PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92024 PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
.com
MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 25, NO. 8
FEB. 25, 2011
Residents oppose increasing speed limit
THISWEEK MUSICIANS SHOWCASE
Sunset Sessions is held at La Costa Resort and Spa giving emerging artists a chance to show B4 their stuff
By Alyx Sariol
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
The process begins to name the Hall property A6 park in Encinitas
SHAPING UP A local surfboard shaper launches a line of eco-friendly boards that don’t compromise A9 on quality
SLAM DUNK Local poets took to the stage as the Full Moon Poets held their biannual poetry slam A7 at La Paloma
INSIDE
TWO SECTIONS, 48 PAGES
Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . A5 Camp Pendleton News . . A14 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . B19 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . B22 Consumer Reports . . . . .B3 Crime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A8 Frugal Living . . . . . . . . . B4 Hit the Road . . . . . . . . . B3 Hot Off the Block . . . . . A12 Legal Notices . . . . . . . . A19 Lick the Plate . . . . . . . . B5 Local Roots . . . . . . . . . . B5 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . . . B7 Odd Files . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Pet of the Week . . . . . . . B6 Second Opinion . . . . . . . A9 Small Talk . . . . . . . . . . . B1 Taste of Wine . . . . . . . . B5 Who’s News? . . . . . . . . . A6
HOW TO REACH US (760) 436-9737 CALENDAR SECTION: calendar@coastnewsgroup.com COMMUNITY NEWS: community@coastnewsgroup.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: letters@coastnewsgroup.com
READY TO READ From left, Madison McNamara thanks Oceanside Police Officer Matt “Chowda” Lyons along with Marissa McNamara after the officer read the youngsters a story as part of a book drive project to assist and donate to the Oceanside and Vista school districts, organized by Starbucks employee Nicole McNamara. Photo by Nicole McNamara
Local barista organizes book drive, story-time OCEANSIDE — If you had stopped by the Starbucks Coffee Shop at 603 W. Mission Ave. at around 5 p.m. Feb. 10, you may have found yourself being contacted by the police as well. That’s because Oceanside Police Officer Matt Lyons was reading stories to children and helping out, as part of a book drive project organized by Starbuck’s employee Nicole
McNamara. McNamara came up with the idea of a book drive to assist and donate to the Oceanside and Vista school districts and got support from her employer. A small group of children and family members showed up for the event as Officer Lyons and other volunteers read to them. Some just stopped to listen as they waited for their coffee orders to be
filled and were able to make donations. Officer Lyons, a 30-year veteran to law enforcement which includes 10 years with the Oceanside Police Department, volunteered to assist in the event. “The children seemed to enjoy themselves,” Lyons said. “It was nice to have the interactions with them and the public, in a more relaxed set-
ting than I am usually accustomed to. Many times the public only see the police when there is an emergency and this was a nice change.” People can continue to donate books at the Mission Avenue Starbucks for four more weeks. For more information concerning book donations, contact McNamara via e-mail at D011bookdrive@yahoo.com.
Community traffic calming project gets approval By Wehtahnah Tucker
ENCINITAS — With overwhelming support from a core group of neighbors, City Council approved a request for traffic calming measures along a major residential thoroughfare in the area known as Village Park on Feb. 23. The initial request was submitted two years ago according to city officials. The residential area east of Flora Vista Elementary School has a high incident of speeding drivers that compete with pedestrian and bicycle traffic according to residents.
Over the past years, city engineers have conducted roadway studies and held a public workshop session with area residents. The results of a survey of 170 property owners in the area showed a high interest in implementing some sort of traffic calming measures. In fact, 70 percent of those surveyed wanted the changes, city Associate Traffic Engineer Nestor Mangohig said Mangohig detailed the lengthy process of traffic study in the area north and east of the El Camino Real and Encinitas Boulevard intersection. “We’ve done a
lot to find out what will work here,” he said. Plans call for the installation of several traffic-calming measures including speed-bump-like devices and decorative roadway medians as well as “bulb-outs” or rounding of the corners at intersections. Much of the work will focus on Gardendale Road. Residents maintain that the wide road attracts fast drivers cutting through to reach other parts of the city. At least 50 people listened to the council discussion and several addressed the issue. John Schmid, a
CARLSBAD — A proposed speed limit increase on Carlsbad’s Aviara Parkway has some residents worried that their walkable community will become unsafe for pedestrians should the ordinance be approved. Aviara resident Diane Lincoln has been leading an effort to challenge the proposed change — an increase of 5 miles, from the current 40 mph to 45 mph — offered up by Carlsbad’s traffic engineers. “Aviara is promoted as a walking community, but we’ve had pedestrians lose their lives here,” Lincoln said. “It’s very contradictory to raise the speed limit and tell people that they should walk more.” A recent traffic survey TURN TO INCREASING ON A17
Coach pleads not guilty to child porn By Shelli DeRobertis
Gardendale Road resident who bought his home three years ago, said his decision to buy the property was hampered by concerns about speeding drivers. “We did buy the house, and now we worry too much,” he said. He described how he and his wife “panic” every time they can’t immediately locate their 1-year-old daughter, fearing she might be in danger from fast moving cars driving by. Many of the speakers urged the city to get the job done quickly; stressing that
SAN MARCOS — An ice skating coach accused of secretly videotaping a 12year-old girl in the shower was arraigned in a Vista courtroom on Feb. 18, and pleaded not guilty to one count of child pornography. A warrant for the arrest of Marc Romain Mandina, 41, was issued by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department last October after the alleged incident was discovered, which was believed to have happened in Mandina’s San Marcos home in 2007. Mandina is a French National who was a professional ice skater in the 1990s. He participated in the French
TURN TO TRAFFIC ON A12
TURN TO COACH ON A23
Call today for a FREE consultation
Special Offer of $100 off your program* Call 1-888-Y-Medifast (1-888-963-3432) CARLSBAD / OCEANSIDE 2641 B Vista Way, 760-967-4277
ENCINITAS
N N N N
Lose 2-5 lbs per week* Recommended by 20,000 Doctors Clinically proven since 1980 Private Consultation - No embarrassing group meetings
Call Today 1-888-Y-Medifast • Encinitas • San Marcos • Carlsbad/Oceanside • Carmel Mtn Ranch • Mission Valley • El Cajon
• Chula Vista
SAN MARCOS
191 N. El Camino Real #201 Grand Plaza Center Encinitas, CA 92024 137 S. Las Posas Rd. #255 1-760-753-6919 1-760-744-4953 *Special offer and guaranteed average weight loss of 2-5 lbs per week are based on the purchase of a full-service Medifast Weight Control Center program. Offer expires 3-31-11