Monday, January 28, 2013

Really, It's Not Supposed To Be A Secret.

It seems I may have shocked a friend with some news I thought I told him about, some months ago.

I guess I probably didn't explain myself too well or the information didn't get passed along as it probably should have.

For that, I am sorry and I should now continue to reveal some information that some may have remembered and others still haven't heard about.

Anyway, the timing got moved up so it is now time to post exactly what is going on with Terri and me.

Within several days or perhaps a week to 10 days, a For Sale sign will be placed in our front yard.

The house I live in was in a trust for my sister and myself and when our mom passed away last September 26, the clock started ticking towards the eventual sale of the house we grew up in.

Terri and I have started seriously looking to buy a home in the Murrieta/Temecula area of Southern California.

We have chosen to move away from the area rather than attempting to purchase my sister's portion of the home, so we can have wonderful adventures rather than being trapped with any type of home loan.

Since I first arrived at the home we still live in, by the way on May 4, 1955 I bet I loved where I live from my very first memories. I have spent time living in other places and in other homes.

When I physically leave RPV I won't truly leave and I will continue to wonder, opine and comment on things happening in an area that grew up as I grew up.

I never want to come back for a visit and find I can't travel on P.V. Drive East because San Ramon Canyon was not repaired as it must me. I also don't with to have to sit through an hour's worth of traffic getting from P.V. Drive North to Trudie Drive along Western Avenue.

I especially hope to find that someday the folks at Marymount College will have a campus EVERYONE can be proud of and live nearby.

The areas Terri and I are looking at are continuing to be built up after more than a decade of so of great and quick growth, At least one new hospital is being built in both Murrieta and Temecula and industry is seeing more growth in Temecula. Murrieta is more of a 'bedroom' community as we have found and there are churches and religious conference centers and religious schools just about everywhere you turn, in that part of the state.

The area is also about half-way between our son Daniel, his wife Rainbow and our granddaughter Monroe (22 weeks in production-all healthy and happy) and half-way between many members of Terri's family in the San Diego area.

We are both still considered too young to be truly retired so there may be more job opportunities in growing businesses and services in the area and we will use the new home as a base camp for our next phase of life, that of being active and traveling seniors.

Whether I have agreed or disagreed with folks on topics in RPV we must know that folks are so passionate about this city and the area we call home. In an area of 8 Million souls plus, we sometimes are a small town 'out there', way in the country.

Too all those who have read this blog to date, thank you so very much! I'm not done writing it, by a long shot and please expect to see more humorous and possibly biting comments coming from me.

The east side of The Hill has been a remarkable and unforgettable place to grow up and live on. The Radomes on the top helped protect us and they were burned into my memories for all of my life.

The housing market is heating up both here and where we are looking to buy. Timing is everything so we have to make our moves at a time when we can get the most new home for the least cost while trying to get the most from the Trudie house.

We're here for several more months and then another of life's adventures moves east.

Please be well.

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Bits and Pieces 64

There are very few things I agree with Mr. Barry Hildebrand on, but I am with him on questioning the placement onto the Finance Advisory Committee of Mr. Eric Alegria, instead of Mr. Willie Wang.

Mr. Wang is absolutely and completely qualified to remain on the FAC and it looks like there is a 'setting up' of things 'going down' in our city.

Mr. Alegria ran for a Council seat in 2011 after recently moving into Rancho Palso Verdes, back then. He had no real experiences in Rancho Palos Verdes, but he was active and a great contributor to the city where he moved from.

Whether Eric Alegria and I are both members of The Democratic Party should be irrelevant when it comes to city matters and city elections. I don't subscribe to some of the comments Mr. Hildebrand wrote about in his recent letter to the editor, but he is another voice to mine that may be starting to think that 'the fix' is in.

If Mr. Alegria decides to run for one of the two seats to our Council this coming November and if Mayor Susan Brooks and Councilman Anthony Misetich support Eric in his race, then you will also know that something that happened this January may have been considered as far back as 2012, I am feeling.

On a slightly different note, in Mr. Hildebrand's letter he mentioned how long it took to get through all the stuff dealing with Rules and Procedures. I got a bit of a chuckle when considering Barry and I are on very different sides of some issues and reading what he wrote got me thinking again that, sometimes folks on very opposite sides of things meet each other in some agreement 'on the opposite side' of the debate circle.

It looks like the new parking lot is beginning to look like a construction area at Marymount College. This is a good thing and it is part of The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project I continue to fully support.

There are 'blankets' up for dust and noise protection and that is also a good thing, I feel.

The staff of The Los Angeles City Planning Department is now in the process of reviewing the comments submitted by individuals and groups interested in The Ponte Vista Project. This is also a good thing, I feel.

What will become of the recommendations made by individuals and groups is still another matter. I do hope staff, planners and city officials look at either keeping the site with its current zoning or looking at a different Alternative than the ones submitted for study. I do believe some big 'tweeking' must be done in order to find the best results for everyone.

It's cold! There, that's it, I'm done with that.

I am on a list to receive Emails and announcements concerning The Clearwater Program and I have heard or read nothing since the meeting was held regarding the Final Environmental Impact Report for the project to place a new Outfall System from Carson to the Pacific Ocean.

What I have heard from still far too many people is there concern for what they believe will be all the surface digging going through parts of RPV and San Pedro, and other areas.

This should not be a problem to worry about. No surface disruption is being considered except for the areas noted in the reports. Gaffey, Capital, Western and other streets should not see any digging along any of their routes.

What will be seen in somewhat distant future is the huge number of trucks moving removed dirt between the Exit Shaft, not slated to be under the cliff at Royal Palms Beach and out of town. This remains highly problematic since Paseo Del Mar is still separated by a landslide.

Whether Paseo Del Mar get fixed before the dirt-haulers start their moves is not known. Let's hope that the fewest number of trips are required and that no trucks are seen north of Ninth Street, in San Pedro.

Oh, by the way. Both the DEIR for The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project and The Ponte Vista Project call for traffic signals at the intersection of Miraleste Drive and Palos Verdes Drive East. Traffic signals have been 'warranted' there, for years.

Still, do you really know anyone who wants to really see signals there? I knew you didn't.