By Jennifer Doucet

Photos courtesy of Steele Canyon Players

March 13, 2019 (Spring Valley) -- London stage actor, Dean Chisnall, visited Steele Canyon Charter High School March 7 through March 9 to help prepare the school’s theatre and music departments for their own production of the award-winning hit, Les Misérables, premiering March 20th.  Over two and a half days, Chisnall worked closely with SCHS Theatre Director, Nicole LaBella and Music Director, Heather Luck to coach the cast, crew and orchestra.

By Maryanne Jackson. Real Estate Broker CNE, CPRES.

March 13, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) -

Dear Maryanne,

My spouse and I will be getting a substantial refund this year from our income taxes.

We both agree that the refund should go into improving our home. We really want to install a solar system. Is this an improvement that would get us a good return on our investment?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

--Jannine S. Crest, CA.

By Miriam Raftery

March 13, 2019 (Spring Valley) – Area residents packed into Butler’s Coffee Shop in Spring Valley this morning to share concerns over alleged drug houses, homeless camps, traffic concerns and more.  Interim Sheriff’s Station Captain Charles Cinnamo was on hand to answer questions, along with California Highway Patrol Commander Jason Penner and District Attorney community partnership prosecutor Monique Myers, who handles the East County region.

By Tom Christensen, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo via Shutterstock

March 13, 2019 (San Diego) - The San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved creating a new board to enhance the ability of the County to prevent and respond to child abuse and neglect on Tuesday.

The action dissolved the Child Abuse Prevention Coordinating Council and replaces that body with a new Child and Family Strengthening Advisory Board that will have broad oversight of the County’s child welfare system.

Review By Kathy Carpenter

Aztecs score a season-high 11 runs with multi-RBI games from Chad Bible and Julian Escobedo

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

March 12, 2019 (Northridge) - Behind multi-RBI performance by Chad Bible and Julian Escobedo, the San Diego State baseball team scored a season-high 11 runs in an 11-5 win over CSUN at Matador Field on Tuesday afternoon. The Aztecs jump above .500 at 8-7, while the Matadors fall to 9-8 on the year. 

By Dan Svejnar, Vice President, Head of Commercial North America, Centrica Business Solutions

March 12, 2019 (San Diego) -- Few businesses actually spend the time to consider the impact a power outage could have on their operations and revenue. When the power goes out, even for as short as two hours, the economic engine stalls for businesses of any size. Without electricity, cash registers are inoperable, and assembly lines grind to a halt.

District releases audit of coordinated school safety plan

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

Meeting recording provided by ECM: ECMCVUSDStudentSafety

March 11, 2019 (El Cajon)--Following a safety and security audit recently conducted by AECOM and DMB Consultants, two security engineering firms specializing in building security audits, the Cajon Valley Union School District (CVUSD) has been conducting a series of town meetings at local schools over the past month. The meetings are being held throughout the district to advise parents on what the district is doing to improve student safety and building security.

Meetings have so far taken place at Hillsdale Middle School, Grossmont Middle School, and Montgomery Middle School. Future meetings are set to take place at Cajon Valley Middle School on March 14,  Emerald Middle School on March 21, and Los Coches Creek Middle School on March 27, all at 6 p.m.

East County News Service

March 11, 2019 (San Diego) -- Land use and transportation think tank Circulate San Diego released a report this week detailing how an MTS ballot measure could finance transformative transit projects, road repair and safety programs. Transportation leaders and advocates hosted a press conference at the Old Transit Center.

Michelle Obama: A Life, by Peter Slevin (Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, 2015, 418 pages).

Book Review by Dennis Moore

“A deeply informed portrait of the first lady and her native Chicago…. Her larger story, told so powerfully in Slevin’s biography, which suggests she will forever be a force with which to be reckoned.” – Chicago Tribune

March 11, 2019 (San Diego) - Peter Slevin, who has written extensively about Barack and Michelle Obama, from his vantage point of being on the staff of The Washington Post, before joining Northwestern University’s School of Journalism, where he is currently an associate professor, has written a uniquely American story of a woman from the Southside of Chicago that changed the course of prior inhabitants of the White House; Michelle Obama: A Life.

East County News Service

March 11, 2019 (La Mesa) – The Wheelchair Dancers Organization is offering free wheelchair dancers classes in ballroom and Latin dance on Monday nights from March 11 through April 29 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.  Classes will be at the Grossmont Hospital Conference Center (enter through the Rehabilitation Center) at 5555 Grossmont Center Drive in La Mesa.

El Cajon Library to give away gowns on April 27

By Tracy DeFore, County of San Diego Communications Office

March 11, 2019 (San Diego) - For many teenage girls, the prom, the quinceanera, the big night out – it’s all about the dress. But special occasion dresses are pricy. That’s why the County Library is playing fairy godmother.

By Miriam Raftery

March 10, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) -- Sprites of East County, Class of 2019 will host its annual fundraising benefit, “Sprite Fest” on Saturday, April 6 at 4 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay (1441 Quivira Rd., San Diego) to raise money for the nonprofit organization’s philanthropies.

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

March 9, 2019 (Reno) - Caleb Martin scored 25 points and twin brother Cody added 14 to lead No. 17 Nevada to an 81-53 rout of San Diego State on Saturday night that clinched a share of the Mountain West title with Utah State.