PRSRT STD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID SAN DIEGO, CA PERMIT NO. 835
The
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THE RANCHO SANTA FE NEWS
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MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 13, N0. 29
SEPT. 29, 2017
RSF Town Hall Meeting draws crowd By Christina Macone-Greene
Art of Fashion 2017
STORY ON PAGE A13: At the 62nd annual runway show Sept. 14 at the Inn at Rancho Santa Fe, guests could shop designer boutiques with a percentage of the proceeds going to local charities. Photo by Christina Macone-Greene
RANCHO SANTA FE — Covenant residents wanting to learn more about RSF Connect, a fiber-optic network which will bring fast high-speed internet to the Rancho Santa Fe, attended a Sept. 14 Town Hall Meeting at the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club. RSF Association President Fred Wasserman greeted members and shared how delighted he was with the high attendance. The cost to build and own RSF Connect is $13 million to $14 million. It will provide high-speed 1-Gigabit-per-second internet service to every house in the Covenant. As this would be a community investment, residents were encouraged to attend to help in their decision-making process. A project to bring dependable internet service to the Covenant has been in the works for many years, Wasserman said. The goal of the Town Hall meeting was to explain RSF Connect and the community vote on the project. The RSF Association mailed off ballots on Sept. 11 that are due back to the Association on Oct. 4. Every household will receive one TURN TO CONNECT ON A14
President of RSF Faculty wants Ritto steps down from school board to know what the district values By Christina Macone-Greene
By Christina Macone-Greene
RANCHO SANTA FE — During the public comment portion of the Rancho Santa Fe School District board’s monthly meeting, Amanda Valentine, who serves as the president of the Rancho Santa Fe Faculty Association, spoke on behalf of the association. At the Sept. 7 meeting, she shared the organization’s opinions about contract negotiations and district goals. The next scheduled meeting for negotiations was Sept. 20.
Valentine shared how she began teaching at the school district in 2005. Early on, she said she was unfamiliar with some of the contract details as well as salary schedules and how those were determined. Over time, she said became more adept at learning about contract negotiations between the faculty association and district. “I have seen years with steady increases, said to be given to offset the climbing cost of living,” Valentine said. “During the recession, I saw many years of stag-
nant negotiations.” Valentine said she believed currently there is a more positive financial situation regarding annual salaries and benefit negotiations. While there were changes over the years, Valentine told the board what always stayed the same was the high level of education the teachers brought to R. Roger Rowe students. Valentine went on to say how the Rancho Santa Fe Faculty Association TURN TO FACULTY ON A18
RANCHO SANTA FE — After serving on the Rancho Santa Fe School District board since 2010, Marti Ritto officially resigned at the district’s monthly board meeting on Sept. 7. Ritto was not present, but she asked board President Todd Frank to read a letter she prepared for the trustees, administrators, educators and parents of the district. “It has been my honor and privilege to serve the community for the last seven years as Trustee on the school board, and I consider it to be one of the most influential learning experiences
Marti Ritto
Photo by Christina Macone-Green
in both my work career and personal life,” she wrote. “Unfortunately, as many of you know, I have had several health challenges after nine surgeries in the past seven years. I face yet another set of surgeries this next year.”
Ritto wrote that her upcoming surgeries were nothing that could not be overcome with a combination of time, healing and rehab. Despite the positive outcome, Ritto said she believed she would be unable to dedicate the appropriate time the board warranted. “I do feel I wouldn’t be able to bring my whole self to the position of Trustee in the coming year, and I feel deeply that the community deserves someone who can give 100 percent to the position,” she said. On Sept. 15, the RSF School District announced a special board meeting reTURN TO RITTO ON A7
Publisher Jim Kydd reflects on 30 years of The Coast News By Aaron Burgin
Jim Kydd first published the Beach News, as The Coast News was then called, on Sept. 17, 1987. File photo
Thirty years ago, Jim Kydd stood in the garage of his home overlooking Moonlight Beach, carefully looking over pages of newsprint, his 4-year-old son sleeping on the floor wrapped up with the family cat, Hazel. The pages were filled with stories about his new hometown, with pictures of bikini-clad women scattered throughout. Kydd called it “The Beach News.” Three decades later, Kydd’s creation is now The Coast News,
and has become one of the most read weekly newspapers in California and the publication of record for North San Diego County. When asked about reaching the 30-year milestone, Kydd answered as only he could. “Aside from the fact of being hit by the old-age truck, I don’t know, that’s the most obvious thing,” Kydd said. “Who would’ve known?” Kydd, a transplant from the Northeast, had helped launch two publications in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, before
leaving with his then 2-year-old son, Chris, for warmer weather and opportunity in California. He first landed in Pacific Beach, where he lived for a year while commuting to work in Oceanside. He learned about Encinitas from friends in San Diego. “People from downtown said it was a cool North County city that had a good vibe,” Kydd said. “I’ve been here for 30 years now.” After bouncing around TURN TO COAST NEWS ON A6