By Nancy Clement

August 18, 2011 (La Mesa) - Marli is about to start a new life adventure, pre-school, and she wanted some pretty, new clothes to wear. I was looking for a model for this column so we decided to team up. Since Marli is only 3½ years old, she needed some help to select clothes so we invited her Mom, Laura, to join us.

An ECM Special Report: Part I

By Walter Hall

August 19, 2011 (La Mesa)--In October, property owners in La Mesa’s downtown district will vote on an initiative with long range consequences for the city and surrounding area. At stake is the charter and character of a Property-based Business Improvement District, commonly abbreviated to PBID.

Aug. 18, 2011 (San Diego) – San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), a unit of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), has closed a public offering of $350 million of 10-year first-mortgage bonds. This transaction marks the second time SDG&E has used a minority-owned investment bank as co-lead in a bond offering. 

Names of 30 defendants made public

By Miriam Raftery

August 19, 2011 (Warner Springs)--Get out your Hawaiian clothes and get ready for a feast.  Warner Springs Ranch resort will be holding a Luau on Saturday August 20, 2011.  A traditional roasted pig with plenty of other island favorites will be served. Entertainment will be a one-hour Polynesian Dance Troupe with audience participation and a dazzling fire dancer to top the evening off.

August 18, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) – Elizabeth Rodriguez, 16, of Spring Valley has been missing since August 11. The San Diego Sheriff’s office is treating the case as a runaway, according to Detective Ward at the Lemon Grove Sheriff substation. However her parents have posted flyers asking the public to help locate their daughter, who was last seen Friday, August 11 in Lakeside at 12:45 a.m.
 

East County Roundup highlights stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland region, published in other media. This week’s top Roundup headlines include:

• State singes more from Cal-Fire budget (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Schools flagged for earthquake list left unchecked (Voice of San Diego)
• County has $250,000 in unclaimed funds (Lemon Grove Patch)
• Big changes coming for Alvarado Hospital (La Mesa Courier)
• Journey’s end for reknowned hiker and writer Jerry Schad (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• La Mesa says its ready to put down roots (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Man shot in face Saturday faces months in hospital (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Public art in Village may cost $125,000 as part of City centennial celebration (La Mesa Patch)
• Teachers play musical chairs as school starts in La Mesa-Spring Valley District (La Mesa Patch)
• El Cajon Police Chief retiring (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Former Helix baseball coach named commissioner of CIF San Diego (La Mesa Patch)
• ACLU threatens suit over County grant to church (CityBeat)

August 18, 2011 (Laguna) – How did people live on Laguna Mountain more than a century ago? Find out September 3 and 4, when the Laguna Mountain Volunteer Association celebrates its 25th annual living history celebration.

 
 
 
By Matt Kopjak
 
August 17, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)--Ernest Hemingway wrote:  “Wine… offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing.”

By Brian Lafferty

August 17, 2011 (San Diego) – As a kid I remember watching The Parent Trap (1961). That was the Disney movie that starred Hayley Mills as two separated-at-birth twins. It was the film that probably didn’t invent it, but it certainly perfected the split screen technique that enabled the same actor to appear as separate characters in the same scene.

August 18, 2011 (La Mesa) – La Mesa Police detectives today arrested Robert Titus Jr., 23, at his home in San Diego. He is charged with stealing a shopping cart filled with food from Albertson’s at 8920 Fletcher Parkway in La Mesa.

The suspected threatened to shoot and kill a sales associate who approached him as he attempted to flee the store, according to La Mesa Police.

August 16, 2011 (Poway) – San Diego Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team is searching for a lost hiker, possibly injured, Incident Page Network reports.  The hiker has erratic cellphone communication in the vicinity of Twin Peaks Road and Midland Road, possibly on Twin Peaks Mountain.