Current Sage Project partner Lemon Grove will be first in North America to use new toolkit

Source: SAGE Project

November. 16, 2016  (Lemon Grove) – California cities have long been tasked with developing a plan to reduce carbon emissions and create more sustainable, environmentally friendly communities. The City of San Diego approved its Climate Action Plan last year and other nearby cities have followed suit as a result of the state mandate. But for smaller cities the task can be overwhelming.

Update 8 p.m.:   Todd Perkins has been found safe in Lemon Grove.

East County News Service

November 14, 2016 (Lakeside)—The  Sheriff has issued a be-on-the-lookout bulletin for Todd Randolph Perkins,48.  He has been missing since 2:30 p.m.  His caretaker says he may have walked away from his home on Dorsal Drive in Lakeside.

He suffers from a medical condition that causes him to limp.  He has green tattooso on both arms. He is white with brown hair and brown eyes, 5 feet 6 inches tall, and weighs 130 pounds.  He has told his caretaker that he would like to return to his former home on the 7100 block of Broadway in Lemon Grove,though he does not drive.

School bond measure also passes

By Miriam Raftery

November 9, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) –The Grossmont Union High School District has been rife with controversies including efforts to parents to split the district apart after the board ignored admonishments by the County Grand Jury  and refused to build an Alpine High School promised in two past bond measures—voting to instead fund a lawsuit defending the district’s stance.   

Yesterday,  voters cast out incumbent  Jim Stieringer, the newest Board member in a wave of anti-incumbency that swept the nation on a day that saw Donald Trump capture the presidency.  His replacement in trustee district 2, the La Mesa-Mt. Helix area, is a teacher.  Voters also elected a teacher in district 1 in Lemon Grove-Spring Valley-La Prensa, carved out through redistricting as a majority-minority district. Here's what the public can learn from these races.

By Jonathan Goetz

November 3, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – Deceptive mailers have been sent to voters in El Cajon and Lemon Grove, readers tell ECM.

The San Diego County Democratic Party has endorsed Vickie Butcher, Stephanie Harper and Ben Kalasho in the El Cajon City Council Race. But a reader has alerted ECM that a mailer claims El Cajon Democrats endorsed Butcher as well as Humbert Cabrera and Steve Goble.  Cabrera and Goble have not been endorsed by any political party.

By Miriam Raftery

October 29, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – Multiple candidates in the Grossmont Union High School District Board race have complained of mailers containing false or misleading information on candidates' party endorsements or affiliations.

Below is information on which parties have endorsed candidates in the race,  as well as which candidates have teachers' union backing and which seem to be running stealth campaigns--offering little or no information for voters.

East County News Service

October 28, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – Authorities seek public help to identify two men who robbed gas stations and 7-11 stores Sunday night and early Monday morning.  The two masked thieves threatened clerks with a pistol, then stole cash from numerous locations in Lemon Grove, Spring Valley, Hillcrest, La Jolla and Lemon Grove.

By Jonathan Goetz

October 19, 2016 (Lemon Grove) -- At prior meetings citizens have voiced concerns over marijuana. But at last night’s Lemon Grove City Council meeting, instead of pot they were talking about potholes.  Council also heard arguments that the city lacked priorities when it passed a Welcoming Cities Resolution.  The resolution was modeled after a White House initiative to help newcomers by assisting refugees and immigrants integrate into communities.

Lemon Grove Council highlights:  public speaks out on immigrants resolution and cannabis dispensaries; Council approves new housing development

By Jonathan Goetz

October 11, 2016 (Lemon Grove) — Lemon Grove Mayor Mary Sessom spoke at Tuesday’s City Council meeting to denounce threats circulated on Facebook by people opposed to the City Council’s “Welcoming Communities Resolution,” an affirmation of inclusion for refugees displaced by war and violence that Council approved.

Source: County News Service

September 30, 2016 (Lemon Grove) -- County Vector Control crews plan to hand-spray a neighborhood in Lemon Grove early next week to continue to prevent invasive Aedes mosquitoes from getting the chance to potentially spread the Zika virus.

Source: Lemon Grove Historical Society

September 26, 2016 (Lemon Grove) - Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Oct. 1 lecture in the Lemon Grove Library by Donna Vitale Lupinacci (an encore presentation about the rise of nursing during the U. S. Civil War) has been postponed to a later date, to be announced.

Council also advises public that Prop A transportation initiative would double road repairs in Lemon Grove

By Jonathan Goetz

Pictured: Karen Beth Pearlman, UT Reporter, taking pictures of a Connect Main Street Powerpoint 9/20/16

View the Powerpoint here

September 22, 2016 (Lemon Grove) – Lemon Grove’s City Council approved a theme for the Connect Main Street concept to commemorate the city’s historical heritage, limit traffic and create a walkable heart for the city between Broadway and Central Avenue.  Council members also informed the public that Proposition A, the regional transportation initiative, would double street repairs in Lemon Grove as well as funding freeways and bringing the trolley to UCSD.

You can listen now  to a podcast of our interview by clicking the audio link: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au..., or click "read more" and scroll down for highlights.

By Miriam Raftery

Mark your calendars for our candidate forum with Helix Water Board candidates and Lemon Grove Mayoral candidates on Wednesday, September 21 at the Lemon Grove Library.Meet candidates at 5 p.m. with the forum starting at 5:30.

September 16, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – John Linden has served on the Helix Water District Board since 2000.  He’s proud of his service and of the Helix district’s long history since its establishment back in the 1880s.  He’s running for reelection in district 1, against three challengers. We sat down for an interview with Linden that originally aired on KNSJ radio.

East County News Service

September 15, 2016 (Lemon Grove) -- At 9:20 a.m., Heartland Fire & Rescue crews were dispatched to a report of a natural gas line break in the 7700 Block of North Avenue. Upon arrival, firefighters determined that a 2” gas line had been severed by construction crews who were using an excavator to dig a trench.

By Miriam Raftery

September 1,2016  (San Diego’s East County) – Beyond the blizzard of ballot measures statewide and candidates on your November ballot, East County voters will be asked to weigh in on a variety of local initiatives with big impacts.

Those include countywide measures:  one a tax to fund transportation, the other  a measure that would set a precedent for developers to  evade environmental reviews by taking projects directly to voters.   There are also medical marijuana dispensary measures on the ballots in Lemon Grove and La Mesa, a redistricting proposal in El Cajon, and school bond measures in the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College, Grossmont Union High School, and Cajon Valley  Union school districts.  Here are details:

Source:  San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board

August 30, 2016 (Lemon Grove) -- The San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board has imposed a $595,367 penalty against developer San Altos-Lemon Grove, LLC for water quality violations related to construction activities at its 18-acre Valencia Hills residential development in the city of Lemon Grove.