Menifee 24/7

Holiday Portraits for local residents for one day only!

2009-11-12T09:01:00.000-08:00

One day only, come and join us at a beautiful outdoor location in Murrieta for this Holiday Portrait Event. Bring your family, friends, loved ones or even your pets to have your portraits taken for only a fraction of the retail cost! For just $69 you will have a 30 minute session with a professional photographer and receive your gorgeous quality portraits on a cd with (2) images of your choice delivered right to your door. For those who sign up on the early bird special (prior to the event) we will include a 5x7 of each image for FREE! This has a value of $219 and is yours for only $69!

This special is for Sunday, November 22nd. You can make an appointment by emailing us at: janestudios@live.com or you can call (951)285-1606 or (951)775-5986. Appointments are limited so contact us today to reserve your personal session.

MENIFEE VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE SIGN UPS

2009-10-17T08:49:00.001-07:00

The Menifee Valley Little League will be having sign-ups:

Sat. Oct. 17th at Ralphs 10-2

Sat. Oct. 24 at Albertsons (Newport Rd) 10-2

Fri. Oct. 30th at the Harvest Festival-Lazy Creek Park 4-8
ALL OF OCTOBERS SIGN-UPS FOR ALL PLAYERS IS $90.00

Sat. Nov. 7th Time and Place TBA
Sat. Nov. 14th Time and Place TBA
Sat. Dec. 5th Time and Place TBA
Sat. Dec. 19th Time and Place TBA

Sat. Jan. 9th Springball Clinic and Sign-ups Wheatfield Park 9am

Sat. Jan. 16th and 17th Try-outs Wheatfield- Time TBA. All 8yrs. old and up must try out on one of these days.

You must bring Birth Certificate and proof of residency to sign-up.
M.V.L.L. Hotline (951)679-2882

Registration fees include hat, jersey, picture package, and trophy

REFUND POLICY
Refunds are not guaranteed after teams have been announced. Any refund requests will be considered and if approved may be subject to pro-rated refund.

MVLL BOUNDARIES

Written Description of League Boundaries

Starting at the intersection of Ethanac Road and Goetz Road, follow Ethanac Road EAST

to Sherman Road/Menifee City Limits NORTH, WEST, NORTH, EAST, NORTH, EAST,

NORTH, EAST then NORTH to Mapes Road/Menifee City Limits EAST to Briggs

Road/Menifee City Limits SOUTH then leaving Menifee City Limits EAST at HWY 74 to

HWY 74/Winchester Road SOUTH to Scott Road WEST to Briggs Road/Menifee City

Limits SOUTH to Keller Road/Menifee City Limits WEST to Sunset Avenue/Menifee

City Limits NORTH, EAST, NORTH, EAST, NORTH to Holland Road/Menifee City

Limits WEST then NORTH to Railroad Canyon Road/Menifee City Limits EAST to

Goetz Road/Menifee City Limits NORTH to Newport Road/Menifee City Limits EAST,

NORTH,WEST,SOUTH, WEST, NORTH, EAST, NORTH,

NORTHEAST/SOUTHWEST to Goetz Road/Menifee City Limits NORTH to Ethanac

Road which is the starting point.

All residents living inboard of these boundaries are the property of Menifee Valley Little

League. All references are taken from the Thomas Guide 2009 Riverside County Street

Guide.

Includes neighborhoods of Monument Ranch-Perris, All of Quail Valley, Heritage lake, parts of Mapleton, and Homes South of Mapes to Briggs in Romoland.
www.eteamz.com/mvll for online registration.

Sarah Kelly in Concert in Canyon Lake

2009-09-22T09:05:00.000-07:00

Christian Music Artist, Sarah Kelly, is coming to Canyon Lake Community Church on Friday, October 30th as a benefit concert to support MOPS - Mothers of Preschoolers but everyone is welcome. So come one. Come all.

Sarah Kelly is a local and International musician that has been nominated for two Grammy awards. She travels all over the world performing more than 250 shows a year. She also leads worship seminars, song writing courses and performs at festivals for audiences of 15,000 - 20,000 people.

Tickets are $5 in advance or $8 at the door
Doors open at 6:30 with the opportunity to enter drawings for wonderful gift baskets created by the MOPS ladies. The concert will begin at 7:00.

Please call 951/566-9391 for more information, to order tickets or directions to the church.

Yard Sale Dos and Don'ts

2009-09-04T16:53:00.000-07:00

Well Menifee, another weekend is upon us. And we are all bound to see those Yard Sale signs in our neighborhoods. Being an avid "Yard Saler", I wanted to share a few dos and don'ts about yard saling with you.

Post signs with LARGE arrows, date and words, "Yard Sale". That is all that is needed. Please remove all signs when sale is over.
Price your items, if possible. This cuts down on questions, or missed opportunities. Many customers hate to ask for a price.
Have your Yard Sale on a Saturday, or Saturday/Sunday. Friday sales cut down on customers, because so many people work. When customers see that Saturday is your second day, they tend to avoid the sale, with the thinking, "All of the good stuff is gone."
Be friendly, but not overwhelming. No one likes a pushy salesman.
Have plenty of change.

As a customer, here are some tips too. . .

Don't offer the Yard Sale Host 10 cents for a $10 item. It is highly insulting. Bartering is fine, but in reality, offering less than 75% is just plain rude.
Do not let your children run rampant at the yard sale. So many children break items, and then the parent just walks away. This is not a playground, these are someone'e items out of someone's home. Be respectful.
Carry plenty of change with you. This is something that can be used as a bartering tool down the road.
Don't litter the neighborhood. The neighbors hate this!
Park properly, and drive safely. Often there are many children at yard sales, and no one wants a child to get hurt.
Speak in the language of the person hosting the yard sale. Be that English or Spanish, don't expect to come to someone else's home and speak your language. Remember, you are on their property.
Be polite and courteous. It will get you Brownie Points with the Yard Sale Host.

Just my two cents worth. Happy Yard Saling!!!

Aberdovey Charter School Information Meeting

2009-08-21T22:57:00.000-07:00

The founding team of Aberdovey Charter School, a new site-based public charter school soon to launch in Menifee, will host an information meeting for parents on Monday, August 24 at the La Quinta Inn and Suites in Temecula, beginning at 7:00 p.m.

The meeting is meant to introduce the community to the benefits of a project-based learning educational philosophy that offers families a free alternative to public education. Public charter schools are tuition-free, open to all students, employ credentialed teachers, participate in state testing, and abide by state content standards.

The meeting is open to the public. The La Quinta Inn and Suites is located at 27330 Jefferson Ave., Temecula, CA 92590.

For additional information, contact Robyn Rogers, Executive Director of Aberdovey Charter School, at (951) 246-9410 or e-mail her at rrogers@aberdoveyschool.org.

Traditional or Year-Round?

2009-08-21T17:43:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it has come to my attention that the Menifee School District went to traditional instead of year-round. I am curious how the year-round affected children other than mine.

My child, and many, many of her classmates, had strong feelings about the segregation of the year-round system. Many felt that the children being labeled A, B, C, and D affected how they viewed themselves over their school career. My child spent all of her elementary and middle school years here in Menifee, went on to Paloma, and found that she was still "stuck" with the same group that she had been placed with on the track system. After talking to a number of students from all tracks, they all had the same response. Very few kids "crossed over" from track group to track group.

What was sad was that the kids labeled each other. Whether one was an over achiever or a misfit, a success or a failure, in each other's eyes, were based largely upon the track to which they were assigned in Kindergarten. These views stayed with many, many of the kids all the way through school, until graduation.

I would like to hear Menifee's thoughts on this, as this was a very informal poll, done by me alone.

How did your kids fair?

Pet Food Drive This Sunday in Menifee

2009-08-14T22:11:00.000-07:00

The Menifee Valley Humane Society is need of pet food to feed the dogs and cats in their care. Due the recessed economy, they are not receiving regular donations like they've been used to getting.

So they've set up donation stations at local Stater Bros. stores, this Sunday, August 16th, from 10am to 2pm.

The need dog food, cat food, litter, treats, and toys.

You'll find them at following Stater Bros stores:

Menifee, Newport Rd & Murrieta Rd

Menifee, Sun City Blvd & McCall

Temecula, Hwy 79 South

Murrieta, Hancock Ave.

Menifee Valley Humane Society is a non-profit, all volunteer rescue group that cares for animals in foster homes until loving, permanent homes are found for them. They ensure that stray, abandoned, injured and otherwise needy animals are not ignored and that they get the attention they deserve.

They also need more foster homes to make room for the increasing volume of abandoned pets due to home foreclosures. Please contact them to help make a difference in the life of a cat or dog.

Tax deductible donations also accepted:

Menifee Valley Humane Society
P.O. Box 865
Menifee, CA 92586

(951) 246-7960
www.mvhumanesociety.org
info@mvhumanesociety.org

Vehicle Burglary Prevention Tips

2009-07-23T12:51:00.000-07:00

Dep. Christopher Varela out of the Perris Station submits these vehicle burglary prevention tips.

He says vehicle burglary is a crime statistic that continues to be a problem for Menifee. Most of the time it's due to people leaving valuables in their car. I talked to him over the phone and he said that there are actually residents leaving their wallets in the car, in plain sight.

Interestingly, just this morning our neighbor found her car window smashed in with her GPS gone. Perhaps there's this idea that Menifee is a rural neighborhood far from the city, and that's creating a false sense of security.

In the City of Menifee one of the largest crime trends is theft from vehicles. This continues to be a constant problem for the residents of Menifee. Below is a list of simple prevention tips every resident should use to help prevent vehicle burglary.

Lock all the doors and secure all the windows to your vehicle.

If you have an alarm on your vehicle please activate it at all times.

Remove all valuable items (GPS systems, lap tops, wallets, money etc.) from the vehicle. Simply "hiding" them in the glove box does not work.

Do not leave keys, garage door openers or paperwork with identifying information in the vehicle.

Try to always park your vehicle in the garage. If this is not possible then purchase a light that will completely light up your drive way.

If the vehicle is parked in the garage, then please still complete the above listed bullet points.

Theft from vehicles continues to occur in Menifee because the above listed simple prevention techniques are not being followed. It would appear to be common sense to lock and secure all doors and windows to a vehicle, as well as remove all valuable items but I can tell you it is not being done.

The thieves walking around the neighborhoods are looking for vehicles with unlocked doors and unsecured windows. They are looking for the vehicles that have valuables in plain sight. It is fast and easy to smash open a window and take the valuable items lying in plain sight within a vehicle. It is even easier if that vehicle is not secured.

If the residents of Menifee begin to follow the above listed prevention tips I am confident theft from vehicles will decrease. Thank you for your time.

Submitted by:
Deputy Chris Varela of the Menifee Police Department

City Council Undecided on Special Election

2009-07-21T22:33:00.001-07:00

This evening, the city council was to adopt official council districts, and decide on holding a special election to overturn the results of Measure G.

Measure G was the ballot measure voters decided on a year ago, choosing "by district" over "at large".

In the end, the council adopted district boundaries, but a motion to hold a special election went down in defeat, with Mann, Edgerton, and Twyman voting no.

The audience cheered. However, the cheering was quickly quieted when Mann asked if he could offer an alternative motion. He said he still supported holding a special election this November, to overturn the results of Measure G, but wanted more details in the special election.

That is, the reason why he voted "no" on the special election is because he felt the details of that special election was not definitive enough. John Denver made the original motion as simply, "should we adopt at large council elections, yes or no".

Mann wanted more detail, including other options such as "from districts", and how the mayor would be elected. Mann thereby motioned that the city council hold a special council session, sometime between now and August 4, to iron out the details of what that special election would be about.

Considering that both Denver and Kuenzi at this point had been defeated in their quest to create a special election, they had no choice but to hear Mann out if they still wanted to seek that goal.

Mann said that he would not support a special election if it was simply going to be a yes/no vote on at large. That had the effect of giving Mann some power to dictate the terms of the special election. It also made Mann the swing vote, with Edgerton and Twyman voting no, and Kuenzi and Denver voting yes.

Kuenzi however, stated that there certain alternatives to governance that she would not support. But nonetheless, seconded Mann's motion to have a special council session to iron out details on this special election.

In the end, all five council members voted to hold a special council session.

However, the council could not immediately agree on the date of the special session. Edgerton stated there were certain days he could not be present. Denver stated that he too had days he could not be present. Douglas Johnson, the consultant they hired to look at all this, also has a limited schedule. It's still not known at this time when that special session will be.

Council Member Positions

When the council voted on the original motion, for a straight up yes/no vote on adopting at-large elections, the council members explained their positions...

Fred Twyman said he would be open to having an election to overturn Measure G, however he would not support having such an election this November. Having it this November would make it a "special election" because it would be held at a time when there were no other elections. That would therefore cost the city about $38,000. However, he'd support that election if held in 2010, on a date when there were other elections, which would then spare the city that expense.

Darcy Kuenzi said her support for switching to an at-large city council election has nothing to do with protecting her political career, but that she genuinely feels that is the best choice for Menifee, and pointed that she's been resident here for many years, and plans to be a resident for many more, even after retiring from elected office.

John Denver said that he learned a lot from the work Douglas Johnson performed. Johnson is the consultant from National Demographics Corporation, the company the city hired to iron out all the details of city governance structures, and came up with recommended district maps. Denver pointed out that cities the size of Menifee are typically ran at-large.

Wallace Edgerton said that while he had expressed his preference for at-large elections, he noted that the voters had already spoken through Measure G, choosing districts. He said that even though the vote was close, it was still a majority vote, and decisions should not be overturned just because they're close. He also expressed his unwillingness to spend money on a special election on something the people already decided on.

Scott Mann did not originally explain his opinions, but instead rebutted the notion that this special election was costing us unecessarily. He said that when the city created its 2009/2010 budget, they set aside money to cover this special election.

Edgerton responded back that it's still money we don't have to spend, especially at a time when the City of Menifee was just barely able to stay within budget this fiscal year.

District Boundaries Adopted

Before the council decided on the special election, they had actually adopted district boundaries.

They adopted a map called "NDC 4", which you can download and view here...

http://www.menifee247.com/menifee-city-council-districts-map.pdf

This map was originally drafted by Fred Twyman. But was modified by Douglas Johnson of NDC. Johnson made modifications to make it more "clean". That is, Twyman's original map had some neighborhoods carved out of others for the sake of making each district contain as equal number of residents as possible. Johnson smoothed out the district boundaries such that they tend to follow major roads, and keep some communities unified.

This map puts each council member alone in their own districts.

All but John Denver was happy with this map. Denver's district (District E in yellow), is perhaps the most convoluted. Johnson admitted that whenever district boundaries are drawn, there's always a district that becomes the runt of the litter, and Denver's district was it. Denver will represent the most diverse district, including a chunk of the Sun City Core, the family areas along the north-east I-215 corridor, and the rural areas along Ethanac.

This map also puts the Oasis retirement community into the same district with all the family communities (District C in blue).

Finally, this map also slices Sun City Core in half with Murrieta Rd as the dividing line. Mann would represent the western half, and Edgerton the eastern half. Denver will actually represent a small chunk of the Core too.

Public Comments

There are were some public comments made with respect to the district boundaries...

Anne Pica, argued the council should not have this discussion listed under "Continuing Items" since in fact several of the items to be discussed were never actually agendized previously. Even though they had been talked about in council meetings, all previous discussion was never under an agenda item. The council did not respond, but then again, the council was under time constraints, needing to have all these details dicussed and voted no later than August 7. Pica also noted that Kuenzi should not be allowed to include Romoland in her district since she's employed by Supervisor Marion Ashley, who represents Romoland, and argues it presents a conflict of interest.

Bill Zeidlik, spoke in support of Anne Pica's assertion that this discussion should be listed as "New Business" and not "Continued Items", since technically these topics were never agendized before. The strategy for arguing this is that it makes it more difficult for the council to have details ironed by the August 7 deadline.

Louis Mazei, asked the council to adopt such boundaries that would place his home and his neighbors into a district that does not include Sun City Core. He said he lives in Sun City, but not in the core area, and does not want to be represented by the core.

Bob Duistermars, spoke on behalf of the Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce, urging the council to approve a special election to overturn Measure G. He said the board of directors at the Chamber all want an at-large elected council, along with a mayor elected every year. Interesting, Mayor Edgerton asked Duistermars where he lives. He humbly said, "Hemet", which drew a collective groan from the audience.

Richard ?, I couldn't make out his last name. He stated he originally voted for districts, and then decided to research the matter more closely, and still supports districts. He said he wants to be represented by a council member who lives in his area. He said he doesn't want Menifee to grow to 250,000 residents, and that he doesn't want to live in an "economic engine".

Douglas Johnson Presentation

Before the city council voted on anything, Douglas Johnson had given a lengthy presentation of his findings and recommendations.

Johnson works for National Demographics Corporation, the company the city hired to research all the details and come up with recommendations on district boundaries.

He said the ideal district should have about 12,932 residents. He also pointed out the Voting Rights Act, which requires each district to have equal number of hispanic voters. His recommendation is that each district have between 19.5% to 26.5% hispanic voters.

There were about 30 maps submitted in all, including 11 from Joe Daugherty, 17 from actual Menifee residents, 2 from city council members, and 4 created by Douglas Johnson.

Johnson then ran each map into a set of requirements, and was able to eliminate several maps. There were several requirements, but those that seemed to be the most discussed was each district had to have less than 10% population deviation, the districts should be reasonably contiguous (no wild zig zag lines and loops), and that council members should each be in their own districts. In the end he had 10 maps by which the council could choose from.

A very interesting point that Johnson made is that when we had the original cityhood election in June 2008, several voters cast ballots on Measure F, the cityhood vote, but chose not to vote on Measure G, the district versus at-large vote. He said that while most voters cast ballots for or against cityhood, they simply didn't bother to choose between districts or at-large. Some 1,741 voters left Measure G blank, about 14.4% of the voters.

He surmised that many people had their minds made up about cityhood, and simply didn't think it was necessary to vote on anything else. Had all those people cast ballots on Measure G, there could have been a larger mandate for districts, and we wouldn't even be talking about this right now.

Johnson also said that cities are required by law to present ballot measures as a "yes or no" vote. Therefore, if we are to have a special election to overturn the results of Measure G, the city would have to present a new governance structure on the ballot form, and then ask voters yes or no.

He advised there be three separate ballot measures, one for at-large (yes/no), another for by-districts (yes/no), and one for from-districts (yes/no). He said the only way a ballot measure could pass is if one of those measures received greater than 50% "yes". If somehow two measures got more than 50% yes, the one with the greater votes wins. In my opinion, if that being the case, it makes it difficult to overturn Measure G. If all three are presented, it would split the vote three ways, making it very hard for one measure to get more than 50% yes.

Johnson also said that if no measure received greater than 50% yes, then the city must stick with "by district".

Denver's original motion to present a special election to adopt at-large elections, yes or no, would probably be easier to fetch a 50% or more yes vote, since it's the most simple. However, that motion has already been defeated, and Mann already put himself on record as saying that he wouldn't support that measure. So whatever the council comes up with in this upcoming special session, is going to be more complicated.

Sunrise Over Menifee

2009-07-18T06:10:00.000-07:00

I woke up early this morning, and didn't feel like sleeping in. So, I put on my shoes and went out for a walk, and snapped these photos...

The first one was taken around 5:50am. The second at 6:02am.

This is along La Ladera Rd, looking east. The water is EMWD's water reclamation basin.

At this time of the morning, the loudest sounds filling the air are those of ducks, coots, and other water fowl, and the solo of a coyote in the hills behind me. But I could still hear the cars moving up and down the I-215 from a few miles away.

Hope your weekend is a good one.

City Adopts New Police & Fire Contracts

2009-07-15T20:52:00.001-07:00

The city council today held a special session to adopt new contracts for police and fire.

The existing contracts expired June 30, 2009, but the city was able to continue on a one-month "memorandum of understanding" that extended the service to July 31, 2009.

The new police contract goes into effect immediately, costing the city nearly $8.7 million, for the 2009/2010 fiscal year.

The contract also include a provision whereby the city and the Riverside County Sheriff will meet in the first quarter of 2011 to discuss the possibility of moving Menifee's police headquarters from the Perris Substation to the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta. Currently, Temecula's police department operates out of there, but there's an expectation they'll be moving close to the new city hall building.

The new fire contract runs through the same period of time, but at a cost of nearly $6.9 million.

Riverside County's fire services is provided by the California Department of Forestry.

Councilman Denver asked if the fire department will adopt the city's name and city seal on their trucks and uniforms, similar to the police department. City Manager Wentz replied that he's had discussions on that. However, a representative from the California Department of Forestry happened to be on hand, and said that their department has a policy against putting any city's name and insignia on their property or uniforms.

California Close to Seizing Property Taxes

After the contracts were adopted, the Mayor called for council member comments. No else spoke up, so the Mayor asked the City's financial consultant, Gary Thompson to provide a status on the State of California's attempt to seize local property taxes, as well as gas taxes.

Thompson said the State Legislature is trying hard to get the required the 2/3 majority vote to seize city property taxes, however if such an attempt passes, Menifee will not be affected because the city has no historical property tax data by which the State can determine how much to take.

However, nearby cities like Temecula, Murrieta, Perris, Hemet, could be hit really hard if the State takes all of their property taxes.

But Thompson thinks there's a good chance it won't happen, because the Governor is already against seizing such monies, and because Democrats are going to need several Republican votes to pass the measure, which is very unlikely.

Breakfast Club of Menifee Now Open

2009-07-12T12:09:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, Breakfast Club of Menifee opened its doors.

This morning my wife and I ate there.

As expected, there was a lot of people there. We managed to get in around 8:30am, and by that time folks were waiting in line. By the time we got out, the waiting list was longer, with folks standing outside, and other folks sitting at the firepit and patio, all waiting to get in.

Overall, we were quite happy with the food and the service, and the prices are very reasonable. In fact, breakfast for two seems to be about the same price we usually end up paying for IHOP or Coco's.

The tables are all covered with cloth, and then covered again with paper, which is nice because they just lay a clean sheet of paper when cleaning off a table instead of wiping it down with a mucky rag.

They had three wide screen televisions that I could see, but I don't think anyone was watching. The noise level inside the dining room was quite high, which could be a positive or a negative depending on how you look at it. The atmosphere was quite lively.

Service was excellent. The servers kept us well attended, very well courteous, kept my coffee filled. Breakfast came out promptly.

The tables are grouped rather tightly together, allowing just barely enough room for servers and customers to get around. As of right now, they still have rented, collapsable chairs, as their permanent chairs have yet to come in. A little girl seated at a table next to us, fell through her chair somehow and hit the floor.

The morning sun tends to shine through the windows, and even with the blinds drawn close, the dining room manages stay rather warm.

Food was very good I thought. I ordered the Southwest Taco Omelette, which had ground beef, lettuce and onions, topped with tomatoes and guacamole. It came with the breakfast potatoes, which I was told was Tracy's own recipe, which has a very fresh taste to it, with very little (or perhaps no), seasoning.

My wife had the apple cinnamon pancakes, which came with the pancakes in small bite sized pieces, and slices of apples. She ordered a side of breakfast sausage, which came in a three count, in the larger size.

They have a patio on the side if you'd like to eat outdoors.

The parking lot in that part of the shopping center has a lot of cars pulling in and out and navigating around now that Breakfast Club of Menifee is open. Once that Hana Sushi opens up, there's going to be a lot of activity.

The side patio has service, however folks seated there were waiting to get in. The restaurant needs a wrought iron gate to around the patio.

Every table was taken inside, and the place was hoppin'

Biscuits and jelly is served while you wait for your meal.

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

Southwest Taco Omelette, with breakfast potatoes, and sourdough toast. The sausages were a side item my wife ordered.

Still priced in the same ballpark as IHOP, Coco's, or Denny's. The omelette is priced $2.00 less than IHOP.

Menifee Real Estate in the News

2009-07-08T20:42:00.001-07:00

MSNBC ran an article today about one family in Menifee whose property is deep in the tank (link)...

Daniel Arevalo would love to sell his home in southern California, so he could move closer to his three young children. They live 45 minutes to the north, with his ex-wife.

But Arevalo can't sell his house. The real estate market in Menifee, about 65 miles north of San Diego, is in the tank. Home values "are dropping like a rock," said Arevalo. And even if he could sell the home that he bought five years ago for about $250,000, Arevalo doubts he would get the $175,000 needed to pay off his mortgage.

"I'm stuck," he said.

Well, considering home values in the greater Riverside County area are expected to fall even further going into 2011, Arevalo might as well get comfortable with Menifee.

EMWD Launches Restaurant Campaign

2009-07-08T14:43:00.001-07:00

The Eastern Municipal Water District today announced that they're going to local restaurants and asking them to stop serving water, unless specifically requested by a customer.

The campaign is focused on cards placed on tables which state, "Thirsty?", and lists water saving tips and ideas. The thinking is that if folks start thinking about saving water at restaurants, they'll think about how they can use water more wisely in their homes.

Interestingly, the EMWD cited a statistic that it takes 4 glasses of water to wash one restaurant glass...

Research has shown that it takes four glasses of water to clean just one glass. By refusing water you are potentially saving thousands of gallons each year.

Which makes me think that if restaurants used tall-sized paper cups instead, which can be thrown away, they'll save even more water. So I'm thinking the EMWD will get more mileage with a "glass for paper" exchange program, where they supply free paper cups if a restaurant turns in their glass.

So far, only two restaurants, both located in Moreno Valley have opted to display these "Thirsty" cards on their tables. If you have a restaurant, and you want these cards, contact the EMWD at...

Roxanne M. Rountree
rountrer@emwd.org
(951) 928-3777 x4391

Menifee Mailing Address Still Unclear

2009-07-07T16:40:00.001-07:00

A Heritage Lake resident wants to know what it's going to take to get the US Postal Service to recognize his/her address as being "Menifee" instead of "Romoland"...

We moved here (Heritage Lake) just before the cityhood election. We are so glad to be Menifee residents now. We'd just like to have the busineses we deal with, recognize our address as being in Menifee!

Our mail (bills too) consistantly is addressed to our street in Sun City or Romoland! We live in Menifee! Why can't the Postal Service include us in the Menifee zip code? We'd be happy to include the 4 digit extension just to be able to use the Menifee city name!

Who do we petition to get this accomplished?

We've discussed this issue on Menifee 24/7 before.

The US Postal Service is not going to issue an official explanation on this, simply because as far as they're concerned, nothing has changed here. That is, they see areas of land in terms of zip codes, not as place names. They're still operating just as they've always have.

The answer is that you've always been able to tell your friends and family to change your mailing address to "Menifee". In fact, you've been able to do this prior to Menifee becoming a city.

For example, I live in the 92584 zip code, and even though I use "Menifee" as my mailing address, I still get mail delivered to me with "Sun City" on it. That's been happening before and after Menifee became a city. Obviously, the Post Office is still capable of getting the mail to my house, no matter what place name is on there.

Another case in point. Quail Valley and Canyon Lake share the same zip code (92587), and each have their own post offices. Yet, the US Postal Service is still capable of figuring out which post office to route mail to, despite both having the same zip codes.

Another case in point. Temecula has several zip codes, and yet everyone in Temecula still gets their mail, even though they all use "Temecula" as their mailing address.

So, it's pretty obvious that people in Romoland, Sun City, and Quail Valley, can use "Menifee" as their mailing address, despite having different zip codes, and you'll all get your mail.

If you want the Post Office to guarantee delivery with "Menifee" as your place name, even though you live in Heritage Lake, you'll never get a guarantee from them. And that's because the Post Office is not perfect.

So, if you want all of your incoming mail to say "Menifee" on it, then simply tell your friends, family, and anyone else sending you mail, to use that name.

But if you're going to wait for the Post Office to issue a public statement, you're going to be waiting for a long time.

Building Homes versus Building Jobs

2009-07-07T14:48:00.001-07:00

Councilman Scott Mann wrote an op-ed piece for PublicCEO.com, explaining the City of Menifee's strategy to build revenues through offering low home building fees, and waving "Menifee Money" to families looking for a cheaper place to live (link)...

In May, we unanimously passed a comprehensive plan that slashes homebuilder fees by 65% and lowers the cost of the permitting process by 20% to incentivize development in Menifee. ...But we didn't stop just on the supply side, we also needed to look for new ways to attract new residents and stimulate sales tax revenues. The answer: "Menifee Money".

Considering it is we taxpayers of Menifee who are fronting the "Menifee Money" that will be given freely to newcomers, I'd like to ask councilman Mann what we're going to get back in return for such investment?

The obvious answer is additional property taxes. But getting additional property taxes is not a 100% profit gain. Adding more bodies to Menifee only increases the traffic, adds more burden to schools, demands more police and fire, and makes us wait even longer to get a table at a restaurant.

I tend to like the size of Menifee as it is. I don't really want more people here.

I think the better solution is to incentivize the growth of industry. Establish a business park, more industrial. Create a tourist center, like get that aquatic center going, find a place for an "Old Town Menifee".

Building more jobs here means employees will be patronizing the local eateries and stores for lunch, and buying gas. Instead of relying of Menifee residents to put up the tax base, Menifee can increase its take from people who live outside of town.

I've yet to hear a councilmember explain to me the strategy behind building more homes. Simply telling me that it will increase tax base just doesn't explain enough to me. Why should the city rely on taxing its own residents, instead of attracting outside dollars?

At this point, I'm withholding my vote for any councilmember who continues to show favoritism to homebuilders, until he or she can explain the advantages of building more homes, instead of more industry.

Aberdovey School Offers Free Educational Workshops

2009-06-28T20:53:00.000-07:00

Robyn Rogers, Executive Director of Aberdovey Charter School, a new charter school in the works for Menifee, says things are progressing quite well with their petition. They're almost finished and are starting their community outreach in full force.

The school will be holding free hands-on childrens workshops on Tuesday and Saturday mornings in a couple of local parks during the month of July.

The workshops will be a free opportunity for school-age kids, ages 4-11, to try out project-based learning and for parents to learn more about the new charter school's endeavor. Schwans has also offered to be at most of the workshops to offer free ice cream sandwiches (along with their sales pitch). Any way you look at it, it's a free event for kids.

For more information, contact Robyn Rogers at 951-246-9410 or
rrogers@aberdoveyschool.org.

Tuesdays at La Ladera Park in Menifee from 9am-11am:
July 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th.

Directions:
http://parks.menifee247.com/la-ladera-park.htm

Saturdays at La Paloma Park in Menifee from 9am-11am:
July 11th, 18th, and 25th.

Directions:
http://parks.menifee247.com/la-paloma-park.htm

EMWD Shifts to Mandatory Water Restrictions

2009-06-26T23:34:00.001-07:00

The Eastern Municipal Water District sent us a press release earlier this week announcing that the water conservation efforts it had once suggested to residents and businesses are now mandatory.

The EMWD board of directors at it's June 17 meeting declared Stage 2 conservation measures in its water shortage contingency plan effective immediately.

As examples, hosing down hard surfaces, daytime lawn watering, allowing runoff and leaks will now be prohibited, rather than requested.

In the case of allowing water to runoff into the street, for example, penalties will start at $25 after one warning for excessive water runoff at single-family homes. Penalties can be increased to $50 or $100 for subsequent violations within a year of the first violation warning.

The same types of comparable waste at multi-family, commercial, industrial, institutional and landscape accounts are subject to penalties of $100, $200 and $300.

But the EMWD doesn't expect shifting to mandatory conservation efforts will make much of an impact, because they said the vast majority of their customers are already making efforts to monitor how they use water and eliminate waste. For the most part, EMWD customers are doing what the district has asked of them and are staying within their first two billing tiers.

The district is also keeping it's four-tiered rates where they are. They had once considered doubling the highest tier-4 rate for flagrant waste.

The complete list of mandatory water efficiency requirements are:

Refrain from hosing down driveways and other hard surfaces, except for health or sanitary reasons, and then only by use of a hand-held bucket or similar container, a handheld hose equipped with a positive self-closing water shut-off device, or a low volume, high-pressure cleaning machine equipped to recycle any water used.

Repair faucets, toilets, pipes, and other potential sources of water leaks.

Irrigate landscape only between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. This provision does not apply when:
- Manually watering during the establishment period of a new landscape;
- Temperatures are predicted to fall below freezing;
- For very short periods of time for the express purpose of adjusting or repairing an irrigation system.

Refrain from watering or irrigating of any lawn, landscape, or other vegetated area with potable water using a landscape irrigation system or watering device that is not continuously attended unless it is limited to no more than 15 minutes watering per day per station. This 15-minute limitation can be extended for:
- Landscape irrigation systems that exclusively use very low-flow drip irrigation systems when no emitter produces more than two (2) gallons of water per hour.
- Weather-based controllers or stream rotor sprinklers that meet a 70% efficiency. But runoff or over watering is not permitted in any case.

Adjust and operate all landscape irrigation systems in a manner which will maximize irrigation efficiency and avoid over-watering or watering of hardscape and the resulting runoff.

Refrain from watering or irrigating any lawn, landscape, or other vegetated area that causes or allows excessive water flow or runoff onto an adjoining sidewalk, driveway, street, alley, gutter, or ditch.

Do not use decorative fountains unless they are equipped with a recycling system.

Do not allow water to run while washing vehicles. Use a bucket or similar container and/or a handheld hose equipped with a positive self-closing water shut-off device to avoid runoff into gutters, streets, or alleys.

When installing new landscaping, plant low-water demand trees and plants. Do not incorporate non-functional turf areas.

Refrain from watering during rain.

EMWD depends on The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) for 70 to 80 percent of the water served for 135,000 customers in Riverside County.

Beginning July 1, MWD sets mandatory reductions to its 26 member agencies. Although these upcoming reductions affect regional and local water agencies differently, the net result is an about 10 percent cut in water supply, with a nearly 20 percent rate hike beginning Sept. 1, 2009. In addition, hefty penalties will be levied against water agencies that exceed their allocations.

Since water sales peaked for EMWD in 2006-07, the demands by domestic water customers�meaning residents, businesses, and institutions�have declined by 17 percent.

EMWD's board believes continuing reduced customer demands will keep EMWD within MWD's allocations. They have also made a commitment to leave rates alone at least until January 2010 through additional internal budget cuts and project deferrals.

MWD's allocations on regional water agencies were agreed to last April as a way to address state-wide water shortages caused by record dry conditions in Southern California and court-ordered water pumping cutbacks from Northern California's Bay-Delta into the California Aqueduct.

You can read the EMWD's water shortage contingency plan at...
http://www.emwd.org/news/ordinances/Ord117.2.pdf.

You can also learn about the tiered rate structure at...
http://www.emwd.org/water_service/UnderstandingTieredRates.html#Tiers

Districting Forums Scheduled

2009-06-26T23:23:00.001-07:00

Yesterday the City of Menifee held a workshop forum on creating city council district lines. I wasn't able to attend.

But there are two more workshops scheduled...

Saturday, June 27, 2009 at 10:30 a.m. � Menifee City Hall, 29714 Haun Road, Menifee, CA

Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 7 p.m. � Heritage High School Theater 26001 Briggs Road, Menifee, CA

I won't be able to attend tommorrow's either. But I'll shoot for the last one.

The forum will include an informational presentation by Douglas Johnson of NDC, on the process of drawing districts. It'll then shift to audience participation, where listeners will be given forms to show their possibilities for districts, and definitions of their own community's identity.

The City also plans to announce a webinar with the consultant that will allow those who wish to hear the information presentation online. The date and sign in information for that webinar will be released later in the week.

Movies in the Park for 2009

2009-06-26T23:02:00.000-07:00

Movies in the Park continues on this Summer at La Ladera Park with the following movies...

Thursday, June 25th, "Hotel for Dogs"
Thursday, July 9th, "Madagascar 2"
Thursday, July 23rd, "Kung Fu Panda"
Thursday, August 13th, "Star Wars, Clone Wars"
Thursday, August 27th, "Bolt"

Looks like I got the word out too late for June 25th.

Click on the flyer to see the full size.

Hemet Valley Dolphins Invites Menifee Kids

2009-06-26T22:54:00.001-07:00

Jay Glasser, president of the Hemet Valley Dolphins swim team writes to us wanting to let Menifee families know that they're welcome to enroll their kids into their swim team program.

He has some Menifee kids on his team right now, and their parents mentioned to him that there's no public swimming pool in Menifee.

Hemet Valley Dolphins is a year round, non-profit, competitive swim club, as opposed to a "learn to swim program".

They currently use the pool at West Valley High School, on the corner of Domenigoni and Sanderson Ave.

Visit them online at:
http://www.hvdaswim.com/

Jesse Lee Peterson to Speak in Perris

2009-06-26T22:31:00.000-07:00

Ted Wegener, who leads a group called "Conservative Activists" based here in Menifee, sends us the following announcement about an upcoming appearance by Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson...

Click on the flyer to see the full size.

Peterson is a conservative speaker, radio personality, and author, and will be speaking on the subject of President Obama.

The meeting is open to the public and is free.

Saturday, July 25th, 2009
3:00pm to 5:00pm
Ce'sar Chavez Library
163 East San Jacinto Avenue
Perris, CA 92570

Sun City Model Railroad Club Meets Next Month

2009-06-26T22:19:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, July 7 2009 at 10 AM, Members of the Sun City Model Railroad Club will meet to draw up plans to create tables/modules for the purpose of promoting model railroading and will be using these plans for demonstration at schools, senior living centers, fairs and the like.

The club has been invited to visit other model railroad clubs in Southern California, and will have their layouts ready to present to local youth.

The Sun City Model Railroad Club meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 10 A.M. in the Provident Bank Community Room located at 27010 Sun City Blvd. in Sun City, at the intersection of Sun City Blvd. and Cherry Hills Blvd.

The club adopted this location as it new meeting site in hopes of attracting model railroading enthusiasts from all over Southwest Riverside County.

Contact: Chuck Reutter, 951.679.3752 or greenchuckr@hotmail.com

Menifee Pop Warner Signups

2009-06-26T22:15:00.000-07:00

Mike Adams of Menifee Pop Warner football sent in this flyer for signups tomorrow, Saturday, June 27, at Heritage High School, 8:00 am - 12:00 pm...

Click on the flyer to see the full size.

Robbery Prevention Tips for Businesses

2009-06-26T22:01:00.000-07:00

Deputy Chris Varela of the Menifee Police Department sent us this list of robbery prevention tips for local business owners...

As the economy continues to decline more and more people may turn to supplementing their income through illegal means. A problem for most businesses has and always will be robbery. In the city of Menifee there have been approximately five incidents of robbery occurring at local business since the beginning of 2009.

Below is a list of simple prevention tips every business owner and employee should implement.

Greet every person who enters the business in a friendly manner. Personal contact can discourage a would-be criminal.

Keep windows clear of displays or signs and make sure your business is well-lighted. Check the layout of your store, eliminating any blind spots that may hide a robbery in progress.

Provide information about your security systems to employees only on a "need-to-know" basis. Instruct your employees to report any suspicious activity or person immediately and write down the information for future reference.

If it all possible install security cameras that can store video footage for more than one week. If cameras are installed have them view the entrance and exits of the location as well as the cash registers.

Place cash registers in the front section of the store. This increases the chances of someone spotting a robbery in progress and reporting it to the police.

Keep small amounts of cash in the register to reduce losses. Use a drop safe into which large bills and excess cash are dropped by employees and cannot be retrieved by them. Post signs alerting would-be robbers of this procedure.

Make bank deposits often and during business hours. Don't establish a pattern, take different routes at different times during the day. Ask a police officer to escort you to the bank whenever possible.

Ask local law enforcement what to do in case you are robbed. Make sure your address is visible so emergency vehicles can easily find your business.

If you or your employees are confronted by a robber, cooperate. Merchandise and cash can always be replaced�people can't!

Most robbers have already inspected the business they intend to rob. Keep a vigilant eye for returning customers who appear to be looking for security cameras, security guards or who ask a number of questions regarding common practices of employees and security.

In the event that a robbery does occur remember a good witness is the best tool Law Enforcement can use to apprehend the suspect. Do not get confrontational with the robbers. Try to remember the best description possible of the suspects: race, sex, clothing worn, any facial hair or tattoos.

How many there were, what direction they took when leaving the location, whether they left on foot or used a vehicle and if they had any weapons.
If you are a victim of a robbery or a witness dial 911 as soon as possible.

The tips provided may not completely prevent a robbery from occurring but will help in deterring criminals from attempting to rob a business.

Submitted by:
Deputy Chris Varela of the Menifee Police Department