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City decisions rarely feel urgent until they touch your block, your commute, or your kids’ route to school. This week’s wrap brings it all home with quick, plain‑spoken highlights from Hanford’s council meeting—what changed, what’s next, and how you can plug in without scrubbing through hours of video.

We start with a simple promise: official, rotating wrap‑ups on the city’s Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube so you can get the facts fast. From there, we dig into a surprisingly powerful quality‑of‑life win: renewing crow abatement downtown with Main Street Hanford and Hawk on Hand. Cleaner sidewalks, safer walkways, and a more welcoming core help local shops and events thrive through the winter roosting season. Then we celebrate our fire department—six well‑earned promotions and seven new firefighters stepping forward after an eight‑week academy focused on vehicle extrication, mass casualty response, and real‑world skills that save minutes when minutes matter.

On the policy side, we unpack three consent approvals that punch above their weight. A solar facility at the wastewater treatment plant with Optera Energy Services is set to cut operating costs and emissions at one of the city’s most energy‑intensive sites. Renewing work with federal partner Thorn Partners keeps Hanford competitive for grants and programs that fund streets, safety, and infrastructure. An amended lease with the Valley Community Small Business Development Center keeps startup support in our historic train station, where founders can access coaching and capital readiness close to transit.

Safety takes the spotlight with a new ordinance for bicycles, e‑bikes, and e‑scooters—clear rules plus enforcement tools designed to protect riders and pedestrians after five injury collisions this year, including one fatality. We also point you to the Kings‑Tulare High‑Speed Rail Station Transit Oriented Development Plan at hanfordca.gov/HanfordConnected, a guide for walkable growth around the future station. Finally, we share dates you’ll want on your calendar: the city manager candidate meet and greet, Winter Wonderland, and the next council meeting.

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