3 WATER MAIN BREAKS CAUSE FLOODING IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly version 48 HOMES WITHOUT WATER; SEVERAL ROADS CLOSED August 31, 2009 (La Mesa) –Three water line breaks have caused flooding in La Mesa, resulting in traffic congestion and leaving 48 homes without water. “There are several areas cordoned off,” said Helix Water District spokesperson Kate Breece at 4 p.m. this afternoon. “We would expect this hopefully to be all back online with water by sometime in the middle of the night, if all goes well.” The breaks occurred near the intersections of University Ave. and Yale St., Oxford and Purdue, and 73rd and Amherst. Printer-friendly version
MAN ASSAULTED DURING ROBBERY IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly version POLICE SEEK DRIVER & PASSENGER OF BLUE PONTIAC VIBE August 30, 2009 (La Mesa) — At 2:54 this morning, La Mesa Police officers responded to a report of a pedestrian robbery in the 9500 block of Murray Drive, La Mesa. According to La Mesa Police, the 25-year-old male victim was walking on the sidewalk west on Murray Drive when a Blue Pontiac Vibe with tinted windows drove up behind him. The front passenger demanded money from the victim, who ignored the demand and continued walking. The suspect vehicle then pulled up in front of the victim and stopped. The passenger and driver exited the vehicle and attacked the victim, punching him numerous times in the head and body. Both suspects got back in their vehicle and were last seen driving west on Murray Drive. They have not been apprehended. The victim suffered minor injuries which included complaint of pain to his body and a small abrasion and contusion to his forehead. There was no property loss. Both driver and passenger are described as Hispanic male adults. The driver was about 6 feet tall, 160 pounds, with slicked-back black hair. He wore a black long-sleeve dress shirt and black pants. No additional details were available on the passenger. If you have any information on this case, please call the La Mesa Police Department at (619) 667-1400. You may also call Crime Stoppers’ anonymous toll-free tip line (888) 580-TIPS (or www.sdcrimestoppers.com). You can remain anonymous, and be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest in this case. Printer-friendly version
PHOTOS OF THE MONTH: AUGUST
Printer-friendly versionCheck out these hot shots–we’ve got some real beauties this month! Deerhorn Valley: photo by Rob Deason Divine Bovine: Artist Lionel Talaro mugs for the camera alongside his creation, "Elvis Cow", on display at O’Dunn Fine Art Gallery, La Mesa photographer: Miriam Raftery View more great shots….. Kroc Center, La Mesa "National Night Out" Photo by Leon Thompson (right) Sunset over Mt. Woodson, shot from Lakeside: photo by Miriam Raftery lLeft) PirateSam "Captain Jack" Sparrow poses with Teen Queens at Celebrate East County event in the Heritage of the Americas Museum: photo by Miriam Raftery (right) Clean-up day at Lake Murray: photo by Kristin Kjaero (above) Editor’s Note: We are seeking a sponsor to award prizes for best photo from our readers. If you are interesting in becoming a sponsor, contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org. Printer-friendly version
GUHSD CONSIDERS BUDGET-CUTTING STRATEGIES IN WAKE OF $40 MILLION IN STATE FUNDING CUTS OVER PAST 2 YEARS
Printer-friendly version By Francine Phillips August 30, 2009 (El Cajon)–The Grossmont Union High School District School Board convened a special meeting at the East Country Regional Education Center on Wednesday, Aug. 26 starting at 2 p.m. The special meeting included a two-hour closed session that dealt mostly with labor negotiations between the Board and representatives of the Grossmont Education Association, California School Employees Association, and Service Employees International Union. Some administrative appointments and the evaluation of assistant superintendent Mike Lewis were also on the closed session agenda. The public portion of the meeting, convening at 4 p.m., began with presentation of a resolution supporting the building campaign of the Boys and Girls Clubs of East County. Jerry Fazio, executive director of the Clubs’ foundation, thanked the board for the acknowledgement and support of the $3.5 million effort to expand services to East County underserved youth. (Photo: Jerry Fazio, executive director of the foundation, accepts the resolution supporting the expansion of the Boys and Girls Clubs of East County program and facilities.) “I know that we will see greater educational collaboration between the school board and the Clubs for the sake of East Country’s young people,” said Fazio. He cited 48 years of active Clubs in El Cajon, Lakeside, Santee and La Mesa as a strong foundation for future expansion and shared goals. In other business, the resignation at the end of the calendar year of Patty Floyd, executive director of fiscal services, was reiterated to the board and they voted to rename the position executive director of fiscal services. The job description for the new position more fully describes all of the duties and responsibilities that were included in Floyd’s position. The bulk of the meeting consisted of a presentation by director of finance Scott Patterson, outlining the budget shortfalls and a tiered response that was recommended to be adopted by the board. In outlining the recommendations, Patterson prefaced his remarks by emphasizing that, “We are trying to save the ‘people’ jobs – those that are currently filled. It’s in our best interests to keep people working.” He said that reducing staff through attrition was the preferred strategy. His recommendations also included reducing the use of “one-time” dollars so that revenues and costs could become more aligned. Other cuts under consideration include doubling health benefit co-pays, asking the Grossmont Education Association to consent to a furlough plan, cutting Adult Education, tutoring, summer school, special day class offerings, and eliminating the 9th grade class size reductions in English and Math that have been adopted. “We’ve been taking major actions to deal with the deficits already, but they just keep piling on,” said Patterson. Trustee Jim Kelly explained that he thought the healthcare co-pay increase should be much greater. “The only reason to keep a low co-pay is for those who can’t come up with $10,” said Kelly. “Why can’t we see the insanity of this? If we knew how much each person spent annually on the co-pay, we would see that if we instituted a $50 co-pay and self-insured as much as possible, that is better than reducing class sizes or cutting teachers. “Who can’t afford to come up with $10 if they have to?” said Kelly. Patterson told the board that there would likely be a workshop on a number of action recommendations toward the end of the year. The reality facing the district is that two years ago the state reimbursed the district at a rate of $6,700 per student. This year the district receives $5,700 per student, which represents a $40 million cut over the past two years. Francine Phillips is a former editor of the East County Californian newspaper. Printer-friendly version
SD FIREFIGHTING RESOURCES DISPATCHED TO BATTLE L.A. BLAZES
Printer-friendly version SD REGION STILL HAS “SURGE CAPACITY” RESOURCES TO COMBAT FIRE LOCALLY: CHIEF GHIO August 30, 2009 (San Diego) – Firefighting resources from San Diego County’s region have been dispatched to battle the wildfires that have forced thousands to evacuate in the Los Angeles area. But August Ghio (photo, left), head of the San Diego County Fire Chiefs Association, expressed confidence today that San Diego still has adequate resources to respond promptly if a wildfire should start here amid the current intense heat and dry, fire-prone weather conditions. Two strikes teams in addition to CAL-FIRE resources have been sent to the L.A. area, Chief Ghio said. Six engines, including three type three brush rigs, two OES units and additional firefighting resources normally assigned to San Diego County are currently dispatched to battle the blazes elsewhere in California. Asked if he is confident that San Diego still has adequate resources to respond adequately should a major fire start here, Ghio replied, “Yes. What we’ve done is hold back a lot of resources. We still have a great deal of surge capacity with reserve apparatus and off-duty reservists as well as helicopters. “ That preparedness was put to the test briefly this morning, when a five-acre brush fire ignited in Ramona was swiftly extinguished. Printer-friendly version