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Del Mar road reopens after landslide By Bianca Kaplanek
DEL MAR — The southern end of Camino del Mar is back to normal after heavy rains caused a January landslide in Anderson Canyon, forcing the city to initially shut down the roadway and later reconfigure it to accommodate traffic. It was “returned to its original service” the last week of July, following several months of a temporary “rearrangement,” Public Works Director Eric Minicilli reported during a project update at the Aug. 1 City Council meeting. The northbound lane was being used for northand southbound traffic. “The asphalt started to kind of fall apart on the bike lane there due to the fact that cars were driving in places they hadn’t been driving before so we had that repaved and restriped,” Minicilli said. The slope has been reconstructed and stabilized and utility services were installed and reconnected. Minicilli said AT&T is expected to remove the temporary utility poles and cables by Aug. 15. The Public Works Department is installing temporary irrigation and working with a landscape contractor to add vegetation. Minicilli said the plant size and shading will be designed to differentiate the surface so as the plants grow the area won’t look so flat. He said it will probably be about a year before the plantings reach a desired size. The project cost is $1.2 million as of July 15. The city has submitted an insurance claim for that amount and will likely be responsible for the $500,000 deductible. That money will come from the reserve fund. To help with the deductible the city is seeking emergency reimbursement funds available as a result of Gov. Jerry Brown declaring a state of emergency following this year’s predicted El Niño storm conditions. Minicilli said that doesn’t seem likely at this point but, according to the staff report, efforts continue to seek reimbursement. The project cost does not include landscaping.
T he C oast News
AUG. 5, 2016
Candidates disclose fundraising warchests By Aaron Burgin
ENCINITAS — City Councilwoman Catherine Blakespear and former Assembly candidate Phil Graham have amassed the largest campaign warchests in the Encinitas mayoral and city council races, respectively, based on semi-annual campaign finance disclosure forms. Blakespear, who has been actively campaigning since late February, raised $27,383 during the first six months of the year, according to her statements, the most of any candidate. Her campaign contributions include $6,500 in personal loans to her campaign. Councilwoman Lisa Shaffer and her husband, Steve Bartram, Planning Commissioners Greg Drakos and Tasha Horvath, who is also running for City Council, and Parks and Recreation Commissioner Joe Mosca have all contributed to Blakespear’s campaign. “I’m grateful for the broadbased support in the community,
from over 130 people, which allowed me to have such a strong start to my fundraising,” Blakespear said in a statement. “From my time in elected office, residents can see that I am a balanced, thoughtful, professional leader, who is uniquely qualified to lead the city as mayor and they are willing to support our collective vision financially.” Blakespear has also spent the most of all the candidates, making over $7,100 in payments during the first six months. Her largest expenditures were to her campaign manager, Scott Chatfield, and her campaign treasurer, Simon Mayeski. Paul Gaspar, who just announced his entry into the mayoral race in July, did not raise any money and thus did not have to file a semi-annual statement. Graham, who has obtained nomination papers for the council election and declared his intent to run in April, reported he raised $27,250 during the first six months
of the year, when he was considering a run for State Assembly. He has since transferred the money from his assembly campaign account to his council warchest. All but four of Graham’s funds are from donors outside of Encinitas, reflective of the broader base he was attracting during his assembly run. Paul Gaspar, Jenny Craig and former Assemblyman Mark Wyland were among the notable contributors to Graham’s campaign. Jason Cabel Roe, speaking on behalf of Graham’s campaign, said the campaign is poised to attract more local donors. “A lot of donors are already familiar with him, and now he will have the opportunity to reach out to Encinitas donors specifically,” Roe said. “We’re anticipating that this race will be about $40,000, so we feel great about where we are.” Horvath, who has also been campaigning for several months, reported that she raised
$12,084.25 during the same period, the third-most of any candidate. In an email to supporters, the planning commissioner touted the local flavor of her donors, of which 85 percent work, live or own a business in the city. “Importantly, contributions came from locals who know how important it is to have reasonable, thoughtful and collaborative leadership on the Encinitas City Council,” Horvath wrote. “I am pleased that my support comes from across the whole community — young families, seniors, and folks from all walks of life and all five communities. They want someone they know, someone they can trust, and someone who already has experience serving in Encinitas.” Incumbents Mark Muir and Tony Kranz reported little activity over the first six months of the year. Muir loaned his campaign $2,000, and Kranz reported receiving $250.
Mayor Jim Wood faces challenger this November By Promise Yee
OCEANSIDE — Long-standing Oceanside Mayor Jim Wood will run for re-election in November. A week ago no one thought he faced a challenger. Now mayor candidate Oscar Ortega has thrown his hat in the ring. Jim Wood Jim Wood, 68, has served on the City Council for 14 years, 12 of those as mayor. Prior to that he was an Oceanside police detective for 31 years. Wood has lived in Oceanside for 62 years. “I’m pretty knowledgeable about the city,” Wood said. He is married, has three adult daughters and four grandchildren. Wood said he appreciates being mayor and is running to finish up ongoing efforts to improve the city. He said he would like to see Oceanside move forward and sustain a healthy recovery from the national economic downturn. The city’s positive recovery includes completion of beach and harbor developments that have seen delays, as well as downtown mixed-use development. “We have a lot of building, pressure from the federal and state for affordable housing, a lot of
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construction down by the beach area, we’re moving in a good direction,” Wood said. Public safety remains a priority. Road expansion of Interstate 5, and increasing the drivability of state Route 76 also need to be seen through. As far as Coast Highway improvements that are being considered, Wood said it’s a wait and see on public feedback. He added that feedback so far in the test pilot area, where lane reduction is being tried, has caused traffic to bottleneck. Wood said he sees the strengths of the city as its beachfront location next to Camp Pendleton, and the wealth of diversity, families and senior volunteers it holds.
Oscar Ortega Oscar Ortega has a personal, sincere reason for seeking the office of mayor. His younger brother was the victim of a recent stabbing in the Crown Heights neighborhood. The tragedy compelled Ortega to run for office and bring attention to ongoing, unresolved violence in the city. “Where I come from, $20,000 a year residents see violence more than anything else,” Ortega said. Ortega said the city’s low-income neighborhoods are not getting a voice in decision-making, or the needed resources to stop violent crimes. He said the city seems to focus on beach and downtown development without a clue to neighborhood needs. “A lot of people want to see change,” Ortega said. “All we do is go to school and work, and feel our voicCorrection:
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In last week’s issue, a brief news item, “Encinitas chamber seeks board members,” was incorrect. It is the Encinitas 101 MainStreet Association that was seeking board members. However, the position isn’t available to the public. The Coast News regrets the error.
es are not heard. I want to motivate people to speak up, they do matter.” Ortega, 30, works in logistics and freight management. He has lived in Oceanside his whole life, and is the very proud dad of a 7-year-old daughter. His priority for the city is to improve its economy so there will be funds for needed road safety improvements and additional police officers. Ortega said he is encouraged by the city’s growing tourism industry. He added now is the time to make a decision on Coast Highway improvements and move forward with implementation. Ortega said he does not see any of the current plans for Coast Highway as being the best solution to slow down traffic and benefit local businesses. He said more consideration should be given to how to move people along the highway without getting into a car, like a trolley system. He also would like to look at parking options beyond the highway corridor. Ortega said out of the box ideas need to be considered to significantly move the city forward. He would also like to implement more solutions to help city homeless, and again sees improving the city’s economy as the best way to secure resources to address the problem. Ortega said the city’s strengths are its pier, beachfront location and ethnic diversity. “Samoan, African-American, Mexican-American, Asian, we all have a part in this city,” Ortega said. Ortega said as elected mayor he will make a difference by pushing forward the potential of the beachfront downtown, and bringing a different point of view to the table that will consider out of the box ideas to better the city. He said he will also renew the urgency to improve public safety.
Man arrested in connection with Escondido murder By Steve Puterski
ESCONDIDO — Authorities arrested and extradited an 18-year-old Escondido man accused of murder, according to police Lt. Ed Varso. Javier Seda, 18, was booked into the Vista Detention Facility charged in the killing of 27-year-old Fabian Arellano, who was gunned down on March 16 near Escondido Boulevard and 9th Avenue. According to Varso, Seda, a U.S. citizen, fled to Mexico after the shooting. The lieutenant said the killing appears to be gang related after Arellano was gunned down while crossing the street. Varso said police are currently investigating the possibility Seda was not alone after fleeing in a vehicle. In addition, Varso said it’s possible Seda had friends or family in Mexico, although he said it is not clear whether or not those suspected individuals assisted Seda’s escape from the U.S. After he fled, Varso said Escondido Police coordinated with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Mexican officials to locate and apprehend Seda. He was extradited last week. On March 16, police found Arellano at about 12:30 a.m. with a gunshot to the head. He was transported to Palomar Medical Center where he died. According previous reports from the police, a witness saw the victim walking south on Escondido Boulevard just before the shooting. Seda, meanwhile, was allegedly seen exiting a vehicle and firing multiple shots at the victim before getting back in the car and fleeing the scene. He is being held in the Vista Detention Facility.