Audit of cleanup costs set
Rialto efforts to clean water to get a review
By Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/23/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - With the tab climbing to the $20million mark, the City Council has agreed to get an audit of its expenditures to clean up drinking water contaminated with perchlorate.
The city's cleanup strategy has relied heavily on lawsuits against dozens of corporations and government entities it has accused of contributing to the problem, which could cost $200million to $300million to clean up.
"We need to assure the public that it's being spent wisely and properly," said Councilman Ed Scott, who said he called for the audit.
The audit is only intended to make sure no money is being wasted, not to question the city's legal strategy, Scott said.
At a recent council meeting, Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said the warrant resolution the council was supposed to approve showed an identical payment being made twice.
That turned out not to be the case, but Scott said he thinks the audit is important "to make sure billing and invoicing has been done properly." He said he also wants to make sure the attorneys are actually working the hours they say they are and that more than one attorney or consultant are not doing the same work.
Baca has also complained that he doesn't know exactly where
the money is going. The city does not disclose all that the law firms are paid in the warrant resolutions to keep that information from the parties it is suing, said City Attorney Bob Owen.
The audit comes at a critical time during the city's efforts to clean up the chemical, which can be harmful to humans by interfering with the thyroid gland. In July, the city's legal team is scheduled to argue before the State Water Resources Control Board at hearings that could force three corporations to clean up much of the contamination.
"Now is not the time to blink," said Owen.
He said he is confident the audit will show the money is being spent properly.
In addition to the state board hearings, in 2004 the city sued 42 entities, including the Defense Department, San Bernardino County and a number of corporations, to get them to clean up the contamination. Last year, Rialto filed an additional suit against the county in state court.
Although Scott insisted that the majority of the council still supports the lawsuits and that the audit to be conducted by the firm McGladrey & Pullen LLP will have a narrow focus, Baca has used the opportunity to call into question the city's strategy.
"I'm concerned about there being a blank check out there for the attorneys," Baca said.
He said he wants to know exactly where the money is being spent, whether it is the wisest use of city resources and if there are other ways besides the lawsuits to clean up the perchlorate. He said he also wants to find out if city staff can do some of the work the city is paying attorneys and consultants to do.
Mayor Pro Tempore Winnie Hanson agreed with Scott that the audit is narrowly intended to make sure the money is being spent properly.
"It's not about the strategy," she said.
The $20 million number includes the cost of the attorneys, experts to investigate the contamination, treatment systems to remove perchlorate from the drinking water and an informational campaign to keep the community informed. The number reflects the amount the city has spent since 1998, Owen said.
The city's water department charges a perchlorate fee to its customers to provide funds for the effort. If the city wins its suits, it will reimburse the ratepayers for those costs.
A few months ago, the council transferred $5million from the General Fund to speed up the federal lawsuit, but Scott said the lawsuits have not been sped up, and he doesn't want the city to pay an additional $5million every year.
Before the audit begins, Scott and Hanson, the members of the council's perchlorate committee, will meet with the auditors on Monday to discuss the scope of the audit. The cost of the audit should be clearer at that point.
Baca, who was elected to the council in November, has been critical of the city's strategy to clean up the perchlorate. He said the city should consider scaling back the lawsuits.
Other members of the council and Owen have said that the litigation is necessary in order to make sure the polluters - not taxpayers - pay to clean up the perchlorate.
Owen also argues that without the information the city has uncovered through the lawsuits, it would not have the evidence necessary to convince the state water board to order the polluters to clean up the perchlorate.
Owen warned against "playing politics with this important public-health issue."
He said he is also concerned the suspected polluters will think there is dissension on the council over whether to continue pursuing them right before the state board hearings.
"It's very irresponsible for somebody to begin doing that," he said.
Contact writer Jason Pesick at (909) 386-3861 or via e-mail at jason.pesick@sbsun.com.
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BS Ranch Perspective:
I Seriously have come to the conclusion that Baca is the only one that is on the City Council that has the brains to protect the assets that the Taxpayers of Rialto has built up. Ed Scot, and his followers have voted out already $20 Million, to the Attorney's (Owen being one that has probably benefited the most) and experts to testify in court against the Businesses, County of San Bernardino, & The Federal Government on top of this whole big mountain that they feel all are responsible in a sort of way for the contamination of Perchlorate in the Water Table, Under the grounds of North Rialto and what used to be the County of San Bernardino some 15 to 20 years ago, before Rialto took that area in through annexation!
Baca, can see that the Court might, & that is one huge might rule, that the people that Rialto is suing is only responsible for the cost of removing the Perchlorate, and not the Lawyer Fees, or Expert Costs, Which is more than likely more then $7 Million since they are paying the Lawyer's alone @ more then an estimated $165.00 an hour to sit, study, prepare, Prepare Witnesses, and find the experts for Court to Testify! Not to for get that the Experts are getting paid an estimated $135 an hour to testify, or test and prepare for court.
None of what they are doing is cheap, The city should have listened to the County of San Bernardino at the beginning, of the whole business, there was a whole payback, and help plan that is and was to be helpful to cities that are in this situation, being as Rialto, and San Bernardino County, is not the only Area to be afflicted with this problem! The other area's that had Perchlorate Ground Water Contamination, there was help, that was given to those cities and Counties to assist with their Filtration systems, through Grants, and the like. It doesn't pay for the whole Amount that is needed to get the filter's on board, but See that is what Rialto is after they want to not try to get any assistance from the Federal Government.
In order to get reimbursement for the filtration systems, you must purchase and install them, and apply for a Grant for reimbursement, similar to that of a Solar Panel System install on a Private Home. The Home Owner must install the Solar System to get the grants and Tax Relief for the Solar System.
Baca is the only one on the City of Rialto's City Council that is working with the people that he is serving. He is wanting to save money in the long run, becuase the way that they are going, the only one that is going to benefit is that of Owen, and his people that he hires to help him fight this in court! This paycheck will go nicely along with the $3/4 Million dollars that he already gets in one year from the Rialto City Taxpayers for siting through City Council Meetings and Closed Sessions Giving Legal Advice. Wow, What a guy, In this I don't know who is worse. Ed Scott for rushing to give the money away to Owen, or the rest of the council that follows Scot like he is the guy that knows the what of it.
Ed Scot was wrong with the Contract with the Sheriff Department for Law Enforcement, and he is wrong here now!!
BS Ranch
Monday, April 30, 2007
Attack on Teen Not Racial, Officals Say..The parents of boy Assaulted by three others at highland school are seeking compensation..
Attack on teen not racial, officials say
The parents of the boy assaulted by three others at Highland school are seeking compensation.
By Sara Lin, Times Staff Writer
April 28, 2007
San Bernardino County sheriff's officials investigating the assault of a 13-year-old mixed-race boy by three of his classmates in a schoolyard last month in Highland did not find evidence that the attack was racially motivated, officials said.
The boy's parents had accused the three St. Adelaide Elementary School seventh-graders of looping a rope around their son's neck and hurling racial epithets and basketballs at him during morning recess March 12.
The boy's family didn't know that racial slurs were uttered until one of the offending kids admitted it to the principal, said the boy's father, James Gill, 41.
"We never even brought up the racial aspect. Our son didn't tell us; he was embarrassed," Gill said. He described the attackers as white and Hispanic.
Gill's wife, DeVondra, then lodged a complaint about the alleged hate crime with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department. The three boys — two 12-year-olds and a 13-year-old — were cited for misdemeanor battery, said Jodi Miller, a Sheriff's Department spokeswoman.
But a sheriff's investigation didn't find evidence supporting allegations that the incident was racially motivated, said Father Howard Lincoln, spokesman for the Diocese of San Bernardino, which oversees St. Adelaide. A sheriff's spokeswoman had confirmed that conclusion earlier this week, according to the San Bernardino Sun, but Miller declined to discuss the matter Friday.
"This incident involves four seventh-grade boys ages 12 and 13 who have played together and been friends since kindergarten," Lincoln said. "Exactly what behavior occurred we don't know, and we rely on the sheriff's report, which we understand did not find evidence of a hate crime or racial epithets."
School officials seemed perplexed that the boy's parents were continuing to portray the incident as a hate crime.
The family reported the attack to school administrators the day after it happened. A school letter that had been approved by the victim's family was sent out to parents explaining the incident, Lincoln said. The boys who were implicated were told to visit the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, research the history of discrimination and present a report to their class, he said. After an investigation, the school principal told the Gills that the boys received detention.
Diocese officials thought the issue had been resolved. But in the last week, church officials received a letter from a lawyer representing the victim's family demanding that the school principal be fired. The letter also instructed the diocese to return tuition already paid and to pay for elementary, high school and college education expenses for the victim and his sister, who still attends the school. The boy who was attacked has withdrawn from the school, Lincoln said.
"The entire school community is disturbed by the degree this incident has been elevated, particularly after it appeared a resolution had been worked out between the parents of the children involved and the school administrators," Lincoln said.
Gill said his family was disappointed with the way the school had treated the incident.
"We're not calling for [the other kids'] expulsions, we're calling for this school to treat it as seriously as it is and to make it right by the school and by our family," he said.
Sheriff's officials have submitted their findings to the San Bernardino County Probation Department's juvenile division, which will make a final decision on whether to press hate crime or other charges against the three boys, Miller said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sara.lin@latimes.com
__________________________________________________________________________________
BS Ranch Perspective:
I want to say that I am happy that there is one happy thing about this report. That is that they found no evidence that it was a Racially Motivated Hate Crime! I am kind of sick of hearing about how people are not so accepting of other races. I am a person that is married to a person that is considered to be another 'Race'. Now, she is Hispanic, and I am White. My Neighbors are Black, White, Hispanic, and many other races, Yet we come together and make a great network of a Neighborhood Watch. I am happy to say that we were starting to have the Teens and well the start of gangs paint their art work on the walls, & walk ways of our neighborhood, however our neighborhood watch took it in their hands to paint over it, and the problem has not came back because the children that live here mainly know that we are going to erase what they paint. In most cases it is taken down hours after they have painted it on the walls.
The Law Suit is part of America. They should seek payment for the cost of the medical Costs and hardship, that they had to go through to care for the child in this case, that is only right in this case. The Parents in this case might just take a more serious stance on discipline for their children if they have to pay for the Medical, and Care costs, out of their pockets.
So, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and I love my neighborhood, and my neighbors. it is a great place to live, Right here. I tell you it is the smack dab in the middle class, & there are some, Like me that don't make very much at all.
Well, I will pray for the children in the School so that they don't have to be reported on in the newspaper. The families need to heal their child and get on with their lives after a brutal fight. I am sorry that this happen to them, and I pray that it doesn't happen again!!
BS Ranch
The parents of the boy assaulted by three others at Highland school are seeking compensation.
By Sara Lin, Times Staff Writer
April 28, 2007
San Bernardino County sheriff's officials investigating the assault of a 13-year-old mixed-race boy by three of his classmates in a schoolyard last month in Highland did not find evidence that the attack was racially motivated, officials said.
The boy's parents had accused the three St. Adelaide Elementary School seventh-graders of looping a rope around their son's neck and hurling racial epithets and basketballs at him during morning recess March 12.
The boy's family didn't know that racial slurs were uttered until one of the offending kids admitted it to the principal, said the boy's father, James Gill, 41.
"We never even brought up the racial aspect. Our son didn't tell us; he was embarrassed," Gill said. He described the attackers as white and Hispanic.
Gill's wife, DeVondra, then lodged a complaint about the alleged hate crime with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department. The three boys — two 12-year-olds and a 13-year-old — were cited for misdemeanor battery, said Jodi Miller, a Sheriff's Department spokeswoman.
But a sheriff's investigation didn't find evidence supporting allegations that the incident was racially motivated, said Father Howard Lincoln, spokesman for the Diocese of San Bernardino, which oversees St. Adelaide. A sheriff's spokeswoman had confirmed that conclusion earlier this week, according to the San Bernardino Sun, but Miller declined to discuss the matter Friday.
"This incident involves four seventh-grade boys ages 12 and 13 who have played together and been friends since kindergarten," Lincoln said. "Exactly what behavior occurred we don't know, and we rely on the sheriff's report, which we understand did not find evidence of a hate crime or racial epithets."
School officials seemed perplexed that the boy's parents were continuing to portray the incident as a hate crime.
The family reported the attack to school administrators the day after it happened. A school letter that had been approved by the victim's family was sent out to parents explaining the incident, Lincoln said. The boys who were implicated were told to visit the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, research the history of discrimination and present a report to their class, he said. After an investigation, the school principal told the Gills that the boys received detention.
Diocese officials thought the issue had been resolved. But in the last week, church officials received a letter from a lawyer representing the victim's family demanding that the school principal be fired. The letter also instructed the diocese to return tuition already paid and to pay for elementary, high school and college education expenses for the victim and his sister, who still attends the school. The boy who was attacked has withdrawn from the school, Lincoln said.
"The entire school community is disturbed by the degree this incident has been elevated, particularly after it appeared a resolution had been worked out between the parents of the children involved and the school administrators," Lincoln said.
Gill said his family was disappointed with the way the school had treated the incident.
"We're not calling for [the other kids'] expulsions, we're calling for this school to treat it as seriously as it is and to make it right by the school and by our family," he said.
Sheriff's officials have submitted their findings to the San Bernardino County Probation Department's juvenile division, which will make a final decision on whether to press hate crime or other charges against the three boys, Miller said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sara.lin@latimes.com
__________________________________________________________________________________
BS Ranch Perspective:
I want to say that I am happy that there is one happy thing about this report. That is that they found no evidence that it was a Racially Motivated Hate Crime! I am kind of sick of hearing about how people are not so accepting of other races. I am a person that is married to a person that is considered to be another 'Race'. Now, she is Hispanic, and I am White. My Neighbors are Black, White, Hispanic, and many other races, Yet we come together and make a great network of a Neighborhood Watch. I am happy to say that we were starting to have the Teens and well the start of gangs paint their art work on the walls, & walk ways of our neighborhood, however our neighborhood watch took it in their hands to paint over it, and the problem has not came back because the children that live here mainly know that we are going to erase what they paint. In most cases it is taken down hours after they have painted it on the walls.
The Law Suit is part of America. They should seek payment for the cost of the medical Costs and hardship, that they had to go through to care for the child in this case, that is only right in this case. The Parents in this case might just take a more serious stance on discipline for their children if they have to pay for the Medical, and Care costs, out of their pockets.
So, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and I love my neighborhood, and my neighbors. it is a great place to live, Right here. I tell you it is the smack dab in the middle class, & there are some, Like me that don't make very much at all.
Well, I will pray for the children in the School so that they don't have to be reported on in the newspaper. The families need to heal their child and get on with their lives after a brutal fight. I am sorry that this happen to them, and I pray that it doesn't happen again!!
BS Ranch
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
BAKER to VEGAS relay race/run
Rialto Police took part in the Baker to Las Vegas Relay Race April 21st & 22nd.
The Rialto Police Department, and Rialto Police Benefit Assoc. Co-Sponsored a Relay team for the Baker to Vegas (B2V) Relay race. It is a 120 Mile race that starts at Baker High School and runs to Shoshone through Pahrump, Mountain Springs, Down that Interstate 160 to Durango Ave over to West Sunset Road. and the Race ends in a Commercial Parking lot at the corner of West Sunset Road @ Dean Martin Drive.
The First leg wasn't that bad, it was a mild uphill, that was done with ease by Everyone's Favorite K-9 Handler, Fred Poching. (I have been away from the game for a long time, It has been Ten years since my Fatal Accident, where I was brought back from the dead by Sergent Tim Lane, The Brave Men and Woman of the Rialto Fire Department Paramedic's Under the Supervision of Battalion Chief Mike Peel, and all the men and woman of Rialto's SCAT Division (Street Crime Attack Team), The San Bernardino Sheriff's Helicopter (40-King), The Sheriff Deputies On the Ground from Loma Linda, Grand Terrace, Fontana, & Central Division, The California Highway Patrol, & The Men and Woman from Rialto Police Department all of whom closed off Intersections to allow the Ambulance to get from Cedar Ave @ Holly Ave to Loma Linda Hospital in 11 minutes, but that is another story for another time {Ancient history}).
Leg number two was a little more of a hill but three and four was really hard. I believe that the fourth was the worst, with hill that stayed at a 9% grade for almost the whole 6+ miles that had to be ran in that leg. The Officer that ran it Nick Named, "Kobe" Did a wonderful Job, he ran his heart out, and that hill still took a great deal out of him. The Officer that ran the Third leg, Which was the second worse Hill wise. It might have been worse since the hills varied and you could never really set a pace and stick to it since the terrain varied so much.
The B2V Leg 4 to Leg 5 was in such a remote area that they had three helicopter's on stand by to fly anyone out that needed medical attention from the Run. In years past, as many people know Baker Ca. is Known as the Hottest City in the United States. Well in years past when they ran this it was 102 degree's, however on this day it was only in upper 80's. Warm, and to some it was hot if you were not prepared for the run.
B2V Leg was a little easier to run in that it was less hill-ed, but still difficult just the same. Any 7 Mile run is difficult, but the Officer that ran the leg did it pretty well.
The main goal for The Rialto Police Team was to finish, there wasn't a real concern for placing first or getting a finish of third, but to finish, with no penalties.
I was what was called a "Catcher" for the first five legs! Myself along with another person was a "Catch Team" We were to grab a runner once they passed the baton to the next runner. Then we physically grabbed the runner and walked them to the First Aid area, the first aid station made sure that the Runner was okay and not overly exhausted and not in a heat exhaustion situation. Once they were cleared they could go on and hydrate and go home, released from the race.
Rialto Police Departments Motto this year was that they were "Back From the Dead"
It was Sep. 16, 2005 When the City Council Voted 4-1 to contract with Sheriff Penrod For Law Enforcement protection for The City of Rialto. The Citizen's and Rialto Police Benefit Association hired a lawyer and placed a huge costly fight, that ultimately forced the city to halt the Contract that was actually signed with the Sheriff for Law Enforcement Protection!!
The Stay Order came about by a Court Action brought forth by the RPBA/Rialto Citizen's Lawyer, and the City was forced to stop and keep the Rialto Police Department as it was until they could evaluate and Attempt to Re-Negotiate a new contract with the RPBA. In the mean time the City Council/City Administrator Laid off all the people that was in training & on Probation, effectively leaving the City with an emergency situation with not enough Dispatchers to field calls for service. All the Officers in the Academy were relieved of their paychecks, and laid them off as well. That left the Police Department with almost 6 Officers that were due to join the field in a few months.
They were really working on them to the point that they didn't pay to maintain any of the Police Equipment, they didn't change oil, and or anything. stating that they were going to be sold to the Sheriff Department!!
The City Administrator/City Attorney/City Council all had a lot of the Department figuring on the Cities battle loosing, and the city going to the Sheriff Department. If this was to happen, even with the lower that they were getting since none of the raises on the current contract was honored since they figured it was not going to be a contract that was going to be used. It was hard for a lot of Officers & Sergeants to take. They were expecting that extra money for raises. Then the City Admin/City Attorney/& City Council was winning, when @ the whole time it was still just a draw or the RPBA was winning, But they had convinced So many Sergeants and Officers that they lost Double digits I think the number was 12 or 15 to other Departments and the District Attorney's Office as D.A. Investigators.
The Rialto Police Department kept fighting on Even though they were working with small crews each shift, and they had to work their bottom off to keep ahead of the game.
The Citizens did a signature drive for a bill on the next ballot. This bill if made in to a law would force the City to Accept their own Police Agency for Law Enforcement Protection, and the second part of the Bill would Change the City Charter. The City Charter says that the City Council can vote any Department away my Majority Vote, as they did to remove the Police Department. IN the new Charter Change, The City Council would have to place their decision to change the Law Enforcement to a 2/3rd Majority Vote by the City of Rialto Citizens.
The Citizens collected over 7000 signatures when they only needed 4200 signatures. When the signatures were submitted to the City of Rialto Clerk, the Clerk found that the Signatures were not legally collected and could not be used for this bill. She said that there was a very small amount of signatures that were approved, not enough to make this a bill on the next ballot to vote on.
There was a huge UP-ROAR, to have this reviewed by a neutral party, and finally after so many months of people bringing up that the signatures should be reviewed by a neutral party. Then finally the city said that they would have someone form the Voters Offices to have a look at the Petition and see what signatures are collected legally and Illegally. After a five minute review they were found to be collected legally. The City Council being beat voted right then to have the Bill voted into law on the City Charter and also Voted to have the Rialto Police Department return to the Negotiation Tables to start a dialogue, and Reinstate the Police Department as it was.
They also started to purchase new Police cars and got right back on the straight in ad narrow and started to treat their Police Officers Right Again.
They had to do the right thing by getting the right guy to Run the Police department, not a guy that is going to tear down the Men and Woman and make the Department seem like it is an okay Department to the Citizens but the Officers that are working for this Chief are all corrupt, and on the Take. Chief Michael Meyers was just that kind of Leader!! This was a leader that was hired by the Current City Administrator. Garcia. It makes you wonder if that was his plan from the beginning to make Rialto a CORRUPT DEPARTMENT!! So, when the time came to close up shop and Re-Open as a Clean Contract City for the Sheriff Department, I am sure that is the full picture that we didn't get to see.
However, Rialto City Admin. Garcia Went out and got Mark Kling from Baldwin Park Police Department this time, and he did a great thing. There is a great deal of trust that has been built back up in the department and there is a whole lot of people that are loving the situation back at the Police Department again.
The reason that I am writing all this history, is because Chief Mark Kling ran the last leg of the B2V run and did a great job in doing so. When he crossed the finish line Everyone that started the race was right there at the finish line to See the Chief finish the Race. That is the kind of leader this man is. Mark Kling is real nice soft spoken leader that seems to be well on the right track to keep Rialto Police Back to what it was back in the Golden Age when I started Back in the 80's.
I am happy to see that there is so many of the Officer's that are as happy as they were at the B2V, and I am happy that I was invited to take part in this event.
Noretta, Thank You Very much for the invitation and the great time, in Vegas!! I am just sorry that I could not stay that extra day, and eat that great dinner that you spoke of.
Again, I just want to Thank the Men and Woman of Rialto Police Department for the great time.
BS Ranch
PS: Sara, Cindy,& LeAnne Maybe next time I can get some pictures of you guys in the "Portable Rented Hot Tub" to add to my blog..LOL
The Rialto Police Department, and Rialto Police Benefit Assoc. Co-Sponsored a Relay team for the Baker to Vegas (B2V) Relay race. It is a 120 Mile race that starts at Baker High School and runs to Shoshone through Pahrump, Mountain Springs, Down that Interstate 160 to Durango Ave over to West Sunset Road. and the Race ends in a Commercial Parking lot at the corner of West Sunset Road @ Dean Martin Drive.
The First leg wasn't that bad, it was a mild uphill, that was done with ease by Everyone's Favorite K-9 Handler, Fred Poching. (I have been away from the game for a long time, It has been Ten years since my Fatal Accident, where I was brought back from the dead by Sergent Tim Lane, The Brave Men and Woman of the Rialto Fire Department Paramedic's Under the Supervision of Battalion Chief Mike Peel, and all the men and woman of Rialto's SCAT Division (Street Crime Attack Team), The San Bernardino Sheriff's Helicopter (40-King), The Sheriff Deputies On the Ground from Loma Linda, Grand Terrace, Fontana, & Central Division, The California Highway Patrol, & The Men and Woman from Rialto Police Department all of whom closed off Intersections to allow the Ambulance to get from Cedar Ave @ Holly Ave to Loma Linda Hospital in 11 minutes, but that is another story for another time {Ancient history}).
Leg number two was a little more of a hill but three and four was really hard. I believe that the fourth was the worst, with hill that stayed at a 9% grade for almost the whole 6+ miles that had to be ran in that leg. The Officer that ran it Nick Named, "Kobe" Did a wonderful Job, he ran his heart out, and that hill still took a great deal out of him. The Officer that ran the Third leg, Which was the second worse Hill wise. It might have been worse since the hills varied and you could never really set a pace and stick to it since the terrain varied so much.
The B2V Leg 4 to Leg 5 was in such a remote area that they had three helicopter's on stand by to fly anyone out that needed medical attention from the Run. In years past, as many people know Baker Ca. is Known as the Hottest City in the United States. Well in years past when they ran this it was 102 degree's, however on this day it was only in upper 80's. Warm, and to some it was hot if you were not prepared for the run.
B2V Leg was a little easier to run in that it was less hill-ed, but still difficult just the same. Any 7 Mile run is difficult, but the Officer that ran the leg did it pretty well.
The main goal for The Rialto Police Team was to finish, there wasn't a real concern for placing first or getting a finish of third, but to finish, with no penalties.
I was what was called a "Catcher" for the first five legs! Myself along with another person was a "Catch Team" We were to grab a runner once they passed the baton to the next runner. Then we physically grabbed the runner and walked them to the First Aid area, the first aid station made sure that the Runner was okay and not overly exhausted and not in a heat exhaustion situation. Once they were cleared they could go on and hydrate and go home, released from the race.
Rialto Police Departments Motto this year was that they were "Back From the Dead"
It was Sep. 16, 2005 When the City Council Voted 4-1 to contract with Sheriff Penrod For Law Enforcement protection for The City of Rialto. The Citizen's and Rialto Police Benefit Association hired a lawyer and placed a huge costly fight, that ultimately forced the city to halt the Contract that was actually signed with the Sheriff for Law Enforcement Protection!!
The Stay Order came about by a Court Action brought forth by the RPBA/Rialto Citizen's Lawyer, and the City was forced to stop and keep the Rialto Police Department as it was until they could evaluate and Attempt to Re-Negotiate a new contract with the RPBA. In the mean time the City Council/City Administrator Laid off all the people that was in training & on Probation, effectively leaving the City with an emergency situation with not enough Dispatchers to field calls for service. All the Officers in the Academy were relieved of their paychecks, and laid them off as well. That left the Police Department with almost 6 Officers that were due to join the field in a few months.
They were really working on them to the point that they didn't pay to maintain any of the Police Equipment, they didn't change oil, and or anything. stating that they were going to be sold to the Sheriff Department!!
The City Administrator/City Attorney/City Council all had a lot of the Department figuring on the Cities battle loosing, and the city going to the Sheriff Department. If this was to happen, even with the lower that they were getting since none of the raises on the current contract was honored since they figured it was not going to be a contract that was going to be used. It was hard for a lot of Officers & Sergeants to take. They were expecting that extra money for raises. Then the City Admin/City Attorney/& City Council was winning, when @ the whole time it was still just a draw or the RPBA was winning, But they had convinced So many Sergeants and Officers that they lost Double digits I think the number was 12 or 15 to other Departments and the District Attorney's Office as D.A. Investigators.
The Rialto Police Department kept fighting on Even though they were working with small crews each shift, and they had to work their bottom off to keep ahead of the game.
The Citizens did a signature drive for a bill on the next ballot. This bill if made in to a law would force the City to Accept their own Police Agency for Law Enforcement Protection, and the second part of the Bill would Change the City Charter. The City Charter says that the City Council can vote any Department away my Majority Vote, as they did to remove the Police Department. IN the new Charter Change, The City Council would have to place their decision to change the Law Enforcement to a 2/3rd Majority Vote by the City of Rialto Citizens.
The Citizens collected over 7000 signatures when they only needed 4200 signatures. When the signatures were submitted to the City of Rialto Clerk, the Clerk found that the Signatures were not legally collected and could not be used for this bill. She said that there was a very small amount of signatures that were approved, not enough to make this a bill on the next ballot to vote on.
There was a huge UP-ROAR, to have this reviewed by a neutral party, and finally after so many months of people bringing up that the signatures should be reviewed by a neutral party. Then finally the city said that they would have someone form the Voters Offices to have a look at the Petition and see what signatures are collected legally and Illegally. After a five minute review they were found to be collected legally. The City Council being beat voted right then to have the Bill voted into law on the City Charter and also Voted to have the Rialto Police Department return to the Negotiation Tables to start a dialogue, and Reinstate the Police Department as it was.
They also started to purchase new Police cars and got right back on the straight in ad narrow and started to treat their Police Officers Right Again.
They had to do the right thing by getting the right guy to Run the Police department, not a guy that is going to tear down the Men and Woman and make the Department seem like it is an okay Department to the Citizens but the Officers that are working for this Chief are all corrupt, and on the Take. Chief Michael Meyers was just that kind of Leader!! This was a leader that was hired by the Current City Administrator. Garcia. It makes you wonder if that was his plan from the beginning to make Rialto a CORRUPT DEPARTMENT!! So, when the time came to close up shop and Re-Open as a Clean Contract City for the Sheriff Department, I am sure that is the full picture that we didn't get to see.
However, Rialto City Admin. Garcia Went out and got Mark Kling from Baldwin Park Police Department this time, and he did a great thing. There is a great deal of trust that has been built back up in the department and there is a whole lot of people that are loving the situation back at the Police Department again.
The reason that I am writing all this history, is because Chief Mark Kling ran the last leg of the B2V run and did a great job in doing so. When he crossed the finish line Everyone that started the race was right there at the finish line to See the Chief finish the Race. That is the kind of leader this man is. Mark Kling is real nice soft spoken leader that seems to be well on the right track to keep Rialto Police Back to what it was back in the Golden Age when I started Back in the 80's.
I am happy to see that there is so many of the Officer's that are as happy as they were at the B2V, and I am happy that I was invited to take part in this event.
Noretta, Thank You Very much for the invitation and the great time, in Vegas!! I am just sorry that I could not stay that extra day, and eat that great dinner that you spoke of.
Again, I just want to Thank the Men and Woman of Rialto Police Department for the great time.
BS Ranch
PS: Sara, Cindy,& LeAnne Maybe next time I can get some pictures of you guys in the "Portable Rented Hot Tub" to add to my blog..LOL
Friday, April 13, 2007
San Bernardino's Helicopter Patrol's Helping City, But is it worth it?
San Bernardino's helicopter patrols helping city, but is it worth it?
Download story podcast
10:00 PM PDT on Saturday, April 7, 2007
By CHRIS RICHARD
The Press-Enterprise
The shooting suspect was sprinting flat out down the darkened street. But suddenly he slowed, glancing toward the night sky. Then he dodged into the shadows of an overhanging roof and peeled off a shirt and bulletproof vest.
From 500 feet overhead, San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek noted the location. Ground units could get the evidence later.
The man started running again, climbing fences and dodging backyard dogs. Helicopter pilot Bob Nibecker was right behind him.
Story continues below
Stan Lim / The Press-Enterprise
San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek looks over downtown San Bernardino from the Police Department's helicopter. Vasek is a supporter of the city's fledgling police aviation program.
Finally, the suspect grabbed the top of a gate and heaved, trying to scramble over. He was still hanging there, panting, when officers on the ground caught up.
"He told them, 'I'm done,' " Vasek recalled later. "I can't get away from that helicopter."
As Vasek, an observer in San Bernardino's fledgling police aviation program, recounts such stories, his eyes glow with pride. His superiors say the helicopter makes searches and pursuits more efficient and much safer. It even speeds up routine police work.
San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris first introduced the police air wing in June, and in December the City Council extended the program until the end of the 2008-09 fiscal year.
For just more than $500,000 annually, Riverside-based California Aviation Services provides helicopters and pilots for 25 hours of air support per week. The Police Department sends up its own officers as observers.
Police Chief Mike Billdt calls the airborne teams "force multipliers." A helicopter overhead is a highly effective crime deterrent because criminals on the ground can't be sure whether they're under observation, Billdt says.
And almost always, an airship can reach a crime scene long before ground units arrive.
But as the cash-strapped city seeks resources to prolong a recent drop in its crime rate, some are questioning the expense, particularly when free helicopter service is available from the county Sheriff's Department.
Quickly On Calls
San Bernardino officials are moving forward with plans to hire an additional 40 officers, 14 of them this year.
That's a high priority in a city besieged by violent crime for the past decade. In 2004, Morgan Quitno Press listed San Bernardino as the nation's 16th most dangerous city, and the ranking was 18th in 2005.
Increased police patrols, funded largely by officer overtime, paid off in 2006 with a better than 14 percent reduction in serious crime citywide.
From the first flight in mid-July, through mid-December, San Bernardino's helicopter crews answered 1,671 calls for service, police records show.
That's almost four times the partial count of 454 supplied by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department when it covered the city for a similar period in 2005. Statistics for about 14 percent of that time were lost in a computer glitch.
Rich Lawhead, president of San Bernardino's police union, said one reason for the jump in calls could be that officers know they'll get support when they ask for it.
Story continues below
Pilot Don Belter, left, and San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek take a ride in the Police Department's own helicopter, which Vasek's superiors say makes searches and pursuits more efficient and safer.
The county helicopter, Lawhead said, is assigned to the area and must answer to several agencies. It can't always respond to a San Bernardino call as fast as he would like.
Now, he knows San Bernardino's helicopter -- designated Air One in police dispatches -- will be overhead, carrying an observer who knows the city well.
"A lot of times when you're on a call, they'll have been in that same area," Lawhead said. "They'll remember things, like that there's an old woodshed under the carport you're searching."
Law-enforcement studies give helicopter patrols high marks for effectiveness. According to one estimate by the Los Angeles Police Department, a single helicopter provides a patrol and response capability equivalent to up to 10 patrol cars.
City Councilman Rikke Van Johnson said he's willing to accept some added expense for an air wing that concentrates on San Bernardino.
"Crime is down across the city, and you've got to attribute some of that to the helicopter's presence," he said. "We know it costs more, but the people in our city are worth it. They're worth the best protection we can give them."
But while the statistics appear to favor San Bernardino's new program, skeptics said they want more detailed information comparing Air One to other options.
"We have to be sure we know what we're receiving when we pay for this helicopter" said Robert Rego, president of the Inland Mountain Republican Assembly and a leader in the opposition to Measure Z, a voter-approved tax hike to hire more police and fund crime-prevention programs.
"Is the helicopter program worth what it costs? What is the return on investment, and have we really looked at other alternatives that might give us a better return?"
As a condition of the federal grants underwriting the sheriff's aviation program, the county offers its helicopter teams to city governments for free.
At a recent meeting of the citizen's advisory panel on Measure Z, Bob Evans, vice chairman, pointed out the cost difference and asked whether the city is getting its money's worth.
His questions, Evans said, didn't concern the value of air support.
As a 30-year police veteran, he said he knows how effective a helicopter can be. But, given San Bernardino's other needs, he wonders whether the city can afford to contract for services now.
Evans later met privately with Billdt to discuss the program. He said he had hoped Billdt would provide comparative data for the Sheriff's Department and California Aviation Services, showing response times and services provided.
"They gave me some anecdotal cases where the helicopter has been remarkably successful," he said. "That supports what I believe wholeheartedly. Helicopters are great.
"But are we getting that much better service out of our own ship than we were getting out of the sheriff's helicopter for free? That's something I guess I'll never know."
Reach Chris Richard at 909-806-3076 or crichard@PE.com
__________________________________________________________________________________
BS Ranch Perspective:
The thought that the Sheriff's Air Ship is "Free" is something that you have to think about for a while. Because I dare to say that there was some strings pulled upon the City Council of Rialto's City, when the time came for the 'Rumor's, that they were going to close the airport, Sheriff Penrod, went to Chief Meyers, and the city admin. and wanted to take over the Patrol of Rialto. I am thinking that they, he did this at the price that he had to move the Sheriff's Departments Air Fleet. The City Administration and the Police Union Fought and fought to keep the Police department rather then the city contracting with the Sheriff Department, for Law Enforcement Patrol Duties.
BS Ranch
Download story podcast
10:00 PM PDT on Saturday, April 7, 2007
By CHRIS RICHARD
The Press-Enterprise
The shooting suspect was sprinting flat out down the darkened street. But suddenly he slowed, glancing toward the night sky. Then he dodged into the shadows of an overhanging roof and peeled off a shirt and bulletproof vest.
From 500 feet overhead, San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek noted the location. Ground units could get the evidence later.
The man started running again, climbing fences and dodging backyard dogs. Helicopter pilot Bob Nibecker was right behind him.
Story continues below
Stan Lim / The Press-Enterprise
San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek looks over downtown San Bernardino from the Police Department's helicopter. Vasek is a supporter of the city's fledgling police aviation program.
Finally, the suspect grabbed the top of a gate and heaved, trying to scramble over. He was still hanging there, panting, when officers on the ground caught up.
"He told them, 'I'm done,' " Vasek recalled later. "I can't get away from that helicopter."
As Vasek, an observer in San Bernardino's fledgling police aviation program, recounts such stories, his eyes glow with pride. His superiors say the helicopter makes searches and pursuits more efficient and much safer. It even speeds up routine police work.
San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris first introduced the police air wing in June, and in December the City Council extended the program until the end of the 2008-09 fiscal year.
For just more than $500,000 annually, Riverside-based California Aviation Services provides helicopters and pilots for 25 hours of air support per week. The Police Department sends up its own officers as observers.
Police Chief Mike Billdt calls the airborne teams "force multipliers." A helicopter overhead is a highly effective crime deterrent because criminals on the ground can't be sure whether they're under observation, Billdt says.
And almost always, an airship can reach a crime scene long before ground units arrive.
But as the cash-strapped city seeks resources to prolong a recent drop in its crime rate, some are questioning the expense, particularly when free helicopter service is available from the county Sheriff's Department.
Quickly On Calls
San Bernardino officials are moving forward with plans to hire an additional 40 officers, 14 of them this year.
That's a high priority in a city besieged by violent crime for the past decade. In 2004, Morgan Quitno Press listed San Bernardino as the nation's 16th most dangerous city, and the ranking was 18th in 2005.
Increased police patrols, funded largely by officer overtime, paid off in 2006 with a better than 14 percent reduction in serious crime citywide.
From the first flight in mid-July, through mid-December, San Bernardino's helicopter crews answered 1,671 calls for service, police records show.
That's almost four times the partial count of 454 supplied by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department when it covered the city for a similar period in 2005. Statistics for about 14 percent of that time were lost in a computer glitch.
Rich Lawhead, president of San Bernardino's police union, said one reason for the jump in calls could be that officers know they'll get support when they ask for it.
Story continues below
Pilot Don Belter, left, and San Bernardino police Detective John Vasek take a ride in the Police Department's own helicopter, which Vasek's superiors say makes searches and pursuits more efficient and safer.
The county helicopter, Lawhead said, is assigned to the area and must answer to several agencies. It can't always respond to a San Bernardino call as fast as he would like.
Now, he knows San Bernardino's helicopter -- designated Air One in police dispatches -- will be overhead, carrying an observer who knows the city well.
"A lot of times when you're on a call, they'll have been in that same area," Lawhead said. "They'll remember things, like that there's an old woodshed under the carport you're searching."
Law-enforcement studies give helicopter patrols high marks for effectiveness. According to one estimate by the Los Angeles Police Department, a single helicopter provides a patrol and response capability equivalent to up to 10 patrol cars.
City Councilman Rikke Van Johnson said he's willing to accept some added expense for an air wing that concentrates on San Bernardino.
"Crime is down across the city, and you've got to attribute some of that to the helicopter's presence," he said. "We know it costs more, but the people in our city are worth it. They're worth the best protection we can give them."
But while the statistics appear to favor San Bernardino's new program, skeptics said they want more detailed information comparing Air One to other options.
"We have to be sure we know what we're receiving when we pay for this helicopter" said Robert Rego, president of the Inland Mountain Republican Assembly and a leader in the opposition to Measure Z, a voter-approved tax hike to hire more police and fund crime-prevention programs.
"Is the helicopter program worth what it costs? What is the return on investment, and have we really looked at other alternatives that might give us a better return?"
As a condition of the federal grants underwriting the sheriff's aviation program, the county offers its helicopter teams to city governments for free.
At a recent meeting of the citizen's advisory panel on Measure Z, Bob Evans, vice chairman, pointed out the cost difference and asked whether the city is getting its money's worth.
His questions, Evans said, didn't concern the value of air support.
As a 30-year police veteran, he said he knows how effective a helicopter can be. But, given San Bernardino's other needs, he wonders whether the city can afford to contract for services now.
Evans later met privately with Billdt to discuss the program. He said he had hoped Billdt would provide comparative data for the Sheriff's Department and California Aviation Services, showing response times and services provided.
"They gave me some anecdotal cases where the helicopter has been remarkably successful," he said. "That supports what I believe wholeheartedly. Helicopters are great.
"But are we getting that much better service out of our own ship than we were getting out of the sheriff's helicopter for free? That's something I guess I'll never know."
Reach Chris Richard at 909-806-3076 or crichard@PE.com
__________________________________________________________________________________
BS Ranch Perspective:
The thought that the Sheriff's Air Ship is "Free" is something that you have to think about for a while. Because I dare to say that there was some strings pulled upon the City Council of Rialto's City, when the time came for the 'Rumor's, that they were going to close the airport, Sheriff Penrod, went to Chief Meyers, and the city admin. and wanted to take over the Patrol of Rialto. I am thinking that they, he did this at the price that he had to move the Sheriff's Departments Air Fleet. The City Administration and the Police Union Fought and fought to keep the Police department rather then the city contracting with the Sheriff Department, for Law Enforcement Patrol Duties.
BS Ranch
Rialto OKs Payment to Airport - Deal Needed for City to Build Huge Project!
Rialto OKs payment to airport
Deal needed for city to build huge project
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Article Launched:04/04/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - The City Council on Tuesday night approved an agreement that will provide San Bernardino International Airport with $49.5 million.
The agreement is necessary to allow Rialto to close its airport and replace it with a massive mixed-use development along the Interstate 210 extension.
"It'll be put to a much better use," Robb Steel, the city's economic-development director, said after the council had voted.
On Monday, Steel said that although the item would remain on the council's agenda, City Administrator Henry Garcia wanted to delay the council vote because at least one council member asked for more information.
However, after meeting in closed session Tuesday afternoon, Steel said the council's concerns were addressed.
Federal legislation allowing Rialto to close the airport required the city to pay 45 percent of the value of its airport to SBIA.
Rialto officials agreed after negotiations with SBIA officials that the airport was worth $120 million. To determine the $49.5 million payment, $10 million of the value was deducted to account for development costs.
The city initially thought the airport was worth $66 million. The difference between that and the value agreed upon means that Rialto will have to pay SBIA about twice as much as it originally intended. That difference will be split by Rialto and the developer of the project, Lewis-Hillwood Rialto LLC, Steel said. Lewis-Hillwood is a partnership between the Lewis Group of Companies and Texas-based developer Hillwood.
After Rialto closes its airport, many of the airport tenants will move to SBIA. The city is guaranteed to gain $26 million from the sale to the developer, even after paying SBIA and helping Lewis-Hillwood prepare the Rialto airport property for development.
Even though Rialto is guaranteed $26 million from Lewis-Hillwood, Steel stressed the developer could end up spending $120 million after helping to pay SBIA, preparing the Rialto property for development and after paying Rialto for the property itself.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
As I had wrote in m previous BLOG's The figures that they have are all speculations of what could be by probability and statistical figures gathered if, and that is one huge if, the people that drive on the freeway get off the freeway and decide that they want to go to a Shopping center located in the City of Rialto? Now, that might all be fine and dandy, but there is a few things that are missing. One this is Rialto. and the Administration that Leads this city is still Garcia, & the City's Council is Still Owen.
The City's Council wants to take Black and Decker to court over the Perchlorate problem when they have said that they would pay for the problems. The County of San Bernardino has said that in the group of City's and County that the best thing to do is allow the Businesses the right to see if they are going to pay for the problems themselves and avoid any Court Costs that might occur to our budgets. Owen, apparently feels that he has the Administrator's Ear, because he said that he felt that it was best to take the businesses of Black and Decker to court and sue them for an undisclosed amount for the clean up of the Perchlorate problem that we are suffering in Rialto. The thing is that each time that he goes to court, Owens makes more and more money, At least $450 an hour. He gets paid 750, 000.00 a year just to attend the city Council Meetings, and that is a certain amount. if they run over three hours then there is a per hour charge. so that can kick in. You can see why Owen is eager to start the Court Wheel going.
Now the cities matter on the Sale of the Airport and the land, they will be paying the airport the amount, plus there is an ongoing rent agreement that they will pay for the renters that are moved over there because of the Inconvenience of having to move their plane to another Facility.
I think that is sick. They should not have to spread that kind of coin out for them! That is what I feel. On that matter. But that is just me. I am not so easy at spreading out my Taxpayers money. Like the City Council of the Rialto Council.
Renaissance will have one anchor store and that is going to be Target. There has not been any other interested parties even though they have had the net out to try to catch another willing business. Rialto is a commuter city always has been and it will not change any time soon. The businesses that are here have been here for a while, but most of the time if they don't have help they fail.
Even the huge chain store that was open for a short time at the corner of cedar/foothill. They had some weird policies on how they handled petty theft, they didn't prosecute, but if you were panhandling in front of the store. oh my!! if was like the third wold war was opened up!
They didn't make it. They closed the Rialto branch, and shortly there after they announced via radio that the chain was bankrupt! Kind of like Builders Emporium. But the whole thing was sad they were a good store like that of Builders Emporium, they even had a out door patio center, back in 1993 they were open there when the place first opened up, and Food 4Less was first there and the Grocery Stores were having a strike back then too. They were striking for better pay and since Food 4 Less was purchased by a Union Franchise they wanted to be part of the Union. I think they won, but still got paid less. I don't quite know how the outcome of that strike came out, but I am getting off subject.
I Truly Pray that Rialto, and the City Council makes out great and the City Budget is over flowing with Cash, on the sale of the airport and the Privatising of the land there to Businesses, and houses, and the like, will make it so much better! I pray that it does work out for them. I would rather see that My Beloved Rialto Police Grow to over 300 to 500 Employee's and even bigger, that would be great! It would be wonderful.
What I get into with the airport, is that This is Rialto! This is the Sale of said Property for Businesses in Rialto, and usually what happens is that they don't work to well. I wonder and hope that it doesn't go by the way, rather that it Thrives to make money hand over fist.
BS Ranch
Deal needed for city to build huge project
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Article Launched:04/04/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - The City Council on Tuesday night approved an agreement that will provide San Bernardino International Airport with $49.5 million.
The agreement is necessary to allow Rialto to close its airport and replace it with a massive mixed-use development along the Interstate 210 extension.
"It'll be put to a much better use," Robb Steel, the city's economic-development director, said after the council had voted.
On Monday, Steel said that although the item would remain on the council's agenda, City Administrator Henry Garcia wanted to delay the council vote because at least one council member asked for more information.
However, after meeting in closed session Tuesday afternoon, Steel said the council's concerns were addressed.
Federal legislation allowing Rialto to close the airport required the city to pay 45 percent of the value of its airport to SBIA.
Rialto officials agreed after negotiations with SBIA officials that the airport was worth $120 million. To determine the $49.5 million payment, $10 million of the value was deducted to account for development costs.
The city initially thought the airport was worth $66 million. The difference between that and the value agreed upon means that Rialto will have to pay SBIA about twice as much as it originally intended. That difference will be split by Rialto and the developer of the project, Lewis-Hillwood Rialto LLC, Steel said. Lewis-Hillwood is a partnership between the Lewis Group of Companies and Texas-based developer Hillwood.
After Rialto closes its airport, many of the airport tenants will move to SBIA. The city is guaranteed to gain $26 million from the sale to the developer, even after paying SBIA and helping Lewis-Hillwood prepare the Rialto airport property for development.
Even though Rialto is guaranteed $26 million from Lewis-Hillwood, Steel stressed the developer could end up spending $120 million after helping to pay SBIA, preparing the Rialto property for development and after paying Rialto for the property itself.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
As I had wrote in m previous BLOG's The figures that they have are all speculations of what could be by probability and statistical figures gathered if, and that is one huge if, the people that drive on the freeway get off the freeway and decide that they want to go to a Shopping center located in the City of Rialto? Now, that might all be fine and dandy, but there is a few things that are missing. One this is Rialto. and the Administration that Leads this city is still Garcia, & the City's Council is Still Owen.
The City's Council wants to take Black and Decker to court over the Perchlorate problem when they have said that they would pay for the problems. The County of San Bernardino has said that in the group of City's and County that the best thing to do is allow the Businesses the right to see if they are going to pay for the problems themselves and avoid any Court Costs that might occur to our budgets. Owen, apparently feels that he has the Administrator's Ear, because he said that he felt that it was best to take the businesses of Black and Decker to court and sue them for an undisclosed amount for the clean up of the Perchlorate problem that we are suffering in Rialto. The thing is that each time that he goes to court, Owens makes more and more money, At least $450 an hour. He gets paid 750, 000.00 a year just to attend the city Council Meetings, and that is a certain amount. if they run over three hours then there is a per hour charge. so that can kick in. You can see why Owen is eager to start the Court Wheel going.
Now the cities matter on the Sale of the Airport and the land, they will be paying the airport the amount, plus there is an ongoing rent agreement that they will pay for the renters that are moved over there because of the Inconvenience of having to move their plane to another Facility.
I think that is sick. They should not have to spread that kind of coin out for them! That is what I feel. On that matter. But that is just me. I am not so easy at spreading out my Taxpayers money. Like the City Council of the Rialto Council.
Renaissance will have one anchor store and that is going to be Target. There has not been any other interested parties even though they have had the net out to try to catch another willing business. Rialto is a commuter city always has been and it will not change any time soon. The businesses that are here have been here for a while, but most of the time if they don't have help they fail.
Even the huge chain store that was open for a short time at the corner of cedar/foothill. They had some weird policies on how they handled petty theft, they didn't prosecute, but if you were panhandling in front of the store. oh my!! if was like the third wold war was opened up!
They didn't make it. They closed the Rialto branch, and shortly there after they announced via radio that the chain was bankrupt! Kind of like Builders Emporium. But the whole thing was sad they were a good store like that of Builders Emporium, they even had a out door patio center, back in 1993 they were open there when the place first opened up, and Food 4Less was first there and the Grocery Stores were having a strike back then too. They were striking for better pay and since Food 4 Less was purchased by a Union Franchise they wanted to be part of the Union. I think they won, but still got paid less. I don't quite know how the outcome of that strike came out, but I am getting off subject.
I Truly Pray that Rialto, and the City Council makes out great and the City Budget is over flowing with Cash, on the sale of the airport and the Privatising of the land there to Businesses, and houses, and the like, will make it so much better! I pray that it does work out for them. I would rather see that My Beloved Rialto Police Grow to over 300 to 500 Employee's and even bigger, that would be great! It would be wonderful.
What I get into with the airport, is that This is Rialto! This is the Sale of said Property for Businesses in Rialto, and usually what happens is that they don't work to well. I wonder and hope that it doesn't go by the way, rather that it Thrives to make money hand over fist.
BS Ranch
Airport Pact Inching Along-City Expecting $26 Million Profit from Renaissance Rialto..
Airport pact inching along
City expecting $26 million profit from Renaissance Rialto
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/03/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - To make way for Renaissance Rialto, the city and the project developer must pay $49.5 million to San Bernardino International Airport, under a proposed agreement.
Rialto officials had expected to pay closer to $30 million and some said they were not thrilled with the new price tag.
The amount was a result of the negotiating parties' agreement that the airport is worth $120 million, not an appraised price. That's nearly twice the $66 million the city will receive for the property.
But in the complicated exchange, Rialto is guaranteed a profit of $26 million, but officials had hoped for more.
"It bothers me, but we've also got to make this work for SBIA," Councilman Ed Scott said of the difference.
The agreement between SBIA, Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood Rialto Company LLC - the project developer - was to be voted on tonight, but City Council members asked to postpone the matter.
Scott said he was still waiting to review a final version of the agreement before voting.
The goal of the project is a 1,500-acre master-planned area of housing, retail, schools and mixed use.
Lewis-Hillwood, a joint venture of the Lewis Group of Companies and the Texas-based developer
Hillwood, and the city want to close the Rialto airport to make way for Renaissance Rialto, a massive mixed-use development.
The project will be located along the soon-to-be-completed Interstate 210 extension. Renaissance is an aggressive stab at boosting the city's economy and improving its image.
In 2005, Congress passed legislation allowing Rialto to close the airport. For years, Rialto had attempted to close the airport but could not obtain permission from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The legislation allowed for the airport to close as long as SBIA was paid 45 percent of the fair market value of the airport property. The negotiated value of the property was $120 million, but $10 million of that will be deducted to pay for preparing the site for development.
That means the city and Lewis-Hillwood will have to pay $49.5 million.
Even though the parties agreed on the $120 million number, Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood previously agreed that the value of the airport property was about $66 million. The value on which Rialto now is basing its payment to SBIA is almost twice as high as the amount Lewis-Hillwood will have to pay the city for the property.
The difference is because the city estimated the property's value as of March 2005, Scott said.
The $120 million number was the result of negotiations between the parties, said Redevelopment Manager Greg Lantz.
In order to complete the Renaissance project, Lewis-Hillwood must buy Rialto's airport from the city. After all the money changes hands in the complex deal, Rialto is guaranteed to make $26 million.
Plans for the project should come before the council late this year.
SBIA will spend $4 million to improve its infrastructure and $10 million to accommodate tenants from Rialto's airport.
The relocation of the tenants from Rialto's airport should begin later this year, said Robb Steel, the city's economic development director.
Businesses at the Rialto Municipal Airport pay rents below market value, he said, because the city froze rents.
In order to help them cope with increased rents in their new locations, Rialto will give them assistance paying the increased rents for two years.
A relocation plan released by the city last month spells out the assistance the airport tenants will receive, including moving costs and the cost of setting up shop at the new location.
In addition to the influx of money, SBIA stands to gain more tenants when the Rialto airport closes.
"This will help us significantly," said Mike Burrows, SBIA's assistant director. SBIA's commission is likely to vote on the agreement at its next meeting on April 11, he said.
In addition to considering the closure agreement, the council was scheduled to consider other changes to the deal with Lewis-Hillwood.
One would be that the city's redevelopment agency would provide the financing for much of the cost of the sale of a 53-acre property next to the airport. Lewis-Hillwood would repay that price, estimated at $16 million, with interest.
Other revisions to the contract between Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood would result in the city receiving $5.6 to $6.5 million less from the developer.
Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said Monday he had some questions about what the council was scheduled to vote on. He said he wants to find out exactly why the city's estimated value of the airport is so much lower than $120 million.
But, he said, his main concern is what Renaissance Rialto eventually has to offer.
"I'm excited about it, but I'm still concerned about the content."
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BS Ranch Perspective:
It has been my contention about this whole Rialto Airport Deal, and the Rialto Renaissance that they have either rushed into something or the whole thing is a bad Idea for the City of Rialto. The Reason that I say this is because before Rialto even sees any Tax Revenue at all from the businesses they will be paying for rent at additional Locations for businesses that had to be "Re-Located" to another place. Not just that, but they were proposed to see some $120 Million in Revenue from the Sale, when they were supposed to sell off over 50% of the profit from the land to the Federal Government. I say that they will see considerable less Profit then what they have now, and There will not be a shopping base surrounding the area until the next 10 years or so, they have moved way to early. Unless they will build up so much that all the people that live there will shop there and not go to Fontana, and go shopping Like I do now for odds and ends, simply because they have a Costco.
I got the computer that I have and my Lap Top for considerable Less, for what it costs. I feel that it was a good deal. They also have the Home Depot, and Lowe's right next to each other, which is great because if one of the Home Improvement stores don't have what I am looking for or the right part that I am looking for the other one more then likely does. So, Right now, Fontana has the better Shopping experience for us. the only store that we use in Rialto is Stator Bros. That is it!
The Down Town of Rialto is really a Joke, With exception of a Car show, it is a joke. There is not anything downtown that us great to shop at with the exception of Ace Hardware. Johnson's hardware or Ace Is it. Other then the Occasional Walgreen's I don't really shop in Rialto. Now there is talk of a Target to go in at the Renaissance that is the first store that has committed to the project at the airport when they go. Well that is good. But I know that K-Mart will not re-establish a store here and on Wal-Mart is enough here in Rialto, I mean they have not been that happy with the "Gateway" that they were promised by the City Council. If it wasn't for someone finally listening to them complain enough to get Cocoa's and Burger King, Opened down there, along with the B of A Teller machines. they might have closed. because that was it for the "Gateway that was all that you did!!
Please Mark My Words, the Renaissance is going to FAIL!! or it will be one huge DUD!! You might build it, but this is Rialto, they will not come!!
BS Ranch
City expecting $26 million profit from Renaissance Rialto
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/03/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - To make way for Renaissance Rialto, the city and the project developer must pay $49.5 million to San Bernardino International Airport, under a proposed agreement.
Rialto officials had expected to pay closer to $30 million and some said they were not thrilled with the new price tag.
The amount was a result of the negotiating parties' agreement that the airport is worth $120 million, not an appraised price. That's nearly twice the $66 million the city will receive for the property.
But in the complicated exchange, Rialto is guaranteed a profit of $26 million, but officials had hoped for more.
"It bothers me, but we've also got to make this work for SBIA," Councilman Ed Scott said of the difference.
The agreement between SBIA, Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood Rialto Company LLC - the project developer - was to be voted on tonight, but City Council members asked to postpone the matter.
Scott said he was still waiting to review a final version of the agreement before voting.
The goal of the project is a 1,500-acre master-planned area of housing, retail, schools and mixed use.
Lewis-Hillwood, a joint venture of the Lewis Group of Companies and the Texas-based developer
Hillwood, and the city want to close the Rialto airport to make way for Renaissance Rialto, a massive mixed-use development.
The project will be located along the soon-to-be-completed Interstate 210 extension. Renaissance is an aggressive stab at boosting the city's economy and improving its image.
In 2005, Congress passed legislation allowing Rialto to close the airport. For years, Rialto had attempted to close the airport but could not obtain permission from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The legislation allowed for the airport to close as long as SBIA was paid 45 percent of the fair market value of the airport property. The negotiated value of the property was $120 million, but $10 million of that will be deducted to pay for preparing the site for development.
That means the city and Lewis-Hillwood will have to pay $49.5 million.
Even though the parties agreed on the $120 million number, Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood previously agreed that the value of the airport property was about $66 million. The value on which Rialto now is basing its payment to SBIA is almost twice as high as the amount Lewis-Hillwood will have to pay the city for the property.
The difference is because the city estimated the property's value as of March 2005, Scott said.
The $120 million number was the result of negotiations between the parties, said Redevelopment Manager Greg Lantz.
In order to complete the Renaissance project, Lewis-Hillwood must buy Rialto's airport from the city. After all the money changes hands in the complex deal, Rialto is guaranteed to make $26 million.
Plans for the project should come before the council late this year.
SBIA will spend $4 million to improve its infrastructure and $10 million to accommodate tenants from Rialto's airport.
The relocation of the tenants from Rialto's airport should begin later this year, said Robb Steel, the city's economic development director.
Businesses at the Rialto Municipal Airport pay rents below market value, he said, because the city froze rents.
In order to help them cope with increased rents in their new locations, Rialto will give them assistance paying the increased rents for two years.
A relocation plan released by the city last month spells out the assistance the airport tenants will receive, including moving costs and the cost of setting up shop at the new location.
In addition to the influx of money, SBIA stands to gain more tenants when the Rialto airport closes.
"This will help us significantly," said Mike Burrows, SBIA's assistant director. SBIA's commission is likely to vote on the agreement at its next meeting on April 11, he said.
In addition to considering the closure agreement, the council was scheduled to consider other changes to the deal with Lewis-Hillwood.
One would be that the city's redevelopment agency would provide the financing for much of the cost of the sale of a 53-acre property next to the airport. Lewis-Hillwood would repay that price, estimated at $16 million, with interest.
Other revisions to the contract between Rialto and Lewis-Hillwood would result in the city receiving $5.6 to $6.5 million less from the developer.
Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said Monday he had some questions about what the council was scheduled to vote on. He said he wants to find out exactly why the city's estimated value of the airport is so much lower than $120 million.
But, he said, his main concern is what Renaissance Rialto eventually has to offer.
"I'm excited about it, but I'm still concerned about the content."
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BS Ranch Perspective:
It has been my contention about this whole Rialto Airport Deal, and the Rialto Renaissance that they have either rushed into something or the whole thing is a bad Idea for the City of Rialto. The Reason that I say this is because before Rialto even sees any Tax Revenue at all from the businesses they will be paying for rent at additional Locations for businesses that had to be "Re-Located" to another place. Not just that, but they were proposed to see some $120 Million in Revenue from the Sale, when they were supposed to sell off over 50% of the profit from the land to the Federal Government. I say that they will see considerable less Profit then what they have now, and There will not be a shopping base surrounding the area until the next 10 years or so, they have moved way to early. Unless they will build up so much that all the people that live there will shop there and not go to Fontana, and go shopping Like I do now for odds and ends, simply because they have a Costco.
I got the computer that I have and my Lap Top for considerable Less, for what it costs. I feel that it was a good deal. They also have the Home Depot, and Lowe's right next to each other, which is great because if one of the Home Improvement stores don't have what I am looking for or the right part that I am looking for the other one more then likely does. So, Right now, Fontana has the better Shopping experience for us. the only store that we use in Rialto is Stator Bros. That is it!
The Down Town of Rialto is really a Joke, With exception of a Car show, it is a joke. There is not anything downtown that us great to shop at with the exception of Ace Hardware. Johnson's hardware or Ace Is it. Other then the Occasional Walgreen's I don't really shop in Rialto. Now there is talk of a Target to go in at the Renaissance that is the first store that has committed to the project at the airport when they go. Well that is good. But I know that K-Mart will not re-establish a store here and on Wal-Mart is enough here in Rialto, I mean they have not been that happy with the "Gateway" that they were promised by the City Council. If it wasn't for someone finally listening to them complain enough to get Cocoa's and Burger King, Opened down there, along with the B of A Teller machines. they might have closed. because that was it for the "Gateway that was all that you did!!
Please Mark My Words, the Renaissance is going to FAIL!! or it will be one huge DUD!! You might build it, but this is Rialto, they will not come!!
BS Ranch
Residents in Eastern Los Angeles, Western San Bernardino Counties Ask to Suspeend Outdoor Water Use During Pipeline Shutdown.
Residents in Eastern Los Angeles, Western San Bernardino Counties Asked to Suspend Outdoor Water Use During Pipeline Shutdown
Urgent Repairs on Major Large-Diameter Water Line to Begin April 16, Affecting More Than 1 Million Consumers from La Verne to Fontana
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--More than 1 million consumers in eastern Los Angeles and western San Bernardino counties are being called upon to suspend outdoor watering and non-essential indoor water use while a major regional water pipeline is taken out of service for nine days for urgent repairs beginning Monday, April 16.
Officials from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Three Valleys Municipal Water District, Inland Empire Utilities Agency and local retail water agencies made the water-saving request today as Metropolitan prepares for the repair of its Rialto Feeder pipeline.
In response to the shutdown, consumers in the cities of La Verne, Claremont, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland and Fontana are being asked to save water and stretch local supplies.
"Water agencies and cities throughout this area will either seek voluntary or, in some cases, mandatory reductions in water use during this repair period," said Richard Atwater, general manager of the Inland Empire Utilities Agency. "Residents who want to know more about how the shutdown will affect them should contact their water provider directly."
Richard Hansen, Three Valleys general manager, said conservation by consumers and businesses is essential to help complete the pipeline repairs without disruptions in service.
"This is a critical repair coming as spring weather commences. We all need to do our part to reduce water use while the repairs are made," Hansen said. "Along with following our conservation request, residents also may consider postponing their spring plantings until after the shutdown."
Debra C. Man, Metropolitan's chief operating officer, said the 96-inch-diameter Rialto pipeline was inspected earlier this year as part of efforts to install upgrades along the water line. Man said recent inspection results revealed a weakened pipeline section needing immediate attention.
Metropolitan routinely schedules shutdowns of its facilities in winter months, when temperatures usually are cooler and demands are lower, to complete inspections and perform maintenance and upgrades with the least impact on consumers, Man said.
The 30-mile Rialto Feeder extends from the Devil Canyon Power Plant north of San Bernardino to Metropolitan's San Dimas Power Plant, delivering up to 450,000 gallons of imported water a minute for about 6 million total residents.
The pipeline is the only source of supplemental water for communities served by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, which relies on Metropolitan water for about 30 percent of its water supply needs. Three Valleys, which uses Metropolitan water for up to 60 percent of its needs, has the ability to receive imported water through an alternate MWD pipeline.
Due to the immediate need to repair the line, water agencies have a limited amount of lead-time to prepare and coordinate water supplies and storage. In routine maintenance situations, Metropolitan typically provides six to eight months for agencies to prepare. With a major water source cut off, some water agencies have issued a more stringent call for conservation measures to ensure there is an adequate supply for its consumers.
Before pipeline repairs begin, residents and businesses will be asked to do their part to ensure reservoirs and local supplies won't be drained. Steps include stopping outdoor watering of landscapes and lawns, hand-washing vehicles, filling swimming pools or spas, and hosing down driveways and sidewalks beginning April 16 until the pipeline repairs are complete April 24.
Other water-saving measures can include running only full loads of clothes washers and dishwashers, not leaving the water running when washing dishes, keeping showers to a maximum of 10 minutes and not leaving the water running when brushing your teeth or shaving.
Residents should be aware that some municipal parks and landscape areas that are irrigated with recycled water will not be impacted by the shutdown.
For more conservation tips and water-saving rebate information, residents and businesses can visit "www.bewaterwise.com ."
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BS Ranch Perspective:
I seriously hope for their sake that they don't find any Perchlorate in the water supplies that they are digging into!! Because if they do they are in for one hell of a fight that will not seem to ever end. Even when the companies that were at fault or preserved at fault, who have said, that they will pay for the damages are still being taken to court, by the most greediest people. I mean who else would take them to court when they say that they would pay for the problems, that they are having with the water situation. I sometimes scratch my head in wonderment at the millionaires that are fighting this battles and wonder if it wasn't better to get a couple of homeless people in there to fight for the rights instead!!
You know, someone with not so big hands that are not always digging so deep into other peoples deep pockets.
BS Ranch
Urgent Repairs on Major Large-Diameter Water Line to Begin April 16, Affecting More Than 1 Million Consumers from La Verne to Fontana
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--More than 1 million consumers in eastern Los Angeles and western San Bernardino counties are being called upon to suspend outdoor watering and non-essential indoor water use while a major regional water pipeline is taken out of service for nine days for urgent repairs beginning Monday, April 16.
Officials from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Three Valleys Municipal Water District, Inland Empire Utilities Agency and local retail water agencies made the water-saving request today as Metropolitan prepares for the repair of its Rialto Feeder pipeline.
In response to the shutdown, consumers in the cities of La Verne, Claremont, Chino, Chino Hills, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland and Fontana are being asked to save water and stretch local supplies.
"Water agencies and cities throughout this area will either seek voluntary or, in some cases, mandatory reductions in water use during this repair period," said Richard Atwater, general manager of the Inland Empire Utilities Agency. "Residents who want to know more about how the shutdown will affect them should contact their water provider directly."
Richard Hansen, Three Valleys general manager, said conservation by consumers and businesses is essential to help complete the pipeline repairs without disruptions in service.
"This is a critical repair coming as spring weather commences. We all need to do our part to reduce water use while the repairs are made," Hansen said. "Along with following our conservation request, residents also may consider postponing their spring plantings until after the shutdown."
Debra C. Man, Metropolitan's chief operating officer, said the 96-inch-diameter Rialto pipeline was inspected earlier this year as part of efforts to install upgrades along the water line. Man said recent inspection results revealed a weakened pipeline section needing immediate attention.
Metropolitan routinely schedules shutdowns of its facilities in winter months, when temperatures usually are cooler and demands are lower, to complete inspections and perform maintenance and upgrades with the least impact on consumers, Man said.
The 30-mile Rialto Feeder extends from the Devil Canyon Power Plant north of San Bernardino to Metropolitan's San Dimas Power Plant, delivering up to 450,000 gallons of imported water a minute for about 6 million total residents.
The pipeline is the only source of supplemental water for communities served by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, which relies on Metropolitan water for about 30 percent of its water supply needs. Three Valleys, which uses Metropolitan water for up to 60 percent of its needs, has the ability to receive imported water through an alternate MWD pipeline.
Due to the immediate need to repair the line, water agencies have a limited amount of lead-time to prepare and coordinate water supplies and storage. In routine maintenance situations, Metropolitan typically provides six to eight months for agencies to prepare. With a major water source cut off, some water agencies have issued a more stringent call for conservation measures to ensure there is an adequate supply for its consumers.
Before pipeline repairs begin, residents and businesses will be asked to do their part to ensure reservoirs and local supplies won't be drained. Steps include stopping outdoor watering of landscapes and lawns, hand-washing vehicles, filling swimming pools or spas, and hosing down driveways and sidewalks beginning April 16 until the pipeline repairs are complete April 24.
Other water-saving measures can include running only full loads of clothes washers and dishwashers, not leaving the water running when washing dishes, keeping showers to a maximum of 10 minutes and not leaving the water running when brushing your teeth or shaving.
Residents should be aware that some municipal parks and landscape areas that are irrigated with recycled water will not be impacted by the shutdown.
For more conservation tips and water-saving rebate information, residents and businesses can visit "www.bewaterwise.com ."
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BS Ranch Perspective:
I seriously hope for their sake that they don't find any Perchlorate in the water supplies that they are digging into!! Because if they do they are in for one hell of a fight that will not seem to ever end. Even when the companies that were at fault or preserved at fault, who have said, that they will pay for the damages are still being taken to court, by the most greediest people. I mean who else would take them to court when they say that they would pay for the problems, that they are having with the water situation. I sometimes scratch my head in wonderment at the millionaires that are fighting this battles and wonder if it wasn't better to get a couple of homeless people in there to fight for the rights instead!!
You know, someone with not so big hands that are not always digging so deep into other peoples deep pockets.
BS Ranch
Soldier Involved in Deadly Crash Arrested (SB Sun)
Soldier involved in deadly crash arrested
Melissa Pinion-Whitt, Staff writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Article Launched:03/30/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
A man who triggered a January car crash in Rialto that claimed the lives of two teen girls was captured in Kentucky and is expected to be returned to California today, officials said.
David Ponce Ledezma, 21, of Colton, who is in the U.S. Army and was scheduled to return to Iraq several days after the crash, has been charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.
The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office issued a warrant for his arrest March 21, according to court records.
While officers said a strong odor of alcohol came from people inside the car Ledezma was driving, investigators would not reveal whether blood tests showed Ledezma was intoxicated at the time of the crash.
Had he shown obvious signs of inebriation at the scene, he would have been immediately arrested, said Rialto police Cpl. Chris Hice.
"During the preliminary investigation, he was not taken into custody," Hice said. "We ran the course of the investigation, put together the complete investigation package, submitted it to the (District Attorney's Office) and a warrant was issued."
Officers wanted to rule out other potential causes of the crash first, such as mechanical problems with Ledezma's vehicle.
Ledezma was driving on a downhill slope on Sycamore Avenue near Wilson Street at 4:10 a.m. Jan. 4 when he struck an upturn in the road and his 2002 GMC Yukon became airborne, officials said. The vehicle flipped, throwing Rachel Lujan of Bloomington and Adriadne Benavides of Rialto, both 17, out of the vehicle.
The girls were not wearing seat belts. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Three other people were injured in the crash.
Police said the group had been drinking in Lytle Creek with other friends before returning to Rialto.
Ledezma had been hospitalized with injuries he received in the crash. But after receiving treatment at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, he was released and returned to military service.
In the past few days, Kentucky police pulled over Ledezma for a traffic infraction, said Rialto police Detective Gary Cunningham.
"He got some type of traffic ticket and the warrant popped up," Cunningham said.
Two Rialto officers were scheduled to fly to Louisville, Ky., Thursday to pick up Ledezma. He could be arraigned on the charges as early as Monday, Cunningham said.
Contact writer Melissa
Pinion-Whitt at (909) 386-3878 or via e-mail at melissa.pinion-whitt@sbsun.com.
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BS Ranch Perspective:
I am happy that Rialto Police has got their man when it came to the Killing of the two girls pertaining to this accident, however it is just a shame that it was a Solder. It also is worse that he used the uniform of the United States Government to hide behind to attempt to get away with the untimely Death of two people. It isn't Bad enough that we have so much Killing going on over in Iraq, that it was brought over here and this Solder felt so clouded that he could not bring it to tell the difference between the two places to walk into turning himself in from the injustice that he caused to the family of the woman of the lives that he cut so short. Instead he found the time to hide aboard a bus and run to Kentucky and simply figured the further away from Rialto that he got at the help of the US Government the Better for him. However Thanks to God, and all his Glory that was not the case and he will answer for the crime, and the Death that he caused!
BS Ranch
Melissa Pinion-Whitt, Staff writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Article Launched:03/30/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
A man who triggered a January car crash in Rialto that claimed the lives of two teen girls was captured in Kentucky and is expected to be returned to California today, officials said.
David Ponce Ledezma, 21, of Colton, who is in the U.S. Army and was scheduled to return to Iraq several days after the crash, has been charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.
The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office issued a warrant for his arrest March 21, according to court records.
While officers said a strong odor of alcohol came from people inside the car Ledezma was driving, investigators would not reveal whether blood tests showed Ledezma was intoxicated at the time of the crash.
Had he shown obvious signs of inebriation at the scene, he would have been immediately arrested, said Rialto police Cpl. Chris Hice.
"During the preliminary investigation, he was not taken into custody," Hice said. "We ran the course of the investigation, put together the complete investigation package, submitted it to the (District Attorney's Office) and a warrant was issued."
Officers wanted to rule out other potential causes of the crash first, such as mechanical problems with Ledezma's vehicle.
Ledezma was driving on a downhill slope on Sycamore Avenue near Wilson Street at 4:10 a.m. Jan. 4 when he struck an upturn in the road and his 2002 GMC Yukon became airborne, officials said. The vehicle flipped, throwing Rachel Lujan of Bloomington and Adriadne Benavides of Rialto, both 17, out of the vehicle.
The girls were not wearing seat belts. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Three other people were injured in the crash.
Police said the group had been drinking in Lytle Creek with other friends before returning to Rialto.
Ledezma had been hospitalized with injuries he received in the crash. But after receiving treatment at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, he was released and returned to military service.
In the past few days, Kentucky police pulled over Ledezma for a traffic infraction, said Rialto police Detective Gary Cunningham.
"He got some type of traffic ticket and the warrant popped up," Cunningham said.
Two Rialto officers were scheduled to fly to Louisville, Ky., Thursday to pick up Ledezma. He could be arraigned on the charges as early as Monday, Cunningham said.
Contact writer Melissa
Pinion-Whitt at (909) 386-3878 or via e-mail at melissa.pinion-whitt@sbsun.com.
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BS Ranch Perspective:
I am happy that Rialto Police has got their man when it came to the Killing of the two girls pertaining to this accident, however it is just a shame that it was a Solder. It also is worse that he used the uniform of the United States Government to hide behind to attempt to get away with the untimely Death of two people. It isn't Bad enough that we have so much Killing going on over in Iraq, that it was brought over here and this Solder felt so clouded that he could not bring it to tell the difference between the two places to walk into turning himself in from the injustice that he caused to the family of the woman of the lives that he cut so short. Instead he found the time to hide aboard a bus and run to Kentucky and simply figured the further away from Rialto that he got at the help of the US Government the Better for him. However Thanks to God, and all his Glory that was not the case and he will answer for the crime, and the Death that he caused!
BS Ranch
Meet 'Mac' Driver Extraordinaire (Daily Bulletin) 1 million accident-free miles qualify man to promote safety
Meet 'Mack,' safe truck driver extraordinaire
1 million accident-free miles qualify man to promote safety
By Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/02/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
Dellonzo 'Mack' McAdory, 39, of Rialto, who has been driving big trucks since 1989, stands in front of the truck he drives for FedEx on Monday March 26, 2007. McAdory recently joined an elite group of American Trucking Association drivers who have driven over a million miles without an accident.
(Brett Snow/Staff photographer) RIALTO - Driving on local freeways can be like playing a game of "Frogger," with irritated drivers darting between all the trucks.
But that's not how Dellonzo McAdory, or "Mack," views the trucks on the road. The 39-year-old trucker was recently named to an elite national group of 16 drivers who travel the country representing truck drivers and promoting safety.
"Can you imagine if we didn't have any trucks? Man, we'd be lost," McAdory said at the FedEx distribution center in Rialto, where he is based. Trucks bring us 89 percent of the goods we use, he said.
After driving 1 million miles without getting into an accident, McAdory was named to America's Road Team, an outreach group for the American Trucking Associations, in January.
Rialto may be known as a bedroom community, but south of the 10 Freeway is a growing cluster of transportation centers. The FedEx center McAdory runs his operation out of - he owns three trucks and is a contractor with FedEx - employs at least 1,000 people, said Jim Fleming, a senior manager at the facility. The parking lot was packed with white FedEx Ground trucks on a recent Monday morning.
McAdory said he has worked with FedEx for more than four years. Every
Wednesday morning, he and another driver, Craig Manigo, head out to Atlanta and return on Sunday by way of Sacramento.
They take turns driving for 11 hours and take 10-hour breaks. McAdory's truck has some basic creature comforts: a bunk bed and a refrigerator.
McAdory, who lives in Highland, doesn't get to see his two children, two stepchildren and his wife, Lamonica, as much as he'd like.
"Unfortunately, we just have to work," he said.
But his job has taken Mc-
Adory to all 48 contiguous states, he said.
"For me, it is like a road trip."
Even though he enjoys all the driving, McAdory did not make it 1 million accident-free miles without being incredibly safety- conscious.
During his first few months of the two-year stint with America's Road Team, he has already been to Washington, D.C., and Austin, Texas, touting safety to anyone who will listen.
"We're speaking about sharing the road with big truckers," he said.
Among his recommendations to drivers:
Pay attention to blind spots. If you cannot see a driver in his mirror, he cannot see you.
When passing a truck, make sure you can see its headlights in your rear-view mirror before moving back over.
Don't linger around the side of a big truck.
Stay at least 20 car lengths behind a big truck.
A truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds when full and take the length of a football field to stop, he said.
McAdory is the fourth person from the FedEx hub in Rialto to make it on America's Road Team, said Fleming. That's a high honor considering Mc-
Adory is the only driver on the West Coast to be on the team right now.
After meeting McAdory, it's clear he has an unusual amount of enthusiasm for the art of driving. He said he studies different driving habits as he drives across the country every week.
When he retires, McAdory said he wants to buy an RV. He recommends that everyone take a road trip.
"We have some beautiful country," he said.
During his travels, he's made friends with people he meets along his route at different truck stops and by stopping at some of the same places on each trip.
McAdory enjoys driving, but he also sees trucking as important work.
"If there was no trucking, America would virtually come to a stop."
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BS Ranch Perspective:
"Mac" is a great guy in my eyes, one of the guys that takes it easy and lays back on the freeway, when there is a large cog of traffic commonly known as a traffic jam, and the truck drivers lay back, and get a hug 500' gap between the front of their rigs and the rear of the car or truck in front of them. Comedians make fun of them because they say that they cannot figure out what or way they leave all that room there. But when you travel like a whole bunch of cattle in a cattle chute, you are going to rear end the Cow, in this case the car or truck, in front of you that stops short! So, having that 500 or so feet is not that bad of an idea. In fact it is pretty smart and It was learned and practiced by this typist often!
BS Ranch
1 million accident-free miles qualify man to promote safety
By Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/02/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
Dellonzo 'Mack' McAdory, 39, of Rialto, who has been driving big trucks since 1989, stands in front of the truck he drives for FedEx on Monday March 26, 2007. McAdory recently joined an elite group of American Trucking Association drivers who have driven over a million miles without an accident.
(Brett Snow/Staff photographer) RIALTO - Driving on local freeways can be like playing a game of "Frogger," with irritated drivers darting between all the trucks.
But that's not how Dellonzo McAdory, or "Mack," views the trucks on the road. The 39-year-old trucker was recently named to an elite national group of 16 drivers who travel the country representing truck drivers and promoting safety.
"Can you imagine if we didn't have any trucks? Man, we'd be lost," McAdory said at the FedEx distribution center in Rialto, where he is based. Trucks bring us 89 percent of the goods we use, he said.
After driving 1 million miles without getting into an accident, McAdory was named to America's Road Team, an outreach group for the American Trucking Associations, in January.
Rialto may be known as a bedroom community, but south of the 10 Freeway is a growing cluster of transportation centers. The FedEx center McAdory runs his operation out of - he owns three trucks and is a contractor with FedEx - employs at least 1,000 people, said Jim Fleming, a senior manager at the facility. The parking lot was packed with white FedEx Ground trucks on a recent Monday morning.
McAdory said he has worked with FedEx for more than four years. Every
Wednesday morning, he and another driver, Craig Manigo, head out to Atlanta and return on Sunday by way of Sacramento.
They take turns driving for 11 hours and take 10-hour breaks. McAdory's truck has some basic creature comforts: a bunk bed and a refrigerator.
McAdory, who lives in Highland, doesn't get to see his two children, two stepchildren and his wife, Lamonica, as much as he'd like.
"Unfortunately, we just have to work," he said.
But his job has taken Mc-
Adory to all 48 contiguous states, he said.
"For me, it is like a road trip."
Even though he enjoys all the driving, McAdory did not make it 1 million accident-free miles without being incredibly safety- conscious.
During his first few months of the two-year stint with America's Road Team, he has already been to Washington, D.C., and Austin, Texas, touting safety to anyone who will listen.
"We're speaking about sharing the road with big truckers," he said.
Among his recommendations to drivers:
Pay attention to blind spots. If you cannot see a driver in his mirror, he cannot see you.
When passing a truck, make sure you can see its headlights in your rear-view mirror before moving back over.
Don't linger around the side of a big truck.
Stay at least 20 car lengths behind a big truck.
A truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds when full and take the length of a football field to stop, he said.
McAdory is the fourth person from the FedEx hub in Rialto to make it on America's Road Team, said Fleming. That's a high honor considering Mc-
Adory is the only driver on the West Coast to be on the team right now.
After meeting McAdory, it's clear he has an unusual amount of enthusiasm for the art of driving. He said he studies different driving habits as he drives across the country every week.
When he retires, McAdory said he wants to buy an RV. He recommends that everyone take a road trip.
"We have some beautiful country," he said.
During his travels, he's made friends with people he meets along his route at different truck stops and by stopping at some of the same places on each trip.
McAdory enjoys driving, but he also sees trucking as important work.
"If there was no trucking, America would virtually come to a stop."
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--
BS Ranch Perspective:
"Mac" is a great guy in my eyes, one of the guys that takes it easy and lays back on the freeway, when there is a large cog of traffic commonly known as a traffic jam, and the truck drivers lay back, and get a hug 500' gap between the front of their rigs and the rear of the car or truck in front of them. Comedians make fun of them because they say that they cannot figure out what or way they leave all that room there. But when you travel like a whole bunch of cattle in a cattle chute, you are going to rear end the Cow, in this case the car or truck, in front of you that stops short! So, having that 500 or so feet is not that bad of an idea. In fact it is pretty smart and It was learned and practiced by this typist often!
BS Ranch
Festival marks Milestone for Rialto Orange Grove (Press Enterpise)
Festival marks milestone for Rialto orange grove
10:00 PM PDT on Saturday, March 31, 2007
By PENNY E. SCHWARTZ
Special to The Press-Enterprise
The fragrance of orange blossoms scented the air Saturday as Rialto's last surviving orange grove reached its centennial milestone, marked by a Grove Fest birthday party.
Several hundred people attended the celebration in a tree-shaded area in front of one of the grove property's ranch-style houses.
The Adams-Cooley grove was planted in 1907 by V. R Cooley on 20 acres along Cactus Avenue between Randall and Merrill avenues.
Story continues below
Ed Crisostomo / The Press-Enterprise
Bob Fraley and Friends entertain the crowd Saturday with music during the Grove Fest celebration in Rialto.
During the 1970s, half of the acreage was sold, leaving 10 acres that remain in the family of Cooley's grandson, John Adams.
"Our grove is a complete working orchard from the good old days of Southern California, with the 100-year-old irrigation system and all the buildings still intact," said Adams, 62. "We farm it just as it was farmed in my grandfather's day."
The oranges are harvested and marketed by a Riverside packing house. Among the original buildings still standing on the property is one constructed of irrigation flumes from a neighboring grove.
During Saturday's celebration, Rialto Mayor Grace Vargas presented Adams with a plaque commemorating the occasion. Guests enjoyed lively bluegrass music offered by Bob Fraley and Friends, nibbled on birthday cake and drank fresh-squeezed orange juice.
Joining the party was Adams' mother, Jean, 92, an artist who has created paintings of the grove many times during her career. A poster incorporating one of her watercolors commemorated the Grove Fest and was available at the event.
Jean Adams still lives on the property with her son, John, a local historian.
Also in attendance were several dozen graduates of Rialto's Eisenhower High School, who have reconnected in recent years through Adams' efforts on the Internet.
"This is all so thrilling and incredible," said Ruth Fraley Parker, 62, a Class of 1962 classmate of Adams.
"I grew up around here and walked to school through the groves," said Parker, who now lives in Orange County. "We all have fond memories of the groves."
She said that she saw Adams' name on the Classmates.com Web site several years ago and e-mailed him. The contact led her to visit the Rialto Historical Society, which Adams has helped to spearhead and maintain.
Parker and another classmate, Jennifer Selbert, also of Orange County, helped Adams organize the Grove Fest. An avid gardener, Selbert also designed a poster for the event, detailing the edible plants that grow wild in the grove and that Adams harvests for cooking use by local ethnic groups.
A visitor from Colorado, James Selbert of the Class of 1959, gifted Adams with a group of vintage black and white photographs of Rialto for use by the historical society.
A number of family members were on hand as well.
"This was a great place to be a kid," said Bob Adams, 44, who lives in the Bay Area. "We would spend hours and days on end roaming the groves."
Bob Adams is a nephew of John's who lived in Pasadena as a child and visited Rialto in the summers.
"Once there were approximately 1,000 acres of citrus in Rialto and a small grove could support a family," said John Adams, who edited a recent book of historical photographs of Rialto.
Now his grove is the only one left in the city, he said.
Grove Fest guest Thomas Lopez, 66, of San Bernardino, sees Adams as a good influence on local preservationists.
"The people in power are starting to preserve the orchards in other cities," he said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The whole thing about this festival was that the Orange Orchard that they were happy to celebrate was that of one that has been in the Same Rialto Family for 100 years. It was Planted by the Great Grand Father of the Current 62 year old owner with which I find wonderful that someone would keep anything in the family that long. Let alone, that the family still works the Orchard as a working Orchard. They Take the Fruit that they harvest out to a Packing Plant in Riverside One that had been in Business for almost as long as they planted the Orchard. Since they Closed the Packing Plant that was in Downtown Rialto, and the closest one was the one in Riverside, I bet it is close to the rail road.
I am happy for the family to have gotten the honor that the Rialto City gave them this year. That was Great, and Well Deserved!!
BS Ranch
10:00 PM PDT on Saturday, March 31, 2007
By PENNY E. SCHWARTZ
Special to The Press-Enterprise
The fragrance of orange blossoms scented the air Saturday as Rialto's last surviving orange grove reached its centennial milestone, marked by a Grove Fest birthday party.
Several hundred people attended the celebration in a tree-shaded area in front of one of the grove property's ranch-style houses.
The Adams-Cooley grove was planted in 1907 by V. R Cooley on 20 acres along Cactus Avenue between Randall and Merrill avenues.
Story continues below
Ed Crisostomo / The Press-Enterprise
Bob Fraley and Friends entertain the crowd Saturday with music during the Grove Fest celebration in Rialto.
During the 1970s, half of the acreage was sold, leaving 10 acres that remain in the family of Cooley's grandson, John Adams.
"Our grove is a complete working orchard from the good old days of Southern California, with the 100-year-old irrigation system and all the buildings still intact," said Adams, 62. "We farm it just as it was farmed in my grandfather's day."
The oranges are harvested and marketed by a Riverside packing house. Among the original buildings still standing on the property is one constructed of irrigation flumes from a neighboring grove.
During Saturday's celebration, Rialto Mayor Grace Vargas presented Adams with a plaque commemorating the occasion. Guests enjoyed lively bluegrass music offered by Bob Fraley and Friends, nibbled on birthday cake and drank fresh-squeezed orange juice.
Joining the party was Adams' mother, Jean, 92, an artist who has created paintings of the grove many times during her career. A poster incorporating one of her watercolors commemorated the Grove Fest and was available at the event.
Jean Adams still lives on the property with her son, John, a local historian.
Also in attendance were several dozen graduates of Rialto's Eisenhower High School, who have reconnected in recent years through Adams' efforts on the Internet.
"This is all so thrilling and incredible," said Ruth Fraley Parker, 62, a Class of 1962 classmate of Adams.
"I grew up around here and walked to school through the groves," said Parker, who now lives in Orange County. "We all have fond memories of the groves."
She said that she saw Adams' name on the Classmates.com Web site several years ago and e-mailed him. The contact led her to visit the Rialto Historical Society, which Adams has helped to spearhead and maintain.
Parker and another classmate, Jennifer Selbert, also of Orange County, helped Adams organize the Grove Fest. An avid gardener, Selbert also designed a poster for the event, detailing the edible plants that grow wild in the grove and that Adams harvests for cooking use by local ethnic groups.
A visitor from Colorado, James Selbert of the Class of 1959, gifted Adams with a group of vintage black and white photographs of Rialto for use by the historical society.
A number of family members were on hand as well.
"This was a great place to be a kid," said Bob Adams, 44, who lives in the Bay Area. "We would spend hours and days on end roaming the groves."
Bob Adams is a nephew of John's who lived in Pasadena as a child and visited Rialto in the summers.
"Once there were approximately 1,000 acres of citrus in Rialto and a small grove could support a family," said John Adams, who edited a recent book of historical photographs of Rialto.
Now his grove is the only one left in the city, he said.
Grove Fest guest Thomas Lopez, 66, of San Bernardino, sees Adams as a good influence on local preservationists.
"The people in power are starting to preserve the orchards in other cities," he said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The whole thing about this festival was that the Orange Orchard that they were happy to celebrate was that of one that has been in the Same Rialto Family for 100 years. It was Planted by the Great Grand Father of the Current 62 year old owner with which I find wonderful that someone would keep anything in the family that long. Let alone, that the family still works the Orchard as a working Orchard. They Take the Fruit that they harvest out to a Packing Plant in Riverside One that had been in Business for almost as long as they planted the Orchard. Since they Closed the Packing Plant that was in Downtown Rialto, and the closest one was the one in Riverside, I bet it is close to the rail road.
I am happy for the family to have gotten the honor that the Rialto City gave them this year. That was Great, and Well Deserved!!
BS Ranch
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Last Orange Grove in Rialto Turns 100 (Daily Bulletin)
Last orange grove in Rialto turns 100
By Andrew Silva, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/01/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - In a city with nearly 100,000 people, a shady 10-acre oasis of the early 20th century still stands.
"It's just like what it was 100 years ago," said John Adams, 63, whose grandfather planted the orange trees and built the houses for what is now the last orange grove in Rialto.
Adams, who still lives on the little spread on Cactus Avenue, celebrated the 100th anniversary of his grandfather's grove Saturday.
The festival doubled as a reunion for Rialto natives who attended Rialto Junior High School and Eisenhower High School in the late 1950s and 1960s.
It was just a fortunate coincidence that it also turned out to be the anniversary of the year Adams' grandfather planted the first orange trees in 1907.
Some people may know their ancestors farmed in the past, he said, but not many get the chance to live amid the same trees and the memories they represent.
"We'd play softball for hours (in the road) without having to stop for a car," he said. "The birds and the winds were the only sounds you'd hear."
Ron Featherstone, 63, who now lives in Bullhead City, Ariz., graduated from Eisenhower High in 1962, as Adams did.
He remembers a Tom Sawyer-like boyhood when Rialto
was half orange groves and half undeveloped land.
"All the little critters and varmints were here," he said. "I caught hundreds of rattlesnakes."
He was bitten twice as a youngster, but continued catching the dangerous reptiles.
"I used to trade the rattles to the guys with the really good marbles," he said. "We found ways to have fun that didn't cost money."
The group of old friends used to stay in touch with phone calls and letters, but now they have a Web site to keep track of each other.
Jennifer Selbert, also from the class of 1962, said everyone remembers the smell of the orange blossoms, so they decided to have a reunion in the spring.
The centennial celebration was a bonus.
"We thought about doing the reunion when the oranges were blossoming and didn't even think it was the 100th anniversary," Selbert said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
I think that it is time that the 100 year old Orchard should be made a Historical Land Mark and then told that they cannot sell, build, or do anything to that property except keep the Tree's in the Orchard happy, with Water and Plant Food and the like. They might have to pull or call in the pickers and pick or harvest the oranges from the threes, and then send them to the orchard.
But See I am mean that way!! However, really taking the history of the area, that would not be such a bad idea, if it was tied to the Historical Society, and part of the museum.
BS Ranch!!
By Andrew Silva, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/01/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - In a city with nearly 100,000 people, a shady 10-acre oasis of the early 20th century still stands.
"It's just like what it was 100 years ago," said John Adams, 63, whose grandfather planted the orange trees and built the houses for what is now the last orange grove in Rialto.
Adams, who still lives on the little spread on Cactus Avenue, celebrated the 100th anniversary of his grandfather's grove Saturday.
The festival doubled as a reunion for Rialto natives who attended Rialto Junior High School and Eisenhower High School in the late 1950s and 1960s.
It was just a fortunate coincidence that it also turned out to be the anniversary of the year Adams' grandfather planted the first orange trees in 1907.
Some people may know their ancestors farmed in the past, he said, but not many get the chance to live amid the same trees and the memories they represent.
"We'd play softball for hours (in the road) without having to stop for a car," he said. "The birds and the winds were the only sounds you'd hear."
Ron Featherstone, 63, who now lives in Bullhead City, Ariz., graduated from Eisenhower High in 1962, as Adams did.
He remembers a Tom Sawyer-like boyhood when Rialto
was half orange groves and half undeveloped land.
"All the little critters and varmints were here," he said. "I caught hundreds of rattlesnakes."
He was bitten twice as a youngster, but continued catching the dangerous reptiles.
"I used to trade the rattles to the guys with the really good marbles," he said. "We found ways to have fun that didn't cost money."
The group of old friends used to stay in touch with phone calls and letters, but now they have a Web site to keep track of each other.
Jennifer Selbert, also from the class of 1962, said everyone remembers the smell of the orange blossoms, so they decided to have a reunion in the spring.
The centennial celebration was a bonus.
"We thought about doing the reunion when the oranges were blossoming and didn't even think it was the 100th anniversary," Selbert said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
I think that it is time that the 100 year old Orchard should be made a Historical Land Mark and then told that they cannot sell, build, or do anything to that property except keep the Tree's in the Orchard happy, with Water and Plant Food and the like. They might have to pull or call in the pickers and pick or harvest the oranges from the threes, and then send them to the orchard.
But See I am mean that way!! However, really taking the history of the area, that would not be such a bad idea, if it was tied to the Historical Society, and part of the museum.
BS Ranch!!
Charges Dismissed in Rialto Roadblock Shooting (AP) Teens accused of shooting, wounding motorists from overpass shooting
Charges dismissed Rialto roadblock shooting
Teens were accused of shooting, wounding motorists from overpass.
The Associated Press
FONTANA -- Charges were dismissed against two teenagers charged last year with shooting and wounding two motorists at a freeway overpass in Rialto.
Deputy District Attorney Steve Singley said Thursday that evidence remaining after a county commissioner threw out statements that Alvin Molina III, 17, and Steve Torres, 18, made to police was insufficient to tie them to the shooting.
"I do think they were involved in the crime at some level," he said. "Unfortunately, we are not able to prove their culpability at this time."
The teens were charged in connection with an Aug. 11 shooting that wounded a driver and passenger when their Chevrolet Suburban slowed for a makeshift roadblock on Interstate 210.
The teens were arrested the following evening when police observed them setting up a roadblock.
They spent six months in jail until March 1, when Knish ordered their release following a February hearing during which he threw out the statements, according to court records.
Torres' attorney, Neil Shouse, said previously that police obtained false statements by telling his client details of the case.
"Everybody seemed to jump to conclusions," Shouse said Thursday. "But when the evidence unraveled, it was apparent the wrong people were apprehended."
A conspiracy accessory charge against Debra Molina also was dismissed Thursday. She was accused of washing her son's clothes to help conceal the crime.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
This is a classic case of the Legal system Failing the Victim. The Suspects were caught making a make shift road block, which lead to their arrest. Their Parents were notified that they were in custody, while the police was obtaining a Search Warrant of the Suspects Residence to look for anything else that might tie them to the Crime. When the Search Warrant was Served, the Mother, who had over 18 years with the Probation Department as a Probation Supervisor, was Washing the clothing that had marked evidence of the Shooting, from the night that they made the first Road Block, when they Injured the Passenger and Driver of the Victim's car.
The Judge, who Dropped the Charges said that he felt that they had taken some part to this crime, however he could not tell what part that they did or didn't take, so he dropped the charges. I am wondering if the Judge has NO DOUBT, THAT THEY TOOK PART IN THE CRIME!! Then what does it take to allow it to go to trial. The Judge Drops The Charges. It isn't that bad but the Child's Mother, where the "Chip" of the "Block" came from, got her charges dropped for Both Compounding a Felony, and Tampering with Evidence to a Crime!!
The Mother, Really has Taught The children of the Neighborhood well, by Terrorizing Innocent people that are just on their way home from a movie or the mall, and they get shot at, and possibly, almost Killed. Lucky in this case Nobody was Killed.
Still we have three Juveniles that are going into adulthood, and their Mother, All of which are Criminals, and should be treated like criminals. So if you know these people and you run into them treat them for who they are! Unless they can prove to me that they are better then that, and come back by being bigger than the crime that they committed, and show that they are better then all that. I hope that they have been forced to move actually. Knowing my luck, they know where I live and they will lay in wait like they did to their victims, and then they will shoot me as I enter my home. Double or nothing says that they will miss and hit my neighbor, an unrelated party to this, BLOG!! Because that is the type of Criminal we are dealing with here.
BS Ranch
Teens were accused of shooting, wounding motorists from overpass.
The Associated Press
FONTANA -- Charges were dismissed against two teenagers charged last year with shooting and wounding two motorists at a freeway overpass in Rialto.
Deputy District Attorney Steve Singley said Thursday that evidence remaining after a county commissioner threw out statements that Alvin Molina III, 17, and Steve Torres, 18, made to police was insufficient to tie them to the shooting.
"I do think they were involved in the crime at some level," he said. "Unfortunately, we are not able to prove their culpability at this time."
The teens were charged in connection with an Aug. 11 shooting that wounded a driver and passenger when their Chevrolet Suburban slowed for a makeshift roadblock on Interstate 210.
The teens were arrested the following evening when police observed them setting up a roadblock.
They spent six months in jail until March 1, when Knish ordered their release following a February hearing during which he threw out the statements, according to court records.
Torres' attorney, Neil Shouse, said previously that police obtained false statements by telling his client details of the case.
"Everybody seemed to jump to conclusions," Shouse said Thursday. "But when the evidence unraveled, it was apparent the wrong people were apprehended."
A conspiracy accessory charge against Debra Molina also was dismissed Thursday. She was accused of washing her son's clothes to help conceal the crime.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
This is a classic case of the Legal system Failing the Victim. The Suspects were caught making a make shift road block, which lead to their arrest. Their Parents were notified that they were in custody, while the police was obtaining a Search Warrant of the Suspects Residence to look for anything else that might tie them to the Crime. When the Search Warrant was Served, the Mother, who had over 18 years with the Probation Department as a Probation Supervisor, was Washing the clothing that had marked evidence of the Shooting, from the night that they made the first Road Block, when they Injured the Passenger and Driver of the Victim's car.
The Judge, who Dropped the Charges said that he felt that they had taken some part to this crime, however he could not tell what part that they did or didn't take, so he dropped the charges. I am wondering if the Judge has NO DOUBT, THAT THEY TOOK PART IN THE CRIME!! Then what does it take to allow it to go to trial. The Judge Drops The Charges. It isn't that bad but the Child's Mother, where the "Chip" of the "Block" came from, got her charges dropped for Both Compounding a Felony, and Tampering with Evidence to a Crime!!
The Mother, Really has Taught The children of the Neighborhood well, by Terrorizing Innocent people that are just on their way home from a movie or the mall, and they get shot at, and possibly, almost Killed. Lucky in this case Nobody was Killed.
Still we have three Juveniles that are going into adulthood, and their Mother, All of which are Criminals, and should be treated like criminals. So if you know these people and you run into them treat them for who they are! Unless they can prove to me that they are better then that, and come back by being bigger than the crime that they committed, and show that they are better then all that. I hope that they have been forced to move actually. Knowing my luck, they know where I live and they will lay in wait like they did to their victims, and then they will shoot me as I enter my home. Double or nothing says that they will miss and hit my neighbor, an unrelated party to this, BLOG!! Because that is the type of Criminal we are dealing with here.
BS Ranch
Disagreemants Remain Over Illgal Immigration (Fontana Herald News)
Disagreements remain over illegal immigration
By FONTANA HERALD NEWS
The subject of illegal immigration has been a thorny issue for many years. Passions run high on both sides; one extreme demands amnesty for all illegal immigrants, while the other extreme insists that each one of them should be deported. Some studies conclude that illegal immigrants help the United States economy; other studies say that people who are here illegally are a huge drain on our nation's resources.
The issue came to a head last year, when hundreds of thousands of people marched in major cities such as Los Angeles in favor of immigrants' rights. There were also some small rallies by people (mostly students) in Fontana.
Another march was held earlier this month in L.A., but this time only about 5,000 pro-amnesty participants (and a small number of counter-demonstrators) were involved. In the Inland Empire, a rally was held on March 16 at San Bernardino City Hall, attracting about 400 pro-amnesty individuals and close to 100 counter-demonstrators.
It seems as though the issue has been placed on the back burner, at least on the national level, with many more citizens rightfully concerned about the war in Iraq than about illegal immigration.
But it would be wise for Congress to renew its efforts to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill. President Bush has pushed for a reasonable compromise that aims to secure the nation's borders against terrorist threats, while at the same time recognizing the need for a guest worker program and a path for illegal immigrants to legalize their status if they pay fines, have a job, learn English, and stay out of trouble.
While federal leaders continue their debate, people in Fontana and the Inland Empire can still feel free to air their disagreements over this issue -- as long as they remain peaceful and do not foment hatred, particularly against people from Latin American countries who represent most of the immigrants (both legal and illegal) to the United States. Unfortunately, some of the counter-demonstrations at the recent San Bernardino rally expressed their anti-illegal immigration views in bigoted terms. It is important for citizens to state their case while not contributing to an atmosphere of hatefulness.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The crazyness over the Immigration is rampet, but the people that are for the Illegal Immigration don't seem to understand. I would say that 99% of all people against Illegal Immigration are against the people that enter the United States illegally for what ever reason. All that I know is that they have entered the U.S. illegally.
If they had gone thought the proper channels and obtained a Green card like my Parents did a great many years ago when the entered the U.S. on a Extended Stay Visa.. They stayed and worked on getting a Green Card, which they were able to do.
They worked and stayed here and worked toward gaining that citizenship, and worked super hard and obtained the right to vote, the right to sit on a Jury.
The people that are coming here and bashing through the border, staying beyond their Visa, whether it be a Student Visa, or Work Visa. If they blow by the expiration dates on those or enter the country by running the border, they are "BREAKING THE LAW"!!
The Word "Illegal" Immigrant! If they were just an Immigrant than we would not have this discussion, but it is "Illegal Immigrant" therefore the Conversation is wide open!!
Illegal Immigants Need to go home and re-enter the country the right way! I don't care if it takes 50 years, it is the right way to get in. after all there is a right way and a wrong way. Entering the country with nothing that is issued by the government, Legal like, with your birth name on it. No matter how you look at it you are here Illegally and need to either be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, or go home and return legally.
BS Ranch
By FONTANA HERALD NEWS
The subject of illegal immigration has been a thorny issue for many years. Passions run high on both sides; one extreme demands amnesty for all illegal immigrants, while the other extreme insists that each one of them should be deported. Some studies conclude that illegal immigrants help the United States economy; other studies say that people who are here illegally are a huge drain on our nation's resources.
The issue came to a head last year, when hundreds of thousands of people marched in major cities such as Los Angeles in favor of immigrants' rights. There were also some small rallies by people (mostly students) in Fontana.
Another march was held earlier this month in L.A., but this time only about 5,000 pro-amnesty participants (and a small number of counter-demonstrators) were involved. In the Inland Empire, a rally was held on March 16 at San Bernardino City Hall, attracting about 400 pro-amnesty individuals and close to 100 counter-demonstrators.
It seems as though the issue has been placed on the back burner, at least on the national level, with many more citizens rightfully concerned about the war in Iraq than about illegal immigration.
But it would be wise for Congress to renew its efforts to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill. President Bush has pushed for a reasonable compromise that aims to secure the nation's borders against terrorist threats, while at the same time recognizing the need for a guest worker program and a path for illegal immigrants to legalize their status if they pay fines, have a job, learn English, and stay out of trouble.
While federal leaders continue their debate, people in Fontana and the Inland Empire can still feel free to air their disagreements over this issue -- as long as they remain peaceful and do not foment hatred, particularly against people from Latin American countries who represent most of the immigrants (both legal and illegal) to the United States. Unfortunately, some of the counter-demonstrations at the recent San Bernardino rally expressed their anti-illegal immigration views in bigoted terms. It is important for citizens to state their case while not contributing to an atmosphere of hatefulness.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The crazyness over the Immigration is rampet, but the people that are for the Illegal Immigration don't seem to understand. I would say that 99% of all people against Illegal Immigration are against the people that enter the United States illegally for what ever reason. All that I know is that they have entered the U.S. illegally.
If they had gone thought the proper channels and obtained a Green card like my Parents did a great many years ago when the entered the U.S. on a Extended Stay Visa.. They stayed and worked on getting a Green Card, which they were able to do.
They worked and stayed here and worked toward gaining that citizenship, and worked super hard and obtained the right to vote, the right to sit on a Jury.
The people that are coming here and bashing through the border, staying beyond their Visa, whether it be a Student Visa, or Work Visa. If they blow by the expiration dates on those or enter the country by running the border, they are "BREAKING THE LAW"!!
The Word "Illegal" Immigrant! If they were just an Immigrant than we would not have this discussion, but it is "Illegal Immigrant" therefore the Conversation is wide open!!
Illegal Immigants Need to go home and re-enter the country the right way! I don't care if it takes 50 years, it is the right way to get in. after all there is a right way and a wrong way. Entering the country with nothing that is issued by the government, Legal like, with your birth name on it. No matter how you look at it you are here Illegally and need to either be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, or go home and return legally.
BS Ranch
Rialto Plan Lays Out Relocation Help for Airport's Tenants (Press-Enterprise)
Rialto plan lays out relocation help for airport's tenants
10:00 PM PDT on Monday, March 26, 2007
By MASSIEL LADRÓN DE GUEVARA
The Press-Enterprise
Rialto Municipal Airport tenants will receive help relocating to other airports to make way for the Renaissance Rialto project, which is expected to generate millions in sales tax revenue, Rialto officials said.
Eligible businesses or individuals will be offered referrals to suitable replacement locations, help in preparing claim forms for relocation payments and other assistance to minimize the impact of the move, according to a relocation plan for the Rialto Municipal Airport closure submitted March 15.
Every displaced person is eligible to be reimbursed for moving and related costs of as much as $10,000, according to the plan.
Renaissance Rialto is a 1,500-acre master-planned community along Interstate 210, west of Ayala Avenue. Project plans divide the land among residential, industrial, commercial and public uses, Robb Steel, the city's economic development director, has said.
The relocation costs for airport tenants will be funded by the Rialto Development Agency from the proceeds of the sale of the airport, records show.
The Renaissance Rialto developer, Lewis-Hillwood LLC, is expected to pay as much as $82 million for the airport property. The cost of removing hazardous waste, demolishing runways and relocating tenants will be deducted, Steel, said. The estimated relocation costs are $7 million records show.
Relocation will begin six months after the project's environmental-impact review, specific plan and development agreement are approved, which is expected to occur in November, records show.
Rents at Rialto Municipal Airport are below market value in most cases because of a rent freeze that was approved during discussions to close the airport. Officials are working with San Bernardino International Airport to get comparable rents for relocated tenants for at least a few years, Steel said.
For tenants that want to relocate to San Bernardino International Airport, there are about 18 to 20 acres available for facilities to be built, said Mike Burrows, assistant director of the San Bernardino International Airport Authority.
The goal is to have the facilities ready for tenants in about a year, Burrows said.
"Right now, we are in the process of designing what can be built and should have that completed within the next several weeks. Then we will look at moving forward with construction," Burrows said.
Mercy Air Services officials are in the process of identifying airports where its operation can transfer, said Roy Cox, Mercy Air's program director.
"At this point, it would be difficult for us to move to San Bernardino because it is a large piece of barren ground, and we need to have a physical building we can move into with hangars and office space," Cox said.
Councilman Ed Scott said Rialto officials are committed to relocating tenants to the best location possible.
"There have been a few glitches, but we are definitely committed to helping every tenant to relocate," Scott said.
Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said the tenants' relocation and completion of Renaissance Rialto will allow the city to flourish and grow economically.
"I think the project will help change the image of the city," Baca said.
Reach Massiel Ladrón De Guevara at 909-806-3054 or mdeguevara@PE.com
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The Idea that the Rialto Airport has to close and force the Tenants out on their ear is not cool especially since some of them have been there for more then 10 years. They should be compensated for their move or at least helped by the city in their move. Joe Baca Jr. is right in this case. The people was right to Elect this man. The Rialto Renaissance is going to go forward, and will bring in about the same if not a little more then the Taxes that the Airport did when it didn't have a huge Federal Loan hanging over its head. Because even the Target might just go Bust. If it is anything like the Businesses of Rialto's Past!!
BS Ranch
10:00 PM PDT on Monday, March 26, 2007
By MASSIEL LADRÓN DE GUEVARA
The Press-Enterprise
Rialto Municipal Airport tenants will receive help relocating to other airports to make way for the Renaissance Rialto project, which is expected to generate millions in sales tax revenue, Rialto officials said.
Eligible businesses or individuals will be offered referrals to suitable replacement locations, help in preparing claim forms for relocation payments and other assistance to minimize the impact of the move, according to a relocation plan for the Rialto Municipal Airport closure submitted March 15.
Every displaced person is eligible to be reimbursed for moving and related costs of as much as $10,000, according to the plan.
Renaissance Rialto is a 1,500-acre master-planned community along Interstate 210, west of Ayala Avenue. Project plans divide the land among residential, industrial, commercial and public uses, Robb Steel, the city's economic development director, has said.
The relocation costs for airport tenants will be funded by the Rialto Development Agency from the proceeds of the sale of the airport, records show.
The Renaissance Rialto developer, Lewis-Hillwood LLC, is expected to pay as much as $82 million for the airport property. The cost of removing hazardous waste, demolishing runways and relocating tenants will be deducted, Steel, said. The estimated relocation costs are $7 million records show.
Relocation will begin six months after the project's environmental-impact review, specific plan and development agreement are approved, which is expected to occur in November, records show.
Rents at Rialto Municipal Airport are below market value in most cases because of a rent freeze that was approved during discussions to close the airport. Officials are working with San Bernardino International Airport to get comparable rents for relocated tenants for at least a few years, Steel said.
For tenants that want to relocate to San Bernardino International Airport, there are about 18 to 20 acres available for facilities to be built, said Mike Burrows, assistant director of the San Bernardino International Airport Authority.
The goal is to have the facilities ready for tenants in about a year, Burrows said.
"Right now, we are in the process of designing what can be built and should have that completed within the next several weeks. Then we will look at moving forward with construction," Burrows said.
Mercy Air Services officials are in the process of identifying airports where its operation can transfer, said Roy Cox, Mercy Air's program director.
"At this point, it would be difficult for us to move to San Bernardino because it is a large piece of barren ground, and we need to have a physical building we can move into with hangars and office space," Cox said.
Councilman Ed Scott said Rialto officials are committed to relocating tenants to the best location possible.
"There have been a few glitches, but we are definitely committed to helping every tenant to relocate," Scott said.
Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said the tenants' relocation and completion of Renaissance Rialto will allow the city to flourish and grow economically.
"I think the project will help change the image of the city," Baca said.
Reach Massiel Ladrón De Guevara at 909-806-3054 or mdeguevara@PE.com
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The Idea that the Rialto Airport has to close and force the Tenants out on their ear is not cool especially since some of them have been there for more then 10 years. They should be compensated for their move or at least helped by the city in their move. Joe Baca Jr. is right in this case. The people was right to Elect this man. The Rialto Renaissance is going to go forward, and will bring in about the same if not a little more then the Taxes that the Airport did when it didn't have a huge Federal Loan hanging over its head. Because even the Target might just go Bust. If it is anything like the Businesses of Rialto's Past!!
BS Ranch
Rialto Police Bouncing Back (SB Sun 032607) Chief, with City's support, prepares new strategy..
Rialto police bouncing back
Chief, with city's support, prepares new strategy
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 03/26/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - Expectations are on the rise for the city's Police Department.
About a year ago, its supporters' main goal was to keep it intact following a September 2005 City Council vote to abolish the department in favor of the services of the county sheriff.
The council later reversed the vote.
Now, Police Chief Mark Kling, who holds a doctorate of public administration from the University of La Verne, talks about turning the department into the top police agency in the Inland Empire.
"We've got great people here that are motivated now," said Lt. Joe Cirilo, whose 27 years with the department makes him the longest-serving member of the force.
Kling, who took over as chief in August, has pushed an aggressive campaign to transform the department by revamping its patrol philosophy, recruiting officers to fill 27 open positions and getting money from the council to update equipment and the dated police station.
Frank Scialdone, the former Fontana police chief who was Rialto's interim chief from December 2005 until Kling took over, said it will take Kling a long time to achieve his vision.
"He's got a tough job ahead of him," Scialdone said, noting that "the average officer doesn't like change that much."
The department has a number of talented people who need a dynamic leader to give them direction, he said.
"He has that charisma and that ability to do that," Scialdone said of Kling.
As interim chief, Scialdone also decided the department should implement a policing strategy he used in Fontana. Implementing that strategy, which is centered on using area commanders, has become Kling's most important responsibility.
Under the area-commander program, to be kicked off in June, the city is divided into three areas, with a lieutenant assigned to each.
The lieutenants will be the community's liaison with the department. They will hold four meetings a year with the community and devise strategies with other city departments, such as code enforcement, to address problems in the area.
The program, which Kling stresses will take time to fully implement, gives the lieutenants the ability to address problems before they get out of control, Scialdone said.
"Instead of taking a reactive approach, we're taking a proactive approach," Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said of the area-commander program. "It restores public confidence," he added, because it involves residents.
Even though implementing the area-commander program will be one of Kling's biggest tests, he has had a number of other issues to grapple with since taking over.
The turmoil in the department after the council's vote to eliminate it caused so many officers to leave that when Kling took over there were 27 openings for officers - about a quarter of the department. Now that number has been cut to 13, although there are still a number of openings for nonofficer positions.
The department, which was once an incubator for lawsuits and charges of corruption and favoritism, will be holding courses on terrorism training, dispatching and SWAT commanding for members of other California departments in the coming months.
Kling is also exploring using gang injunctions, which can bar certain people from particular locations, to dampen gang activity.
Walking through the station, it's hard to find an employee who isn't upbeat about where things are headed.
"You walk down the hallway - people are laughing now," Cirilo said.
In many ways, the departments seems re-energized. It conducts high-profile operations every few weeks, such as Thursday's early-morning anti-gang raid on 19 locations.
Either because the department is stable or because of Kling's political skills, every member of the City Council has publicly praised Kling.
"I think you're a perfect fit in our city," Councilman Ed Scott, who voted to eliminate the department, said at a recent council meeting.
On a recent drive around the city together, the two happened upon a burglar alarm going off. When a police officer arrived to check the situation out, Kling had his back. He cocked his gun and went in, too, Scott said.
In addition to praising to Kling, council members are rewarding the department. In the past few months, they have approved a new armored vehicle and a tactical communication vehicle for the department, as well as minor renovations to the facility until the city figures out what to do about constructing a new police station.
For now, the city's residents and the council are optimistic. Expectations are high for Kling.
When council members were heaping him with praise at a recent meeting, Kling tried to temper the optimism.
"We'll hit some bumps along the way, but we'll get around those bumps," he said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
From the information that I gathered the Department is off to a huge recovery. The City Administrator, and City Council along with the people that were involved in the hiring of the new Chief Finally Got it right! This guy is great with the men. The people that were leaving for the benefit of their families in the long run, after the Police Department was Voted to Go with the Sheriff Department. They were in Fear that they were going to the County, and the loss of their Benefits, with the Public Employee Retirement System after over ten years of Dedicated work, have started to come back to work at Rialto.
They have been some of the dedicated people whom have come back, and Rialto has respectfully taken them back with no questions asked, and no grudges held. That has made the department move forward, with Dignaty and greatness, that it has lost over the years, well since Ray Farmer was forced out back in the Early 90's.
Mark Kling has been the answer that has been great for the community, he has been everything good that everyone has heard and more.
BS Ranch
Chief, with city's support, prepares new strategy
Jason Pesick, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 03/26/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
RIALTO - Expectations are on the rise for the city's Police Department.
About a year ago, its supporters' main goal was to keep it intact following a September 2005 City Council vote to abolish the department in favor of the services of the county sheriff.
The council later reversed the vote.
Now, Police Chief Mark Kling, who holds a doctorate of public administration from the University of La Verne, talks about turning the department into the top police agency in the Inland Empire.
"We've got great people here that are motivated now," said Lt. Joe Cirilo, whose 27 years with the department makes him the longest-serving member of the force.
Kling, who took over as chief in August, has pushed an aggressive campaign to transform the department by revamping its patrol philosophy, recruiting officers to fill 27 open positions and getting money from the council to update equipment and the dated police station.
Frank Scialdone, the former Fontana police chief who was Rialto's interim chief from December 2005 until Kling took over, said it will take Kling a long time to achieve his vision.
"He's got a tough job ahead of him," Scialdone said, noting that "the average officer doesn't like change that much."
The department has a number of talented people who need a dynamic leader to give them direction, he said.
"He has that charisma and that ability to do that," Scialdone said of Kling.
As interim chief, Scialdone also decided the department should implement a policing strategy he used in Fontana. Implementing that strategy, which is centered on using area commanders, has become Kling's most important responsibility.
Under the area-commander program, to be kicked off in June, the city is divided into three areas, with a lieutenant assigned to each.
The lieutenants will be the community's liaison with the department. They will hold four meetings a year with the community and devise strategies with other city departments, such as code enforcement, to address problems in the area.
The program, which Kling stresses will take time to fully implement, gives the lieutenants the ability to address problems before they get out of control, Scialdone said.
"Instead of taking a reactive approach, we're taking a proactive approach," Councilman Joe Baca Jr. said of the area-commander program. "It restores public confidence," he added, because it involves residents.
Even though implementing the area-commander program will be one of Kling's biggest tests, he has had a number of other issues to grapple with since taking over.
The turmoil in the department after the council's vote to eliminate it caused so many officers to leave that when Kling took over there were 27 openings for officers - about a quarter of the department. Now that number has been cut to 13, although there are still a number of openings for nonofficer positions.
The department, which was once an incubator for lawsuits and charges of corruption and favoritism, will be holding courses on terrorism training, dispatching and SWAT commanding for members of other California departments in the coming months.
Kling is also exploring using gang injunctions, which can bar certain people from particular locations, to dampen gang activity.
Walking through the station, it's hard to find an employee who isn't upbeat about where things are headed.
"You walk down the hallway - people are laughing now," Cirilo said.
In many ways, the departments seems re-energized. It conducts high-profile operations every few weeks, such as Thursday's early-morning anti-gang raid on 19 locations.
Either because the department is stable or because of Kling's political skills, every member of the City Council has publicly praised Kling.
"I think you're a perfect fit in our city," Councilman Ed Scott, who voted to eliminate the department, said at a recent council meeting.
On a recent drive around the city together, the two happened upon a burglar alarm going off. When a police officer arrived to check the situation out, Kling had his back. He cocked his gun and went in, too, Scott said.
In addition to praising to Kling, council members are rewarding the department. In the past few months, they have approved a new armored vehicle and a tactical communication vehicle for the department, as well as minor renovations to the facility until the city figures out what to do about constructing a new police station.
For now, the city's residents and the council are optimistic. Expectations are high for Kling.
When council members were heaping him with praise at a recent meeting, Kling tried to temper the optimism.
"We'll hit some bumps along the way, but we'll get around those bumps," he said.
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
From the information that I gathered the Department is off to a huge recovery. The City Administrator, and City Council along with the people that were involved in the hiring of the new Chief Finally Got it right! This guy is great with the men. The people that were leaving for the benefit of their families in the long run, after the Police Department was Voted to Go with the Sheriff Department. They were in Fear that they were going to the County, and the loss of their Benefits, with the Public Employee Retirement System after over ten years of Dedicated work, have started to come back to work at Rialto.
They have been some of the dedicated people whom have come back, and Rialto has respectfully taken them back with no questions asked, and no grudges held. That has made the department move forward, with Dignaty and greatness, that it has lost over the years, well since Ray Farmer was forced out back in the Early 90's.
Mark Kling has been the answer that has been great for the community, he has been everything good that everyone has heard and more.
BS Ranch
Traffic Planning Changes Direction (Press-Enterprise032307)
Traffic planning changes direction
INLAND: A new focus is on unclogging north-south freeways and widening paths between counties.
Download story podcast
10:00 PM PDT on Friday, March 23, 2007
By PHIL PITCHFORD
The Press-Enterprise
Interstate 215 between Riverside and San Bernardino, once a cakewalk compared with the perpetually congested Highway 91, is now anything but. Much like on Interstate 15 between Corona and Ontario, traffic moving north and south begins slowing to a crawl in the late afternoon and remains maddening for hours.
"Fifteen years ago, unless there was an accident, there was no such thing as traffic coming to a stop on the 215, either north or south," Grand Terrace City Manager Tom Schwab said. "Now, it happens every day."
Transportation agencies in the Inland area are taking notice. After years of focusing on helping commuters drive east-west to employment centers outside Riverside and San Bernardino counties, planners are looking for more north-south traffic solutions within the Inland area.
The most recent effort involves developing ways for drivers to get from Moreno Valley to San Bernardino County without ever getting on Interstate 215. A recent round of state transportation funding also included money for north-south projects on Interstate 215 through Murrieta and through downtown San Bernardino.
One Riverside County supervisor, Bob Buster, is calling for a change in transportation priorities to reflect the needs of Inland-only commuting. He said too much attention has been given to getting San Bernardino County residents to Los Angeles County and Riverside County residents to Orange County.
"There hasn't been much, if any coordination between Riverside and San Bernardino counties," Buster said. "We need to come home here to the Inland Empire and invest here first. We need to shift gears."
Story continues below
Many of the area's north-south routes are becoming increasingly congested as a result of job growth in Corona, Ontario, Chino and Rancho Cucamonga. Those areas are generating more jobs than residents can fill, a phenomenon that did not exist anywhere in the Inland area a decade ago, said John Husing, an economist who studies the region.
As a result, those areas have become commuting destinations within Riverside and San Bernardino counties, much like Orange County was for the entire Inland region in decades past, Husing said.
"That internal commute (within the Inland area) over time is going to get more and more important, and that external commute is going to be less and less important," Husing said. "That is already starting to happen."
The question is whether the transportation agencies in the two Inland counties can work closely enough to clear potential traffic snarls before they reach a crisis point, Buster said.
"We should understand San Bernardino's perspectives, and they should understand ours, intimately," Buster said. "Without that, all the rest of what we hope for here is going to be seriously hamstrung."
In recent history, however, Riverside County has appeared more aligned with Orange County than San Bernardino County. The Riverside-Orange counties collaboration has been driven largely by worsening congestion on Highway 91, the main artery between them.
Elected representatives from the two counties meet several times a year to hash out potential solutions on Highway 91. Transportation agencies in the two counties lobby together, plan together and spend money together.
For example, during a recent meeting in Irvine in which the state doled out $4.5 billion in congestion-relief funds, Riverside and Orange counties worked to funnel money to Highway 91 on both sides of the county line. When the ploy worked, it was hugs and handshakes all around.
San Bernardino County officials worked mainly among themselves in an effort to bring home more money for Interstate 10. When their effort failed, they filed out of the room in silence while officials from Riverside and Orange counties celebrated.
The heads of the transportation agencies in Riverside and San Bernardino counties said that, despite recent events, they always have worked together on behalf of commuters who stay in the area. For example, they are trying to improve access between Moreno Valley and the Colton-Grand Terrace area.
Eric Haley, executive director of the Riverside County Transportation Commission, said his organization has worked closely with Orange County for about four years, since the two groups worked together to help Orange County buy the 91 Express Lanes from a private company.
But Riverside County's most important ally is San Bernardino County "today, tomorrow and 25 years from now," Haley said.
That cooperation is needed more now than ever, said Tony Grasso, executive director of San Bernardino Associated Governments. One project -- widening Interstate 215 between the 60/91/215 interchange and Interstate 10 -- would benefit from the kind of relationship that Riverside County has with Orange County.
"I don't think they (Riverside County officials) are looking for a different dance partner," Grasso said. "It's just that, right now, that (Highway 91 improvements) is the song that is playing. Hopefully they will dance with us when we get everything lined up on the 215."
Inland county Traffic
The number of vehicles moving within and between Riverside and San Bernardino counties on an average weekday continues to grow.
From San Bernardino
County to Riverside
County
32,804 in 1990
52,016 in 2000
97,961 in 2010*
99,231 in 2020*
113,752 in 2030*
Within San Bernardino
County
309,195 in 1990
456,568 in 2000
714,950 in 2010*
833,619 in 2020*
969,348 in 2030*
Within Riverside County
223,658 in 1990
417,137 in 2000
756,473 in 2010*
968,588 in 2020*
1,124,331 in 2030*
From Riverside County to
San Bernardino County
39,565 in 1990
60,412 in 2000
135,302 in 2010*
181,510 in 2020*
188,407 in 2030*
*Estimated
Source: Southern California Association of Governments
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
They need to come up with a Freeway system rather then Serface Streets that are the best way to travel. Right now Riverside Ave., Sierra Ave. in Rialto, and Fontana are so Conjested in the Morning and Afternoon from people commuting back and forth between Riverside County & San Bernardino County, just to manage the Freeway System. By to so, the Serface street of Riverside Ave, and Sierra Ave. Ceadar Ave all are so conjested in the afternoon, and Morning that it is not even funny it is down right a temper trap ready for someone to go off and start to shoot the fellow driver that is just as angry about their commute, that they are willing to die over the whole thing.
By coming up with a wide Street to travel on that filters into a narrowed City Street is a joke. Especially by the Growth figures that they are coming up with at the end of the story. There has to be a Freeway answer to the whole mess.
BS Ranch
INLAND: A new focus is on unclogging north-south freeways and widening paths between counties.
Download story podcast
10:00 PM PDT on Friday, March 23, 2007
By PHIL PITCHFORD
The Press-Enterprise
Interstate 215 between Riverside and San Bernardino, once a cakewalk compared with the perpetually congested Highway 91, is now anything but. Much like on Interstate 15 between Corona and Ontario, traffic moving north and south begins slowing to a crawl in the late afternoon and remains maddening for hours.
"Fifteen years ago, unless there was an accident, there was no such thing as traffic coming to a stop on the 215, either north or south," Grand Terrace City Manager Tom Schwab said. "Now, it happens every day."
Transportation agencies in the Inland area are taking notice. After years of focusing on helping commuters drive east-west to employment centers outside Riverside and San Bernardino counties, planners are looking for more north-south traffic solutions within the Inland area.
The most recent effort involves developing ways for drivers to get from Moreno Valley to San Bernardino County without ever getting on Interstate 215. A recent round of state transportation funding also included money for north-south projects on Interstate 215 through Murrieta and through downtown San Bernardino.
One Riverside County supervisor, Bob Buster, is calling for a change in transportation priorities to reflect the needs of Inland-only commuting. He said too much attention has been given to getting San Bernardino County residents to Los Angeles County and Riverside County residents to Orange County.
"There hasn't been much, if any coordination between Riverside and San Bernardino counties," Buster said. "We need to come home here to the Inland Empire and invest here first. We need to shift gears."
Story continues below
Many of the area's north-south routes are becoming increasingly congested as a result of job growth in Corona, Ontario, Chino and Rancho Cucamonga. Those areas are generating more jobs than residents can fill, a phenomenon that did not exist anywhere in the Inland area a decade ago, said John Husing, an economist who studies the region.
As a result, those areas have become commuting destinations within Riverside and San Bernardino counties, much like Orange County was for the entire Inland region in decades past, Husing said.
"That internal commute (within the Inland area) over time is going to get more and more important, and that external commute is going to be less and less important," Husing said. "That is already starting to happen."
The question is whether the transportation agencies in the two Inland counties can work closely enough to clear potential traffic snarls before they reach a crisis point, Buster said.
"We should understand San Bernardino's perspectives, and they should understand ours, intimately," Buster said. "Without that, all the rest of what we hope for here is going to be seriously hamstrung."
In recent history, however, Riverside County has appeared more aligned with Orange County than San Bernardino County. The Riverside-Orange counties collaboration has been driven largely by worsening congestion on Highway 91, the main artery between them.
Elected representatives from the two counties meet several times a year to hash out potential solutions on Highway 91. Transportation agencies in the two counties lobby together, plan together and spend money together.
For example, during a recent meeting in Irvine in which the state doled out $4.5 billion in congestion-relief funds, Riverside and Orange counties worked to funnel money to Highway 91 on both sides of the county line. When the ploy worked, it was hugs and handshakes all around.
San Bernardino County officials worked mainly among themselves in an effort to bring home more money for Interstate 10. When their effort failed, they filed out of the room in silence while officials from Riverside and Orange counties celebrated.
The heads of the transportation agencies in Riverside and San Bernardino counties said that, despite recent events, they always have worked together on behalf of commuters who stay in the area. For example, they are trying to improve access between Moreno Valley and the Colton-Grand Terrace area.
Eric Haley, executive director of the Riverside County Transportation Commission, said his organization has worked closely with Orange County for about four years, since the two groups worked together to help Orange County buy the 91 Express Lanes from a private company.
But Riverside County's most important ally is San Bernardino County "today, tomorrow and 25 years from now," Haley said.
That cooperation is needed more now than ever, said Tony Grasso, executive director of San Bernardino Associated Governments. One project -- widening Interstate 215 between the 60/91/215 interchange and Interstate 10 -- would benefit from the kind of relationship that Riverside County has with Orange County.
"I don't think they (Riverside County officials) are looking for a different dance partner," Grasso said. "It's just that, right now, that (Highway 91 improvements) is the song that is playing. Hopefully they will dance with us when we get everything lined up on the 215."
Inland county Traffic
The number of vehicles moving within and between Riverside and San Bernardino counties on an average weekday continues to grow.
From San Bernardino
County to Riverside
County
32,804 in 1990
52,016 in 2000
97,961 in 2010*
99,231 in 2020*
113,752 in 2030*
Within San Bernardino
County
309,195 in 1990
456,568 in 2000
714,950 in 2010*
833,619 in 2020*
969,348 in 2030*
Within Riverside County
223,658 in 1990
417,137 in 2000
756,473 in 2010*
968,588 in 2020*
1,124,331 in 2030*
From Riverside County to
San Bernardino County
39,565 in 1990
60,412 in 2000
135,302 in 2010*
181,510 in 2020*
188,407 in 2030*
*Estimated
Source: Southern California Association of Governments
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
They need to come up with a Freeway system rather then Serface Streets that are the best way to travel. Right now Riverside Ave., Sierra Ave. in Rialto, and Fontana are so Conjested in the Morning and Afternoon from people commuting back and forth between Riverside County & San Bernardino County, just to manage the Freeway System. By to so, the Serface street of Riverside Ave, and Sierra Ave. Ceadar Ave all are so conjested in the afternoon, and Morning that it is not even funny it is down right a temper trap ready for someone to go off and start to shoot the fellow driver that is just as angry about their commute, that they are willing to die over the whole thing.
By coming up with a wide Street to travel on that filters into a narrowed City Street is a joke. Especially by the Growth figures that they are coming up with at the end of the story. There has to be a Freeway answer to the whole mess.
BS Ranch
Police Seize Guns in Anti-Gang Raid (032407)
Police seize guns in anti-gang raid
Article Launched:03/24/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
About 120 officers raided 19 locations simultaneously early Thursday morning in an anti-gang effort targeting two feuding gangs, said Rialto police Lt. Joe Cirilo.
Police from agencies throughout the Inland Empire and the Los Angeles Police Department made nine arrests and recovered 14 guns, Cirilo said.
He said police believe one of the guns was used in the Feb. 23 homicide of Michael McCoy Jr. at a 7-Eleven.
Cirilo said the Police Department has heard from the community and is taking an aggressive stand against gangs.
"We're not going to tolerate it," he said.
- Melissa Pinion-Whitt, (909) 386-3878
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The work that goes into the Search Warrants that are done to come up with the cleaning up of this many weapons and get that many weapons off the streets, is a very long and hard work. The Rialto Police Department has done this work, in order to gather the illegal weapons that the Gang Members had and get the guns out of the their hands, so that they cannot go shooting up the street, and all the people in it.
Thank God for the Police Department and the Long and Tedious work that they did to Clean up the all the Guns from the Street.
Thank God For Rialto Police Department!!
BS Ranch
Article Launched:03/24/2007 12:00:00 AM PDT
About 120 officers raided 19 locations simultaneously early Thursday morning in an anti-gang effort targeting two feuding gangs, said Rialto police Lt. Joe Cirilo.
Police from agencies throughout the Inland Empire and the Los Angeles Police Department made nine arrests and recovered 14 guns, Cirilo said.
He said police believe one of the guns was used in the Feb. 23 homicide of Michael McCoy Jr. at a 7-Eleven.
Cirilo said the Police Department has heard from the community and is taking an aggressive stand against gangs.
"We're not going to tolerate it," he said.
- Melissa Pinion-Whitt, (909) 386-3878
--
BS Ranch Perspective:
The work that goes into the Search Warrants that are done to come up with the cleaning up of this many weapons and get that many weapons off the streets, is a very long and hard work. The Rialto Police Department has done this work, in order to gather the illegal weapons that the Gang Members had and get the guns out of the their hands, so that they cannot go shooting up the street, and all the people in it.
Thank God for the Police Department and the Long and Tedious work that they did to Clean up the all the Guns from the Street.
Thank God For Rialto Police Department!!
BS Ranch
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