure curb ramps meet ADA standards and the project will install Class II bike lanes,” he said “Caltrans will be including drought-resistant landscaping along the projected area They will also be incorporating native plants and planting heritage oak trees.” Tulare County Supervisor Amy Shuklian invited Supervisor Larry Micari to share the podium with her and as members of (Tulare County Association of Governments) we always want to support all projects throughout Tulare County,” she said before commenting on the time it took to bring the project to the construction phase “I was elected to the (Visalia) city council in 2007 and we were talking about this project back then,” she said “It's always nice to live long enough to see a project actually come to fruition.”  More: Accessing local journalism is even easier with the Visalia Times-Delta app “It's always a pleasure to be able to work with our partnering agencies and cities and make sure that these things come forward," Micari said “I just drove through the intersection down here,” he added and I remind myself how much I hate it quite frequently.” chairman of Tulare County Association of Governments board of directors also spoke during the ceremony “The voters of Tulare County entrusted us with a sales tax measure nearly two decades ago our taxpayer dollars at work actually benefiting our community and making it possible for folks to travel up and down these roads in a safe manner and an efficient manner," he said “This project is much more than just a rehab project It's going to make a big difference and impact the lives of so many people that live in these neighborhoods or who traverse these roads on a regular basis,” he said Neighborhood Degree has broken ground on a new community center that will enable Houston-area residents to have better access to resources which mentors young students and creates opportunities for children and families through its kindergarten-through-college career pathway held the groundbreaking in Houston Neighborhood Park on April 5 The Neighborhood Degree Community Center will provide the organization with a place to conduct and expand its programs in the Houston area of North Visalia “Our main goal is to end generational poverty,” Neighborhood Degree CEO Stephanie Benthin said and the way that we do that is through resources and relationships.” Tulare County has one of the lowest economic connectedness ratios in the country, according to Benthin. A Harvard University survey ranks Tulare last in California Economic connectedness refers to people who interact do recreational activities and have jobs with people who are in a similar economic class as they are “It's still very true that it's not just about what you know “They need to know more people who can open those kinds of opportunities They need to be interacting with people who have higher paying jobs continue on with their education and see that as a possibility.” Neighborhood Degree has been a partnership between Neighborhood Church and the Houston neighborhood for 18 years “We definitely wanted ‘neighborhood’ in the name We picked ‘degree’ because our goal was to change the trajectory of this community or universities will help our students have opportunities for jobs in the future that can move their whole family out of poverty."  Neighborhood Degree also partners with the Visalia Unified School District which has allowed the nonprofit organization to use its facilities at no cost they've added TK (transitional kindergarten) and other classes so the rooms that the school used to allow us to use are now being used for classrooms “Having a space in the neighborhood is really important," Benthin added "We run some of our programs on the (Neighborhood Church) campus We need to build some more space in the neighborhood so that kids can walk over The new 4,800-square-foot facility will serve as an educational hub with workshops Kindergarten-to-career pathway programs conducted there can help prepare students for careers that help lift them out of poverty a dream of ours for so long,” said Forrest Jenan It's a moment where hope is meeting opportunity.” The new facility will also serve as a resource center offering job training financial literacy classes and access to community services “This center will serve as a vibrant hub for local residents and opportunities to foster growth and connection," Visalia City Councilman Emmanuel Soto said "This project embodies the spirit of collaboration and community service that makes Visalia a stronger The Visalia Unified School District superintendent agrees “When our students are connected to something meaningful we see that impact their trajectory,” Superintendent Kirk Shrum said “I'm well aware of the impact this partnership has had for our students especially in this community over the almost two decades of students that have been part of this and have now graduated and have gone on to pursue things that maybe they didn't even think were possible How to get involvedPeople can get involved in Neighborhood Degree in various ways They can also contribute to program costs.” Opportunities will continue after the building is completed “We utilize hundreds of volunteers,” Benthin said there's all the different programs that we have and we use mentors at every level of our kinder-through-career pathway.” Crawdaddy’s in Visalia is no longer for sale Lumber business owner and restaurateur Colin Weyrick will be the new owner of the popular downtown Visalia restaurant and entertainment venue He is purchasing Crawdaddy’s from its current owner and the building from Keith’s brother Troy Korsgaden The sale prices for both are lower than the original asking prices “Troy and I gave up a lot of what we wanted because we knew that this was the perfect person to own this building and to operate the restaurant,” Keith Korsgaden said “He has a team behind him that if something went wrong he has plenty of people that could step in to keep the place going indefinitely “He's got a lumber empire and he owns many restaurants on the Central Coast I'm turning it over to him and his organization knowing that they know about restaurants,” he added and Street Side Ale House and Eatery in Atascadero; Jack’s Bar & Grill and Touch of Paso in Paso Robles; Feral Kitchen & Lounge in San Luis Obispo; and Jack’s Bar & Grill and Kitchenette in Templeton moving their expanding business to Templeton in 1995 the lumber company has established locations in Chino and Santa Maria and it opened a pallet business and lumberyard on Doe Avenue in Visalia a little over a year ago “I've known Colin for a long time and this building has been for sale for a long time,” Korsgaden said and we made a deal to for him to buy the building and the restaurant.” “(Keith) talked about how he'd like to not work as much and I'm already invested in restaurants over on Central Coast so we decided to add Crawdaddy’s into our portfolio of restaurants,” Weyrick said I've actually been to a couple of the shows that are there “We've made an investment in the community but also in the restaurant business” he added “We look to expand and grow our business in the Central Valley.”  But Weyrick wasn’t the only one interested in purchasing Crawdaddy’s There were “multiple people” that wanted to buy the restaurant “They talked to me and offered me a lot more money than I'm selling it to him for,” he said “Some of the people wanted to start the nightclub up again “This is my life's work for the last 20 years and it's been the life's work of many people that work here,” he said I've asked my savior to look over this place and the people that work here I want to turn this over so Crawdaddy’s will go on into the future for many years to come The sale was made to Weyrick “for multiple reasons,” Korsgaden said and I wanted to sell the restaurant – and I couldn't see somebody buying one or the other,” he explained “I love the fact that Colin wants to live here when he's in town “He wants to make very little changes in it and he wants me to continue to do whatever I want to do here,” he continued “I told him I want to continue with the music program We’ve got a lot of new shows in the making and that’s not going to stop.”  Korsgaden expects to continue doing much of what he has been doing at Crawdaddy’s “When I'm here and something's broke I'm going to fix it and take care of as much as I feel like taking care of “I don't think I ever want to retire,” he said but selling this to Colin is going to allow me freedom to not have to do the day-to-day operation “I've decided that I don't want to be counting drawers and doing the financial being responsible for payroll and being here seven days a week,” he said “I have two grandkids in Seattle that I want to take time to go see I have two grandkids here in Visalia and I want to ‘Everything's made from scratch’: Three Rivers sandwich shop named to Yelp's Top 100 Korsgaden plans to continue performing at Crawdaddy’s as part of The Crawdads “The Crawdad band has been part of my life,” he said We have a lot of fans that pack this place on the weekends and I'm assuring you that that is not going to change to sit on my stool for three hours a night and play my guitar That's the greatest thing that's ever happened to me.” he took a moment to thank some of the people who helped make Crawdaddy’s successful “I want to thank my brother Troy because 20 years ago we started building this building and this building is iconic,” he said if it's not the most beautiful building in town Troy had that dream to build a building and my older brother Korsgaden also expressed his gratitude to banquet coordinator Dora Siler “the creator of this great dining experience at Crawdaddy’s,” and kitchen manager Fernando Gonzalez “One of the key people that I have to thank is Mr who has brought a whole wild audience from all over the state of California,” he said “His reach has made Crawdaddy’s a spot on the map and I can't thank him enough for all that he's done.” What's the best restaurant near you? Check out USA TODAY's 2025 Restaurants of the Year. Korsgaden expects the sale of Crawdaddy’s to be completed over the next month or two the Visalia Times-Delta lets you know which Tulare County restaurants aced inspections as well as which ones need to make improvements Tulare County's best restaurant inspectionsThe following four restaurants met all standards during their March inspections and no violations were found January 2025: The best and worst Tulare County restaurant inspections The following 18 restaurants were found to have major or critical risk violations:  February 2025: The best and worst Tulare County restaurant inspections Visalia – Routine inspection and complaint investigation on March 3 Customer claimed employee did not wash hands before preparing food Business owner said customer was upset about not being waited on at 7:15 a.m. even though the business does not open until 7:30 a.m During inspection observed employee handle cash then use hand sanitizer before preparing customer drink with ice 2024: Every restaurant inspection we covered in Tulare County Visalia – Routine inspection and complaint inspection on March 17 Complaint is regarding staff not properly washing hands Observed operator take cash from customer and subsequently pack wontons and orange chicken into to-go containers without washing hands Complaint was validated at time of inspection and facility will be charged enforcement penalty of $328 Owner and wife were informed of the complaint and believe that two former disgruntled employees submitted the complaint following the resolution of a civil matter Porterville – Routine inspection on March 19 Farmersville – Routine inspection on March 24 Visalia – Routine inspection and complaint inspection on March 25 Complaint is regarding possible foodborne illness symptoms from eating salad bar items white shredded cheese and baby corn) had temperatures measuring 45°F-48°F at time of inspection Facility will be charged enforcement penalty of $328 Visalia – Routine inspection and food facility assessment on March 31 The assessment followed a natural gas leak incident on March 23 The inspection verified that the facility is unsafe to resume conducting food operations Prior to being approved by the Tulare County Environmental Health Division to reopen the facility must obtain food-grade sanitizer disinfectant; food-preparation equipment must be cleaned rinsed and sanitized; and all food items in the food-preparation area must be discarded Visalia – Complaint investigation and routine inspection on March 31 Complainant reported air-conditioning not working properly causing smoke to fill restaurant and move toward gas station Complaint also includes statements that sprinkler tag expired in 2023 and employees (including a cook) have acrylic nails Remember some of the violations noted are technical issues not directly linked to hygiene or cleanliness or missing paperwork may be included among the violations because they can be linked to germs For full restaurant inspection details, visit the Tulare County Division of Environmental Health's restaurant inspections score website here If you notice violations of state standards, you can file an online complaint here Critical risk factors inspectors look for range of factors like possessing a food handlers certificate to protection from contamination by keeping contact surfaces sanitized and clean Other things inspectors look at include employee health and hygienic practices Some of the items inspectors check for are weighed more heavily than others usually anywhere between two to four points Disclaimer: These inspection reports are from the Tulare County Retail Food Inspection Program which inspects retail food facilities to ensure safe food handling practices and compliance with the California Health and Safety Code within the county Please note that follow-up inspections may not be included here Calif (FOX26) — A man was arrested on Wednesday after he was found with child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in his possession youth service officers got a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children This prompted an investigation from the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) They say that after they had conducted their investigation officers identified 45-year-old Wilmer Cannon-Madrid as the suspect He was arrested after a search warrant was served at his home on Court Street near Chavez Avenue in Visalia They say he was booked at the Tulare County Adult Pre-Trial Facility for possession of CSAM Joann Inc., a nationwide fabrics and crafts retailer that recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in less than a year announced recently it would lay off hundreds of workers at its West Coast distribution in California According to two Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) notices received Wednesday by the California Employment Development Department the company reported it would lay off 209 employees at its distribution center in Visalia The layoffs are expected to begin on March 30 Gordon Brothers Retail Partners LLC intends to buy JoAnn and close all stores if another buyer fails to emerge If more qualified bids are submitted during the court-supervised sale processes Joann plans to conduct an auction or auctions would set the floor for the auction process Joann employs staff at 75 retail locations across California and operates over 800 stores nationwide Both the retail locations and Joann.com remain open to customers while the company hopes to facilitate sales the company has distribution centers in West Jefferson and Hudson Customers can still pay for merchandise using Joann gift cards, according to a list of frequently asked questions on the company's website Joann is no longer selling gift certificates and gift cards Who owns Joann?Joann was founded in 1943 and sells various crafting supplies The company went private in 2011 when it was acquired by the equity firm Leonard Green & Partners for about $1.6 billion still majority-owned by Leonard Green & Partners Joann became a private company again in April following its initial bankruptcy filing so its shares were no longer listed by the Nasdaq or any other national stock exchange Chapter 11 bankruptcy typically allows the debtor to maintain possessions while a reorganization is proposed and enacted This reorganization is intended to restructure a business allowing greater flexibility in repaying debts the debtor can continue operating its business and borrowing new money with court approval Lucky Strike Entertainment is the new owner and operator of Visalia Adventure Park The company announced on March 5 that it had finalized the acquisition of the seven-acre family entertainment center at 5600 W Lucky Strike Entertainment operates more than 360 entertainment facilities across North America The Virginia-based company rebranded under its new name on Dec high-speed go-karts on an open-air racetrack a seasonal water park with multiple waterslides and more than 120 interactive water play features “The acquisition of Visalia Adventure Park is an exciting step in expanding our footprint in the family entertainment space,” said Thomas Shannon “Visalia Adventure Park has been the go-to destination for families for two decades and we’re excited to enhance its offerings by injecting the fun Adventure Park is the company’s second entertainment facility in the city we currently have a Bolero bowling alley not too far from where Adventure Park is at right now so we're already very familiar with what the city has to offer,” said Brandon Moore “As we continue to expand on our FEC (family entertainment center) footprint The purchase is part of the company’s rapid expansion across the country Lucky Strike purchased Boomers Parks – which feature many of the same attractions as Adventure Park – in Livermore The company also recently acquired entertainment facilities in Florida “Lucky Strike is really focused on offering world-class experience in entertainment,” Moore said “We've got bowling and do very well with that and we’re now expanding into the FEC/waterpark market Now guests have the opportunity to go visit best-in-class FECs and best-in-class waterparks really expanding the offering that Lucky Strike Entertainment has.”  Lucky Strike is planning some changes at Adventure Park “We plan on introducing some of the things that we do well,” he said “We've got our food offerings that we want to continue to roll into the location We look to enhance the birthday party experience that the guests have and the group events experience at the facility “We like to stay up to date with the offerings in our arcades and keep them high-energetic games that the consumer thrives to play to continue and enhance that arcade experience,” he said Changes are also being planned specifically for those over 21 years old “We currently have a beer and wine license at the park and we are in the process of expanding that to include liquor also,” Moore said “I encourage everybody in the local market to come out to enjoy the experiences that they can have at Adventure Park and to follow us on social media and stay tuned to our website for future developments that we have planned for the location,” Moore added The beautiful mansion at Main and Giddings streets was the far west entrance to the little town of Visalia when it was completed in 1917 by prominent businessman Benjamin Dudley for his bride The home was impressive with stained glass windows big fireplaces and a dazzling dining room completely paneled Kitty corner from Visalia (Redwood) High School and adjacent to Visalia’s famous “Smallest Park in the World,” the Dudley House was the scene of many social events There are even stories that the Dudleys hid Japanese Americans through an opening in the basement during World War II to keep them from being sent to internment camps The beautifully restored home is now used by various businesses and will be open for guided tours on Saturday the nonprofit group dedicated to preserving historic structures and planning to turn the old Depot Restaurant into a Visalia museum History of the Dudley HouseThe impressive Dudley House was built just west of the Parkside Tract a subdivision established in 1909 north of Visalia High School by three local entrepreneurs Benjamin Dudley was one of the businessmen who financed the housing project One of the neighborhood streets is named for him The developers wanted to ensure the tract was of high quality so they required that the houses had to be valued at a minimum of $800 Benjamin and his brother thrived in one of the first real estate companies in Visalia They discovered the Lost Hills oil field near the Kern/Kings County line So when Benjamin found a bride at the age of 37 and after a two-week honeymoon returned to the new house but their many nieces and nephews spent many hours there The Dudleys were both from pioneer families His parents founded the 2,000-acre Sunny Slope Ranch north of Elderwood Helen was the daughter of one of the original residents who lived in Fort Visalia No detail was spared in creating the 8,000-square-foot Mission Revival style house at a cost of $35,000 (over $1.3 million today) had an unusual corbeled arch fireplace flanked by stained glass windows The huge living room had wainscot molding and a massive fireplace The breakfast room featured a stained glass window with a scene of the Dudley Oil Fields A beautiful wood stairway to the second floor had an unusual stained glass Palladian window at the landing windows in the master bedroom could be lowered into the walls on beautiful days The Dudley House had the distinction of having the “Smallest Park in the World” practically in its front yard Visalia was famed for its beautiful oak trees a huge oak which was nearly 100 years old sat right at the intersection of what is now Main and Giddings streets The women of Visalia’s Improvement Club asked to preserve the tree The 10x10-foot “park” was billed as the “Smallest Park in the World.” When the city of San Rafael challenged that claim It was written up in national magazines and brought much publicity to Visalia When the Dudleys moved into their new house they instructed their groundskeeper to maintain a lush bed of flowers around the tree After three accidents in a one-month period sent people to the hospital Ben and Helen lived in the home until 1949 when they sold it to Ben’s doctor and good friend Dr A decade later the Schors sold the house to the Methodist Church The Methodists used it as their Wesley Hall meeting place and youth center for the church When the church moved out to Caldwell Avenue Frank Cavale bought and restored the home to use as his company office Cavale had a love of historic homes and brought in a Bay Area historical architect and the local John Peters Construction Company to restore the home to its original beauty Peters recalls spending up to two years on the project First he had to strip all the paint that was covering much of the beautiful interior wood He used over 1,000 gallons of industrial-strength stripper to remove all the paint that covered the beautiful wood The original roof was made to look like terra cotta tile It was designed to be curved like terra cotta tile Peters had to replace the tin roof with real terra cotta tile because the tin could not be saved or replaced So although original pictures of the home look like it has a terra roof Peters found the original carriage house door embedded between two other walls on the front of the home’s carriage house Cavale wanted everything restored back to the original look so Peters restored the doors and returned them to the front of the carriage house you can see the original footprint on the exterior Today the home looks much like it did in the early 20th century The only real difference is that the huge living room has been divided into several rooms for use as offices the rich wood and even the original push button light switches remain as a testament to the home’s elegant design It's the public's right to know versus the police's need for secrecy With fewer outlets to provide news to an information-craving public a form of citizen journalism has arisen to fill the void Followers of Facebook or Instagram have noticed them posting accounts of police activity at traffic incidents fires and other activity that calls for a police response The Visalia Stringer and The Visalia Watchdog have become popular on social media for keeping people informed of police activity in Visalia and beyond The Stringer and Watchdog follow the police on the radio with their scanners The difference is Stringer and Watchdog go to the accident or crime scenes the radio frequencies they use so the public can't listen in Tulare County Voices at 210 is devoting its April forum to the issue: "Visalia's Stringer and Watchdog: End of police calls?" The forum is at 7 p.m. The advance of citizen  journalism is fascinating enough: In the digital age anyone with a phone and internet access can report news  on social media Any event open  to the public is fair game Legacy media such as newspapers are disappearing or severely curtailed an anonymous group of news gatherers that has been operating for several years They have amassed tens of thousands of followers on social media They post stories several times a day of current events Visalia police began "encrypting," a kind of electronic disguise Police agencies throughout the state were given a mandate in 2020 by the California Department of Justice to encrypt radio signals so that personal information of people the police deal with could not be identified Tuesday's forum hopes to straighten that out This could be an impasse for which there is no solution Federal covid relief funds allowed the police to buy the $1.8 million in radio equipment it needed to encrypt its broadcast communication Police are under a state mandate by the DOJ Even inadvertent release of sensitive information by police could be costly for the city of Visalia The journalists argue  that these days they are often the only source of information for the public They provide information that affects people's lives It could be critical in the case of a school shooting or hostage situation At least at Tuesday's forum it will get a thorough airing Attending a panel discussion will be The Stringer and The Watchdog the Visalia police and a member of the city council And the month is bringing a long weekend with it and a couple of celebrations too While May isn't as packed with events as March and April were there are still a few days to look forward to folks will get a long-awaited three-day weekend on May 26 as Memorial Day comes around Here's everything you need to know about what May has in store this year and is considered a federal holiday Memorial Day always falls on the last Monday in May In total, 2025 has 12 federal holidays across 11 days, according to the Office of Personnel Management Will banks be closed on Memorial Day?Memorial Day is a bank holiday so some organizations will likely be closed There are multiple religious holidays in April The following are some of the holidays and traditions celebrated throughout the month, according to Interfaith America Here are some more significant dates in May: Unique days in MayThe following are some of the more unique and odd days celebrated throughout the month of April The Department of Government Efficiency is bringing government spending cuts to Visalia In a list released in early March DOGE announced it terminated an office space lease for the Internal Revenue Service in Visalia The IRS has office space at 5300 W. Tulare Ave. in Visalia, also known as Tulare Akers Professional Building, according to the IRS website Information about the lease ending isn't reflected on the IRS website The office space is roughly 6,936 square feet Elon Musk's DOGE states the federal government is saving more than $365,000 by terminating the lease that costs roughly $208,500 a year, according to DOGE's website There are more than 60 total leases terminated in California including the IRS office in Modesto and the Farm Service Agency office in Bakersfield the DOGE website states nearly 750 leases have been terminated totaling roughly $660 million in savings Musk is trying to limit the size of the federal workforce as well. Hundreds of thousands of federal employees have been laid off as part of that effort Wire of USA TODAY contributed to this report by Liz Gonzalez (FOX26) — It's not out of the ordinary to hear of a neighborhood cat or dog But a different creature has been winging it through Visalia bringing traffic to a stop as it crosses a road--or two I decided to get some chickens because we couldn’t go to the stores very much I had this idea I was going to grow a garden and get some chickens,” says Emerald Mares of Visalia Among them—one chicken with plenty of attitude letting Mares and her family know she was the top of the pecking order They would let me pick them up and hold them and they didn't mind it She didn't want me touching her or the chicks That was in 2021—and it wouldn’t be long before the sassy chicken flew the coop “She ended up having a couple more chicks and decided to take her chicks with her and cross the fence and never came back,” Mares says “She used to just jump into the tree and we could see her But then she just didn't ever want to come back home.” the chicken has become a neighborhood celebrity—spotted crossing the road she’s seen her in posts on social media—where people have gotten a kick watching the poultry in motion Tulare County's best restaurant inspectionsThe following 10 restaurants met all standards during their February inspections and no violations were found The following 10 restaurants were found to have major or critical risk violations:  Facility was temporarily closed until inspector could return and verify that warm water at the handwashing sink measured a minimum of 100°F and hot water at the food-preparation sink and warewashing sink measured a minimum of 120°F Visalia – Complaint investigation and routine inspection on Feb Complaint is regarding lack of current food handler cards/certificates food in the walk-in refrigerator “not in good condition” or with mold Complaint may have been made by a disgruntled employee Observed at least one repeat violation: walk-in refrigerator not maintaining food at 41°F or below at all times Visalia – Routine inspection and complaint inspection on Feb Complaint was about cockroaches in kitchen near grease trap and near where food is prepared and stored Keep in mind as you readRemember some of the violations noted are technical issues not directly linked to hygiene or cleanliness