East County Magazine

Padre Dam’s Ray Stoyer Water Recycling Facility decommissioned after more than a half-century of use
Printer-friendly versionRay Stoyer Water Recycling Facility at Padre Dam Municipal Water District, Santee Lakes Community event makes way for the East County Advanced Water Purification Program Story and photos by Paul Levikow April 13, 2026 (Santee) — After more than a half-century of water reuse in East County, the Ray Stoyer Water Recycling Facility has been decommissioned, marking the end

Boulevard residents battle proposed Starlight Solar battery storage facility; urge community to attend town hall meeting April 15
By Miriam Raftery Photo: proposed Starlight Solar site, via County of San Diego April 4, 2026 (Boulevard) – Should a 588-acre solar project with one…

Power struggle ends — no Seguro BESS in North County
East County News Service April 4, 2026 (Escondido) — The developer of the Seguro Battery Energy Storage System has formally withdrawn its application to build…

Helix Water District electrifies East County
Helix Water District Board Member Joel Scalzitti tells the crowd at the Helix Operations Center on Vernon Way on Friday that the district’s new electrification…

$33M water facility expansion buffers growth in Temescal Valley
East County News Service March 12, 2026 (Temescal Valley) — The Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District marked a significant infrastructure milestone earlier this month with…

Spring Into El Cajon on April 18 celebrates Arbor Day and arrival of spring
East County New Service Image by Satheesh Sankaran from Pixabay March 6, 2026 (El Cajon) – The City of El Cajon invites community members and…

Nature Day on Mt. Helix March 14: Butterflies, plants galore and more
East County News Service March 6, 2026 (Mt. Helix) – You’re invited to celebrate Nature Day at the Mt. Helix Park, where Earth Day is…

Spring Into El Cajon on April 18 celebrates Arbor Day and arrival of spring
East County New Service Image by Satheesh Sankaran from Pixabay March 6, 2026 (El Cajon) – The City of El Cajon invites community members and…

Nature Day on Mt. Helix March 14: Butterflies, plants galore and more
East County News Service March 6, 2026 (Mt. Helix) – You’re invited to celebrate Nature Day at the Mt. Helix Park, where Earth Day is…

California opens $2.5M in grants to reimagining State Parks through art and culture
East County News Service Feb. 10, 2026 (Sacramento) – Looking to literally bridge the gap between nature and the diverse communities of the state, California…
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

FRIENDS OF LOVELAND RESERVOIR ASK PUBLIC HELP AFTER FOREST SERVICES DENIES REQUEST FOR VOLUNTEERS TO HELP RESTORE SUNRISE-TO-SUNSET ACCESS
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery July 11, 2024 (Alpine) – The nonprofit Friends of Loveland Reservoir has been advocating for a return of sunrise-to-sunset hours at Sweetwater Reservoir. Such access was agreed to along with an easement as part of a land-swap deal between the U.S. Forest Service and Sweetwater Water Authority (SWA) years ago, but in recent years amid tightened
AFTER OTAY FIRE, LA MESA CITY MANAGER OFFERS ASSURANCES ON SAFETY OF PROPOSED BATTERY STORAGE SITE IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery Image: Rendering of proposed Murray Project in La Mesa, via Enersmart’s project website July 8, 2024 (La Mesa) – A battery fire at the Gateway energy storage facility in Otay Mesa in May forced evacuation of nearby businesses for nearly two weeks. Enersmart has proposed building a battery energy storage facility at 8131 El Paso
AFTER OTAY FIRE, LA MESA CITY MANAGER OFFERS ASSURANCES ON SAFETY OF PROPOSED BATTERY STORAGE SITE IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery Image: Rendering of proposed Murray Project in La Mesa, via Enersmart’s project website July 8, 2024 (La Mesa) – A battery fire at the Gateway energy storage facility in Otay Mesa in May forced evacuation of nearby businesses for nearly two weeks. Enersmart has proposed building a battery energy storage facility at 8131 El Paso
AFTER OTAY FIRE, LA MESA CITY MANAGER OFFERS ASSURANCES ON SAFETY OF PROPOSED BATTERY STORAGE SITE IN LA MESA
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery Image: Rendering of proposed Murray Project in La Mesa, via Enersmart’s project website July 8, 2024 (La Mesa) – A battery fire at the Gateway energy storage facility in Otay Mesa in May forced evacuation of nearby businesses for nearly two weeks. Enersmart has proposed building a battery energy storage facility at 8131 El Paso

PHOTO OF THE WEEK: JUNE BLOOMS
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service July 8, 2024 (San Diego’s East County)– Junebug Owens sent in this idyllic image taken in late June of her Belgian Malinois mix dog, Ellie, lolling amid blossoms from a purple flowering Jaracanda tree and a scarlet Bougainvillea. Printer-friendly version

PHOTO OF THE WEEK: JUNE BLOOMS
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service July 8, 2024 (San Diego’s East County)– Junebug Owens sent in this idyllic image taken in late June of her Belgian Malinois mix dog, Ellie, lolling amid blossoms from a purple flowering Jaracanda tree and a scarlet Bougainvillea. Printer-friendly version

CRITTER ENCOUNTERS: RAMONA RESCUE IS HAVEN FOR INJURED AND DISABLED ANIMALS
Printer-friendly versionBy Mimi Pollack Photo: Finley the Fennec Fox July 6, 2024 (Ramona) — In the United States, there is a problem with people acquiring exotic animals without really doing their research. People bring these pets home as tiny babies, not realizing that they can grow to be quite large as adults. For example black and white Argentine

CRITTER ENCOUNTERS: RAMONA RESCUE IS HAVEN FOR INJURED AND DISABLED ANIMALS
Printer-friendly versionBy Mimi Pollack Photo: Finley the Fennec Fox July 6, 2024 (Ramona) — In the United States, there is a problem with people acquiring exotic animals without really doing their research. People bring these pets home as tiny babies, not realizing that they can grow to be quite large as adults. For example black and white Argentine

18 LOCAL WATER SYSTEMS FAIL SAFE DRINKING WATER STANDARDS; 16 MORE ARE AT RISK
Printer-friendly version Update: Hear our in-depth interviews with state water officials, originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM Radio. By Miriam Raftery July 3, 2024 (San Diego) – The State of California has released its 2023 Drinking Water Needs Assessment, including a dashboard listing water systems that failed state or federal standards for safe drinking water. In San Diego

18 LOCAL WATER SYSTEMS FAIL SAFE DRINKING WATER STANDARDS; 16 MORE ARE AT RISK
Printer-friendly version Update: Hear our in-depth interviews with state water officials, originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM Radio. By Miriam Raftery July 3, 2024 (San Diego) – The State of California has released its 2023 Drinking Water Needs Assessment, including a dashboard listing water systems that failed state or federal standards for safe drinking water. In San Diego
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.