PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92024 PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
.com MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 32, N0. 10
MARCH 9, 2018
SAN MARCOS -NEWS
Challenger takes lead in . Dist. 3 race
Council OKs CCA launch
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By Steve Puterski
CARLSBAD — A new face has emerged inTHE the leadup to this year’sVISTA City Council elections. NEWS Priya Bhat-Patel, 30, fi led her paperwork with the city clerk in January and is the only person running for the District 3 seat. She will host her campaign launch party on March 17 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Alga Norte RANCHO Park and is encouraging SFNEWS residents to visit and speak with her about Bhat-Patel the issues. Incumbent Michael Schumacher told The Coast News he will not seek re-election so he can spend time with his children before they graduate high school (see story, Page A6). As a result, Bhat-Patel is the only candidate in District 3 who has fi led papers with the city declaring her candidacy. Bhat-Patel is a newcomer to local politics and has spent most of her life in Carlsbad, attending local public schools and is a fi rst generation American (she is of Indian descent). She is a public health consultant (currently working on doctorate), but joined the race with growing concerns over the city losing its small-town charm and feel. “Lately, it seems that we are giving up parts of our amazing quality of life
By Bianca Kaplanek
SOLANA BEACH — Consistently a leader in sustainability, Solana Beach will be the fi rst city in the county to offer residents community choice aggregation. Council members at the Feb. 28 meeting authorized several actions, including launching the alternative energy program, approving its name, product names and procurement strategy and setting a March 14 public hearing to adopt a risk managementpolicy and discuss and set rates. If all goes as planned, the CCA will start June 1. Although she said she supports alternative energy options, Mayor Ginger Marshall was the lone dissenter, as she has been in the past. “I’m still worried about all the risks involved,” she said before the 3-1 vote, with Judy Hegenauer absent. “I think the rest of the council is very positive and it looks like they want to move forward with this. I hope it works out. “I would prefer to join forces with some of the other larger cities in the area who are studying their own CCAs,” she added. “I just think that that would be a more prudent way to go about it. “I’m defi nitely not an energy expert, and this is all very technical and complicated,” Marshall said. “I just hate to see any of the city’s funds being put to TURN TO CCA ON A7
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BUGGIN’ OUT
Local classic VW enthusiasts will show off over 100 cars and vans at the 25th annual Bob Baker Vintage Volkswagen Spring Festival on Sunday, March 18, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at Bob Baker Volkswagen, 5500 Paseo del Norte, in Carlsbad. The free event, which is open to the public, features food and live music. Photo courtesy of Bob Baker
New districts change election landscape Carlsbad voting switch attempts to unify elected offi cials, residents name a few. The lawsuits were brought to protect the rights of Latino and other minority voters. Latinos make up 13 percent of Carlsbad’s population, according to the city’s website. “We were trying to do what was best for the city,” said Brian Flock, one of the map’s authors. “We did one with quadrants … and what I call the horizontal unifying map.” Another Carlsbad resident, Arnie Cohen, banded with Flock to create the map adopted by the city using data from the 2010 Census. Flock and Cohen are both active in local politics and were on oppo-
By Steve Puterski
CARLSBAD — For the fi rst time in the city’s history, districts races will be part of the election fabric. Last year, the City Council voted to create four districts for its members. The mayor’s race will remain at-large, meaning every resident of the city can vote for the position. The city opted to institute districts in the wake of dozens of California cities being sued, and losing, under the California Voting Rights Act. Many other North County cities already adopted such districts including Escondido, Vista, San Marcos and Oceanside, to
TURN TO DISTRICT MAP ON A6
Santa Barbara Masterpiece in The Groves in RSF
TURN TO DISTRICT 3 ON A7
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