Friday, February 16, 2024

• Community Meeting 20 Acre Park Near Anne Sullivan

Brief recap of the recent community meeting regarding the recently acquired 20-acre parkland that is south and east of Anne Sullivan Preschool.

IF YOU'RE A MEMBER OF THE WILDOMAR CITY COUNCIL, THE BROWN ACT DEMANDS YOU CLICK OUT NOW. SORRY, IT'S THE LAW.

I don't know how to say this without sounding corny, so I'll just risk coming off as a cornball anyway. (lol)

Last night's meeting made me very proud to be a member of this community. 

It had pertinent and thorough information from the presenters, important and compelling questions from the participants, passion and compassion from the attendees, along with good decorum overall... people let people speak, even without the aid of a microphone, and staff listened and took notes. 

There was hardly any shushing at all 😄

To sum it up, I saw a lot of respect for the process and the individuals that make up our community of Wildomar.

Thank you to the lovely and gracious staff of Anne Sullivan Preschool for their kindness and hospitality in hosting this important and timely community meeting.

I streamed the meeting online from my city council Facebook page. (links below)

There was a hitch when I thought that it wasn't recording sound and I switched phones. That created a gap of about a minute between the two segments of video... which lasted for a total of two hours. It's amazing that my phone still had 24% at the end of it. 

As the elected representative of this area, I had two key takeaways

First, the proposed park entrance off Gierson needs to begin where it's currently a dead end, not at the end of a new turnaround as was seen in the concept drawings. Meaning, that's where the gate needs to be located. 

It would be a problem waiting to happen to push the end of Gierson without a gate that can be locked when the park is closed. 

We can't create a beautiful new park and also create an after-hours hangout and the same time. This is an easy problem to nip in the bud. 

Another concern that I heard was regarding the entrance(s).

In case anyone was wondering, those who live on Gierson, that were in attendance, are PRO park, they're just passionate about doing it right the first time.

Their concerns are potentially having but one entrance for a park that's sure to be popular in a city of 37,000, not to mention those from other parts of the region that would like a mini-version of the Santa Rosa Plateau to enjoy.

The most expedient way to open the park would be to start with the entrance off of Gierson, but, out of fairness for all (the nearby neighbors, and people from other parts of the city), both entrances need to come online at the same time.

We can be creative if need be, I have confidence in our staff to figure this out.

There were many good points made about issues regarding this and other future parks throughout the city. The thing we need to remember is that parks cost a lot of money to create. Even basic, passive parks, like the one we're speaking of here. 

Wildomar has had two completely-designed parks already approved that have been waiting for funding for many years now. 

One is a 27-acre park near Ronald Reagan Elementary, and the other is an 11-acre park near David A Brown Middle School. 

The vacant property to the south of DABMS
The vacant property to the south of DABMS

link to a page on the city website with further information about the 11-acre sportspark. LINK

The vacant property that wraps around RRE

link to a page on the city website with further information about the 11-acre LINK 

Below are the links to the live stream videos. 

I apologize if you don't have Facebook, but that was the only way I knew to be able to livestream the meeting.


Last thing, how to pay for it? 

Toward the end of the meeting, it was suggested to review item 3.2 from the December 2023 city council meeting to see various ways to fund the parks, in whole or in part.

Here's a link to the item from the December 2023 meeting going over different options to fund the parks. If this issue is important to you, even if that means you're against it, please take the time to get the information firsthand by watching it.

I'm still learning how to embed the new video format that the city has, so please follow the link... it's really easy.

Once you're on the page scroll to item 3.2 City of Wildomar New Parks Improvement Options and click it.

Link to city page with video of December 2023 meeting video

There will be a parks subcommittee meeting and a city council meeting where this will be discussed and further shaped. It's not too late for you to send in your views, either pro or con, to the city. 

Use this email and ask that it also be forwarded to the subcommittee members. 

wildomarpw@cityofwildomar.org

If you'd like to chat about city matters, let's set something up. Email is the best way to begin.

jmorabito@cityofwildomar.org

Saturday, November 18, 2023

• New Butterfly Garden Planted

A great story that's worth sharing with the community. It involves volunteers (both local and regional), community spirit, and butterflies!

I've been low on time recently, so I asked Bridgette Moore if she'd send over some photos and do a brief write-up so that the story can be shared with the community.  

The idea came from when you and I met with the Butterfly ladies last year. 

I kept that in the back of my mind. 

Fast forward, Sandra Tordoff (she used to work at Wildomar Chamber) invited me to a Lunch and Learn at Pacific Mobile Structures on 8/23/23. 

I spoke about the Wildomar Beautification Volunteers and the importance of volunteering and giving back.

 

Here's a look at the mid-point of the project.

On 9/28/23, Sandra contacted me and explained that Pacific Mobile Structures has a program where they pay their employees 8 hours a year to volunteer and their volunteer day was Tuesday, 11/7/23 and she asked if we had a project. 


I remember seeing a planter area in the Elks Lodge parking lot that only had weeds and WBV had cleaned it a few times already. 


So, I asked the Elks Lodge if we could we put a Monarch Butterfly Garden in that area and they agreed. We only have about 30 days to plan this project. 


I met Margaret Meyncke and Caren Hanson at the Elks Lodge and they got me in touch with Landscape Architect Laurie Levine. Laurie has previously done work with Wildomar. 


Laurie donated her time, designed a garden, and gave us a plant list. We contacted Curby’s Nursery and then Dan, Richard and I picked up the plants on 11/4/23. 


WBV had work days prior to the 11/7 planting to prep the area.

 

On 11/7, about 25 employees from Pacific Mobile Structures planted plants, laid irrigation lines, and placed mulch into the garden.

 

The garden will take till about summer to grow and then it will attract caterpillars. 


Laurie mentioned that the caterpillars will eat the leaves so don’t be alarmed if the plant looks dead.

It will survive the hot summer months.

The plants are small compared to the smiles of the volunteers, but before we know it, this area will be alive with plants and butterflies. 

Wildomar Rap opinion time


I look forward to seeing how this turns out. Which gets me to thinking... I have some yard areas that could use this type of attention. I don't need volunteers, but a plan to go get some local plants that can withstand our Summers even if I forget to water them for all of July. 


I can think of several other areas in town (small areas at both Marna O'Brien Park and Windsong Park) that these would make for a nice edition.


Sponsors:

Pacific Mobile Structures Riverside

Life Tree Service

Lake Elsinore/Wildomar Elks Lodge #2591

Wildomar Beautification Volunteers

Sandra Tordoff

Laurie Levine

Tuesday, September 19, 2023

• National Day of Cleanup 2023

On Saturday, September 16th, Wildomar saw 120 volunteers gather at the Elks Lodge to participate in this year's National Clean Up Day.

Some of the happy faces.

Then after some delicious Montague Brothers coffee, and Pam's Donuts, they went into the heart of City Council District 1, Represented by Carlos Marquez, and proceeded to pull out 110 bags of trash and debris, which filled up two donated roll-offs by CR&R, which weighed in at over 3.5 tons over about three hours time.

This group of eight volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints really put in a lot of work, for many hours. 

Impressive before and after shots. This is the north side of Sedco Blvd.

Before and after of the median on Sedco Blvd.
I'd like to take a moment to give credit where credit is due. Wildomar's longest-standing champion, Bridgette Moore. The average resident doesn't know why our city has less trash in it, including graffiti and illegal signs, and though it's a team effort to be sure, without a bonafide leader none of this could be possible.
Bridgette Moore as she's addressing the volunteers. 

She has such amazing grit and determination about her, she is the very definition of what an old-school Wildomarian (Wildomartini in my dictionary) is all about. Only when she decides to hang up her spurs will some in the community recognize the unfillable shoes she leaves for a rookie to try and fill.

This was about two hours into the clean-up event. She wasn't at the Elks Lodge looking over paperwork, she was out working, and it's never easy work. Whether it be litter pick up, or tackling tumbleweeds.

Ok, enough gilding the lily, but seriously, Wildomar is such a different place than it would have been had she not seen a need and tackled it head-on more than twenty years ago. Thank you for all you've done, and all you continue to do!

Here are a few more photos to round out this blog.

Gotta love the new paint for this trailer.

This trailer can carry anything.

The volunteers pulled a lot of large items off the streets.


Wednesday, July 26, 2023

• Measure AA Promises, Were They Promises and Were They Broken?

We'll be filing this under: blogs that should never have be written.
Ok Morabito, so why are you spending precious time doing so? 

Let's just jump right into it. I posted a video of me removing a handmade sign that said "Fire Morabito".

Longsuffering Wildomar Resident Monty Goddard (his trademarked handle), used the opportunity to throw shade my way that I've lost his "previously vigorous support."
"Own this falsehood"?
"Honesty and accountability"?


From his comment at the June 2023 city council meeting.

In [July] 2018 on social media, two of the people that are on the council today [Joseph Morabito and Bridgette Moore] were very, very clear in response to one of the respected members of the community [Paula Willette] when they asked this concern on social media that "No this would not happen. It, would, not, happen!" [...] I ask you to step up and acknowledge this backfilling and admit that it's a conflict with the, not public comments, but very public comments (referring to the Facebook thread) that were made to the community. 

— Monty Goddard, Long Suffering Wildomar Resident
Why is he calling me a liar? 
Isn't that what "own this falsehood" means?

Because he continues to misread a comment from a July of 2018 Facebook post, refuses to see what I actually said, and in the same thread, Bridgette Moore also stated that she wouldn't vote to divert money from one budget to another.

Let's look at them again.
The promise to not "vote for that" was always upheld.

"Falsely promised"?
Check out the highlighted keywords, and ponder them.

Wildomar Rap opinion time

Words mean things. I clearly stated that I would make sure that no budget trickery be proposed or allowed

That means, IF proposed, they wouldn't be allowed (I'd vote against). Such a thing was never proposed nor voted on, and the graph below was the first time we learned of it. 
I apologize for the substandard graphic. It's a screenshot of the video and for some reason, it was transparent and still showed the live feed behind it. 
The blue bars are general funds and the red bars are from Measure AA. You will see that there was a dip between 2020 and 2021 in GF public safety and an increase in Measure AA funds. 

As we learned at the June 14th meeting (link to video below) what we all were concerned about appears to have happened during one budget cycle.

City Manager, Dan York gives a lengthy explanation for that (judge for yourselves if it passes muster or not), but I'm willing to throw out a bare-bones reason why this has become a topic in a blog.

Those years were controlled by another City Manager. 

I guarantee that even in the non-Covid years I was kept at an arm's length distance. That's one of the reasons why the entire Tres Lagos issue stayed buried until I blew the lid off of it in late 2019, I was kept out of it until Supervisor Jeffries told me more about it.

Back to this issue of whether I'm a liar or not, there was never a proposal at a city council meeting to move money from one budget to another. If there had been, it would have been caught by many including Monty, and as I've become famous for (or infamous for) I would have typed up a five-minute diatribe about why I wouldn't have supported such a thing. 

Though I endorsed the measure, I also labeled the official city mailer as "happy talk" and nowhere did I take any pledge that the council took. I'm very verbose, had that been my position, it would have been published at least a dozen times in 2018. 

You can decide if my uncharacteristically laconic statement under a Facebook post was a campaign promise or not, and if I abandoned it or not. 

Here is a link to my official position on the matter as it was happening. Not something lifted from Facebook then misread ad nauseum.


In the Facebook quote bandied about by Monty, I was clearly referring to things that I would have control over, namely my actions, which max out at votes and on-the-record opinions

I wasn't suggesting that I'd be the gatekeeper of things seen and unseen. I never said that I could control other people's actions, much less when they weren't right there to be easily seen and witnessed.
 
I'm sick of the Covid blanket excuse for things, but you'll see that the one hiccup in the graph above came when we were all staying home and the meetings were through Zoom, not in person. 

I'm not making any judgments on how things transpired, I don't have any information that wasn't already presented at the June 2023 meeting. 
For those that haven't jumped ship yet, you're all saying, "Joseph, who cares what Monty thinks, why are you wasting time writing a blog about this topic?"

It gets old being called a liar by my yearly supplier of oro blanco grapefruit, plus some ruby red too. Seriously, it gets old, longsuffering notwithstanding.

Another reason I've put in the time to explain this is that it's part of my mental makeup. It can be both a blessing and a curse. I often joke that I have a problem with the truth, I don't know when to stop telling it. 

I have nothing to lie about and nothing to hide. I tell you what I know of a situation, and often it's not what any of us want to hear.
Not sure how much value there is in such tests, but it had me at "you are very likely an Aspie." It's been many years now that they've removed that category from use, it's been replaced by the overly-broad autism spectrum these days. One of the ways that it presents itself in me is that I can get overly focused on items other people don't look twice at. Hence, my usually long-winded blogs. 

As for Monty's material concerns regarding first responders and the coverage we all wish we had, which will always be hamstrung by our budget restraints, I'm more pragmatic than he is and he's more dogmatic than I am. 

He and I use different metrics

Go back to my 2018 blogs when I was running for city council and I clearly make a big issue about code enforcement needing to be beefed up. I count our robust code enforcement team of today as part of how I judge the palpable improvement of public safety. He doesn't.

It didn't hurt to have a new Sheriff take office at the same time Measure AA went into effect. Sheriff Bianco's presence has made for better law enforcement before any other changes are factored in.

Monty's focus is on sworn law enforcement officers with the power to arrest and carry a firearm when it comes to measuring "improvements". I accept that there are different methods of keeping the peace that the RSO uses today, and am fine with it. 

Also, there has been a vast improvement when it comes to homeless issues, something I factor into the equation, which doesn't include additional sworn deputies.

That's as far as I'm going. The purpose of the blog wasn't to say everything is blissfully peaceful in The W, but that to call me a liar, over and over again, when it's clearly not the case it flat-out bullshit.

I do excellent work and am not looking to curry favor with anyone. I'm not interested in passing anyone's purity tests. 2026 is a very long way off. If that's the last year I serve the residents of Wildomar, it'll have been a great run. 

[Engage sarcasm brackets]
Bottom line, hopefully, the rest of you are not now on the FIRE MORABITO bandwagon, but who could blame you. No one wants an elected representative that actually puts this much effort into it, right? 

The voters don't want someone that will actually engage on the issues, they want someone that is slow to return emails or phone calls and Joseph Morabito is way too plugged in for his own good. 

Time to look for someone more laid back and aloof. That way, a statement from five years ago can't be intentionally misread over and over again, because they wouldn't have posted in the first place! Smart politicians know how to work the system, whereas rubes like Morabito never learn.
[disengage sarcasm brackets]

If you're so inclined I invite you to see the city manager's twenty-minute special presentation to an audience of one individual, and then Monty's follow-up comment from the June 2018 city council meeting, jump to the 55-minute mark in the video below.


Now, the case is closed. Just waiting for Wapner to issue his ruling... or should we go with a more modern reference like Judge Judy? 
  •                •                •


I don't expect to find inspiration. It just sort of comes. Sometimes you step on a bug and you get inspired.
— Iris Apfel

Wildomar Rap prefers to step on the accelerator of a bug whenever given the option.

This blog was produced for viewing on a desktop or a laptop. Though it's been optimized for smartphones, the formatting can look odd on a smartphone or if you get this delivered through email (such as missing video links). Link to proper format.


Saturday, July 1, 2023

• Community Profile: Chateau Couveau

I always love being able to share a hidden treasure with the rest of Wildomar. If you use Palomar you may have seen this sign before. 

Very inviting sign as seen from Palomar.

Wondering what was beyond the sign I stopped and chatted with owner Cynthia Couveau. I asked her about the idea of having a field full of lavender.

"The idea is that it brings peace, it's beautiful, it smells wonderful, and you can do lots of things with it too; essential oils, hydrosols. You can pick it and use it in your homes for culinary, and baking goods, dry it, and use it in sachets, in baths, or in drawers. There are a lot of things."

A good price and a fun activity rolled into one.

The idea came during the Covid lockdowns. The first plantings were done about two years ago, at the end of Spring 2021. They're in the middle of their second bloom which is generally between June and July.

This sign is visible even when lavender picking season is over.

I was trying to guestimate the size of the field and if this had been The Price Is Right I would have lost by overbidding by quite a bit. I had guessed between two and three acres, and all that beauty is confined to a little over half an acre. 
This is a bee haven. The sound of buzzing is everywhere, but they are too busy to bother with you, at least they were too busy to bother with me and I got right up in their space trying to get a picture of them in action for this blog.

They have about 840 plants. They started with about 900 plants, but as Cynthia was pointing out, there's always a little bit of loss in planting. Everything is natural, they don't use pesticides or erbacides.

They hand hoed, hand mowed and hand-cut... except they do have some additional help, but you have to go to the bottom of the blog to see what it is. 😊

Below is a super-short video of a bee doing its pollinating dance among the stalks of lavender.


It's the perfect hobby compared to the rigors of a traditional business. She puts her sign out around her schedule. It can be from around 10am to 5pm, other times from 2pm to 5pm. On her Instagram page, she'll let people know what the hours are that day. 
A look at Cynthia's vendor cart. 

It's located on Palomar, on the dirt portion of Wesely. Pull to the side of Wesely and use the bell that's near their gate if you don't see her out and about. 

Less than 100 yards from the road is a delightful sight of row after row of lavender in bloom. This view is from the bottom of their slope looking towards the west.
Such a great view.

I asked about picking and she let me know that it's $12 to pick a bundle. That goes for either variety, but I don't know if you can mix the bundles as you're picking them. 

She also sells pre-picked dry bundles for $12. 

In the future, they're looking to propagate some of the lavender and offer plants for sale... but that's not this year.
From this angle too.

Cynthia and her husband Josh have been in the community for twenty-six years. 

It's always nice to meet fellow Wildomartinis, (Wildomartians or Wildotuckians works too)Friendly people, we'd all love to have as neighbors, that are the backbone of Wildomar.
The resident weed eaters, two Olde English Southdown Babydoll sheep. 

Be sure to look them up on Instagram. Use this link

•                •                •

The life of inner peace, being harmonious and without stress, is the easiest type of existence.

– Norman Vincent Peale

Wildomar Rap would add lavender and NOT reading comments on social media to the list if you're pursuing inner peace. 


This blog was produced for viewing on a desktop or a laptop. Though it's been optimized for smartphones, the formatting can look odd on a smartphone or if you get this delivered through email (such as missing video links). Link to proper format.

Wednesday, May 31, 2023

• Hmmm Vent Cleaning You Say?

I saw this very interesting YouTube video on vent cleaning the other day from a channel with over a million subscribers called Pleasant Green. It mentioned how that local Facebook groups are inundated with these types of ads. 

If you're a Facebook user, I bet you've seen more than a hundred just this year alone.

Then I happened to be in the Windsong Valley facebook group wanting to share a flyer regarding a park event and saw this ad.

Just a hardworking local that's new to the area putting in an honest day's work... right?

Then I thought about putting the phone number into the search engine (like in the video) and low and behold it came up as being part of two other Facebook ads for vent cleaning.

For some reason, our hero Chris wasn't listed in my search results. What are the odds that the same phone number would be used for other duct-cleaning businesses on the other side of the country... but wait, don't answer yet. 

One in East Haven, Connecticut, and the other in a place called North Stonington... also in Connecticut. Pretty cool coincidence, right? 

North Stonington was a closed group, but look what I found in the East Haven Facebook group.

Read the ad, it's verbatim the ad I found in Windsong Valley. That's luckier than being hit by three bolts of lighting in my book. 

I'm sure this is 100% legit and all that, but time for some serious caveat emptor/buyer beware. If you want your ducts cleaned and you're ready to part with $300, you might want to see if the people are who they say they are. 

This is when you need a real recommendation by a neighbor you actually know or the Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce.

Like it was said in the video, some of these operators may actually be giving a great service, through an overseas call center (watch the video, it's well done)

But why the pretense and the carbon copy wording about new to the area if you're above board, and licensed and insured? 

As can happen all too frequently, there tend to be people who want to go straight to the but what if card and start defending guys like this hard-working, ad-plagiarizing, doting father of two... go click on our friend Chris Brendo's Facebook page and there is no info on it. Other than he likes four things, all based in India. 

I searched "Suresh Lal" which happens to be the actual name of "Chris's" Facebook address... and none appeared to look related to the people in the profile photo.

Here's the link. 

https://www.facebook.com/suresh.lal.395669

Take it from The Patch's own Rookie of the Year in 2013, Rae Anne Resident... when going undercover with an online persona, be clever, but don't be too clever. 
The good times were rolling like there was going to be no tomorrow.

Rae Anne, along with about ten other characters, ruled The Patch for at least two months. Then my flooded house was finally repaired and I was allowed back out into civilized society. Not sure what ever happened to Cliff and his friends.




Monday, May 29, 2023

• Memorial Day 2023

An unseasonably overcast day, that had the temps hovering in the 60s, was a great backdrop for Wildomar's 2023 Memorial Day Observance at the cemetery on Palomar. 

It began with a welcome from the Mayor, then a parade of motorcycles with riders from the American Legion and VFW.

We had a beautiful version of The National Anthem sung by Valerie Geason, music by the Valley Winds, along with Memorial Day-themed messages and prayers.

Pastor Fred Rodriguez from Elsinore First Assembly delivered an inspiring keynote address.
The program was about honoring those that have served our nation and did not return home since the founding of the Union. There are five that are buried at Wildomar Cemetery that are among that number.

We, as Americans, live an incredibly cushy life, even if some of us lose sight of that at times, and it's all owed to courageous men and women that are/were willing to die for the ideals set forth by our founding fathers. 

A heartfelt thank you, though we can never repay them. 

Though there are well over 100 veterans that are buried at Wildomar Cemetery, only one of them was killed in the line of duty, Justin T. Hunt. The other four on the list above are buried elsewhere but with strong ties to Wildomar.

Collage of those that were at the podium from Councilwoman Ashlee DePhillippo's photos. Stever George, National Anthem singer Valerie Geason, VFW Chaplain Adam Smith, Cornerstone Pastor Navon Aikens, Mayor Joseph Morabito, Pastor Fred Rodriguez and VFW Post Commander Charles Golden.

VFW Post 1508 Post Commander Charles Golden speaks to those in attendance as Post 1508 Chaplain Adam Smith takes a snapshot. 

A short story of how today's event came to be

Last year I met a resident that is also a member of the American Legion. He asked if we could get a meeting to discuss the possible inclusion of the American Legion riders into the city's Memorial Day observance.

Not long afterward a meeting was set up at Montegue Brothers Coffee along with Bridgette Moore. That was late in 2022 and the next meeting wasn't until the end of March 2023.

Even with that short window of time to prepare, with the outstanding leadership of Wildomar's Daniel Torres and Elsinore First Assembly's Pastor Fred Rodriguez (not to mention many others) we were able to produce this very worthy program. 
The Young Marines at-the-ready to present the colors. 

Though last year was the first chance to have an in-person event since 2019, I was a little crestfallen at seeing such a low turnout. Yes, part of 2022's Covid hangover, but still... (EDITED, There was an in-person event in 2021) 

The modest goal for 2023 was to fill the seats. Which we did! 200 chairs were set up, and most were filled. That's not counting people in their own chairs, the orchestra, the boy scouts, the Young Marines or the motorcycle riders that stayed near their bikes.

I heard from several people, without asking them, that they felt this was the best Memorial Day observance they'd seen in Wildomar. 

One of the many displays that gave the setting an added-something-extra feel. 
In the early meetings with Pastor Fred, I could see that little ol' Wildomar was stepping up beyond what we were used to.

I say that because he's been a key part of very large Memorial Day Observances in Lake Elsinore in the pre-Covid days. 

We're not looking to set any records in Wildomar, but I can easily see this doubling or tripling the number of attendees over the next couple of years. 

There is plenty of room at the cemetery for well over 500 (possibly a lot more, I'm not trained in estimating crowd sizes😅) that would like to attend a well-crafted, stirring, and patriotic event that honors those that gave all so that we can live in a country filled with liberty.

Below are a few pictures to tell the rest of the story. If you'd like to volunteer to help be part of next year's Memorial Day event, it's not too soon to reach out.

You can contact Daniel Torres at dtorres@cityofwildomar.org and I'm sure that if you reached out to Pastor Fred at Elsinore First Assembly that would be a good path too.

A view of the crowd while Valerie Geason was singing God Bless the USA. 

The Valley Winds played several great tunes. Such a welcomed added dimension to this year's program.

The wreath was supplied by the VFW Auxillary Post 1508. 

The Young Marines were standing in this position for the entire program once their part was finished.

A view of the many decorated graves of veterans that have since passed on.

Wildomar City Council members in attendance. Mayor Pro-Tem Bridgette Moore, Mayor Joseph Morabito and Councilwoman Ashlee Dephillipo.