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The Modesto Focus
Published 16 hours ago‘Beef’ with Salvation Army prompts Modesto and Stanislaus County to seek another operator for homeless shelter
The future of the public homeless shelter in downtown Modesto is up in the air, with ground-shaking changes potentially looming for both owner and operator. The Salvation Army – the shelter’s only operator since it opened in early 2020 – could be headed out the door. Its strained…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 24Politics Focus | Save the date for VotingMatters – and free tacos
Hey Focus fans! When we hosted an interactive elections-chat event before the June primary highlighting the many then-candidates for California governor, we told our CalMatters partners that we’d be happy with a couple of dozen attendees. All of us were blown away when more than…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 23LISTEN | Modesto Irrigation District candidates address ‘dysfunction,’ ‘corruption’ and ‘incivility’ in rare debate
Strong opinions and personalities turned up the heat in a recent Modesto Focus-moderated debate of all seven candidates running for three seats on the Modesto Irrigation District board in the upcoming Nov. 3 election. Candidates used words like “dysfunction” and “corruption” when…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 17Politics Focus | When growth and elections intersect
Hey Focus fans! I wouldn’t normally plug an upcoming city meeting in a column like this devoted to politics. So this an exception, but I promise, they’re connected. On Tuesday, the Riverbank City Council will probably cast an important vote deciding the fate of River Walk, a…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 11WATCH: Jaron Brandon and Alexandra Duarte face off in State Senate 4 debate
State Senate District 4 candidates Jaron Brandon and Alexandra Duarte went head-to-head Thursday morning on a wide range of topics, from healthcare access to immigration, during an in-person debate at Greens on Tenth in Modesto. The event, shown above in its entirety, was…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 04Hughson mayor responds to latest investigation into alleged lewd behavior. ‘I don’t think I ever did that’
Related Report: Kissing, touching and lewd joke accusations land Hughson mayor in hot water – once again Hughson Mayor George Carr admitted to “poor judgment” while also disputing some findings of an investigation into alleged lewd behavior toward employees of a transit agency he…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 04Political Focus | That’s debatable
Hey Focus fans! Local political debates – the best way to become familiar with candidates, in my opinion – are nearly upon us. Most exciting is a 6:30 p.m. Oct. 1 free in-person debate featuring candidates for Modesto City Council. You are invited! Save that date plus this…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 04Kissing, touching and lewd joke accusations land Hughson mayor in hot water – once again
Related Report: Hughson mayor responds to latest investigation into alleged lewd behavior. ‘I don’t think I ever did that’ Hughson Mayor George Carr “kissed and touched” a StanRTA employee in 2024 and told sex-themed jokes at the agency’s board meetings when he was its chairman…
The Modesto Focus
Published September 03Rep. Adam Gray: Want to know why I voted that way? Just ask
Editor’s note: Rep. Adam Gray authored the following column in response to a story published by The Modesto Focus on Aug. 24 with the headline “Facing mounting criticism over transparency, Gray finally explains controversial House defense vote.” There’s plenty to disagree about…