LIVE IN VISALIA, AVOID THE COMMUTE

Visalia was recently recognized as one of the top forty "Best Commuter Cities in California," as reported by "The Obrella Insider."  This survey included all California cities with a population of over 10,000 residents, and Visalia ranked No. 27.  Our average commute time was clocked at 20.9 minutes (mine is much shorter at about 5 minutes).  Quoting from the article "With a commute time of 20 minutes on average, Visalia residents spend about 30% less time getting to work than the typical California resident.  There is a vast assortment of employers in and around Visalia, offering both blue collar and white collar jobs."  According to the pie chart which accompanied the article, almost half of Visalians have commute times of under 15 minutes.  The article also noted that 79.85% of Visalians commute to work alone, 12.35% carpool, with the rest using mass transit or working at home.  The article goes on to state that in addition to increasing stress levels and affecting overall health, many people don't realize the time it takes to get to work also impacts your insurance premiums.  When you shop for auto insurance, you're asked how far you travel to get to work.  Insurance providers ask this question to gauge the risk you face on the road.  Typically, the farther you commute, the longer you're on the road, and that increases the risk of your being involved in an accident.  Greater risk means you'll pay a higher auto insurance premium.  Your quality of life can also be affected by a lengthy commute:

∙ A study conducted in Sweden reveals that a marriage is 40% more likely to end in divorce when one partner endures a daily commute longer than 45 minutes.

∙ Political scientist Robert Putnum declared that workers who commute longer have less "social connections."  Specifically, Putnam found that every 10 minutes an individual spends commuting reduces their "social connections" by 10%.

∙ People with longer commutes are more likely to feel tired, experience greater worry and less enjoyment.

∙ Every minute of a commute is associated with a reduction in time spent resting, exercising, and preparing meals.

∙ Workers who spend 90 minutes or more making their daily commute are at a higher risk for chronic back or neck problems.

∙ Researchers at UCLA and Cal State Long Beach discovered that no other factor had a stronger correlation with obesity than the number of miles driven every day.

I guess the message for Visalians from all this is "live long and prosper."

This and That:
As the economy continues to improve, tourism to our area is increasing.  This is evidenced by a new Residence Inn, a 95 room four-story extended stay Marriott hotel which is going through the permit process with the city, and will be built adjacent to the Fresno Pacific campus off of Plaza Drive.  Additionally, there are plans for a Holiday Inn Express to be built south of Adventure Park, and talk of another hotel out by the airport.

Another sign that Visalia is experiencing growth is the grand opening of Mor Furniture for Less on South Mooney in February 2015, at the location of the old Surroz Motors.  This accompanies the opening last year of Ashley Furniture and Serrano’s Furniture.  When furniture stores flourish, that's indicative of consumer optimism and residential growth.

Another ribbon cutting I had the privilege of attending in February was that of Seaport Airlines.  They have flights twice daily from Visalia to Burbank and to Sacramento.  We are the only airport in the valley to have a connecting flight to Sacramento.  So far, bookings have been terrific, with many full flights.  I've ridden in their Cessna nine passenger plane, and I recommend it for convenience, comfort and price.

I recently again had the opportunity to attend the Project Homeless Connect sponsored by Kings/Tulare Homeless Alliance.  Thank you to the many wonderful people who provided free hair cuts, bicycle repairs, pet maintenance, counseling, medical assistance and more, along with a fine spaghetti lunch.

It was recently announced that Visalia city administration will be moving their offices into the former Chamber of Commerce building in east downtown.  The city purchased the building two years ago when it was on the market, with the objective of using it for office space.  The current tenants will have six months to find new locations.

If you have questions or topics regarding the city  which you would like to have addressed in future articles, please email Warren at wgubler@ci.visalia.ca.us, or call (559) 713-4400 x 3313.  For past articles, visit directfromwarren.blogspot.com.


Warren Gubler
Visalia Vice Mayor