(951) 659-2145 - Idyllwild Town Crier

Page 6 - Idyllwild Town Crier, January 12, 2006
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How to reach us
Phone:
(951) 659-2145
or toll-free:
1-888-535-6663
Fax:
(951) 659-2071
E-mail:
itc@towncrier.com
Web site
www.towncrier.com
When to reach us
OFFICE HOURS
9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Monday - Friday
Closed Saturday & Sunday
DEADLINES MONDAY
News Items — 10 a.m.
Classified Ads — Noon
Display Ads — Noon
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Becky Clark
Publisher-Editor
J.P. Crumrine
Assistant Editor
Grace Reed
Advertising Sales Representative
Jim Crandall
Operations Manager
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Marshall Smith
Staff Reporter
Dolores Sizer
Classified & Legal Sales Advisor
Shannon Johnston
Production, Circulation
James Larkin
Copy Editor,
Production/News Assistant
Dr. Michael Erlich
Photographer,
Darkroom Technician
Juli Burleson
Bookkeeper
Wayne Parker
Newsstands
David Raley
Desert Newsstands
Contributors:
Marcia E. Gawecki
Steve Hudson
Halie Johnson
John Marshall
Jessica Schiffman
Bruce Watts
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Please read your ad. We assume
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errors after first insertion.
T h e I D Y L LW I L D T O W N
CRIER (USPS 635260) is published
weekly for $29 per year
in county and $33 per year out
of county by the IDYLLWILD
TOWN CRIER, P.O. Box 157,
54295 Village Center Dr.,
Idyllwild, CA 92549. Periodical
postage paid at Idyllwild, CA.
Send subscription and change
of address requests to the above
address. Please allow up to two
weeks for requests to take effect.
POSTMASTER:
Send address changes to
IDYLLWILD TOWN CRIER, P.O.
Box 157, Idyllwild, CA 92549.
All contents of the Idyllwild
Town Crier are copyrighted by
the Idyllwild Town Crier.
Per copy, 75 cents (tax included).
Single mailing of newspaper,
$2.50.
This newspaper is printed
on recycled paper.
A need to act …
Id y l lw i l d
Water District’s
board
and its past
boards have
been sleeping
on the
job and this
may create a domino effect
that could impact the whole
community. For this reason,
readers may consider getting
more involved in this issue;
not in taking sides but in
urging IWD to act.
IWD claims to have pre-
1914 water rights to Strawberry
Creek, but evidence
of those rights hasn’t been
produced. If it did, in order
to be permitted to continue
those rights, the district
must perfect its claim by
diverting its maximum of
nearly 3,590 gallons per
minute. The district has
never and is unable to divert
that much water because,
primarily, it doesn’t have the
capacity at Foster Lake or
tanks to store more water.
Why is this important
to all the Hill Because a
downstream user — such
as Lake Hemet Municipal
Water District or Eastern
Municipal Water District
— could step in, challenge
IWD’s claim to that water
and claim more of the creek
water for its customers. The
L.A. basin, for instance, gets
some of its water supply
from the Salton Sea.
And that means IWD might
lose its claim — as happened
in Lake Arrowhead in August
— and become completely
dependent on groundwater. It
would have to dig more wells
in Dutch Flat, impacting Pine
Cove’s groundwater supply.
It could mean that Fern
Valley could not depend on
either of the other two districts
to sell it water during
a drought.
The Mountain Resources
Conservancy may bring the
State Water Resources Control
Board in to investigate IWD’s
claim. Water is a precious commodity
so this was bound to
happen sometime.
For our survival, we are not
just water consumers but need
water for firefighting. IWD, in
reality, has not protected its
assets as good trustees of our
water supply should do.
IWD’s lack of fiduciary
duty leaves all of the Hill’s
water resources vulnerable
and demands our attention
and involvement.
Becky Clark, Ed i tor
Supports
a dog park
Readers write
Editor:
Let me add a vote in favor
of the Idyllwild Dog Park, as
envisioned by Irene Corey in
your Jan. 5 letters column.
Our hometown has such
a place, which is a boon and
a blessing to local dogs and
their owners.
There are volunteers who
fund-raise, do safety checks,
and hang poop-bag dispensers
to make cleanup easy.
Self-policing is the rule, and
most visitors are “good guys”
where dogs are concerned,
responsible and friendly. You
know who you are.
My husband and I are
regular visitors to the Hill,
and, of course, our two dogs
always come along. Although
our home-away-from-home,
Silver Pines Lodge, is super
dog-friendly, we keep them
leashed around town as a
courtesy to others since not
everyone likes to be bounced
on or licked.
Their reward is to run all
over the Ernie Maxwell Trail,
checking in to the sound of
my whistle. For days when
we don’t have the time or
energy for a real hike, a
fenced play area would be a
wonderful thing, and I’ll bet
lots of Idyllwild dog owners
would agree: a little time
before work, or after school,
you’d get to see your furry
friend enjoy some freedom
and the company of other
dogs.
Travelers, too, would love
the chance to exercise their
car-weary pets in a safe environment.
I would happily pledge a
few hours a month to help
such a good cause; the payoff
would be a convenient place
to let dogs be dogs, and a
way to meet others who
think the same.
Lois Sheppard
Seal Beach
New postal rates effective Jan. 8, 2006
The U.S. Postal Service changed its rates beginning Jan.
8, 2006. New rates for more commonly used postal services
are:
• First-class mail up to one ounce, 39 cents; additional
ounce, 24 cents; postcard rate, 24 cents.
• Priority mail up to one-half pound and flat rate
envelopes, $4.05; and flat rate box, $8.10.
• Express mail up to one-half pound and flat rate
envelopes, $14.40; over one-half pound to two pounds,
$18.80.
• Money orders from $.01 to $500 will cost 95 cents; over
$500 to $1,000, $1.30. Military money orders are 25 cents.
New 39-cent and 2-cent stamps are now available at the
post office.
Henderson Trail guided tours
The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National
Monument Visitor Center is offering guided tours that
“leave no trace” of the Henderson Trail throughout the
winter season. Hikers are asked to bring water, wear good
hiking shoes and bring binoculars. To make a reservation
for a tour, call the Visitor Center at (760) 323-8199.
How to get a letter pub lished
The Town Cri er wel comes letters re flect ing all opin ions.
Letters should be con cise and to the point. They should
be no long er than 400 words. Let ters must be type writ ten,
dou ble-spaced and in up per/low er case (not in all caps).
Let ters must be signed and must be iden ti fied with the
writ er’s name, ad dress and weekyday phone num ber.
Anonymous letters will not be ac cept ed. Letters of
thanks and com men da tion are not opinions and are not
ac cept ed. A special ad ver tis ing rate is avail able for those
types of letters. We reserve the right to reject or edit let ters
for length, clar i ty or fre quen cy of sub mis sion. Only one
let ter per author within a 28-day pe ri od. Letters can be
sub mit ted in person, by mail, by fax (659-2071) or by
e-mail (itc@towncrier.com).
For the Hill of It ... by John G. Marshall
Poorly timed pass
cause of collision
By Halie Johnson
Correspondent
Four vehicles were involved
in a collision near
Lake Hemet at about 3
p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 5,
however, none of the parties
complained of serious
injuries.
The cause of the collision
is believed to be “passing
without sufficient clearance,”
according to a report by
California Highway Patrol
(CHP) responding Officer
Daryl Crandall.
The crash occurred when
John Geges, 48, of Mountain
Center, attempted to pass a
2000 Toyota pickup, driven
by Michelle Herman, 28,
of Cathedral City, and a
2004 Subaru Forester, driven
by Graham Justice, 70, of
Aguanga. All three vehicles
were driving eastbound.
Geges was driving a Nissan
pickup and was able
to pass the two vehicles
because an oncoming 1991
Toyota Celica driven by
Yafen Yan, 45, of Mountain
Center, veered to avoid
colliding with the Nissan
pickup.
Yan overcorrected to get
back into the westbound
lane and continue en route,
sideswiping the Subaru then
driving head-on into the
Toyota pickup.
Graham Justice experienced
pain on the left side
of his body, and his passenger,
Heidi Justice, 61,
complained of head pain.
The two were transported
by ambulance to Rancho
Springs Hospital in Murrieta.
Geges’ vehicle was not
part of the collision, and no
major injuries were reported
by the other parties involved.
But Geges was cited
for passing without sufficient
clearance, although
he did use a legal passing
zone.
RV fire safety workshop
Chuck Robbins, Bureau of Land Management fire
mitigation and education specialist, will present a workshop
on the dos and don’ts of RV traveling at 9 a.m. Wednesday,
Jan. 18.
The workshop is free and will be held at the Shadow Hills
RV Resort at 40655 N. Jefferson Avenue in Indio. Call (760)
251-4800 for more information on the event.