• City Council Nomination Period Is Now Closed

The die is cast for this year's city council elections. 

District 2 will have Dustin Nigg getting his second term unopposed, and District 4 will have two names on the ballot: Bridgette Moore v Kenny Mayes.

Bonus points for knowing the year of this baseball card design.

Commence history lesson

A little bit of back story when it comes to electing city council members by district instead of at large in Wildomar.

This is from memory, so try not to shoot the messenger if you have more detailed information than I present here... but your comments are welcomed both here and on facebook if you'd like to add to the story.

When we voted to become a city there were two options on the ballot. 

One was to elect city council members "at large" which means the entire city could vote for all five council members.

The second option, which won originally, was to create districts.

From what I've been told, the original desire of the city founders was to have the elections be city-wide/at large. It was felt that the ballot language had been misleading and that's why the districts option was voted for.

One of the first things the new city council did was put the option of At Large v Districts on the ballot. The voters then reversed themselves and chose At Large..

Here is the write up from Ballotopia.org

How City Council Members are Chosen in Wildomar, Measures I, J and K (November 2009)  

Three ballot measures (Measure I, J and K) were on the November 3, 2009 ballot for voters in the City of Wildomar in Riverside County, each having to do with how city council members should be chosen.

The City of Wildomar was a recently incorporated city at the time of the vote. The outcome of the votes on Measures I, J and K determined how residents of the city would choose members of the city council. In 2008, voters chose by 57% the method whereby a voter would vote for one council member from the district where that voter lives. The election on November 3, 2009 on Measures I, J and K amounted to a re-consideration of that vote.[1]

The choices were:

• At-large. This was Measure I, which was approved. Under Measure I, there are no districts. All city council representatives are elected "at-large."
• By-district. This was Measure J, which was defeated. This was the system that voters approved in 2008. Under this system, residents would have only been able to vote on the candidates running in the district in which the resident lives.
• From-district. This is Measure K, which was defeated. It would have meant that a voter anywhere in the city could vote for any candidate for city council, but the candidates must come from and represent a specific district.

  

  As you can see, the measures that would have supported going with districts were soundly defeated.
  

That vote would have put an end to it, but like with many things in our society the next step was the courts. I'm not going to get into the details, but the court case(s) dragged on for years and just when it looked like the final judgement had been delivered in the city's favor a new wrinkle came up.

An enterprising attorney from LA County started threatening lawsuits against most towns that didn't have districts based on his interpretation of the Voters Rights Act of 2001.

This had been percolating for a time and the track record was always against cities. There were accounts of cities that fought this, won, and STILL were told they had to pay the exorbitant legal fees of the plaintiff.

So even if a city were to win in court, they were going to be out several hundred thousand dollars, or far more. 

Read about how Palmdale paid out $4.5M and still was forced to choose district based city council seats

In December of 2015, during the Christmas break no less, the city got a letter from this law firm telling them to switch to districts or else. 

Though the city council had been fighting this for more than half a decade, they could see the handwriting on the wall and quickly took the steps to switch over to districts. That process took many months, with several public meetings, but in the end it gave us our five district map.

Use this link to access the city's interactive map.

Why have I given this short history lesson? 

Because the thought behind the lawsuits that forced so many small cities to adopt the districts method of choosing council members was hoped to be more inclusive and give more opportunities to minority communities that had been "deprived" of having a representative of their choice.

Sorry, but that's just hogwash. In any event, that's our reality and it's based on bogus claims of racism, but what's new?

After three election cycles, how has that worked out for Wildomar?

In 2016 there were two seats on the ballot, in 2018 there were three seats, and this year there are two more. 

That's a total of seven contests and of the seven ONLY two even were with more than one candidate, and you, instead of having the opportunity to vote for ALL seven, have only had the option for one (Districts 1, 3 and 5) or after this November, two seats (Districts 2 and 4). Most of the contests (5 of the 7) ended with the "winner" just walking in unopposed. 

So much for getting more people involved. 

History lesson over

Now back to 2020's contests... which there is only one, District 4 will have longtime city watchdog Kenny Mayes looking to take the seat away from one of the last two remaining original city council members starting in 2008 Bridgette Moore... she was also one of the key factors behind the push for cityhood.

Earlier in the year, it was understood by many that Mayor Pro-tem Bridgette Moore was NOT going to seek another term. I asked her about the change of heart and it came back to her dedication and loyalty to the city. 

Before Covid19 she felt good about the financial position the city was in up to then, and that she would be able to hand the baton to the next person without worries.

With the dramatic changes seen accompanying the responses to Covid19 and the deleterious affects it's having on the city budget, she felt a duty to run for another term. 

She asked if I would endorse her, and without hesitation I said, "of course."

Let's break this down a bit

Before she embarked on her 4th term, I was ready to sing the praises of Kenny Mayes for that seat. So what changed?

Not much really, but here's my thought process on it.

Bridgette Moore has put her heart and soul into her leadership position in Wildomar (which means countless hours per week for your benefit), and that extends many years before cityhood. 

If this were baseball (and everything can be compared to baseball) she's akin to a hall of fame first basemen, fan favorite, never goes on the disabled list, that chooses to play another season instead of retiring from the game s/he loves.

At the same time there's a triple-A player that has been burning up the minor leagues (Kenny Mayes) and his thought was he'd be taking over for the retiring hall of famer... or maybe just ousting her instead of waiting, I don't know you'll have to ask him for those kinds of details. (Allow me some poetic license here)

Do I think Kenny Mayes can do the job? Absolutely he can.

Do I think he'll do a better job than Bridgette Moore as a city council member for District 4? Sorry, but no. 

Most people will readily stipulate that he does put more time than anyone else into city council and planning commission meeting prep. 

He's done so for much longer than I've been paying attention to Wildomar city issues. He's also willing to do exhaustive research on issues that most of the rest of us either won't or can't get a foothold on in the first place. (Where does he come up with some of that minutia?)

The job of city council member is far broader than city council meetings.

To best represent the city, a council member needs to be ready to take on (at least) a couple of outside board/commission positions.

Personally I represent Wildomar at RCA (Western Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority), RCHCA (Riverside County Habitat Conservation Agency), alternate for RTA and RCTC. Those are monthly obligations with meetings (usually in Riverside) and agendas that have to be gone over.

From memory, Mayor Pro-tem Moore represents Wildomar at RTA (this year she is the chair of that board), Southwest Communities Finance Authority (SCFA - Animal Friends of the Valleys), and is part of a 2 by 2 with LEUSD.

That doesn't count all the other things, non city administration related but community related, that she is constantly occupied with. You don't have to like her to know that she is Wildomar. 

Reminds me of when I was a kid and I irrationally hated Pete Rose.

Second worst haircut of all time.
 Runner up to Sideshow Bob.

Just because I couldn't stand him or his team, his lame haircut or his hunched over batting stance, didn't mean I was blind to the fact that he was a living legend. Don't be a player hater.

Do I agree with her all the time? 

No, in fact I've disagreed with many of her votes. If you're looking for a candidate that is your political clone, good luck. 

True, it's not like she's been there to say "yes" when I've suggested a future agenda item... usually she's not for my items, but this isn't simply about her or me or any individual, it's about what will benefit Wildomar's residents and businesses the most.

Search Results

Web Result with Site LinkWestern Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority

Over the first 20 months I've been on the dais with her there may have been half a dozen votes that we haven't agreed on. Some of them pretty big, but it takes 3 votes to pass anything, and several times I've been the lone nay vote. 

Such is life. Once the vote is over, you shake hands, and move onto other issues in town.

All one has to do is look at Bridgette Moore's service time that she has put in year after year, for closing in on two decades, and I can't see the point in giving the first base job to anyone else.

Let's loop back to the history lesson this blog started with.

'Districts' is going to keep Kenny Mayes from making it to the city council this go round. A job that I believe he's well qualified for, but there is an even more qualified person already there. If we had At Large voting, he probably would have been elected in 2018. C'est la vie.

I've extended a "better know a candidate" blog offer to each candidate, and both have shown interest. I'm also willing to help both make videos if they'd like. 

Last I'll say on this topic here is that I'd like to see a Meet The Candidates event, and hopefully it'll be livestreamed on facebook. The moderator needs to be someone neutral, and in 2018 the Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce hosted it at city hall. 

One thing, I DON'T want to see our distinguished mayor Dustin Nigg being at such an event... or shall I say, part of the event. He's not in a contest, and having a third wheel be part of it will only distract from the two that are competing.

Back in 2018 the event had the incumbent, me and then someone from an uncontested district. If you were to watch the videos of it, it was like a tag team against me. I don't want to see any candidates forum watered down by more than the two principles. Even in our Covid19 times, this should still happen.

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Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.

– Harriet Tubman

Wildomar Rap is pretty much over great dreams these days, but isn't looking to interfere with yours.

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.

• Updates to "Request a Service" Feature on City's Website

Have you ever seen an issue in town that you thought needed some attention? (Of course you have, I've seen your posts on Facebook). 😅

What I've always asked for is to come up with an easy way to attach a photo to the complaint. 

We all have cameras with us these days, and how much easier it is to send a photo of an issue than trying to describe it in a description box. 

I seem to remember a quote about the worth of 1000 words... 🤔

Anyway, now you can add photos to take the guesswork out of it.

Gotta love a guy that calls himself "dumb piss." I guess that shithead was already taken. 🙄

I'll use the above graffiti example as the photo I'll submit to the city. I'll then add key slides here so you can see the short process involved.

Below is the verbatim announcement that was sent out by the city (with slides I've added)

The City is pleased to announce a new on-line Public Works Service Request portal is up and running.

This  portal provides a direct communication link to Public Works staff and crews for items that require Maintenance or Service.  

1  Access the Portal on the City of Wildomar webpage: www.cityofwildomar.org  from a Computer, Tablet, or Smart Phone

2  One-time requirement to register as a new user

As you can see, I'm already a registered user. If you are afraid that big brother might be watching you, then give an alias. No one is checking ID's.

Graffiti is found under the "public works" tab.

I found that you can use either the direct address, the APN or a general description... but you CANNOT use more than one or it ends up deleting what you've entered in the other boxes. This is also where you'll describe the issue.

3  Once registered you can Request a Service and view status of previous Requests

4 Adding you're mail at registration will allow the system to send status updates regarding your Requests

5  Up to three photos may be attached to a Request (photos must be in: jpg, bmp, gif, or png format)

It seemed a bit counter intuitive to me, but you must hit "Submit Request" BEFORE attaching any photos.

Click where it says "select files" and then locate them on your computer or phone. Select one at a time, until you have what you think is necessary. Many times one photo is all that is necessary. Other times the issue may be difficult to find and a photo from further back, showing the surroundings, is good to add to one with a close up of the issue.

Once you're finished selecting the image files, then be sure to hit the "Upload File" button next.

This is what the final screen looks like. You can see the description and the location above, and you can see the images attached at the bottom.

The link below will take you to the On-line Service Request User Guide and to the Portal.

Please click here  to view a short video and see how easy it is to send a Service Request! 

Please Click Here to go to the City of Wildomar's Online Service Request Portal

Input from the citizens of Wildomar regarding Public Works service and maintenance needs is valuable and greatly appreciated!

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A picture is worth a thousand words.

– Fred R. Barnard

Wildomar Rap will gladly give you a thousand words... sometimes many thousands of words. 😳

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• Press Release: RSO Drug Paraphernalia and Stolen Gift Cards

RIVERSIDE COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT

Sheriff Chad Bianco

Station Lake Elsinore Agency

Riverside County Sheriff’s Department

Press Release:

Type of Incident:	Fraud, Identity Theft, Burglary
Date Written:	July 23, 2020	Time Written:	11:30 A.M.
Date of Incident:	July 18, 2020	Time of Incident:	7:01 A.M.
Location of Incident:	22000 Block of Bundy Canyon Road, Wildomar
Reporting Officer:	Sergeant Veronica Amparano #3218
File Number:	WI202000008

Details:

On Saturday, July 18, 2020, deputies assigned to the Lake Elsinore Sheriff’s Station conducted an occupied vehicle check in the 22000 Block of Bundy Canyon Road, Wildomar.

The driver, Jonathan Leo Ruggles, a 40-year-old resident of Lake Elsinore, was contacted. Methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia was located in plain sight inside the vehicle. Deputies searched the vehicle and located stolen merchandise, personal identifying information not belonging to Ruggles and over 400 gift cards from various stores. 

Jonathan Leo Ruggles, was arrested and booked into the Cois Byrd Detention Center for the above listed charges.

This is an ongoing investigation, and anyone with further information is asked to contact Deputy Jackson and Deputy Lequire at the Lake Elsinore Sheriff’s Station (951) 245-3300.

As a reminder, "Community Policing" involves partnerships between law enforcement and community members.  Business owners and residents are encouraged to report suspicious activity directly to law enforcement by calling Sheriff's Dispatch at (951) 776-1099, or by calling 911 if the matter is an emergency.

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• Tres Lagos Affordable Housing Update

You may remember that at the very end of last year I published a blog regarding 265 affordable housing units that were going to be between Hidden Springs, Catt Road and Arnett.

The folder that I got during my meeting.

Link to blog from December 2019 regarding this development 

I'm not going to get into the history of this long proposed project at this time. I'm sure that will be gone over by the applicants when they set a community meeting regarding this development. 

The intent of this blog is to give an update from the first of the year, I won't be sharing any opinions.

This was temporarily derailed as the county was in discussions with the city regarding the property, which has been owned by the county since Wildomar was part of the county.

This land has covenants attached to it that only allows low income housing on it for at least the next 45 years. 

One option was for the city to purchase the land and let it sit fallow for a couple of generations until the covenants expire in the far flung future, and choose its ultimate fate then.

The problem with that, even before Covid19, was there wasn't any money laying around to be invested in a piece of land that was going to just sit there. I can think of about 1000 other productive things to do with that much money in Wildomar. 

By declining to take control over that land, the original county plan came back to the fore. Sell the land to Palm Communities as had been previously intended. 

Today I met with the head of Palm Communities and we discussed the Tres Lagos development. 

At this point in the blog I have to tiptoe lightly because this will be coming to the city council at some point, and I need to keep my objectivity in tact. 

During the meeting I shared my main concerns here, and that is primarily regarding public outreach, and clear communication with the neighborhood. (I do have some logistical concerns, but, as already stated, those can be gone over another time.)

I started off by telling the team that I was there, not to represent my own views, but those of the immediate community. 

As we were wrapping up, I reiterated that I may feel one way, but in the end I'll be representing the views of those most affected by the project. 

With that in mind, a rough timeline will have the property changing hands sometime in August, and a community meeting could come as early as September. 

This is an outline. Things can change without notice.

A lot is up in the air at this point, and then throw in the Covid19 restrictions and it gets a little impractical to use ink on the calendar at this time.

Not sure how legible this will be, but it gives a breakdown of phase I of 88 units.

If you have thoughts or opinions about this development, please plan on attending any community meetings that the Palm Communities plans on hosting. 

From the 90 minute meeting I had, I believe they want to be good neighbors, and want to show you what they have in mind. 

They also want to hear your concerns.

You can reach out to them at their website or reach out to me at jmorabito@cityofwildomar.org to ask for further information. 

Here is a link to the Palm Communities website www.palmcommunities.com 

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“I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.”

– Albert Einstein

If Wildomar Rap was imaginative, it would encircle the world, but old knees make encircling Wildomar enough a daunting task as it is. 

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.

• City Council Meeting: July 2020

Another Zoom meeting in the books.

TOP NEWS FROM THE MEETING

---

• New Resolutions From July Covid19 Update
• Military Appreciation Garden at Marna O'Brien Park
• Road Rehab Projects about to begin
• Announcement of the coming election for two city council seats (districts 2 and 4)
• Chris Pselos selected to serve on the Measure AA committee

It started off with a city proclamation, read by Mayor Pro-Tem Bridgette Moore, stating that July is "Parks Make Life Better" month.

There was much more to the proclamation, but this is the key part and if I added it all, it wouldn't be legible.

Next up was honoring local business owner, Angelo Catalano of Angelo's Brick Oven Pizzeria, for recently becoming an American citizen.

He came from Sicily, and his city was about as close as Wildomar and Murrieta from where my wife's family came from.

3.1 Monte Vista Ranch Phase II / General Plan Initiation Proposal (GPIP):

Any longtime reader of this blog knows what's about to come... my four panel cartoon with Mario and Peach demonstrating what a GPIP is.

Peach is the city of Wildomar, and Mario is playing the role of an applicant.
This is where Mario is asking if he can ask. That's basically a GPIP.

Most other cities only have a GPA process (General Plan Amendment). The GPIP is a remnant of the county days. The difference is that with a GPA an applicant brings a project to the planning commission and then the council and rolls the dice that it will be accepted.  

With the GPIP they get to bring a rough concept to the commission and the council to see if it would be worth spending the huge money necessary to be in the position of asking for a GPA. (Hopefully that was sort of decipherable)

Here is the official definition of the GPIP Review Process:

The purpose of the GPIP process is to allow an Applicant an opportunity to present a preliminary land use plan to the Planning Commission and City Council in order to received preliminary feedback on the proposal. 

The keys here are that the current land designation on the General Plan calls for a business park. The applicant would like to change it to High Density Residential. 

Project location is in front of the new KB Homes on Monte Vista.

In the end, the council gave a less than enthusiastic response to the idea for various reasons (see video to hear the entire council discussion), though I counted Mayor Nigg as fully in favor.

This still has a lot of percolating through the system to do before it would ever come back to the planning commission, much less the city council. 

3.2 COVID-19 Update

The discussion was around three resolutions. Resolution 2020-25 was on the agenda, and then resolutions 2020-33 and 2020-34 were added to the agenda for discussion.

Resolution 2020-25 is an emergency resolution that was passed on March 27th in the city's early attempts to deal with the developing issues revolving around Covid19. It's several pages long and it was left unchanged. 

Resolution 2020-33 was adopted on May 13th, and it basically stated that Wildomar would not be enforcing any of the state's Covid19 related orders. Please follow the link above to the resolution for the full wording.

In the end, we repealed Resolution 2020-33 by a 4-1 vote with Mayor Nigg being the only no vote.

The facts haven't changed. The city isn't going to spend resources trying to enforce the state orders regarding Covid19 for the simple reason that there aren't the funds to even consider it. This resolution may have felt right two months ago, but no longer made sense to have in writing since that could jeopardize federal or state relief funding. 

Resolution 2020-34 was also adopted on May 13th, and it read: 

Now, therefore, let it be resolved the City Council of the City of Wildomar therefore will be pursuing all avenues available and within our jurisdiction to help our residents and businesses return to a pre-COVID-19 normal lifestyle while also strongly recommending to those that are or feel they are more susceptible to COVID-19 take necessary precautions such as face masks, social distancing, and/or selfquarantining until such time they feel comfortable.

This was changed by a similar 4-1 vote. It was felt that it was counterproductive to leave in the qualifiers that are highlighted in yellow. 

All the council comments were worth listening to, but I really liked what Councilman Ben Benoit said. I'm not going to transcribe the comments, it's best to hear them as they were uttered and they begin at the 1:34:30 part of the video included below.

.

Taking a closer look

At one point Mayor Nigg took the libertarian stance, or at least that's how I interpreted it, when it came to wearing masks. He compared it to the seatbelt or helmet laws... that it should be a choice.

I wanted to jump in, but the Zoom platform format didn't make for an opening. You can probably guess what I was going to say, that the difference between seatbelts or helmets and masks is that seatbelts/helmets are intended to protect the wearer. 

You can disagree with the stated reason for wearing masks if you'd like, but the intention is to protect OTHER people, not the wearer. 

Let's switch from helmets/seat belts for a moment to sunscreen. Wearing sunscreen isn't a law or an order, but it's highly recommended by physicians.

Still, if I don't want to wear sunscreen, I'm the one that's going to end up with a sunburn, not you. That's why I didn't agree with the idea that wearing a mask to help prevent the spread of Covid19 is akin to wearing a helmet or seatbelts.

We amended the resolution to read: 

Now, therefore, be it resolved the City Council of the City of Wildomar therefore will be pursuing all avenues available and within our jurisdiction to help our residents and businesses return to a pre-COVID-19 normal lifestyle while in the meantime also strongly recommending that we follow state orders and county guidelines, including wearing face coverings because we care about our residents.

We all know that the above resolution isn't going to change the Covid Karens out there, that are spoiling for a row with everyone that dares tell them they need a mask to enter a business. Check out the psycho in the video below, and then ask yourself, "Do I really need to be that guy?"

Who remembers the 4th of July, which was the most crazy night of illegal fireworks in recent memory? 

Just like 'fireworks guy' is too good for community standards, so is "to hell with you if you think you can force me to wear a mask" guy. (BTW no one is forcing anyone)

We know that, they know that, and I just feel for the business owners and their employees that have to constantly put up with such obnoxious people on a day in day out basis. 

3.4 Girl Scouts Gold Award Project – Military Appreciation Garden at Marna O’Brien Park

The Gold Award is the highest award regarded in the Girl Scouts Program. Gabrielle Flannery would like to obtain this achievement by developing a Military Appreciation Garden at Marna O’Brien Park. 

She has presented the project to her Scout council and fulfilled the needed requirements. With assistance from the VFW, as a military advisory committee, Gabrielle has developed a memorial aimed to honor those who served in the US Armed Services.

The location for the appreciation garden.

The placement of three large 3’ x 3’ boulders will centralize the project around the flagpole. 

On two boulders the placement of full color digital emblems of the branches in the US Armed Forces: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy, and Space Force. 

Each emblems will be a 6” round, made of medium weight 40 gauge aluminum, and sealed with a UV protective lamination. 

The remaining boulder will display two plaques; one stating a poetic memoriam and the other stating the project with its sponsors. 

Long awaited road maintenance project

You may have seen some signs around town indicating coming road work... thanks to the SB1 Gas Tax and Measure A (not to be confused with Measure AA), the 2019/20 street rehabilitation project is under way! 

Streets were selected using the City Pavement Management Program, Maintenance Records and Citizen Input. 

Contractor is All American Asphalt. 

Contract allows for 30 working days, estimated finish by August 31st. 

Streets included:

• Bryant St.

• Almond - Bundy Canyon to Waite

• Orchard - Cashew to Walnut

• Dunn - Wildomar Trail (Central) to Pasadena

• Darby - Wildomar Trail (Central) to Pasadena

• Wildomar Trail (Central) to Palomar

• Gruwell - Shoemaker to Baxter

• Black Beauty - Gruwell to End

• Silver Spur - Gruwell to End

• Pony Cart - Silver Spur to End

• Wesley - Palomar to 100’ west

2020 Elections
Acting city clerk Janet Morales announced that there will be two city council seats up for election this year. I have it on good authority that both Bridgette Moore and Dustin Nigg will be seeking reelection. 
The original press release discussing how to get on the ballot can be found in this blog.

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"This above all: to thine ownself be true.
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man."

– William Shakespeare

Wildomar Rap canst not then be false to any blog.

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.