Night in Napa funds Fallbrook Chorale B-6
Tips to make your bedroom calming C-2
Velez and Arteaga are crowned D-9
Village News Fallbrook & Bonsall
a l s o se rv i n g t h e c o m m u n i t i e s o f
Joe Naiman Village News Correspondent
The most noticeable provisions of the Road Repair and Accountability Act passed by the state Legislature earlier in 2017 are an increase in the gas tax by 12 cents a gallon, which will be effective November 2017, and an increase in vehicle registration fees based on vehicle value and between $25 and $175, which will be effective spring 2018. The legislation also requires local governments to submit a list of projects the tax revenue will be funding to the California Transportation Commission. The county of San Diego will be resurfacing roads, totaling 194.63 centerline miles throughout the unincorporated area. A 4-0 San Diego County Board of Supervisors vote, Oct. 11, with Ron Roberts in Atlanta for the American Public Transportation Association exposition, adopted the list, while also authorizing the director of the county’s Department of Purchasing and Contracting to advertise for bid and award multiple construction contracts for the asphalt concrete overlay and slurry seal treatment projects. Because the action included authorization of contracts for the work, the list includes all roads to be resurfaced rather than just those funded by the gas tax. The tax increases are expected
see TAX, page A-8
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October 26, 2017
Supervisors approve list of gas tax roads
D e L u z , R a i n b ow, C a m p P e ndl e t o n , Pa l a ,
Volume 21, Issue 42
With rate increases pending, FPUD focuses on other matters
De Luz resident Stephen Taylor discusses water rate increases on his bill and his request to have Shane Gibson photos his water meter downsized to save costs during the Jack Bebee, currently working as the acting manager and chief engineer for FPUD, public comment portion of the Oct. 23 FPUD board had his salary raised to $220,150 as compensation meeting. Taylor said a technician has yet to come to during the Oct. 23 board meeting. his house to modify the meter. Alex Groves Staff Writer A proposed water rate increase of about 8 percent per year over the next five years has some customers of the Fallbrook Public Utilities District steaming, but that frustration was noticeably absent during the board’s meeting Monday, Oct. 23. Only one public commenter
made mention of the intended rate increases, but it was otherwise business as usual with the board approving a number of agreements, including a 10 percent pay increase for the district’s acting manager, Jack Bebee. Bebee is technically the district’s assistant manager, but he’s currently working as the acting manager and chief engineer. His salary was raised to $220,150
as compensation. Bebee’s salary increase comes only months ahead of planned water rate hikes, which will become effective starting January 2018 and increase each year through January 2022. Under the planned rates, a customer with a 2-inch meter could expect to pay a monthly
see FPUD, page A-8
Workshop to teach fire safety
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Two stolen tourmaline pieces recovered intact Tom Ferrall Staff Writer
Two of the five major tourmaline pieces stolen from the Fallbrook Gem & Mineral Society Museum have been recovered intact. The pieces were among the stolen property recovered from the home of Oceanside resident Edward Torrison, who was arrested Sept. 26 by Laguna Beach police officers as a suspect in a series of smash and grab robberies in Orange County. Torrison pleaded guilty Oct. 6 in Orange County to seven felonies – four counts of second-degree burglary, two counts of grand theft and one count of receiving stolen property – and on Oct. 11 was sentenced to 32 months in state prison. The Fallbrook Gem and Mineral Society was the victim of a smash and grab heist Sept. 10, as was The Collector Fine Jewelry less than a week later. Detective Joel Couch of the Fallbrook Sheriff’s substation said Torrison is a suspect in the Fallbrook Gem and Mineral Society robbery and is “a person of interest” in the break-in of The Collector. The Fallbrook cases are ongoing investigations and no charges have been filed. In searching the garage of Torrison’s home, Laguna Beach police found a large tool chest filled with gems, crystals and stolen jewelry. The estimated $500,000 worth of stolen property was taken to the Laguna Beach Police Evidence Department, and that’s where Mary FongWalker, a member and advisor to the Fallbrook Gem & Mineral Society, went to view the stolen loot Oct. 23. Fong-Walker, along with her husband Jim Walker, and the assistant curator for the museum, Gina Palculich, examined the
see GEMS, page A-8
Operation Double Down arrest total peaks at 53 Tom Ferrall Staff Writer
Before and After: a group of volunteers worked on the yard of this property to make it fire safe, creating defensible space around it. Lucette Moramarco Staff Writer Area residents can learn how to become fire-safe and fire-smart at a workshop to be put on by the Fallbrook FireSafe Council (FFSC), North County Fire Protection District (NCFPD) and Mission Resource Conservation District (MRCD), Wednesday, Nov. 1 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Fallbrook Public Utility District (FPUD) Building, 990 E. Mission Rd. While it has been 10 years since the Rice Fire burned through this area, the devastating fires that recently decimated Northern California are a reminder how
important it is to be prepared for the next wildfire that will eventually happen here. At the workshop, residents of Fallbrook, De Luz, Rainbow and Bonsall will have the opportunity to hear from experts and ask questions that will help them become more prepared. The speakers will include a local insurance expert and representatives of the FFSC, NCFPD and MRCD. Patty Koch, NCFPD deputy fire marshal, will explain how to create 100 feet of defensible space around one’s home, and also review new building codes that make homes more fire resistant. Having an evacuation plan in
Courtesy photos
place is also important so that topic will also be covered as well as programs that MRCD offers to homeowners which will also help with fire prevention. In addition, insurance agent Pete Bardeen will be explaining the kinds of insurance that homeowners should have to deal with the aftermath of a fire. Now that fire season lasts year round, it is essential for all residents to plan ahead and educate themselves on how to increase the chances of not only their houses’ survival but also their own. Admission is free and light refreshments will be available at the workshop.
The number of individuals arrested in Operation Double Down, a campaign by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department to target drug dealers working in Fallbrook and the surrounding communities of Bonsall, Rainbow and De Luz, has peaked at 53, according to Detective/Sergeant Patrick Yates. Forty-nine people were arrested Sept. 21 when deputies from the Fallbrook substation along with personnel from other units within the Sheriff’s Department and other law enforcement agencies served arrest and search warrants. “There have been four more arrests related to Operation Double Down that have taken place since the initial takedown,” said Yates on Oct. 23. “All the arrests were for felony warrants related to the sale of drugs to undercover deputies during Double Down.” The four arrested were: Joanna Gardner, 34, of Fallbrook; Matthew Hill, 23, Fallbrook; Shawnette Hanson, 39, Fallbrook; and Jason Fowler, 33, Lake Elsinore. Gardner, Hill and Hanson were arrested in Fallbrook by Fallbrook Sheriff’s Deputies; Fowler was arrested in Riverside County by Riverside Sheriff’s Deputies. “All of our targets have been arrested or are still in custody,” said Yates of the successful operation that began in January. While the apprehension side of Operation Double Down is completed, Yates said the job is “far from over.”
see ARRESTS, page A-8