Current Issue of Cedar Street Times
Here are the current articles for this week.
Cal Am withdraws support for the Regional Desalination Project
By Editor | January 17, 2012
Unable to reach agreement with the Marina Coast Water District and Monterey County Water Resources Agency on how to address multiple challenges which have arisen, California American Water today announced this morning that it is withdrawing support for the Regional Water Project, the three-party agreement behind the Regional Water Project.
“Desalination will be part of the Monterey Peninsula’s future water supply, but the Regional Desalination Project will not be the vehicle to deliver it,” said California American Water president Rob MacLean in a press release. “Recognizing the severity of the state’s cutback order, we must now move forward on an alternative water supply project as quickly as possible.”
The desalination project has become bogged in legal issues, most recently the requirement that the necessary EIR be redone by the water district itself and not the California Public Utilities Commission, which had previously submitted an EIR.
Cal Am and County officials have agreed to cooperate on finding an alternative water supply — or supplies — and Cal Am stated that they encourage Marina Coast Water District to participate in these talks.
“Everyone is committed to finding a water supply solution for the Monterey Peninsula,” said Monterey County Supervisor Dave Potter. “With mediation ending and the Environmental Impact Report stalled, we have an opportunity to more broadly engage the public and fix the Peninsula’s water problem.”
California American Water has requested that the California Public Utilities commission allow them to continue to work toward the design and construction of conveyance pipelines and water storage facilities. These portions of the agreement had previously been approved by the California Public Utilities commission and will be required for any of the water projects now under study.
Eleven options were identified in a study commissioned by Cal Am and published by RBF Consulting last fall. They included desalination projects of various sizes, wastewater reclamation, filtration systems, groundwater recharge, and further conservation.
It is unknown at this stage how this will affect the Peninsula mayors’ proposed JPA, which is wending its way through six city councils. Carmel has agreed to it, albeit with reservations, and Pacific Grove’s City Council turned it down as written. The JPA will be taken up again at the regularly scheduled City Council meeting Wed., Jan. 18.
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Pacific Grove City Council says “not yet” to JPA
By Editor | January 13, 2012
In a special meeting called to examine the proposed Joint Powers Authority drawn by six area mayors, a majority of Pacific Grove’s councilmembers turned down the proposal – but not the idea. Without a vote on the current version, which was obviously going to go against the JPA based on discussion, the council instead moved to wait until the next scheduled City Council meeting in hopes that some of their questions would be answered.
Along with nearly everyone who addressed the council in person and in correspondence, all councilmembers said they wanted to see assurances that the 34 percent of ratepayers who do not live in cities covered by the JPA would have a voice, probably through the Water Management District. Mayor Garcia gave verbal assurance that they would be added, but councilmembers were steadfast.
Another issue that many of the councilmembers raised was that of the funding. Ken Cuneo asked how Pacific Grove was going to find the money, $25,000 up front, to pay a director’s salary let alone any prospective employees when “we’re hanging by a thread” as it is.
The opposition Rudy Fischer expressed included questions around the need for a JPA in the first place when there are already organizations charged with the same thing – the Water Management District – which actually have expertise while the mayors do not.
Alan Cohen didn’t like the provision that the city representative always be the mayor or the vice mayor. He said that it should be someone with more expertise, and other councilmembers agreed.
Asking, “If through all these years we haven’t come up with any new water, what is it about the JPA that’s going to end the fights?”
Robert Huitt was probably the most adamant about not joining the JPA yet. He said he thought it was “sprung” on the councils – it only came to light last Thursday – and that it should be continued.
Vice Mayor Bill Kampe didn’t like the weighted voting portion, nor did other councilmembers. Fearing that the “big boys” would push little Pacific Grove around, he said he wanted to see the weighted voting “punched” or discussed before agreeing. He did second the Mayor’s motion to pass the JPA in the first place, but said he wanted more time to have questions answered.
“Can the Water Management District advocate for all the ratepayers?” he asked David Stoldt of the District, who had addressed the council earlier. The answer was yes, and Stoldt added that the WMD had provided data and also monitored ratesetting and financial impact, adding to the reasons it should be added to the JPA. Fifth District representative and former Pacific Grove Mayor Jeanne Byrne concurred.
(Councilmember Dan Miller was absent due to illness.)
Libby Downey, Monterey’s Vice Mayor and a board member of the Water Pollution Control Agency, cautioned against passing it and told the council she thought they should wait a month to look at it, after revisions had been made. She advised adding the PCA to the mix.
The JPA will be formed even if only two City Councils agree. Carmel already agreed, earlier this week, though many of the same objections were raised at their meeting. Monterey, Seaside, Sand City and Del Rey Oaks all meet in the next few weeks. When City Manager Tom Frutchey advised that if Pacific Grove joined before Jan. 24 (when all the other cities will have voted), it could still be a charter member, the original motion to pass was withdrawn and a continuation to the Jan. 18 regular city council meeting was agreed upon.
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Pacific Grove Monarch count is up
By Editor | January 7, 2012
MONARCH ALERT: Erica Krygsman and Tama Olver conducted this week’s Monterey County monarch counts on January 4 and 5. The average number of monarchs counted at the Pacific Grove Sanctuary was 11,645, an increase from last week’s count, while counts at some other sites decreased. Temperatures were very warm both days and and flying and sunning activity was high; in addition, clusters at several sites were smaller, less dense, and occurred on more trees than noted in previous weeks. Both of these factors may have influenced the average number of monarchs counted.
There are theories that butterflies “ping pong” between sites and do not roost at the same site all season long. This “ping pong” activity has been observed at other overwintering sites where tagging is allowed but cannot be confirmed here in Pacific Grove. The “ping pong” activity would account for rising and falling numbers over a season.
There is as yet no report on the depredation question noted two weeks ago, when some 300 Monarchs were discovered dead or dying with their abdomens eaten. There was speculation of wasp activity.
Next counts are scheduled for January 10 and 11.
COUNTS – MONTEREY COUNTY
Pacific Grove Sanctuary 11,645
George Washington Park 7
Point Lobos Reserve 681
Andrew Molera State Park 3,104
Private Property, Big Sur 6,633
Plaskett Creek 1,173
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Blakeslee not likely to run for re-election
By Editor | January 5, 2012
Facing bleak odds against his party in the newly-drawn State Senate District, Republican State Sen. Sam Blakeslee, who represents the Central Coast, announced in his hometown newspaper, the San Luis Obispo Tribune, that he would not seek re-election unless the California Supreme Court intervenes. The Court is expected to take up the issue next week of whether to use the old district lines or the new ones come November, 2012, when an initiative could be on the ballot.
The GOP, which had originally led the campaign for redistricting under a citizen-led redistricting panel, was outraged by the results – which shift party balance in every district – and collected more than 700,000 signatures in an attempt to put the new lines before the voters.
If Democrats could win two seats in both the Assembly and Senate, they would then have majorities which would allow their wishes to prevail when it comes to budget, tax and spending bills.
Assemblyman Bill Monning, D-Carmel, now the only announced candidate it the race, would then have a clear shot to pick up the seat.
“It’s a significant development,” Monning said on his campaign Facebook page. “My plan is to continue to be methodical in my groundwork and outreach and take nothing for granted. I do appreciate his articulating his intention. If that is what comes to pass, that is obviously good news for us. I have great respect for Sen. Blakeslee and would consider him a formidable opponent.”
Monning has also pointed out that there is rarely an uncontested seat at this level of state politics. The Republican party is expected field at least one candidate, though the local party office could not disclose who that might be.
Redrawn Assembly District lines have also resulted in a Democratic majority for District 29, the Central Coast. There are two candidates, Mayor Carmelita Garcia, and Santa Cruz County Supervisor Mark Stone, both Democrats. Because of the new “top two” primary rule, they will likely not only face off in June but again in November.
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Heroes honored with Carnegie Medal
By Editor | January 5, 2012
The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission on Dec. 14, 2011 named 18 individuals as recipients of the Carnegie Medal. The medal is given throughout the United States and Canada to those who risk their lives to an extraordinary degree while saving or attempting to save the lives of others.
Ronald D. Curry of Pacific Grove and his golfing partner, Harold T. Leach of Danville often golf early on Sunday mornings at Pacific Grove Golf Links. On this particular Sunday, November 8, 2009, they had reached the 18th hole at about 10:00.
“Because they play early, it put them there in a position to hear those men in trouble. Most golfers reach that spot about 11:30 or later,” said Pacific Grove Golf Links Pro Joe Reikana.
Margarito Garcia and another man were in a 15-foot aluminum boat off Point Pinos when the boat capsized in rough surf. They shouted for help, drawing the attention of Curry, 50, painting contractor, and Leach, 51, financial service company executive. Curry and Leach ran into the water and waded and swam in cold, Pacific Ocean water toward the men in high waves breaking among large rocks near shore.
Garcia’s companion reached an exposed rock and clung to it, but Garcia was floating face down about 300 feet from shore. Curry and Leach reached him, positioned him on his back, and then with difficulty retraced their course to shore, pulling him. Lifeguards arrived and rescued Garcia’s companion.Curry and Leach were both tired and cold and had cuts to their legs from the rocks, but they recovered.
These heroes bring to 83 the number of awards made in 2011 and to 9,495 the total number of awards since the Pittsburgh-based Fund’s inception in 1904. Commission President Mark Laskow stated that each of the awardees will also receive a financial grant. Throughout the 107 years since the Fund was established by industrialist-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, $33.9 million has been given in one-time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits, and continuing assistance.
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Pacific Grove Monarch Numbers Still Healthy
By Editor | December 22, 2011
Supporters of the Pacific Grove Monarch Grove Sanctuary addressed a curious occurrence this week. More than 300 dead monarchs have been observed in the Pacific Grove Monarch Grove Sanctuary over the past several weeks, many with their abdomens missing. “This is consistent with wasp predation, but it is difficult to determine if wasps are solely responsible.” asserted Francis Villablanca, Ph.D., the science advisor for Cal Poly State University’s Monarch Alert Program. “This predation on the monarchs should not be too alarming.”
Stuart Weiss, Ph.D., the scientist working with the City of Pacific Grove on the Sanctuary Maintenance Plan states that “Such predation is a normal feature of overwintering monarchs. Some birds learn to avoid the distasteful parts, as do some rodents.”
Currently, an estimated 2.5% of the overall Pacific Grove monarch population has been affected by the predation. The Monarch Alert Program, tracking weekly changes in the estimated monarch population size, has observed a normal decrease in the Pacific Grove Sanctuary monarch population that is consistent for this time of year and consistent with other overwintering sites throughout San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties.
Monte Sanford, Ph.D., an Environmental Science Advisor observed, “There is nothing unusual about the predation by wasps at the sanctuary, but the City should continue to monitor the situation.” The City agrees. Mike Zimmer, Public Works Superintendent for the City of Pacific Grove stated, “The City of Pacific Grove works diligently to maintain a healthy monarch sanctuary. Before the start of this overwintering season, we put together a Sanctuary Maintenance Plan with members of the City’s Natural Resource Commission, the City’s Museum Board, and public works staff. We are closely monitoring this situation with the help of scientists, the Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner’s office, and the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History.” The Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History’s monarch docents are tracking the numbers and genders of observed dead monarchs, and the docents are collecting the dead monarchs for scientific study.
With over 8,800 monarchs still hanging in clusters in the sanctuary, visitors continue to enjoy the monarchs’ beauty. The sanctuary is open from sunrise to sunset and the admission and parking is free. The sanctuary is located on Ridge Road off Lighthouse Avenue near downtown Pacific Grove. Plan to visit on warmer days between 12 and 3, when Museum monarch docents are available with spotting scopes, and the butterflies are active.
-Lori Mannel, Director, Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History
- Mike Zimmer, Director, City of Pacific Grove Public Works
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Parking “sensors” to be explored to control timed lots
By Editor | December 16, 2011
A comprehensive report by Planning staff to outline upgrades in current paid parking plans for the downtown and Lovers Point areas became a battle cry once again. The report, which was requested by City Council, outlined the areas in question and gave comparisons of plans in other areas and other cities. But Mayor Garcia said it was more than was requested – that she had sought a two-page report. The entire agenda item was 31 pages long, 14 pages of which was a potential Request For Proposals for an outside vendor to examine the program and oversee installation of parking sensors, among other duties.
There was no mention in the report of parking meters along Lighthouse Avenue or Ocean View Blvd., and no increase in the number of time-restricted spaces, but rather the report was directed, as requested, at the potential of installing pay stations at current timed lots between Fandango restaurant and the Bank of America and the lot behind Lighthouse Cinemas on Fountain Avenue. Nonetheless, there were a number of members of the public who were unhappy about the prospect of pay-to-park spaces downtown.
Currently, there are a number of public lots as well as private ones in downtown Pacific Grove. On-street parking ranges from one hour to two hours in the downtown area. At the American Tin Cannery, there is metered parking on Eardley, Sloat and Ocean View as well as timed, paid parking behind the ATC. Customers may park there for $10 to visit the Aquarium or free if they patronize the American Tin Cannery shops and restaurants, though it was mistakenly reported at the city council meeting that parking there costs $20 in any case.
The staff plan suggested that 80 percent of parking revenue be dedicated to public improvements and services within the downtown area only. Such improvements might include trash cans, park benches, funding intersection improvements, pedestrian amenities, street cleaning and maintenance, signage and other amenities which would improve the appearance of downtown.
The report also suggested that sensors for timed parking spaces be examined, particularly at Lovers Point and nearby areas. The latest in technology, such sensors are based on GPS systems and are placed under the pavement. They would sense when a vehicle entered a parking space and then would alert the parking enforcement staff when the allotted time was up.
Parking enforcement officers would track the timed spaces on a computer screen and would then be able to issue citations, a much more efficient and environmentally-sensitive system than the current one, where parking enforcement staff drives around town and marks tires and attempts to return to check marks within the 90-minute or two-hour time allotment.
In the end, the council voted not to examine any of the other suggestions but only to send out the RFP to bring back a vendor that would install parking sensors solely at Lovers Point.
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Model train show coming
By Editor | December 4, 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBYlfBGLb5k
Seems like a lot of work for just two days of the exhibit, but model train enthusiasts take a lot of care getting the show ready for next weekend, Dec. 10-11 at American Tin Cannery. Lance Wright, a Scout leader, owns the train but Philip Tuffs and his older brother, David, are running it. They’re working out the last kinks and practicing signals to run “PG Steel Co.” railroad as their dad, Simon, looks on.
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Golf consultant presents report, asks some hard questions
By Editor | December 2, 2011
By Marge Ann Jameson
In May, 2011 the City Council, anxious to put to bed questions about how to best run the municipal golf course, decided to hire an outside consultant to look at the operation. City Manager Tom Frutchey, at the time, said he thought it was pretty obvious that the City wasn’t expert at managing the property and restaurant, so outside help was sought. After a request for proposals, Golf Convergence, Inc. was hired in September to begin the study.
The anticipated report is in and with it some hard questions, and not a little backlash. Jim Keegan, principal of Golf Convergence, presented his full findings first at an emergency meeting of the Golf Links Advisory Commission on Mon., Nov. 28 and again at an emergency meeting of the City Council on Tues., Nov. 29. He suggested the City Council consider whether the golf links is a subsidized amenity for the citizens – and how much should the General Fund (i.e. taxpayers) be willing to kick in to keep it running if improvements are not made – or is it a self-sustaining treasure, and how can it be made profitable.
The golf industry as a whole, he said, is down 2.3 percent nationwide – exactly the percentage dip that Pacific Grove is suffering.
In the interim the golf course has reported a loss of more than $413,000 reported in September, 2011. The Golf Enterprise Fund, which had been sitting at $625,658 was reported down to $143,658 at that time. Bills, said the Finance Department, were paid without dipping into the General Fund, but that wasn’t going to last long without some relief strategies, whether they be revenue enhancement or cost-cutting or some combination of the two.
Golf Enterprise Fund
As of October 31, 2011
Year to date revenue: $1,101,373
Year to date expenditures: $1,135,948
Net loss (year to date): $34,575 (Approx. 3%)
Keegan’s 45-minute presentation boiled down to a few suggestions:
• Examine privatization of golf course management
The average municipal course pays out 3 percent of golf operational costs in indirect administrative costs, such as human resources, accounting, payroll, legal etc. We pay 12 percent. Keegan recommends we cut it back to 6 percent. He suggested that a Request for Proposals be issued soon.
• Place a general manager on-site
Currently, the ostensible general manager is also the City Manager
• Clean up the golf course to provide a better experience for golfers and look at extending it by 542 yards to attract major tournaments
Golf Convergence pinpointed several trees and bushes which they felt should be trimmed or removed, as well as some unattractive and useless fencing. Keegan also showed photos of some run-down restroom facilities on the 16th which he said “no lady would use.”
• Get rid of free golf for city employees, former councilmembers and Coast Guard members
• Retain the discount Monarch Card, but sunset the Lighthouse Card and do not issue any more annual discount cards
Calling it a “culture of entitlement like he has seen nowhere else,” Keegan pointed out that the cost of a round of golf is $45.09 and he could see no sense in issuing punch cards which allowed play for $10 at prime tee times.
• Charge no-shows
A number of individuals, many of them repeat, make a reservation and then don’t show up or cancel, so that the tee time can be given to someone else. The loss to the Links was estimated by Golf Convergence, who had examined all the pertinent records, at some $75,000 per year.
• Upgrade the marketing system to use Point Of Sale automated email to attract existing and repeat customers more often.
Keegan said that the number of one-time-only customers could be improved significantly by the use of a simple emailed invitation, with no discount or other incentive needed.
• Reduce the role of the Golf Links Advisory Commission
Because they are not experts the City relies perhaps too heavily on their advice.
• Examine the branding and vision statement of the Golf Links
Keegan pointed to the difference between saying “Golf as it should be” and “Golf as it was meant to be.”
Results had apparently been discussed earlier, when the City Council agenda report was written, because a representative of the City’s General Employee Association (GEA) and a UPEC union representative were also scheduled to make presentations addressing one small part of the consultant’s recommendations – that of examining privatization and the salaries and benefits of employees. Ellis Miller, Business Agent for the United Public Employees of California, made a plea to retain City control and city employees. A letter from Steve Allen, the union negotiator who had recently worked with City management on the labor agreement, was read into the record. The letter struck hard at Golf Convergence’s report, accusing the consultant of conflict of interest, lack of data and credibility, lack of local references for its data, and “slanted” survey questions.
The City Council, like the Golf Links Advisory the evening before, did not made a decision on the spot. Mayor Carmelita Garcia asked to form a committee to examine the report and come up with recommendations to be made at the second City Council meeting in January, 2012. On the committee will be Garcia, Councilmembers Ken Cuneo and Rudy Fischer, plus a representative from the GLAC; with staff support. The committee will review the document in detail and provide recommendations on implementation, prioritize goals and set timelines.
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Mayor Carmelita Garcia announces run for Assembly
By Editor | November 25, 2011
In a brief announcement on Facebook, Pacific Grove Mayor Carmelita Garcia announced on Thanksgiving that she is running for the Assembly seat soon to be vacated by Bill Monning. Monning is running for State Senate, a decision he made a number of months ago.
The Assembly seat will go to the voters in June, 2012 while Mayor Garcia’s term is up in November, 2012. There have been no other announcements from potential candidates for her office as mayor.
Santa Cruz County Supervisor Mark Stone has also declared that he is running for Monning’s seat. Santa Cruz City Councilwoman Lynn Robinson also declared her candidacy in August, 2011 but dropped out of the race barely a month later.
Mayor Garcia has promised an interview on Monday, Nov. 28. Both Monning and Garcia have Facebook pages for their respective campaigns.
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Monarch Magic Nov. 26
By Editor | November 25, 2011
The Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History presents the annual family-oriented event, “Monarch Magic.”
At this free event, participants are invited to: See live monarch butterflies in all stages of their life cycle, including egg and chrysalis; Listen to live music―for kids and adults; Make monarch butterfly crafts; Get your face painted like a monarch butterfly; Find out about current research on migrating monarchs; Purchase milkweed (monarchs’ host plants) for inland gardens
Monarch Magic will be held on Sat., Nov. 26 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.At the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, 165 Forest Avenue, Pacific Grove. There is no cost to attend.
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Stephen Collins to be arraigned on multiple felony counts
By Editor | November 15, 2011
By Marge Ann Jameson
Monterey County District Attorney Dean Flippo announced Nov. 15 that Stephen Phillip Collins, former director on the Board of Directors of the Monterey County Water Resources Agency, is charged with two felony counts of conflict of interest because he allegedly profited financially from his involvement in making contracts pertaining to the Regional Water Project. The acts of conflict of interest allegedly took place between Jan. 8, 2010 and Dec. 30, 2010.
Collins will be arraigned on Nov. 16.
Flippo declined to say how much Collins allegedly received but it has been reported that he was paid more than $160,000.
Collins is also charged with 31 felony counts of grand theft for billing Ocean Mist Farms for services he did not perform, for example for attending meetings which he did not actually attend. The complaint case states that Collins received at least $950 or more from Ocean Mist Farms in each instance.
Additionally, Collins is also charged with six misdemeanor counts of violating Penal Code section 70, which prohibits public officials from receiving payment other than as authorized by law for doing an official act.
“California government Code section 1090 precludes public officials from being financially interested in any contract made by them in the course of their duties as a public official,” the District Attorney pointed out.
In June, 2011 the District Attorney’s Office opened the investigation into whether local government officials violated criminal statutes during the process which resulted in the California Public Utilities Commission’s approval of Monterey County’s desalination project referred to as the Regional Water Project and the subsequent award of the contract for the Regional Water Project’s management to RMC Water and Environment. Collins recused himself in February, 2011 from a voting on the award of a contract RMC was being awarded from the Water Resources Agency. Questions arose at that time as to what role he was playing with RMC while sitting as a member of the board of the Water Resources Agency.
Collins resigned from the board, under pressure, in April, 2011.
According to the District Attorney, his inquiry necessitated a review of the history of the complex water issues and accompanying litigation in Monterey County and review of well over 1000 pages of documents. Investigators approached more than 30 individuals, according to the District Attorney’s office. All individuals contacted, including Collins, were willing to provide interviews.
The Fair Political Practices Commission is also undertaking an administrative investigation stemming from the same facts. They are focused on violations of the Political Reform Act, according to their Sacramento office, and when the investigation is complete they will make a decision as to whether or not additional complaints might be forthcoming.
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Pollacci sentenced in second rape case
By Editor | November 15, 2011
Thomas Pollacci, age 52 and a resident of Pebble Beach, was sentenced to 6 years in state prison on one count of forcible rape by Judge Adrienne Grover on Nov. 15. This 6-year sentence is to be served consecutively to an 8-year state prison sentence that had been previously imposed by Judge Russell Scott for a total state prison term of 14 years. Pollacci also agreed to waive any appellate rights in the current case as well the previous case in which he had been convicted by a jury of rape.
In this case, Pollacci had met Jane Doe 1 in his liquor store in April 2007. They agreed to go out on a date later that evening. Instead of drinks and dinner, Pollacci took her to a travel trailer his family owned that was parked at the Monterey County airport. There he raped her. Jane Doe 1 came forward after seeing the media reports from Pollacci’s first case and said that she wanted to help that victim in whatever way she could.
Pollacci also met Jane Doe 2 when she stopped by the store to make a purchase in October 2008. At the time Jane Doe 2 worked nearby and Pollacci asked her to go to lunch. She agreed and he took her to the travel trailer that was now parked at a pullout in Pebble Beach. Reluctantly, Jane Doe 2 agreed to go inside and he subsequently raped her. Pollacci then began to make phone calls to her house and drive by Jane Doe 2’s office. Afraid Pollacci would never stop harassing her; she went to his liquor store to confront him. There she was raped again. She, too, decided to come forward after hearing about the victim in the previous case and wanted to help in anyway she could.
“The successful resolution of this case was possible because of the courage of all of the victims who came forward and reported the crimes and also because of the work of DA Investigators Adam Sepagan, Ryan McGuirk and Christina Gunter as well the victim advocate Alma Sanchez,” said the District Attorney.
Before he is eligible for release from state prison, the state will conduct an evaluation to determine if Pollacci qualifies as a sexual violent predator.
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Turbidity in your tap water may occur
By Editor | November 15, 2011
Monterey Fire Department and California American Water Co. will conduct fire hydrant flow tests in various areas of Monterey, Pacific Grove, Carmel and Sand City starting Tues., Nov. 15 through Fri., Dec. 2 between 10:00 a.m. and 5:oo p.m. There may be some discoloration and turbidity of your tap water as a result. Officials assure Cedar Street Times that the condition is only temporary and is not dangerous to your health.
The tests are conducted to ensure that there is adequate water pressure to meed demand should there be an emergency.
If you have questions about your tap water quality, contact Cal-Am at 831-373-3051.
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Asilomar Conference Grounds Announces Opening of Phoebe’s Cafe Nov. 15
By Editor | November 15, 2011
Renovations reflect the seamless merging of historic detail and modernization
Asilomar Conference Grounds’ new dining option, Phoebe’s Café, will open to the public on Nov. 15, 2011. Located in the common area of Phoebe A. Hearst Social Hall, the café was constructed during the Hall’s recent renovation. A ceremony will be held on Dec. 8, 2011 to officially mark the completion of the Hall’s renovation and the opening of the café.
Phoebe’s Café invites guests and community members to gather in the comfortable antique setting of the Social Hall to enjoy espresso and tea creations as well as quick meal options throughout the day and local beer and wine selections in the evening. The Café’s hours will be 6:30 AM a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
“Asilomar’s team made sure to maintain the historical significance of the social hall preserving and re-using as much of the original historic fabric as possible during the renovation”, says Michael Ferry, Asilomar sector superintendent. “It is the mission of California State Parks to protect and preserve our most valued cultural resources. We were able to fulfill our mission with this exciting project through our combined efforts and partnership with ARAMARK”.
Asilomar’s team worked with state park historians, interpretors, engineers and architects when developing the plans for the renovations and relied heavily on Julia Morgan’s original drawings. Asilomar’s improvements will create an estimated 50 temporary construction jobs and five new full-time positions. In addition to the social hall renovations, Asilomar will also be making improvements to the grounds’ kitchen and guest rooms. This summer, Asilomar added free Wi-Fi and new beds to all guest rooms.
“As Asilomar’s 100th anniversary approaches, it is important we look forward and cater to the changing needs of our clientele,” says Mairead Hennessy, resident district manager for Asilomar Conference Grounds. “The renovation of the historic buildings and modernization of the facilities are part of our continuing effort to provide services enhancing the experience of our guests, visitors and the community while preserving the grounds’ historic legacy.”
About Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds
Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds was founded by the YWCA as a young women’s leadership camp in 1913. The nearly-100-year-old site features the largest collection of Julia Morgan-designed buildings in the world, and has been protected as a state park since 1956. The conference grounds hosts leisure guests and groups of up to 1,000 in historic and newer buildings set among the
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York School adds 100+ acres as “outdoor laboratory”
By Editor | November 12, 2011
Twenty years in the planning, the dream of acquiring 100-plus acres of land adjacent to the York School campus is now a reality. The addition of the “York Outdoor Laboratory,” located on 101 acres of maritime chaparral in the former Fort Ord, increases the size of the campus fivefold, paving the way for expanded academic and athletic programs.
The initial application for the land, filed over 20 years ago, outlined the intended educational uses of the land. During the transfer process, York faculty and administration developed curricular and extra-curricular plans for incorporating the land into York’s educational mission.
“We are excited about the opportunities for our students to learn more about the natural environment in which they live and learn,” said Chuck Harmon, Head of School. “We pledge to be good stewards of this land, and we want to expand our partnerships in the larger community so that interested individuals and groups can join York students in observing, exploring, and enjoying the myriad scientific and recreational possibilities offered by the York Outdoor Lab,” he said, adding that the vision and participation of Trustee Emeritus Steven Webster have been invaluable.
Webster, a marine biologist and a founder of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, has been a lead proponent of the York Outdoor Laboratory and was instrumental in the acquisition process. He joined the York Board in 1979 and has served as trustee emeritus since 2005.
The York Outdoor Laboratory will provide education and research programs in field biology, ecology, natural history, geosciences, and the history of land use practices for York students and the Central Coast community. The York School athletic fields, on land previously leased from the U.S. Army, encompass approximately 30 of the 101.19 acres of the former Ford Ord property. York’s lacrosse, soccer, and field hockey teams practice and play on these fields. The remaining acreage is in a largely natural state, with the exception of a graded firebreak. The Outdoor Laboratory, adjacent to the Fort Ord Natural Reserve to the north, will function as an extension of the Reserve’s living resources to the York School campus to the south.
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Election returns 10:40 election night
By Editor | November 8, 2011
Early returns: Byrne, 61.12%, Doyle 38.88%; Measure U 71.4% for, 28.6% against; Measure V 59.65% for, 40.35% against. Looking for another update soon, perhaps at 11:00. Not very many voters. These figures may not change appreciably, which means that Measure V probably goes down as it needed 66%. Pacific Grove is counted among the last — what we’re seeing is mostly absentee ballots which are normally fairly conservative.
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“All About York” free event provides insight into York School
By Editor | November 8, 2011
York School presents All About York on Sat., Nov. 12 from 1-5 p.m. on the York campus.
The “IQ” Session – ice cream and questions – from 1:00-2:00 p.m. provides an opportunity to ask questions of students, teachers, parents, and alumni in an informal setting. At 2:00 p.m. the structured program provides a detailed overview of everything at York: academic courses, athletics, arts, college counseling, admissions, and financial aid.
The event is free and open to the public. For information, visit www.york.org or contact Catha Smith, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, at 831-372-7338 x 115 csmith@york.org.
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Letters to the Editor and Editorials: Election Nov. 2011
By Editor | November 7, 2011
Note: We have noticed a lot of readers coming to our website as a result of certain search engine queries. These searches indicate to us that you, our readers, are looking for information and opinion about the water board candidates running in tomorrow’s election. Many, we know, have already voted. But for the others, we have taken all of the letters from our print version and lumped them here in this post to make it easy for you and, we hope, easier for you to make up your minds. The latest are the ones at the top and from there they go back in time. Editorials are at the end.
Letter writers are wrong about Byrne and ‘scare tactics’
Editor:
Vicki Pearse, in her letter (October 21 issue) accused Jeanne Byrne of using “scare tactics” in her campaign. Time to set the record straight with facts.
The Cease and Desist Order states as of December 31, 2016 Cal Am pumping from the Carmel River is limited to its legal right of 3,376 acre feet. Fact.
The adjudication order for the Seaside Basin states Cal Am pumping from that basin is limited to 2,299 acre feet for 2017 and 1,820 acre feet in 2018. Fact.
Residential water use will be limited to 35 gallons per day per person (current use, 60 gallons per day per person). Fact.
This means the hospitality industry, for example, could be out of business without replacement water. 20,000+ jobs lost. $40 million of local tax revenues generated gone and TOT revenue drastically diluted, directly impacting city services. All fact.
Certain individuals and organizations in this community love “process” but never get anything done, thus our water crisis. A hard fact.
This is precisely why the Coalition of Peninsula Businesses supports Jeanne Byrne for MPWMD Board. The incumbent thinks about alternatives and promotes more conservation. Byrne recognizes the crisis and is committed to solving the problem.
John V. Narigi, Co-chair
Coalition of Peninsula Businesses
Byrne is right: water future is scary
Editor:
Jeanne Byrne is right. The Peninsula’s water future is scary.
The State’s Cease and Desist Order (CDO) goes into effect December 31, 2016. There is no reason to believe the State will delay the CDO. The effect on the Peninsula will be catastrophic. Residents who are already among the lowest water users in the State will have to reduce by another 40%. All other uses (hospitals, schools, government, and business) in the Cal Am service area will have to compete for the little water that will be left. There will be no water for growth of any kind. The Hospitality industry, its $2 billion in revenue, 23,000 jobs and $40 million in local tax revenue will be all but gone. The impact will be felt throughout the region, not just on the Peninsula. That is scary.
Jeanne Byrne’s opponent wants to study more alternatives, including alternatives that have been studied, and force more conservation. There is not much left to conserve. None of the alternatives can be studied, approved, financed and built in time to avoid the CDO. That is scary.
MCHA supports and recommends Jeanne Byrne for the MPWMD Board. Ms. Byrne recognizes the crisis and is to committed action, not more studies. Any other option is scary.
Bonnie Adams
Monterey County Hospitality Association
Influence from the inside
Editor:
It’s surprising to me that Mr. Monosoff would misrepresent facts pertaining to a contribution from a Realtor® Political Action Committee in Los Angeles, when Mr. Monosoff himself is a Realtor® and should understand how these contributions are made.
For clarification purposes; while the check indeed does come from Los Angeles, (for legal and accounting purposes) the decision to support candidates for local elected office are made by a LOCAL committee of Realtor® within Monterey County. Specifically, these individuals are members of the Monterey County Association of Realtor®, an organization of which Mr. Monosoff is also a member. The funds used for local candidate support come only from local Realtor® contributions.
I happen to be a resident of Pacific Grove and proudly sit on the above-mentioned committee. We extended invitations to all of the MPWMD candidates and heard back from all of them, minus one – Regina Doyle. I speak for the committee when I say that we did our homework in this race. We asked tough questions and received real answers and firmly stand behind our endorsement and support of Jeanne Byrne for MPWMD Board of Directors.
As a resident and Realtor® in Pacific Grove (and not an out-of-district business group), I encourage my friends and neighbors to vote for Jeanne Byrne – a proven leader focused on real solutions.
Arleen Hardenstein
Pacific Grove
Influence from the outside
Editor:
Every voter in Pacific Grove and Pebble Beach should be asking why so many businesses from outside the area are trying to influence their vote in next week’s water board election. Four groups in particular – a real estate PAC in Los Angeles, a “leadership” group in Salinas, a county business PAC and commercial property owners in the city of Monterey – contributed $5,000 each to the campaign of former Mayor Jeanne Byrne, who is trying to unseat incumbent Regina Doyle for the Pacific Grove/Pebble Beach seat on the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District’s board.
Their donations amounted to half of the $40,557 Byrne had raised by last week’s deadline for filing financial disclosures, while building trades unions in the Bay Area and Marina contributed another $5,000, and a Monterey investor donated $2,700.
The businesses’ largesse may allow the most expensive campaign ever for this water board seat — so far amounting to about $9 for each of the 4,747 votes cast in the last election. The money is being spent for professional campaigners, expensive ads and yard signs plastered around the area.
Doyle reported a more modest $9,156 in campaign contributions, which is about normal in this district when candidates usually depend on volunteers to discuss issues that matter with their neighbors. The Doyle campaign is spending about $2 per voter, most of it for printing and mailing brochures and letters.
These contributions and expenditures are all on file in the Monterey County Elections Department for anyone who wants to read them. And they really raise the question of why so many outside interests are trying to influence our local votes. Are they really concerned about our best interests?
Lance Monosoff
Carmel
Note: The preceding letter appeared first in the Monterey County Herald, a daily newspaper, so Ms. Hardenstein’s response, above, appeared at the same time that Mr. Monosoff’s letter appeared on our pages.
Byrne is the problem-solver we need
Editor:
I have been walking neighborhoods with Jeanne Byrne and am surprised at how many people do not fully understand the rationing consequences if we do not have a long-term sustainable water project by the end to 2016. It is not scare tactics to make people aware of the 60 percent cut back of the Carmel River pumping mandated by the State Water Resources Board and the related rationing of 35 gallons of water per person per day unless there is a new water project.
All of us who were here for the previous rationing of 50 gals/person know that the rationing proposed in 2016 will definitely eliminate jobs, drastically affect families and cause the loss of businesses.
As mayor, Jeanne Byrne was effective in negotiating Peninsula solutions such as including Pacific Grove and Carmel on the Fort Ord Reuse Authority Board, giving preference on FORA contracts to the tri-county area for economic recovery and creating a Peninsula Mayor’s monthly meeting to resolve specific Peninsula issues. She will bring the same collaborative problem-solving to the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District to move a long-term water solution forward to provide for the future of the Peninsula.
Kathy Anderson
Monterey
MPWMD Board: Let’s see some action: Don’t go back to days of rationing
Editor:
Boy, Ron Pasquinelli’s recent letter [Cedar Street Times Vol. IV Issue 6] really hit home with me. I too remember living through a severe drought and saving the used dishwater to water the plants and flush the toilets. I remember having buckets in the shower with me so that I would have water for other uses. Needless to say, that is no way to live. I believe in saving the Steelhead Trout and preserving nature, but when do people become an endangered species?
Since moving to the Monterey Peninsula we have been amazed at how little water people here use compared to places like San Diego, Sacramento, and the Bay Area. The days of ignoring the need to find more water – or at least replace what we are about to lose – are over. I hope we can get rational people like Bob Brower re-elected, and people like Jeanne Byrne elected to join him. Maybe then we can finally get some action out of the MPWMD Board and some of the other agencies involved in this issue.
Rudy Fischer
Pacific Grove
Conservation is not enough: We need a sustainable water source
Editor:
Peninsulans use approximately an average of 60 gallons per person per day, which is the lowest in the state by about 130 gallons. However, conservation alone will not save us from the water crisis we face.
Cal Am Water has been ordered to limit pumping from the Carmel River groundwater basin by more than 60 percent of what it currently pumps. If no replacement water is created by the end of 2016, everyone will suffer critical economic and quality of life hardships.
Less water means businesses such as hotels and restaurants will generate less revenue and will need to cut jobs. Less water means less tax revenue to support local police, fire, teachers and other services.
There has been too much talk and not enough action to develop a sustainable water source to solve the coming water crisis. A community leader who understands the issues and supports the future of our community is Jeanne Byrne, former Pacific Grove mayor, community volunteer and a longtime architect running her own business. Jeanne Byrne deserves our vote for the water management board on Nov. 8.
Henry Nigos
Chairman, Board of Directors
Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce
Water Management District should be planning, but is now in crisis mode
Editor:
The issues and proposals for our Peninsula water supply become more varied and confusing as time moves forward. Unfortunately, as time moves forward without a concrete solution to the State-mandated Cease and Desist Order, we move closer and closer to the reality of severe rationing and no long-term solution for water for our future.
There are a variety of small projects under consideration, as well as drought-resistant desal proposals. The smaller projects include, among others, aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) and reclaimed water from the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA). However, none of the small proposed projects are drought resistant, as they depend on either pumping from the Carmel River during peak flow periods or available water when it is not required by the Salinas agriculture industry. In addition, these smaller projects are only aimed at just offsetting the cutback in the over-pumping of the Carmel River. In 2014, the cutback will be approximately 40 percent. This means that the current building moratorium and the current moratorium on new water meters will stay in place.
There have been misleading statements and proposals for water solutions based on inflated production levels, minimized costs and unrealistic timelines for projects that do not have any of the required approvals. The disservice to the community is that these “proposals” further confuse and hamper the progress of actual viable projects. Unfounded misinformation is a diversion to the focus on accomplishing real projects within the critical timeline of the State Cease and Desist order.
By 2016, without a larger, long-term, sustainable project, the rationing to meet a 60 percent reduction in pumping from the river will be severe. Residents will be guaranteed 35 gal/day/person (below the health standard), but that will leave businesses to absorb the remaining deficit of approximately 1,744 acre-feet, assuming a high winter flow for ASR.
These are the numbers that Cal Am and the Monterey Peninsula Water Management Dist. (MPWMD) have estimated from current use records and, again, only allow for replacement water for the Carmel River over-pumping. The numbers that are missing are those estimating the water use for economic recovery and moderate economic growth.
The Monterey Peninsula Water Management District should function as originally intended, to plan for the future of the Monterey Peninsula water needs. Unfortunately, the District’s function has been reduced to that of management by crisis in order to assist Cal Am in complying with the Cease and Desist order. To address the over pumping of the river is now the most urgent task at hand. However, in order for the District to continue to serve the community it must restore its long-term planning function. The future of the Peninsula depends on assessment and planning for our long-term water needs.
Jeanne C. Byrne
Pacific Grove
(Editor’s Note: Jeanne C. Byrne is running for election in Division 4 of the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District. Her figures were verified through the Water Management District, Cal Am and the California Public Utilities Commission. )
Water, Taxes and the Quality of Life
Editor:
Why don’t we have enough water? We used to.
In the late 1970’s we endured a serious multi-year drought. The Monterey Peninsula Water Management District was formed and the water wars began in earnest. On one side were those who believed that they could preserve the Quality of Life on the Peninsula by limiting population growth by limiting the water supply. The other side believed that this was shortsighted and unfair to those who were born here, wanted to live here, build their homes and enjoy a good quality of life. Local environmentalists, who also wanted limited, or no, growth, managed to get a State ruling that restricted Cal-Am’s use of the water from the Carmel River.
For well over 30 years these factions have debated and fought over every proposed water project. No significant projects were ever agreed on nor built. The State Water Resources Board became frustrated with this lack of progress and issued a “Cease and Desist Order” requiring Cal Am to stop pumping the bulk of their water from the Carmel River. The order states that if by December 31, 2016, we have not developed another water supply, we must reduce our residential consumption to 35 gallons per person per day.
The concept of limiting infrastructure and thereby limiting growth has proven to be not only shortsighted but also costly and destructive of the very lifestyle it was believed such action would protect. Those of us who were here in 1977-8 remember living on 50 Gallons per day per person. People washed their dishes in a pan of soapy water and rinsed them in different pan of clear water. They used the rinse water to save a few of their garden plants. People were told to not flush the toilet every time. The mantra was “If it’s yellow, let it mellow, If its brown flush it down.” It was a very difficult 2 years. It was not fun and residents Quality of Life was very degraded.
If there is no new water supply by 2021 non-residential users (hospitals, schools, municipalities, parks, recreation etc. ) will have to get by on whatever is left over. Non-residential users will have to cut about 60% of their current use. The hotel and restaurant industry long ago reduced their use by over 50%. They simply cannot stay in business if they cannot provide their guests with water.
What will be the cost to the residents if we don’t have a project built and on-line by 2017?
Rationing is very inconvenient and expensive. Cal-Am will have to charge more for the little water they do deliver just to cover their fixed costs. There will also be a major loss of tax revenue as the Hospitality Industry shuts down. Not to mention the 27,000 jobs which will be put at risk.
At this time The Hospitality Industry generates $55,000,000/year in Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) plus sales, property and other taxes, all paid by non-residents. If this industry is shut down, the County and the Municipalities will have no choice but to cut services drastically AND RAISE TAXES on residents.
For those who might look forward to a Peninsula without all the tourist traffic, think of your favorite local restaurant that has also gone out of business.
We need to tell all our elected officials that we expect them to STOP this from happening. We need to elect individuals to our Water Management Board who will work to find a water supply, NOT tell us we to conserve more.
Ron Pasquinelli, President
Monterey Peninsula Taxpayers Association
Cal Am’s study backs scare tactics: Choose Doyle instead
Editor:
The cost analysis of water proposals published in Cedar Street Times is deceptive, even if accurate (I’m allowed to be skeptical). Cost per acre-foot makes the huge Regional Desalination Project (RDP) appear least expensive. In fact, it is the most expensive — because of its excessive size and the incredible injustice of the way water-rate increases will be distributed (almost free to Marina, sky-high to the Monterey Peninsula). Estimated at over $400 million and rising, it is simply (as Marge Jameson notes later in the editorial) “outrageous.” If the crushing expense were not enough, here are more reasons why this is the wrong choice:
[1] The analysis cites an exaggerated demand for water, based on old data. [2] The projected RDP is wastefully over-built even by this puffed-up standard. [3] Experience with large-scale desal plants in California has demonstrated flaws inherent in large size; only small-scale plants have proved practical. [4] Besides being expensive in dollars, desal technology is dangerously energy-expensive, precisely at a time when energy costs are increasing — and we need to be reducing carbon emissions. [5] The corrupt and secret process that has shaped this monstrous project are reason enough to reject it. Indeed, it is on hold and appears to be collapsing under the weight of its own sleaze: all the more reason to move ahead immediately with the multiple affordable alternatives outlined by the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District for smart handling of available water.
Meanwhile, one of our candidates for the District board is using scare tactics, falsely equating conservation with brutal rationing: When faced with “a trickle of water from the tap,” she threatens, ratepayers will choose to pay whatever the RDP costs. Well, this is not our only choice. Choose Regina Doyle instead.
Vicki Pearse
Pacific Grove
If anyone can help resolve water issue, it’s Jeanne Byrne
Editor:
Eleven years ago I had the experience of working with Jeanne Byrne on issues concerning Vista Point senior apartment building, which is near my residence.
She earned my total respect. She is hard-working, creative and deeply cares about the community of which she has been a part for so many years. If anyone can help resolve the water issue, she can.
She has my vote in November.
Marion Trentman-Morelli
Pacific Grove
No more slogans, studies, delays: Vote for Jeanne Byrne
Editor:
When I was a teen-ager in the water-rationing era of the 70’s, living with my parents in Monterey. We had to make do on 50 gallons per person a day. My parents are Great Depression babies and very conservative by nature – never wasting anything.
Coming home from working on a ranch, my father wanted nothing more than to wash away all of the dust and dirt from his long day.
Being a wonderful daddy – and because I was a self-conscious teenager – he allowed me to take my daily shower when he got home but couldn’t let the shower water drain. Once I was done, my father jumped in the tub and bathed himself in my shower water. Then we used that same water to manually flush the toilet by gravity, and also to water our plants inside and out.
Nearly 35 years later, we are still in the same tub. Held hostage in this political and legal water fight and we, as tax-paying and water-conserving citizens, are the pawns.
No more slogans, no more studies, no more delays. We need effective leadership now to find water supplies for the Monterey Peninsula. Vote for Jeanne Byrne.
Arleen Hardenstein
Pacific Grove
The following are editorials written for the pages of Cedar Street Times. The one about water candidate Jeanne Byrne appeared on October 14, 2011 and the two about Measure V on Oct. 29 and 21 respectively.
Vote as it your life depended on it
Did you receive your absentee ballot yet? Many local people will vote in the next three weeks, before election day. If the past is any indicator, a majority of Pacific Grove voters will do so.
There are two issues before you – Measure U, which eases some of the restrictions placed on hospitalities by Measure C a few years ago; and Measure V, which extends and replaces the current parcel tax.
We’ll also be voting for a representative to the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, making a choice between (alphabetically) Jeanne Byrne, architect and former mayor of Pacific Grove, and Regina Doyle, the incumbent and an educational consultant.
To some with whom we’ve spoken, this race is between growth and no growth, progress and status quo, public water and a conglomerate utility, people and fish. It is, of course, more complicated than any of those single issues. In fact, it’s probably the most complicated issue we’ve examined since founding this newspaper.
We have been watching it unfold since pressure began to restore the Carmel River. As various plans for replacement water have been brought to the fore over the years, we’ve been glad-handed and courted, pressured and accused as has every member of the public, whether they were paying attention or not.
What it comes down to for us is this: time, cost, and leadership.
There can be no question that there needs to be replacement water as the Cease and Desist Order takes effect. But we’re mired in litigation and investigations as the countdown is under way, and time to get any option for replacement water is running short.
The Regional Water Project, still the solution of preference for replacement water, has grown from a manageable $150 million a few years ago to the current outrageous $404 million, and no one is talking about how it’s going to be financed and what we, the ratepayers, are going to have to shell out to take a shower and water the begonias, let alone add a second bathroom for Grandma or take her out to dinner. But if we believe the recent study, it’s still the cheapest option.
We have a private water company with failing pipes. Are they waiting for the ratepayers to replace them? The delivery options for the Regional Water Project would seem to say so. And don’t kid yourselves, the public could not do any better job than an experienced utility, even with its aged infrastructure: We saw the results in Felton, when F.L.O.W. took over Cal Am, which had, in turn, purchased Citizens Utility. That didn’t last long. San Lorenzo Valley Water, which provides water for the rest of the San Lorenzo Valley, is now handling Felton’s water which they should have done all along.
But should all of our water be in one bucket, so to speak? No. We in Pacific Grove have become mired in endless discussions about other matters and have ignored the possibilities of new water that have been presented time and again. A grant-financed study years ago showed us we could revive the old reservoir on David Avenue and, with concrete tanks, store enough water in peak flow season to get some things done around here. We were shown a spring box at a private residence below the golf course, an inexpensive solution that anyone sitting on the underground river here in Pacific Grove could adopt. Cisterns have been approved, but how many of us have installed them? We’ve wondered all along why potable water was being used to water the golf course and cemetery when the MRWPCA has an idea to use recycled water that would give us thousands of acre feet, currently going to water artichoke fields.
We have not seen any leadership. We have seen a Water Board give us flow restrictors and meters to measure house plant watering, but not new water. We have “conserved” ourselves into the record books. We need representation, not little timers for our showers. These, our elected representatives, should have been applying pressure all along to get these problems solved, and now, when our backs are to the wall, they crow that they have set up a “supply committee.” The internship is over, people.
And whether some members of the Monterey Peninsula Water District like it or not, there can be no question that we need new water. It’s not about growth. It’s about people, and the economy, and living a reasonable style of life.
As you sit down at the kitchen table to fill out your ballot, we urge you to consider these factors: The time it would take to get a new project drawn up, approved, and built; the cost (and that’s anyone’s guess at this point); and which of the two candidates can provide effective leadership to guide us safely to the next drought. We believe that’s Jeanne Byrne.
Then, by all means, VOTE. If water is life, your life depends on it.
- Marge Ann Jameson
Misconception that Measure V doesn’t address Special Education students
We received a letter from a man who wrote that Measure V is misdirected and does not address the needs of Special Education students in our district. We wish to point out that one reason Measure V is so important is that so much of the General Fund of Pacific Grove’s budget does go to unfunded mandates around special education students.
Pacific Grove Unified School District has an overall budget of $23 million. It serves approximately 1900 students at five K-12 schools, including two grade schools, one middle school, a high school and a continuation high school. There are an additional 1300 students at the adult school. Of the student body of 1900 in grades K-12, some 180 are considered Special Education, with a wide range of needs including learning disabilities, physical disabilities and, most predominant, autism.
These students are well served by our district, even if they are not necessarily educated here in Pacific Grove. Special Education is mandated by the Federal government through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The funds required to educate these students come from state entitlements, federal funds and from the District’s general fund. Funds provided by the state come nowhere near what is needed to fulfill the required mandates for Special Education students (“unfunded mandates”) which come to about $3.93 million, so the Pacific Grove District’s General Fund provides some $3.01 million each year for Special Education to augment the difference in funding. That works out to $16,667 per student plus what ever funds the state is able to provide, which was $675,341 last year for example. Federal funding was $296,564. PGUSD covered the unfunded $3.01 million out of our general fund. Any funding to help offset that $3.01 million shortfall in Federal and state funding would help our overall program.
(Incidentally, Pacific Grove Unified School District spends an average of $12,650 per regular education student.)
Pacific Grove Unified School District is even required to fund transportation for some of these students to classes outside Pacific Grove, which may include special schools as far away as Santa Cruz. Pacific Grove always pays the cost of outside services, makes the necessary arrangements and deals with any issues that arise. In a few cases, parents are paid for transport when Pacific Grove is unable to provide a bus.
You are correct. Pacific Grove does not have enough Special Education students to develop full programs for all SpEd students within the district, given the spectrum of needs, the number of students and the current grade level range of needs. Therefore, contracts have been made with Monterey County Office of Education and with Monterey Peninsula Unified School District to provide required services and classes.
Incidentally, Carmel Unified follows a similar process as Pacific Grove due to its similar district structure. Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, and other larger school districts, have begun to create their own programs and pull their students out from County Office services. The result is that Pacific Grove’s share costs have skyrocketed.
Pacific Grove Unified School District endeavors wherever possible to mainstream SpEd students on top of their special education classes.
The funds raised by Measure X, $35 per parcel, will expire in 2013. The funds raised by Measure V, $60 per parcel, would replace Measure X funds and begin in 2012; if Measure V passes, Measure X would be replaced a year early. These funds are slated to be spent on classroom teachers and academic programs which serve all of our students, replacing more funds from the General Fund spent on Special Education. Measure V funds would not be spent on facilities or administration.
– Marge Ann Jameson
Measure V: It’s a replacement tax and worthy of your vote
Voters will be asked on Nov. 8 to approve a parcel tax designed to bolster the portion of the Pacific Grove Unified School District’s budget devoted to instruction. Back in 2009, a similar measure, Measure X, was approved with a 70.84 percent vote. Measure X, in turn, was an extension of Measure A which had placed a $35 per parcel tax on the ballot.
Faced with declining state funding contributions, and needing to maintain smaller class size and special programs, the Board of Trustees decided to place Measure V on the ballot this fall.
Measure V replaces (emphasis on “replace”) the $35 tax with a $60 tax. Measure X expires June 30, 2013. Measure V would begin July 1, 2013.
They will not run concurrently.
No money goes to administrative salaries or to the state.
No money goes to facilities.
It has nothing to do with football stadiums or science labs, modernized kitchens or pedestrian safety at the Middle School. That was Measure D, the bond issue which was directed at facilities and cannot be used for instructional purposes. Property owners may even notice that, as a result of “selling” the Measure D Bond last June, the interest savings has generated an additional $1 million and property taxes aimed at the debt service should be going down. District staff and the citizen oversight committee look out for our money.
School district trustees, seeking to maintain the high level of education provided by our schools, endeavor constantly to find the best route to a good education for our mainstream students, the community high school and the adult school. No one can argue against the need for teachers and instructional materials to be constantly updated as the world gets smaller and moves faster in every imaginable area.
We graduate high achievers who go on to do bigger and better things. We are at the top of the list of schools recommended by the military for their families coming to the area. We send our students to compete at the state and national level, and glow when they do us proud.
Our teachers work constantly to research and obtain grants for various special programs. The level of dedication of the teachers is palpable.
Attend a school board meeting, especially one that involves a site visit, and you will come away amazed and gratified. This sort of enthusiasm and dedication is a direct result of the smaller class sizes and district and community support that we are able to give in Pacific Grove. Keep it coming. Vote yes on Measure V. We can’t afford not to.
- Marge Ann Jameson
Topics: Current Edition, News, Opinion, Snarkin' With Marge | No Comments »
XC Results, meet at Stevenson 10/27/11
By Editor | October 28, 2011
Varsity Boys • 3.0 miles
Conrad HainCarmel16:44401932251942Tom KochvarCarmel 16:50Addison MillerPG16:52Galen LanierCarmel17:13Andreas SpanosStevenson17:19Les Girard Carmel17:39Timmy MatthewsPG17:39Garrett WashburnStevenson17:51Cody OsbornStevenson17:53Justin DepalatisCarmel17:55Joshua DormanyCarmel18:11Max SchrockCarmel18:17Stephen KatzPG18:37Pall MarienPG18:4415.Skyler LewisPG18:5416.Corey CroneStevenson19:0517.Dashiell StokesPG19:0718.Matt Mounteer PG19:3419.Bryan LouieStevenson19:5920.Gabe Fuente Stevenson20:0921.Jake VillarrealStevenson20:10
Varsity Girls • 3.0 miles
Michelle Watkins PG20:0433415989Mackenzie DoonerCarmel20:25Camille Herhusky Carmel20:26Lizzy TardienCatalina20:52Maddie McKenzie Carmel20:53Isabella FenstermakerPG21:30Carolyn BruckmanStevenson21:59Kaitlyn AltPG22:10Stella ParkPG22:33Brenda MelandCatalina 22:47Katie Wilcox Carmel22:52Kaitlin DavisCarmel 23:21Lucy Scattini Catalina23:23Lily Patterson Catalina23:36Emma Miguel Carmel23:41Emily Quinn Stevenson 23:45Mary ModisettePG23:49Ines BorromeoCatalina24:00Erika De PalatisCarmel24:07Megan MathewStevenson25:27Laura ColoskyCatalina25:5022.Mikaela Welton Stevenson 26:2223.Katherine KoulourisCatalina26:2824.Katie Fahrion Stevenson26:3325.Lauren MurphyPG26:33.526.Marie Vastola PG28:1627.28.
Junior Varsity Boys • 3.0 Miles
Max Iles Carmel 19:14441527321742Nick Girard Carmel 19:31Austin Robertson Carmel 19:44Drew Davis Carmel 19:48Kevin Zischke PG20:05Eric O’Hagan PG20:33Zach Owings Carmel20:34Michael GaoStevenson20:50Austin Kwon Stevenson 21:02Eddie Park Stevenson21:13Aidan McIntyrePG21:23Hunter IngleCarmel 21:26Cole AgenbroadCarmel21:43Yohei MizobuchiStevenson22:03Jamie ChoStevenson22:15Will JohnsonCarmel22:30Austin GillespieStevenson22:35Sean HaStevenson23:00Connor MooneyhamCarmel23:21Miles LawStevenson23:28Andy FooStevenson23:3222.Emmett Ferry Carmel23:4023.Tyler GelzieichterPG23:4324.Duc DangStevenson24:1925.Joseph JooStevenson24:4226.Chris ChuStevenson24:4327.Gamba DialloPG25:2428.Blake RovaiStevenson 25:3629.Baer VanaCarmel26:1030.Kevin Lee Chan Stevenson 27:27
Junior Varsity Girls • 3.0 Miles
Maddie Salvati Carmel25:07Inc.Inc.15Inc.Krista Sedgwick Carmel26:13Aniela GrychCarmel26:34Ireland BarnesCatalina29:23Lauren JohnsonCatalina29:24Jessie WibisonoCatalina29:24.5Cristina MuscoCatalina29:51Veronica LopezCatalina29:51.5Annie KellerCatalina29:52Janet KibonekaCatalina32:05Karen ReinaCatalina32:06
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Occupy Wall Street comes to Alvarado St. and So. Main St.
By Editor | October 18, 2011
By Cameron Douglas
Hundreds of citizens in the Monterey-Salinas area took part in Occupy Wall Street rallies on Sat., Oct. 15. Demonstrations were held in many parts of the world that day, more than 1,500 protests in 82 countries, according to the website, occupywallst.org/. The Oct. 15 event served as an opportunity for others to stand in solidarity with those in New York, who have protested for four weeks straight.
At 10 a.m. in Salinas, a small group of 30 or so set up in front of the Bank of America branch at 405 South Main. 
A bank manager and a security guard promptly came out and talked with organizer Dan Eyde, explaining that only the outer part of the sidewalk was public property and for the protestors to stay off the part leading to the entrance and clear of the driveway. The bank manager’s wishes were respected and the protest continued without incident.
“Bank of America is responsible for 15 percent of the foreclosures in Salinas,” said Eyde. “That’s about 750 homes.” He added that the foreclosures are a result “of their [Bank of America’s] predatory lending practices.”Eyde offered a statement of intent to the manager, who refused it. The document directly addressed Bank of America employees: “Please know that we (the 99 percent) take no issue with you as workers. Given Bank of America’s stated intention to eliminate 30,000 of your co-workers’ jobs, we fully understand the uncertainty you may feel about your own employment prospects…we are all the 99 percent.”
By 11 o’clock, more than 50 protestors lined the sidewalk in front of the bank with colorful signs and musicians playing. Passing drivers honked their horns as the protestors called out chants.
Michael Fredricksen, a college student, described how his father lost his house in foreclosure. “Bank of America took my Dad’s home,” Fredricksen said. “He just had to give it up. Now it’s just sitting there empty. Dad’s always owned his own house. Now he has to look for places to rent.” Fredricksen, who is working his way through school, said that because of the foreclosure and losses from the economic downturn his father could no longer assist with college costs.
When asked later about the protest and why security guards were on duty, Bank of America spokesperson Colleen Hagerty said, “Bank of America has no comment on the Occupy Wall Street protests. Our focus is on ensuring a safe environment for our customers to conduct financial transactions.”
Some protestors were skittish about talking to the press, saying they were still looking for work and feared reprisal or refusal of employment. Others told their stories but asked their last names be withheld. Christopher, 28, said he was unemployed for eight months after his broadcasting job ended. He’s done some freelancing, and currently works in a pool hall.
A woman named Gwen said she worked 45 years and retired at age 62 with “barely enough to live on.” She credits CHISPA [Community Housing Improvement Systems and Planning Association] for their assistance in finding a place to live.
Another woman, 53 years of age, asked not to be identified at all. “I have a degree in electronics,” she said. Unable to find work in that field, she’s taken lower paying jobs just to keep busy, noting that the work she’s doing now actually pays less than unemployment. “Employers are taking advantage,” she said.
Another man, Ed, is retired from the IT industry. He joined the protest on behalf of those less fortunate.
Following the morning rally at the bank, the protestors moved to South Main and Blanco before heading to Monterey.
Peninsula gathering
At 4 p.m. on the stately grounds of Colton Hall, the focus shifted inward as more than 300 people gathered for a General Assembly meeting. Led chiefly by students from area colleges, the group tabled ideas on how to proceed. Using no loudspeaker, sentences were repeated one at a time by people near the front to aid in hearing for those farther back.
The objectives of OWS center on the election process, money that goes into elections, and the concept of “corporate personhood.” Nine demands of Occupy Wall Street were read aloud:
Push HR 1489, a bill to prevent investment bankers as serving as officers of commercial banks.
Use Congressional authority to fully investigate Wall Street criminals.
Have Congress reverse a Supreme Court decision that allows corporations to make unlimited campaign contributions.
Pass the Buffett Rule on taxes.
Have Congress completely revamp the Securities Exchange Commission.
Have Congress pass laws limiting the influence of lobbyists.
Eliminate “revolving door” policies that allow public servants to gain employment in companies they once regulated.
Eliminate “personhood” for corporations.
Ensure equal airtime for all political candidates.
Several members of the group pointed to OWS events in other cities, such as Seattle and Austin, prior to Oct. 15. Several people asked about the possibility of setting up an encampment in Monterey. For that, the group agreed on the need to set up services such as communication, food and sanitation. Most agreed that a festive atmosphere makes for good progress.
There was talk of occupying empty foreclosure homes and setting them up as bases of operation. “The banks don’t own those houses, they stole them,” one man said.
Before the group marched, several members of the group suggested going in the street and impeding vehicle traffic as a means to gain attention. Impeding traffic is a misdemeanor that can result in arrest. Others objected to calling it a march and insisted on something else. After some discussion, the group decided to stay within the law—at least for the time being—and take a “revolutionary stroll” to Fisherman’s Wharf. “Breaking the law is a serious matter and should be carefully thought out,” one man said.
Chanting loudly, “We are the 99 percent!” and “This is what democracy looks like!” the group left Colton, keeping to the sidewalk and obeying all traffic signals. At Portola Plaza, the 300 moved though in a narrow line that did not impede foot traffic, with guidance from representatives of Unite Here Local 483, a labor organization that helped with the successful worker protest at Asilomar last year. The group crossed the plaza at Heritage Harbor and streamed into the Wharf, turned around and returned to Colton Hall, lining Pacific Street as passing motorists cheered and honked.
In the course of the rally, someone suggested a place like Monterey might be too small to make a difference. Another countered, “You’re never too small to take a stand.”
The OWS movement describes itself as “a protest against bank bailouts, corporate greed, and the unchecked power of Wall Street in Washington,” according to the site, targeting the one percent of the population that controls the world’s wealth. OWS started on Sept. 17 when 2,000 protestors gathered in Manhattan’s financial center and marched up Broadway to Zuccotti Park, where about 150 committed to staying the night and made an encampment. Since then, the movement there has swelled to tens of thousands, who converged on Times Square last Saturday.
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SPCA’s Glitz and Glamour Jewelry Event coming Thursday
By Editor | October 17, 2011
The SPCA for Monterey County’s Benefit Shop presents Glitz and Glamour – The SPCA Jewelry Event Friday, October 21 through Sunday October 23 with a special preview night on Thursday, October 20. This exciting sale will feature vintage costume jewelry, gold, silver, designer purses, shoes, and more, with 100 percent of the proceeds benefiting the many vital services and programs offered by your SPCA.
Join The SPCA for a special preview night on Thursday, October 20 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. The SPCA Benefit Shop has been saving beautiful new and vintage donated jewelry exclusively for this exciting sale.
The SPCA Benefit Shop is located at 26364 Carmel Rancho Lane near the Barnyard Shopping Village. Open Monday – Saturday 10:00 to 4:00, Wednesday 10:00 to 6:00, Sunday 12:00 to 4:00. For more information, please contact The SPCA Benefit Shop at 831-624-4211 or visit www.SPCAmc.org.
The SPCA for Monterey County is your nonprofit, independent, donor-supported humane society that has been serving the animals and people of Monterey County since 1905. The SPCA is not a chapter of any other agency and does not have a parent organization. They shelter homeless, neglected and abused pets and livestock, and provide humane education and countless other services to the community. They are the local agency you call to investigate animal cruelty, rescue and rehabilitate injured wildlife, and aid domestic animals in distress. Online at www.SPCAmc.org.
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UPDATE ON OLIVE RIDLEY SEA TURTLE
By Editor | October 11, 2011
Update on the Olive Ridley Sea Turtle which crawled out at Hopkins Marine in Pacific Grove and is now in the “infirmary” at the Aquarium: Condition, STABLE. Thank you Peter Mounteer. As of 10/11/11.
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Consultant study: Regional Water Project still most cost-effective; Scheduling and permitting analyses to follow
By Editor | October 9, 2011
By Marge Ann Jameson
California American Water (Cal Am) ordered a study on the cost analysis of 11 water supply alternatives for the Monterey Peninsula, including Pacific Grove. The company plans to hold a public forum on the subject, set for Oct. 26, 2011.
Cedar Street Times has obtained a copy of the report, dated October 5, 2011.
In the cost analysis, RBF Consulting, authors of the report, outline the various alternatives which include some combinations of alternatives as well as stand-alone projects. Most have been suggested in some form or another, from various desalination plants (Marina, Moss Landing, Sand City, Monterey near the Naval Postgraduate School) to filtration plants and groundwater recharge.
The Regional Water Project, a desalination plant at Marina with delivery to the rest of the Peninsula, is the project which has won State approval.
Cal Am faces a Cease and Desist Order to cease pumping water for its customers from the Carmel River. By 2014, the company — and those customers – must reduce use by 40 percent of what is currently used and by 2016 the reduction will increase to 60 percent of current use.
It is important to note that the current report only includes cost analysis and does not include permitting and schedule impacts for the various alternatives.
RBF advises that the permitting and schedule impacts report will follow.
The analysis uses the current favored project, the Regional Water Supply Project – also known as the Marina desalination plant – as a basis for cost estimating, stating “It is clear that the estimate is based on an assumption that all of the supply wells . . . are slant wells and that the costs are in October 2012 dollars.”
Demand for all alternatives except the last one, #11 in the list, is estimated at 15,200 acre-feet per year.
The Regional Water Project, Alternative #1, with costs for construction, start-up, contingency and other allowances including cost of indebtedness comes in at $297,470,000 in RBF’s estimate. It adds an estimate for California American Water’s regional project facilities at $132,000,000 “most probable capital cost with contingency,” a high-end estimate of $156,000,000 and a low-end of $118,000,000.
The cost cap for Cal Am had originally been set at $106,875,000 in the recent Settlement Agreement. That $107,000,000 includes conveyance facilities (pipes and pumps), a terminal reservoir, and an ASR system (Aquifer Storage Recovery).
Adding the California American Water facilities costs of $107,000 to the capital cost of $297,000,000 for the Regional Water Project results in a total capital cost of $404,000,000 for the Regional Water Project. The result is a cost per acre foot per year (AFY) of $2680.
Alternative #2 includes a lower-capacity desalination plant at Marina and groundwater recharge of advanced water treatment effluent from the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control authority’s regional treatment facility. The effluent would be used to recharge the Seaside aquifer. Cost/AFY: $2,980
Alternative #3 involves a seasonally-operated surface water filtration plant in lower Carmel Valley, south of Carmel Valley Road and east of Carmel Rancho Road. A complicated system of pipelines, pump stations, chlorination systems and reservoirs (ASR system) would complete the project. Cost/AFY: $2910
Alternative #4 includes the Carmel Valley filtration plant, the extended ASR system and ground water recharge. Cost/AFY: $3,050
Alternative #5 is the Carmel Valley filtration plant, a smaller desalination plant in Marina, and the extended ASR system. Cost/AFY: $3,340
Alternative #6 involves the Carmel Valley filtration plant, expansion of the Sand City desalination plant already under way, and the extended ASR sysem. Cost/AFY: $3,170
Alternative #7 proposes the Carmel Valley filtration plant, a desalination plant near the Naval Postgraduate School, and the extended ASR system. Cost/AFY: $3,890
Alternative #8 adds more capacity to the Monterey desalination plant and includes an iron removal plant in lower Carmel Valley, from whence the water would be sent to the ASR system. Cost/AFY: $3,660
Alternative #9 would offer a seasonal surface water filtration plant fed by diversion from the Salinas River plus the ASR system, pending approval to draw from the Salinas River. Cost/AFY: $2,880
Alternative #10 is a deep-water desalination plant, located about 1 mile north of the current Moss Landing power plant near Elkhorn Slough plus delivery systems similar to the Regional Water Project. Cost/AFY: $4,460
Alternative #11 would require additional conservation on the part of customers, already at the lowest in the state. It would reduce the capacity of the Marina desalination plant and would include some ground water recharge. Cost/AFY: $3,500
According to the report, implementation of any of the alternatives with the exception of #1, the Regional Water Project, would require “additional environmental impact analysis, recertification of the EIR, amendment and reapplication for the CPCN and amendment of the application to the California Coast Commission.” The report points out that all of the re-permitting would delay implementation well beyond the October, 2012 mid-point of construction (the basis of cost estimates in this report) and thus cost estimates might not hold.
Additionally, Alernatives #3 through #9 involve obtaining water rights to divert from either the Carmel River or the Salinas River and the negotiation of rights to store the water against multi-year droughts. Alernatives which involve a Lower Carmel Valley filtration plant assume that land could be secured at a cost of $750,000 per acre for acquisition and $75,000 per acre for easements.
RBF advises that as soon as an assessment of the permitting and scheduling impact for each alternative is completed, they will sibmit a subsequent report and make a final recommendation as to the most atractive alternative in their opinion.
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Endangered sea turtle beaches at Hopkins Marine
By Editor | October 7, 2011
By Peter Mounteer
Last Wednesday, October 5th, Pacific Grove received an unlikely visit from an unlikely visitor, an adult Olive Ridley sea turtle that typically inhabits warm coastal waters. Although sea turtles occasionally visit Monterey Bay (most typically leatherback sea turtles that can withstand cold California waters) an Olive Ridley has “never been sighted ashore” on the central coast, according to Scott Kathey of NOAA.
Sea turtles spend the majority of their lives in the water, only coming ashore to lay eggs. The Olive Ridley that came ashore on Wednesday—its gender has yet to be confirmed—is not here to nest, as its typical nesting grounds are only as far north as Mexico. According to Kathey, the turtle most likely was lured North in an unusual eddy of warm water that brushed California’s central coast.
The 72 pound Olive Ridley arrived ashore—conveniently—at Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove, just around the corner from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where it is currently being cared for.
Dr. Mike Murray, a veterinarian with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, is in charge of rehabilitating the sea turtle. “The animal is underweight and dehydrated,” he said, “potentially due to illness.” The Olive Ridley is being cared for in a heated 78-degree holding tank out of the view of the public eye. Dr. Murray confirmed that the animal will not be used for aquarium display at any point in time. Murray also said that the turtle is being given antibiotics and supportive therapy in order to restore its health and will likely remain at the aquarium under his care for an unknown number of weeks depending upon its response to rehabilitative treatment. A potential release site has not yet been chosen.
Last Wednesday’s rescue marks the fourth turtle rescue in the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s 27 year history and the first since 2005.
The Olive Ridley sea turtle is classified “endangered” by the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a categorization most likely the result of a high frequency of egg collecting on nesting beaches and turtle hunting by humans throughout the world.
Dr, Mike Murray, a veterinarian with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, lifts the stranded Ridley sea turtle. The turtle is under Dr. Murray's care now at the Aquarium. Photo by Bob Yerena of NOAA
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Shock as Golf Links loses $413,000
By Editor | September 22, 2011
By Marge Ann Jameson
Shock and awe isn’t limited to the battlefield. It also might be used to describe everyone in the City Council chambers Wed. night, Sept. 21 as City staff presented unaudited financial results for the Pacific Grove Golf Links for the fiscal year which ended June 30, 2011. The City has lost some $413,000 on the goose that laid its golden egg.
The City’s reserve for the golf course of $625,658 is now down to $143,658.
The dollar amount pretty much blindsided the members of the Golf Links Advisory Committee, who have been hounding staff for a financial report for some months. It also surprised and angered the City Council members, one of whom – Dan Miller – said he hadn’t been as angry in 22 years of watching and participating in City Council meetings.
There was blame enough to go around for the losses. The economy has forced golfers to play less, either because they no longer have the discretionary funds or because they are working harder to make ends meet and do not have time to play 18 holes. In fact, the 20% reduction in rounds played by full rate players (“rack rates”) was listed as the primary reason for the decline. While there was a decrease in the number of rounds played by golfers paying discount rates, it was not as sharp.
The City had to operate the Pt. Pinos Grill for about six months in the absence of a concessionaire.
There were 19 more bad weather days than anticipated which cost an estimated $2,000-$3,000 each.
The fleet of leased golf carts had to be replaced at a cost of $22,000.
The marketing plan – with a budget of some $71,000 – went to marketing to out-of-town golfers who would pay rack rates, and little, if any, was spent to entice locals.
Holding of the US Open in the area affected the number of rounds played adversely.
Nationally, golf courses are experiencing similar problems, with Santa Cruz’s municipal course, DeLaveaga, showing a $2 million loss recently. But other nearby courses have slashed their discount rates and some go as low as $5 for twilight play. While Pacific Grove used to be one of the lowest priced courses in the area, courses such as Rancho Canada, Salinas fairway and Laguna Seca have undercut the local links and golfers willing to play at odd hours are dwindling away.
But it was more the surprise factor than the actual loss that seemed to anger Councilmembers and GLAC members most.
After the feathers quit flying around and staff had been chastened for not reporting sooner, by every member of the Council as well as the members of the GLAC who were on hand, the Council agreed to delay action until a report and recommendations could be had from Golf Convergence, the new consultant hired to help the City out. The current marketing consultant’s contract will not be renewed. A monthly Profit & Loss will be required, and some cost-cutting measures will be implemented, but there will likely be no salary cuts or requests for early retirement.
Revenue enhancement strategies will be explored as well. With warm “weather for locals” coming, it is hoped some of those revenue enhancement programs can be put into place at once, before the golden egg becomes merely more zeroes on the profit and loss statement.
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Jean Danvers pleads guilty
By Editor | September 15, 2011
Almost two years after the crime, Jean Danvers, age 65 and a resident of Pacific Grove, pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter, elder abuse, and two counts of felony assault in connection with the death of her mother, Charlotte Danvers.
Jean Danvers was the sole caretaker of her 96-year-old mother in 2009. On September 24, 2009, police were dispatched to the family home in Pacific Grove and found Charlotte Danvers unconscious and badly bruised and bleeding. Jean Danvers confessed to police that she “battered her mother.” Charlotte Danvers died two hours later at CHOMP.
The autopsy report stated that she died from sepsis, a toxic condition resulting from her numerous open wounds. She also suffered from broken ribs, a broken nose, and dehydration.
Judge Adrienne M. Grover will sentence Jean Danvers on October 11, 2011. She will serve 14 years in prison.
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3rd arrest on child porn charges
By Editor | September 3, 2011
Jason Wright was re-arrested at his mother’s home on Sinex Friday morning, Sep. 2 on federal felony charges of child exploitation, the third time he has been booked on charges involving child pornography.
He was arrested for the first time in May, 2011 following a months-long investigation involving the FBI and local authorities, and was released on $100,000 bond under the condition that he not access a computer or the Internet except at his workplace, his parents’ insurance agency in Pacific Grove. Monitoring software was installed there, but Wright apparently no longer works at the insurance agency.
He had also been ordered not to be alone with any minors, including his 11 year-old stepdaughter, child of his wife, Rampueng Kaeorawang.
But on Aug. 29 he was arrested again, along with his wife, and searches were made of his parents’ computer at their home on Sinex. He was released from Monterey County Jail yesterday after posting bail, but police say this time it was a no-bail warrant. He was taken to San Jose. PGPD Cdr. John Nyunt confirms that Wright’s wife was re-arrested as well.
Investigators believe the child porn images were produced in another country. Kaeorawang is a Thai national and Wright’s brother, a registered sex offender, is currently in Thailand.
This week’s issue, with the story of the second arrest, is at http://www.cedarstreettimes.com/newpdf/cedarst09-02-11web.pdf
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Hwy 68 “Welcome sign” stolen
By Editor | August 24, 2011
On Aug. 24, Pacific Grove Police were advised that the large wood sign at the city limits on Hwy. 68 (Forest Ave. near Syida Dr.) was missing and had been forcibly removed from the wood studs that mount it to a stone base sometime Monday night.
The sign is approximately 4 feet by 6 feet and read “Welcome to Pacific Grove. Butterfly Town USA.” It is the property of the city of Pacific Grove and valued at an estimated $3500.
Anyone with information about the theft or the whereabouts of the sign is asked to contact the Pacific Grove Police Department at 831-648-3143.
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Enough signatures collected to put MST project on the June, 2012 ballot
By Editor | August 19, 2011
Upset about the Monterey County Board of Supervisors’ decision approving Monterey-Salinas Transit’s Whispering Oaks Project for a transportation terminal, a loose coalition of organizations has collected more than 18,000 signatures in an effort to overturn the decision and place the question on the June, 2012 ballot. Only 10,100 valid signatures are needed. The Monterey County Elections Department has 30 days in which to validate the signatures which were collected by citizens representing LandWatch, the Fort Ord Recreational Users, Sustainable Marina, Sustainable Seaside and others, including many individuals from Pacific Grove who collected signatures in front of the post office.
“This amazing effort underscores the public’s outcry against this poorly conceived and environmentally detrimental project,” said LandWatch’s Amy White in a letter to supports.
The City of Marina also opposed the project, pointing out that it has a “shovel-ready” site which would be preferable to the Whispering Oaks site, in its view.
The Whispering Oaks site would have called for the destruction of some 3400 old oak trees as well as bridle paths and other recreational sites.
But the Board of Supervisors, with only Supervisor Jane Parker dissenting, voted July 12 to approve the project (see Cedar Street Times Vol. III Issue. July 15, 2011), paving the way for MST to complete its efforts to obtain federal funding for the project.
LandWatch filed an appeal to the fort Ord Reuse Authority (for a) on a number of points, including: 1) Monterey County does not have development review authority within Fort Ord. 2) The County’s Fort Ord Master Plan is inconsistent with FORA’s Fort Ord Reuse Plan. 3) The Project is inconsistent with the Fort Ord Master Plan provisions, policies, and programs requiring a trail/open link connecting the coast to the BLM open space lands. 4. The Project entitlements, including the Heavy Commercial zoning and General Development Plans, permit a development density in excess of the density permitted by the Fort Ord Reuse Plan. 5) As the draft EIR admits, the Project is not consistent with Commercial Land Use Objective D or the objectives of the Planned Development Mixed Use land use designation. That objective was intended to support development of pedestrian-oriented community centers and a variety of commercial, residential, retail, professional services, and cultural and entertainment activities.
The City of Marina and FORU also objected to the Project based on the County’s failure to comply with CEQA, inconsistency with the County’s General Plan oak tree mitigation requirements, and inconsistency with the County’s use permit requirements for tree removals.
LandWatch also pointed out that there were issues with water supply impacts under CEQA.
In addition, LandWatch has filed a lawsuit (Aug. 5) challenging approval.
The Board of Supervisors could now vote to rescind the approval or could send it to the voters, once the signatures are validated. “Rescinding it could be a good thing,” said White, but she fears that without further legal action they could turn right around and use the land for another project. She said her organization prefers to see a referendum on the rezoning of the property, though she is personally “cautiously optimistic” that the supervisors could “do the right thing.”
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