The U.S. Navy hospital ship USNS Mercy will depart San Diego on Saturday to take part in a humanitarian assistance effort in Southeast Asia.
As part of “Pacific Partnership,” the Mercy is scheduled to visit Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Timor-Leste and Palau, according to the Navy’s Third Fleet. Other ships taking part in the effort will make stops in Palau and Papua New Guinea.
Gary W. Morrison, a 23-year veteran of the Long Beach Police Department, will assume the post of Carlsbad police chief on June 1, city officials announced Friday.
Morrison will succeed Chief Tom Zoll, who is retiring following six years as head of the northern San Diego County police department and 30 years in law enforcement.
The Los Angeles Sparks will face the Chinese national team Saturday night at Viejas Arena in the first Women’s National Basketball Association exhibition game in San Diego.
The game is being played in San Diego because “we thought it was a great opportunity to engage a larger footprint of Southern California,” Sparks President Kristin Bernert told City News Service.
By Raquel Shantal
Resident, Solana Beach
On Monday, April 19, I attended the meeting of the Clean and Green Committee of Solana Beach. I was amazed at how knowledgeable the people on the committee were. It was very nice to see the City Council represented and all the speakers were very informative and inspiring. I have always wanted to live in a community that promoted an ecological lifestyle and it makes me very proud to be a part of such a vibrant green community.
I learned at the meeting how toxic cigarette butts are and how important it is to keep them from ending up in the ocean. Roger Boyd, a member of the committee, said he picked them up when he was walking his dog, and that is what I have started doing. I am so surprised to find so many in the street as I hardly see anybody smoking. The city has installed special containers, attached to the garbage cans, for cigarette butts around Plaza Street and Highway 101. Now I can see how important it is to “hold onto your butt!”
The members of the committee are very well informed as to the bills, having ecological consequences, which are being discussed in Congress. I try to lead a green life, but I have not paid much attention to what was going on at the state and federal level. But I intend to do so in the future. I can see that if you are going to think of yourself as a really green person, it is necessary to become an activist. There is much to be learned at the Clean and Green Committee of Solana Beach.
By Stephen Cochrane
Resident, Carmel Valley
The controversial decision by the Del Mar Union School Board’s recent release of Sharon McClain as superintendent will likely spur challengers to file with the Registrar of Voters to run for school board in the November election.
The school board’s legal counsel advised them to remain quiet about the details of McClain’s termination due to employer-employee confidentiality and her threat of litigation. Unfortunately, the public has insufficient information to determine whether the school board or McClain, or possibly a combination of both, were negligent in their respective roles.
Based upon her age, highest pay level and years of experience in public education, McClain will receive an annual pension of $131,720 per year starting immediately. If we deduct her pension from the salary she would have received over the next two years, her gross loss would be $107,560. Since her husband is also a retired school superintendent who is also receiving a substantial state pension, their family income puts them in the highest tax bracket. Consequently, her net loss would only be around $70,000.
By Bud Emerson
Resident, Del Mar
Nothing makes me prouder of Del Mar than our parks and open space. I love walking through Seagrove and Powerhouse parks and seeing how we welcome visitors to enjoy with us these wonderful, family-friendly spaces. Hiking the trails in Crest Canyon and Anderson Canyon transports us into the heart of nature’s bounty.
Boy, did we get it right in the ’70s and ’80s when we voted to tax ourselves to buy up these juicy pieces of nature for preservation. It is hard to reconcile the oft-heard criticism of Del Mar as “elitist” when you experience the rich multi-cultural stew of family picnics in our parks and beaches that we pay to provide. We may be a town of only 4,500 persons, but we welcome visitors in the millions throughout the year. How elitist is that?
For those who have moved here more recently, it is important to know how all of this came about. In the ’70s there was much talk about the “highest and best use” of these spaces. Aggressive developers were proposing high-rise condo complexes in the canyons. To head off these developments, leaders in our community organized a “keep greenery in the scenery” campaign to acquire and preserve open space. A bond issue was place on the ballot and, yes, we voted to tax ourselves to pay off these bonds. The fruits of that election were the preservation of Crest Canyon, Anderson Canyon and Seagrove Park.
Both districts vote against undergrounding
Months of conjecture and vitriolic debate came to an abrupt end Tuesday as Del Mar residents voted down the proposals that would have levied a 30-year lien on their property to underground utility lines.
In the 321-parcel North Hills district, 57.1 percent opposed the project that would have unevenly divvied up $7.5 million among homeowners to pay for the construction. The Sunset district’s vote was much closer, with 51.3 percent voting against the
$3.2 million proposal.
“Undergrounding is dead in Del Mar, except for individuals to do it,” said North Hills proponent Sharon Hilliard. “It’s the fact that if you want to do one block and you have two neighbors out of 10, those two neighbors can refuse to contribute, so they’re forcing other people to pay their way. That’s why an assessment district is more fair.”
The communities surrounding the San Diego Polo Club are mixed in their reactions to the proposal for a planned assisted living center to replace the dirt lot that currently serves as special event parking.
The 23.88-acre slice of land off Via de la Valle serves as a parking lot for the Surf Cup soccer tournament and Torrey Pines PGA events. The lot fills with water during the rainy season. The plan is for it to become Rancho Del Mar, a 674,408-square-foot structure housing seniors in an all-inclusive assisted living
resort, as well as intensive care units for residents with Alzheimer’s or dementia.
The Carmel Valley Community Planning Board’s regional issues subcommittee heard an update on the plans at an April 21 meeting in a full room at the AMN Healthcare building.
Hundreds of roses are on exhibit at the Del Mar library starting today through May 1. This exhibition includes entries by members of the Del Mar Rose Society as part of their 2010 Rose Show.
Linda Gluckman, president of the Rose Society, invites the public to view the roses.
Included in the exhibit are the winning entries from the many categories, such as hybrid teas, floribundas, shrubs, climbing roses, old garden roses, miniatures and mini-floras. Artistic classes include “tribute bouquet” and “picture frame.” Another popular category is the “fragrance” class, which will be judged collectively by DMRS members. All other classes will be judged by accredited ARS horticultural and arrangement judge Mary Muehler Frank, on the evening of April 29.
The Del Mar County Library is at 1309 Camino del Mar in Del Mar.
The library will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and May 1 for public viewing of the roses.
Earth Week took on a special meaning for roughly 600 Del Mar Union School District third-graders who got to experience nature firsthand last week at the San Dieguito Lagoon.
“We actually get to go visit where we’re learning about; it’s fantastic that we’re so close,” Torrey Hills Elementary teacher Marisa Camarillo said.
Students got so close they could touch “slimy” fish and invertebrates, brought by the California Coastal Commission. Christopher Tennant, a Torrey Hills third-grader, described the one he held as “squishy.”
“It’s wet, and he also put some goop on me,” he said.
Voices - Join the Conversation 
LA JOLLA NEWS RANCHO SANTA FE NEWS
