June 28, 2006 - Top Stories
“The annual fireworks show in Valley Center is one-of-a-kind. Nowhere else do you see fireworks light up the dark night sky like in beautiful, rural Valley Center,” said Sam Bruggema, of Pyro Spectaculars. “It’s the second largest fireworks display in North San Diego County, and one of our favorite shows to produce.”
The 2006 Valley Center Fireworks Extravaganza is scheduled for Tuesday, July 4 from 5-9 p.m. at the Valley Center High School Football Stadium.
Participants can spend the evening listening and dancing to live music with family and friends, sliding down a giant red, white and blue inflatable slide, tackling an inflatable obstacle course, climbing the tallest rock wall in the county, and playing children’s games.
The Hot Pursuit Band performs from 5-9 p.m. Hot Pursuit features the local husband and wife team Barry Cahill & Delene St. Clair who have lead the band for the past 18 years. Known for their interactive variety of cover tunes ranging from jazz to classic rock to reggae, the band will be rockin’ and rollin’ with crowd-pleasing music for all generations. Cahill & Delene recently released their debut CD Songs for Humanity which you can buy at the show. They will be donating a portion of the CD sales to the VC High School Foundation.
With a one-time, $1 donation to Valley Center High School, and a signed liability waiver from a legal guardian, participants can ride and play games for free all evening. Children’s games include an egg toss, three-legged race and gunny sack race.
Attendees can bring their own picnic to share, or buy it at the school. Food and beverages will be available including burgers, brats, nachos, kettle corn and chili Fritos.
The stadium opens at 5 p.m. with a fireworks finale at 9 p.m. First-comers get the best parking, the best view of the fireworks, and more time on the rides, so patrons are encouraged to arrive early.
Alcohol, tobacco and pets are NOT allowed on the school campus.
This is the sixth annual show sponsored by Michael Crews Development. Last year, more than 1200 people attended the picnic, with more than 3,000 spectators watching the fireworks.
“Before the Valley Center fireworks, parents had to drive all the way to the coast just so their children could see fireworks,” said Kelly Crews, Vice President of Michael Crews Development. “We wanted to provide an awesome show, safe and close to home for Valley Center and all the surrounding communities. We’re on our sixth show and it just keeps getting bigger and better.”
A year-long budgetary impasse ended Wednesday night when the VC School Board and the teachers’ and classified unions reached an agreement on salaries. At the special board meeting trustees approved the tentative agreements with both the unions. For the teachers it was the same tentative agreement that they voted down in December. It has a 3% raise effective January 30, 2006
The same raise was approved for classified and management. Supt. Lou Obermeyer told The Roadrunner, “I was delighted that we were able to bring the negotiations to a close and increase employees’ salaries given the financial situation that we faced this year.”
In what appears to be the first time ever firefighters of the California Dept. of Forestry & Fire Protection were sent this week deep into Baja California, 40 miles north of San Felipe to battle a blaze there.
They returned Friday.
Nobody in the CDF appears to know exactly why this extraordinary deployment took place. At the San Diego level officials stated that they got the word from Sacramento.
At the Sacramento office of CDF, Jesse Estrada, public information officer said, “There was a request that came to the governor’s office and the governor responded. We got the word to give them a hand, so we did our thing.” Asked if this might be the beginning of something long term, Estrada said, “I don’t know if it’s going to start a trend.”
The 53 CDF firefighters and ten engines were dispatched 150 miles south of the border at the order of Governor Schwarzenegger Tuesday after the Mexican government requested the help. The request came to California late Saturday night. Two “strike team” crews, each with five engines and a team leader, became available to assist Mexico when CDF determined that the state could deploy resources while remaining fully staffed here. An additional four firefighters were assigned as support staff to assist with logistical needs for the crews. The crews were driven into Mexico, escorted by Baja state police.
According to CDF Capt. Thom Porter, who is running the stateside operation, “Thus far we have been able to support all operations by sending additional supplies with the engine strike teams and helicopters that were previously contracted by the Mexican authorities.”
Although there is an agreement between Mexico and California that allows firefighters from both jurisdictions to send firefighters one mile in either side of the border, this is the first time CDF firefighters have been dispatched this deeply into Mexico. “We have not responded this far into Mexico before that I’m aware of,” Porter told The Roadrunner.
And it apparently surprised a lot of CDF officials, who wondered (although not publicly) why the firefighters weren’t sent instead to Arizona, where a major fire is also being fought.
About a dozen CDF personnel normally stationed in the Valley Center area were participating in battling the at San Pedro Martir which was about 5,000 acres. It was 85% contained on Thursday.
Some of those in Mexico from the Rincon CDF station include Capt. Nick Schuler, Capt. Ray Rapue, Capt. Calvin McVeigh and Engineer José Galiano, a VC resident. They are operating in elevations ranging from 2,000-8,000 ft.
Asked how this unusual deployment came about, Porter said, “We were given direction by Sacramento to prepare to deploy down there and we did so, and when we ordered to make that happen we did. On Friday we were asked to prepare and then Sunday we sent our advanced team.”
The firefighters crossed the border at 7 p.m. Monday to help fight the Baja wildfire. “We want to be able to help where we can best be used,” said CDF Chief Ruben Grijalva. “These CDF firefighters are well trained and their engines are well equipped to provide Mexico with the best help possible.”
“We have the resources to be able to help our neighbor Mexico fight this fire,” said Secretary for Resources Mike Chrisman. “We have a mutual interest to keep people and property safe from wildfires and I believe it is our duty to help our friends.”
A meeting for people interested in the Rancho Lilac development will be held July 6, 6:30 p.m. at the Ranch house on the property.
The development of nearly 1,000 acres owned by Lou and Abbe Wolfsheimer, has lain fallow for about a year since the Empire development group withdrew. However, now it has a new development group associated with it, Sage Community Group and will begin moving forward again in the land use process.
The Rancho Lilac subcommittee of the VC planning group will conduct the meeting on July 6.
According to James Greco, of T&B Planning, a consultant for the development the purpose of the meeting will be:
1.) To introduce Sage as the new master developer, T&B Planning as a professional planning and design firm retained to enhance the previous design, and Design Workshop, of Aspen, Colorado, retained to provide design and landscape vision and imagery. Project Design Consultants will remain as the project civil engineer.
2.) To present proposed minor modifications, which are intended to increase public open space, comport with the proposed North County Multi-Species Conservation Plan, and create a more defined and enhanced living environment within each Lilac Ranch neighborhood. These changes will also result in the density changing from 333 homes, where it was at in the last incarnation, to 342 homes.The main difference between this development and the last incarnation, besides the additional homes, is that there will be less grading, and therefore more open space, said Greco. Because Rancho Lilac is a previously approved Specific Plan, not that much can be done to change it from previous incarnations. “We think the previous development had some odd shaped lots, said Greco.
“We want to show the community what we are doing and why we are doing it,” he said.
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To learn more about the Sage Community Group, visit their Web site at sagecommunitygroup.com. If you have questions about the project, call 619-325-3290 and asked for James Greco or Stephanie Morgan of T&B Planning. Chairman of the subcommittee is Frank Shoemaker. He can be reached at 749-0313.
Every Valley Center and Deer Springs fire station will have an extra paid firefighter per engine under a three-year contract with CDF approved by the County Board of Supervisors Wednesday. The Supervisors voted more than $3.5 million to fund improved fire service in unincorporated areas. Other fire companies that will benefit are San Pasqual (near Escondido), Intermountain and Warner Springs.
The board approved a multi-faceted package:
• Funding to add one paid firefighter apiece to each engine company in Deer Springs and VC.
• Authorize year round staffing of CDF stations in Valley Center and Deer Springs. Currently, CDF stations are only staffed during fire season.
• Fund $350,000 for a light air rescue unit that will be based in Valley Center. Note: This is NOT an airplane, but rather a unit that can replenish air supplies using an air compressor.Additional contracts will be negotiated with three volunteer fire companies: San Pasqual, Intermountain and Warner Springs.
Included in the added resources are new fire engines, water tenders, equipment, radio replacements, vehicle inspections, respiratory protection and training.
Included in the County Fire Service Program are new contracts for the Deer Springs and VC Fire Protection Districts. Under the new arrangement, the Miller CDF Forest Fire Station in Deer Springs and the Valley Center Forest Fire Station will be staffed year-round. Staffing levels for those two districts would be augmented to provide the staffing preferred by the Insurance Services Office (ISO) Public Protection Classification Program.
VC Fire Chief Kevin O’Leary, who spoke briefly to the Board of Supervisors, told The Roadrunner as he was leaving Wednesday’s meeting: “One of the goals that we had was to add a second paid firefighter on the fire engines.”
He added, “It’s a great thing! This is something I’ve been working on for close to nine years. It’s a really big deal that the Board of Supervisors decided to provide it. The added safety alone is just immense.”
Supervisors Bill Horn and Dianne Jacob have been working for some time to get extra funding for so-called “post Prop. 13” districts. Such districts, created after Prop. 13 passed, are extremely limited in how much money they can raise by property taxes compared to pre-Prop. 13 districts.
“What this means for Valley Center is that we are going to add one additional paid person to our fire station per day,” said O’Leary. That’s a total of five extra firefighters. “Currently the problem with our reserve program is that all of our people are brand new and the average stay is six months,” said O’Leary.
“The effectiveness, efficiency and cohesiveness of the fire engine is increased substantially. These people will train together. A fire engine needs a team. When you have two brand new people and that changes daily then every day the supervisor is working with someone new who they might not work with again for a month,” he said.
“This is another positive step in fulfilling our board’s promise to improve fire protection and emergency service response,” said Fifth District Supervisor and board chairman Bill Horn. “It’s a way to bolster unincorporated areas where these services were not at the level we wanted. Because of the cooperation with the California Dept. of Forestry & Fire Protection, we are getting the maximum amount of return on taxpayer’s dollars.”
“Horn has been tremendous in getting this for Valley Center,” O’Leary told The Roadrunner. “Jacob was also instrumental.”
“By working to centralize the command and control of resources,” said Horn, “we’re improving the capacity to communicate with fire personnel in the event of a wildfire. We have also applied land use regulations that cut down the likelihood of structural loss.”
The board also authorized the creation of seven additional positions with the Dept. of Planning & Land Use for the Fire Service Program.
The funding came somewhat as a surprise to O’Leary. “We found out about this early last week. I think they didn’t want to get our hopes up with the expectation of funding and then find out that it wouldn’t be happening,” he said.
The year round CDF staffing here is also important, O’Leary said. Especially since Valley Center Fire Protection District was forced by budget concerns last year to end funding the “Amador Plan,” which paid CDF to staff fire stations year round.
The $350,000 for a light air rescue unit to be owned by the County but staffed by VC is also a plum for this department, said O’Leary. At a major fire incident firefighters frequently begin running out of air for the tanks that they carry with them. The unit can refill those tanks as firefighters come off the line. The unit will carry air and compressors for apparatus, air bottles and also carry rescue equipment, extrication, generator spare lights and the district’s swift water rescue equipment. Some of that equipment will be contributed by surrounding reservation fire departments. The equipment will be available to help any fire department in the area that needs it. “It’s a very handy piece of equipment to have,” said O’Leary.
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