The Coast News
VISTA, SAN MARCOS, ESCONDIDO
VOL. 10, N0. 22
NOV. 10, 2023
Panel pans Restaurant Row pitch
Ex-Chamber CEO: Claims defamatory By Samantha Nelson
ESCONDIDO — The former CEO of the Greater Escondido Chamber of Commerce is pushing back against claims from anonymous “sources” alleging he mismanaged the organization’s finances, “categorically denying” accusations he calls defamatory, untrue and baseless. Reports of inner conflict at the Chamber came out last month, along with the alleged firing of several employees, including CEO James “JR” RowROWTEN ten, by the board of directors. According to those reports, the Chamber was facing financial struggles after exhausting a line of credit to pay its bills, which led it to lay off the employees and instead rely on volunteers to run its operations. Deanna Smith, chairperson of the Chamber board, issued a press release announcing a “transformative reorganization of the nonprofit driven by a group of dedicated volunteers” but made no mention of the layoffs. During the confusion, anonymous allegations emerged against Rowten, claiming he embezzled money, removed all of his personal items from his office before leaving on a long-planned family trip to Italy, and wiped his TURN TO CHAMBER ON 10
Parking, more lead planners to object By Laura Place
the number of retail tobacco licenses in general in our city,” said Councilmember Corinna Contreras. City Attorney Walter Chung said two businesses have failed to renew their tobacco licenses in the past two months, but that generally doesn’t happen too often. When discussions about a cap began in August, local convenience store owners selling tobacco shared concerns about how their businesses might be affected. Representatives from
SAN MARCOS — The San Marcos Planning Commission voted Monday not to recommend approval of the Restaurant Row mixed-use development due to a litany of concerns with parking and potential legal issues that one commissioner said warranted a “total redesign.” The project has drawn massive public attention more than any other in the city’s recent history, with a proposed 202 residential units, park and over 10,000 square feet of commercial space at the historic Old California Restaurant Row property along San Marcos Boulevard and Via Vera Cruz. Originally a thriving hub of local restaurants, the site is long past its heyday, with a majority of businesses departing in recent years. Developer and applicant Lennar Homes of California first made public its plans for the project last summer, and in the months since has held various community workshops to help finalize the design in preparation to go before the Planning Commission and City Council. Commissioners, however, said they believed the project had been brought to them too soon. They praised several elements
TURN TO TOBACCO ON 5
TURN TO RESTAURANT ROW ON 9
He’s right at home In the decade after the Rancho Buena Vista shortstop was selected in the 2010 MLB Draft, Vista native Tony Wolters has relocated behind the plate and spent parts of seven seasons in the big leagues. Now catching for the minor league St. Paul Saints, he’s grateful for the chance. “I work hard every day so I can go to sleep at night.” Story on 18
Vista sets tobacco retail license cap By Laura Place
Photo by Samantha Nelson
Bridges at EHS: Stuff of legend Longtime Escondido High coach and athletic director was recently honored as San Diego Coaching Legend. 17
VISTA — The Vista City Council set a limit this week on the number of tobacco retailers permitted to operate locally as part of a continued effort to regulate the expansion of tobacco in the community. The council agreed on Oct. 24 to set a cap at 70, accounting for 67 existing businesses with active tobacco retail licenses and three businesses currently applying for a license. This cap does not prevent tobacco retailers from transferring their licenses upon selling their businesses.
Other businesses seeking a tobacco retail license would be placed on a waiting list. They could only apply if the number of licenses fell below the cap due to attrition — when businesses fail to renew their license or lose their good standing due to code violations. However, the council said that as attrition occurs in the future, they would like to gradually lower the cap, possibly to 60. “It would be important, as businesses may lose their good standing, that that gets reported to the council so we can continue to lower