Family seeks public’s help in finding hitand-run driver, A-2
VALLEY
Murrieta Library’s teen summer reading program, A-12
Is buying a home a good idea? B-1
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NEWS
June 27 – July 3, 2014
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Section
www.myvalleynews.com
Volume 14, Issue 26
Menifee Mayor Scott Mann talks investment during 6th annual State of the City Address Alex Groves Staff Writer
Aaron Wheeler lays bold vibrant colors into his surf inspired street painting on Sat. June 21, 2014.
Shane Gibson photo
Old Town gets splashed with color in diverse, eclectic arts weekend Tim O’Leary Staff Writer Thousands of area residents looked on or participated in a string of eclectic arts events that unfolded last weekend in Old Town Temecula. The blast of art bathed several Old Town streets and a cluster of civic buildings in a sea of color. The colors were cast in chalk, charcoal, ink, yarn, watercolors, oil and acrylics by artists and amateurs from 15-months-old to 87 years. “I love this event. It’s my passion,” Melody Brunsting, a Temecula special events contractor, said
The chalk art event has grown as a group of stooped chalk artists scrambled to finish their large- steadily over the years. This year, scale pieces on a closed city street. more than 100 fine art pieces “We have so many talented Inland by youth and adult participants artists. It’s such a community, a splashed the pavement with nearly every imaginfamily.” able theme, With city “We have so many talented animal and anisupport, Inland artists. It’s such a mated characBrunsting ter. There were launched the community, a family.” sharks and subAnnual Street – Melody Brunsting marines, babes Painting Fesand bulldogs, tival 14 years ago. It annually attracts scores of Mickey Mouse and Maleficent. serious competitors and designates There were also depictions of the more than 1,700 squares for anyone Madonna and a scene ripped from to decorate with city-purchased the Bible moments after Christ’s crucifixion. chalk.
A city count noted that about 1,200 visitors per hour were weaving their way through the event as the Sunday afternoon deadline approached in the chalk art competition. About seven after years after the Street Painting Festival was launched the city expanded the offerings by adding the Ralph Love Plein Art Contest. When translated from French, “en plein air” means “in open air.” During such competitions, judges rate paintings done outside in a local setting. Love was a landscape
Alex Groves Staff Writer Adults and children alike bore grins and showed signs of excitement as the City of Menifee celebrated the opening of its very own Boys and Girls club, a community resource that city officials said has been sorely needed as well as one that took years to facilitate. The club, which offers a number of activities and educational resources for children, was officially commemorated with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 12 p.m. on Friday, June 20. There were speeches and awards given as adults celebrated the culmination of their hard work. Meanwhile, children seemed to relish the opportunity to build and
Local foundation aims to combat Krabbe disease Alex Groves Staff Writer Few people know what it’s like to see a loved one struggle through Krabbe disease, a debilitating and ultimately fatal condition that impacts the nervous systems of infants and young children. see page B-12
Local
Temecula’s pilot special needs Visual Arts Program drawing praise The City of Temecula’s pilot Visual Arts Program for special needs adults is drawing praise from participants and their families. “I think it’s absolutely fantastic,” said Marlene Wilcox, whose daughter Samantha Wilcox, 28, was one of 19 students in the unique program. “My daughter has grown in so many ways.”
Menifee city dignitaries, chamber members, and Boys and Girls Club staff and children cut the ribbon during the grand opening event. Shane Gibson photo
Case to go to California Public Employment Relations Board Tuesday, June 17 marked yet another installment in a long standing dispute between members of the Temecula Valley Educators Association (TVEA) and members of the Temecula Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees. The two groups once again faced off during a school board meeting. Tensions have been rising over proposed retroactive salary increase
Health
Laura Rathbun Special to the Valley News
Temecula union and school board remain in standoff over salary proposal Alex Groves Staff Writer
see MENIFEE, page A-6
see ARTS, page A-5
Menifee Boys and Girls Club celebrates opening with ribbon cutting ceremony
see CLUB, page A-7
Numerous individuals packed the Menifee Lake Country Club to hear officials speak about Menifee’s changes, accomplishments and planned investments during the city’s 6th Annual State of the City Address, which took place shortly after 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 19. The address was geared at discussing Menifee’s rapid growth and all the things associated with that growth; Mayor Scott Mann talked about the need to invest in public safety, business, economic development, infrastructure, residential housing, the rural community and
of one percent for Temecula Valley Unified School District teachers through the end of 2014 and an increase of three percent for the rest of the 2014-2015 school year. Many teachers deemed the proposed settlement unfair and called into question the disparity between TVUSD’s proposed raise and the settlement that already occurred between neighboring Murrieta Valley Unified School District (MVUSD)
see SALARIES, page A-4
Jeff Kingsberg, president of the Temecula Valley Educators Association, expresses his ongoing contract concerns to board members during a June 17, 2014 TVUSD board meeting. Shane Gibson photo
see page A-8
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