Art of the Avocado competition A-4
Preparing for the Fallbrook Vintage Car Show A-16
Growing blueberries for health and fun B-3
Village News Fallbrook & Bonsall
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April 17, 2014
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Volume 18, Issue 16
Avocado Festival Bonsall’s new fire a delight for all ages station taking shape
Road improvements coming to SR76 east of I-15 Joe Naiman Village News Correspondent
At the 28th annual Fallbrook Avocado Festival, Ashlyn Clarke, left, 7, was named Little Miss Avocado, and David Gonzalez, 9, Little Mister Avocado.
Mary Jane Poulter photo
The new Bonsall Fire Station 5 is located near the intersection of State Route 76 and Olive Hill Rd. Joe Naiman Village News Correspondent Motorists who have driven by Olive Hill Road and State Route 76 have likely noticed that the new North County Fire Protection District fire station is under construction. Over the next few weeks they might not observe much progress, but that is because
Shane Gibson photo
the next phase will involve interior matters. The underground electrical and plumbing infrastructure and the foundation have been completed as well as the framing. The next phase will be the interior electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work including the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. The
see STATION, page B-4
Marathon comes to town
The California Department of Transportation released a bid package for work on State Route 76 east of Interstate 15 which will include repaving, shoulder and centerline rumble strips, and improved striping. The bid package was advertised on April 1 and the bid opening date will be May 1. The construction portion of the project covers 10.8 miles of Highway 76 from Pala Mission Road to 2 miles west of Red Gate Road, although work tasks will begin 1 1/2 miles west of Pala Mission Road and end 1 1/2 miles east of the eastern boundary
see SR76, page A-9
Pancake Breakfast & Spring Egg Hunt April 19 FALLBROOK – Fallbrook Community Center, Fallbrook Firefighters Association, National Charity League, Fallbrook Village Rotary Club, local markets and service clubs are teaming up to sponsor the annual Pancake Breakfast and Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 19. Fallbrook Firefighters will be serving up a delicious pancake breakfast at Fallbrook Community Center from 7:30 to 10 a.m. Pancakes, sausage, juice, milk and coffee are all on the menu at $5 for adults and $4 for 12 years and younger. The Spring Bunny will meet and greet children during breakfast and egg hunts. Egg Hunts by age
see PANCAKE, page A-9
Imagene and Frank Gladden dance to the Blue Zone Ken Seals photo band in the Fallbrook Avocado Festival beer garden on April 13. Married 57 years, the Gladdens are from Palm Springs and are regular Avocado Festival attendees. see more photos on B-1
Carrie Sandoval photo Abby Knox was one of 700 participants in the Avocado Half Marathon in Fallbrook on Sat., April 12. Carrie Sandoval won first place in the Village News’ photo contest for the event. See more photos on page A-14.
With agriculture shrinking, Rainbow FUHSD superintendent Water looks at effect on rates Mitchell announces retirement
Rainbow addresses FPUD’s LAFCO application Joe Naiman Village News Correspondent The Rainbow Municipal Water District has formed an ad hoc committee which will develop a response to the proposed consolidation of Rainbow with the Fallbrook Public Utility District (FPUD). A 5-0 vote at Rainbow’s April 7 special board meeting placed board members Dennis Sanford and Helene Brazier on the ad hoc committee. Sanford and Brazier will work with Rainbow staff and legal counsel to develop a proposed Rainbow response for
see LAFCO, page A-7 With several property owners in the Rainbow Water District shutting the water off on their groves, the agency is having to examine how the agricultural loss might affect rates. Joe Naiman Village News Correspondent A presentation at the March 25 Rainbow Municipal Water District board meeting analyzed the financial impact of the elimination of agriculture within the district. There was no vote or other action taken on the presentation by Larry Carlstrom and Harry Stitle, who represented the district’s Budget Committee. The presentation which addressed Rainbow’s financial feasibility without agriculture was prompted by previous discussions on strategies the district should develop due to its shrinking agriculture customer base.
“I think that it was a well thought out report,” said Rainbow board president George McManigle. “The presentation made sense.” The presentation indicated that Rainbow would still be able to operate with minor impacts on residential rates. “That, of course, is counting on 2,000 new hookups for developments that are happening east of the 15 in the next two to three years,” McManigle said. Rainbow currently has approximately 7,200 customers and sells approximately 20,000 acre-feet of water annually. The average residential customer was assumed, for the purpose of rate comparisons, to use 26 units
Village News photo
(one unit is 100 cubic feet, or approximately 748 gallons) per bill. The cost of water purchases includes Rainbow, San Diego County Water Authority, and Metropolitan Water District of Southern California charges, and Rainbow’s cost of water share for each billing unit is $0.62. The $175.87 bill for the average customer consists of $46.10 for Rainbow fixed fees, $46.77 for SDCWA and MWD fixed fees, $15.22 of Rainbow cost of water charges, and $65.78 for SDCWA and MWD water costs. The presentation included seven theoretical levels of usage.
see RATES, page B-4
thisweek Dale Mitchell, Ed.D
Courtesy photo
Andrea Verdin Special to The Village News On April 7, Fallbrook Union High School District (FUSHD) superintendent Dale Mitchell informed the district’s board of trustees of his plans to retire, with his last day of employment being Monday, September 1, 2014. At the end of his term, Mitchell will have completed six years of service as superintendent in the FUHSD district, 13 years overall
see MITCHELL, page A-6
Announcements ������������������������A-2 Business ��������������������������������������B-2 Classifieds �������������������������������� A-15 Coupons ����������������������������������� B-12 Dining �������������������������������������������A-8 Education ���������������������������������� B-10 Entertainment �������������������������� B-12 Health & Fitness ��������������������� A-10 Home & Garden ������������������������B-3 Legals ......................................... A-15 Obituaries ��������������������������������� B-14 Opinion ����������������������������������������A-5 Real Estate ����������������������������������B-3 Sports ...........................................A12