the capistrano dispatch

www.thecapistranodispatch.com

O C TO B E R 8 –2 1 , 2 0 1 0

McCracken Hill resident Richard Hill Adams speaks in favor of Distrito La Novia at Wednesday’s special City Council meeting. Photo by Jonathan Volzke

VOLUME 8, ISSUE 19

CAPISTRANO’S NO. 1 SOURCE FOR LOCAL NEWS, EVENTS AND SPORTS

Council Candidates Report

FundraisingEYE ON SJC/PAGE 5

Stallions Football Moves

to 5-0 SPORTS/PAGE 34

E Y E O N S J C / PAG E 5

Decisions, Decisions,Decisions

The City Council takes on proposals for a hotel, Distrito La Novia and The Home Depot

Equestrian Coalition Barn Dance Set

for Saturday SJC LIVING/PAGE 28

1LOCAL NEWS & IN-DEPTH REPORTINGEYE ON SJC

1

October 8–21, 2010 • The Capistrano Dispatch • www.thecapistranodispatch.com

What’s Up With...San Juan Capistrano’s Top 5 Hottest Topics

…Political Fundraising?1

THE LATEST: Political newcomer John Taylor and Transportation Commission-er Larry Kramer have built up political war chests that dwarf the accounts of the other seven men running for three City Council seats, each raising more than $35,000 so far.

Taylor has $38,617, while Kramer reports $35,697. Both men, who are running as a team, have loaned their campaigns $15,000 each. The next near-est candidate, according to mandatory campaign-fi nance fi lings, is Councilman Mark Nielsen who reports $13,413, including a personal $6,500 loan to his campaign. Mayor Lon Uso, has $6,980, including a $5,000 loan to himself.

Candidates Jim Reardon, Derek Reeve and Clint Worthington, running as a team, report less than $3,000 each. Jess Lopez and Jim Schneider reported zero.

Kramer and Taylor’s fi nancial support-ers include Rancho Mission Viejo CEO Tony Moiso, JSerra Catholic High School founder Tim Busch and several former council members.

WHAT’S NEXT: The next campaign-fi -nance statements are due October 21.

FIND OUT MORE: See the complete reports at The Capistrano Insider blog at www.thecapistranodispatch.com

—Jonathan Volzke

…Karen Crocker Leaving?3 …More Pay Cuts at CUSD?

4

THE LATEST: Capistrano Unifi ed School District classifi ed employees agreed to a pay cut that will help the district restore a 2 percent reserve.

The contract settlement with the Cali-fornia School Employees Association (CSEA), approved by the CUSD Board of Trustees earlier this month, saves the district $5.3 million and helps restore the state-mandated budget reserve at 2 percent.

WHAT’S NEXT: The district’s classifi ed workers, who include employees such as instructional assistants, occupational therapists, food service workers and clerical staff, overwhelmingly ratifi ed

…Future of the Open Space Committee?

5

THE LATEST: Community Services Di-rector Karen Crocker, who has worked for San Juan Capistrano for more than 20 years, is leaving to take a similar post in Aliso Viejo.

Crocker held the director’s post about fi ve years, moving up into the spot after Al King moved over to San Clemente to take the job there.

Her last day with the city is October 22.

WHAT’S NEXT: City Manager Joe Tait will have to decide whether to fi ll Crocker’s spot. He is undertaking a City Hall reorganization, and City

SAN CLEMENTEClarence Eugene Butterfi eld, 57, formerly of

San Clemente, was sentenced Wednesday to life in state prison without the possibility of

parole for murdering his daughter and keeping her body in a freezer in his recreational vehicle.

He was found guilty by a jury Aug. 19, 2010, of one felony count of special circumstances

murder during the commission of torture and mayhem and one felony count of assault with

a fi rearm. In December 2006, Butterfi eld murdered his 21-year-old daughter, Rebekah

Butterfi eld. He tortured the victim and intentionally made her suffer by repeatedly

shooting her in the leg, foot, knee, side of her head and body parts that would not cause fatal injuries. He tied his naked daughter’s

ankles together and hands behind her back and stuffed her in the freezer of his RV while

she was still alive, suffocating her to death.

NEWS NEXT DOOR

DANA POINTThe body of a man found washed up on the rocks of the jetty behind the Ocean Institute at the Dana Point Harbor on the morning of October 1 has been identifi ed as 71-year-old Ford Park of Anaheim, said OC Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jim Amormino. According to Dana Point Police Services Deputy Gardner, a call came in at about 10:05 a.m. on the morning of Friday, October 1 alerting authorities to the discov-ery of a body that had washed up along the jetty rocks. Park’s vehicle was found nearby, unlocked and with the keys in the ignition. A search of the car by investigators yielded neither signs of foul play nor a suicide note and the cause of death is still under inves-tigation, pending toxicology reports said Amormino.

WHAT’S GOING ON IN OUR NEIGHBORING

TOWNS

THE LATEST: Councilman Mark Nielsen on Tuesday called for the end of the Open Space Committee, which he chairs. Some residents contend it has grown beyond its original scope, with members now reviewing development plans and even negotiating with other agencies on the city’s behalf.

Nielsen suggests formation of a new panel, the Public Lands and Equestrian Commission, with the current equestrian function splitting off from the existing Parks, Recreation and Equestrian Com-mission.

He suggests the new commission have seven members, with no more than three from the existing Open Space panel and no more than three from the existing Parks, Rec and Equestrian Commission. The new panel would not have any coun-cil members.

WHAT’S NEXT: The issue will be on the council’s October 19 agenda.

FIND OUT MORE: See www.sanjuancapistrano.org —JV

…A New Anti-Gang Program?2

THE LATEST: Four Capistrano elemen-tary schools are part of a new anti-gang program that enlists parents to prevent graffi ti and ensure children aren’t ha-rassed before classes.

Countywide, more than 750 parents have joined with law enforcement in the

effort, which will be in place at Del Obispo, Kinoshita, San Juan elementary schools and Marco Forster Middle School.

Participating parents stand in front of the GRIP schools wearing orange vests before and after school to greet students and ensure that they are abid-ing by the school dress code and are not dressed like gang members. The presence of these parents also serves as a deterrent to gang members. Those schools that have unoffi cially started the parent greeter program have observed a noticeable decrease in gang presence and graffi ti.

Parent greeters all received training from their local police departments and the OCDA on gang prevention and safety and are subject to a law enforce-ment background review. The program was offi cially launched Thursday, Oct. 7, 2010, and all 25 schools are expected to be active within the next two weeks.

WHAT’S NEXT: The program offi cially launched Thursday at 25 schools across the county.

FIND OUT MORE: See the full story at www.thecapistranodispatch.com —JV

the contract on September 15. They will take between fi ve and 12.5 unpaid days, accept a 0.7 percent pay reduction effec-tive retroactive to September. 1, forgo automatic pay increases for individual employees for one year and consolidate work hours and calendars.

With the CSEA contract, CUSD employees groups have contributed approximately $27 million in salary and benefi t concessions, which contributed signifi cantly toward closing the estimat-ed $34 million shortfall the district faced for 2010-11.

FIND OUT MORE: See the full story at the Beyond the Blackboard blog at www.thecapistranodispatch.com —JV

Council members have supported the idea of outsourcing positions where possible.

That saves the city pension and other costs and gives the city fl exibility to easily expand or contract staff in certain areas as demand grows or recedes.

Crocker’s benefi ts package, for ex-ample, pushed her total compensation above $211,000 annually. Her salary is $135,528, but she received $44,274 for her retirement contribution, $21,569 in insurance benefi ts and a $2,700 car allowance that—along with a manage-ment cash out of $5,212—pushed her total compensation to $211,335.

In addition to Crocker, four other Capistrano administrators earn more than $200,000 in total compensation: City Manager Joe Tait ($324,000) CFO Cindy Russell ($266,972), Public Works Director Nasser Abbasadeh ($237,923) and Deputy City Manager Steven Apple ($219,438).

FIND OUT MORE: See a compensation spreadsheet and other documents at The Capistrano Insider blog at www.thecapistranodispatch.com —JV

EyE on SJC

Decisions, Decisions, DecisionsThe Capistrano Dispatch

Like a drizzle that turns into a deluge, the Capistrano City Council this month found itself dealing with key projects that could have a

huge impact on the future of the city: A long-awaited downtown hotel, a mixed-use development on the east side of the freeway and a potential Home Depot on Stonehill Drive.

L

Even with election looming, council takes on huge projects


Pending: Distrito La Novia

After more than two dozen public hearings, the Distrito La Novia mixed-use project proposed for the land east of Valle Road was poised for approval on Wednesday night. Supporters in the crowded City Council chambers outnumbered opponents. And all five council members repeatedly said how much they liked the project and how it would benefit the city.

But they didn’t approve it. Instead, they gave developer Advanced Real Estate

Services one more list of changes—making just about all aspects of the project smaller—and asked staff to draw up the final documents in time for a November 2 approval.

ARES, which owns the land on both sides of La Novia east of Valle Road, proposed a mix of condos, apartments, retail and commercial space on 18.7 acres on the north side of La Novia and 94 homes and 750 horses on 135 acres on the south—a former dump site.

APProved: a HoteL for DowNtowN

The City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved plans for a downtown 124-room boutique hotel that many are counting on to spur a revitalization of the historic area.

Gretchen Stroscher Thomson proposesd the hotel, a restaurant, retail shops and conference space on family-owned land across from the Mission that used to house the Mission Inn and Walnut Grove restaurant. It will be called Plaza de las Banderas and fly flags to rep-resent the different governments that have controlled Capistrano.

Thomson’s father was born on the property.The council required that the plan return to the Plan-

ning Commission and Design Review Commission for a redesign of the project’s exterior. It was proposed as Spanish Revival, but leaders believe a more Monterey-styled building would be more appropriate.

Thomson said she was OK with the requirement—the fifth time the project will be redrawn.

Although that requires redrawing the plans for Thomson, the unanimous support is a far cry from the initial reaction to the plan. When first proposed, the commercial section of the project, on El Camino Real, was two stories tall. Some thought it overpowered the Great Stone Church across the street. The hotel was also four stories tall.

Now, the restaurant building is one story, and the hotel is three stories tall at its peak. The hotel would be 74,973 square feet and the project also includes 6,509 square feet of retail space and a 5,747-square-foot restaurant.

Thomson told a breakfast meeting of the Chamber of Commerce last month that she hoped to start construc-tion in 2011.When finished, she expects the hotel to create about 40 full time jobs. She estimated the project could generate about $350,000 a year in bed taxes for the city.

Rooms, she said, would be about $180 a night. The hotel opens with a plaza area facing toward

Cedar Creek, and Thomson sees that as a gathering spot for visitors and residents alike. She even plans vendors selling wares from carts in the area, and one of them will sell fresh orange juice. Growing up amid the orange groves of Capistrano’s past, the Stroscher family started every day with fresh-squeezed juice, and Thomson wants her project to bring that back.

The project faced vocal opposition, primarily from nearby residents who raised concerns primarily about traffic and the number of horses. Some said it was un-fair for the council to change the intended use for the land, where 440 homes were approved for the south side and a 300-room hotel approved for the south side.

But council members pointed out the traffic gener-ated by the projects was nearly equal—although the new plan generates a bit more traffic, particularly in the afternoon peak hours. As for the horses, the 440-home proposal could have also included at least 100 horses.

Council members asked for the new plan because no hotel has ever expressed serious interest in the area and houses tend to cost the city more money than they bring in with property taxes. The council did reduce the number of horses allowed to 500, and told developer Rick Julian to remove 10 units from the condos and apartments to create more parking. Additionally, the council requested the 28,000-square-foot office component be cut in half—and if that made the office component economically infeasible, Julian could add the remaining 14,000 square feet into the retail center.

The project will return to the council for an expected approval on November 2. Some residents on Wednesday vowed to launch a referendum if the project is passed.

next: tHe Home Depot?

The council this month also unanimously agreed to enter an exclusive negotiation period with The Home Depot, which wants to build on the city-owned Lower Rosan Ranch on Stonehill Drive.

The Home Depot estimates the land is worth about $9 million, and says any building would be at least 176 feet away from a neighboring mobile-home park.

Ironically, the last serious proposal to build on the property was in 2002, and it was then The Home Depot. Before they were elected to the City Council, Mark Nielsen and Lon Uso helped fight the 2002 pro-posal, which was rejected by 75 percent of voters in an advisory measure.

Since then, Nielsen said he is open to The Home Depot, if done properly. He proposed, however, that the issue should again go before residents since voters had made their feelings clear eight years ago. That idea did not gain any traction with other council mem-bers, though.

Uso now says he regrets fighting the 2002 Home Depot plan. The city needs revenue to supply services to residents, he said, and businesses such as Home Depot can be key contributors. Councilman Sam Al-levato agreed. Tuesday’s decision just allows negotia-tions and is not a guarantee for Home Depot.

“The three of you I trusted have let me down,” said Bobbi Decker-Austin, wearing her yellow “No Home

Depot” T-shirt from 2002. “Everything we tried to stop has moved ahead. It’s asthough we didn’t matter…we took it to the ballot. That should have ended it.”

Steve Behmerwohld, president of the CVME resi-dents’ association, said he is OK with the proposal.

“I’d like to see it remain vacant land, too,” Behmer-wohld told the council. “But I think 176 feet is the best we’re going to do.”

Attorney Ken Steelman, who represented The Home Depot in 2002 and is back before the council with the proposal now, said the company will listen to residents and make the project as compatible with neighbors as possible.

The Home Depot, he said, would create 275 jobs and provide an estimated $400,000 a year to the city in annual sales-tax revenue. That’s key for a city that once got 40 percent of its sales-tax revenue from auto-mobile dealerships, only to see the industry crash.

Since Proposition 13 passed in 1978, cities have been limited in how much they can boost property tax-es to pay for services. That forced them to scramble for other sources of income—leading to the creation of Mello-Roos taxes—and increasing the reliance on sales-tax revenue and hotel bed taxes, which, unlike other taxes, go directly to City Hall.

The situation creates unique challenges in older cities such as San Juan Capistrano, which weren’t planned or laid out to be home to big-boxes and other large sales-tax generators. And that means projects end up close to neighbors who often don’t want them. At least one councilman on Wednesday expressed dismay with the acrimony in the debate.

“There’s only 10 parcels left in town,” Councilman Tom Hribar said almost exasperatedly as Wednesday’s special meeting wound down. “Whatever we try to do, it’s always the same questions, the same criticisms. You’ve got to try and maximize the potential for this town.” CD

EYE ON SJC

All information below is obtained from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Web site (www.ocsd.org) and refl ects data available from calls placed from the fi eld by the responding offi cer(s). An arrest doesn’t represent guilt. The items below are just a sampling of the entries listed on the OCSD Web site.

Sunday, October 3

SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCESVia Flores, 32000 Block (2:42 a.m.)A caller thought someone was jiggling the gate in their front yard.

Saturday, October 2

DISTURBANCEVerdugo Street/Camino Capistrano (10:57 p.m.) A man and woman got into an argument. The man left. The woman took a taxi to the Best Western.

SJCSheriff’s Blotter

C O M P I L E D B Y J O N AT H A N V O L Z K E

Building Hope

By Austin Reagan The Capistrano Dispatch

n November of 2006, Habitat for Humanity designated an unoccupied plot of land in San Juan Capistrano

as the site of its new affordable housing project. Since then, the anticipation has been building—quite literally. For nearly four years, thousands of volunteers from all around Orange County have laid foun-dations, hammered nails, and shingled roofs for twenty-seven economical and

I

state-of-the-art homes. All of the hard work came to a conclusion on Septem-ber 25, when the community gathered to dedicate the third and fi nal 18-home phase in the development.

The event commemorated the com-plete transition from dirt lot to thriving neighborhood.

The ceremony began with Sharon Ellis, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity of Orange County, welcoming those in attendance, and explaining that 11 of the 18 houses being dedicated that day were going to military families. This specifi c project, deemed the “Habitat for Heroes and Foundations for Families” development, is truly monumental, as it will act as a model all around the country for other Habitat for Humanity neighborhoods specifi cally earmarked for military personnel and their families. These homes also feature solar panels,

an eco-friendly initiative that Habitat for Humanity of Orange County hopes will inspire the construction of envi-ronmentally conscious neighborhoods elsewhere.

After discussing the innovations seen specifi cally in this Habitat project, Ellis went on to thank the thousands of volunteers who had given their time, as well as the numerous fi nancial contribu-tors, some of whom have donated up to $50,000. But the best was saved for last. Each family, along with its sponsor (in-dividuals who have guided the families through the ownership process), was welcomed to the stage, and presented with the key to the home, a Bible and, of course, the mortgage.

The mortgages are helping Habitat repay about $3 million it borrowed from the city of San Juan Capistrano to fi nish the project. The charities donations are

down because of the economy. Often, people make the common

misperception that Habitat for Human-ity “gives” away homes to those in need, however this is not entirely true. While Habitat does aim to serve low-income families that move frequently or are living in unsafe neighborhoods, se-lected families assume a mortgage when they receive the house, and must also complete 250 “Sweat Equity Hours” (per house occupant), in which they usually participate in the building process of the homes. However, being a not-for-profi t organization, Habitat for Humanity sells the homes for the cost that it takes to build them, and no interest is charged on the mortgage. The interiors of the homes have been fully furnished by the organization “Furnishing Hope,” and, as a nice fi nal touch, each family received a brand new laptop from Toshiba.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was then held at the front door of each home. I became involved as a volunteer with the project in August of 2009, and watching the homes in the cul-de-sac grow from the ground up has been an incredibly rewarding experience. But nothing could say “thank you” like the looks I saw on the new homeowners’ proud faces as they opened their front doors for the fi rst time. This was truly representative of the many doors that owning a home will allow them to open in the future. New op-portunities for education, work, and fam-ily life will undoubtedly bloom as a result of this new community, and several families—many of which give constantly through their military service—were helped in return to achieve the American Dream. CD

BRANDISHING A WEAPONVia Positiva/Alipaz Street (9:16 p.m.)A carload of San Clemente gang mem-bers allegedly pulled up to a party and pointed a gun at someone.

MISSING CHILDVia Rueda, 32700 Block (12:21 p.m.)A worried parent called when their 10-year-old son did not show up on time. He was found at a friend’s house about 90 minutes later.

UKNOWN TROUBLECamino Capistrano/Junipero Serra Road (7:20 a.m.) A man called saying he’d found a dead body. His directions were only that deputies would fi rst see pine trees, then go into the orange fi eld. Cadaver dogs were called in, but no body found.

Friday, October 1

SUSPICIOUS PERSONConnemara Drive, 33800 Block (7:27 p.m.) A resident reported a man about 25 years old knocked on his door asking for money. The caller thought he might have been a drug addict.

ASSIST OUTSIDE AGENCYLa Novia/San Juan Creek Road

(7:46 p.m.) A man was burned when his van was spotted engulfed in fl ames. He was taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana.

BATTERY REPORTSummerfi eld Lane, 27600 Block (7:31 p.m.) A parent reported their 10-year-old daughter was assaulted by a classmate at school.

DISTURBANCEVerdugo Street, 26700 Block (6:59 p.m.)A man was reported yelling and trying to start a fi ght. A few minutes later, a fi ght was reported.

THEFTOrtega Highway, 27100 Block (3:50 p.m.) Three men took two six-packs of beer and jumped into a black Dodge without paying.

SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCESMission Street/Lobo Street (9:16 a.m.)A caller reported fi nding a bloody towel and shirt behind a tree. It was paint.

Thursday, September 30

ASSIST OUTSIDE AGENCYOrtega Highway/Freeway (2:52 p.m.)Kids were reportedly throwing rocks

off the overpass.

SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCESDel Obispo Street, 31800 Block (5:43 p.m.) A merchant reported that a woman known to live in her truck was using the bushes as a restroom.

Wednesday, September 29

DISTURBANCESundance Drive, 31500 Block (11:30 a.m.) A man reported he let a woman stay at his home and she began talking to herself, and yelling at herself, too.

SUSPICIOUS PERSONDel Obispo/Los Rios Street (4:14 a.m.)A man was walking down the railroad tracks, waving his arms.

Tuesday, September 28

RECKLESS DRIVINGCamino Capistrano/Del Obispo (4:22 p.m.) A woman in a black Audi was reportedly driving on the wrong side of the road.

DISTURBANCESan Juan Creek Road, 28000 Block (9:51 a.m.) A woman reported a man hit her car, yelled at her and banged on her vehicle.

Final families move into Habitat for Humanity Capistrano project

www.thecapistranodispatch.com • The Capistrano Dispatch • October 8–21, 2010

The Martinez family, alongside San Juan Capistrano Housing Advisory Commission member and Family Partner Dave Solt, received the key to their new Habitat for Humanity of Orange County home from Mark Mathews, Presi-dent & COO of Toshiba America Business Systems, during the September 25 dedication. Photo by Robert Rooks

The Stannard family stands in front of their newly purchased Habitat for Humanity of Orange County home during the dedication ceremony at the east end of Calle Rolando.Photo by Robert Rooks

EYE ON SJC


CUSD Candidates Discuss State of the DistrictBy Jonathan Volzke

The Capistrano Dispatch

his week, we asked Capistrano Unifi ed School board candidates the following question:

Capistrano Unifi ed School District achieves well academically, but seems mired in political disputes that seem to capture more headlines than the student achievement. Is that a real problem and what is the key for the district to move forward with the confi dence of the com-munity behind it?

Here are their answers, unedited, in the order in which they will appear on the ballot:

TRUSTEE AREA 5

JOHN ALPAYSan Clemente Commissioner/Businessman, www.johnalpay.com

The Board will say that API scores are at all-time highs and that we are the highest perform-ing “large school

district.” What they fail to mention is that “large school district” means they compare CUSD to other school districts in Santa Ana, Long Beach and Los Angeles. South Orange County institutions have no business compar-ing themselves to urban-based entities. Given what we pay in property taxes, we expect more than that. If we compare CUSD to other Orange County suburban districts, the API scores put us at the bottom of the pack. So despite our high taxes, our children receive a sub-standard education.

CUSD’s decline is directly the result of self dealing at its highest levels. Two years ago, in response to a District Attorney’s report critical of CUSD’s efforts to follow the law, the Board responded that it would hire in-house counsel and moved to fi ll the position. Once attorney Mike Winsten assumed offi ce, he quashed the process and our taxpayer dol-lars started fl owing to his fellow trial lawyers. Taxpayer money intended for the classroom is now diverted to the trial bar, directly impacting the quality of education and is refl ected in our test scores.

To cover up his misdeeds, Winsten seeks to divert our attention by falsely claiming this election is a Union takeover. As a Board candidate and Member-Elect to the Orange County Republican Party Central Commit-tee, I refuse to be affi liated with any public employee unions. The removal of deceptive and misleading fi gures and the elimination of self dealing from the Board are necessary to restore community trust and allow us to rebuild our once proud school district.

MIKE WINSTENAttorney/Independent Businessman, www.cusdfacts.com

I’d like to chal-lenge the premise of this question. Perhaps the real problem is the local media’s systematic choice to give more

T

headlines to the public policy debates and political drama going on in CUSD, than on the less sensational but positive stories of how well CUSD provides a free world-class education? Obviously, political drama is what sells full-page ads to the well-funded union-backed candidates and their affi liated Children’s First slate during election sea-son. The truth, however, is that the same public policy debates are also happening in other school districts, counties, cities and states across our country. Measured by the passion our children and their parents have for our schools, our community is strongly behind CUSD. To suggest otherwise is incorrect political grandstanding by far left wing teachers’ union leaders—who called last April’s strike for selfi sh political propa-ganda reasons—despite our global fi scal crisis—and their supporters. Our children’s continued achievement and success is all that is truly important—not political dis-putes. CUSD is successfully educating our children, showing year over year test score increases. Nonetheless, I believe we can do better with innovation and competition. My opponents fi ght to protect their unsustain-able status quo by controlling both sides of the bargaining table. This is untenable. My Board colleagues and I showed the tough leadership you elected us to provide by making the mature decision to seek concessions totaling 10 percent from all our employees, because Sacramento’s diversion of money from public education required us to, and for no other reason. The Orange County Republican Party offi cially endorsed a “No” vote on the union backed recall. www.cusdreform.com

TRUSTEE AREA 6

GARY PRITCHARDCommunity College Professor, www.pritchardforcusd.com

When CUSD is known more for its disruptive political climate than its ac-

complishments, the problem is absolutely real and points to a failure of leadership.

The current board has succeeded in polarizing our district. The current trust-ees have failed to take ownership of any of the district’s problems and instead have blamed teachers and parent groups.

We don’t elect trustees to pit parents against teachers, especially during diffi -cult economic times. When many families are struggling to make ends meet, this board has suggested that our children’s teachers are greedy.

Quality teachers are the single most important asset in high performing public school districts. Our trustees should know this. How can we attract and retain the best and brightest when there is so much turmoil in CUSD? Who would want to teach in a district where the school board thinks teachers are “thugs” and “greedy?”

The way forward is simple. We need to elect a new board of trustees who know something about public schools. We need leaders who are invested in student achievement. We need a school board who will listen to all stakeholders when making crucial decisions regarding district fi -nances. Trustees must be willing to listen to criticism. Quality public schools are a community effort. We all benefi t from a successful CUSD. We must protect our excellent schools from politicians selling “reform.”

GARY V. MILLERRetired Teacher

Declined to submit an answer.

PAUL HEBBARDCertifi ed Public Accountant, www.paulhebbard.com

One could hypothesize that the political morass which has entangled

CUSD for the past 4 years has driven out some of its more talented teachers and administrators. If that is truly the case, then students’ core testing scores may

have been affected. It seems that the number of CA Distinguished Schools awards have dropped from a previous decade ago, and it might be because of the political infi ghting that begun back in the Fleming days.

I can think of three former principals who were well respected in CUSD that are now working in other districts. One of my missions is to seek out those competent ad-ministrators and recruit them back to CUSD. If we can get these personnel back into the schools where they were not only respected but adored, the community will begin to turn around the perception that CUSD is dysfunctional.

Because a high majority of the families in CUSD put a great emphasis on education, the high achievements of its students will never drop to the levels of LAUSD or any other ungovernable district. But as Trustees, we need to equip the parents with the means to help their children succeed in their aca-demic pursuits, including but not limited to effective teachers and clean facilities. In time, the achievements of our students will begin to push away the political headlines that have crippled CUSD for the past 4 years.

KEN LOPEZ MADDOXBusinessman/Tax Consultant, www.cusdfacts.com

I’ve been a mem-ber of the Board of Trustees for approxi-mately two years. Student achievement has improved each

of those two years. CUSD has never in its history, attained the results it is achieving today. We are the highest achieving large school district in the state. During my term, CUSD has exceeded expectations by every measurable defi nition of success.

The teachers’ union and their allies have managed to place a costly recall election on the ballot. Their defi nition of success is much different than that of the average tax-payer and parent. The district and the union were engaged in contract negotiations this past year which proved to be exceedingly diffi cult.

(Cont. on page 10)

Capistrano Unifi ed School District headquarters are located at 33122 Valle Road in San Juan Capistrano. Photo by Jonathan Volzke

EYE ON SJC


(Cont. from page 8)California is out of money. Our district re-ceived millions of dollars less in funding.

Labor costs account for roughly 86 percent of our general fund. Diffi cult decisions had to be made in order to preserve jobs, hold the line on class size and balance the budget.We were successful in doing all three without new taxes.

I’ve resisted the demands to force another parcel tax on the homeowners of this district to pay for increased teacher salaries. Califor-nians already pay too much in taxes.

The Republican Party of Orange County and many local elected offi cials are offi cially on record in opposing this blatant abuse of the recall process.

The Board of Trustees recently hired a new superintendent. He is in the process of putting into place an exceptional manage-ment team. We are a great district with out-standing teachers. But there is always room for improvement. Together we can attain even greater accomplishments.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you in the education of your children.

TRUSTEE AREA 6

ANNA BRYSONCapistrano Unifi ed School District Governing Member, www.abryson.com

For many years, the perception—be-cause of the indict-ment of Superinten-dent Fleming —was that the district had

many problems, and at that time, the percep-tion was accurate.

The reform effort was initiated by parents who wanted transparency, higher education standards, and better facilities. The reform board has kept its word on all points, but the media commentary has not caught up with the reality. We have been the highest-per-forming large district in the state academical-ly for 2 straight years, something not attained in the past.

The reform board has had the confi -dence of the majority in the community for 4 straight years, through three elections. The community has witnessed the board’s changes: a focus on classroom excellence, a leaner administration, and living within our means—balancing the budget after years of Fleming profl igacy

SAAM ALIKHANIUniversity Student, www.alikhaniforcusd.com

Sadly, partisan politics has plagued Capistrano Uni-fi ed for years, with the taxpayers and students paying the price. Under the

ineffective leadership of the current Board, Capistrano Unifi ed is now a failing institution by Federal standards and has been classifi ed as a “program improvement district.” With the Board’s ideology that money should be

spent on attorneys that are close associates of current board members and on dubious settlements to campaign donors, there is little prospect for improvement. The “fi scal conservatism” in which they campaigned on has been forgotten.

This Board seeks to run Capistrano Uni-fi ed dry, through their blatant nepotism and wasteful spending. Trustee Anna Bryson’s husband pushed Capistrano Unifi ed to-wards his own failed math program. Bryson also decided to hire her boss’ attorney for school business even though he was sanctioned twice by the State Bar, and her boss has since called this attorney unquali-fi ed. To make matters worse, she sought to have the District retain her boss for sound fi nancial and investment advice. Good thing she failed because she works for Chriss Street, Orange County’s Treasurer, who has been stripped of his authority after his questionable fi nancial practices.

Our community has lost confi dence and trust with the Trustees due to their secret meetings conducted in violation of the Brown Act, as well as their unwillingness to listen to their constituency. The Board must engage in an open dialogue with the com-munity as well as listening to their needs. I am committed to bringing all stakeholders to the table to restore our District. We must regain the community’s confi dence through respect, accountability and accurate repre-sentation.

TRUSTEE AREA 6

MARTHA MCNICHOLASEngineering Entrepreneur, www.mcnicholasforcusd.com

Capturing headlines has more to do with partisan journalism

than it does with noteworthy accomplish-ments—academic or otherwise. And it often involves a few noisy, law-suit happy people diverting attention, and resources, away from student achievement. In CUSD, the confi dence of the community will be restored when the trustees demonstrate that they are willing to listen to, work with and respect their constituents - parents, stu-dents, teachers, employees and community members in the district.

ELLEN ADDONIZIOCertifi ed Public Accountant, www.cusdfacts.com

Voters elected me to the CUSD Board of Trustees to restore hon-esty, integrity and accountability to

CUSD —and the community should be proud of all we’ve accomplished.

Bringing reform and positive change is especially diffi cult in a district which spends approximately 85 percent of its budget on salaries/benefi ts for public

employees—most of whom are represent-ed by powerful union leaders fi ghting to preserve an unsustainable status quo.

Despite continuous union opposition, we have successfully balanced the budget; stopped defi cit spending; refused to in-crease taxes; reduced bloated administra-tion; reduced union contract expenses by 10.1 percent; enacted strong anti-nepotism policies; created a district-wide facilities assessment; promoted conservative fi scal policies and family values; and fought to keep smaller class sizes.

This year, student achievement in CUSD soared to its highest levels. In fact, this year Capistrano Unifi ed was the State’s highest achieving large school district!

The community should be confi dent the future of CUSD remains very bright.

TRUSTEE AREA 7

LARRY CHRISTENSENCapistrano Unifi ed School District, Gov-erning Board Member, www.cusdfacts.com

Though there are two very vocal factions amongst

the constituents who have their children in CUSD schools, most of the populous simply desires that their children obtain the best that public education can give; politics be darned. As a result of decades of improprieties that culminated in the in-dictment of the then superintendent who was “under the watch” of the then trust-ees, reform came swiftly whereby all of the current board members were elected by overwhelming margins. In short, the public was “fed up” with the shenanigans and the union control.

Due to the necessary imposition of minor cutbacks to employee benefi ts by the courageous current reform trustees during our declining economy, CUSD did not have to fi re teachers and increase class sizes as the union desired. As a result, recent test scores have been at an all time high. It’s about time!

In retaliation the union has backed the other vocal faction who wants to replace the reform trustees with their own so that, as stated by the union, they “can elect our own bosses.” One shudders at the thought!

The current reform trustees are endorsed by the Republican Party; the union backed candidates are not (though they infer that they are). The union wants to take control of the board by election, by recall and by Measure H which disenfran-chises everyone’s vote.

Allow the reform trustees to complete their uphill battle against the well-healed special interest unions by keeping all of the existing trustees in offi ce and by defeating Measure H. Protect the younger teachers from being fi red and assure that whatever little funds are left will be directed to the classroom.

LYNN HATTONSmall Business Owner, www.hatton-forcusd.com

Ten years ago, CUSD was one of the best large districts in California and, argu-ably, in North Amer-ica. Unfortunately, we have spent most

of the last six years focused on adult issues and politics rather than on creating a sound educational environment for our children. Currently, CUSD is achieving academically on the state accountability system but has failed the federal accountability system. If we keep the status quo, it will not be long before failure permeates the system. Because of the strife at the leadership level, we already have lost many talented site level leaders to outside districts. Too much is at stake and we must act now to effect positive change and restore the focus on our students. To rebuild the district and the confi dence of our community, we must:

Be visible and present at our school sites and community events

Collaborate with all stakeholders to ensure success

Build partnerships with local universities and businesses

Invest in our strong teachers and leaders to constantly improve learning

Create multiple supports and pathways for options to college and career

Be fi scally responsible and creative in fi nd-ing new sources of money

I have the experience in education and in running my small businesses. At the same time, since my children currently attend our schools, I have a vested interest in our district. The boards is one of the most important elected offi ces as it makes deci-sions that directly impact children’s lives and the economic stability of a community. Let’s work together to remove politics and restore our district and our community to its culture of excellence.

Vote Lynn Hatton, Area 7 Capistrano Uni-fi ed School Board. CD

COMING NEXT ISSUE

The October 23 edition of The Capistrano

Dispatch will include more questions

and answers from city and school board

candidates.

AND ONLINE

Watch The Capistrano Insider blog and

the Beyond the Blackboard blog at

www.thecapistranodispatch.com for

more political news and discussion.

CUSD Candidates Discuss State of the District(cont.)

EYE ON SJC

Council Candidates Weigh In on Traffi c IssuesThe Capistrano Dispatch

DEREK REEVEConstitutional Attorney/Historian, http://site.derekreeve.us

We must fi rst prevent more traffi c from being created by stopping the approval of new massive developments that place

more traffi c on our roads. Also make sure that mitigation is completed for developments that have already been built and/or approved. Previ-ous city councils are notorious for approving developments without traffi c mitigation, a major contributor to traffi c congestion.

The toll road is for the benefi t of Rancho Mission Viejo, which needs two major arterial roads in place before they are allowed to build their envisioned 14,000 homes on our eastern border. The fallacy about the toll road that it will take traffi c off the congested 5 freeway when in reality, it is designed to accommodate more development east of town that will only add more traffi c. If it becomes clear the toll road will be built, I will ensure the negative impact on SJC is mitigated.

I oppose widening of Ortega. Ortega will become primarily a freeway on and off ramp for the new city of Rancho Mission Viejo.

The proposed San Juan Creek Road extension to La Pata would go through open space and would require a public vote.

I oppose connecting El Horno to Rancho Viejo Road.

JIM REARDONTechnology Executive, www.votereardon.com

The San Juan Creek Road extension to La Pata has been bottled-up by members of the sitting City Council who live in the area. Our City’s high

school is effectively isolated. “Open Space” zon-ing now makes the extension impossible without a vote of the public.

El Horno should not be opened to public traf-fi c. It is substandard for public use. Mission Flats should not be sacrifi ced. Emergency vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians only.

Ortega Highway is already “four lanes” near I-5. The new freeway overpass renders this question moot—in town. Ortega Highway will connect directly to Del Obispo when the project is complete.

Traffi c fl ow can be improved by adding traffi c signals in some obvious places and adding pro-tected lanes. Local traffi c circulation should not depend on the Ortega Highway or Interstate 5.

JOHN TAYLORBusinessman, www.JohnTaylorforCityCouncil.comTraffi c is a problem and we need to explore all options including a southbound off ramp at Stonehill for Dana Point

traffi c, promote traffi c fl ow by synchronizing traffi c lights in town, open up La Pata to San Clemente, explore options for 241 – the PBX or Christianitos extensions make more sense in light of the opposition to the green exten-sion. We need more negotiations with Camp Pendleton to get this much needed roadway completed.

San Juan Creek Road to La Pata, I would oppose because of the potential for high traffi c volume, the neighborhood would lose its’ coun-try road appeal.

El Horno Street to Rancho Viejo Road, in my opinion would offer little in the way of traffi c mitigation. Before I would even consider it, I would want to commission a traffi c study. I just don’t believe it is the best use of our highway dollars and I most likely would oppose it.

Ortega Highway needs to be widened to four lanes from La Pata to the Hunt Club Gate, where a traffi c light should be installed. The existing four lane road from the Hunt Club to the I-5 should be left alone.

CLINT WORTHINGTON Locomotive Engineer, VoteWorthington.com

Let’s get the projects completed that were designed to mitigate traffi c in our town as the fi rst step in the process

to ease congestion on our roads. As an example: Eliminate the dangerous new speed bump in the right hand lane at the railroad crossing on Del Obispo. In addition, let’s get the traffi c light working at Oso and Camino Capistrano prop-erly. These are just a few of the simple projects that need to be completed to ease traffi c.

The historic Mission Flats neighborhood does not need to be a thoroughfare. I would be opposed to any extension of El Horno to Rancho Viejo Road.

The Ortega Highway through our town to the City limits is a beautiful highway. To widen the highway would bring undo hardships to the many residents and surrounding neighbor-hoods. We do not need to be the doormat for other communities. I would be opposed to the widening of the Ortega Highway.

There are conservation easements that would prevent the extension of San Juan Creek Road to La Pata. In addition, an extension would divide the Open Space that was purchased last January. I would however be in favor of extend-ing La Pata to San Clemente.

LARRY KRAMERRetired Naval Offi cerww.larrykramerforcitycouncil2010.com

Extending San Juan Creek Road to La Pata would cause detrimental changes to the road characteristics. I would not support it.

Extending El Horno was considered when the city studied building a city hall at Marbella. The city is not planning a new offi ce; extending El Horno is off the table.

I fully support completion of 241-toll road to I-5.

Widen Ortega Highway in a minimal way to 4 lanes to cause least impact on the character of the road and surrounding neighborhoods.

Many things can be done to improve traffi c fl ow:

- Complete La Pata to San Clemente. -Widen the remaining 2 lane portions of

Rancho Viejo Road to 4 lanes. -Construct a southbound off ramp from I-5 at

Stonehill to route Dana Point traffi c away from San Juan Capistrano.

-Re-align the southbound I-5 off ramp at San Juan Creek/Camino Capistrano with La Novia. Widen the San Juan Creek underpass at Camino Capistrano.

-Make the city more pedestrian and bike friendly.

-Initiate trolleys connecting San Juan Cap-istrano, San Clemente and Dana Point.

-Update 2002 Strategic Transportation Plan.-Project driven traffi c improvements must

occur before there is any project construction without exception.

JESS LOPEZRetired Police Sergeantwww.JessServes.org

I do not support the 241 toll road, San Juan Creek Road extension to La Pata nor the El Horno cutting through historical Mission Flats to Rancho Viejo road.

I would support a La Pata to San Clemente extension. I do support the widening of Ortega through town. I also support a S/B Off Ramp at Stonehill and the 5 FWY/Ortega Off-On Ramp related to our Downtown development Plan. I agree with our Transportation Com-mission that denied the La Novia Meadows project because of the high density traffi c it would cause at La Novia and Valle Rd. My Campaign Pledge is to preserve and protect. At fi rst glance, I agreed with the Downtown Development Plan Draft including the pedes-trian walking district concept. However, after reviewing the City web site and the main artwork showing a parking lot replacing the iconic Camino Real Playhouse( on pages 38-42), NO way can I support the afore mentioned proposal. Bulldozing one of our cities cultural venues in order to replace it with a parking lot is absurd. The Camino Real Playhouse is an important and valuable part of San Juan Capistrano’s unique cultural lifestyle! Save the Playhouse!

VICTOR J. SCHNEIDERGeologistwww.jimschneider2010-sjccitycouncil.com

Yes, I support the San Juan Creek Road extension. The San Juan Hills students

need more than one way into and out of their school. Traffi c reduction will occur at the 74 if this extension is completed.

Yes, I support the El Horno extension; however, it seems it will come at a signifi cant cost. I would ensure that the taxpayers are getting their moneys worth. The section of roadway will require a bridge or underpass. How important is this connection and how will it mitigate traffi c are questions I need answered fi rst. As proposed, I do not support an extension of the 241 toll road. The existing plan need revision.

Widening Ortega Highway through town is not a solution to mitigate traffi c.

I would create drop off/pick up areas for each and every school in the City. Not an easy task, but it can be done. A classic example is at Ambuehl Elementary at 07:30 during the week. We need a pick up/drop off area across San Juan Creek at the existing park where the students can easily walk a pedestrian bridge and ne on school grounds.

MARK NIELSENBusinessman/Councilman, www.electmarknielsen.com

We need to divert traffi c around our town, instead of becoming a driveway to the I-5 for our neighbors.

I’ve fought the exten-sion of San Juan Creek Road for over a decade since trying to have it removed from our 1999 General Plan rewrite. Ruining the character of part of our community in order to help non-residents get to the I-5 freeway makes no sense. The road is residential and has a grade school in its middle. The extension would add signifi cant dangers to the safety of our school children who daily are walking and biking across the street.

Likewise, El Horno should not become a thoroughfare to Rancho Viejo unless the major-ity of neighbors want it. We are already saddled with a major reconstruction of the Ortega interchange that is supposedly going to relieve congestion in crossing the freeway, though it will drastically change the area’s appearance. No need to ruin yet another historic area. The widening of Ortega, while a necessary evil , does not need 16’ sound walls (destroying views and making a tunnel), removing over 100 mature trees and putting in wider roads West of the Hunt Club when there is already room for 4 lanes.

Finally, the 241 would relieve signifi cant traffi c on Ortega, but with a revised route that avoids San Mateo Campground and the O’Neill Conservancy areas.

DR. LONDRES USO Councilman/Dentistwww.Uso4Council.com

I would not support the extension of SJC Road any more than the exten-sion of Las Ramblas. This would ruin a unique San Juan community in order to ease traffi c for Ladera

and future RMV residents.I would reluctantly agree to a temporary use

of El Horno during the construction of the I5 in-terchange but not on a permanent basis, this is a historic and unique residential neighborhood that can’t safely accommodate that traffi c.

The 241 extension does not give me warm feelings but the reality of 14,000 new homes and the traffi c consequences to SJC is undeniable, reality trumps personal feelings.

Ortega should be widened to accommodate SJHHS traffi c but the existing 4 lanes should not be touched. The eastern entrance to SJC is important to our character and the old, mature trees are irreplaceable.

The worse traffi c is over the I5 bridge and Del Obispo, the I5 interchange we approved will go a long ways to improve it.

We need to stop developing properties as if they were in a bubble, for example, there are too many individual driveways on Del Obispo. An internal circulation plan accessed from one signalized intersection will make traffi c friction-less.

We need to invest in solid, proactive, out of the box solutions.


e asked candidates: Transportation is always a big topic in SJC. Do you sup-port the San Juan Creek Road extension

to La Pata? Putting El Horno through to Rancho Viejo Road? The 241 toll road as proposed? Widening Ortega to four lanes through town? What would you to do help traffi c fl ow?

Here are the responses, unedited in the order in which the candidates will appear on the November ballot:

W

34932 Calle del Sol, Suite B, Capistrano Beach, CA 92624phone 949.388.7700 fax 949.388.9977 www.thecapistranodispatch.com

The Capistrano Dispatch, Vol. 8, Issue 19. The Dispatch (www.thecapistranodispatch ) is published twice monthly by Picket Fence Media, publishers of the DP Times (www.danapointtimes.com) and the SC Times (www.sanclement-etimes.com). Copyright: No articles, illustrations, photographs, or other editorial matter or advertisements herein may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher. The publisher assumes no responsibility for return of unsolicited manuscripts, art, photos or negatives. Copyright 2010. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.

CEO > Norb Garrett

EDITORIAL

Group Editor, Editor, The Dispatch> Jonathan Volzke

City Editor, DP Times> Andrea Swayne

ART/DESIGN

Senior Designer> Jasmine SmithGraphic Designer> Heidi Mefferd

ADVERTISINGAssociate Publisher > Lauralyn Loynes

> Michele Reddick (San Clemente)

> Sergio Sanchez (San Juan Capistrano)

Sales Associates> Angela Edwards > Buddy Purel

OPERATIONS

Finance Director> Mike Reed

Billing/Collections Manager> Alyssa Garrett

Distribution Manager> Andrea Swayne

INTERNSChris Bashaw, Kirsten Amavisca Sacher, Madi Swayne

SPECIAL THANKSRobert Miller, George Mackin

CONTRIBUTORSTawnee Prazak, David Zimmerle

EDITORSTORIES, NEWS, CALENDAR, ETC.

Jonathan Volzke, 949.388.7700, x108 [email protected]

ADVERTISINGPRINT AND ONLINE

Sergio Sanchez, 949.388.7700, x104 [email protected] Purel, [email protected]

DISTRIBUTION RACKS, DRIVEWAYS, SUBSCRIPTIONS

Andrea Swayne, 949.388.7700, [email protected]

BILLINGAlyssa Garrett, 949.388.7700, x100 [email protected]

HOW TO REACH US

PICKET FENCE MEDIA

2VIEWS, OPINIONS AND INSIGHTSSOAPBOX

2


Letters to the CommunityPOTPOURRI OF LOCAL ISSUES

—Doug Lowe, San Juan CapistranoRegarding the complaints about the purchase of the

MV Ranch property for $27 million- plus; it seems to me a lawsuit is the only way to resolve this issue. Any young attorney out there, looking to make a name for him/herself should take notice. Short of a lawsuit, all the complaining, name calling, and crying over spilt milk, will not put the cows back the barn; nor money back into the citizens’ pockets. The City Council has not responded directly to any pointed question, and from what I’ve read, failed to justify their action.

From all appearances, the manipulation of the public was well planned and well executed. Are there any number crunchers out there that can do return on investment calculations? My gut feel is; it’s a big negative, for the next 50 years. I’ll be dead by then, so in the interest of reducing what my kids will have to pay for their grandchildren to enjoy a picnic at a park one day in the distant future, I’m willing to spend a few bucks today to see if this deal can be undone.

Regarding the latest plan to come from an expensive design fi rm for Del Obispo Street between Ortega and Camino Capistrano; whoever was involved in that was either stupid or dishonest. There is no other explana-tion. A common idiot could see that we could not take a very necessary four lane artery and reduce it to two lanes with a planted median, in front of a fi re station, no less. Help, police, I’ve been robbed.

Regarding the cost of water; personally, I am very grateful for everyone involved in the decision to build the Ground Water Recovery Plant. Clean water will always be a valuable commodity. Therefore, the value of our investment in the GRWP will continue to grow, regardless of what the initial cost where. If there is a real problem with the ongoing cost of operation, we can hire a different engineer to operate it. Citizens of SJC, I beg of you, never, ever, ever, sell our GRWP. As a community, I believe it would be to our benefi t to fi gure out how to capture as much rain water as we can, and send it into the ground. If we do enough of that, we should be able to harvest more; reducing the amount we need to buy. Eventually we may also dilute the toxins leaked by the gasoline tanks in the ground (Tanks a lot Chevron). These are questions, diffi cult questions, for the best engineering minds, but I feel that, as a community, we should be taking responsibil-ity for our own resources.

Regarding the Indigenous People Celebration at Historic Town Center Park on 9/11; thank God some people have the good sense to stop morning our dead

and start celebrating life. Life is for the living, and any-one that spent that beautiful day angry or depressed wasted a great day. The costumes, the music, the danc-ing, the poetry; all inspirational, causing an uplifting of my spirit that I have not felt for many years. My only regret was that the event was not better publicized, so I could have been there at the opening. I believe that people that are angry over the events of 9/11/01 have good reason to be angry; but most are angry for the wrong reason, and at the wrong people. There is, or was, plenty of evidence out there, published by experts in all fi elds, that refutes the offi cial version of the cause and events that surround that day. I was angry because I do not feel justice has been done in nine years since. I was depressed because, I believe, short of a miracle, justice never will be done. Believing that, on that day (and every day thereafter)I chose to pray, then trust, that God’s will shall be done; and then I leave it up to Him, while I celebrate the life He has given me.

I appreciate the efforts of the editors at the Capistra-no Common Sense newsletter for their efforts to bring forth for public discussion items that would otherwise be overlooked; I hope they continue with their inves-tigative reporting. I am also grateful to this paper for publishing my letter, and the letters of other citizens, complete and unedited. Freedoms of Speech/Press are the fundamental underpinnings of this country and I applaud this paper for continuing to maintain these rights through unbiased reporting and fair editing.

SAN JUAN IDOL CONTEST—Roy Nunn, San Juan CapistranoWith all the political dialog that comes with an elec-

tion mixed with concerns about development on the small portions of land not developed yet, I would like to share my view of a process that while not supposed to start out political always seems to end that way. I am speaking of the process of planning and designing a project in San Juan.

The planning process is like being a contestant on American Idol. Before an applicant is able to sing to the judges they are screened in a process not unlike a singer showing up to tryouts. It is an endurance test to weed out the less desirable performance (incomplete project). When an applicant submits a project they work with the cities staff to determine if their applica-tion (performance) will have what the judges (Plan-ning Commission) will need to make their decision and recommendations. The Planning Commission Judges offer their critique of your performance. It is

the responsibility of these Judges (commissioners) to determine if yours is a winning performance and con-forms to standards established.

When you survive the screening process you move on to the fi rst of usually several cuts (hearings) with the judges offering their comments. First the judges (commissioners) say you were good but then they add on something like “make it more your own,” “be more yourself,” “we like hearing you go for those high notes.”

Then when you try and give them what they ask for you get, “you should have done it more like the original artist,” “the original is to much a classic to mess with,” “it felt like you were screaming,” “ dude, dude, dude, listen up dude, it was a little pitchy for me.”

This is when you are ready to throw up your hands and ask, “What do you want?”

This is also why we have a General Plan, a Municipal Code, a Zoning Code, a Land Use Code, and “Design Guidelines”. And when you ask is there anything else you get the answer you did not want to hear, YES!

In addition to the above there is usually what are referred to as “Overlay Districts.” These can cover ev-erything from Architecture styles to special uses such as Historic Preservation.

Okay so you think that’s it right? Well wrong! Now throw into the pot “Master Plan Studies” and “Planned Communities and Developments” And not to be forgot-ten dude that really pitchy one Home Owners Associa-tions better known as HOA’s. HOA BOY.

They provide us with guidelines and when properly used a line to measure from to reduce the amount of confl icting information given to applicants. Hey dude, dude listen up now that is a little pitchy. White is not white it is Navaho White, Creamy White, etc. etc. Brown is Tan and Beige and maybe a name like Saddlewood, which sounds good for a horse town like San Juan Capistrano. You may think or ask what good are guidelines that are not specifi c so there is no confu-sion. Simply this, without some room for interpretation and fl exibility we would have all the singers singing the same song the same way.

So who decides the correct interpretation and who will be the next San Juan Idol?

As with American Idol the fi nal selection is by the Public in the form of their elected offi cials the City Council. The Council members take the opinions of the judges and determine if you are runner-up or the next San Juan Idol. The decision may not be what you think is the right one but the fact is when they make it that far they are typically all winners. Personally I would have

(Cont. on page 19)

SOAPBOXLetters

(Cont. from page 14)PATRICK O’BRIEN: The Way I See It

It’s Just Politicshe famous British poet Percy Bysshe Shelly once said that “Poets are the unacknowl-

edged legislators of the world.” As an undergraduate student study-ing English literature that line always seemed to me to be a little bit self-serving, placing the writer/poet in such a self-important role.

Nonetheless, I did feel that he had something to say about writing that was interesting for all of us, including my former college students. Often we don’t know what we think until we write it and often that which we think may well be what many others have thought . To be hyper-English teacher, quoting another English poet, Alexander Pope, “what oft was thought be ne’er to well expressed.” Simply said. If I’m thinking it, there are probably others who feel the same way. If I go any further with this I’ll be forever branded an Anglophile—and all the snooti-ness that suggests—and my words will cause me to fall like a clown over a coil of rope in the circus tent. What in heavens name does all this have to do with San Juan?

Quite a bit actually. The way I see it…there are a handful of locals who have some real anger in their verbiage. Besides the “Teapartiers” and others who have a fantasized view of our country and our town, forgetting slavery, injustice, incarcerating the Japanese during WWII, miscegenation, anti-undocu-mented workers attracted here by not only their need but ours—picking fruit, tending to our babies, very senior citizens etc. etc. which is the sad part of our history and part of our ongoing story, there are the “attack politicos.” My term.

A recent flyer entitled “No Incumbents,” which

Tcites one incumbent and one other person running for city council seems to fit the “attack politco” pro-file. I was astonished at its tenor and its authorship. As I tried to understand why there was this intense dislike of one incumbent, I suddenly realized. It re-ally wasn’t personal. It couldn’t be, considering the source. It was pure right-wing politics. It was a mini party of “No” focused on political party rather than on any real issues. It was politics as a football game. “Our team must win and yours must lose.” Bring in conspiracy, bring in a few figures and you can argue anything. It seems real. The problem is—winning or losing is not the point. The point is how will the village survive its problems. The writer throws away two very viable candidates and then says: “The spe-cifics cited herein are not intended to be harmful, or malicious, however…” Wow! That’s kind of like say-ing: “Doesn’t she look beautifully fat in that dress?”

Having an opinion is American. Arguing it is American. Though sending out a “hit piece” is part of politics, I think we should remember—that too is American, but not our best side, nor always the right thing to do. This is not a game.

Patrick O’Brien has been a resident of San Juan Capistrano for 40 years. He taught English and Jour-nalism at Cypress College and was Dean of Language Arts at the end of his teaching career. He is still active in writing a newsletter for the college and writes freelance for various publications, as well as currently “shopping around” four novels--a fifth is on the way. He and his wife Marilyn are originally from the San Fran-cisco Bay Area. They have two grown children, Curt and Craig, both of whom have successful careers, one a producer of national television advertising and the other a “problem solver” and partner in the corporate computer-program world.

PATRICKO’BRIEN

To submit a letter to the editor for possible inclusion in the paper, e-mail us at [email protected] or send it to 34932 Calle del Sol, Suite B, Capistrano Beach, CA 92624. The Capistrano Dispatch reserves the right to edit reader-sub-mitted letters for length and is not responsible for the claims made or the information written by the writers.

picked Big Mike.So what happens when the judges change? Will the

new judges make the same selection? What happens when Simon leaves? There is one thing we will never be short of and that is opinions. We can only hope that the new judges’ opinions are based on established guide-lines that allow individuality but also respect for the original artists melody (common sense).

As election time gets closer and the contestants start warming up in the lobby signing their versions of the same old songs, “dude, dude, listen-up now it seems a little pitchy to me,” but in my over 30 years as a resi-dent of San Juan Capistrano we have been fortunate to have judges who have made positive recommendations to the public (council members) who may seem to be giving us different advice but have always been in gen-eral agreement. So as Simon would say I am going to tell you honestly in my opinion judges that do not have an axe to grind and are open to the opinions of others, remaining flexible to those other opinions are My Idols.

Please vote, and vote for those who are there for everyone and not the few who might try and make you believe they are there for you.

PAYOFF FOR NIELSEN?— Alvin Ehrig Orange County Democrats gathered at a posh San

Juan estate last week to honor Mark Nielsen, candidate for re-election to San Juan City Council. This will gather many thousands of dollars, expected to make Nielsen the most heavily financed candidate and a shoe-in to capture re-election.

In an unprecedented act Supervisor Pat Bates, the 5th District Supervisor and the representative of the giant Mission Viejo Ranch complex, will lead the fundraising effort. The Ranch recognizes a special debt to Nielsen because, in 2008, when the Ranch was cash-strapped and the real estate market had tanked, Nielsen, like the cavalry in the glory days of the Old West came riding to their rescue with his scheme to dispose of the Ranch’s 134 acres of marginally build-able land by inducing the city of San Juan Capistrano to purchase it as “Open Space” for $27.5 million under special Ranch-favorable “sweet-heart” conditions. Consequently, Supervisor Bates, who pretty much does t he Ranch’s bidding, will lead Nielsen’s fund raising campaign.

Observers expect the amount of money, really a payoff for arranging the so-called “Open Space” sale, to be substantial. It will provide Nielsen with a nest egg for his future campaign for Assembly or Congress. The task for Bates is not so easy because Bates, a “Conser-vative Republican” is under criticism for her blatant sup-port of Nielsen, a very liberal “Progressive” Democrat in the Obama-Washington mold. On the other hand, Bates has little to fear from affronted San Juan Republi-can voters because she is “termed out” and will not face them again.

Nielsen, widely admired by Liberals as a rising star for the Democratic Party because of his success in “Progressivizing” San Juan Capistrano City Hall, will claim his prize for salvaging the Mission Viejo Ranch by “arranging” to get them 27.5 million dollars cash un-der the guise of an “Open Space” purchase. The voters of San Juan Capistrano, oblivious to all of this, had been expected to return Nielsen to the Council in November but, in recent weeks, many protests have been heard and Nielsen’s political “Empire” in San Juan Capistrano is crumbling.

SUPPORT FOR NIELSEN—Donna L. Friess, San Juan CapistranoAs a 38-year resident of San Juan Capistrano whose

heart belongs to the jewel of the missions city, I am saddened by the lack of cordiality in the current City Council race. The attacks on Mark Nielsen in his quest for re-election are outside the bounds of what this city is really about. As I go on my daily dog walk through this wonderful community, I see my fellow residents enjoy-ing everything that San Juan has to offer, whether it is horses galloping along the ridge line, children squealing over a soccer game, little leaguers encouraging each other, a packed crowd at the historic town park, or chang-es in the Los Rios District which continue to preserve its historical importance. When I look at all of this and think of the people who have worked so hard to make our town what it is, it is difficult for me to understand the current level of negativity in this campaign.

My husband and I have known Mark Nielsen for many years and though we have not always agreed with him, we respect his strength, his loyalty, his keen intelligence and his commitment to our city. Mark Nielsen stands out among the many candidates because of his willingness to put actions behind his words. He does not just show up at events to be seen, he is there to work. The best example of his involvement with our community can be seen in AYSO soccer. Every single Saturday of soccer season Mark can be found all day long in his role as soccer referee.

In the campaign for city council I think it is important to elect people who will actually work for us. Please join me in supporting Mark Nielsen for City Council.

MORE NIELSEN SUPPORT—Terry Holdt Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of the move

that my family and I made from Northern California to

Orange County. As part of that process, we looked at homes from Fullerton to San Clemente. What brought us to San Juan was the small town atmo-sphere (we both grew up in a small town in Illinois) and the school district—I won’t comment on what has been happening there.

Lately, in the local paper and at City Council meet-ings I have noticed quite a change in that small town feeling that brought many of us to San Juan Capist-rano. We are subjected to mailers and e-mails that either border on un-truths or tell out-and-out lies. We are rapidly approaching Chicago politics and believe me I am familiar with those as the small town my wife and I grew up in was a suburb of Chicago.

Much of the nastiness seems to be directed at Mark Nielsen, which I have a hard time understanding. As far as I can tell, Mark’s only agenda is to keep what drew so many of us to San Juan in the first place—not the least of these his being instrumental in acquir-ing 240 acres of open space. He also spearheaded Measure X which brings any rezoning of public space to a vote of the people. He reduced spending while maintaining public safety. Mark was instrumental in the first ever strategic and financial plan for our city.

I could continue with a much longer list but the intent of my letter is two fold: Question the facts and make sure that they are correct before you base your vote on false information and join me in voting for Mark Nielsen on November 2.


GETTING OUT

YOUR FOURTEEN-DAY EVENT PLANNER

THE LIST

saturday09

A day-by-day guide to what’s happening in and around town the next two weeks.

friday08

SONGS, SMILES N SOUL 38 p.m. A Benefi t Concert Bringing Smiles To Our Kids at The Coach House featuring The Ken Garcia Band / Dr. Jeff Briney & His All-Star Band / Passion Gitana / Sasha Evans. Tickets $20. 33157 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.496.8930, www.thecoachhouse.com. PIRATE OF PENZANCE8 p.m. Camino Real Playhouse presents a hilarious romantic comic opera with pirates, buccaneers and maidens. Great for the whole family. Shows through Oct. 31. Preview night tickets $24; regular tickets $28-$30. 31776 El Camino Real, SJC, 949.489.8082, www.caminorealplayhouse.org. CHRIS BERRY7:30 p.m.-11 p.m. Live music at The Vintage. 26701 B Verdugo St., SJC, 949.661.3400, www.thevintagesteakhouse.com. BRANDT VOGEL8:30 p.m. Swallow’s Inn. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

MOMMY MOVIE MONDAY10 a.m. Special screening of the movie Life As We Know It for parents of infants at the Krikorian, tickets $6.75. 641 Camino de los Mares, San Clemente, 949.661.7469, www.kptmovies.com.

BOEING ROCKET LAB10 a.m.-5 p.m. Learn about the science of space, rockets, engineering and more in a fun exhibit for all ages at Discovery Science Center. Adults $12.95, kids $9.95. 2500 N. Main Street, Santa Ana, 714.542.2823, www.discoverycube.org.

COUNTRY DANCIN’6:30 p.m. Free dance lessons and DJ Bubba at Swallow’s Inn. Free popcorn. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

SECOND SATURDAY ART FAIR10 a.m.-4 p.m. Shop and browse the monthly art event showcas-ing 60 artists, craftspeople and musicians in downtown SJC along Camino Capistrano, Yorba, Verdugo and Los Rios. 949.493.4700, www.sjcartfair.org. PANNING FOR GOLD12 p.m.-2 p.m. Try your luck at fi nding the gold in a custom-de-signed trough at Mission San Juan Capistrano. Free with admission $5-$9. 26801 Ortega Hwy., SJC, 949.234.1300, www.missionsjc.com. A DATE WITH NATURE2 p.m.-7 p.m. Fun, family-oriented celebration of Orange County wildlife featuring activities, food and more hosted by The Donna O’Neill Land Conservancy and The Reserve at Rancho Mission Viejo. Free event; please register. More info: 949.489.9778, www.theconservancy.org/ADWN. PET ADOPTION12 p.m.-4 p.m. Capo Animal Rescue Effort hosts a pet adoption ev-ery Saturday at PetSmart. A gallery of available pets is online. 33963 Doheny Park Road, 949.240.1735, www.capoanimalrescue.com. DALTON GANG2:30-6:30 p.m. Live music at Swallow’s Inn; continues into the night starting at 8:30 p.m. with Brandt Vogel. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

monday11

tuesday12CUSD MEETING7 p.m. The Capo school district board meets in the Education Center Board Room, 33122 Valle Road, SJC, 949.234.9200, www.capousd.org.

MIKE VITALE8 p.m. Live acoustic music at BeachFire Ladera. 25682 Crown Valley, Ladera Ranch, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

sunday10COMPILED BY TAWNEE PRAZAK

KIDS STORYTIME AT THE CASA10 a.m. Casa Romantica hosts storytime for youngsters ages 3-5; free. 415 Avenida Granada, San Clemente, 949.498.2139, www.casaromantica.org.

SJC RESIDENT APPRECIATION DAY8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. On Wednesdays, SJC residents with a valid photo ID may pay for one adult admission and bring in a guest for free. Admission $5-$9. 26801 Ortega Hwy., SJC, 949.234.1300, www.missionsjc.com.

OLD CAPISTRANO FARMERS MARKET3 p.m.-7 p.m. Every Wednesday at El Camino Real and Yorba; 949.493.4700.

MIKE HAMILTON7 p.m. Popular musician performs everything at Ruby’s Sky Ranch every Wednesday. 949.496.7829, www.rubysdiner.com.

wednesday13

thursday14THE WEEPIES8 p.m. Duo presents acoustic/pop sounds of their “Be My Thrill Tour” at The Coach House also with Parlor Hawk and Sarah Wallace. Tickets $15. 33157 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.496.8930, www.thecoachhouse.com.

GUEST BARTENDING & LIVE MUSIC8:30 p.m. Michael and Joyce run the bar at Swallow’s Inn. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

HISTORICAL WALKING TOUR1 p.m. SJC Historical Society leads a tour to see Los Rios Histori-cal District, OíNeill Museum, Montanez Adobe, the Mission, Rios Adobe and more. Meet at the train depot on Verdugo Street. Every Sunday. $2 adults, $1 children. 949.493.8444, www.sjchistoricalsociety.com.

SAN CLEMENTE SEAFEST10 a.m.-3 p.m. Annual Seafest at the SC Pier featuring a Chowder cook-off, arts & crafts show, surf contest, business expo, U.S. Coast Guard, face painting, kids’ rides and more! Free shuttle parking is available at San Clemente High School. More info: 949.492.1131, www.scchamber.com.

HOPE 4 HANNA7 a.m. participate in a 10k or 5k walk/run to benefi t autism re-search, fi nding a cure and awareness. Meet at the Plaza Pacifi ca shopping center. 951 Avenida Pico, www.hope4hanna.com.

BLUE FISH2:30 p.m. Swallow’s Inn. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

MICHAEL MANDELLA BAND8:30 p.m. Swallow’s Inn. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

LED ZEPPAGAIN8 p.m. Led Zeppelin tribute band at The Coach House also with Inberst and Suburban Skies. Tickets $15. 33157 Camino Capist-rano, SJC, 949.496.8930, www.thecoachhouse.com.

FERNANDO RAMOS6 p.m.-9 p.m. The solo mariachi guitarist plays at El Adobe every Friday and Saturday night. 31891 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.1163, www.eladobedecapistrano.com.

LARRY FRESCH7:30 p.m.-11 p.m. Live music at The Vintage. 26701 B Verdugo St., SJC, 949.661.3400, www.thevintagesteakhouse.com.

ESTELLA9 p.m. Live pop music and happy hour all night at BeachFire Ladera Ranch. 25682 Crown Valley, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

friday15

(Cont. on page 23)


PAN DAZZLES AT PERFORMING ARTS CENTERGO SEE DOThe classic tale of Peter Pan

is now showing at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, but J.M. Barrie’s 1904 play is trans-formed with the modern technical wizardry reminiscent of “Soarin’ Over California,” letting characters take to the sky and weave through the London skyline.

The performances of the 22 actors are outstanding— Itxaso Moreno plays Tinkerbell with such attitude she should be called “Stinkerbell”—but the 360-degree CGI theater set steals the show. The produc-tion is a in a tent beside the Performing Arts Center, and the interior of the tent is lined with more than 15,000 square feet of high-resolution video—three times the size of an Imax screen. That immerses the cast and audience in 360 degrees

of CGI Neverland. A dozen projectors deliver the

360-degree presentation, which producers say is the world’s fi rst 360-degree projected movie for a live theater performance.

But it’s not all high-tech: The animals in the play, including the crocodile, are puppets.

The production, shown in the round, opened in May 2009 in Kensington Gardens, where Barrie was inspired to write the story. It played for 16 sold out weeks and the audience included Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles. It premiered in the U.S. in April 2010. Peter Pan plays at the PAC through November 21. Tickets are $30 to $75, and special tours and packages are available. See www.OCPAC.org or call 714.556.2787.

Flight to Neverland. Photo by Kevin Berne

EVITTE PALMER7:30 p.m.-11 p.m. Live music at The Vintage. 26701 B Verdugo St., SJC, 949.661.3400, www.thevintagesteakhouse.com.

ABOUT OUR REVIEWS: In each issue we’ll highlight universally critical points including “Most Popular Dish,” “Best Known For” and “Price Range.” But most importantly, we’re inviting you to participate each week and rate the restaurant based on your experiences. Go to www.thecapistranodispatch.com and under “Restaurant Guide,” rate it from 1 to 5, then share your thoughts on the Dispatch forums.

GETTING OUTRATE IT!

Have you eaten at this restaurant? Go to www.thecapistranodispatch.com and rate your overall experi-

ence. We’ll post the results in next week’s issue of The Dispatch.

sunday17SAVED BY THE MISSION BELL8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Children and adults can listen to Spanish-speaking audio tours at the Mission daily. Admission of $5-$9. 26801 Ortega Hwy., SJC, 949.234.1300, www.missionsjc.com.

BACHMAN & TURNER8 p.m. The rock ‘n’ roll giants play at The Coach House also with Twice Fooled. Tickets $35. 33157 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.496.8930, www.thecoachhouse.com.

tuesday19PRESCHOOL STORYTIME11 a.m. Children ages 3 to 6 and their caregivers are invited for stories, rhymes, crafts and fun. Session runs through Oct. 26. No registration required. 31495 El Camino Real, SJC, 949.493.1752, www.ocpl.org.

2-FOR-1 TUESDAYSHalf-price on all fi shing trips, whale watching and other adven-tures at Dana Wharf every Tuesday. 34675 Golden Lantern, Dana Point, 949.496.5794, www.danawharf..

JOHN TROY8 p.m. Live music at BeachFire Ladera Ranch. 25682 Crown Valley, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

monday18

Last issue online voters gave

Mario’s by the Sea

32545 Golden Lantern, Suite F,Dana Point, 949.240.1967

(Rated on a scale of 1–5 stars)

Web Extra: Online voters gave

saturday16THE VINTAGE: FAREWELL TO THE SWALLOWS6 p.m.-10 p.m. Annual celebration at the Mission featuring food, live entertainment, casino, auction and more. Proceeds benefi t local busi-nesses. Tickets $75 each or $850 for a table for 10. 26801 Ortega Hwy., SJC, 949.493.4700, www.thevintagesjc.com.

ARCHITECTURAL WALKING TOUR10 a.m. Discover 200 years of San Juan Capistrano architecture on a 90-minute guided walk that includes adobes, Spanish-era dwellings and modern buildings. Meet at Verdugo Street. Occurs every Satur-day. $5 donation. 949.489.0736.

ERIC BIBB6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Blues guitarist Eric Bibb performs as part of the Multicultural Arts Music Concerts at the Library. Tickets $10 adults, $5children 12 and under. 31495 El Camino Real, SJC, 949.493.1752, www.musicatthelibrary.com.

PET ADOPTION10 a.m.-2 p.m. The Ark of San Juan hosts a pet adoption at Pets Plus in San Juan Capistrano off Del Obispo & Camino Capistrano. 949.388.0034, www.ArkOfSanJuan.org.

OKTOBERFEST5 p.m. German beer & dinner specials, contests, dancing, bagpipe Band, etc. at BeachFire Ladera. 25682 Crown Valley, Ladera Ranch, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

STEAK NIGHT6 p.m. Get your steaks made-to-order at Swallow’s Inn and enjoy drink specials and more. 31786 Camino Capistrano, SJC, 949.493.3188, www.swallowsinn.com.

SPANISH BOOK GROUP7:30 p.m. Discuss books in Spanish at the library. Contact library for this month’s book. 31495 El Camino Real, 949.493.1752, www.ocpl.org.

*For our full calendar, visit the “Event Calendar” at www.thecapistranodispatch.com

Have an event?Send your listing to [email protected]

wednesday20INDIAN BASKET WEAVING10 a.m.-1 p.m. The fi rst and third Wednesdays of the month, expe-rience the art of basket-weaving at the Mission. Admission $5-$9. 26801 Ortega Hwy., SJC, 949.234.1300, www.missionsjc.com.

BILINGUAL STORYTIME11 a.m. Children of all ages are invited for stories and crafts in Spanish and English. No registration required.31495 El Camino Real, SJC, 949.493.1752, www.ocpl.org.

ROB ELLER8 p.m. Soulful Originals at BeachFire Ladera Ranch. 25682 Crown Valley, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

thursday21THE JONNY FULLWOOD6:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Live music at The Vintage. 26701 B Verdugo St., SJC, 949.661.3400, www.thevintagesteakhouse.com.

JOAN OSBORN8 p.m. The hit female artist performs at The Coach House also with Sasha Evans and Alyssa Jacey. Tickets $25. 33157 Camino Capist-rano, SJC, 949.496.8930, www.thecoachhouse.com.

DANNY MAIKA8 p.m. Music at BeachFire Ladera Ranch. 25682 Crown Valley, 949.542.7700, www.beachfi re.com.

(Cont. from page 21)

Enne Cucina Italiana

647 Camino de los Mares, San Clemente, 949.940.8845

(Rated on a scale of 1–5 stars)


31111 Rancho Veijo Road, San Juan Capistrano, 949.240.8100, www.mrbspizza.com

BEST KNOWN FOR: Italian pizza, sandwiches and pastaMOST POPULAR ITEM: The Godfather Pizza

A taste of Italy—or should we say, a slice of Italy—awaits at Mr. B’s Pizza Kitchen. Owner Richard Bracamonte has been serving up homemade Italian food since opening in Febru-ary 2010. His menu boasts a variety of favorites, including the Godfather pizza. Topped with cheese, sausage, pepperoni, bell peppers, black olives, onion and capicola, this pie really is a meal you can’t refuse. Another favorite, the Torpedo sandwich, is served with salami, pro-volone, mortadella and all the fi xings. Customer care sets Mr. B’s pizza apart—they aim to please by offering pizza of every thickness, from super thin to extra thick, with every topping from fresh tomato to meatballs. Everything is made to order, just the way you like it. Mr. B’s also puts a regional twist on the traditional with the brand new Capistrano pizza. The Capist-rano’s toppings uphold the town’s south-of-the-border fl are with beans, jalapeños and chorizo. A tasty way to top off your meal is with a homemade cannoli—a pastry shell fi lled with sweet Ricotta cream and chocolate chips, lightly dusted with powdered sugar—delizioso!

PRICE RANGE: $3.45-$25.95 PAYMENT: Cash, credit card RESERVATIONS: Not necessary HOURS: Tuesday-Sunday 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

By Rachel Namson and Madi SwayneDispatch Restaurant SpotlightMr. B’s Pizza Kitchen

Owner Richard Bracamonte (center), with Luis Galindos and Jose Perez. Photo by Madi Swayne

The Social Network Succeeds

AT THE MOVIES

Twenty years ago, if you worked with computers on a daily basis you were either an engineer or bona fi de nerd. But now these types of people can also be the brains behind the most popular websites on the Internet. And with this in mind, enter David Fincher’s latest feature fi lm, The Social Network.

Set in Fall 2003, a genius Harvard undergrad named Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) goes on a date with a girl he likes (Rooney Mara), but discovers by the end of the date that she was completely turned off by his overall persona. He ends up getting drunk and ranting about her on his blog, and ultimately creates a poll by the end of the night comparing college girls’ faces—obtaining pictures of them through illegal hacker means. Mark then gains notoriety overnight and is then hired by two hot shot Harvard athlete twins (simultaneously played by Armie Hammer) to build a social network exclusively for Harvard students.

Mark agrees, but decides midway through the project to make the network his sole creation—bringing along his best friend Eduardo (Andrew Garfi eld), Napster founder Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake) and over a million college student members to his private online community called Facebook.

The Social Network isn’t about Facebook and its content or users, but the odd guy who made it all happen just to gain some attention, and ended up having it explode his face. Much like Citizen Kane, Mark is a rather lonely protagonist who tries to change all that with a mixture of excess and success. Fincher and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin spend little time showing us the actual site, tapping into the arrogance and thoughtlessness of these brash kids who thought they couldn’t go wrong. Sorkin’s sharp dialogue, Fincher’s cinematic vision, fresh acting from Eisenberg, Garfi eld and Hammer and a unique, electronic score by Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor, collaborate to give us the most interesting fi lm of the fall season so far, which by the last scene, still feels like it’s only begun. CD —Megan Bianco

Jesse Eisenberg as “Mark Zuckerberg” in The Social Network. © Columbia Tristar

4LIFE IN OUR COMMUNITY

SJC LIVING

4COMMUNITY CALENDARfriday 10.08

Coffee Chat8 a.m. The Capistrano Dispatch hosts a spirited town hall forum on commu-nity issues. All are welcome. Camino Real Playhouse, on El Camino Real, just south of Ortega Highway. Occurs every Friday.

saturday 10.09

Second Saturday Art Fair10 a.m.–4 p.m. Artists of all mediums fi ll the downtown and live music fi lls the air.

tuesday 10.12

CUSD Board of Education Meeting 7 p.m. CUSD Headquarters, 33122 Valle Road, www.capousd.org

Friday 10.15

Coffee Chat8 a.m. Representatives of The Home Depot present preliminary plans for a home-improvement store on the Lower Rosan. The public is encouraged to attend. Camino Real Playhouse, on El Camino Real, just south of Ortega Highway.

tuesday 10.19

City Council Meeting6:30 p.m. City Hall, 32400 Paseo Adelanto.

Wednesday 10.20

Special City Council Meeting5 p.m. City Hall, 32400 Paseo Adelanto. The council works on its long-term vi-sion plan for the city.

Friday 10.22

Next regular issue of The Dispatch publishes.

Mission Announces Plans for New Front Gate

ission San Juan Capistrano offi cials used their 2010 Romance of the Mission fundraiser as the stage to announce plans for a new entry and gift

shop that will preserve a 1770’s historic building and return it to use as a museum.

The September 10 gala, which honored Gilbert Aguirre of Rancho Mission Viejo for his dedication to historic preservation, netted $198,000.

“This fundraiser was the beginning of a new chapter in the Mission’s history,” said Mission San Juan Capist-rano Executive Director Mechelle Lawrence. “The Gate House Preservation Project will be nothing short of excellence in design, safety, compatibility and respect for the historic site.

Romance of the Mission featured a magnifi cent live concert in the ruins of the Great Stone Church with Orange County native and internationally acclaimed soprano Robin Follman. Backed by the Ron Kobayashi Quartet, also of Orange County, Follman captivated

guests with a wide selection of both classical and contemporary music.

Aguirre, Rancho Mission Viejo’s Vice President of Operations, was recognized as honorary event chair

MThe Capistrano Dispatch


Left: Gilbert Aguirre, photographed here with former Mayor Wyatt Hart, was honored at the Mission Gala. Right: George O’Connell, photographed with his wife, Eden, is a longtime Mission supporter who emceed the event. Courtesy photos

by Mission Preservation Foundation Board Chair George O’Connell. Aguirre has been integral to the conservation of the Serra Chapel, Great Stone Church and South Wing. CD

Seafi t Studio Opens

ity and Chamber of Commerce offi cials were on hand in September when Jessica Oltmans, center with certifi cate, opened her

SeaFit Studio on Rancho Viejo Road.SeaFit offers SPX Fitness; a Pilates-inspired

workout infusing cardio and strength training for optimal full body sculpting. Seafi t is the fi rst studio in Orange County to offer the all-new 2010 Megaformers, created by celebrity fi tness guru Sebastien Lagree, founder of SPX Fitness and Pilates Plus.

Oltmans, a mother of four children under six, said she had limited time to spend at the gym, and her search on how to stay active led her to SPX Fitness. “My life was changed forever,” she said. “I am very proud to offer this amazing, safe and unique 45-minute full-body workout to South Orange County.”

SeaFit is at 31654 Rancho Viejo Road, Ste. A. (Ironically, next to Wendi’s Donuts.) Call 949.388.0002 or see www.seafi tstudio.com CD

C

By Jonathan VolzkeThe Capistrano Dispatch

SJC LIVING

Volunteers Haul 2 Tons from Creek

ore than 300 volunteers removed roughly 1.5 tons of trash and a half ton of recyclables from San Juan Capistrano’s creeks during the annual

creek clean up day September 25.The event, which was part of a statewide cleanup

of beaches and inland waterways, attracted groups, organizations, individuals, families and friends who met at Los Rios Park before scouring the creek picking up litter.

Mayor Lon Uso welcomed the crowd and spoke about the importance of what people do for the environ-

ment. Councilman Mark Nielsen echoed the impor-tance of caring for the environment, and Mayor Pro Tem Laura Freese—who rode her bike to the event—said she was elated to see the dedicated volunteers take part in such a wonderful event.

Cleaning the creeks and watersheds that drain to the ocean keeps trash and debris from ending up on local beaches.

Before and after the event at Los Rios Park, volun-teers enjoyed breakfast sponsored by the Bagel Shack and a barbecue lunch provided by the San Juan Capist-rano Rotary Club.

The city expressed gratitude to the volunteers and



Shea Barbecue Raises $400,000

ore than 1,500 attendees at the Annual BBQ and Family Faire helped raise $400,000 during The Shea Center’s annual fundraising event

to benefit therapeutic equestrian programs that serve people with disabilities.

The September 25 event began with demonstrations by Shea Center riders assisted by staff and volunteers. The eight demo riders—ages 3 to 78—are representa-tive of The Shea Center’s more than 500 clients that will be served during 2010. Eighty percent of all Shea Center riders are under age 18.

As emcee and auctioneer, Shawn Parr of Go Coun-try 105 brought high energy and enthusiasm to the event, raising more than $16,000 in the live auction and $206,000 in the Fosheim Fund—a fund named for long-time supporters Penny and Jon Fosheim—which supports financial aid and program needs. Gifts made by the Klein and O’Connell families set the tone at $50,000 each.

Athletes from JSerra Catholic High School and St. Margaret’s Episcopal School helped prepare the center for the event and clean up afterward, while members of the National Charity League helped during the barbecue.

The Shea Center served 390 people during 2009 and expects to serve nearly 500 in 2010. Services offered include physical, occupational and speech therapies. Nearly 450 volunteers are active each year at the orga-nization, which relies almost entirely on donations for its $2 million annual operations budget.

For more information, go to www.sheacenter.org or call 949.240.8441 x109. CD


Above: Members of the lacrosse team from St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, above, volunteered to help get the Shea Center ready for the barbecue, as did members of the JSerra Catholic High School baseball team and other volunteers. Courtesy photo

Left: Shea rider Charlie H. is helped by leader Judy Shumaker, sidewalker on the right Susan Alexander and sidewalker on the left Savannah Stubban.

Photo by Joseph Mason

Left: Cole Robinson, 3, with Hope Crossing Church was at the cleanup with his father, Matt Robinson of Ladera Ranch. Middle: Teacher Ann Lewis, with her children Weston, 10, Lily, 9, cleaned the banks with their friend, Marty Romero, 12. Right: The Henson family, Corey, Mike and Cali, 9, waded in to help. Photos by Jonathan Volzke

groups that participated, including the Surfrider Foun-dation; Great Opportunities; Trout Unlimited; Ortega 4H Rangers; San Juan Capistrano Rotary Club; Hope Crossing Community Church; Church of Jesus of Latter Day Saints; and members of the City’s Youth Advisory Board. CD

SJC LIVING


Army Again Wins Chili Cook-Off

he Army’s 1394th Transportation Group again took top honors at Homefront America’s Grubfest chili cook off on September 26 at St. Margaret’s

Episcopal School.The Army’s team took first place last year, too. USC

Alumni, South Orange County Chapter won 1st place in the civilian category. The Submarine Squadron 11 won second place overall for Best Chili, and The Marine Air Group (MAG 11) came in third overall, but

did win for the Best Decorated Booth. Organizer Maime Maywhort reported that despite

100-degree temperatures (and trouble with the beer truck) Homefront America raised a little more than $20,000. The Capistrano-based charity uses the money to support military families.

In the dunk tank, Capistrano’s Chief of Police Services Lt. Dan Dwyer was the top money-earner, as folks paid a total of $129 to drop him the watere. Mayor Lon Uso was the second-most-popular target. Dwyer’s charity for the money was the troops. CD

TThe Capistrano Dispatch

GILA JONES: Guest View

Capo Helps Shape New Housing Law’ve often heard council members and city staff remark that it was un-reasonable for the State of Califor-

nia to require San Juan to build more affordable housing. We already had a large supply of small condos in the downtown and other areas, they rea-soned, and it seemed we were unfairly “not getting credit” for the affordable units already here.

I applied to the city’s Housing Advisory Commit-tee in 2009 determined to understand this issue and whether it could be changed.

In my 18 months on the committee I’ve learned a lot about the state’s affordable housing laws, much more than you want to read about. Here are the main, but somewhat simplified, points.

1) Most people think “affordable housing” is what-ever is available in a community at a cheap price. It’s cheap because it’s undesirable.

2) That’s not the state’s definition of affordable hous-ing. To the State of California, an affordable housing unit is one that’s been set aside specifically for people with demonstrable low incomes.

3) Affordable housing is not (usually) privately owned. It’s generally owned by a government agency or a non-profit housing corporation and rented to quali-fying individuals at a controlled price.

This means that although San Juan Capistrano may have a lot of what seems like “affordable housing,” almost none of it meets the state’s definition. The units aren’t being rented to people with proven financial need, and the tenants pay market rates rather than controlled affordable rates.

Though I came to understand these constraints,

they seemed wrong. All over Orange County I see low income families living in crowded, poorly maintained apartments and condos. I thought the State should allow cities to purchase, refurbish, and rent some of these units to qualifying people. Why should cities be required to supply only new affordable units? What about the people living in substandard existing homes? Weren’t they being ignored in the drive to build new?

I began thinking about ways the law could be changed to allow cities like San Juan to help our low income residents, improve older neighborhoods, and meet part of our State affordable housing mandate.

Then-Mayor Mark Nielsen and I tried to interest several state legislators in this problem, but it wasn’t until the city’s lobbyist, Townsend Public Affairs, got involved that we finally started to make headway. Eventually I began working with the Townsend staff and San Juan’s Housing and Redevelopment Coordi-nator, Laura Stokes, to write language for a bill. With Townsend’s help, Assemblywoman Diane Harkey agreed to be the bill’s author and last February our bill, AB 1867, was finally introduced into the Assembly.

Laura Stokes and I continued to work on the bill with our lobbyist and the assemblywoman’s staff throughout the year. It passed the Assembly in April and the State Senate in August, and we spent Septem-ber waiting impatiently to hear whether Governor Schwarzenegger would sign it into law. On Tuesday, September 28, after hundreds of meetings, emails, and phone calls, we learned he had done so.

AB 1867 will allow California cities to meet up to 25 percent of their affordable housing requirement by purchasing and refurbishing existing condos and making them available to qualified renters at afford-able rates. In San Juan it’s anticipated that the units we

I

GILA JONES

obtain will be part of a program similar to our success-ful Little Hollywood program, which has helped many low income people move from substandard housing to affordable rentals.

Finally we can “get credit” for housing we already have, while improving low income neighborhoods and making sure deserving low income people have access to safe, uncrowded, and well-maintained homes. It took many months of work, but in the end the City of San Juan Capistrano got everything we’d hoped for.

Gila Jones has lived in San Juan Capistrano for 30 years, where she raised two children, owned two homes, worked, worshipped and volunteered. She is chairwoman of the city’s Housing Advisory Commission, but any views expressed here are solely her own. She is also the Demo-cratic candidate for State Senate representing San Juan Capistrano.

Larry Thomas Receives Mayor’s Business Award

arry Thomas, who founded Independence Bank with his brother Chuck in 2004, is the recipient of the Mayor’s Award for 2010 Business Leader

of the Year.Mayor Lon Uso presented Thomas with the award

on September 21. Thomas also serves on the board of the Chamber of Commerce and is often present at City Council meetings to speak in favor of the city’s business community.

Independence Bank’s assets today are $350 million. Larry serves as First Vice President and manages the bank’s operations in South Orange County.

Larry and Chuck Thomas founded Independence Bank with the philosophy the business should be a good corporate citizen, and in addition to his posi-tions on the Chamber board, including serving as President last year, he is past president of the Costa Mesa Sunrise Rotary and is a member of the board of trustees for the Capistrano Valley Symphony.

His chamber friends and co-workers surprised him with a celebratory party at San Juan Hills Golf Course after he received the honor.

Larry and his wife, Brenda, live in San Clemente and have five sons and seven grandchildren. CD

LThe Capistrano Dispatch

Left: Capistrano’s own Leslie and Jim Leone, champion gun spinners, put on a demonstration that whipped Jim into shape. Right: Wives and members of the Marine Corps 1/11, Capistrano’s “adopted” battalion, were on hand for the Great Western Grubfest. Although local favorites, the Army’s chili won out. Photos by Joseph Mason

Chamber Executive Director Mark Bodenhamer with Business of the Year recipient Larry Thomas, Chamber President Becky Rodarte and Bill Cole at a celebration of Thomas’ honor at the San Juan Hills Golf Course. Photo by Lauralyn Loynes

SJC LIVING


DON TRYON: Old San Juan

The Historic Garcia Adobeur wonderful old Mission is, without a doubt, the oldest and most historic structure

in town. And certainly the remaining few little adobes are almost as old and historic, however my favorite adobe is the Garcia Adobe. Located on Camino Capistrano, it’s one of the few remain-ing two-story Monterey adobes left in California and the only one in Orange

County near the El Adobe de Capistrano Restaurant. Justifiably it’s on the National Register of Historic Places and possibly the second most historic building, after the Mission, in town. Its history is rich and the legends are fascinating.

The adobe was built in 1841 by Don Manuel Gar-cia, known as “El Portugues” because he came from Portugal. It first became known as Casa de Tapanco. Back then, and briefly for Mexican government politi-cal reasons, our town was called Pueblo San Juan de Arguello. Garcia operated a store on the lower floor and rented rooms above for travelers along the El Camino Real. This was our first hotel which became a stage coach stop and tavern. In earlier times travelers would have been accommodated at the Mission.

In 1857 Juan Flores, California’s infamous bandito, and his “Manilas” raided San Juan and looted many of its stores in town including the one run by Manuel Garcia and Miguel Kraszewski. In a store nearby, Jorge Pflugardt was killed when his store was looted during the raid. Meanwhile, Miguel hid in a large Spanish bas-ket while the raiders sat down nearby at a table in his store and had dinner. Either the raiders did not see him, or ignored him, but he lived to tell this hair-raising tale.

Garcia left town shortly afterward and the adobe changed hands several times. In the 1870s, the first American-era post office was established in the adobe. Later Domingo Oyharzabal, a Basque sheepherder, purchased it sometime around 1880. Garcia previously had only partially covered the ground floor with a second story, so Domingo completed the second story and installed the beautiful carved balcony and wooden

railing with a very striking lace-like filigree design. After refurbishing the adobe, he established it as the French Hotel. The name picked was probably because he was French-Basque.

The late Father St. John O’Sullivan, Mission Restor-er, had written that this hotel was a popular spot for the townspeople to gather and await the stage coach when it pulled into town. They enjoyed meeting the passen-gers and hear all the latest news from Los Angeles and San Diego. There was no TV or radio then and newspa-pers were scarce. Many of the passengers would stay over to see the Mission ruins or visit the San Juan Hot Springs, northeast of town. The stop was a welcome rest as stage coach travel was arduous, dusty and dirty.

Domingo Oyharzabal and his descendents continued to operate a general merchandise store downstairs and the hotel above for many years. They also had a barn with some out-buildings in back and operated a small farm. Next door is the historic Domingo Yorba Adobe in which descendent Carmen Oyharzabal lives. Ynez For-ster Romer operated the La Casa de Adobe Restaurant downstairs in the Garcia Adobe in the 1940s and special-ized in Spanish dishes. On the north side of the adobe a one story structure was built in the 1930s and was first

O

DON TRYON

used as a garage and later converted into a small store. When Carmen’s mother, Eugenia, passed away in

1996, she willed the Garcia and Yorba adobes, along with the barn and out-buildings, to the Diocese of Orange with the proviso that Carmen be permitted to reside in the Yorba Adobe until she passes away. A few renters had used the Garcia Adobe for commercial purposes and one of our venerated old timers, David Corona, and his wife Maria lived upstairs until they too passed away.

Now the adobe remains empty and no one seems to know what the plans are for its future. There is, of course, much conjecture around town. A group of townspeople had hoped the Bowers Museum would come forth and use this building for their Rancho Period Collection. Bowers Museum officials have indicated they would like to move the collection to our town but offer no money to bring it about.

Sadly the adobe sits vacant, may be deteriorating, and with an uncertain future may just melt away like so many of our former adobes. This would be a much lamented lost treasure.

Don Tryon is a Director and Archivist for the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society and member of the City Cultural Heritage Commission.

Annual Barn Dance Set for Saturday

coalition of community groups are asking residents to join them for what promises to be a fun-filled, Western night of food, music, danc-

ing, gaming tables and beer and wine tasting at the San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition’s 8th Annual Barn Dance & Equestrian Fair on Saturday, October 9 at the Blenheim Farms in San Juan Capistrano.

Tickets for the event, which runs from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., will be available online and at the door.

This year, the Barn Dance Committee will honor Rancho Mission Viejo at the Barn Dance with the Coali-tion’s Distinguished Equestrian Award for its service to the San Juan equestrian community. The award will be accepted by Gilbert Aguirre.

The San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition has once again selected St. Margaret’s Breakthrough San Juan Capistrano and Special Camp for Special Kids programs as partners for the 8th Annual Barn Dance & Equestrian Fair.

The equestrian heritage of San Juan Capistrano is one of the most unique and beloved parts of our

A

historic town, Coalition members say. This event supports the equestrian activities and facilities of our community. Proceeds from the event will also benefit

Breakthrough SJC, Special Camp for Special Kids and the San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition.

Breakthrough SJC, a year-round program sponsored by St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, works to help high-potential, under-represented students from San Juan Capistrano gain new academic and study skills and opportunity for a path to college. At the same time, Breakthrough SJC provides a positive classroom experience to 16 bright college and high school stu-dent-teachers to encourage them to consider pursuing careers in education.

Special Camp for Special Kids provides a one-of-a-kind educational and recreational summer day camp for youth with disabilities in one-to-one peer relationships with volunteer counselors. Founded and based at St. Margaret’s, Special Camp just celebrated its 19th year.

The mission of the San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition is to support the unique character and charm of the equestrian heritage of Capistrano and is devoted to maintaining the standards and infrastructure of the equestrian profile, activities and facilities.

The Coalition has hosted the Barn Dance & Eques-trian Fair to support its efforts for the past seven years.

For more information, see www.sjcec.org. CD

The Capistrano Dispatch

Photo by Jonathan Volzke

San Juan Capistrano residents Michele and Brian Maryott and their children Maxwell and Tessa, who attend St. Margaret’s, at the 2009 Barn Dance. Courtesy photo

The only directory featuring San Juan Capistrano businesses exclusivelyB u s i n e s s D i r e c t o r y

A L S O O N L I N E A T W W W . T H E C A P I S T R A N O D I S P A T C H . C O M

Locals Only

CHEC Family Resource Center 949.489.774231411 La Matanza Street, Suite B

CoMMunity ServiCeS

Jennifer Wong, Cht - Certified Hypnotherapist & Meditation Instructor 949.878.687030320 rancho viejo rd. Ste. #103, www.positiveenergyhypnosis.com

HyPnotHerAPy

Historic Mission San Juan Capistrano Exciting New Audio Tour 949.234.1300 26801 ortega Highway, www.missionsjc.com

exPerienCe tHe MiSSion

Tony Brown Design & Build 949.661.2054e-mail [email protected]

ConStruCtion ServiCeS

Oasis Air Conditioning & Heating 949.420.132131648 rancho viejo rd., Ste. A, www.oasisair.com

Air Conditioning & HeAting

Sarah Whitcomb Antique Restoration 949.234.974032432 Alipaz, Ste. B, www.sarahwhitcombantiques.com

Antique reStorAtion

Jarvis Restoration 949.362.538831942 Paseo Sagrado, www.jarvisrestoration.com

WAter dAMAge

Bryan Krueger Enterprises, Inc. 949.212.049933208 Paseo de Cerveza, Ste. B

rooF MAnAgeMent ServiCeS

Blu:Echo 949.496.481031878 del obispo (Marshalls Center)

WoMen’S CLotHing

Evergrove 949.661.2054www.evergrovemusic.com

BAndS / entertAinMent

Comerica Bank 949.234.968332022 Camino Capistrano, Suite F3, www.comerica.comIndependence Bank 949.373.1570Marbella Plaza 31107 rancho viejo rd., www.independence-bank.netPacific Mercantile Bank 949.487.420031601 Avenida Los Cerritos, Ste 100, www.pmbank.com

BAnking

Del Obispo Terrace 949.496.880232200 del obispo Street, www.delobispoterrace.com

ASSiSted Living

Law Office of Skinner & Skinner 949.248.026031461 rancho viejo rd., Ste. 103

Attorney

Star Motors 949.443.197032959 Calle Perfecto

Auto rePAir

Charisma Salon & Supply 949.240.120032301-F Camino CapistranoCurtis Michaels Hair Salon 949.240.924031882 del obispo, Ste. 150, www.curtismichaels.com

BeAuty SALon

Capistrano Health & Life 949.697.9454www.capistranohealthlife.com

inSurAnCe

Abby’s Fine Jewelry Design 949.493.363232382 del obispo, Ste. C-3, www.abbysdesigns.com

JeWeLer

Capistrano Valley Christian Schools 949.493.568332032 del obispo Street, www.cvcs.org

SCHooLS

SCP Plumbing/ CuraFlo of O.C. 949.493.242627126 Paseo espada Ste. 705, www.curaflo.com

SLAB LeAk rePAir

Orange Coast Database Association 949-489-147232422 Allipaz St., Ste. B, http://ocdatabases.itgo.com

CoMPuter trAining

Reeltime Sight and Sound 949.240.055526381 via de Anza, www.reeltimesightandsound.com

HoMe tHeAter

Reeltime Sight and Sound 949-240-055526381 via de Anza, www.reeltimesightandsound.com

teLeviSion

Mother Earth Flowers 949.493.440032158 Camino Capistrano, Ste. 105www.motherearthflorist.com

FLoriSt

Lightning Technology, Inc. 949.488.002932963 Calle Perfecto, http://www.lightningtechnology.com

BuSineSS CoMPuter ServiCeS

Las Golandrinas Mexican Food 949.240.3440 27124 Paseo espada #803, www.lasgolondrinas.biz Skimmer’s Panini Café 949.276.630031451 rancho viejo rd. #103, www.skimmerspaninigrill.com

reStAurAntS

Printing OC 949.388.488827134 Paseo espada #B 203, www.printingoc.com

Printing

The Medicine Shoppe 949.661.914131952 del obispo #270, www.medicineshoppe.com

PHArMACy

San Juan Photo & Digital 949.661.566832301 Camino Capistrano, www.sjcphotodigital.com

PHoto & digitAL LAB

Kitchen & Bath Designs 949.661.408027231 ortega Hwy., unit B

kitCHen deSign

Jarvis Restoration 949.362.538831942 Paseo Sagrado, www.jarvisrestoration.com

MoLd reMovAL

Capistrano Health & Life 949.697.9454www.capistranohealthlife.com

MortgAge

Mission Parish School 949.234.138531641 el Camino real, www.missionparishschool.org

PreSCHooLS

Sparklean Laundry 949.248.468631952 del obispo

LAundrieS

A to Z Leak Detection 949.499.4464www.atozleakdetection.com Pronto Plumbing (El Plomero) 949.246.358931878 del obispo Ste. 118-227, www.prontodrain.comSCP Plumbing/ CuraFlo of O.C. 949.493.242627126 Paseo espada Ste. 705, www.curaflo.comDC Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning www.dcplumbing.net 949.365.9044

PLuMBing

Four-A Electric 949.240.884432432 Alipaz, Ste. C, [email protected]

eLeCtriC ContrACtorS

Alerra Home Health Services 949.545.664632332 Camino Capistrano #205, www.alerra.net

Senior HoMe CAre

Adelanto Studio Yoga & Life Arts 949.705.734432118 Paseo Adelanto, Ste.9, www.adelantostudio.net

yogA

LIST YOUR BUSINESS

IN “LOCALS ONLY”

this handy, cost-friendly, go-to reference tool keeps your business in front of

potential customers 24/7.

Get your Business listeD toDay.

Call Angela edwards at 949.682.1667 or email [email protected].

DC Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning www.dcplumbing.net 949.365.9044

Air Conditioning

San Clemente Computer & Network [email protected] 949.276.1581

CoMPuter ServiCeS

Friess Electric 949.248.422232332 Camino Capistrano, Suite 102

eLeCtriCiAnS

B U S I N E S S • S P O T L I G H T

CHICK’S PLuMBING, INC.Proudly Serving South Orange County

Since 1975

949.496.9731www.chicks-plumbing.com

Lic# 310654

Capistrano Beach Steam Clean [email protected]

CArPet CLeAning

Bayside Window Cleaning 949.290.8230www.baysidewindowcleaning.com

WindoW CLeAning/PreSSure WASHing

ClassifiedsSubmit your ad online at www.thecapistranodispatch.com

Garage sale listings are FREE!Call 949.388.7700, ext. 103

949.388.7700 ext. 104

Do you want to reach 11,500+ people in the

San Juan Capistrano area?

Then you need to be in the Capistrano Dispatch.

Call us today!

Business Directory


Help WanteD

GaRaGe SalelIStInGS aRe FRee!

E-mail your garage sale to [email protected]

DEADLINE 5PM MONDAY

MISC. eDUCatIOn SeRvICeSIN-HOME TEACHERI am credentialed and have a Masters Degree in Education. I will develop lessons for students based on their current needs. I have 10 years experience in all grade levels and a high success rate with student grade improvement even with the most reluctant learner. Excellent references upon request.Call 949-363-8414.

plaCe YOUR BUSIneSS CaRD

HeRe

SATuRDAY, OCTObER 9TH Casitas Del Rio Owners Association garage sale. Located at Camino Del Avion and Alipaz. 7:00am to 12:00pm.

GaRaGe Sale

SJC LIVING


Didier Selected San Juan Hills’ Homecoming Queen

arian Didier, known as simply “D” around the San Juan Hills High campus, was named 2010 Home-coming Queen during half-time of the September

30 football game.Members of the court include Lauren Adagio, Jordan

Anderson, Mega Merda and Negeen Sadeghi.Darian is actively involved in fashion and taking the

ROP class Careers in Fashion. After high school, she plans to continue her love of fashion by attending the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and becoming a fashion stylist. In Darian’s spare time she enjoys relaxing at the beach. Darian was escorted by

her father, Dave Didier.Adagio was also escorted by her father, JP Adagio.

Lauren enjoys swimming and baking. Anderson, nicknamed Jojo, was escorted by her

father, Dave Anderson. Jordan enjoys drawing, acting and dancing and is a member of both National Honor Society and Mariners. Jordan is an active member of the drama department and has participated in eight school productions. After high school, Jordan plans on attending college.

Homecoming court nominee Megan Merda was escorted by her father, Brad Merda. Megan is on the varsity volleyball team and in the yearbook class. She plans on attending the University of Oregon after high school.

D

By Jonathan VolzkeThe Capistrano Dispatch

Group photo left to right: Lauren Adagio, Jordan Anderson, Darian Didier, Megan Merda and Negeen Sadeghi react as Didier is crowned Homecoming Queen. Photos by Joseph Mason

Darian Didier, Megan Merda and Negeen Sadeghi react as Didier is crowned Homecoming Queen. Photos by Joseph Mason

By Jonathan Volzke Nominee Negeen Sadeghi, escorted by her father, Saeed Sedeghi, enjoys blogging, singing and Persian dancing. She is currently a member of ASB and holds the position of Senior Class President. She is also a member of the Habitat for Humanity Club and loves to watch San Diego Chargers football. After high school Negeen plans to go to college to study business.

San Juan Hills, which has not had a graduating class yet, celebrated Homecoming with a rousing half-time show patterned after the Mario Broth-ers video game that included all four classes of students—including SJHHS’ fi rst senior class. The football boosters hosted a Bad to the Bone tailgate party before the game. CD

Dracula Opening at San Juan Hills High

chill runs down your spine as you hear the faint sound of fl apping wings and see an ambiguous movement of dark shadows with a slight rustling

of a curtain. You catch your breath. Just as you start to relax and convince yourself it is your imagination, the menacing and mesmerizing Count Dracula steps out of the darkness.

There would be no Edward or Bella if there had not been Dracula or Lucy. For vampire fans and theatre lovers a like San Juan Hills High School Theatre Arts Department will be performing Dracula by John Balder-ston and Hamilton Deane. It is presented by special arrangement by Samuel French, Inc.

Show times are 7 p.m. on October 13, 14, 15 and 16

in the San Juan Hills High School Theatre. Tickets are $14 for Orchestra seating and $13 with ASB card and $12 for balcony and $11 with ASB card. October 13 is a special student performance, so student tickets are just $5 with school I.D.

The show is directed by Robb Rigg, with Student Di-rector Brooke Dettman. The stage is managed by Lind-sey Treff and Jordan Anderson, and Scenic Design is by Mitch Keller, Sound Design by Megan Walley and Jake LaRosa and Lighting Design by Amy Cheever.

The cast includes Cody Nord as Count Dracula, Teryn Gray as Lucy Seward, Evan Frolov as Van Hels-ing, Leo Moneymaker as Renfi eld, Taylor Block as John Harker, Sara Scolieri as Mina, Wylie Simpson as Dr. Seward, Elizabeth Drake as Wells and Jon Phillips as Butterworth. CD

AThe Capistrano Dispatch

5STORIES, SCORES, SCHEDULES & MORE

SPORTS& OUTDOORS

5


Don’t Ever Underestimate the Heart of a Champion

wo words: Will Acromite. From three touchdowns in the

fi rst half, to four touchdowns in a game, it couldn’t have been scripted any better. A 45-16 rout has made Will Acromite’s stock go higher than any other because of his pocket awareness.

If you made a bubble map about Will Acromite’s game on Thursday night, it would be full of adjective phrases. On the timing routes, he threw the ball into a position where only a receiver can get it, and on third downs he understood his hot route to fi re on third downs. Also, when he threw the screens he got it out at the perfect timing so the defensive line would not be able to catch Michael Perriman. Lastly, his second touchdown in the 2nd quarter was in the back of the end zone to a tight end which tells you a lot. From a quarterback standpoint, he did a “look off” (looking at a receiver, but fi ring it to a different one) in which only a hand select of quarterbacks can do that very well, and I believe that Will is one of them. Aside from Acromite, Perriman went 98 yards all the way on a touch-down in the fourth quarter. Neverthe-less, the ground game wasn’t as impres-sive as expected, which to me was OK for the game because Acromite made plays. Even though we are making a big deal about the offense for this game, there is still 66 percent of the game we haven’t covered yet.

As lax in coverage as the Stallions were, they made third down as tough as making a 10-story house by yourself. There is not one player on the defen-sive side of the ball that you call M.V.P. (Most Valuable Player) because it was a collected effort by the T-E-A-M. The key area for the defense was defi nitely the line backing core because on third down, they made sure University couldn’t get close to a fi rst down. Also, this line backing core in a 3-4 set caused pressure

By Cameron SadeghiThe Capistrano Dispatch

T

Nuggets vs. Clippers, Staples CenterOctober 14, 7:30 p.m.

NBA preseason basket-ball is in full swing. Head to Los Angeles if you have the time and take in a fun game as the Clippers host the Denver Nuggets.Info: www. nba.com/clippers

5 BEST BETSCougars vs. Dolphins, Tesoro High SchoolOctober 8, 7:30 p.m.

The Mustangs are on a roll this season and will look to continue its solid momentum as they host Huntington BeachInfo: www.sjhhs.org

Toronto FC vs. Chivas USA, Home Depot CenterOctober 9, 7:30 p.m.

Head out to the Home Depot Center to watch another solid MLS battle on the pitch as Chivas USA hosts Toronto FC.Info: www.homedepotcenter.

com

Chargers vs. Dolphins, Dana Hills High SchoolOctober 12, 5 p.m.

The Dolphins are ready to bring the heat and continue their dominat-ing ways as they host a tough El Toro crew in a key match.Info: www.dhhs.net

FOOTBALL SOCCER BOYS WATER POLO BASKETBALL

Friars vs. LionsSaddleback Valley CollegeOctober 15, 7:30 p.m.

JSerra looks to prove their resolve in the tough Trinity League as they face the top-ranked Servite Friars at Saddleback College.Info: www.jserra.org

FOOTBALL

Stallions Romp University in Homecoming Game

through the “a gap” (the space between the center and guards) to get sacks. Lastly, throughout the whole game they only gave up 14 points which is really hard to do at such a higher echelon of football level.

You could make the argument that the kicking game was sub-par because George Winckel, a hero with a game-winner earlier this season, had trouble with extra points in the rain, but again this aspect of the game has never been a weakness. For kickers, the experi-ence of kicking in the rain is worse than going to the dentist offi ce. But, for George Winckel it was a blessing in disguise to miss all those kicks because

Michael Perryman catches a touchdown pass from Will Acromite over two University defenders.Photo by Joseph Mason

if he ever decides to go into the NFL he will be able to kick under any circum-stances. For a lot of people, that was the main topic, but Kyle Bauer set the tempo for the game in the fi rst quarter with a blocked punt return for a touch-down. As inconsistent as the Stallions were in the Special Teams game, they nevertheless faced adversity through-out the game.

The arrogance of one group of people could have caused a melee in seconds, but the discipline of the Stal-lions didn’t create havoc. Who could it be, it can’t be the referees? Well, yes, the referees had a huge effect on the game morally and from a football

standpoint. According to one of my sources, one referee threatened Jeff Zawoysky by saying, “watch it kid,” after Jeff hit him on accident. Secondly, the 2:1 ratio favored University when a numerous amount of times there should have been holding calls on University after big runs in the fourth quarter. I am not showing any bias, but through the course of the game University couldn’t get anything on the ground. The last bit of criticism would be that they also needed to go to “Football 101,” because they took fi ve minutes to decipher each call.

A coach that has been from such inferior beginnings to reaching now the pinnacle of high school football, who is it? Oh, that’s Coach Greg Gibson because he did something that NFL coaches do…open the playbook! The offensive formation that he uses all the time is the double wing offense, but he called out a pro style offense (an NFL offense that uses a various amount of formations). Coach Gibson made the game more simplistic because when you spread the fi eld out in the shotgun, you force the defensive line to go back in coverage. Since University didn’t understand what to do for the fact they were in a 4-3 defense, it became a game of picking apart the defense in man to man coverage. The presence of mind for such a man and a team that’s faced pity in the media, has now been well characterized as a winner.

THE NEXT TWO GAMES FOR THE STALLIONS ARE:

At Tesoro against Huntington Beach @ 7:30 p.m.

At El Toro @ 7 p.m.

*Both are on Fridays*

Cameron Sadeghi is a 12-year-old San Juan Capistrano resident who aspires to be a sportswriter. CD

the capistrano dispatch

Documents

decisionsthe city council

city council seats

san juan capistranos

fi ve years

city hall reorganization

kramer reports

council members

fi ll crockers spot