Vice Mayor Kristine Alessio compares a traditional cigarette to an e-cig at a recent city council meeting. Alessio opposes a proposed ban on smoking e-cigarettes in public.
City moves to restrict e-cigs in parks, restaurants
Foster kids need advocates in La Mesa By Jeremy Ogul With more than 5,000 foster children in San Diego County’s juvenile court system at any given time, most people agree that the system is overburdened. Attorneys and social workers juggle dozens of cases at a time. Children who have already suffered some form of abuse or neglect are shuffled from attorney to social worker to therapist to temporary foster parent.
By Jeremy Ogul
Sitting at the dais at a recent City Council meeting, Councilmember Kristine Alessio lit up a cigarette and blew the smoke across the room. She then did the same with an electronic cigarette. Alessio quit smoking years ago, but she did this to prove a point. “There’s a huge difference,” she said. “Cigarette smoke is far different than e-cigarette smoke.” Indeed, the odorless vapor from the e-cigarette had long since disappeared by the time the filthy smell of the tobacco cigarette smoke began to envelope the audience in the room.
Councilmember Ernie Ewin got up, opened a side door and stood outside for several minutes until the air finally cleared. That was July 8, when the council voted to direct city staff to return with an ordinance that would regulate e-cigarettes like regular tobacco cigarettes, banning them from city parks, playgrounds and inside buildings. Violators would be subject to an infraction fine between $10 and $100. On July 22, a majority of the council voted to go forward in adopting the ordinance.
Alessio has been the most resolute opponent. “I think it’s government overreach,” she said. “I have an extreme sensitivity to perfume. Should we regulate perfume in the parks?” Though he voted in favor of the restrictions, Councilmember Ernie Ewin has also expressed doubts. “How are you going to enforce it?” he said. “There’s going to have to be a lot of public relations support in order to get the word out and make sure that this is being accepted as a posiSee E-Cigs, Page 4
Goodwill opens new Lake Murray store and donation center By McKenna Aiello
The non-profit Goodwill Industries of San Diego County opened their 28th retail thrift store and donation center on Thursday, July 9, in the Lake Murray area at 6127 Lake Murray Blvd. The second-hand superstore is not La Mesa’s first location, but it is now the largest. Scaling in at 3,365 square feet, the Lake Murray location rivals the La Mesa Village location by more than 1,000 square feet. Shoppers have taken advantage of this size increase since the store opened, stacking carts full of discount clothes and household items. A recent visit to the thrift lovers’ paradise showed employees have been busy keeping up with costumers and restocking shelves. “We love this community, and when this space became available we jumped on it,”
said Beth Forsberg, vice president of operations for Goodwill Industries of San Diego. Like most Goodwill stores, the Lake Murray location offers its signature book collection, extensive amounts of clothing and shoes for the whole family,
numerous small appliances and gently-used linens. Higher-end enthusiasts will also be happy to peruse the boutique section, where a glass case holds the store’s most valuable items like fine china and jewelry. Those wanting to shed See Goodwill, Page 13
Shoppers browse for bargains at new Goodwill store.
CASA volunteer and La Mesa resident Lisa Warren, left, and Voices for Children advocacy supervisor Kim Mettler. The ultimate goal is to either reunify the family or place the child with a permanent adoptive family, but that process typically takes 18 months to complete. That’s where the Court Appointed Special Advocates step in. Also known as CASAs, these volunteers commit to serve as the court’s eyes and ears as a consistent and stable adult presence in the life of a foster child as they make their way through the juvenile court system. La Mesa resident Lisa Warren has spent the last year volunteering as a CASA for a 6 year-old foster child. Warren spends a little bit of time with her CASA kid every week, taking her out for dinner, on hikes or to the pet store to look at the animals. “She is this super bright, gregarious, wickedly funny little girl,” Warren said. “What’s been important to me is to make a connection with her that isn’t prodding or probing her for information but really just letting her be a kid.” Warren, who was briefly a foster child herself before See CASA, Page 9