by The Editors on October 6, 2010
Carlsbadistan’s Raw Skin Surf N Sports surf shop owner Sandra DeLaRosa is repainting her shop, but she’s not going to get any help from the the City of Carlsbad’s Village beautification grant project because the paint she’s using is the wrong color, according to a story in the North County Times.
Debbie Fountain, the city’s housing and redevelopment director, sympathized with DeLaRosa. However, Fountain said the city is bound by the Carlsbad Village master plan, which dictates that colors must be pastel or other subdued shades. . . .”We’re not saying it’s unattractive; that’s just not the intent of the master plan,” Fountain said. . . While store owners are free to paint with unapproved colors, the city can’t help pay for it, Fountain said.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that free money is never really free. Even in the Village of Carlsbadistan.
[Link: North County Times]
by The Editors on October 5, 2010

Those “no vehicles over seven feet tall” restrictions would come in very handy on a day like today at the Carlsbadistan seawall. . And we thought that Vons shopping cart was an eyesore.
Wonder if this rig has anything to do with this story from the New York Times.
by The Editors on October 5, 2010
An old man who reportedly “blacked out’ behind the wheel of his Ford truck plowed into a home near Pio Pico and Las Flores Drive this morning, according to a story in on NBC San Diego.
The wreck took place at about 10:15 a.m. near the intsection of Pio Pico and Las Flores Drive. Police said after the crash that an elderly driver blacked out at the wheel before slamming into the home. . . A woman who was home at the time was unhurt. She said the truck crashed into her kids’ bedroom and that she believes they could have been killed if they weren’t at school.
Good thing it was a school day, huh?
[Link: NBC San Diego and North County Times]
by The Editors on October 5, 2010
The City of Carlsbad handed out its Citizens of the Year Award at a special ceremony this evening and Mayor Claude A. “Bud” Lewis, his wife, Bev Lewis, and longtime community volunteer Doris Lee Ritchie were all recognized.
The Citizen of the Year program is more than 40 years old and honors community members who have given their time and energy toward the civic improvement, beautification and betterment of the City of Carlsbad. This year’s honorees were selected by a four-person committee of Carlsbad residents and recognized during a ceremony at Carlsbad City Hall, just prior to the regularly scheduled City Council meeting.
We’d like to say thank you for everything that all of you have done. Follow the jump for all the details.
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by The Editors on October 5, 2010

For the past couple days this Vons shopping cart has been bumping around on different parts of the Carlsbadistan sea wall.
Note to Vons: Please come retrieve your cart. It has junked up our beach long enough. Thanks!
by The Editors on October 5, 2010
Our favorite Carlsbadistan based life sciences company, Life Techonologies Corporation, has created the new position of Chief Medical Officer and named Dr. Paul R. Billings as the first to fill it.
Dr. Billings has had a distinguished career as a physician and researcher. He has been a founder or chief executive officer of companies involved in genetic and diagnostic medicine, including GeneSage, Omicia and CELLective Dx Corporation. Previously, he was senior vice president for corporate development at Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (LabCorp). He has held academic appointments at some of the most prestigious universities in the United States, including Harvard Medical School, Stanford School of Medicine and the University of California, Berkeley, and has served as a physician at a number of medical centers throughout the country, including the University of California, San Francisco. He is the author of nearly 200 publications and books on genomic medicine. Dr. Billings holds an M.D. from Harvard Medical School and a Ph.D. in immunology, also from Harvard University.
Sounds like a nice addition to the team and to Carlsbadistan in general. Welcome, Dr. Billings. Follow the jump for all the details.
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by The Editors on October 4, 2010

Carlsbadistan’s Beech St. has a big hole (right next to McGee Park) in it thanks to the Beech Street Sewer project by the City of Carlsbad. We do not suggest attempting to drive over it.
by The Editors on October 4, 2010

A State of California Alcoholic Beverage Control notice posted near the front door of Carlsbadistan’s La Costa Grill says the “Alcoholic Beverage License Issued for these premises has been suspended. . . for violation of the Alcoholic Beverage Control act.”
The suspension, which went into effect on September 29, 2010, is listed as “indefinite” according to the posted sign. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control website, however, says the license owned by JRO Restaurant Group LLC (#469390) expired on August 31, 2010.
A flyer posted next to the suspension notice informed would be customers that the “La Costa Grill will be temporarily closed due to a pending transfer of our liquor license. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to serving you again in the near future.”
No one answered our calls at the La Costa Grill, but we did get a phone message that said, “Happy Holidays. The La Costa Grill will be closed Christmas Day.”
Sounds like updating their phone message is not high on the current priorities list.
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by The Editors on October 4, 2010
by The Editors on October 3, 2010

The 28th Annual Carlsbad Oktoberfest was presented by the Rotary Clubs of Carlsbad on Saturday, October 2, 2010 at Holiday Park in Carlsbadistan. Aside from the traditional German fare, this year’s festivities also included a family friendly element with a pumpkin patch and pumpkin decorating contest, inflatable jump-houses, and an antique fire-engine for the kids.
Bands rotated on the stage in the gazebo throughout the day, but the lederhosen-clad headliners Roger and The Villagers didn’t take the stage until the early evening. Once they did the oom-pahs of “Eins, Zwei, G’Suffa” and the Chicken Dance could be heard across Holiday Park.
But who’s kidding who, Oktoberfest is really about getting sloshed in a public park with family and friends and as one Oktoberfest attendee pointed out, “The chicken dance was good, but the Beck’s Oktoberfest beer was even better.”
Follow the jump for the rest of the story and more photos.
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Motorhomeless On The Seawall
by The Editors on October 5, 2010
Those “no vehicles over seven feet tall” restrictions would come in very handy on a day like today at the Carlsbadistan seawall. . And we thought that Vons shopping cart was an eyesore.
Wonder if this rig has anything to do with this story from the New York Times.
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