PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92024 PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
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MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 27, NO. 38
DEC. 6, 2013
Water, turned brown by sediment last December, travels from Rossini Creek into the San Elijo Lagoon. The sediment is from construction on the Encinitas Community Park. The city faces a fine for inadequate drainage resulting in the sediment flowing downstream. Photo courtesy of Eleanor Musick
Through diving, Encinitas resident Barbara Allen developed a love for photography. She snapped this picture of a friend feeding sea urchin to Garibaldi at the Coronado Islands in the late 1960s. Allen was recently inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame. See the full story on page A17. Photo courtesy of Barbara Allen
Encinitas faces fine of up to $430,900 By Jared Whitlock
E-cigarettes banned in Carlsbad City Council on Dec. 3. She explained that e-cigarettes, which are battery-powered devices that produce flavored water vapor for inhaling, are not included under the city’s smoking bans because they do not contain tobacco. Under the current laws, people are legally allowed to smoke e-cigarettes in public areas like libraries and on beaches. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is in the
Same Sheriff in town
process of developing federal regulations for e-cigarettes, leaving states and local governments to come up with their own regulations in the meantime. Possible regulations of e-cigarettes will come before the San Diego County Board of Supervisors sometime in February, but some cities within the county, including Del Mar
Two Sections, 52 pages
Instead of creating a whole new police force, Del Mar opts to improve services with the Sheriff’s Department. B3
Arts & Entertainment . A23 Food & Wine . . . . . . . . B11
A growing trend? A new urban retail farm is soon to be starting in Vista thanks to new SEC rules on investing. B1
Legals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A20 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A17
Medicare Open Enrollment is 10/15/13 to 12/7/13
HOW TO REACH US (760) 436-9737 Calendar: calendar@coastnewsgroup.com Community News: community@coastnewsgroup.com Letters to the Editor: letters@coastnewsgroup.com
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Water war The county water authority persists they’re being overcharged for water, and are heading to court. B4
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CARLSBAD — Citing concerns about enforcement, potential health risks and possible risks for minors, Carlsbad banned the smoking of electronic cigarettes, known as “ecigarettes,” in public spaces. “It’s our goal to ease the enforcement by ensuring that e-cigarettes are prohibited like other tobacco products,” said City Attorney Celia Brewer, presenting the matter before
because of the importance of the San Elijo Lagoon and the surrounding environment. Construction began on the community park, located behind Vons off of Santa Fe Drive, in September 2012. Rossini Creek, a riparian wetland that begins at the foot of the park, snakes southwest and discharges into the mouth of the San Elijo Lagoon, which is near Birmingham Drive and San Elijo Avenue. The lagoon already has too much sediment, Stewart said. Adding more sediment contributes to the need of opening the lagoon via means like bulldozer dredging. Absent dredging, the extra park sediment also holds the potential to sprout more invasive plants and kill fish that depend on the lagoon, according to the complaint. The complaint also states the city didn’t have a suitable runoff management plan in place for much of last fall and winter, resulting in the city being fined for 16 days of that
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By Rachel Stine
ENCINITAS — The city could have to pay up to $430,900 due to sediment from the Encinitas Community Park entering downstream waterways, along with other alleged violations. The California Regional Water Quality Control Board recently levied the fine. The city, which is disputing the board’s findings, has until later this month to respond. The board’s complaint states that the city and the park contractor, USS Cal Builders, had ineffective drainage and erosion controls on the site for several months. It goes on to say documentation shows rains pushed sediment — dirt from the park — into Rossini Creek and the San Elijo Lagoon on Dec. 13, 2012 as well as March 8 of this year. “They seemed not at all prepared for last winter,” said Rebecca Stewart, sanitary engineering associate with the state water quality control board. She added that the case was “raised to a priority”
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