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THE RANCHO SANTA FE NEWS
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MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 10, N0. 11
May 30, 2014
In a ceremonial signing on May 16, members of the Joint Powers Authority, from left: County Supervisor Dianne Jacob, Solana Beach City Councilman Dave Zito, Del Mar City Councilman Don Mosier and County Supervisor Dave Roberts, extend the agreement for another 50 years. Photo by Tony Cagala
JPA extends agreement for another 50 years By Tony Cagala
Because of severe drought conditions, the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District is becoming more persistent in educating residents and raising awareness about their fire abatement program. Photo by Tony Cagala
Drought underscores abatement By Christina Macone-Greene
RANCHO SANTA FE — The recent Bernardo Fire coupled with the southern California drought has triggered the RSF Fire Protection District to be more persistent than ever in terms of their abatement program. In tandem, educating and supporting their residents is also the goal. “We have been talking for some time now that we have been in a prolonged drought and our fuel moistures are at critical levels and have been since February,” said Tony Michel, fire chief of the RSF Fire Protection District. “And they don’t hit that critical level until late summer.” Michel went on to say that because of this, citizens really need to be diligent and to make sure they
listen to what the Fire Protection District is reporting, including the letters they send out. Additionally, if property owners have questions about their defensible space, they are encouraged to call the District and ask. An appointment can also be scheduled to inspect the property to be sure it does fit defensible space guidelines. Julie Taber, public information officer of the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District, said property owners are required to remove or modify native brush and grass within 100 feet of any structure. Michel also wanted to add, “Citizens have to be diligent and if they see something out of the ordinary or are concerned, they
need to contact the Fire Prevention District.” The Fire Chief said if someone gets a violation notice, they should address it as soon as possible. The notices, Michel said, are specific for a particular property. The abatement letters were sent out to RSF citizens last month; and, staff members continually work on these abatement letters. “From there, we have a few inspectors that go out and inspect properties” he said. Michel continued, “We can only go on public access ways to see and we cannot go on a private property to look at people’s vegetation.” If the District notices something of concern, then there will be a homeowner violation request.
There are also cases where homeowners may invite a weed abatement officer over if they feel their neighbor and/or neighbors are not complying with the defensible space requirements. For example, if a neighbor’s property line has dead native brush which comes within 100 feet of their neighbor’s residential home or structure, then the district may be of assistance. “We can’t go onto someone’s property uninvited, but if a resident has a concern, and if it was visible from their property and we could see it from there, then we can address it with the neighbor,” Taber said. The abatement program, TURN TO DROUGHT ON A16
RSF Association Board candidate speaks out By Christina Macone-Greene
RANCHO SANTA FE — Rancho Santa Fe residents have never seen anything like it before. While four candidates are vying for two open seats on the Rancho Santa Fe Association Board of Directors, some campaigning efforts mirror the price tag of a mayoral race. Not all the candidates are doing it — just a couple. And this concerns candidate Susan Callahan. “The amount of money that is being spent makes me wonder what the motive would be,” Callahan said. “These are volunteer positions to work very hard for three years on a homeowner’s board and I just don’t understand these huge amounts of money going to- Susan Callahan, a candidate for a position on the Rancho Santa Fe wards this campaign.” Association Board of Directors, says she’s surprised by the amount of When Callahan de- money being spent by candidates in the election. Courtesy photo
These are volunteer positions to work very hard … and I just don’t understand these huge amounts of money going towards this campaign.” Susan Callahan Association Board Candidate
cided to run for a seat, she never dreamed anything like this would happen. Past campaigning in the Ranch has been quiet. For TURN TO ASSOCIATION ON A16
REGION — June 12, 2014 will mark 25 years since the Joint Powers Authority was formed. With the agreement end date approaching, member agencies, initiated by the city of Del Mar followed by San Diego County and Solana Beach, signed an extension on May 16 that gives the JPA 50 more years of governance over the San Dieguito River Park. “The agreement was first signed on June 12, 1989,” said Susan Carter, deputy director of the San Dieguito River Park. “And it was for 25 years, or (the agreement) said it could be extended for an additional 50 years at the end of that time.” The JPA, which is comprised of the cities of Del Mar, Escondido, Poway, Solana Beach, and San Diego and one citizen representative, has the ability to implement planning and projects in a regional level affecting the San Dieguito River Park area. That’s something a local government entity on its own wouldn’t be able to do, given the restrictions of individual jurisdictional boundaries. Before the extension was signed, the JPA Board was considering another option of revising the original 25 year agreement. Carter explained that a revised agreement was drafted and approved by all of the member agencies except for the city of San Diego. In order for that revised agreement to be adopted, all of the six member agencies would have needed to approve it to make it official. “If we didn’t take a separate action, then we were still looking at ending this June,” Carter said. The board instead opted to set aside the revised agreement and vote to extend the original agreement. That only took two agencies to agree to extend it. “I think it gives a clear showing of support that the
river park will be a regional asset for 50 years to come — twice the length of time of the original agreement — and it shows how critical this park is to our quality of life,” said Dave Roberts, the JPA board chairman and County Supervisor for District 3. The cities already involved will remain within the JPA. Carter explained that if a city opted to leave, it would have to give a 90-day notice. As the agreement is written now, the JPA doesn’t have the ability to allow new cities to join. “But the revised agreement that we were looking at did talk about that a little bit,” Carter said. “It talked about a mechanism for having a new agency join in as a partner.” Though if one agency left the JPA, another could potentially come in to fill that vacancy, Carter explained. She added that there aren’t many cities knocking on the door to join because the agreement affects the agencies that are closest or more involved, more integral to where the planning area of the park is. The city agencies do contribute financially to the JPA, which Carter said is voluntary. “They pay a percentage of our annual budget each year. So when we do our budget, the lion’s share of that revenue does come from our member agencies.” That percentage amount is based on a formula, Carter explained, that combines acreage within the focused planning area of the park and population of the agency. This year, using updated Census numbers, the city of San Diego and the county pay 31 percent, Poway and Escondido each pay 13 percent, and Del Mar and Solana Beach each pay 6 percent, said Carter. Each of the nine serving JPA Board members has to be an elected official that is selected by their own agencies as their representatives.