March 23, 2005 - Top Stories
The fire board was concerned Thursday night by a report that LAFCO is going forward with an effort that would ultimately abolish all independent fire protection districts in the County and replace them with a super district.
The plan so far has no way of paying for such a transition.
LAFCO (Local Agency Formation Commission), is the local agency of the State of California charged with boundary change and creation of special districts.
On March 7 the commission sent a letter to fire protection officials in the County informing them of LAFCO’s approval of the initiation of a reorganization proposal involving the dissolution of 16 fire protection districts (including Valley Center) and seven county service areas, plus the deactivation of the fire protection and emergency medical service functions of five municipal water districts.
In their place would be formed a regional fire district encompassing all of the unincorporated portions of the County.
The study follows closely on the approval last year of Prop. C, a non-binding proposition by county voters calling for a regional fire district, although not stating how it would be paid for. In fact Prop. C asked for an endorsement from voters predicated upon the proposition that there would be no new taxes.
A study (Municipal Service Review) released in February by the commission paints a bleak picture of the problems caused by the various independent fire agencies in the county.
“Determinations indicate that the unincorporated region’s system for providing fire protection and emergency medical services is dysfunctional—characterized by duplicate organizations and redundant layers of management that needlessly consume public resources and limit opportunities to provide enhanced services. The regional elects 108 officials to govern structural fire protection, 23 fire chiefs oversee delivery of emergency services from 28 separate, autonomous agencies,” says the study.
It contrasts this with neighboring Riverside County where a single fire chief manages emergency services for both the unincorporated areas and the cities. Los Angeles County does the same for 57 cities and the unincorporated communities.
San Diego County got out of the fire fighting business in 1982, which was about the time that the VC fire district, along with ten other districts, formed.
Board Pres. Stan Johnson said that he would like to have a special board meeting to consider all of the ramifications of this study.
If you are interested in learning more about this study, visit LAFCO’s web site at http://www.sdlafco.org/
Document and maps relating to the proposal are at the left side of the web site.
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Monthly report
In his monthly report to the board, Chief Kevin O’Leary said that he is going to start bringing variances approved by the fire marshal to the board for review.
This is because some of the variances have been criticized by the county’s Dept. of Planning & Land Use, he said.
He wants to make sure that the board agrees with the variances.
He gave an example: A resident wants to build a house and County fire codes require that they also put in half a mile of paved road.
“We have given variances on such thing before,” said the chief. “We want a general overview that is this the way we want things to go.”
He noted that in the last two months there have been six incidents where district vehicles have gotten stuck.
The new county fire code requires that all new private roads be paved
Recently the county overrode the district on one of its variances, which is why O’Leary decided to bring this issue to the board.
“The most simplistic thing would be to follow the county guidelines,” said Director Mel Schuler. “But we have always tried to use a common sense approach to these things. I wouldn’t want to assume that things are the same throughout the county. I think it’s a good idea to review this.”
Geographic Information Systems
Resident Mary Meade gave a slide presentation to the board on geographic information systems. Such systems are basically “smart maps,” that allow the user to see more than just the territory. It shows things such as pipelines, flood plains, utilities.
Her report showed how such high end, high tech systems use GPS (Global Positioning Satellites) information and combine data from a variety of sources.
One local agency that is already doing this sort of thing in a big way is the VC Municipal Water District, which is willing to share its information with other community agencies, according to Meade, who helped organize Valley Center’s CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) two years ago.
“You don’t need to have to create it from scratch. You can route things around flooded areas. You can pull up plans of different buildings on the system. You can keep track of different resources, for instance, what medical facilities are available,” she said.
Such systems enables emergency departments to look at the big picture in allocating resources. For example, in deciding where to put a new fire station.
Director Weaver Simonsen suggested invited the county’s top guy on GIS system to update the board on what the County is doing.
Other directors agreed that this would be a good idea.
Lt. Dave Herbert, who has commanded the VC Sheriff’s substation for nearly two years, will retire from the department at the end of this month.
He welcomed his replacement, Lt. Sean Gerrity this week.
Herbert will be leaving the department after a career of a little more than 30 years.
The Paradise firestorm was the most memorable event to occur during his tenure, he told The Roadrunner.
“The Paradise fire was probably the mother of all emergency events,” he recalled. “I came in during that last year when everything was happening: the exotic Newcastle outbreak and the fruit fly quarantine.”
Herbert has enjoyed his experience. “It’s been nothing short of fabulous. As far as I’m concerned a substation command is the best assignment for a lieutenant Like they say in the Navy, it’s a small ship but it’s my ship and having been a station commander in Fallbrook I was able to reexperience how a supportive community can really benefit law enforcement and be a crucial function.”
With the Paradise fire, “You saw how the community really came together after the disaster. That is not atypical of small town communities where people depend on each other a lot more.”
Herbert regrets that he wasn’t able to increase staffing levels at the station as much as he would have liked.
What will he do after he retires?
“I’m exploring all options. There’s that ubiquitous ‘c’ word, consulting. But I’m very fortunate not to have to jump into anything at all, not to mention anything full time. I have a list of things to do and my wife has a list for me to do,” he said.
Herbert was also recently elected to the Deer Springs Fire Protection District board.
“That’s a way to keep my hand in public safety issues. I find it very interesting.”
He will also continue to be active in Escondido Sunrise Rotary Club and to do volunteer work with his daughter.
During his tenure, Lt. Herbert saw the crime rate in Valley Center decrease.
“I’m pleased to say that is has gone down several points. Certain kinds of crime have increased, but on most points it has gone down. Traffic problems have not decreased, unfortunately, but are on the rise. I’m glad to see the CHP focusing a greater presence here.
“Even if you have the lowest crime rate if you are a victim it’s a hot button issue. One thing I hope I have done, between the monthly article I’ve written for The Roadrunner, and meetings with casino people, tribal and other community representatives, is to foster open communication between the department and all elements of the community,” said Herbert.
He is also very happy to have gotten the senior volunteer program started in Valley Center.
“I can see already that I have some pretty big shoes to fill with Dave leaving,” commented his successor, Lt. Sean Gerrity.
This is Gerrity’s first assignment to a small community.
“I’m quite accustomed to metro areas and multiple contract cities and the expertise that goes along with such areas. I’m looking forward to working in Valley Center wiht the people of this community,” he told The Roadrunner.
He’s not unfamiliar with Valley Center. He was the field lieutenant in San Marcos at the time of the Paradise Fire, and spent most of that disastrous time here.
Gerrity wanted to be a police office when he was a kid. He started as a Sheriff’s Explorer at the age of 17 in 1974.
“I was impressed by the deputies and specifically, their level of honesty. They could see through a lot of lies. That’s why I decided to get into this field,” he said.
From there, at age 19, he was hired as a station guard in Encinitas, went through Sheriff’s reserve academy early, and at age 21 hired as a limited duty deputy sheriff. Six months later he went through the regular academy, and, upon graduation, he was assigned to Vista.
He worked in Vista and Encinitas, was assigned to area investigations as a detective and from there was promoted to sergeant and assigned to the Vista jail as it was closed down and refurbished with a new wing
He returned to Encinitas as a patrol sergeant., administrative sergeant and eventually detective sergeant.
In 1995 Gerrity was promoted to lieutenant and assigned to the jail system where he helped redo the jail’s computerized information system.
“When all was said and done it was a $23 million system. We built the most robust jail management system in the U.S.,” he recalls.
He has been a lieutenant in the San Marcos office since 2003.
He plans to continue the expansion of the senior volunteer program and to continue other initiatives that Herbert began.
“Dave has built a base line that’s very nice as far as the direction he is taking the station. Every way I look at it the only way I can look at it is how can Im improve it.:
Gerrity says he was given a warm welcome at last Thursday’s Irish Stew Contest when he was introduced informally.
“That was a wonderful event,” he said, adding, “My door is open always to anyone who wants to speak to me.”
VC planners March 14 unanimously endorsed a plan where maintenance of a landscaped median on VC Road would be paid for by the San Pasqual Band of Indians as long as they are allowed to have signs advertising their casino on the median.
The resolution passed by the planners was as follows:
1. VCCPG reaffirms its support for a landscaped median and features of the road design that will save lives of Valley Center motorists and pedestrians, and thanks Supervisor Bill Horn, County Staff, the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians and our community volunteers for their support and assistance,
2. The VCCPG respectfully looks to County Staff and Supervisor Bill Horn for leadership and guidance in securing funds through Smart Growth and other appropriate funding programs sponsored by SANDAG, other government agencies and private sources.
3. The VCCPG authorizes the Chairman to communicate with County Officials such as Mr. Doug Isbell regarding this matter in order to convey this request and to provide information and assistance.
Although the details of the arrangement need to be worked out, some were concerned about what the planning group was agreeing to.
Planner Robert Hancock was concerned that the San Pasqual tribe would be given an exclusive right to have a sign for ten years.
He also wanted to limit the size of the signs.
“Part of the reason we have so much traffic is that the casinos have brought so much traffic here,” he said. “I’ve gotten a lot of input from residents about the signs. They should be no bigger than the signs that say that clean up is provided by some organization or other.”
Doug Isbell, deputy director of the count Dept. of Public Works, said that his department wants the signs to be no larger than 4X6 ft at four locations along the median.
They have yet to meet with representatives of the tribe to work out the details.
This size of a size has been used at other locations in the county, he said.
“We aren’t expecting any floodlights. We won’t have any electricity in the median,” Isbell said.
Jon Vick, one of the members of the traffic safety committee that has been working with both the tribe and county, told planners, “’d like to remind the planning group of the strategy that is being used here. We were told that we had to find someone to fund the maintenance of the median before we would go after funding for the media itself. The strategy is to remind whoever is reading it that we have satisfied the first condition, that the San Pasqual Indians are providing the funding.
Sandy Smith, another member of the committee, and former chairman of the planning group, said that the purpose of the resolution is to show that a solid front of Valley Center residents wants a planted median.
“We really need your support. I’m willing to cry if I have to,” she said. “We still have to come up with $1.5 million to fund the median. “I hope there is a modicum of trust that we are not going to go overboard.”
Later in the event Phil Rath, senior policy adviser to Fifth District Supervisor Bill Horn, told the group that Horn is “cautiously optimistic” that a source of funding may be found for the median in time to meet the July deadline when all funding must be finalized for the second phase of the road widening.
Do Valley Center residents care whether they lose Adams Park or not? We may find out this week.
The monthly VC Parks & Rec board meeting Thursday, normally held upstairs at the community hall, will be held in the roomier basement in anticipation of a crowd.
The board last week announced its intention to divest the district of Adams Park, ending the 20-year lease with the school district. It sent a letter to the school board announcing that it hoped to give the property back to the school district within 60 days.
Joyce Johnson, general manager of the district, anticipates that more than the usual number of people (usually a handful, if that) will attend the meeting.
If not, well, that would probably mean that few people are concerned about the change.
So far, the reaction has been muted, to say the least.
“There has been no reaction really,” Mrs. Johnson told The Roadrunner. “The only reaction I anticipate is that some people who use the pool may come on Thursday. I haven’t gotten any other. We’ll wait and see. It’s spring break so people are probably on vacation this week.”
The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the hall. Eric Jockinsen is president of the board. As in all such meetings, the public is given the opportunity to make comments.
“No reaction. The only reaction anticipate is that some people who use the pool may come. I haven’t gotten any other. We’ll wait and see. Because it’s spring vacation people are probably on vacation this week.”
The Valley Roadrunner
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