An upcoming event will allow Turlock community members to interact with their local, state and federal legislators together in the same room.

This will be the eighth Turlock Government Night that District 2 Stanislaus County Supervisor Vito Chiesa has hosted since taking office 10 years ago, inviting elected leaders of the area to the Carnegie Arts Center this month to discuss issues unique to the region.

“It’s too easy for us as elected officials to place blame on the other levels of government when we have issues…if we’re not working together collaboratively and the people know that, then it’s easy to fragment us,” Chiesa said. “We’re stronger together, and we have to show people that we’re constantly in contact.”

Chiesa will be joined by Congressman Josh Harder and Turlock Mayor Amy Bublak, who will field questions from those in attendance on anything from the proposed border wall to potholes. State Senator Andreas Borgeas was invited but unable to attend, Chiesa said, and Assemblymember Adam Gray is an invited member in his stead. Each legislator will be granted time to provide prepared remarks before a question and answer session with the audience takes place.

The area’s water supply has been a constant topic at past events, and Chiesa expects much of the same this year in addition to other topics that have taken center stage in recent months.

“Water is always the soup du jour, and homelessness will be a big topic. These problems never go away — they just change in order or importance,” he said. “There are subjects we’ll talk about that are specific to the county, to the city, to the state and to the federal government.”

Other topics Chiesa expects residents to bring up include transportation, such as infrastructure repairs, taxes, healthcare and immigration. At the city level, he predicts Turlock residents will have plenty of questions about the budget, which has been a topic of discussion at recent City Council meetings, as well as potential remedies for its problems like cannabis sales revenue.

No matter what topic constituents would like to ask their representative about, Chiesa encourages those who would like to know more about their elected leaders to attend Turlock Government Night. During the last event held in 2017, over 1,000 people attended.

“We see the widest array of people…it could be someone whose had an issue with the government, and part of it is venting, or it could be curious people who want to know how government works,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to sit down and listen to elected officials who you never have one-on-one time with.”

Turlock Government Night will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 25 at the Carnegie Arts Center, 250 N. Broadway, in the Loft Room. The event is free to the public, but seating will be limited. For more information, contact Evelyn at 209-525-6440 or starmane@stancounty.com.