The people score victory over sign
2010-12-23 / Letters
In these days of hard-boiled politics it is unusual and refreshing for a government to accede to the clear wishes of the governed, rather than arrogantly pressing its own agenda.
A case in point is the decision of the Thousand Oaks City Council to postpone a vote on whether to erect a large electronic message board on the site of the auto mall and in direct view of the adjacent 101 Freeway.
We citizens have passionately expressed our displeasure with the plan to install an unsightly sign that detracts from the aesthetics of our beautiful city and could conceivably pose a traffic hazard to distracted freeway drivers.
Besides, it is not at all certain that the sign would provide an economic benefit to the auto dealerships.
Admittedly, the council acted only to delay the decision not to scuttle the plan.
But it’s a small, though hopeful, victory just the same. Let’s hope the council does not have an ulterior motive for the delay, i.e., to use the extra time to mobilize a vocal opposition to counter the people’s will. Guido (Gino) Pipia Newbury Park
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Being mayor not such a big deal
2010-12-23 / Letters
This is in regard to the article, “Fox is next mayor of T.O” (Dec. 16, Acorn). Like 80 percent of the municipalities in California, Thousand Oaks is a general law city, meaning that it does not have a separate charter and thus accepts the state constitution as the basis for its form of government.
Moreover, Thousand Oaks has adopted a “weak mayor” style of governance, in which power is concentrated in the City Council and the mayor has a largely ceremonial role.
We pay members of our City Council as part-time employees, and the expectation that our mayor participate in more than 200 ceremonies a year assumes a willingness and ability to donate additional time.
The role of mayor can be rewarding and, as Dennis Gillette has pointed out, exhausting. However, several of our current council members have other commitments, be it employment as a fireman, news writer or dentist, or young children at home, that limit their ability to volunteer for a fulltime, underpaid, role as mayor.
Why, then, should Claudia Bill-de la Peña and her supporters be upset by her being “passed over” for the title of mayor pro tem?
First is the perception that the roles of mayor and mayor pro tem are allocated on a rotational basis rather than on the availability of free time to represent the city in ceremonies and lobbying in Sacramento and Washington.
More important may be a public perception that being unqualified to serve as mayor implies lack of qualification to serve on the City Council, which would influence voter appeal.
We need highly qualified individuals in both roles, mayor and City Council, and in order to attract them, we need to acknowledge that the qualifications for one role do not imply qualification for the other role and vice versa. Nick Fotheringham Thousand Oaks
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Progressives got it all mixed up
2010-12-23 / Letters
Let me see if I can understand the progressive position on the federal deficit, a deficit that they increased by out-of-control and unjustified spending while unemployment increased to 9.8 percent under their watch.
They believe that we can’t afford to keep the Bush tax cut for the rich (those who pay the majority of taxes) because this adds to the $14-trillion deficit.
Yet the Omnibus $1.1-trillion pork wasteful spending bill that adds to the deficit they can afford.
So we can’t afford to let the people who employ others and do a majority of the spending to keep their own money to stimulate the economy? But we can afford to spend trillions on garbage and wasteful spending that does not stimulate the economy to gain jobs?
Progressives use taxpayer money for pork spending (bribes) to pay off contributors that helped them get elected.
Are they just plain stupid, ignorant, arrogant, evil and/or just plain don’t care about doing the right thing for America? I say all of the above. Barry Gabrielson Newbury Park
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Take time to enjoy beauty of nature
2010-12-23 / Letters
Look up! Look!
We do have fall colors in the Conejo, and aren’t they vibrant!
The pepper trees, liquidambar, maple and many more are showcasing the delightful hues of red, orange, yellow, green and brown.
Why have I not noticed in previous years? Is the fall display really exceptional, or have I just matured enough to pause and relish the glorious sight of the sun dancing among the colorful leaves?
I invite you (before the show is over) to notice, smile, celebrate and give thanks to the ultimate artistic Creator.Sherrill Hyink Thousand Oaks
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Speak up about SCE rate increase
2010-12-23 / Letters
Attention to everyone who receives SoCal Edison electricity: Time is running out.
Those who are concerned need to make their opinions clear to the California Public Utilities Commission regarding a large proposed rate increase.
Today I received my current electric bill from SCE. On the last page the SCE has made notice of a pending rate increase. It is well worth the time to read it, especially if you reside in a singlefamily residence.
Along with this bill I was notified that they are asking for a 10.04 percent rate increase beginning the first of the year. I strongly disagree with this amount of increase.
I am a senior citizen over 70 years of age and do own a home in Ventura County.
Besides the electricity, I’m like everyone else who also has bills from the water company, the gas company and the trash company. In my opinion, these are bills that I have no control over. I also have phone and cable bills which I elect to receive the merchandise and pay the monthly bills.
Within this notice they give five reasons for this hefty increase to the domestic customers.
While they are doing their reasoning they are also planning to increase monthly rates on all areas of service, but nothing close to the 10.04 percent, which I will have to pay if this increase is approved.
I’m on a fixed income of Social Security, and within the past two years we have not received an increase while everything around us has been going up in price.
If you have concerns regarding this pending large rate increase by SCE, please contact the CPUC at Punlic. Advisor. la @cpuc.ca.gov or write: Public Advisor’s Office, California Public Utilities Commissions, 320 W. Fourth St., Ste. 500, Los Angeles, CA 90013. Chuck Blankenship Newbury Park
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Stolen women’s undergarments lead to arrest
2010-12-23 / Police
A Thousand Oaks resident has been arrested on suspicion of committing sexual acts with stolen women’s underwear.
According to a police report, for the past several months women’s undergarments have been found in a ravine at Wildwood Park.
The clothing was being left in the same location on a daily basis.
The TOPD sexual assault unit, during a recent surveillance, arrested Thousand Oaks resident Fernando Ortega, 39, when he was allegedly seen leaving the area where the garments have been found.
Officers reported checking the area afterward and finding undergarments arranged on a rock.
The sexual assault unit believes the clothing could have been stolen from laundry rooms or laundromats or during residential burglaries.
Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of such a theft is asked to call (805) 371-8397.
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City Council awards $45,000 in grants to 13 community groups
2010-12-23 / Community
Money will go toward special projects
A 12-year-old city program is alive and well and continuing its goal of beautifying Thousand Oaks.
The City Council at its Dec. 14 meeting agreed to give $45,000 in Community Enhancement Grants to 13 nonprofit groups with plans to beautify the environment.
The grants ranged from $2,100 to $5,000.
David Mead, chair of the seven-member Community Funding Review Committee, told the council the group used scoring criteria in awarding the grants for the first time this year. The volunteer committee is composed of residents who decide what organizations will receive a grant and how much it will be.
The 30 groups that applied this year were given a score between 1 and 100 based on innovation, how the project would enhance the environment and other factors. Those recommended for funding had a score of 71 or above, Mead said. The top scorer, Aspen Elementary School Parent-Faculty Association, had 87 points.
Mead, a member of the committee for nine years, said having score criteria based in part on merit allows the committee more flexibility in determining the amount of the awards.
“This year . . . I think it’s a better system, a fairer system and a good way to distinguish the different applications,” Mead said.
Last year, the committee funded the 22 applicants equally, he said.
The total funding for the annual enhancement grants, which are often used to plant trees on public streets, has remained at $45,000 since the City Council approved the program in 1998, said Rod Cordova, an assistant analyst for the city.
The city funds enhancement grants through interest earned on fees that Thousand Oaks trash haulers pay the city to collect and dispose of residential and commercial waste. The city places the money in an account, and $45,000 of the interest earned is earmarked for enhancement grants, Cordova said.
Nonprofits can apply during the month of October. The funding review committee evaluates each application and makes its recommendation to the City Council for final approval. Acorn Bits
Those groups who received Community Enhancement Grants (and amounts) at the Dec. 14 City Council meeting are:
• Westlake High School boys’ basketball boosters ($3,250)
•Conejo Open Space Foundation ($3,500)
•Conejo Valley Botanic Garden ($3,000)
• Conejo Valley Unified School District ($5,000)
•Thousand Oaks Lancer football boosters ($2,800)
• Westlake High School dance team boosters ($2,800)
•Thousand Oaks High School Link Crew ($2,100).
• Maple Elementary School Parent- Faculty Association ($3,000)
• Aspen Elementary School Parent- Faculty Association ($5,000)
•Boys & Girls Clubs of Conejo & Las Virgenes ($3,250)
• Los Cerritos Middle School ($2,800)
•Gecko Student Council ($5,000)
• EARTHS Magnet School ($3,500)
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Bike lane on Wendy is wide
2010-12-23 / Community
What’s up with that?
BRING ON THE BIKERS—New striping along Wendy Drive between Borchard Road and Kimber Drive in Newbury Park has created an unusually large bike lane. RICHARD GILLARD/Acorn Newspapers“Would anyone know who is responsible for the new traffic lanes on Wendy Drive between Borchard and Kimber in Newbury Park? I guess they meant well but the bike lane is as big as the vehicle lane! Are they expecting a Tour de France to come through? The car lane does not even appear wide enough for a standard motorhome.”— John, Newbury Park
Yes, John, the bike lanes on Wendy Drive from Borchard Road to Kimber Drive are wider than usual.
When asked, Mark Watkins, director of public works, told the Acorn that the city changed the striping on the thoroughfare recently to reduce traffic snarls and become more bicycle-friendly.
Previously, the three-block section of Wendy Drive had two lanes each for north- and southbound traffic. But when drivers made left turns, traffic often backed up.
A few years ago, other similarly designed portions of Wendy Drive were reconfigured to one traffic lane in each direction and a center lane for turning.
For consistency, the city restriped the three-block Borchard to Kimber section of Wendy Drive recently to correspond with other portions. The city reduced the size of the traffic lanes from 12 feet in width to 10 feet, added a 10-foot center lane and left space for designated bike lanes, albeit unusually wide ones.
Bike lanes typically are 5 feet wide, but along this stretch of Wendy they are 8 feet.
To avoid removing the striping already there for the traffic lane, which would leave a scar on the pavement and could confuse drivers at night, the city painted over the dashed traffic lane to use as a bike lane
Watkins agreed the odd lane dimensions could confuse drivers but said the city has placed signs on poles and stencils on the ground to inform drivers of the changes.
“It’s kind of ironic that you give bikes more room and it actually confused drivers,” Watkins said.
He said the city will stripe the bike and traffic lanes to the proper width when it resurfaces the street in the distant future.
The 9-foot parking lanes on both sides of Wendy Drive have not been changed.
—Michelle Knight Send ideas for “What’s up with that?” to tonewstip@theacorn.com.
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Hours changing at T.O. city hall, libraries
2010-12-23 / Front Page
Decision made after closed session meeting
GATHERING PLACE—Marty Kreman and his daughters Maritza, 6, and Jessica, 4, of Thousand Oaks enjoy reading a book on a rainy day at the Grant Brimhall Library in Thousand Oaks. Library hours will change starting Mon., Jan. 3, with a reduction in hours Monday through Wednesday. BILL SPARKES/Acorn NewspapersThe city of Thousand Oaks is reducing hours at city hall and the city’s two libraries.Hours for Thousand Oaks City Hall will change beginning tomorrow.
As it did last year, city hall will close for one week, from Dec. 24 through Jan. 2. City employees will not be paid for the weeklong furlough, saving the city an estimated $200,000.
Mayor Andy Fox said the furlough, one of the cost-cutting recommendations made by City Manager Scott Mitnick last month, is warranted.
“It’s the reality of the difficult budget that all cities are struggling with, including Thousand Oaks,” Fox said.
City hall will reopen Mon., Jan. 3. That week, city hall will launch new operating hours. All departments will open 30 minutes earlier, at 7: 30 a. m., Monday through Thursday. City hall will be open on alternate Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Other cities in Ventura County have reportedly slashed their city hall hours, including Ventura and Oxnard.
The council also approved new operating hours for the city’s two libraries.
Starting Jan. 3, Grant Brimhall Library in Thousand Oaks will open one hour later and close one hour earlier, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The library will observe regular business hours on Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Sundays, the library will open an hour earlier, at noon, and remain open until 5 p.m.
The Newbury Park Branch Library will close one hour earlier, at 8 p.m., Monday through Wednesday. The previous business hours of 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays will prevail. The branch library is closed Sundays.
The decision to alter city hall and library hours was made by the city manager after meeting in closed session with the City Council and city administrators in November.
The council agreed administrators could confer with the unions representing city employees in changing work schedules.
It’s within the purview of the city manager to set the hours of operation for city hall, said city spokesperson Andrew Powers.
Thousand Oaks police and fire departments will continue normal business hours.
John Adams, the city’s finance director, said that, like many cities across the country, Thousand Oaks has experienced declining income in the past few years.
For the 2007-08 fiscal year, the city’s general fund revenue was $72.6 million. Expenses were $67 million.
In 2009-10, Thousand Oaks’ general fund dipped to $60.9 million, a loss of almost $12 million, Adams said.
That same year, Thousand Oaks slashed expenses to $62.2 million.
To cut costs the city has offered early retirement incentives to employees and four people were laid off this year—a librarian and an assistant from Grant Brimhall Library and two staff members in the community development department.
As of Jan. 1, the city will have eliminated 74 positions in all, said Connie Hickman, city human resources director.
Thousand Oaks expects to save $6 million a year by eliminating those positions, Adams said.
Last year the city saved about $230,000 when it initiated the weeklong December furlough. The savings in salary and benefits were larger last year because there were more employees on the payroll.
Hickman said the change in city hall and library hours won’t save the city much money. Employees will work the same number of hours overall, and, because city hall is occupied by other tenants and the theaters will be in use, the city won’t save much on utilities when its departments are closed.
The benefit will come in the form of better customer service, Hickman said.
For about 10 years half of the city’s employees have worked on alternate Fridays. That meant every department operated with half its staff on Fridays.
Hickman said departments managed well during the week but found it difficult to meet customers’ needs on Fridays, especially when the city began reducing staff.
This year, the libraries lost 11 employees, most through retirement.
By reducing public hours, the libraries and city hall can make the most efficient use of employees’ time in serving the public, Hickman said.
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Guest opinion
2010-12-23 / Schools
Do something selfish this year
Mike SoulesThe story of how my wife and I got to Thousand Oaks is unique and screams out to be writ large here in the pages of the Acorn. We came to the Conejo on a windy day nearly 14 years ago.We traveled up the 101 from Woodland Hills with a newborn baby in arms. We arrived with no family, no friends, no Nordstrom. All of our hard-earned savings were promptly deposited in a small, semi-view lot on a cul-desac. We came for one reason—the great public schools.
All these years later, even through this horrible economic downturn, our home values remain relatively strong due to our public schools.
In this season of reflection, I ask you to do something selfish to help grow our home values, maintain competitive work forces, and attract new business to the community: Contribute time, talent or treasure to our public schools.
The Conejo Schools Foundation, a nonprofit made up of community, parent and educator volunteers, is dedicated to preserving and expanding world-class educational opportunities for all children in the Conejo. We work closely with the school board and staff at Conejo Valley Unified School District to identify highneed, high-impact programs to support.
A few highlights:
“Hop Into Kindergarten,” a three-week early-start program piloted at Conejo Elementary and expanding to two other elementary schools for the 2011 school year.
School Site Grants, awarded to each school in CVUSD addressing an array of needs, including technology, library books, peer counselor training and early intervention.
Career and college readiness software training for select counselors in our high schools.
All-District Band and Music Festival: In cooperation with other civic groups, we produce a seven-day musical showcase for elementary, middle and high school students.
“Walk for Healthy Schools”: Our fall kickoff 5K walk, in conjunction with CRPD, continues to grow.
“Breakfast with Santa” expanded our partnership with The Oaks mall in their effort to support students in the community.
“Parents Making a Difference”:
In cooperation with a private foundation, we help families learn how to actively help their children succeed in school.
Naming rights for select school buildings and stadiums led to the Carpenter Family Theatre at Westlake High School and the SAGE Library at Newbury Park High School.
TedX Conejo: We partnered with CVUSD and TedX Conejo organizers to bring innovative, creative ideas to the Conejo.
In November we launched our first fundraising campaign in six years. Now more than ever we need your help to maintain and grow these and other educational initiatives. Please help us stay selfish: Write a check, make a pledge, volunteer.
For more information, visit our website at www.conejoschools.org.
Mike Soules is president of the Conejo Schools Foundation.
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Voice (805) 390-2857 Fax (805) 421-5345
Secretary
Concerned Citizens of Thousand Oaks
Box 824 CA 91319-0834
ConcernedCitzTOaks@gmail.com
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