ETA News Tracker

NCT High Speed Train Ballot Measure Coming
A move is under way to spread the $9 billion in a ballot measure for high-speed rail throughout the state rather than just on tracks between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

NCT Committee approves county fire tax
A regional committee of elected officials and fire chiefs on Friday approved a plan to levy a $52 parcel tax throughout the county to raise about $50 million a year to help pay for fire resources.

UT TIP Academy to argue its case against closure
TIP Academy charter school will have a chance Tuesday to try to persuade the Encinitas Union School District not to shut it down.

UT 2 to test incumbents for MiraCosta board
Two candidates have signaled their intention to run against incumbents for the MiraCosta College board of trustees.

UT MiraCosta decides fate of remaining palm trees
MiraCosta College officials hope they have written the last paragraph in the two-year saga of the palm trees.

To report graffiti to code enforcement browse to the city's Planning and Building Department webpage, or click here.

The Graffiti Hotline number is (760) 633-275.

Recent "Encinitas" Graffiti:

Orpheus July 7th, 2008

Orpheus July 15, 2008

Vulcan/Hillcrest July 6, 2008

Vulcan/Hillcrest July 15, 2008

In May 2007 the council unanimously approved a $2 million dollar contract to build two roundabouts and clean up the Leucadia Blvd./Vulcan intersection.

Among the questionable elements of the project are these two:

1. No right turn pocket on northbound Vulcan
This is the most painful intersection in Encinitas. Allowing people to escape the intersection will make a lot of people happy.

After multiple complaints from the public, the city manager directed a change to the approved design. The landscaping was removed and a right turn lane was created (see image below). The engineering department has been emailed twice asking how much this change order will cost. No response to date.

2. Fire Hydrants in the Line of Fire
Maybe the hydrants should be protected or repositioned?

P&I CalSTRS forecasts loss of up to 4.5%
CalSTRS expects an investment loss ranging from 3% to 4.5% for the year ended June 30.

CalSTRS is a California Pension System

UT (2005) Encinitas approves workers' contract
The contract also increases pension benefits, with employees picking up more of the tab each year. Their highest contribution would cover 83 percent of the increased costs, city staff said.

For pension news: Pension Watch

Prop. C means cleaner water in Encinitas Jan. 2006
...Encinitas maintains an extensive storm-drain infrastructure, including hundreds of miles of drainage channels, storm drains and detention basins.

The program costs approximately $3.5 million annually: $1.3 million for operations and $2.2 million for capital projects. Encinitas land owners are being asked to approve a fixed $5 per month assessment for 10 years.

This will generate one-third, or $1.1 million annually, of the revenue needed to support the program. The remaining $2.4 million would continue to come from the city's general fund.

Encinitas enjoys an excellent quality of life and prides itself on well-maintained parks, roads, beaches, trails and natural open space. More than $50 million in revenue is pumped into our economy annually by beach visitors alone. I don't believe anyone wants to return to the days before the city's Clean Water Program was implemented ---- when 100 or more days of closed beaches were the norm. As a result of past investments in our program, beach closures have been reduced to three days or less. We enjoy a much healthier environment that benefits our families, visitors and local businesses. However, increasing mandates require us to do more. Proposition C is being placed on the ballot to generate one-third of the costs of this program.

The city is committed to providing the type of environment and quality of life that Encinitans expect. Our Clean Water Program is a major part of the City's commitment to the community's priorities, but it is not a voluntary effort. I ask you to vote yes on Prop C to ensure the funds necessary to continue to provide the full range of services and amenities Encinitas expect and enjoy.

Maggie Houlihan is an Encinitas City Council member

The ETA strongly opposed Prop C. Prop C provided no new services and the city already had funding for street cleaning and storm drain maintenance. Prop C would have provided a new revenue stream for the city. Prop C was about the search for more money.

After the loss the city borrowed $20million dollars to pay for fire stations, a library, and a public works yard.

The city stores many of its council records on its website, in a proprietary database. The database has elicited numerous complaints because it is clunky and restrictive. We have heard this from the public, the press, and in comments from council members.

Making things worse, the city's website went off-line for at least three recent weekends. That is a major problem if you want to investigate what the council is voting on at their next meeting.

A good records system should:

1) Be stable and online,
2) Have a good search function,
3) Be well organized,
4) Produce text based documents (not huge image files),
5) Not take minutes to "create" each document before it can be downloaded,
6) Be searchable by web search engines, such as the googlebot.

What else?