Juliannews 33 27

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ESTABLISHED

An Independent Weekly Newspaper Serving the Backcountry Communities of Julian, Cuyamaca, Santa Ysabel, Shelter Valley, Mt. Laguna, Ranchita, Sunshine Summit, Warner Springs and Wynola.

Julian News

PO Box 639 Julian, CA 92036

1985

Change Service requested

DATED MATERIAL

For the Community, by the Community.

Wednesday

February 7, 2018

Volume 33 — Issue 27

www.JulianNews.com

JCFPD Now Stands Alone

Julian, CA.

ISSN 1937-8416

Creating A Dark Sky Community

Ballot Measure Fails To Qualify

On January 30 the County Registrar of Voters notified the sponsors of the “Citizens’ Initiative to Repeal and Replace Julian-Cuyamaca Fire Protection District Benefit Fee” had not received enough valid signatures. CERTIFICATION OF RESULTS: • Number of sections submitted — 19 • Number of signatures submitted — 268 • Number of signatures verified — 268 • Number of signatures found to be valid — 191 • Number of signatures found not to be valid (includes 7 duplicates) — 77 • Number of signatures required for qualification — 225 There has been no word on what the next step will be. The JCFPD Board with their vote to turn down the County’s proposal to join with the Fire Authority has put the JCFPD in the precarious position of having to cover the district alone, and with the closest assistance traveling from CalFire in Warner Springs or Witch Creek. Coverage will be totally by members of the volunteers and the district’s ambulance crews. The board will now have to identify budget priorities and implement them. In the short term this means that the revenues for the district will not change. In the long term it creates an unknown future. If the benefit fee for the district does not meet all the financial responsibilities, the County could then be asked/forced to take over. Terms would not be negotiable. The new station is a different issue, that money is repaid from property taxes directly assessed and separate from the benefit fee. If the district is no longer able to staff the station due to insolvency - the future of the station would be up to a bankruptcy judge. Adding to the pressure on the district was CalFIRE and the County Fire Authority’s decision to close both the Julian and Cuyamaca stations. Residents and property owners seeking burn permits will need to go to the CalFIRE Stations in Warner

www.visitjulian.com

by Michael Hart

Light pollution as seen from space.

As of February 5, both the Julian and Cuyamaca CalFIRE stations will be closed until spring. Springs (on Hwy 79 next to the Warner Schools) or the Witch Creek station (on Hwy 78, half way to Ramona). With the loss of the CalFIRE/ County Fire Authority paramedic engine on January 1st, that leaves the JCFPD as the only emergency resources for fire and medical coverage. Which means staffing will be at a premium to cover 24/7. And because the ambulance contract will be up for renewal by the end of the year, another dilemma will face the JCFPD board. Bid on the ambulance service or let a third party try to operate it. County wide, ambulance services are under review and a report will be issued with recommendations for improved services and coverage throughout the County not just in the back country sometime in the coming months. The decision to stay as an independent fire protection entity was finalized by the boards 4-1 vote and now the consequences are playing out as they had been lined out in public meetings. The board chose to put their faith in the “Citizens Initiative.” The board will have to make some hard choices about the future of the JCFPD without the additional funding that it promised. Whether the County would be willing at this time to revisit their offer to incorporate the JCFPD into the County Fire Authority, or would put a far less generous offer on the table, is unknown. Whether the residents of the

community are willing and able to raise the funds necessary to continue funding the JCFPD without an increase in the benefit fee is also an open question. Staffing, recruiting, fund raising, maintaining the equipment, applying for grants are all duties that have to be addressed. The cry from those opposed to the County Fire Authority was “keep local control,” that’s what we have and with that comes the responsibility to keep the community safe. The next JCFPD board meeting is February 13 at the fire station on Highway 79, 10am. All of the community should be represented, not just those with the loudest voices. It’s time to make some hard decisions. The board needs to know what’s next.

Hurry! Make Your Appointment For Wednesday, February 14, 2018 The San Diego County A s s e s s o r/ R e c o r d e r/ C o u n t y Clerk's office will be open on Valentines Day, Wednesday, February 14th to issue marriage licenses and perform ceremonies! The San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/ County Clerk Ernie Dronenburg, would like to remind couples wishing to "tie the knot" or renew their wedding vows that appointments are filling quickly. "We are excited to offer walkin services for Valentine's Day and don't want couples to miss their chance at a Valentine's Day wedding," said Ernie. "Call right now so we can help you plan this special day." The downtown office located at 1600 Pacific Highway, Suite 273, will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p_na. for marriage licenses and ceremony appointments. Ceremonies can be done at our Waterfront Park. alongside the historical County Administration Center or inside one of our ceremony rooms overlooking the beautiful San Diego Bay. Couples may "walk-in" at our downtown location only. License and Ceremony appointments are encouraged at our downtown location, but are required in our Chula Vista, San Marcos, and El Cajon locations. Appointments can be made by calling (619) 237-0502. The cost of a non-confidential marriage license is S70.00. lithe couple would like their ceremony to be performed by one of our wonderful County staff the cost is an additional $88.00.

Starry skies are a vanishing treasure because light pollution is washing away our view of the cosmos. It not only threatens astronomy but also disrupts wildlife, and affects human health. The glows over cities and towns — seen so clearly from space — are testament to the billions of dollars spent in wasted energy by lighting up the sky. Until recently, for all of human history, our ancestors experienced a sky brimming with stars – a night sky that inspired science, religion, philosophy, art and literature, including some of Shakespeare’s most famous sonnets. The natural night sky is our common and universal heritage, yet it’s rapidly becoming unknown to the newest generations. Five years of advanced satellite images show that there is more artificial light at night across the globe, and that light at night is getting brighter. The rate of growth is approximately two percent each year in both the amount of areas lit and the radiance of the light. Please JOIN the Julian Dark Sky Network this Saturday, February 10, 2018 from 1-3pm at the Julian Library for an event, Why We Need Natural Darkness, including a video presentation by Paul Bogard, author of End of Night. We are proud to be hosting a live presentation by Paul Ericson, a lighting design professional with 40 years of experience designing lighting for commercial, institutional and municipal projects. Mr. Ericson is the Chair of the San Diego section of the International Dark Sky Association, and as a dedicated advocate for dark sky preservation, he played a very important role in enabling Borrego Springs to attain its designation as a Dark Sky Community. Mr. Ericson’s talk will cover Outdoor Lighting and Starry Skies – Can we Have Both, and How Do We Do It? We expect a lot of questions and some lively discussion! A regional dark sky corridor is beginning to take shape, starting with Borrego Springs’ achieving its status as a Dark Sky Community, the presence in our county of the Mt. Laguna and Palomar Mountain observatories, and now, Anza Borrego State Park has just been awarded Dark Sky Park status by the International Dark Sky Association! Our immediate goal is that Julian will also be designated a Dark Sky community soon, making our own important contribution to the growth of this newborn dark sky corridor. Come to the Julian Library this Saturday, February 10 from 1-3 and enjoy the presentations, and refreshments. We will have some “dark sky surprises” on hand for you to take home! The Julian Dark Sky Network looks forward to seeing you there!

Senior Class Auction In The Books

Winter Sports Schedules Boys Basketball

Wednesday, Jan 3 L 66-43 @ Chula Vista High School Thurs, January 11 L 28-70 Home vs Guajome Park Academy Friday, January 19 W 57-47 Home vs Warner Tuesday, January 30 W 37-26 @ Borrego Springs Friday, February 2 W 81-43 @ West Shores Tuesday, February 6 5:30 Home vs Vincent Memorial Friday, February 9 5:30 Home vs Borrego Springs Tuesday, February 13 5:30 Home vs West Shores Friday, February 16 TBA @ Vincent Memorial

Girls Soccer

Friday, January 12 L 2-6 @ Tri-City Christian Thursday, January 18 L 1-4 Home vs Mountain Empire Friday, January 19 L 1-6 High Tech High (NC) Tuesday, January 23 W 2-1 @ West Shores Thursday, January 25 W 4-1 @ Vincent Memorial Wednesday, Jan. 31 W 15-0 @ Borrego Springs Friday, February 2 W 5-0 @ Hamilton Tuesday, February 6 3:30 @ Mountain Empire Thursday, February 8 3:00 Home vs West Shores Tuesday, February 13 3:00 Home vs Vincent Memorial Thursday, February 15 3:00 Home vs Borrego Springs

Girls Basketball

Home vs San Pasqual Academy Thursday, Jan 18 L 33-11 @ San Pasqual Academy Friday, January 19 L 39-17 Warner Wednesday, Jan 24 L 51-27 @ Hamilton Friday, January 26 4:00 Home vs Hamilton Tuesday, January 30 L 27-13 @ Borrego Springs Friday, February 2 W 22-17 @ West Shores Tuesday, February 6 4:00 Home vs Vincent Memorial Friday, February 9 4:00 Home vs Borrego Springs Tuesday, February 13 4:00 Home vs West Shores Friday, February 16 TBA @ Vincent Memorial

Boys Soccer

Potential buyers checking out the silent auction items, Saturday night.

Thursday, January 18 @ Borrego Springs Tuesday, January 23 @ Calipatria Thursday, January 25 Vincent Memorial Tuesday, January 30 @ Foothills Christian Thursday, February 1 @ West Shores Thursday, February 8 Home vs Calipatria Thursday, February 15 @ Mountain Empire

Join the Chamber on Social Media @VisitJulian on Instagram and Facebook

Chamber of Commerce Business Breakfast - Wednesday - February 21, 8am - Julian Café & Bakery ($10member / $12 non-member)

L 4-2

L 0-11 L 0-16 L 9-2 L 16-0 TBA 3:30


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