January 2008 - Monte Nido Valley Community Association

MONTE NIDO VALLEYCOMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONA Dark Sky CommunityE-NEWSLETTER January 2008One Dog Owner/Lover’s Plea:Can’t We All Just Get Along?1) Yeah, there’s a lot of nature around here. But it is aneighborhood, not the Great Beyond. Please bring abag/scoop if you’re walking near houses. I would liketo get my mail from the mailbox without stepping indog doo. Not to mention the storm drain issue. Youwant to swim in that when summer comes?2) Yeah, your dog is perfectly trained to stay oncommand. Except when that squirrel or rabbit getsgoing. Then Fluffy will bolt like she’s on fire, rightunder my tires, no matter how slowly I’m inching up thestreet. They make long, retractable leashes now andtrust me, Fluffy will be fine. If she really needs to openup and run, there’s a dog park quite nearby. Instead ofwearing your leash as a fashion accessory, let’s avoidmutual trauma. Use it.3) Yeah, Sparky always comes home. Your dog is theHoming Pigeon of all canines. He will roam “the hood”and come home on time for dinner. Nice, except hisroaming is up by my front door (and you can guess thedifferent ways I can tell he came by) and down thestreet. It’s dangerous for him, inconvenient for some ofus, scary for others, and not a very neighborly thing ingeneral. Check your fences and gates. If you truly didn’tknow he was out, you get one pass. If you know andthink it’s fine, it’s not.Let me confess: I have been guilty of all of the above, atone time or another. But I do believe one of thehallmarks of civilization is the willingness to make smallcompromises for the greater good. So I promise to startwith the above three, if you will. Suzanne BaileyFire UpdateThe recent arrests in the Thanksgiving Malibufire highlight the importance of vigilance on the part ofArson Watch and neighborhood residents vis a vis firescaused by carelessness and recklessness, as well asintentional arson. Fire season has not abated, despite therecent, welcome rains. We may not be able to preventhigh winds from downing power lines, but there arethings we can do to protect and safeguard our homesand property during a fire. That the community is notas well coordinated on this front as we might be becamevery clear to this resident as a result of the October andNovember firestorms.The power outage in October left us withoutaccess to radio or TV news reports. Neighbors gatheredin our street, and one reported that sheriffs had closedLas Virgenes at Mulholland, and refused to let her pass.But she was able to return via Cold Canyon, which wasstill open. When power returned, TV news showed thatthe fire had burned to the sea, and we assumed we weresafe. Within minutes, I heard faint megaphones in thestreet announcing a mandatory evacuation. As we’dbeen instructed at fire prevention meetings, we left thedoors unlocked and the lights on. We watched the newsreports for the next two days from a friend’s house.Tuesday afternoon, my husband drove into the canyonto see what was happening. To his surprise, hediscovered that despite the continuing reports of amandatory evacuation, in fact, the roads were open andall of our neighbors were at home. When we returned,we found that our mail and newspapers had beendelivered both days. Furthermore, we were informedthat the school buses had run their routes through theneighborhood.In November, we were alerted about the fire bya neighbor, who woke us at 6:45AM. We watched hugeplumes of smoke rise over the ridgelines, and stayedtuned to TV news reports to advise us of the fire’sprogress.Because we have satellite TV, and AT&T phoneservice, we were able to get news and phone calls duringboth fires. Many of our neighbors who have Charterbundles for TV, phone, and internet were completely cutoff when Charter shut down both times. After theNovember fire, the LA Times reported that many homesin Corral Canyon were saved only because their ownersdid not evacuate, as ordered, but rather stayed andfought the flames themselves. One resident actually hadtwo fire trucks at his disposal, which he purchased atauction last year. He used them with the help of severalneighbors to save their homes on a narrow, unpavedroad that the firefighters were never able to reach.Today this author is confused and concernedabout best actions during these firestorms. Is it reallymandatory to evacuate when under “mandatoryevacuation” orders? If so, who will guard my unlockedhome from intruders? How can mail and newspaperscontinue to be delivered if no one is supposedlypermitted access? Should I plan to remain home duringthe next evacuation? And if so, how can I best protectmy property? What kind of system can we, as aneighborhood, implement so that everyone is alerted todanger, especially when it arises in the middle of thenight? What kind of coordinated response can wedevelop, as a community, or street by street? To helpanswer these questions, come to the Wildfire meeting.For details, read on… Jill Reiss

Wildfire Information PresentationSave the Date! Thurs., Jan.31st, 7pm at the SalvationArmy Camp. Meet with officials of the L.A. County FireDepartment, Lost Hills Sheriff's Department, and theState Park Service to discuss the recent wildfires inMalibu and how we can protect our homes andcommunity. See an impressive video of firefighters inaction during the Nov. Corral Canyon fire and hear theirstories. This will really make you think! We will havetime to ask questions about evacuation procedures andpolicy, road closures, neighborhood warning systems,and other concerns. Please come. Bring your neighbor ---it could save both your homes. Sponsored by the LosAngeles County Fire Department, the Monte NidoCommunity Association and Monte Nido/CalabasasArson Watch. For more information call 818-222-2568 ore-mail lynnben@charter.net.Community Fire SirensAt the December meeting, the Board began discussion ofpossible ways to alert the community in the event of anemergency. One suggestion was the installation of sirens.Arson Watch contacted the fire department and SupervisorYaroslavsky’s office to investigate the feasibilities. Here, foryour information, are their responses:From Maria Grycan, L.A.Co Fire Dept: “There are many, manyissues to be considered regarding a siren warning system, not theleast of which is that they are not fool proof. What happens if a sirenwarning system is put into place and the residents depend on thissystem, and it fails for one reason or another? (This can especially bethe case if a fire begins too close to where the system is located . . . thesystem may not work.) This is not to say that a siren warningsystem cannot be just one added warning tool in the arsenal. As Ihave told you before, the fire department has been in limitedconversation with the 3 rd District regarding various warning systemsthat might be incorporated into our plans for unincorporated areas,but so far no decisions have been made…”From Susan Nissman of Zev Yaroslavsky's office:“… the County investigated warning sirens and the potential for usein the Santa Monica Mountains several years ago; I actually wentwith representatives from our CEO's office to Oakland to meet withthe Emergency Management Collaborative that includes not onlyOakland, but San Francisco as well and toured the Oakland areawhere warning sirens have been placed. We learned that there arevery limited ways the sirens can be used, and that they are regardedas only one tool; they cannot be relied upon for "universal"notification. The siren, when activated, cannot send a message thatmeans evacuation or fire approaching, it is activated, the same signaleach time, to tell people to turn on their local radio and TV to getinstructions and information about a pending emergency situation.There are also immense challenges in coverage: because of the canyonterrain in the Santa Monica Mountains and the way sound travels,there would have to be multiple placements to make sure everyone iscovered; we cannot have just a partial siren system, for instance justin Monte Nido, and not in the rest of the communities, such asMalibou Lake, etc. The cost of each installation, along with theinfrastructure required is also quite formidable, and there would haveto be acquisition of right-of-ways, along with permits and possiblyCEQA review. When you have your community meeting, I will beglad to provide you with the background on this, but suffice it to say,in our analysis, sirens did not provide the benefits we would need tojustify investment of public funds, and we have therefore continuedto promote those tools (like reverse 911) and community specificemergency planning efforts to increase our preparedness for andemergency response to disasters. Family and neighborhood planningcontinue to be the most effective way to prepare for disaster.”MNVCA Board of Directors 2008The slate of officers for 2008 was elected at the Decembermeeting of the Board of Directors. Joan Slimocosky willcontinue for another term as president, as will MarianneCiluffo as Treasurer. John Low is the new VicePresident. Jill Reiss will be acting Secretary. Pleaseremember, all your board members and officers arevolunteers who donate their time and energy for thebenefit of the Monte Nido community. All communitymembers are welcomed and encouraged to attendmonthly Board meetings, and to contact members of theBoard directly with suggestions and concerns aboutcommunity matters.MNVCA Board of Directors MeetingNovember MinutesThe regular meeting of the MNVCA was called to order at 7:10pm in the home of Stephanie Abronson. In attendance wereRosemary Alden, Marianne Cilluffo, Les Hardie, Lisa Lehman,John Low, Sheila Kalivas, Jocelyn Mackay, Joan Slimocoskyand Heidi Stompe along with other members of thecommunity. Agenda: Agenda changes were made. Minutes:September minutes approved. Treasurer’s Report: Accountbalances were reviewed. Board approved payment of annualliability insurance. Correspondence: Department of Interior:Upcoming Firescaping Seminar and Workshop. FederationReport: Ben Saltsman presented detail on the Local CoastalPlan; Mary Sue Maurer (City of Calabasas councilmember)provided an update on the future plans for Calabasas. OldBusiness: Local Coastal Plan (LCP) – Passed by the CountyBoard of Supervisors; there will be one more review by theSupervisors; then it will go on to the California CoastalCommission. Road Clean Up – Planned for December 1, priorto the onset of rain. Announcement to go out via e-mail andsign will be posted. Storage of Community Event Supplies - Acentral location is to be established to house all the tables,chairs, flags, signs and archived documents; MNVCA boardmember Sheila Kalivas will create an inventory of the items;once that is completed, a volunteer will be sought to provide alocation for the storage. New Business: West Nile Virus – Adead bird was found and confirmed to have west nile viruswhich is spread by mosquitoes; there are many pools ofstanding water throughout our community that arecontributing to an increase in mosquito activity. The county isscheduled to spray against the mosquito larvae this comingweek. Annual Election of New Board Members – This year theseats occupied by Joan Kay, Joan Slimocosky-President, JohnLow-Vice President, Marianne Cilluffo-Treasurer, JocelynMackay and Lisa Lehman-Secretary are up for election. Thenominees include: Joan Kay, Joan Slimocosky, John Low,Jocelyn Mackay, Marianne Cilluffo and Suzanne Bailey. A votewas taken and all nominees were elected to the Board. Newofficers will be elected at the December meeting.Meeting adjourned at 8:35 pm. Respectfully submitted,Lisa LehmanHow to reach us:Send your email address to Lisa Lehman, the devotedMNVCA secretary at mnvca@charter.net, to receiveannouncements of meetings, community activities and thetime and location of our Board meetings.President: Joan Slimocosky 591-1082Vice Pres: John Low 224-8062Treasurer: Marianne Cilluffo 876-3019Secretary: Lisa Lehman 837-7600Contributions to the newsletter can be sent to the editor atmnvcanewsletter@gmail.com

MONTE NIDO VALLEY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONBULLETIN BOARDJanuary 2008ARCHITECTSensitive to budget & lifestyle.Responsive to the landand environment.Monte Nido residentfor over 25 yearsWarren Lawson 591-0646REAL ESTATEIn business for over 20 years,your business is appreciated.It is my professional and personal pleasureto live in Monte Nido.Gail A. Lowe 222-5543gailcb@earthlink.netREAL ESTATESpecializing in Monte Nido Properties.Top Coldwell Banker Agent representingBuyers and Sellers in our communityfor more than 20 yrs.How much is your house worth?Call for a complementary market analysis.Tracy Bunetta 222-2272MonteNidoRealEstate.comCOMPREHENSIVE DENTAL CAREWe provide general dentistry, orthodontics,invisalign,sedation dentistry (great if you are high fear),implants, and cosmetic dentistry.Monte Nido resident practicing forover 20 yrs in Sherman Oaks.Michael Bjornbak, DDS 818-781-3411www.shermanoaksdental.comPIANO LESSONSbeginners and advancedCall Aukse 222-6947or cell 310-500-5121THANK YOU to the MNVCAfor your recent generous contribution of $500 tothe Friends of Arson Watch & Disaster Services.Your support is greatly appreciated.ARCHITECTCustom homes and RemodelsGary Bardovi 222-0313EXTERIOR DESIGNLandscape, pools, fireplaces, patios, BBQ'sEverything to enhance your outdoor living!Nick Williams 996-4010DESIGN & BUILDResidential remodel and new constructionAll under one roof:Design, Construction, Interiors.Licensed General Contractor917-1803www.designblue.comSADDLE PEAK LODGEDINNER WE-SU 5-10pm,BRUNCH SA-SU 11am-3pmSpecial WednesdayFarmers' Market menuBlue jean friendly, new air conditioningAsk about our complimentary parkingfor our Monte Nido neighbors.222 3888Contact Lynn Benjamin to place an adPhone: 222-2568 Email: lynnben@charter.netPrivate Party Ads, $5 per month. Business Ads, $10 per monthPay to: MNVCA. Mail to: Lynn Benjamin, P.O.Box 461, Malibu, CA 90265

Calendar of EventsMNVCA Board MeetingTuesday, Jan 8, 7PMAt the home of Les Hardie471 Cold Canyon Rd.818- 222-5485ETI Corral 36Board MeetingNot the Usual Date!Tuesday, Jan 15, 7 PM,At the home of Deborah & Joe Provenzano24232 Dry Canyon/Cold Creek Rd.818- 225-1480Wildfire Information PresentationThursday, Jan 31, 7PMSalvation Army CampFor more information call 818-222-2568Or email lynnben@charter.netLas Virgenes Homeowner’s FederationMeetingThursday, Jan 17, 7:30PMDiamond X Ranch(Off Mulholland)Universal Worship Service:First Sunday of each month, 10:00AMMarilyn Browning222-6363A Course in Miracles Study Group.Tuesdays, 9:30-11:00AMMarilyn Browning222-6362Zen MeditationThursday evenings at 7:30pmRosemary Taylor Alden222-2936Monte Nido Valley Community AssociationPO Box 8054Calabasas, CA 91372PRESORTEDSTANDARDUS POSTAGE PAIDCANOGA PARK, CA91304PERMIT NO. 307Please deliver by Jan 7, 2008POSTAL CUSTOMERRURAL ROUTE NO. 1CALABASAS, CA 91302