San Diego

BLOOMING IN JULIAN: LILAC FESTIVAL CONTINUES AT FORT CROSS OLD-TIMEY ADVENTURES

 

Also check out Julian Gold Rush Days at the Julian Mining Company just across the street

By Miriam Raftery

April 2, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) – There’s still time to bring home a bouquet of fragrant lilacs as the Lilac Festival continues in its final day of the season at Fort Cross Old Timey Adventures today.  It’s all part of a revitalization of new activities reclaiming the region's  historical roots along Highway 78 just outside of Julian in San Diego's East County.


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SPECIAL EDITION: BREAKING NEWS APRIL 1, 2017

April 1, 2017—East County Magazine has the exclusive scoop on astounding major stories breaking today:

Is truth stranger than fiction? You decide.  Click links above for individual stories, or  click this link  to view blurbs on each of these stories in our extra-special April 1st edition. Then to open each special report, scroll down and click “read more." (Trust us, you won't want to miss this news!) 


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MEXICO TO PAY FOR WALL

 

 

By Juana  B. Back

April 1, 2017 (San Diego) – In a surprise announcement this morning,  President Donald Trump tweeted that Mexico’s president has agreed to pay for the border wall. The decision came after the winning bid was awarded to a Mexican contracting company, Puerto Abierto, following a four-day bidding process in March.

“We’re going to build a HUGE wall.  The biggest and best wall ever,” Trump promised in a 4 a.m. tweet.  “Mexico has agreed to pay.  Puerto Abierto’s got the contract. They had the lowest bid, a real deal. HASTA LA VISTA, BAD HOMBRES!!!!”


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SAN DIEGO MOTORISTS LAUNCH “POT FOR POTHOLES” INITIATIVE

 

 

By Axle Broke

April 1, 2017 (San Diego) –Last month, Supervisors voiced concerns over falling gas tax revenues and inadequate funding to repair roadways countywide.  Today, motorists seeking solutions to roads battered by winter storms held a press conference to announce  the “Pot for Potholes” ballot initiative to solve the region’s infrastructure problem.


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HOMELESS HAVEN TO GO UNDERGROUND

 

 

 

By Bilbo Baggins

April 1, 2017 (San Diego) – The San Diego Regional Task Force on Homelessness has come up with a novel solution to shelter our region’s growing homeless population.

“By  constructing Hobbit-style homes tucked into hillsides along our border region, and connecting them  through a network of repurposed and enhanced tunnels originally built by drug smugglers, we can create a sustainable  yet unobtrusive “Homeless Hobbit Habitat,” said  Ben Diggin, task force spokesman.


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FIRST LOCAL ZIKA VIRUS BIRTH DEFECT REINFORCES TRAVEL ADVISORY

 

By Tom Christensen, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo:  Greyerbaby / Pixabay

March 28, 2017 (San Diego) --Pregnant women, women who could become pregnant and couples considering pregnancy are advised to avoid traveling to areas with known Zika transmission after a baby with the severe birth defect microcephaly was born in San Diego County.

The County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency reports the mother was infected with the Zika virus while traveling in a foreign country where the virus is common.


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ASSEMBLYMAN VOEPEL AND EAST COUNTY MAGAZINE TO HOST EASTERN SAN DIEGO COUNTY PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

 

 

Photo by Darin Sefcik:  First place winner in East County Magazine's 2013 photography competition

 

March 15,  2017 (Santee) -- Assemblyman Randy Voepel (R-Santee) and East County Magazine announced today that they are hosting a photography contest that features photographs taken in San Diego’s East County.  The winning photographs will be displayed in Assemblyman Randy Voepel’s Capitol Office and published in East County Magazine.  Categories include wildlife, landscapes, cities and towns, activities, and people. 

“Eastern San Diego County is full of beautiful scenery and iconic landmarks, and I can’t wait to showcase photos of our wonderful community in our State’s Capitol,” Voepel said.  

Miriam Raftery, Editor of East County Magazine said, “We’re pleased to partner with Assemblyman Voepel to showcase the best of East County’s beautiful scenery, unique communities, people, wildlife, and activities.” 

Click "read more" or scroll down for for details:


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HIGH “STEAKS” WIN: FINAL CUT AT HOLLYWOOD CASINO JAMUL-SAN DIEGO

 

By Miriam Raftery

 

 

March 21, 2017 (Jamul) – Final Cut Steakhouse offers a premier menu of artfully prepared dishes served up amid the glamour of vintage Hollywood. You can also savor spectacular scenic views through a wall of windows high atop the new Hollywood Casino Jamul-San Diego.

You don’t have to be a gambler to be a winner at Final Cut Steakhouse!

 


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ATKINS BILLS TO PROTECT SAN DIEGO RIVER, FUND AFFORDABLE HOUSING ADVANCE IN LEGISLATURE

 

View a video on the San Diego River Conservancy’s report to the Legislature

March 18, 2017 (Sacramento) -- This week, two bills authored by Sen. Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) cleared key policy committees and moved on to the Senate Appropriations Committee for consideration. One wil help enhance portions of the San Diego River in East County. The other provides funding to build affordable housing.


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EXTREME FLOODING SOAKS REGION

 

 

Report rock slides, boulders or other dangerous road conditions to the County Operations Emegency Call Center (858)565-5262. Help save lives!

By Miriam Raftery

Photos by Christina Dahners-Johnson:  Seasonal creek behind Lyons Valley Trading Post in Jamul had been dry for at least seven years before this storm.

February 27, 2017 (San Diego) – Flooding is wreaking havoc on rural roads and highways countywide.  In Mission Valley, the San Diego River has water cresting among the top 10 levels on record, with the ballfield at Petco Park and some parking garages currently submerged.

George Barnett, a member of the Alpine Community Planning Group, posted in the Ranter’s Roost forum, “ It’s raining like hell in Alpine…Viejas Creek is way outside   its normal channel and Via Viejas into the old ranch area is closed with the dam well over-flowing.  To my eye, on a dark and cloudy day, more water is coming down the creek than I recall seeing in maybe 10 years.”


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HEAR OUR INTERVIEW: ESTELA DE LOS RIOS SPEAKS OUT ON HOMELESSNESS IN SAN DIEGO REGION

 

 

By Miriam Raftery

Hear our interview, originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM radio in January,  by clicking the audio link, and scroll down for highlights of how Esetela de los Rios believes  our region’s homeless problems could and should be solved .

February 18, 2017 (San Diego)—Estela de los Rios with CSA, a fair housing and human rights organization in El Cajon since 1969, is calling for  a change in how the homeless are treated in the city of San Diego and across San Diego County.  San Diego now has the fourth highest number of homeless people in the nation according to the federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) agency statistics.  Yet instead of providing meaningful help to homeless people, San Diego has often resorted to criminalizing homelessness—passing out citations for sleeping in public places and having police seize tents and sleeping bags even amid cold winter storms.

Homeless has affected every city in San Diego County,  including East County cities of El Cajon, La Mesa, Lemon Grove and Santee, as well as unincorporated areas of the County. As San Diego cracks down on homelessness, more homeless people have resorted to camping along river banks,  in parks and on the streets of communities in East County, where homelessness is a problem for every city.

Audio: 

Estela de los Rios on homelessness

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LIVE NATION SEEKS TO MANAGE A RESTORED EAST COUNTY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

 

 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Dancers performed in front of ECPAC in its heydey.

February 9, 2017 (El Cajon) – The long-shuttered East County Performing Arts Center (ECPAC) may finally be reopened under management of Live Nation, which claims to be the global leader in live entertainment. According to the company’s website,  Live Nation operates in 7 nations, has produce shows in nearly 40 countries, and has a concert somewhere in the world every 20 minutes.

The El Cajon City Council will vote Tuesday, February 14th at its 3 p.m. meeting on authorizing the City manager to negotiate a draft management agreement with Live Nation .  View agenda and attachments. 


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SAN DIEGO MAYOR DECLARES EMERGENCY

 

East County News Service

February 4, 2017 (San Diego) — San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer has declared a state of emergency in the City of San Diego due to damage from January’s storms.  The declaration could help the city recover nearly $5 million in estimated costs of disaster response from the state under the  California Disaster Assistance Act.


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COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MOVE TOWARD BANNING ALL MARIJUANA SALES AND GROWING, INCLUDING CLOSING EXISTING MEDICAL MJ DISPENSARIES

Planning Commission meeting Feb. 10  to draft changes to zoning ordinance; next Supervisor hearing is Feb. 14 with final vote March 15

By Thea Skinner

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors moved on  Jan. 25th to have staff draft a ban prohibiting medical and non-medical marijuana facilities in unincorporated areas by April 15.  Existing and previously approved medical marijuana dispensaries would be phased out and shut down after five years.

A draft to repeal and replace the zoning ordinance regulating marijuana facilities will be on the Planning Commission agenda Feb. 10 at 9 a.m. in the County Operations Center Campus Chamber (5520 Overland Ave, San Diego. See map).  View the Planning Commission report.

The packed room gathered 31 individuals wishing to speak, 12 in favor and 19 in opposition, with two requests for group presentations. Eleven individuals registered their opinion with two in favor and nine in opposition.


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EXCLUSIVE : IRC AND SURVIVORS OF TORTURE DIRECTORS SPEAK OUT ON REFUGEE RESTRICTIONS

 

By Miriam Raftery, Editor, East County Magazine

Hear our interview for KNSJ Radio by clicking the audio link

February 1, 2017(San Diego) – To learn the impacts of President Donald Trump’s executive action restricting refugee s’ entry into the United States,  we interviewed International Rescue Committee Executive Director David Murphy and Kathi Anderson, Executive Director at Survivors of Torture.

The order has created “fear for a lot of people” in San Diego, long a welcoming haven for refugees starting with the airlifts of Vietnamese boat people in the 1970s, says Murphy.  San Diego County takes in 3 to 4 percent of  all the refugees accepted into the U.S. each year.

Audio: 

Interview with David Murphy, IRC, and Kathi Anderson, Survivors of Torture on Refugee Restrictions

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COURTS BLOCK PART OF TRAVEL BAN FROM MUSLIM NATIONS AS PROTESTS GROW; TRUMP CLAIMS ORDER IS WORKING “VERY NICELY”

 

 

By Miriam Raftery

Protest planned at 5 p.m. tonight at Lindbergh Field; immigrant attorneys warn demonstrators could be detained, caution non-citizens not to participate due to “grave” risks

January 29, 2017 (San Diego)—Multiple federal courts have issued orders temporarily blocking deportation of  legal residents detained at airports following President Trump’s executive order Friday, including a New York federal judge ruling on an ACLU suit that applies nationwide. While some remain detained and denied access to counsel per the ACLU, others were allowed to meet with immigration attorneys  and were soon set free at airports across the U.S., where large crowds gathered and greeted the arriving immigrants with cheers to welcome them to America (View video).

The court orders thus far protect only those already at U.S. airports or in transit. Other lawsuits are set to be filed Monday by civil rights and Arab-American groups seeking to overturn as unconstitutional the broader ban on admitting refugees as from seven mostly Muslim nations (Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Syria, Syria, Libya and Yemen)  listed as countries of concern by the State Department. 

The order also applies to  an estimated half million legal U.S. residents with green cards from those countries, as well as people who hold dual citizen in any of the seven nations as well as citizenship in U.S. ally nations including Canada and Great Britain.


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TRUMP BANS REFUGEES FROM KEY MUSLIM NATIONS, ALSO BARS LEGAL RESIDENTS OVERSEAS FROM RETURNING TO U.S.

 

Order exempts nations where Trump has business ventures; protests erupt at airports nationwide

By Miriam Raftery, East County Magazine

Photo: A large crowd at JFK airport in New York is protesting the crackdown on refugees and immigrants tonight, where cab drivers have threatened to shut down airport traffic for an hour.  A smaller group of protestors has gathered at San Diego's Lindbergh Field airport,  CBS reports.

January 28, 2017 (San Diego)—An executive ordered signed Friday by President Donald Trump suspends admission of refugees from seven predominantly Muslim nations for at least 120 days pending “extreme vetting.”  Those nations are Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen, CNN reports. 

Despite banning refugees from Syria, Trump backed off his campaign pledge to establish a safe zone inside war-torn Syria for persecuted people.  

The order also puts a half million legal residents of the U.S. who are traveling overseas in limbo, unable to return home, and slashes in half the number of refugees the U.S. will admit this year from all countries.


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40,000 JOIN WOMEN’S MARCH IN SAN DIEGO, MILLIONS MORE NATIONWIDE

 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo, right:  Cathy and Kayla Lechien at La Mesa trolley stop

Photo, left:  Women's marchers at the embarcadero in San Diego 

January 21, 2017 (San  Diego) – At the Spring Street trolley station in La Mesa, hundreds of East County residents converged to ride downtown and join this morning’s  Women’s March.

Major media outlets estimate some 40,000 marchers in San Diego joined millions more across the U.S. in what CBS reports was the largest protest in U.S. history.  Some participants estimate there were over 100,000 marching in San Diego; another 10,000 marched in North County. Other cities around the globe also drew huge crowds.

 Women and men,  young and old, straight and gay, white, black and Latino –and all shared one common goal:  forging a resistance coalition opposed to policies of President Donald Trump that would weaken rights and freedoms for  women, minorities, and many other American.


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LISTEN NOW: OUR INTERVIEW WITH REV. SHANE HARRIS ON MONDAY’S MARTKIN LUTHER KING DAY MARCH AND TAKING BACK DR. KING’S DREAM IN SAN DIEGO

 

East County News Service

Hear our interview, originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM radio, by clicking the audio link.

January 13, 2017 (San Diego) –  Rev. Shane Harris with the National Action Network (NAN) aims to reclaim Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream here in San Diego, the eighth largest city in the U.S. , starting with a local MLK march on Monday.  This week, in an exclusive interview with East County Magazine on KNSJ,  Rev. Harris shared his concerns and visions for the future.

“What we’ve seen with the Democrats and Republicans nationally and statewide is they will run around touting Dr. King, but they don’t understand his dream and vision,” Rev. Harris explains. “Dr. King died for a poor people’s campaign.  He was getting ready to lead a poor people’s march in Washington D.C. when he was killed.”

Audio: 

Interview with Rev. Shane Harris on MLK March 2017

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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

November 29, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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STAR RANCH UP FOR SALE

 

By Miriam Raftery

November 29, 2016 (Campo)- If you’ve got a hankering to own a 2,160 acre cattle ranch,  you may want to mosey on out to rural Campo and saddle up to see the Star Ranch.  The large property is on the market—and the owner is willing to consider offers on any of nine parcels separately or together. (View offering proposal).

A 455-unit housing development has been proposed on the site, drawing opposition from some neighbors concerned about impacts on groundwater supplies, traffic and loss of rural character.  Now the owner has put the site on the market-- and  is giving neighbors the first opportunity to purchase all or part of the sprawling rural property.


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LOCAL LATINOS REACT WITH FEAR, SORROW TO NEWS OF TRUMP ELECTION

Meeting Nov. 12 planned for communities of color concerned about the election outcome

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Estela de los Rios, past victim of a hate crime in El Cajon

November 11, 2016 (San Diego) – Maria, a maid and legal U.S. resident who has raised her daughter here,  tearfully put her elderly,  frail mother on a plane Wednesday night and said goodbye,  perhaps forever.  “She is going back to Mexico, before Donald Trump can deport her,” Maria told East Magazine.

President-Elect Trump has vowed to deport all 11 million undocumented immigrants in America—including those brought here as children and the parents of U.S. citizens.  Even children who were brought here as babies, who have never known any other home.  Even ill and elderly parents such as Maria’s mother,  who has survived cancer and suffers from  diabetes.  Maria fears she is too ill to survive long on her own in Mexico—but the prospect of her mother languishing in a detention camp was even more frightening.


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REPUBLICANS SHOW HIGHER VOTING RATE IN EARLY BALLOTS RETURNED LOCALLY

By Miriam Raftery

November 2, 2016 (San Diego)—Countywide, 324,415 voters have already cast ballots through early voting or mail-in ballots received at the San Diego County Registrar of Voters office,  as of 5 p.m. yesterday.  So far, 36.73% are from Republicans,  who are voting at 5.27% above their registration percentage. 

The highest number of ballots were cast by Democrats, 39.85%, but they are voting at only 2.91% above the party’s registration rate.  Independents account for 23.42% of votes, which is 8.18% below registration.


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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

November 2, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

October 27, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories, click "read more" and scroll down.


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HEAR OUR INTERVIEW: MARK JACKSON, NO ON MEASURE B

 

October 25,  2016 (San Diego's  East  County)--  Measure B on the  countywide ballot was paid for by  a  developer.  Accretive Development wants voters to approve Lilac  Hills, a massive,  master-planned community the size of Del Mar in rural Valley Center. 

Why should voters in East County and elsewhere in San Diego care?  First, because taxpayers countywide could wind up footing part of the bill and second,  because if Measure B passes, developers of other controversial  projects could similarly seek to bypass state enviornmental review and the county plannning process.  That's why major environmental groups such as  Sierra Club, Save Our Forests and Ranchlands, and Cleveland Natoinal Forest Foundation are all opposed to the ballot proposition.

Hear our interview with Mark Jackson from the No on Measure B committee, originally aired on  our show on KNSJ radio, by clicking the audio link.

Audio: 

Mark Jackson, no on Measure B interview

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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

September 27, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories,  click “read more” and scroll down.


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

September 21, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories, click  “read more” and scroll down.


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WHITEWASH? COUNTY’S BORDER FIRE REPORT IGNORES SERIOUS CONCERNS RAISED BY RESIDENTS

 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo by Richard Edwords: Harrowing ride along State Route 94 during Border Fire

 

September 15, 2016  (San Diego’s East County) – The County’s Border Fire 2016 After Action Report  presents a review on the regional response to the Border Fire that ignores many serious complaints lodged by rural residents in the fire. The report was written entirely by official agencies and  does not include concerns raised by the public, leading rural planning officials,  residents and a community news editor to contend the county whitewashed their concerns.

 The blaze killed two people , destroyed five homes and left countless animals without care in triple-digit heat while residents were refused access  for days after the fire. While residents praise efforts of firefighters who worked valiantly to prevent worse losses, many feel betrayed by officials in the wake of the Border Fire report and other complaints that residents say have yielded little or no meaningful changes.

The report omits entirely any mention of controversies over the deaths of Potrero residents Jim and Kyrie Keefe,  whose bodies were found by community volunteers.  Agencies praised themselves in the report, while omitting criticisms on issues such as lack of  adequate care for animals stranded in triple-digit heat and inadequate evacuation notifications -- in some cases, just yellow caution tape stuck on mailboxes, with no explanation or direct contact with residents in danger after their phone lines, cell towers and Internet service all  went down in communities such as Potrero and Lake Morena.


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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

East County News Service

September 13, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

STATE

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

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