10
T he C oast News - I nland E dition
Sept. 12, 2014
Camp P endleton News
Recruits train to lead during crucible Ceremony held for renovation of Green Beach Access Point By Cpl. Tyler Viglione
CAMP PENDLETON — Marines of Alpha Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, used teamwork and dependability to complete the Leadership Reaction Course, or 12 Stalls, during the Crucible at Edson Range aboard Camp Pendleton, Aug. 27. The Crucible is a 54hour test of endurance where recruits must conquer more than 30 different obstacles while they experience food and sleep deprivation. During the Crucible, recruits utilize small unit leadership skills they’ve acquired throughout training. “The recruits do the 12 Stalls event in the Crucible so they can learn how to work together as a team,” said Sgt. Ryan R. Ayers, field instructor, Field Company, Weapons and Field Training Battalion. “They learn how to utilize and create unit cohesion to accomplish the mission.” Before starting each event, recruits were given
Recruit Axe T. Buffington, Platoon 1003, Alpha Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion, balances himself on a chain bridge during the 12 Stalls event at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Aug. 27. The 12 Stalls event is a part of the Crucible, which is a 54-hour test of endurance where recruits must conquer more than 30 different obstacles while they experience food and sleep deprivation. During the Crucible, recruits utilize small-unit leadership skills they’ve acquired throughout training. Courtesy photo
guidance regarding what to complete the task. they could and could not do “Each mission has certain rules that make whatever the recruits have to do more difficult,” said Ayers, a native of San Francisco. “It requires the recruits to think more and get creative with the equipment that they have.” Each stall had a specific set of instructions, but one rule that remained the same for all stalls is that no part of a recruit’s body can touch red-colored parts of the obstacle. Touching any red simulated combat fatalities and in order to rejoin the team, the recruit had to run 100 yards with 30 pound ammunition cans. At one stall, the recruits were required to extract a simulated casualty from an area only using a plank of wood. The portions painted in red made the recruits use precision and creativity to do it successfully. “If we did not come together as a team, completing the tasks would not be possible,” said Recruit Joseph R. Campbell, Platoon 1002. The strains of sleep and
food depravation began to take a toll on the recruits. “We don’t get a lot of sleep, our bodies are tired, and we just want it to be over,” said 18-yearold Campbell. “We keep getting mad at each other, which complicates things even more, but we can’t let it get to us because we have made it this far and we are so close to being done.” Drill instructors, field instructors and the company commander watched from a platform to ensure recruits are applying the fundamentals of leadership for each mission and performing within safety regulations. Although recruits of Alpha Company have completed the Leadership Reaction Course, they still have many events to complete before earning the title Marine. “This is the only event in recruit training where recruits complete a mission as a fire team,” said 24-yearold Ayers. “Since it is something different, it requires more from them, and in the end sets them up for success.”
We’re Here to Help Your Business
SUCCEED. As your community newspaper, we’re invested in helping local business owners attract customers .com and increase sales. Let us put our expertise to work for you through a variety of marketing techniques customized to meet your business’s unique needs! PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE PRSRTPAID STD ENCINITAS, CA 92025PAID U.S. POSTAGE PERMIT NO. 94CA 92025 ENCINITAS, PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
INLAND EDITION
VISTA, SAN MARCOS, ESCONDIDO
VOL. 28, N0. 25
JUNE 20, 2014
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PRSRTPAID ENCINITAS, STD CA 92025 U.S. POSTAGE PERMIT NO. 94 PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92025 PERMIT NO. 94
INLAND EDITION
.com
IDO
JUNE 20,
Two commercial structures at Carlsbad’s La Costa Towne Center will be demolished to make way for a revamp that includes the addition of retail and apartment buildings. The larger new building, shown above, would include 48 apartments, a courtyard for residents, and retail. Courtesy renderings
Carlsbad retail center to be revamped with apartments
2014
By Rachel Stine
Sophia Ceja, 3, of Oceanside, shows off a handful of eggs she found. Four city egg hunts are planned for April 19. See the full story on page A9. Photo by Promise Yee
Council closer to finalizing Pacific View deal Two commerc be demolishe ial structures at Carlsbad’ d to make of retail s La Costa way for a and Towne revamp that above, would apartment buildings. includes Center will the retail. Courtesy include 48 apartmen The larger new building,addition renderings ts, a courtyard for residentsshown , and
Carlsbad reta revamped il center to be with apartme nts
By Rachel
Stine
CARLSBAD for five years, — With the 33-year- it’s primary storefro the corner old ast gettingof El Camino Real La Costa Towne nt empty a revamp Center and La Costa The owner . Avenue is at of the molish two at commercialproperty gained er and replace approval structur es in the to nd half apartmethem with shopping dents from buildings that are cenon on April Carlsbad’s half retail Planning Planning 16. Commis Commissioners ming forward praised with plans g center to redevel the owners for n, and a that they said current op the main ly lacks dated shop“(La Costa tenant. signage, Towne de. You have Center Planning no idea what’s is) just this big long Commissioner inside, it’s white as been long not overdue.” Hap L’Heureux. inviting,” Commissioner “This cenAurthur an eyesore Neil Black . called the little TURN TO
TOWNE CENTER
nter to be part housing pro ject
ON A15
By Jared Whitlock
ENCINITAS — The council took another step toward acquiring the Pacific View site on Wednesday night. Council members voted 3-2 in favor of a $50,000 deposit and other conditions spelled out in a memorandum of understanding for the property. That document paves the way for a final purchase agreement, which the council majority hopes to approve by the end of May. But the agenda item sparked a long debate over whether the council should have even agreed to pay $10 million to acquire the site from the Encinitas Union School District. Resident Jeff Eddington said he’s excited at the prospect of the city owning the site, but worried the coun- Pacific View Elementary, which closed a decil is getting “bamboozled.” cade ago. The council approved a memoran“The city offered $4.3 million for dum of understanding at Wednesday night’s the property in the not-too-distant meeting, bringing the city closer to acquiring past, and is now offering more than the site. Photo by Jared Whitlock
Mosaic, part 2
Two Sections 48 pages
Artist Mark Patterson has plans for a follow up to his Surfing Madonna mosaic. A5
Message remains
The final installment on Eden Gardens tells of the community’s commitment to youth. A6
OUSD takes the pledge to reduce waste and form “green teams” aimed at recycling. B1
A&E..................... A10 Classifieds.......... B21 Food & Wine....... B12 Legals.................. A18 Opinion................A4 Sports.................. A20
2.3 times that price.” Eddington said. Councilman Tony Kranz, an advocate of the purchase, said the $4.3 million figure was based on the property’s current public zoning. And it was only intended as a first offer. Additionally, Kranz said he voted in favor of upping the price knowing that EUSD had a strong rezoning case, which would have made the land much more valuable. The city could have tried to fight the district’s rezone request, but that would likely have resulted in an expensive court battle, Kranz added. Last month, EUSD was due to auction Pacific View with a minimum bid set at $9.5 million. With the clock ticking, the city submitted an offer just before the deadline. EUSD has delayed the auction by two months as a safeguard, in case the deal with the TURN TO DEAL ON A15
How to reacH us (760) 436-9737
Calendar Calendar@coastnewsgroup.com Community News Community@coastnewsgroup.com Letters Letters@coastnewsgroup.com
CARLSBAD — With it’s primary storefront empty for five years, the 33-year-old La Costa Towne Center at the corner of El Camino Real and La Costa Avenue is at last getting a revamp. The owner of the property gained approval to demolish two commercial structures in the shopping center and replace them with buildings that are half retail and half apartments from Carlsbad’s Planning Commission on April 16. Planning Commissioners praised the owners for coming forward with plans to redevelop the dated shopping center that they said currently lacks signage, design, and a main tenant. “(La Costa Towne Center is) just this big long white wall. You have no idea what’s inside, it’s not inviting,” said Planning Commissioner Hap L’Heureux. “This center has been long overdue.” Commissioner Aurthur Neil Black called the little mall an eyesore. TURN TO TOWNE CENTER ON A15
Center to be part of housing project By Promise Yee
OCEANSIDE — The announcement that an UrbanLIFT grant will fund building the Kay Parker Family Resource Center at the planned Mission Cove affordable housing project bought applause for two reasons. Community members were glad to have a family resource center as part of the city’s low-income housing project, and equally pleased the name of the center will honor the late Kay Parker, a beloved, fair housing advocate.
Kay’s husband Dick Parker helped accept the grant at the City Council meeting April 16. He said the honor of naming the resource center after his late wife was well deserved. The Mission Cove affordable housing and mixed-use project on Mission Avenue is being developed through a partnership between the city and National Community Renaissance nonprofit developer. The project will break ground this summer. GradTURN TO CENTER ON A17
e Yee
ANSIDE Kay’s husband ment that — The Parker Dick grant willan Ur- grant athelped accept the fund meeting the City he Kay Council Parker source Center the honorApril 16. He said of naming at source d Mission center after the reCove housing his late project wife was well deserve lause for The Mission d. two affordab Cove le nity member mixed-use housing and have a familys sion Avenueproject on Misis oped ter as part through being develof between a partners -income hip the housand equally tional Commucity and Nasance nonprofi nity Renaisname of t develop nor the the The project er. will beloved, late ground this fair summer. break te. GradTURN TO
CENTER ON
A17
Call one of our experienced sales reps today for more information on how we can help your business grow!
760.436.9737
or email: advertising@coastnewsgroup.com
CAMP PENDLETON — A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at Green Beach to commemorate the renovation of the Green Beach Access Point on Sept. 3. The Green Beach Access Point provides the only amphibious access to the Base's northern training areas, and is essential to accomplishing the mission entrusted to the Marine Corps by Congress and the American people. The renovation involved widening of the bridge at the access point and provides expanded training and tactical options to units conducting amphibious exercises within the northern mobility corridor. Prior to its renovation,
Marine assaultmen rocket back to their roots By Lance Cpl. William Perkins among the three participat-
CAMP PENDLETON — Assaultmen with 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, conducted a live-fire range with MK153 Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapons aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, August 21-22, 2014. For the Marines, the training provided extra trigger time using integrated elements such as coordinated volleys and an evaluated night portion. The 42 Marines were provided with 46 rockets to improve their abilities to manipulate, control and become comfortable their assigned weapon system. Corp. Dustin Sterr, an assaultman with 2/5, Company E said, “We’re at the beginning of our work-ups so we’re mainly working with the gun teams because for a lot of them, they’re brand new.” The junior Marines
Get your news before everyone else. for only
the bridged area restricted the passage of large tactical vehicles to amphibious training areas on Green Beach and units' ability to directly travel from the sea to the inland objectives during exercises. Improvements to the access point will allow Marines and Sailors to use Green Beach as an amphibious landing site for conducting a wider range of amphibious raid exercises more frequently in preparation for supporting contingency operations across the globe. In addition, the Green Beach Access Point improvements will enhance service-specific and Joint and Combined Exercises that are now conducted from the sea.
84
¢ per week
Subscribe now to The Coast News online for full access to in-depth stories affecting your community. Not only will you get your news faster, you'll also receive access to stories and columns from the past 10 years.
thecoastnews.com/subscribe
ing companies shot most of the rounds during several repetitions with guidance from the more senior Marines. “Our new Marines were doing this for the first time and they were a little jittery, but that’s to be expected,” Lance Corporal Chance Seckinger, an assaultman with 2/5, Company F said, The Marines faced basic malfunctions when firing the weapon systems, which required immediate actions and safe disposal of the defective ordnance. “There were definitely some issues at the start like weapon malfunctions and time it took to fire, but as they started rolling through, there was an obvious improvement,” said Sterr. The assaultmen spent the weeks prior conducting academic and practical application routines to ensure safe and proficient engagement to combat inexperience. “We had classes on every subject we’ve done out here,” said Sterr. “We had demo classes, SMAW classes and even took our rockets into the ‘backyard’ and practiced gun drills.” Once the Marines establish a concrete grasp when converting their actions from the classroom to a field setting, they can transition their knowledge to other infantry roles. “Now the Marines can take the knowledge gained here back to their companies and help them when they’re relied on to engage a target with a SMAW or destroy an obstacle with demo,” said Sterr. The training will allow the Marines to perform their duties as an assaultman in any clime and place in the distant or near future.