Switching Gears - End of an Era

The end of the year is a time to reflect on one's life and legacy.  It is a particularly compelling time, in view of climate change realities becoming more apparent every day, that what we say and do is shaping our immediate future, not just the distant future for grandchildren.

For this reason the end of Stocks & Bond majority reign over Encinitas city government make future plans and our legacy feel more urgent than past election years. This deserves thinking that rises above facile political maneuvering or infotainment or cheap shots borne out of a social culture of marketing. It's governing time, not campaigning time.

Having an arch nemesis like Jerome Stocks turned out to be a rallying point and organizing platform for many in the last election. Even though the new council members Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz did not campaign as anti-Stocks candidates, thousands of Encinitas voters were interested in removing Jerome Stocks above all other concerns. Our Mayor blog was created to acknowledge legitimate disgust with Jerome Stocks' behavior as a so-called public servant. The years of city council meetings contained enough clips of this behavior as evidence for the electorate. The idea was that more people needed to be able to witness first hand – via these clips and linked stories, commentaries and some background information – what critics of Stocks had been saying for years.

Whatever factors were involved it is a fait accompli now and time to switch gears. Is it possible we can still capture the motivation the anti-Stocks group had with a formidable problem we all can identify with versus a person or group of people? Can we cultivate an educated electorate unafraid to voice public opinions for fear of seeming stupid or simply wrong? Is it possible to encourage awareness and still identify as a savvy, social being?

It is easy to see from some of the current community voices reacting to the We Love Encinitas organization (and ethically dubious campaign fliers) in the online news posts and one blog's comments sections, Kristin Gaspar is a likely target to transfer anti-Stocks energy. We get it. Our Mayor blog has 3 or 4 dozen examples of Gaspar's behavior along with Stocks or solo that deserve condemnation. No doubt the new year will bring more.

But, this personality focus is really toxic stuff. It too easily morphs into character assassination, body policing, misogyny and other community-killing divisive words. This invites lazy thinking and other vitality sucking habits. Besides all that it brings out our worst rather than our best natures. Critical thinking asks more.

What if we instead switched gears to the three things that repeatedly come up in Encinitas politics as problems or omissions;
1. finance (economy, budget, pensions, etc.),
2. open government (sunshine ordinance, transparency, civility, accessibility, etc.)
3. environment (land use, community character, resources, climate change)
4 traffic (could fit in environment, but some very big issues ahead need deliberation)

Let's demand of this new council – so they in turn will demand it of city manager and city attorney and city staff – a clear direction of where we are going in any of these areas. Not only must we insist on this, we should demand comprehensive research, comparisons to other cities and emerging trends from our well paid staff. Let's demand that deliberations by the council be more than unsupported platitudes, rambling monologues, throwing out a bunch of buzz words, personal memories, rehearsed staff exchanges and other time-wasting talk.

They will make mistakes, council and staff alike. We will find some council members and city employees lacking at any given time. Hell, we'll continue to have community members who annoy us. We will disagree. This editor will try to catch the kinds of things that illustrate dissent and controversy. This isn't a good news, community events calendar, party line place. Our city government's corruption and incompetence demands vigilance. We don't have to make things up. Video clips, quotes, news coverage and the whole works will apply. The former super majority clearly served the few of their overlords. There is a new game in town. The mandate is genuinely from the majority of our community so there are more eyes watching.

And, if a blogger can be allowed to dream. Just imagine a city council becoming relevant to the disengaged, the young, the non-white people, the renters, the low income residents of Encinitas. It is a myth that when all people enjoy a higher quality of life and feel security and engagemed it means something is diminished from another's quality of life. If this new city council wants continuous improvement, they should think big.

Election Day - Request from Lisa Shaffer

OMG . . . OMG . . . OMG  Did you think it would ever end? Editor

Lisa's requests: 

Bring Back Campaign Signs
Sign Collection Saturday, Nov. 10. This campaign has been too costly and too dirty. In an effort to clean things up, I'm asking everyone who has a Shaffer for Council campaign sign to bring it to one of the following collection points on Saturday, Nov. 10. We're selling the metal holders back to a distributor and donating the corrugated plastic signs to art programs for re-use. Thanks to my volunteers for their help.

• New Encinitas, in front of Flora Vista on Wandering Lane 10:00 - 12:00 

• Historic Encinitas, D Street Park (across from the library) 12:00 - 2:00 

 Bring Food
Food Collection. When you bring your campaign signs on November 10, please also bring a food donation for the many in need. The food will be donated to the Community Resource Center in Encinitas. Non-perishable items including canned goods, rice, beans, cooking oil, etc. are in constant demand. 

Even if you don't have a sign to recycle, we welcome your contributions. It's a small attempt to offset the enormous expenditures that go into political campaigns.

Councilwoman Teresa Barth will be at a collection site.  she had this to say in her Nov.3 newsletter:

Community Resource Center's Annual Holiday Baskets Program is set to serve a record number of local families in need this winter, but still expects to turn away hundreds of families because of low food supplies! Because of ongoing food shortages, CRC has ZERO supplies for Holiday Baskets again this year, so FOOD DONATIONS are a critical need.

Please spread the word! 

More Info 

I will be looking for volunteers to join me at the distribution site. More info to come after the election!

Fact Checking: Gaspar the Empty Boast

From the crack fact-checking team at EYNU and Our Mayor . . . We watch hours of videos and comb minutes so you don't have to do it.  We should embed a donation button.

A review of email responses to Deputy Mayor Gaspar's claim that she didn't have anyone approach her with sustainability concerns.  Our research follows each of Gaspar's boasts claims - in bright green.

Note how often she falsely promotes Mayor Stocks as the person who initiates environmental agenda items.
Dear [public];

I thank you for your recent email regarding positive environmental policies.  I share your views as does the Council, who have voted unanimously on numerous environmental issues to protect or improve the conditions in Encinitas. During the past year and a half this includes, but is not limited to:

• Environmental Action Plan- I led the discussion and developed consensus on a plan which included objective measures, so that staff could deliver maximum results for the taxpayer dollars. This plan passed unanimously, including aye votes from Maggie Houlihan and Teresa Barth.  July 20, 2011 

At the Feb. 16, 2011, Councilwoman Barth made the motion, and Maggie Houlihan supported it, to approve the Action Plan as presented by the Commission. Jerome Stocks was particularly insulting to Elizabeth Taylor, the commission chair who made the presentation. 

Barth withdrew the motion and requested the item be brought back at a later date for additional discussion. At the July 20, 2011, Gaspar proposed eliminating many of the stronger proposals preferring minimal compliance.  Houlihan and Barth were able to include some items previously eliminated creating a compromise (admittedly weak but better than the complete gutting) that we could all support. (see minutes  listed in the Aug. 17 meeting)

• Solar Panels- The Council voted unanimously, including Councilmember Muir, to oppose SDGE's unfair rate hikes on users of solar panels, who actually provide all citizens a benefit by producing more energy than they expend. Jan. 11, 2012  

At the Nov. 16, 2011 meeting, Barth asked to have the issue SDG&E’s proposed solar users rate changes be placed on a future agenda. On Jan. 11, 2012  the issue was discussed with local solar companies and numerous public speakers  asking the council to send a letter of opposition. Encinitas was one of many cities and thousands of rate payers that opposed the hike. 

• Electric Car charging station- I proposed that the city reduce or waive the fees for installing these stations before I was elected to Council. Recently, Mayor Jerome Stocks put this item on the agenda and it passed unanimously.  

Electric car charging stations: the one located in Encinitas is part of a state-wide effort and is a joint project with the city. No fees would have been charged to install this station. The recommendation to reduce or waive permit fees to install home solar panels and charging stations was a prior recommendation of the Environmental Commission. ...can’t find the meeting urgh. It was also already common practice in other cities. 

• Farmers Market- Approved unanimously (5-0) after being put on the agenda by the Mayor and City Manager. 

The Farmers Market issue was brought to the council on Feb. 15, 2012 by the Planning Dept. as they were recommending that the city charge a fee to use the public parking lot. Gaspar pursued an aggressive line of questioning if those fees were set high enough.  The agenda item was NOT initiated by the Mayor only a procedural requirement.

• General Plan- Since my election, I have worked harder than any other Councilmember to oppose increasing density along the El Camino Real and Encinitas Blvd corridors. I asked the Council to join me in declaring the land use and housing element of the General Plan officially 'dead'. Again, consensus was developed in a 5-0 vote, and I continue my persistent efforts to make sure those elements do not reappear. 

At the July 18, 2012 council meeting Kristin said staff could use both the Housing Element and Land Use element along with all other elements of the draft General Plan for reference, excepting only the proposals for El Camino Real corridor, Encinitas Blvd. & Santa Fe Dr, when the staff  creates a new draft document. Sounds like she partially resurrected both elements. 

• Protecting natural wetlands- The council supported staff's rejection of a recent Caltrans proposal to enlarge the Interstate 5 ramps at Encinitas Blvd, which would have destroyed a protected wetland. 

Staff and Caltrans have been working on these plans for years. At the Aug. 15, 2012 meeting, Tony Kranz asked why there was not going to be a four-leaf clover design at Encinitas Blvd. The Mayor noted that the area just east of the off ramp was classified as wetlands and Caltrans did not want the extra expense of mitigation. 

The interchange is a Caltrans project and the city council has no authority to approve it or not. At the same meeting, Jerome Stocks mockingly described the area as a wetland...he certainly didn’t sound like he thought the area was worth protecting.  In fact, both Jerome and Kristin were on record supporting Caltrans proposal to widen I-5 significantly through Encinitas. 

Though we have accomplished a lot we can still do more.  We continue to retain the services of an environmental consultant who is pursuing further environmental improvements with the Environmental Commission, at the unanimous direction of the Council.

Please feel free to make an appointment to meet with me at City Hall to address any further concerns you might have.  I do realize that this is an election year and I choose to address citizens concerns in the open, instead of leading from behind.  Misconstruing the voting record and/or views of fellow council members, as Council Member Barth did in her recent email, is counterproductive and is certainly not the best  way to generate a consensus for positive environmental changes.

I thank you for your positive advocacy which is a big part of why Encinitas is such a great place to live!

Best in health and happiness,
Deputy Mayor, Kristin Gaspar

Admittedly, this much immersion in this amount of horse pucky makes us want to scream. *Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire! they scream as they run outside to clear their brains*

Truthiness Team's Environmental Lite

New feature at Our Mayor based on the tendency for the council majority take a nugget of truth from a gravel strewn, meandering dirt path towards their own personal and political agendas and hold it up like a prize. Little factoids can be found and spun into stories to delight backers and base. 

Truth is, Stocks and his dance partner Gaspar do not advocate for a smarter, greener Encinitas to be a leader in low-carbon, low-water and low-waste policies and practices. For several years the showboating for solar panels and charging stations (great options) and his shiny Nissan Leaf is about ostentatious toys for the "I'll show you mine, it's bigger than yours" club.

Conservation, innovation and alternatives? Not so much. Marketing is the whole package. Stocks' cluelessness can be astounding.  Salting the earth?  Not to worry. Round-up? It's safe. The goal appears to be keeping expectations as low as possible, no risks, no local funding, demand nothing of developers, ignore several years of study and keep mouthing truthiness. By all means don't ponder the future and the realities that lie ahead.

This meeting was a little over a year ago and five months after Gaspar (in a more scripted, word-filler version than Stocks) all but killed the Environmental Work Plan that had been in the works for a couple of years and intended to be a work in progress guide.  They did achieve their goal of putting crony Alice Jacobs, unquestionably the most unqualified candidate ever to apply on the Environmental Commission. Only having the presence of Teresa Barth and Maggie Houlihan helped salvage some of the Environmental Commission's resolutions.  Here, in the July 2011 meeting she asserts the victory of a "shell" plan like it is a point of pride. This past week it appeared more stalling and deconstructing were the goals in rejecting the staff / commission recommendation.

It is particularly prescient though for being a precursor to the gutting, killing and reworking the General Plan Update to her overlords' specifications. As much as the public and Councilwoman Barth, candidates Shaffer and Kranz have acknowledged genuine concerns from the community regarding their right to have input - the right to address development - we question Gaspar's motives and processes.  Most salient to the red herring of funding concerns above we will continue to ask the question, how much has it cost to gut years of staff time work, workshop expenses, inventing new groups and staff time to implement?  Who's driving and where are they headed? 

Neither Stocks or Gaspar have offered any vision for the future for Encinitas environment, land use, housing, traffic or much else.  Truthiness - for backers and base to fill in the blanks or the completely uninformed to nod at smiling words that sound like something. 

"Reality has a well-known liberal bias." Stephen Colbert

Misinformation Minute Launch

The August 22 meeting of the City Council was filled with the usual fact bending, staged exchanges, history revisionism, false assumptions, insubstantial staff reports, outright lies and other standard fare.  Sitting through these without feeling frustration and anger is difficult.  Culling through it all again to capture clips feels like punishment.  So today the clips below capture the essense of falsehoods in a minute.  For seasoned council watchers little more is needed, for people new to the scene it's a taste.

 Whoops! Forgot one (posted 11:52 am)

No Comment

See Encinitas You Need Us blog for more factual information on these subjects.

Rustle the Leaf Sounds Like Russell Levan

This cartoon from the California Student Sustainability Coalition was startlingly similar in message to what Leucadian Russell Levan (aka Goathead Thorn Warrior) said at the last (8/15/12) City Council meeting during Oral Communications (essentially the 15 minute open mike portion of each meeting).

Contaminated Soils - Hymettus Neighbors

Neighbors from Hymettus last spoke on the very first meeting of this year.  It was the third time they approached the city council majority to try and seek answers, support . . . justice. (The original presentation from representatives of this Hymettus neighborhood complaining about the failure of soil remediation processes in the construction on a former agricultural land can be seen from May 2011.)

For the record, the city council and staff responses and statements from this January 2012 are included here.

They were promised that their request would be agendized.  As Russell Levan pointed out, it has been eight months. Where is the agenda item, where is the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health?

Plastic Bags

As Councilwoman Barth stated, she participated in the recent press conference regarding the bag ban legislation that Russell was urging people to support. Read the Union Tribune coverage here - behind the shiny new pay wall.  

Her newsletter contained the following, 

"I was honored to be asked to participate with a coalition of environmental advocates, elected officials and grocery store representatives  to announce our support for a statewide prohibition on plastic bags. Assembly Bill 298, was co-authored by Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, pictured above in the white shirt.  I was happy to report on the success of Encinitas' Day Without a Bag public outreach and education program.  Solana Beach council members Lesa Heebner & Dave Roberts spoke about the plastic bag ban ordinance recently adopted in Solana Beach."

A Council Advocating for Its Citizens - Imagine

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 15, 2012

2:15 PM

CONTACT: Friends of The Earth

Kendra Ulrich: (216) 571-7340, kulrich@foe.org

Diane Moss: (310) 463-1355

Santa Monica Council Urges Probe of San Onofre Reactors

Council unanimously votes for state investigation of San Onofre costs, reliability and alternative energy resources and urges federal license amendment hearing

SANTA MONICA, Calif. - August 15 - Last night, the Santa Monica City Council voted unanimously to urge the state to fully investigate the costs and reliability of the crippled San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and to compare it to other available energy sources. The council also voted unanimously to urge federal regulators to hold a transparent and public license amendment procedure for the plant’s twin reactors.

The reactors at San Onofre have been shut down since January, when one of the thousands of thin, tightly packed tubes in the newly replaced steam generators failed and leaked radioactive steam into the environment. Further testing revealed unprecedented, accelerated wear in thousands of these tubes, less than two years after the steam generators were replaced. 

In a decision filed on December 15, 2005, the California Public Utilities Commission approved a plan under which Southern California Edison could bill ratepayers up to $680 million for the costs of four replacement steam generators ($569 million for replacement steam generator installation and $111 million for removal and disposal of the original steam generators). The CPUC required a reasonableness review for expenses beyond this amount and set a maximum ratepayer collection cap of $782 million. A technical report commissioned by Friends of the Earth estimated the cost of repairing or replacing the faulty generators at San Onofre at $400 million to $800 million. This estimate does not include the costs of replacement power, inspections and preliminary repairs, which according to recent reports by Edison have already reached $165 million. 

Under state law, Edison can ask the California Public Utilities Commission to allow it to recover its costs through rate increases to its customers. An investigation by the CPUC, such as the one called for by the Santa Monica City Council, could end in a ruling that Edison, not its customers, is liable for the costs. Such a ruling could push Edison to  permanently shut down the reactors rather than incur additional expenses.

The Council vote also directs the City of Santa Monica to urge the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct a public, transparent license amendment hearing on San Onofre. A license amendment is a formal, open and legally adjudicated procedure that would allow for independent expert review of the significant modifications to the replacement steam generators. Under NRC rules, a license amendment is required for major design changes to replacement equipment like those Edison made to these replacement components. In a petition before the NRC, Friends of the Earth and other public interest groups charge that the replacement generators were not “like for like” as Edison presented them to regulators, but instead were substantially altered.

Santa Monica's action is similar to the resolution unanimously adopted last week by the Laguna Beach City Council.

###

Friends of the Earth is the U.S. voice of the world's largest grassroots environmental network, with member groups in 77 countries. Since 1969, Friends of the Earth has fought to create a more healthy, just world.

Myths Encinitas

Tree City USA, Urban Forest Policy and other designations claimed by the Encinitas City is largely mythical. It just doesn't seem like Engineering got the memo from Public Works (and clearly unfamiliar with the Environmental Commission).  Public Works was in charge of writing the manual on Encinitas Urban Forest, including heritage trees.  Engineering is pretty much robotically wired to road code dimensions and are rarely swayed by real life or logic.

This particular week we have the perfect storm of empty rhetoric regarding city council policies actually effectively connecting and engaging various departments' supposed commitment to Encinitas community character, Encinitas trees and Encinitas Urban Forest.

Why? The agenda for Wednesday's meeting agenda includes the merging of two department director positions into one. Consolidation of the positions of Director of Engineering and Director of Public Works into Director of Engineering and Public Works. We question the success of that merger in the current culture at city hall that does not celebrate connectivity, collaboration or cooperation.

Meanwhile, another agenda item:
Public Hearing of the appeal of Engineering conditions for public improvements adjacent to 1794 Crest Drive. Reading through the appeal makes the many layers of trees, street standards, infrastructure, community character and financial hardship a complex web of assumptions, justification and a fair dose of misinterpretation.  Behind it all is money (see Growth: Ponzi Scheme series) and an authoritarian adherence to codes as power.  It's how it sounds to this reader. The appellant's challenges the reality of the city plan for a trail throughout the Crest Drive built out area will ever happen, yet alone that harms no trees. Another mythical notion of shared goals amongst departments with a council majority uninterested in making these connections.

It is very difficult to ascribe "good faith" to our city departments dealings with single family residents, given a long history of inconsistent treatment of resident requests. Indeed, there is a very real reluctance of homeowners, architects and contractors to come forward with individual stories because of fear of retaliation in their properties and businesses.

It's vital we all keep hearing, learning and sharing our preferred city government ideals.  Planting trees should be more than a political photo op. There are  fantastic examples all around us, and some close by, of a better way to deal with sincere connections to our public spaces, our trees and our private property and business owners.  These magnificent pines on Crest Drive and all the other vegetation is of upmost importance in this time of drought, climate change, erosion, need for sustainability and economic depression.

Andy Lipkis, well known TreePeople founder, known to many in Encinitas speaks here about  our need for functioning community forests as acupuncture used strategically to heal; for our watersheds, to create oxygen and filters for our air and coolants and . . . well start at 6:00 to dive right into it. Enabling community is at the heart and soul of this for success.  We could have this kind of thinking on our city council.

Love the part about we Americans just hate to be told what to do, but when informed we want to help.

Crest Drive is yet another opportunity for our city council to seek policy for connections and restoration rather than piecemeal acquisition of scattered contract work for favored vendors. After Wednesday there will only be about a half dozen council meetings until the election. Time to envision change and campaign for it too. 

Crest Drive

On Aug. 15, the Encinitas City Council will hear arguments against City Engineering Department mandates for curb, gutter and pedestrian walkway on Crest Drive, a rural residential subdivision of one-acre lots within old Encinitas.In the proposed single family home, the city originally asked for 8 feet of concrete pavers with curbs 450 feet long and a 5 foot walkway, eliminating 13 feet of natural landscaping and threatening old growth trees and vegetation along Crest Drive. 

All the land adjacent to the pavement would also need to be removed and graded down to the level of the street, thereby widening the street by over 26 feet when both sides are complete. 

The City Engineering Department stated, “ Our goal is to have curb, gutter and sidewalk on every home in Encinitas.”

Excerpt from Coast News article by Kevin Farrell, we recommend reading the whole piece. It ends with this call to action.

"We don’t understand the benefit the city would get from this. With so many people opposed throughout Encinitas, it would be a win, win, for the City to re-evaluate and leave our neighborhoods the way we want, not some Engineers personal preference. We have appealed the engineers finding to our City Council members for a final determination. We are optimistic the Council will assist in helping preserve our trees and vegetation thus maintaining the Community Character we love. 

Please join me at the City Council meeting next Wednesday at 6 p.m. and help support this worthy cause in keeping Encinitas, the way it was. A presence in numbers will help to get our point across." 

This council agenda item triggered the memory of Joni Mitchell's song we posted on Thursday, singing "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot."  The lyrics are perfectly apt for Mayor Stocks bragging at his state of the city address last April 18th.  The following clip was first posted after the last council meeting before this break with this introduction.

"Jerome Stocks' perspective on parking lots, traffic, commerce, pot holes, walkable streets, safe routes, etc. at last April's state of the city speech. This speech was directed at a car-centric approach to city planning. Wrong decade, false assumptions and giant omissions."

It's probably no coincidence that Stocks is called out for including tree-lined Crest Drive in his bragging, while city engineers are ginning up rationale to fell these same trees.  The man either has no ethics or no clue what the words coming from his mouth mean.

Photo at Opening from April 21, 2012 article, North County Times, about Crest Drive Petition. 

Related Posts:

• Confessions of a Recovering Engineer
• Redefining Normal
• Tuesday is Dues-day: Tail Wags Dog Planning

Can't believe we are still protesting this . . .

Joni Mitchell wrote "they paved paradise and put up a parking lot" 42 years ago. It could have been written today for our council majority and their backers. Two generations of protest on behalf of the quality of life. Is anyone listening? (They aren't.)

They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
With a pink hotel, a boutique
And a swinging hot spot

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

They took all the trees
Put 'em in a tree museum
And they charged the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

Hey farmer farmer
Put away that DDT now
Give me spots on my apples
But leave me the birds and the bees
Please!

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

Late last night
I heard the screen door slam
And a big yellow taxi
Took away my old man

Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
Till it's gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

We Write Letters

Make the connection

"In several recent articles in our local San Diego County papers, the L.A. Times and the New York Times, it is claimed that natural disaster areas, because of drought and excessive heat, now affect crops in 1,297 counties in 29 states, or 61 percent of the continental U.S.

Further, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack reports that 77 percent of the corn and soybean crops are in areas designated as drought-impacted. Natural disasters? Amazingly, in none of these articles has Climate Change even been mentioned. Isn’t it time to recognize the connection and start doing something about it? It’s time to accept science and discard politically motivated propaganda. There’s too much at risk."

Milton Saier, UCSD Professor of Biology, Letter to Coast News for July 27, 2012

Just imagine, we take it one step further Professor Saier and actually start insisting that weather reports begin making these connections?  Or imagine even more reality where we are at long last treated as adults who can handle the difficult subjects of life and grapple with complex issues that may take more than a couple of moments to describe or process.

Our US media has spent on 3% of air time on climate change or global warming despite the hottest year in all recorded history.  The rest of the world has no funded shut-down on rational discussions of this subject by those who profit from misinformation and skepticism, so there are excellent sources of information.  We just need to look for them.

"So the story deserves much more than 3 minutes. Here is “Inside Story Americas” from al Jazeera English with a 25-minute segment. There’s no point in summarizing it. The point is the in-depth discussion, featuring Michael Mann, Bob Deans, and Heidi Cullen."  Joe Romm, Think Progress

Road Trip!

Citizens elected a council of bicyclists, said the mobility coordinator in the video below. Let's take a virtual road trip to a neighboring city to see what a bike friendly approach to circulation looks like.

Speaking of bicyclist on the council, I would have loved to have seen our Mayor Stocks' face when Teresa Barth wheeled into the electric car charging event on her trusty bike - so often photographed around town and at city hall.  Councilwoman Barth is pictured here with Dave Roberts (another bike rider running for County Supervisor seat being vacated by Pam Slater-Price). Encinitas having an electric car charging station is a boon for a few (most self-promoted being Stocks), a 21st century version of car travel and a wonderful headline.

This week the subject turns more low tech and with wider implications. Wednesday council meeting is a chance to make a bigger impact at a fraction of the cost per capita with "sharrows".  The spacial ramifications of increased bike ridership dramatically reducing road congestion, parking congestion is a concept not yet grasped by the car-centric who merely feel threatened.  It is as though they fear (and some of the most vocal do) that their cars will be taken from them.  Maybe this insight can assuage some fears.



Compare and contrast Jerome Stocks' perspective on parking lots, traffic, commerce, pot holes, walkable streets, safe routes, etc. at last April's state of the city speech. This speech was directed at a car-centric approach to city planning. Wrong decade, false assumptions and giant omissions . . .

 

At the Wednesday, July 18 council meeting members are being asked to consider shared lane markings "sharrows" and "Bicycles May Use Full Lane" signs on portions of Coast Highway 101. The volunteer group, Encinitas Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee was consulted on biking issues by the city staff. This is an infinitesimally small step, but huge for our community.  For the full agenda with agenda packets.

Let's suggest a real road trip to our engineers and council members too.

According to Mary: Legless Lizard

Great reminder for Environmental Day, Sunday at Cottonwood Creek Park, and you don't have to tell bloggers or blog readers that there is critically important work going on underground for those who can stomach the creepy things of politics.

Stocks Promotes Poison, Scorched Earth

Willfully neglected land bordering the railroad tracks along Leucadia's Vulcan Ave. and Highway 101 corridor invited invasive noxious weeds that thrive in harsh, barren condition. At last year's Environmental Workplan "Lite" presentation (after stripping the Commission of it's expertise and advocacy), Maggie Houlihan asked Russell Levan to give an update on his spring volunteer effort to eradicate goathead thorns.

Poisonous Behavior, Contempt for Citizens

Stocks simply has to play the bully with Russell Levan's magnanimous efforts (see EYNU post today) by negating them and that's his favorite poison. But there is more, because he's spewing dangerously false nonsense from his gardener . . er neighbor across the street . . .  and misrepresenting the harmlessness of spraying herbicides. This is the Leucadia railroad corridor where, by the way, he has a child at Paul Ecke Central School who plays outside within a stone's throw of the spray zone he's championing. Seriously.

Reality Check, Healthy Soil
First, here's a look at the puncture vine up close. It is a menace, no argument and it thrives on scorched earth, where residents who try to place mulch on this bare dusty earth can be ticketed.

Let’s face it, the soil surface wants to be covered. You can either choose what the cover will be or Nature will do it herself and you might not like the results.

Forget about eradicating every weed, work on the soil and the weed war will be over. In the meantime, keep mulching.

Here is another basic reality of how life within an ecosystem works via Wikipedia and the ecological principals are verifiable in organic studies and reports or anyone's back yard where growing healthy soils is the goal.

In smaller areas, puncture vine is best controlled with manual removal using a hoe to cut the plant off at its taproot. While this is effective, removing the entire plant by gripping the taproot, stem or trunk and pulling upward to remove the taproot is far more effective. This requires monitoring the area and removing the weed throughout the preceding time (late spring and early summer in many temperate areas). This will greatly reduce the prevalence of the weed the following year. Mowing is not an effective method of eradication, because the plant grows flat against the ground.

Another avenue of physical eradication is to crowd out the opportunistic weed by providing good competition from favorable plants. Aerating compacted sites and planting competitive desirable plants including broad-leaved grasses such as St Augustine can reduce the impact of puncture vine by reducing resources available to the weed.

So, we have prisoners along the corridor working off their community service time by raking away any life on the surface of the earth, clearing away mulch and inexplicably not directed to focus on eradicating goathead thorns down to its tap root. Clueless.

 Poison the Earth, Scorch the Earth

Of course there are seeds galore with this plant.  It is a survivor. But spraying simple salt water isn't going to accomplish anything except  killing the soil. A coastal area as ours already has a great deal of salt which stays in the soil.  It's crazy talk to say we should find a truck and spray some more, because this isn't going to bring the results Stocks is prophesying based on hearsay anyway.

Did this supposedly educated man say that RoundUp is safe?  This is  a jaw dropping and dangerous lie given a decade of research and public education to the contrary.  Monsanto is a menace to the entire globe and only corporate lackey's are saying otherwise.

Today's article is a good one here, featuring a CA republican lobbying on behalf a a giant Pesticide Company. There probably isn't a day where there isn't something revealed around the globe that Monsanto, Dow or other Corporate Chemical Giant is reprehensibly doing.

Here's a classic full length film Monsanto, hands down the worst, most dangerous with chemical agriculture out of control.

Best viewed at YouTube here.
There are countless metaphors for this story of a noxious menace stopping us from biking and walking safely or the direction to poison our common property and open lands and to discourage community, volunteering and citizen participation.  All these metaphorical references are begging to be shared, but that won't be happening today.

Myths Encinitas

Being a young woman, a mother, nurturing, married to a health professional means a woman plays a role as a public-friendly, health conscious community servant.  Mythical gender fantasies and stereotypical roles are assumptions born out of a media/ad culture. Don't you believe it.  Encinitas' very own poster girl for Myths Encinitas is Kristin Gaspar.

When it comes to family health and quality of life and community common good issues, follow the money. With the possible exception of her own personal home (unknown), if there is no way to subsidize funding or there is no direct benefit to the crony club of financial backers, political players Ms. Gaspar will find a way reject a proposal, idea, ordinance or code recommendation. Bike lanes, walking routes connecting the whole community, public health or farmer's markets all are scrutinized even when there is no direct cost to the city.

Gaspar and her mentor (who is said to live in Oceanside, not Encinitas) are making arguments outside of reality and measurable facts. Myths Encinitas is a growing phenomenon amongst the council majority and, by extension, the planning staff. Compare the things said by Gaspar and her friend claim alongside that of Carlsbad, beloved of the Council Majority in their example of big rich growth.  Even this city has the political will to recognize a healthy, happy citizen (visitor & tourist) community is worth planning and paying to achieve. They understand that even for businesses 'sustainable' means thriving, prospering, staying alive, not dying - not alien takeover - or commercial threat. Seriously, what is the opposite of sustainablility but death and ruin? It makes no sense to demonize quality, health, prosperity and community or say it costs too much unless one is directed to do so.  The cost is far too high to refuse to address and budget for a sustainable future.

On a really serious note directly related to dangerous gender politics, Myths Encinitas Gaspar is doing a serious disservice to the women of all ages in Encinitas. Women across this country are under attack and losing choices, health care, support and safety in their own homes.  Shockingly the House just passed a version of the Violence Against Women Act  that would let domestic abusers know their victims called for help. The politically driven war on women is a time when those women who hold offices from those in the highest seats of power down to the local level could choose to speak and act on behalf of half the population in a crucially supportive way or choose to support a few powerful men with money.

Elizabeth Taylor Sneered At As Environmental Chair