Below is an order from the Court of Appeal on the Eastvale matter.
The Court removed the temporary stay and denied Eastvale’s Petition for a Writ to order a permanent stay while its appeal is pending. This is good news as it will allow the State Department of Finance and Riverside County to move forward with the loan forgiveness process. Now the question remains, is Eastvale done with this or not? When asked for a comment, Mayor Bridget Moore said, "[This is] Good news for Wildomar. This part is over but we do not know what they're going to do next. If anything."
Below are links to blogs discussing this issue in more detail.
In November 2016, only two districts in Wildomar will be voting. Then in 2018, three districts will be voting. The question is, which districts and where will the lines be drawn?
Last I heard no special meeting has been scheduled yet. Though if you're prudent you may want to pencil in January 27th if you're interested in participating in the process.
There has been some chatter about which type of district based voting that we'll end up with.
Yes, there is more than one type
Here is how I understand it:
The term "by districts" means election of members of the legislative body by voters of the district alone.
The term "from districts"means election of members of the legislative body who are residents of the district from which they are elected by the voters of the entire city. If "from districts" was opted for, then we could all vote, but the person running has to be in a district. So, still at large but with modification. If we went this way, we will still likely be sued.
Below is a link to a lot of Sacramento mumbo jumbo on the topic of district elections.
Understand what will be happening in Wildomar going forward You will have ONE council member representing you instead of five. Oh sure, at first they'll all say,"I'll still be just as eager to help a member from another district as I would one in my own district," but that won't last for long — it can't!
Even if such gregarious attitudes were maintained by the existing electeds, no one keeps their seat forever.
If you end up in District 4, why would you ask the councilmember from District 1,2,3 or 5 for help? Would you approach the mayor of Murrieta or Lake Elsinore for help on an issue in Wildomar?
It's hardly different than if you tried to ask for the assistance of another Assemblymember other than ours (Melissa Melendez), or tried to petition a congressman other than Ken Calvert (our elected man in DC). You'll have one phone number instead of five if you have a concern.
Just know that not only will we have LESS representation, there will be unnecessary competition between the councilmembers too. The way it has been, all the councilmembers have an equal stake in the city, and aren't looking to bring home pork for their districts.
This may sound absurd, but I know that I'm going to be expecting my councilmember to step up to the plate and battle the others over the meager monies available for projects when necessary.
Let's make up a scenario.
Let's say that there is enough money to repair one major road. I'd want my councilmember to fight tooth and nail to have the road (Baxter overpass for example) in my district fixed first, even if the other road (Lemon St as another example) probably deserves to be at the front of the line.
Oh well, water under the bridge. Let the jousting begin. It can only mean more lively city meetings, and as a blogger, who could ask for more?
• • •
I was reading a comment at a Press Enterprise article on this topic, and you knew you couldn't keep Team Crank from posting their logorrheic ramblings.
One in particular is as predictably erroneous as the other things from that poisonous keyboard. Full of the usual deflections, straw man arguments, finger wagging and blame shifting... but this is America, and you can say any bit of hooey you'd like to.
UPDATE
It's hard to know what makes someone tick, but I was just reading another long winded harangue by the Wildomar Timex at a local FaceBook group under the posting of this blog.
I had two favorite parts. First, that she was incapable of discerning the obvious sarcasm in the speech bubble in the cartoon when she posted "No, I'm hardly broken up about this development."
I don't know how I could have made the sarcasm more clear than I did. It was a joke. Next time I'll start with "knock, knock" or something to make it more obvious.
My second favorite part is that she even responded. I guess she just really identifies with the drawing in the political cartoon or something.
Seriously, this is great entertainment for me. The more things she does to this town, the more things I have to write about.
Sure I'm sorry that the fine people of Wildomar are being run roughshod by some sorely out of touch people, but it doesn't affect me. Most people in town have no idea that anything has happened. They don't care and they live their lives uninterrupted by gas bags like the one in question.
It's not that I don't care, but I don't waste brain cells on lost causes. The At Large/Districts issue is a lost cause and it's in the past.
Here's to hopping that she has the energy to challenge Miss Miller for class clown for many years to come.
• • •
I have never met a living soul who did not claim to abhor violence, hate war, despise bigotry, and condemn cruelty. If we are not all liars; then why is our world ravaged by wars, infected with violence, rife with bigotry and pock marked by cruelty? I merely ask the question, I don't really expect an answer.
— EG Marshall
Wildomar Rap tip of the day: careful when looking for that pot and the end of the rainbow... it may not be filled with gold.
If you're on the city's Stay Connected list, you should have just received this press release about Wildomar being forced to move away from At Large elections of City Council members to District based elections.
I'll just post the entire press release so that you can read it for yourselves.
Which includes a short video of Wildomar City Attorney reading a prepared statement on this topic.
• • •
I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man. — George Washington
The biggest news that came from the city council meeting actually happened before it was officially in "open session" when the city attorney, Thomas Jex, disclosed that Wildomar was on track to switch it's election of city council members from "at large" to "districts".
At the meeting I learned from EVMWD board member, Andy Morris, that the "No Car Washing" ban has been lifted. Now you can wash your cars in your driveways again... providing that you use a nozzle on the hose.
The first order of business was the ceremonial passing of the gavel from the outgoing mayor, Ben Benoit, to the incoming mayor, Bridgette Moore.
Ben Benoit passes the gavel to Bridgette Moore as Tim Walker looks on.
Next order of business was a presentation to 2105 mayor Ben Benoit. His name will be added to a plaque that hangs in the city hall offices.
We're going to have to work on keeping eyes opened next time. ☺
From here there were two Eagle Scout presentations
• Troop 2011's Travis Pipoly for his work on graffiti cleanup at Ortega Falls.
• Ashton Christensen assembled and installed a shade structure for River Springs Charter School in Lake Elsinore.
Public Comments on Non Agenda items
• Glenn Copple spoke about December's Original Christmas Tree Lane event and that they raised $10,005.
• Ken Mayes spoke about the Measure Z audit from December, and "where it's hiding".
Consent Calendar 1.6 Vacancies on the Measure Z Committee
Consent calendar items are usually rubber stamp items, things that don't need debating. However, a council member, or a member of the public, may ask to speak about them.
This item was about the fact that there will be three vacancies on the Measure Z Oversight Committee.
• Ken Mayes spoke about response to the previous year's vacancies that didn't garner much interest from the public. I'm uploading the short video of his comment because I think there's a point about trying to get more participation in our city government.
I'm not sure of the best method to advertise such openings, but it's difficult to fill seats when there is such apathy among those that are qualified. It's easy to chirp about it, but a lot harder to step up and volunteer your time.
Also, the talk is that one of the planning commissioners will be relocating some time this year. It sure would be good to make a coordinated effort so that there isn't a time when one of the seats on the commission is sitting empty.
The next several agenda items were things that should have been in the Consent Calendar if you ask me, but there's probably a law why such things are necessary to go through. It has to do with Community Facilities Districts (CFDs).
All passed unanimously, though on item 2.3 council member Tim Walker had to recuse himself since he lives within 500 feet of the property in question.
3.2 Wildomar Little League Ball Field Modifications
The league is wanting to convert one of the fields at Marna O'Brien Park to what is know as a 50/70 field. A traditional Little League field is 46/60. That is, 46 feet from pitcher's mound to home plate and 60 feet bases. Professional baseball, and high school too, is 60'6"/90'.
The modification is for the age group just above Little League, which starts at age 13.
They want to install a pitcher's mound and install moorings for bases at 70 feet. The existing base pegs will remain in the ground. Theoretically, if another division of baseball or softball wanted to use the field, they still would be able to... providing there was no scheduling conflict.
The big issue is foul balls going into the local residents' yards. The league has demonstrated that they have the proper insurance to cover damages from balls going over the fence.
The league will be bearing the cost for building and maintaining the pitcher's mound.
Good luck to them, but I've been a lifelong baseball player... until my mid 40's, and there is nothing worse than playing on a grassless infield without a home run fence, but sometimes you've got to take what's available.
This passed without a hitch.
3.3 Special Events and Recreation Program Dates
This is where the unveiling of the 2016 parks events calendar was revealed. Below is a snapshot of the schedule, along with a couple of other last minute editions.
Also not in the list is the Relay For Life 24 hour walk marathon that was sadly double booked on the same weekend as the Ultimate BBQ Showdown. Two big events, at the same time, right within a mile of each other... oy vey.
Before anyone gets the wrong idea here, they relay didn't consult with the city for best days for their event. It was suggested that they consider bumping it a weekend, but something about MORP being on one weekend and a pep rally on the other (location of the Relay for Life event is at Elsinore High School).
This is what happens when people don't dot the i's and cross the t's. The bright side is that after the BBQ you can always mosey on over to the Relay event to see what's up there.
The schedule will finish being hammered out and you'll always be able to know what's coming if you sign up for the city's Stay Connected option.
Pick your favorite allusion here. A bombshell was dropped on Wildomar, or Wildomar was sideswiped. Either way, Wildomar will be going to District based elections instead of the current At Large elections we have today.
What does that mean to the average Wildomartini?
In reality, it means absolutely nothing.
"Why's that?" you ask.
Because most people in Wildomar don't even know where city hall is, much less do they care about what happens at city hall as long as things are running smoothly.
That, and if you ask any of the council members, they'll let you know that there is very little wiggle room for discretionary spending in this city. The actual amount of latitude that a council member has is quite small... which is a good thing. Smaller Government and all that...
So what's the big deal?
With At Large elections each resident had five council members representing them. Now you'll only have one council member that will return your phone calls if you have concerns.
Happy are those that are in Bridgette Moore's district, and woe to those in Bob Cashman's district (at least until he figures out how to return emails and phone calls that is).
For those of you that don't know the back story, here's a brief recap.
When Wildomar voted for cityhood, it also voted to have Districts, not At Large, elections. In short order, it was demonstrated that districts didn't make sense in a small city like Wildomar, and that the residents would be better served having five council members there to serve them, instead of just one.
It was put to a vote, and the people of Wildomar chose to switch to At Large elections. But there was one problem with that. A local, self appointed guardian of the city, challenged the election results in court. She lost time after time, but continued the battle.
The above headline was in the Press Enterprise just last July, which included this quote:
From the PE article:
“We have concluded ... that Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate the ordinance is invalid,” stated the opinion written by Judge Douglas P. Miller and signed by Judges Jeffrey King and Carol Codrington.
Once it finally looked like this issue would be put to bed forever, the city got a troubling letter, from a well known law firm, threatening to sue over the issue of voting districts.
This time the ultimate cudgel had been found:
Threats of a racism charge
It just sickens me that a once noble tool (The Voting Rights Act 2001) is being abused by the sharpers. Look at Wildomar's demographics, and compare them with the sitting city council members.
• Mayor Bridgette Moore is half Mexican. Her grandparents on her father's side are from Mexico. Her maiden name is a Spanish name.
• Mayor Pro-Tem Tim Walker is married to a Cuban immigrant that is fully bilingual.
• Council Member Marsha Swanson's family includes the Spanish surname Zamora.
It's an affront to all decency to suggest that Wildomar has a problem with people of Mexican heritage. One of our recently elected waterboard members is an immigrant from Mexico, George Cambero.
In 2014, a candidate with a Spanish surname ran for council. He was a very unprepared candidate, and he garnered the least amount of votes. It had nothing to do with his heritage, just his lack of qualifications and that there were three very well qualified incumbents.
From my reading, and discussion with members on the council, this type of lawsuit has NEVER been successfully defended by a city. The estimated cost to defend this that I heard is in the One Million Dollar range. That doesn't count the other side's attorney fees that the losing side ends up paying. Which would easily be approaching Two Million Dollars.
As the well known saying goes, "Discretion is the better part of valor," and there is no valor in fighting an obvious losing cause like this one.
There is no way to know who is behind this lawsuit, because the names haven't been released. So it's left to the imaginations of the readers who might be contacting a Malibu-based law firm on the behalf of Wildomar.
At the same time, I'll be tipping my cap to a curmudgeonly bitter woman that has proved, you can indeed fight city hall... and though you lose and lose, you can occasionally still force your will onto the rest of the community through the courts... whether she claims bystander status here or not.
When cityhood was on the ballot, I voted against it. I don't remember how I voted when it came to At Large v Districts, but I remember thinking districts were a better idea... until I had to seen At Large in action. It's far better having the attention of five representatives than just one.
Having fun with quotes
If you saw the recent Netflix series called Making a Murderer, you may recognize the tenor of the following quote... as I was watching it, this rewording of it came to mind.
Do I have any difficulty understanding the human emotions that might have driven someone who has spent years and years of her life fighting this city over this exact same issue?
No, I do not have any difficulty understanding those human emotions at all.
As you saw in the video, there will be several meetings on this subject, and sadly I can predict that I will see very few new faces when it comes time to draw up the new districts.
Please, please, PLEASE prove me wrong here... but I won't be holding my breath.
If you want your brain to catch on fire... you'll have to research this phrase(ecological regression analysis) which I found in one of the following articles. Nothing worse than new math to try and explain why some people simply choose not to participate in our free and open elections.
Must read articles for those interested in this issue.
Here's what came from tonight's planning commission meeting.
2.1 Horizons Mixed Use Project
• We're getting 138 townhouses, not apartments, in a gated community called Horizons.
• A Senior Living project with 54 skilled nursing beds and 32 assisted living spots.
• This comes with about 100 permanent jobs.
This came to the planning commission last year. The big change that I see from then to now is that what used to be apartments, are now condos... or as they're calling them: townhouses.
They come in clusters of two, three or four. I can't think of too many, if any, of these types of homes currently in W'mar.
Project map.
There were five resolutions necessary to send this to council. They all passed 5-0.
2.2 Grove Park Mixed Use Project
The next set of things coming our way include 162 apartment units.
48 - 1 BR @ 735sf
90 - 2 BR @ 1064sf
14 - 3 BR @ 1281sf
• 55,000+ SQUARE-FOOT RETAIL/OFFICE CENTER.
• An estimated 270 full and part time permanent jobs.
• 1.3 acres of oak groves preserved (without fencing).
• 1.8 acres of a public park (which is about the size of Windsong Park).
Project map. Grove Park is located off of Clinton Keith Road and Yamas Drive.
The commercial retail will be off of Clinton Keith Road, while the apartments will be on the southerly 10 acres. The oak grove preserve and the park will be on the eastern parts of the property on Yamas Drive.
The dotted line represents the trail through the property.
While listening to the description of the project, my ears perked up when I heard Public Park. I heard it three times and when I didn't hear any clarifications as to what that really meant, I went up to the microphone to ask if it was a real public park or a fake public park that is chained off. There's a video below of the key parts of the exchange.
A shot of part of the presentation for Grove Park.
As you can see in the image above, this park is clearly marked as a Public Park.
Thanks Strata Equity Group.
Watch the short video below to hear Strata Equity Group's Eric Flodine mention "Public Park" three and a half times... then watch me ask the commission if I heard it correctly.
This too had five resolutions that all passed without a hitch. Next stop is the City Council.
After the meeting I approached Eric Flodine, thanked him for the new park, and asked when it was likely that they'd be able to get the first shovel in the ground. Thing is, I know that's not a very fair question in the modern world, especially in California, so I settled for a non-answer answer of a couple of years.
Despite the kicking and screaming of a few malcontents, Wildomar is actually inching itself forward into modernity.
• • •
The tiniest bit of fluff on a trouser cuff, may hold a clue, that sheds a light on a personal act, that hides the motive, that points a finger at the perpetrator of the crime. ― EG Marshall (CBS Radio Mystery Theater)
Before 2016 could get into full gear I wanted to ask the mayor, Bridgette Moore, for her take on the year ahead. I tracked her down at a pancake fundraiser, and here is her "snapshot" of what is in store for the city in 2016.
El Niño
January through March will be all about storm prep as El Niño is set to bring us one storm after another. There may be another sandbag event. The costs for each event is about $6000.
Parks
There will be a parks subcommittee meeting this week, Wednesday January 6th at 5:00pm, where the year's parks event calendar will be set. This is a less formal meeting than a regular city council meeting, and if you have an opinion about the parks it would be a good time to get involved.
Among the various park events there will be
Rotary BBQ in April
Egg Hunt in March
Bicycle Safety Event
Movies in the park (not sure how many this year, probably fewer)
A concert in the park
Astronomy Night Star Party
Trunk or Treat
Breakfast with Santa at the fire station
Housing Development
Development will remain strong throughout 2016. There are about 900 single family homes that have approved subdivision maps.
Commercial Development
About 250,000sf of commercial/office/retail development is in the process of development; of which 50,000sf of it will be under construction in 2016.
Walmart Update
The lawsuit against them should be received in February/March. The anticipated construction start is 2017.
MSJC update
Draft EIR in 2016.
The project will provide about 500,000sf of classroom facilities ofver a 20 year period.
Capital Improvements
Bundy Canyon Road engineering design to be completed in 2016.
Collier Elementary School sidewalk improvements from Union to Corydon to be constructed.
Almond Ave and Bundy Canyon (from Almond to Subway) sidewalk improvements.
Lateral C-1/Refa St storm drain (near Palomar and McVicar) to be constructed.
Issues that will be coming before the council
There is a March 30th deadline for city's to have regulations in place about medical marijuana. The last time this issue came before the council, Bridgette Moore was the mayor then too.
There will be time for opinions on this later on.
I just suggest that if you have an opinion about it, you get it honed to under three minutes and plan on attending an all-nighter city council meeting, that is looming in the not too distant future.
Personal Goals
More bus stop shelters and a continued push for additional RTA bus routes in the city.
Continue with CERT quarterly meetings.
Encourage community involvement.
Provide different events than the previous two years.
Though the filing date isn't until July, she's confirmed that she'll be running for reelection this year too.
If you've ever met our 2016 mayor, you quickly see how concerned she is for others. We're fortunate to have such a dedicated servant willing to put her all in for Wildomar.
Even facebook shows how much that Bridgette Moore is concerned with Wildomar.
It's a lot easier to write a Year in Review than it is to write about things that haven't happened yet, but I wanted to take a stab at it anyway. Hopefully, as 2016 comes to a close, Mayor Moore will give us her take on how the year went.
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