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. 23, NO. 48
NOV. 27, 2009
FESTIVAL FUN
THISWEEK
Every November, for nearly two decades, downtown Encinitas has played host to the Fall Festival, previously known as the Poinsettia Festival. The event is a readymade bazaar for holiday shoppers and weekend fun seekers. The festival featured 450 vendor booths showcasing various arts, crafts, gifts, food and live music. Left, Encinitas resident Chris Everett gives his son Braiden a view from the crow’s nest. Below, Cardiff resident Bree Lundgren shows a sample headband of her mother’s crafts at the Rickie’s Renditions booth.
MERRY MOTORCYCLES Hundreds of local bikers teamed up with Toys for Tots to give local children a special A2 Christmas
101 RENOVATIONS Solana Beach locals attended a workshop to discuss ideas for their city’s stretch of the A7 Coast Highway
EYEGLASS GURU Read why customers
Photos by Daniel Knighton
from all over the county are lining up to have Bill Stephenson fix B1 their glasses
INSIDE
TWO SECTIONS, 48 PAGES
Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . A9 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . B15 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . B18 Consumer Reports . . . . A12 Crime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A8 Crossword Puzzle . . . . B18 Doorman Diaries . . . . . A11 Eye on the Coast . . . . . . A5 Frugal Living . . . . . . . . . B3 Henry’s Health Tips . . . A16 Legal Notices . . . . . . . . A24 Odd Files . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Outside Perspective . . . . A4 Pendleton News . . . . . A18 Pet of the Week . . . . . . A23 Sea Notes . . . . . . . . . . . B11 Second Opinion . . . . . . A13 Small Talk . . . . . . . . . . . B1 Taste of Wine . . . . . . . A12 Who’s News? . . . . . . . . . A8
HOW TO REACH US (760) 436-9737 CALENDARS SECTION: calendar@coastnewsgroup.com COMMUNITY NEWS: community@coastnewsgroup.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: letters@coastnewsgroup.com
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Local parks go to the dogs By Wehtahnah Tucker
ENCINITAS — The ones who barked the loudest won more time to run free at some of the city’s parks. City Council voted 4-1, with Councilman James Bond opposed, to expand off-leash hours for dogs at Orpheus, Sun Vista and Viewpoint parks on Nov. 18. While the overwhelmingly supportive audience hollered for joy after the vote, at least one person in attendance was opposed to the outcome. Steve Meiche, a dog owner and father of two young boys who has lived close to Orpheus Park for almost 20 years, said that TURN TO DOGS ON A20
New taxes for city’s businesses
Left, San Diego resident Arlyn Ruddy enjoys her seat in the sun while waiting for customers to come to her booth. Right, Malibu resident Marston, “The Lord of the Cello” performs with his electric cello.
By Bianca Kaplanek
design charrette meetings in April 2009 and continued to be the view of most homeowners at a workshop in June 2009. “It’s about preserving the neighborhood character, not about stopping development,” Councilwoman Esther Sanchez said. At the Nov. 18 council meeting most residents opposed the rowhomes, but some saw the restriction as
SOLANA BEACH — Few people are ever eager to give up a portion of their hard-earned money to Uncle Sam. But Solana Beach seems to have come up with a business tax that is somewhat palatable to those who will be paying it. At the Nov. 18 meeting, City Council unanimously approved a “fix/tiered” tax model and directed staff to proceed with its implementation. The fate of the tariff will now be decided by residents during the June 2 primary election because state law requires voter approval for new taxes. A business tax was one of five revenue enhancement options presented in February as a means to partially address the city’s longterm financial sustainability. Residents and business
TURN TO SPLITS ON A17
TURN TO TAXES ON A17
Lot splits banned to preserve area’s bungalow style By Promise Yee
OCEANSIDE — City Council voted 4-0 to prohibit lot splits and preserve the craftsman bungalow style of the Seaside neighborhood on Nov. 18. Councilman Jack Feller voted no. The vote means future development in the area of the 300 block of Horne Street still allows duplexes and triplexes, but the nix on lot splits means no rowhomes. The long skinny design of rowhomes is seen as
inharmonious with the bungalow style of many homes in the Seaside neighborhood bound by Horne Street, Weitzel Street, Michigan Street, Freeman South and Missouri Street. “They are conspicuously vertical in appearance, one unbroken plane front to back,” Russ Cunningham, senior planner, said. “Bungalow cottage aesthetics is the hallmark of Seaside.” Another unwelcome design feature for the neigh-
borhood that sports front yards and a broad parkway from sidewalk to sidewalk is that rowhomes can sit five feet closer to the curb. Future development of duplexes and triplexes is seen as a better area fit and more street-friendly with the possibility of horizontal designs and building mass set back from the curb. Neighborhood protest to the development of rowhomes was voiced at the Coast Highway Vision Plan
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