We believe that placing a shopping mall on the shores of Carlsbad’s Hedionda Lagoon is such a ridiculously dumb idea that we’ve found it difficult to even comment. Exactly why it’s foolish seems so obvious as to make listing the reasons redundant. We’ll cut to the chase: The Carlsbad City Council believes putting a mall on the lagoon is such a good idea that they approved Los Angeles based developer Rick Caruso’s plans without even asking the citizens of Carlsbad to vote. Luckily a group of Carlsbad citizens (Citizens For North County) believe we should vote on it. That’s why they’re out getting signatures for a referendum that will overturn the Carlsbad City Council’s approval and put the Hedionda Lagoon Mall up for vote to everyone in Carlsbad.
If you think the citizens of Carlsbad should have a voice in deciding the future of the community and a beautiful piece of open space on the shores of the Hedionda Lagoon, then you should sign the referendum.
This afternoon (Friday, September 11, 2015) you can sign the petition at the corner of Highland and Basswood from 2 PM to 6 PM. Or stop by the Dove Library (at Dove and El Camino Real) to sign. All your signature means is that you’d like the people of Carlsbad to have a vote on the Mall.
For a little more background on the issues and the current state of chicanery surrounding this mall project please follow the jump for a nice overview by Richard Riehl. [click to continue…]
They may be called The Detroit Underground, but they’re from right here in San Diego Country. That doesn’t mean they don’t have a solid and funky rhythm section and powerful lead vocalists that crank out tunes from artists such as Stevie Wonder, Chaka Kahn, and Earth, Wind and Fire. And they’ll be doing exactly that this Friday evening (July 17, 2015) in Alga Norte Community Park as TGIF Concert In The Park takes over.
The Detroit Underground was established in 1994, and still has several of its original members. Over the years the band has earned the reputation for being a hard working, high energy, show band. The group features a very solid and funky rhythm section. These four seasoned players provide a solid foundation for the band’s “smokin” horns.
Remember to bring low-back chairs, snacks, and a groove ready mind. Show starts at 6 PM Alga Norte Park is located at 6565 Alicante Road, Carlsbad, California. And remember, shuttle service operates from 4:30 to 9 p.m. at Ocean Collection and Arrowhead Insurance Group properties (2500 Campbell Place).
The Man in Black may no longer be with us, but his music is still rocking thanks in part to tribute bands like Cash’d Out. They’ll be rocking the City of Carlsbad’s TGIF Concert in the Park series this Friday, July 10, 2015. If you’ve ever enjoyed a Johnny Cash song (and who hasn’t) then you’ve got to walk the line to Alga Norte Community Park listen.
Well, beyond critics having anointed Cash’d Out (Douglas Benson on vocals, Kevin Manuel on guitar, Stephen Rey on bass and George Bernardo on drums) the “next best thing to Johnny Cash,” and the group having won six San Diego Music Awards for Best Tribute Band, the real proof lies in what members of Cash’s inner circle have said. . . “Cindy Cash came to a show, we made her cry and she gave me a necklace with Johnny’s hair in a glass locket,” explains front man and Cash impersonator Douglas Benson. Benson added that Cash producer Lou Robin has also been to several Cash’d Out shows, and claimed that if he closed it eyes it was like “going back in time.”
TGIF Concert in the Park begins at 6 PM. Be sure to arrive early because parking can be a problem. Alga Norte Park is located at 6565 Alicante Road, Carlsbad, California. And remember, shuttle service operates from 4:30 to 9 p.m. at Ocean Collection and Arrowhead Insurance Group properties (2500 Campbell Place).
With the sun rising behind the smokey skies of Carlsbad and many roads still closed, we rolled out for a quick tour of the area most affected by the May 14, 2014 Poinsettia Fire. As we moved east on Poinsettia from Aviara we were amazed by two things. One, it could have been so much worse, and two, what a great job firefighters did containing the fire and protecting and saving hundreds of homes. (Click here for a map of Fire zone).
The fire, which reportedly started near Alga Norte Park, jumped from open space to open space seemingly right over neighborhoods driven west by high winds. First, on the Northeast side of Poinsettia and El Camino Real, then across El Camino Real down to Cassia and again over Poinsettia to the open space just west of Aviara Park to the Southwest of Palomar Airport Road and Camino Vida Robles to Paseo Del Lago where the only commercial building burned.
That Carlsbad only lost eight homes, one condo complex, and one commercial building is a testament to the skills of the crews fighting the fire. In location after location that we visited we saw where the fire had come right up to the side and backyards of dozens of homes, condos, and apartments, yet they were all untouched by the flames. Sure, the cars and the ground were covered in ash, but the fires were stopped short of damaging more buildings. And for that, we are grateful.
We just hope the fire fighters can do the same for our neighbors in San Marcos. Their Cocos Fire seems to be growing as the day goes on.
For more images from the Poinsettia Fire burn zone follow the jump. [click to continue…]
Wouldn’t it be nice if grocery stores and gas stations would sign pledges to stop taxing us with higher prices until they cut their business expenses an equal amount? They could protect their profits by eliminating waste, fraud and abuse in their operations. We customers could help them find the waste to prove they don’t have a revenue problem, they have a spending problem.
Sound familiar? That’s the thinking behind a local political activist group that’s asking state office holders and candidates to sign its Promise to California Taxpayers pledge. Signers must promise to vote against all tax increases, amendments to Proposition 13 and increased taxpayer contributions to public employee pension plans.
I was disappointed to learn that Carlsbad City Council member and candidate for the 76th District seat in the California Assembly, Farrah Douglas, was one of the first five signers.
A week after Carlsbad’s City Council voted unanimously to amend a policy governing grants to agencies for special events of citywide interest, Oceanside’s council wrangled over what to do about rent control. Carlsbad’s council meeting was, as usual, polite. Quite a contrast to the shouting match that erupted on the dais in Oceanside, where one council member, after being repeatedly interrupted by another, demanded of the mayor, presiding over the verbal slugfest, “Will you shut her up?” A recess allowed the city leaders to retreat to their opposite corners.
The difference between the behaviors of the two groups reflects more than just the gravity of the issue being discussed. Yes, deciding how to spend $50,000 of earned interest on a $1 million savings account for city enrichment activities is a bit less contentious than deciding whether to end rent control for nearly 2,600 low-income residents of mobile-home parks. But a closer look at the civil discussion among Carlsbad’s council members offers clues about how more contentious issues may be debated in future meetings and what the talking points of new and incumbent city council candidates will be in the next election. [click to continue…]
Why does mayoral candidate Matt Hall continue to mislead Carlsbad voters about a measure on the November ballot?
His website was revised a day after my July 30 Carlsbadistan column criticized him for wrongly claiming the city charter amendment up for a vote would create a two-tiered pension plan for city employees. He now says he “successfully persuaded” his fellow council members to adopt the plan last spring, continuing to imply it covered all new city employees. He failed to point out that only police and firefighter benefits were affected.
The charter amendment would require a vote of the people for future pension benefit increases for safety employees. The council would retain the right to reduce them. Hall says he supports “fair” and “balanced” public employee pensions. He doesn’t explain why he should only be trusted to cut them. [click to continue…]
Carlsbad City Council candidate Jon Wantz announced today that he is endorsing councilman Keith Blackburn in his campaign for Mayor of Carlsbad.
“Councilman Blackburn’s vision is a long needed solution to what Carlsbad and its residents deserve,” Wantz said. “His stance on projects such as Alga Norte Park, Westfield Shopping Plaza, and Car Country Carlsbad are in line with mine. His proven leadership skills and commitment to a transparent local government were also factors.”
We’re actually looking forward to this election season. . .
Keith Blackburn, the former Carlsbad Police officer and current Carlsbadistan City Councilman has announced that he will be running for Mayor according to a Barbara Henry story in the North County Times.
As he announced his mayoral bid Thursday, Blackburn said his candidacy would focus on economic development, open space land purchases and the long-discussed Alga Norte park project. . . He also said that he wants to purchase open space land for preservation now while local real estate prices are more affordable and he wants to get the swim complex planned for the future Alga Norte park open as soon as possible, even if it means dipping into the city’s substantial reserves to cover its daily operations expenses. . . “We can run that pool for 10 years … before we have to tap into our general fund,” he said.
If he promises to get the Alga Norte skateboard park and pool running ASAP, then he has our vote for certain.
Jon Wantz, 28, of Carlsbadistan is running for City Council in the next election and The Coast News was good enough to profile him today.
“I think people are ready to see something a little different,” Wantz said. . . As Wantz gets his campaign off the ground, he’s focusing on two main issues to improve the city: creating an open and responsive local government and increasing occupancy rate in a city that has nearly reached build-out of the general plan. . . Wantz said he advocates for a more responsive government after having witnessed the current council feign interest in what residents want without following through. He specifically points to the Alga Norte Park project — which many residents asked for and have still not received — as a prime example of unresponsive representation.
Yes, Carlsbadistan could use a little more of what Jon Wantz is talking about.
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The Riehl World: Say It Ain’t So, Farrah
by Richard J. Riehl on February 9, 2012
Sound familiar? That’s the thinking behind a local political activist group that’s asking state office holders and candidates to sign its Promise to California Taxpayers pledge. Signers must promise to vote against all tax increases, amendments to Proposition 13 and increased taxpayer contributions to public employee pension plans.
I was disappointed to learn that Carlsbad City Council member and candidate for the 76th District seat in the California Assembly, Farrah Douglas, was one of the first five signers.
Follow the jump for the rest. [click to continue…]
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