East County News Service

November 13, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Lemon Grove invites you to the city’s annual community bonfire on Friday, December 6 from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Treganza Heritage Park, 3200 Main St. in Lemon Grove.

Enjoy visits with Santa, music with a live band, a game truck, crafts, inflatables, free cookies, hot chocolate and popcorn, more foods for purchase, welcoming remarks from the mayor, an ugly sweater contest and more.

By Miriam Raftery

November 6, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Sitivi “Steve” Faia has pulled ahead of Councilman George Gastil in the Lemon Grove City Council race, where four candidates are vying for two seats.  Jessyka Heredia remains in the lead with 28.86% of the votes counted, followed by Faia, a youth sports coach, with 25.40% and 2,410 votes. Gastil, at 25.16% trails Faia by just 23 votes, leaving open the potential for yet another shift as more votes are tallied.

Planning Commission Chair Seth Smith is in fourth place with 20.58% and 1,952 votes.

By Miriam Raftery

November 5, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Councilmember Alysson Snow may be poised to oust incumbent Mayor Racquel Vasquez in Lemon Grove, if early election returns hold. With 855, 948 ballots counted out of the county’s 1,983,767 registered voters, Snow has 41.27%,  Vasquez 30.34%, and Councilmember Liana LeBaron  28.39%.

October 17, 2024 (Lemon Grove) -- All four candidates running for Lemon Grove City Council participated in East County Magazine’s candidate forum on Oct.10, which was moderated by editor Miriam Raftery.

The candidates are Councilman George Gastil, a history professor, Seth Smith, Chair of the Lemon Grove Planning Commission, architectural designer and project manager, high school coach Steve Faiai, and Jessyka Heredia, a small business owner, community volunteer, and reporter who previously covered Lemon Grove issues for our news site. 

Candidates fielded questions on issues including infrastructure, housing, homeless, the business community, and increasing access to public meetings through livestreaming and videotaping.  See highlights of their responses belone, or click here for video of the complete forum.  Listen to audio here, as aired on our radio show on KNSJ, edited slightly for length.

October 10, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – East County Magazine will host two candidate forums tonight on Zoom.  The Lemon Grove mayoral  candidates’ forum will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the Lemon Grove City Council candidates’ forum  at 7 p.m.

You can watch live on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/EastCountyMagazine/.  The forum will also be posted later on our homepage at https://www.eastcountymagazine.org.

All candidates have agreed to participate.

East County News Service

September 24, 2024 (Lemon Grove) -- Every  Thursday from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Thrive Lemon Grove brings the market to you! A Mobile Farmer’s Market is held at Treganza Park(3200 Main St., Lemon Grove).  Connect with your neighbors, shop for fresh, local produce, and grab a delicious dinner. It’s the perfect way to support local farmers and enjoy a vibrant community atmosphere. Don’t miss this great opportunity to enjoy fresh food and good company.

East County News Service

Lemon Grove Farmers Market  announces that talented local artist Calvin Manson will be presenting his amazing artwork this Thursday, September 12, at the Farmers Market, located at Treganza Heritage Park, 3200 Main Street, Lemon Grove, between 4:00 and 7:00 p.m.

A native of San Diego, Calvin Manson is a highly accomplished visual artist, award-winning writer, producer, and theater director with a strong commitment to promoting African American culture and arts. As the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of the Ira Aldridge Repertory Players, Mason has inspired our community for more than 45 years by presenting and celebrating African American stories and theater.

In addition, Minola Clark Manson will be knitting or crocheting for a “craft, meet and greet” during the event.

View video of Mayor Racquel Vasquez’s State of the City 2024 address

By Miriam Raftery

August 28, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – In her 2024 State of the City address delivered August 14, Lemon Grove Mayor Racquel Vasquez said,  “We are gathered tonight to celebrate our remarkable accomplishments and to embrace the exciting opportunities that are before us, and to report a shared vision for the future of our city.”

That progress includes strengthening the city’s finances, enhancing infrastructure and elevating the quality of life, according to the Mayor.

By Branda Gorgies

Photos by Branda Gorgies and via Creative Commons Google

August 26, 2024 (Lemon Grove) -- On August 6, the Lemon Grove City Council held a meeting that lasted seven hours, until 1 a.m. Public comments were moved to the end of the meeting for non-agendized items, so residents had to stay late to speak out on the proposed sleeping cabins for the homeless.  

Two other items that were on the agenda also drew controversy: approval of a Quick Quack Car Wash and a Raising Cane’s chicken restaurant.

The room was filled with protestors holding signs. First to speak against the sleeping was Bryan Delgado, who called them “tin cans.” He cited concern that  constituents were not being consulted, but his main concern was bringing down the neighborhood. After Delgado’s comments, Mayor Racquel Vasquez clarified that the project is county-based..

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Mayor Racquel Vasquez,Councilmember Liana LeBaron, and Councilmember Alysson Snow

August 15, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Lemon Grove Mayor Racquel Vasquez will face two elected officials as challengers in her quest to win reelection in November: Councilmembers Alysson Snow and Liana LeBaron.  The city, which is smaller than other East County incorporated communities, faces greater challenges in addressing issues such as homelessness, housing, and infrastructure including road repairs and storm drains that caused recent flood damage.

Here are highlights of each candidate's background and stances on key issues.

By Jessyka Heredia

July 17, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Residents of Lemon Grove were told there would be a community forum tomorrow  to discuss the possibility of bringing 70 sleeping cabins to Lemon Grove to house homeless people. But County Supervisors voted 4-0 yesterday (with Nora Vargas absent) to move forward on the project just two days before the community forum, leaving residents to wonder if their input ever mattered.

The project was to be built with a $10 million dollar grant from the state originally slated for 150 sleeping cabins in Spring Valley, but that project was cancelled after objections from neighbors over proximity to homes and sensitive sites. Vargas said she “heard the concerns of the community” and backed instead building a smaller-scale project in Lemon Grove near the Spring Valley boundary.

By Miriam Raftery

Photos, top left to bottom right:  Homeless people camped in Lemon Grove and their stories: Erika, a diabetic unable to drive; Christopher, a widower and carpenter seeking work; Elijah, who says his unemployment payments were stolen, Cardell, a nurse whose family died, and Kimberly, 78, who says she has lung cancer and a fractured skull; she has been sheltering in a rancid storm drain after her tent burned.

July 2, 2024 (Lemon Grove)-- Kimberly, 78, is frail, petite, and in desperate need. She  struggles to push a shopping cart laden with rumpled belongings on a scorching July afternoon. The elderly woman, her wrinkled skin tanned and leathery, coughs frequently. An edge of fear underlies her soft voice.

”I have lung cancer,” she says.  Kimberly tells us that she suffered a fall recently in a nearby parking lot. “I’ve got a fractured skull right now.”   “Nobody’s helping me,” she says sadly.

Kimberly is one of 293 homeless people in Lemon Grove who might be helped if the County approves funds to build 60-70 sleeping cabins in Lemon Grove at Troy and Sweetwater on land owned by Caltrans.  On July 18at 6 p.m. a public hearing on this issue at the Lemon Grove Community Center, 3146 School  Lane, Lemon Grove, Supervisor Monica Montgomery-Steppe has announced.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Lemon Grove Mayor Racquel Vasquez and Shane Harris, President of the People's Associate of Justice Advocates, raise Juneteenth flag

June 19, 2024 (San Diego’s East County) – In honor of Juneteenth, a federal and county holiday, events and recognitions have been held across our region.

Juneteenth flags were raised in the cities of Lemon Grove and Chula Vista, at the Sweetwater Union School District,and other venues, while La Mesa hosted a Junetenth and Friends celebration.

On June19,1865, slaves in Galveston, Texas learned that they were free—over two years after President Abraham Lincoln had signed the emancipation proclamation. Juneteenth commemorates this official end to slavery in the U.S.

East County News Service

June 16, 2024 (Lemon Grove) – Two men and a woman were shot last night outside a residence near the intersection of Dain Court and Jadam Way in Lemon Grove.

Deputies from the Lemon Grove Substation and the Rancho San Diego Station responded to reports of shots fired around 9:40 p.m., but the three victims had already gone to a local hospital.

“There is currently no suspect description. No arrests have been made,”says Lieutenant Joe Barry. The victims are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at the hospital and are in stable condition, he adds.