First Amendment issues at tonight's joint meeting of Council and Public Safety Commission

Tonight's meeting is to clarify the role of the new "Traffic and Public Safety Commission," which replaced the old "Traffic Commission."  Some time ago, the Council changed the name of the commission but didn't explain adequately to the commission what new authority or scope it had.  So the new and expanded "Traffic and Public Safety Commission" has been doing exactly what the old "Traffic Commission" did.

So we'd expect the Council to explain what the point of the name change was.

But to make things interesting, Commissioner Al Rodbell is challenging the possibly un-Constitutional city law that allows for the arrest and prosecution of anyone who doesn't obey orders to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance (which also contains the uttering of "under God" that some argue is un-Constitutional).

From the Inbox:

Enc.
Feel free to print this, or put it in your own words.  Meeting is in a few hours.
-----------------------
The Joint meeting of the City Council and the Traffic and Public Safety Commission tonight at the Balour Senior/Community center could turn out to be interesting.  If they ignore responding to this essay that I sent to the city official earlier, then I have to decide whether to support the man in Florida who was threatened by a police officer for expressing his rejection of the Pledge of Allegiance, or cravenly succumb to local authority.

I really don't know how this will unfold, but if you have the time to read the essay carefully, you will see this is no trivial matter for me. You will see my objection to having the Pledge as official government business is based on a Supreme Court decision that predates "Under God"  This "joint" meeting structure of two government bodies is not described or defined in any city ordinance or Brown Act compendium that I could locate - so anything could happen.   I did send in a specific suggestion for this agenda that they refused to include in the 87 page agenda packet, so I'll give the link to it here.

It would be good to have supporters in the audience, yet I feel I will be accompanied by Justice Robert Jackson and his eight colleagues on that 1943 Supreme court, although I'm not sure the language of their decision and dissent is still intelligible in today's world.

I guess we will find out.

Al Rodbell

Public Works Director Glenn Pruim: Nothing is historic unless I say it's historic

San Diego Reader:

One of the last remaining tall, old, eucalyptus trees along Leucadia’s Coast Highway 101, at Leucadia Boulevard, is scheduled to come down soon.

Planted in the 1880s, images on old postcards are all that remain of the massive eucalyptus canopy that hovered over the pre-I-5 Highway 101, from Leucadia Boulevard to La Costa Avenue.

Over the years, the trees have been removed one by one. Some experts say they have reached their lifespan and pose a hazard of falling down. Others point out that eucalyptus can live up to 250 years and the city should trim and maintain them for optimal health.

A local blog, Encinitas Undercover, recently found out about the tree’s planned removal. The article called the tree an “irreplaceable, historic canopy.” City of Encinitas Public Works director Glenn Pruim disagrees. In a published report, he stated, “The city does not have a designation of ‘historic’ trees. Although this is a large, mature tree, it does not carry any designation of ‘historic.’”

Planted in the 1880's by Leucadia's early settlers and photographed and beloved by generations. But it's not historic because some city worker never wrote down a definition of "historic." Such arrogance.

Meet Alex Fidel

From the Inbox:

I'm having a small gathering at the Encinitas Blvd Swami's Cafe location on Sept. 12th at 5:45PM. Probably 40 persons max in the back room that is granted to us, though we could fit chairs in the middle.

It's open to anyone who'd like to find out more and engage in positive discussion about issues, of course until the room is filled up.

There will be a group discussion/open forum period.

Take care, Alex

Bunny Alliance Kook

Read more about the Bunny Alliance, the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, Green is the New Red, and jailed activists Kevin Olliff and Tyler Lang.

Leucadia schoolchildren suffer in un-air-conditioned sweatboxes while district bigwigs party at resort

From the Inbox:

To: Timothy.Baird@eusd.net, maureen.muir@eusd.net, Marla.Strich@eusd.net, carol.skiljan@eusd.net, emily.andrade@eusd.net, gregg.sonken@eusd.net, Leighangela.Brady@eusd.net, adriana.chavarin@eusd.net

Good Morning-

I would like to invite you ALL to visit PEC today and work for 30 minutes in any of the 13 classrooms without A/C. Yesterday I took a photo of the classroom temp at pick up (79 degrees) and another class at Back to School Night (78 degrees at 7 pm). I understand the district has sent a fan for each classroom. This fan is so loud that the teachers can not use while they are giving instruction. Also, in the old buildings, window's don’t all open to give a cross draft, so the fans can move cooler air instead of the hot air in the class. We have already had 2 hot weeks starting the year and my kids leave the school, red, sweaty and tired, not the most optimum conditions to learn in. The district was aware of this problem from last year and it is sad it has not been fixed. I know the district is proud of it’s solar tubes, panels and new furniture at other schools, but this is a joke, PEC is always overlooked when it comes to basic necessities.

On Amazon you can buy portable AC units that will cool up to 500 sq./ft for $500 with free shipping. That would be $6500 to keep PEC cool and learning. I urge you to remedy this situation. If the classrooms stay so warm, I am certain you are losing much needed teacher instruction time. $6500 is not an unreasonable amount of money to ensure ALL kids in EUSD are able to learn in a comfortable environment.

Again, please go visit the classes to see for yourself.

Thanks,

Elizabeth Shany

$6500 is a fraction of what the district is believed to have spent on its La Quinta Resort boozefest for board members and executives.

UPDATE: After public shaming, Baird relents and gives kids air-conditioning!

Send in the clowns

Party on, Tim!

It seems the Encinitas Union School District bigwigs wasted no time celebrating their $10 million Pacific View windfall.

Seaside Courier:

As if to celebrate their fleecing of taxpayers with the school site sale, school board members the first week in August gathered at the posh La Quinta Resort in the Palm Springs area—part of the Waldorf Astoria family—for a three-day “educational retreat” that may have cost taxpayers another $20,000 or so.

According to the flier produced by the school board, the retreat kicked off on Wednesday, Aug. 6, with a “Welcome Happy Hour at Tim’s Suite,” Tim being Superintendent Tim Baird. (Incidentally, in October 2011, Baird sued the City of Encinitas because the council at the time wouldn’t upzone the Pacific View site to allow high-density condos—a move that would have allowed the district to maximize profits from any future sale.)

After happy hour came dinner at the Adobe Grill, the resort’s onsite Mexican restaurant that one Open Table reviewer called “undeservingly pricey.”

The first day of the “educational retreat” ended with “evening libations in ‘The Suite’ or ‘TWENTY6.’” The next day, according to the agenda, a breakfast buffet on the Waterfall Patio was followed by a four-hour “management retreat.” That must have been grueling because the rest of the day was remarkably light: lunch, then “Relaxation and Reflection,” “Happy Hour at Tim’s Suite,” “Dinner off-property at The Grill on Main” and more “evening libations.”

A notice at the bottom of the flier urged school board members to “bring laptops, iPads, sunscreen, swimsuits, hats and any other desert survival items.”

An EUSD parent writes:

I have never heard of such an excessive retreat at a time when class sizes are going up, and parents are expected to fund hundreds of dollars worth of supplies and services.

Agenda for the boozefest here.