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Resident urges Hughson council to preserve Stanislaus County—s prime farmland
Summary
In public comment May 12, resident Milt Treeweather urged the Hughson City Council to prevent urban sprawl and preserve the area—s high-quality farmland, citing local irrigation districts and the Greater Don Pedro Dam as critical water resources for future food production.
During public comment at the Hughson City Council meeting on May 12, resident Milt Treeweather urged the council and community to preserve prime farmland in Stanislaus County and to resist urban sprawl.
Treeweather told the council that soils and irrigation in the Turlock Irrigation District (TID) and Modesto Irrigation District (MID) make the area around Hughson, Turlock, Ceres and Salida uniquely productive. He said those soils and water supplies could sustain food production for generations and contrasted local farmland with less-productive land in other parts of California.
"We must be the conservationist for our children and descendants since they cannot do this for themselves," Treeweather said at the podium. He warned against converting the region—s farmland to housing and urged the council to work to "stop the sprawl of our Stanislaus County cities." He told the council that, "in the next 14 years, California will need ... 900,000 acres of farmland," and he said the Greater Don Pedro Dam water supply is an important asset for the area.
Treeweather also described his family ties to the community, saying his family moved to the area in 1918 and that an uncle, Bush Treeweiler, served as mayor here. (Transcript uses the place name "Houston" in several places; the city—s official name is Hughson.)
No council action followed this public comment during the meeting; the remarks were recorded as part of the public-comment period and were not part of a formal agenda item.
