Chaffee Zoo saved

Measure Z passes with overwhelming support

By TAI ARCENEAUX

After months of heavy debate over saving Fresno’s Chaffee Zoo, it seems like the “Spirit of Nosey” can get off voters’ front lawns and finally rest in peace.

At almost 10 p.m., Measure Z was leading with 72 percent of the vote, with 551 out of 667 precincts reporting, according to the Fresno County elections office.

The “Save Our Zoo” measure called for voters to approve a one-tenth of one percent sales tax that would last 10 years, providing enough funding from net proceeds for zoo revitalization.

In an interview with channel 30 ABC News, David McDonald, a zoo committee member, said the tax will raise about $9.5 million in the first year of the tax.

“The zoo has a big hole that we need to dig ourselves out of,” McDonald said.

In the local state elections, Democrat Jim Costa was leading with 63 percent of the vote, with 88 percent of precincts reporting, passing his Republican challenger, Sen. Roy Ashburn, for the 20th congressional district race. The district covers major portions of Fresno and Kern Counties.

“I ran for the people of the Valley,” Costa said in a channel 30 News interview. “At the end of the day that is who I care about the most.”

Both candidates were vying to replace Democrat Cal Dooley who is retiring after serving seven terms.

In the race for the 29th congressional district Republican candidate Mike Villines was winning with 63 percent of the vote with 78 percent of precincts reporting. In the heavily Republican district, which includes northeast portion of Fresno County and part of central Madera County, it came as no surprise that Democratic candidate Michael Marcias had only 33 percent of the votes.

The 30th district race has been a bitter one for candidates Democrat Nicole Parra and Republican Dean Gardner. Parra beat Gardner last election in, 2002, by 266 votes, according to an Aug. 15, 2004, Fresno Bee article.

This year, Gardner was beating Parra with 57 percent with, 82 percent of the precincts reporting, surprising for a Democratic-dominated district that runs from Fresno to Kern County.

Democrat candidate Juan Arambula was winning the 31st district race with 59 percent of the vote against Paul Betancourt who was loosing with 41percent of the vote, with 87 percent of the precincts reporting.

Whoever wins the district seat, which represents western Fresno County and part of Tulare, will replace Democrat Sarah Reyes.

Fresno State’s own, Salley Tannenbaum , was in the leading with 61 percent for the Board of Education District 2 seat.