online community journalism

San Marcos November 12, 2015

San Marcos Civics 101: Have committees, need members (Video)

San Marcos officials today were encouraging residents to get involved and make a difference in their community by applying for open positions on several city commissions and committees. Openings exist on the Community Services Commission, Planning Commission, San Marcos Community Foundation, Student and Neighborhood Relations Committee and Traffic Commission. The deadline to apply for each of these openings is 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec, 22. Appointments…

North County, Valley Center October 27, 2015

Lilac Hills Ranch pulls out its big PR gun: Driverless technology run by an app

And now this for proposed Lilac Hills Ranch, scheduled to begin its final approval process before San Diego County Supervisors on Wednesday, Oct. 28: Autonomous, or driverless, vehicles that would provide services to establish a more pedestrian-oriented community and more interconnected neighborhoods, according to Accretive president Jon Rilling. With all the controversy over leap-frog development approvals by San Diego County planning staff and possible circumvention of…

Escondido, Tourism October 19, 2015

Escondido’s Grand Avenue Festival attracted thousands for fun and frolic

Escondido’s Grand Avenue Festival, aka Escondido Street Faire, held Sunday, Oct. 18 might be the second-largest single-day festival in California, but as they used to say in the old Avis rent-a-car commercials, they try harder. An estimated 30,000 to 40,000 people flocked to Grand Avenue and block after block of 500 vendors, food and music from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday. Escondido’s first street…

Entertainment/Arts, Escondido October 12, 2015

Thinking pink, Grand Avenue ‘street fair(e)’ and Day of the Dead

 The Grand Tea Room Thinks Pink Care for a little sympathy with some tea? Grand Tea Room is hosting “Think Pink” to raise money for breast cancer research. It’s part of this weekend’s Susan G. Komen 3-Day Breast Cancer Awareness walk, and at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17. Afternoon Grand Tea is $35, all included. It features tea sandwiches, “savories,” fresh fruit, desserts, scones and,…

Escondido, Health October 12, 2015

Lights on for groundbreaking Hawthorne Veteran and Family Resource Center

  Hawthorne Veteran and Family Resource Center is opening in a few days at 250 N. Ash St. with the lights much brighter there for Escondido and North County vets and families. As one of only five recuperative care providers in the nation certified to work with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Interfaith’s Veteran and Family Resource Center is establishing a much needed state…

Breaking News, Fire, San Marcos October 11, 2015

Up in smoke, Holland RV Center fire stops traffic in its tracks (Breaking News) (Video)

Holland RV Center on Travelers Way went up in smoke, and a whole lot of other stuff, with a 3-alarm conflagration around 4 p.m. Sunday that was seen all over San Marcos and the Highway 78 corridor. The fire enveloped the RV center and  brought nearby Highway 78 traffic to a crawl, authorities said. West San Marcos Boulevard’s off-ramp was closed during the 90-minute incident….

Breaking News, News, Politics, Rancho Santa Fe October 11, 2015

President Obama comes to town for little golf, little luxury, little fundraising (Video)

 President Obama comes to town for a little golf, little luxury, little fundraising. All systems were go, go, go for President Obama to walk among the wealthy, and play some golf,  in North County San Diego, just a few miles down Del Dios Highway from Escondido this weekend. The president, and family,  landed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar late Saturday. He was expected to…

Entertainment/Arts, Theater October 10, 2015

James and the Giant Peach at Patio Playhouse

 James and the Giant Peach Patio Playhouse director Larry Steckling and producer Sharon Gann this summer put out the call for youth actors to audition for roles in James and the Giant Peach. The kids came out alright to St. Paul Lutheran Church for tryouts and now are trying their hand at the finished production that was adapted for the stage by David Wood from…

Blogs, Opinion, The Grapevine October 10, 2015

Getting out the real story the Grapevine way

It is easy to Google anything and read these days, but what are we being fed? The fact is anyone can write words on a piece of paper and post or print it. As a reader, it is very important to consider the source. First of all, who is the author of the story and is it journalism or one’s own point of view or…

Agriculture, North County October 7, 2015

Escondido, San Diego County experience first drop in farm production since 2008 recession

Eric Larson director of the Escondido-based San Diego Farm Bureau said a “slight drop in production value comes as no surprise,” when he saw today’s county Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures annual crop report. “In light of the challenges faced by farmers from the drought and the rising cost of water,” Larson continued, “the change is small enough to be seen as a testament…