NOV. 6, 2015
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T he C oast News - I nland E dition
Westfield Corporation adding theater, gym to Escondido mall Westfield announced this week it will sell its Carlsbad property By Steve Puterski
REGION — Expansion is coming to North County, although it also comes with the unloading of another property. The Westfield Corporation announced it would sell its Westfield Carlsbad mall to Rouse Properties on Tuesday, and on Wednesday unveiled plans to add a 10-screen movie theater at its Escondido mall.
At the Escondido City Council meeting on Wednesday, city Assistant Planning Director Bill Martin and Westfield’s Vice President of Development Kim Brewer laid out the Australian-based company’s plans for the theater. Martin said the theater will be constructed on the back end of the mall over the former “duck pond” and will include recliner seating, an outdoor plaza, a shade structure and fire table. In addition, Westfield will remove its current main sign and replace it with a 28-foot pylon structure adding more visibility to the front of the mall. The theater, meanwhile, will include a 75-foot sign, although much of it is part
of the architectural design of the building. Brewer said discussions are ongoing with an operator of the theater, but declined to disclose the company as both sides are still in negotiations. Another addition is also coming, as a 35,000 square-foot 24Hour Fitness gym will be added to the mall by the middle of next year. “We are happy to get them open,” Brewer said. Martin, meanwhile, said Westfield has agreed to construct a sidewalk on Beethoven Drive. As for parking, Martin added the mall would reduce its surplus of spaces by 202, although the
center has a capacity for 6,252 after the reduction. “We added the sidewalk as a condition (of the deal),” he said. In Carlsbad, meanwhile, Westfield is selling to the New York-based company, which owns the Chula Vista Center, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. Westfield’s Associate General Counsel Rory Packer sent a letter to the Carlsbad City Council notifying city officials of the impending sale. Packer said the deal was expected to close on Oct. 30, although nothing has been finalized, the U-T reported. The deal was disclosed in an agenda item approved
Surfing community mourns deaths at Swami’s By Aaron Burgin
ENCINITAS — Days after the Swami’s surfing community was rocked by the passing of Kenneth Mann, a local surfboard sander and fixture at the popular surfing spot, Joy Froding sent out a mass text to friends to assist in organizing a paddle-out in Mann’s honor. The text said that she would work on the details after she returned from her morning surf. Froding never returned. Three days after Mann’s death, Froding died of a possible heart attack surfing the same waters where Mann’s body was found. The deaths have sent a chill through the tight-knit
ATF turns over RV fire investigation to locals By Aaron Burgin
SAN MARCOS — Investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms recently turned over the investigation of a San Marcos RV dealership fire to local authorities after they determined the fire was not intentionally set. The ATF’s elite national response team was deployed several days after the Oct. 11 fire that destroyed the parts and service center, as well as more than a dozen recreational vehicles, at Holland Motor Homes, which is located near San Marcos Boulevard and state Route 78. ATF spokeswoman Meredith K. Davis said that the team was no longer in San Marcos after it was determined in late October that there was no evidence of arson, such as traces of gasoline or other fire accelerants, in the
Joy and Kenny were part of the same crew.” JP St. Pierre CEO, Surfy Surfy
community of surfers who frequent Swami’s, one of the state’s most popular surfing areas. “Joy and Kenny were part of the same crew,” said JP St. Pierre, CEO of Surfy Surfy, which sells surfboards manufactured by its sister company, the San Marcos-based Moonlight Glassing Surfboard Company, where Mann worked for the past 35 years. His likeness is included on Surfy Surfy’s logo, as he was one of the surfboard maker’s “original five.” “We were still all coming to grips with Kenny’s death, and this was just a left hook to the gut,” St. Pierre said. Froding was out surfing Monday morning with friends at Swami’s Beach when she suffered medical distress in the water and lost consciousness, according the Capt. Larry Giles of the Encinitas Lifeguards. “Her friends and bystanders assisted her to the beach, they started CPR,” Giles said. At 10:27 a.m. Encinitas Lifeguards received the call and on arriving, between the fire department, lifeguards and the paramedics, began administering
on Tuesday. The Carlsbad property, which is south of state Route 78, was the subject of an aggressive $300 million facelift, adding a 12-screen movie theater last year and 40,000 square-foot 24-Hour Fitness gym. The 46-year-old mall also underwent interior and exterior renovations and additional plans were to draw in new businesses. An email seeking comment from Westfield officials was not returned before press time. A phone message left with Carlsbad Mayor Matt Hall and Carlsbad’s interim City Manager Kathy Dodson were also not returned.
Encinitas resident Kenneth Mann, 61, is one of two surfers to pass away at Swami’s Beach over the previous week. Mann died on Oct. 30 while surfing at the popular beach. On Nov. 2, another Encinitas surfer, Joy Froding, 57, passed away while surfing the same spot. Courtesy photo
advanced life support skills and techniques. According to the County Medical Examiner’s report, the responding crews found Froding pulseless and apneic. Froding was transported to Scripps Memorial Hospital in Encinitas where emergency room staff continued resuscitative efforts. She was pronounced dead by hospital staff at 11:15 a.m. As for Mann, deputies from the North Coastal Sheriff’s Station responded at 5:10 a.m. on Oct. 30 to a call of a possibly deceased surfer, according to a news release issued by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies and personnel from the Encinitas Fire Department located the man, later identified as Mann, in a wetsuit and still attached to his surfboard by a leash. Authorities confirmed the man was dead without medical intervention, reported the medical examin-
er’s office. Mann, 61, was a man of routine. He went to work six days a week for the past 35 years sanding surfboards. St. Pierre said Mann probably sanded close to 100,000 surfboards over that time span. Friends described him as a quick-witted man with a sharp memory who “communicated through movie quotes,” especially “The Big Lebowski,” his favorite movie. “He had excellent comedic timing,” St. Pierre said. “He’d come up to you at work and start stories with the same phrase, ‘This one time in the ‘70s.’” He went through a long stretch where he became reclusive and consumed by his work, St. Pierre said, but since the start of the 2000s, he had started to come out of his shell and resumed “midnight surfing” regularly at Swami’s. Froding, 57, moved to the area 10 years ago. She was known as an outgoing
and gregarious spirit, an artist who was known for her painting, sculpture and jewelry designs. St. Pierre said that many in the surfing community are coping with the tragedies the best way they know how — remember funny anecdotes about the pair and remaining upbeat and positive. “I am impressed with how positively people are dealing with it,” he said. “The funny stories are definitely helpful.” St. Pierre recounted a story of how Mann and his father were midnight surfing in the early ‘70s and how they were using their waterproof dive flashlights, which caused a surf crew on the bluff above to speculate that a UFO was spotted at the beach. “To this day you will hear people talk about the night there was a UFO at Swami’s, but in reality, it was just glow sticks and dive flashlights,” St. Pierre said, with a laugh.
wreckage. “After it was determined that the fire was not intentionally set, the investigation was handed back over to the local fire department,” Davis said. “The ATF will issue a final report in about 30 days.” Local authorities had taken the rare step of requesting the agency’s assistance after it was determined the size, scope and complexity of the scene was too much for local resources. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries in the fire that caused more than $4 million worth of damage to the 10,800-squarefoot structure. More than 100 firefighters from multiple agencies battled the blaze, which started around 4 p.m. on Oct. 11. The cause of the fire has still yet to be determined.
Council approves process to begin eminent domain By Steve Puterski
ESCONDIDO — A resolution to begin the process of eminent domain was approved unanimously by the City Council last week after putting the vote on hold. The item concerns a project for lane widening and adding sound walls along East Valley Parkway and Valley Center Road. The tabled vote, however, was due to the concerns of a pair of families impacted by the soon-to-be project and objections over negotiations. Two residents, Peter and Matthew Jauregui, spoke to the council two weeks ago urging them to table the item or hold off for 30 days since they only received a financial offer 12 days prior to the Oct. 21. Peter Jauregui said the paperwork from the city was accidentally sent to his former business partner, who died several years. In addition, the partner sold his stake years ago. At last week’s meeting, however, city staff re-
ported a deal was struck with the Jauregi’s, who are in favor of the project and said it must be completed to provide additional safety along the road. An attorney for the Heath family said his client had not received the notice of intent from the city. Like the Jauregui’s, Heath’s are not opposed to the project, but their attorney wanted to make certain the city followed the law with proper notification and begin negotiations. The attorney also stated the meeting was the first time he heard the soundwalls were voluntary. Although no deal was agreed to last week with the Heaths, the council can still negotiate during the process before construction begins. City staff, though, told the council last week all proper notices were sent by certified mail. The decision to move forward, though, is to meet deadlines or risk losing TURN TO DOMAIN ON 16