Local News for Pacific Grove, California

Local News

(Above) Point Pinos Lighthouse 2001

Visit the websites of Pacific Grove's most famous artists, Sam Colburn (Early California) & Grace Meredith

Want to know what's happening in Pacific Grove right now? Try the message board
P.G. Census Info: 2000 P.G. Census Population & Race 1997 P.G. Economic Census 1990 P.G. Population Census

Complete Pacific Grove business listings from our local phone book
For the story on the P.G. sewer situation, from 1890's to 2000 refer to: Welcome to Sewageville
Facebook: Pagrovia, You Know You're From Pacific Grove....

Old interesting news:

June 2011:

Carmel Pine Cone: Nader Agha Cheated Customer Who Bought 'Antique' Clock

Nader Agha, who owns Holman Antique Plaza in downtown Pacific Grove and a coin shop in Monterey — and who has been involved in a host of other local real estate deals, business enterprises, political campaigns and public controversies — made a “false representation of an important fact” when he sold a 10-foot-tall grandfather clock to Oakland businessman Theodore Vinther in October 2007, the 12-member jury said.

But Huang argued that Agha “created” the second receipt that said “Mahogany grandfather clock” in an attempt to “defeat” the first receipt. And she said any reasonable person would look at Agha’s constantly shifting story as evidence he wasn’t telling the truth.

The jury agreed with Huang.

“We’re very grateful they recognized that my client was defrauded,” she said after the verdict.
http://www.pineconearchive.com/110610-3.htm

May 2011: "Jason Wright, 39, was arrested by Pacific Grove police and agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation on child porn charges, police said. His home was searched for evidence. Federal investigators are staying tight-lipped about their case against Jason Wright, a Pacific Grove man arrested on child porn charges. He appeared in federal court in San Jose, where a judge let him out on bond.
After a months-long investigation, last Thursday, federal agents recovered several thousand child porn pictures and hundreds of videos on his work computer, that he originally deleted.
He works at Farmers Insurance on Lighthouse Avenue in Pacific Grove. His family owns that business. Also, at his home on Park Street, agents found up to 40 sex toys in a shed in his backyard.
The defense argued having sex toys items isn't illegal. In the end, the judge released him on $100,000 bond. His parents who were in the courtroom agreed to pay up if he breaks the rules."
http://www.kionrightnow.com/story/14665320/new-details-in-pacific-grove-child-porn-case

2008:
Frutchey and the so-called "transformation" of city government were widely denounced during his public firing in February. Many city employees, and three of five council members, said they had been alienated by the top administrator's autocratic approach and that his reforms created a lack of accountability in City Hall.
http://articles.latimes.com/1997/oct/08/local/me-40487

2011:

In the April 15, 2011 email, Tom Frutchey painted a picture of a former planning department in complete disarray. Frutchey, among other things, claimed planners carelessly signed off on projects — and said that’s why it took less time to process applications and issue permits than it does now.

“Yes, things were much better in the old days, in large part, because staff didn’t folow the law,” Frutchey wrote. “Staff repeatedly approved projects after only partial or faulty analysis and otherwise sidestepped local and state requirements.” http://lighthouseavenue.com/ 04-06-2011

May 2011...... Magic Carpet blooms along Ocean View Blvd.

Update June 2010: Full Sentence of 8 years.

“Mr. Pollacci has a well known, long lasting and enduring reputation as a rapist,” said Monterey County Superior Court Judge Russell Scott before pronouncing the sentence.

In deciding whether to put Pollacci on probation or send him to prison — and if prison, for how long — Scott was allowed by state law consider not only the circumstances of the immediate conviction, but what the law calls “aggravating factors.”
And Scott said there were plenty of those.

“He has engaged in conduct that indicates a serious danger to society,” Scott said. “He is an individual who preys on women, is eager and willing to control and destroy their lives and the lives of people close to them without a thought and on an impulse.”

Scott also said Pollacci showed a great deal of “sophistication” and forethought in planning his attacks. And he quoted a letter from a woman who said she was one of Pollacci’s earlier victims.

And then Scott sentenced Pollacci to eight years in state prison. He could be eligible for parole after serving four years, but he could also be sentenced to an additional 24 years if convicted on three more rape charges filed by prosecutors in May. A preliminary hearing on those charges is scheduled for July 16."

http://www.pineconearchive.com/100625-3.htm

'Tom Pollacci was found guilty of raping a woman in a loft above his father's Pacific Grove liquor store, Ron's Liquors.

“We all had orgasms! It was heavenly,” P.G. Chamber of Commerce Moe Ammar jokes. “Like, ‘I can’t believe that this problem is solved.’”
http://www.montereycountyweekly.com

Thomas Pollacci's Trial Starts A lot more possible victims alleged at this message board & you can post without giving your name: http://www.topix.com/forum/business/healthcare/TEUMDVPC23624RH91

The first, he said, was 16 years old in 1980, and was reportedly raped on the riverbank of the Carmel River by Pollacci as a friend of his held her down. She fled, got a ride home from a gas station attendant and didn’t report it to police until Pollacci was arrested for the alleged April 2008 rape last year.

Another woman reported Pollacci came to her home when she was separated from her husband, and after they watched TV together for a while, he “took her forcibly” and then left, Breeden told the jury. “She also was confused, disoriented, angry and didn’t tell her husband, Frank, because he had a temper and she was afraid he would kill Mr. Pollacci.”

The third woman met Pollacci in the early 1990s while he was working at Ron’s Liquors, and they went on a lunch date to the California Market at the Highlands Inn. Afterward, he allegedly raped her in the parking lot, and in 1992, the allegations resulted in a plea of sexual battery. Pollacci was later required to register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law.
http://www.pineconearchive.com/100409-5.htm

The defense attorney for a Pebble Beach man charged with raping an unconscious woman said he has two experts who believe the alleged victim was injured when she fell, not during an attack.

Andy Liu plans to argue at trial that Thomas Pollacci had consensual sex with the woman and brought her to Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula after she sustained a severe head injury in a fall.

That trial, which was to have begun Monday, was continued to March 22 because the prosecutor needed time to review reports by a forensic pathologist and a
biomechanical engineering professor hired by Liu.

http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_14293051

The trial for Thomas Pollacci was on hold Friday while Judge Russell Scott tries to finish one trial to make room for another. Pollacci was scheduled to begin trial Monday.

Pollacci, 50, is charged with sexually assaulting a female acquaintance in the loft of Ron's Liquors, his father's Pacific Grove business. The defendant brought the woman, bleeding from a severe head wound, to Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula about 3a.m. on April 21, 2008.

They found Pollacci's DNA, according to testimony.
http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_14723068

Prosecutor Michael Breeden said three women other than the alleged victim will testify they were raped by Thomas Pollacci in the 1980s and 1990s. Two of them, he said, never reported the assaults because they were too ashamed.

He told jurors one of Pollacci's employees saw his boss "doing some odd things" in the hours after the woman was hospitalized. According to testimony at Pollacci's preliminary hearing, the employee, who was described as being developmentally delayed, saw his boss scrubbing the floor at the base of the stairs where police later found blood evidence.

The worker told police the woman visited the store two nights in a row. After her first visit, Breeden said, his boss told him she was his former neighbor and that he "did her" in the past. He said his boss told him not to talk to anyone about what happened in the store.

http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_ ... ck_check=1

Friday afternoon, a retired bail bondsmen said Pollacci's arrest for the 1992 attack on Jane Doe4 prompted a shocking confession in the basement at the Monterey Courthouse.

Robert Stevenson said he met in the snack bar with a man he'd bailed out of jail and the man's attorney, the late Bill Bryan. The attorney told his client not to discuss his case with anyone and left. The bondsman said Pollacci then began bragging about how he had raped a girl in broad daylight in a parking lot and how it was "good sex."

Liu has not indicated if Pollacci will take the stand.

http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_14858394

Update March 2009: Combing through reports and documents spanning from 1980 to 2004, she listed 10 separate incidents (Plus 3 convictions & this case) with 10 separate victims in her filing for the bail increase, and said she could have included more. She also said Pollacci used false names on several occasions, intending to deceive the women.

“You can see how his technique has evolved over the years, and he has perfected the crime of rape,” she said. “He’s gotten to be good at it,” and has no reason to stop.
http://www.pineconearchive.com/090403-4.htm
Paper at Ron's

Above picture (Left) is taken in front of Ron's liquor in Pacific Grove. They also own the Cork N' Bottle Liquor Stores. (Right)Thomas Ronald Pollacci, from MPH.

The Pacific Grove Police Department has announced Thomas Ronald Pollacci, 49, of Pebble Beach, turned himself in to Seaside Police on Monday after a $300,000 arrest warrant was issued for his alleged involvement in a forcible rape reported to Pacific Grove Police in April 2008. Link

Thomas Pollacci, 49, whose family owns Ron’s Liquors on Lighthouse Avenue in downtown Pacific Grove, and who has frequently manned the counter there, is suspected of raping a woman and then leaving her at the hospital with a head injury nearly a year ago.

The complaint, filed in Monterey County Superior Court by deputy district attorney Cristina Johnson in late February, accuses Pollacci of forcible rape of a woman too mentally and developmentally disabled to give legal consent and who was unconscious at the time. The alleged crime occurred April 21, 2008, and carries three separate charges, all felonies.

Pollacci, is a registered sex offender.
http://www.pineconearchive.com/090313-2.htm

Abel Maldonado said he’ll consider proposing a bill that would prevent registered sex offenders from working in liquor stores and other businesses where they can check IDs and have access to customers’ personal information.

“Allowing registered sex offenders to view a person’s driver’s license, thereby allowing them to obtain important contact information like the person’s address, is extremely dangerous,” Maldonado said.

Maldonado made the comments to The Pine Cone after learning that registered sex offender and liquor store worker Thomas Pollacci, 49, was charged with three felony counts of rape stemming from an April 2008 incident. Pollacci’s family owns Ron’s Liquors in Pacific Grove, and he has worked there for years.
http://www.pineconearchive.com/090320-1.htm

When Tom Pollacci of Pebble Beach faces a judge this afternoon, it will be the third time since 1993 that he is arraigned on charges of raping an unconscious woman.

According to court documents, including affidavits to search his family's Pacific Grove liquor store, similar charges were dismissed for insufficient evidence in 2001. In the 1993 case, in which he was accused of raping two women, he pleaded guilty to two felony counts of sexual battery and was placed on probation.

Pollacci, whose family owns Ron's Liquors in Pacific Grove and Carmel, is a registered sex offender as a result of that case, though his name and photograph have been removed from the Megan's Law Web site. State law permits offenders to petition for removal from the site when their convictions are for less serious penal code convictions, including sexual battery.

He also blasted members of the public who have anonymously organized boycotts of Ron's Liquors and spread "vicious rumors" slandering the business and said Pollacci is no longer employed there.
http://www.montereyherald.com/local/ci_11983247

David Pollaci, his father & the store owner on record, is on the Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce's Board of Director's as a Second Vice Chairman
http://www.pacificgrove.org/dirpages/boardofdirectors3.htm

Discuss in our forum:
http://pacificgrove.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=192

December 2007 Surf Photo:

Old News:

September 11th. Call it 9/11 for PG Businesses. Numerous PG businesses are closing or have closed, including Lighthouse Theatre, PG Coin Laundry, a piano store, antique stores, a raw furniture store, a florist, a consignment store & Etc. Some person with a heavy foreign accent was quoted on tv staating that people are shopping at the big box stores in Sand City instead of PG. However, I don't agree with this. People are not driving to Sand City to do their laundry, get flowers, get PG antiques, a piano or consignments. In my opinion we seriously need new business leaders or chambers.

In the old days I used to visit the P.G. Beacon newspaper at Holmans, where they got a free, very expensive, ocean front office. Guess which mayoral candidate is hot for a huge block size hotel complex at Holmans? Who also accepted, not once, but TWICE, thousands of dollars from the owner of Holman's for her campaign? (These were returned). That's one person I won't be voting for in this year's mayoral race.

Susan, I don't want a hotel, I won't be voting for you.

April 27th. Gas price in PG is $3.39 for premium. $4.69 in Gorda, which is just south of Big Sur. PG golf clubhouse is open with a new restaurant, Point Pinos Grill (Highest price lunch item was $6.75 for a hamburger). It also has a new Pro Shop. Let's keep the clubhouse area for a nice family area & make sure that no alcohol licensing is allowed. At present, they do not have an alcohol license. It must be voted on by the city council, but even if they approve it, everyone has 30 days to write in to Bureau of Alcohol Licensing to protest it. The Coast Guard gave the city the land you see in our logo at the top of this page as long as the city takes care of the lead that is present in the soil. Remember to keep alcohol out of that area. There is no reason it's needed. For pictures: http://www.morriefisher.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=315

Feb. 1st. Applications for the new Senior apts MUST be filed by this friday, Feb. 4th. Anyone in the USA can apply. Income limit of $25,000 per year & must be 62 years of age or older (Check with PG City on the specifics). Each apt gets .5 parking space. Most are studios & one bedrooms. There are some two bedrooms. Who gets an apt is determined by a lottery. Average home price in PG in 2005 was $1.2M, up from $850,000 in 2004. However, in 2004 there were 30 homes on the market & in 2005, there were 75 homes on the market.

January 14th. Master chef & Playboy cartoonist & one of my most favorite friends ever! ARTIST ELDON DEDINI DIES
Peninsulan known for his cartoons in Playboy, The New Yorker

Eldon Dedini, the Monterey Peninsula cartoonist whose artistry and humor graced slick American magazines for a half century, died Thursday of cancer at his Carmel-area home. He was 84.
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/13626556.htm
Long live ELDON DEDINI !

December 19th. WHAT'S BUGGING SETH, A film about Deaf life is Pacfic Grove & Monterey, is making the rounds around the world. Film distribution is still being worked on, but it may play in a city near you. It was recently shown at the State Theatre in Monterey for three days & hundreds of people showed up.

Nov. 12th. Old Bath House is for rent. The new city financial report is in. We just need another $11M-$22M depending on who you ask. These issues are discussed on the Pacific Grove Message Board fer shizzel.

October 16th. The new golf clubhouse is coming along just fine, even with the observed daily pickets against DMC Construction at both the clubhouse & the Senior Center. Links 2, the new clubhouse, must apply for a new liquor license. Don't want liquor in the Asilomar area? You have a right to protest issue of said license within 30 days of opening. When it opens, check the window for a large sign noting this. One letter is enough to keep it dry. Let's see how much better that area would be without alcohol. There is actually a fair amount of crime on that street (Asilomar Blvd.) already, which may or may not be attributed to alcohol sales.

Could Pacific Grove could have it's first non-white ghetto? Not to be confused with the Arkwright court white ghetto. When the new Senior Apts open at the bottom of 19th street, a lotto is going to determine who gets the 49 apartments. But because the city took federal funds & PG is 85% white, they must pick from a pool of people nationwide instead of just PG residents. That's right, anyone, anywhere in the USA can apply to live in these new oceanfront & golf course apts. If we have a lotto & picked 49 non-white seniors, we would have a new ghetto, which would be real cool.....It's just what we need.

P.G. Library expansion plans were dropped. No word yet on what happens to the hundreds of thousands of dollars donated for it.

August 1st. Here is a review of the Feast of Lanterns from our archives of 2003 by a Chinese lady who knows better:

The mayor of Pacific Grove, dressed in a blue silk bathrobe (why do people always wear bathrobes when they want to look "Oriental"?) introduced the play, the centerpiece of the festival, the Legend of Blue Willow.

In the middle of the play, my friend Kazuko suddenly noticed the music and laughed, "That’s Japanese Obon music. What is it doing in the middle of this Chinese play?" The next thing we knew, there was a white woman in a kimono (complete with fake Japanese hair) serving tea. In the ocean close to the stage, a fire-breathing (thereby European) dragon swam by.

But this was done straight. It was all made up, they knew it was all made up, their costumes were totally made up, and many details were culturally and historically impossible. If this took place a long time ago, far away in small town America, I could understand; but in this day and age, only two hours from San Francisco, there is no excuse for being so clueless, so tacky, so offensive. It was as if the whole city was celebrating 200 years of western stereotypes and misconceptions about "The Orient."
http://www.imdiversity.com/villages/asian/article_detail.asp?Article_ID=6273

July 30th. Feast (Festival) of Lanterns is tonight. 8pm for the pageant. Lover's Point, bottom of Forest Ave. in PG. Fireworks @ about 8:45PM.

The new PG Library expansion is NOT to add more room for new books (But may add a little in the old library), but to add a 100 seat community room. (Why did they close the old meeting room?). We don't need a 100 seat room when there are other meeting rooms. There is also no parking for this expansion. How do you have a meeting for 100 people when there isn't any where for them to park? The new Senior Apts (Near to PG Library) are being built also with an undersized parking lot, therefore, again limiting parking. We are also going to have to give up a street (It's going to be built on the street) of parking spaces. Cost of project was initially around $350,000, but as of today, estimated at $1,895,000! Vote NO on library expansion!!!!!!

March 23rd. County to Make Sewage Into Drinking Water
Lion Watch 2005

December 15th. The Butterfly Sanctuary on Ridge road is !Closed! until further notice. This is likey to continue through April 2005 until the Monarchs have migrated. There won't be any more butterflies coming until Oct. 2005.

Nov.4th. Monterey County Election results are at: http://montereycountyelections.us/2004_presidential_general.htm

Summary for P.G.: Winnners: Mayor: Costello
City Council: SUSAN NILMEIER, DANIEL E. CORT, SCOTT MILLER
Measure I:
Yes: 2,454
No: 2,484

Nov. 1st. I spotted a few Monarchs around PG, so they are here from their migration if you want to come have a look.

Sept. 17th. Hey, how do you know when fall comes to PG? The sun comes out, the tourists depart, and the waves come in. Temperature drops about 10 degrees per month through Dec.

July 1st. Fourth of July Plans:
P.G.:
11:00 - 11:45 a.m. Kelly Conover Surfer Band plays
11:15 - 1:45 p.m. Serve lunch
11:45 - 11:47 Welcome address
11:47 - 12:00 Present Colors, Presidio of Monterey Color Guard
12:00 - 12:02 Pledge of Allegiance
12:02 - 12:06 Amazing Grace performed by Erin Gray
12:06 - 12:20 Presentation to Our Veterans
12:20 - 12:25 Feast of Lanterns Court Presented by Sue Renz
12:25 - 1:45 p.m. Kelly Conover Surfer Band plays

Also Monterey:

Yep, 9:15pm & I guess they can afford it this year. Odds are that its going to be foggy......in that case you need to be as near as possible to see them. Since they are on a barge just off Wharf #2, that seems to be the best place to be. Go all the way up Wharf #2, this is the one nearest McDonalds (Not Wharf #1). You should see a fence & a guard, thats as far as you can go. They won't set them off until 9:15pm, & there isn't anything to do until that time. Yes, the cops patrol the beaches & issue tickets for setting off fireworks, esp. when its light outside. You can buy food on Wharf #2, but it's better to bring your own. There are restrooms on the wharf too.

Parking is a real tricky thing. Best place to park is MPC near the flagpole side of MPC & walk to the wharf/beach. Parking is really crowded near the art side of MPC, but if you park near the flagpole you have quick access to the freeway. Parking is free.

Odd thing I noticed in 2003 was that there were still parking spaces available in the parking lots in front of the wharfs.

Coming from PG, it's best to park on Lighthouse around 400 Lighthouse (BR31) POINT your car in the direction of PG. If you point your car to Monterey, you may wait an hour or more just to pull out.

Here is some more stuff, from Monterey.org & the city of Monterey:

Monterey Fourth of July Traffic Information
1. Del Monte Avenue will be closed in both directions from Sloat Avenue to Pacific Street, including both directions of the Lighthouse Tunnel, from 7 p.m. until about midnight. Pacific Street is available as an alternate route.
2. Southbound exits on Highway 1 at Del Monte Avenue and Casa Verde will be closed at 3 p.m. Traffic will be directed to the Fremont and Soledad/Munras exits. Parking will be strictly enforced. Please obey all signs and personnel on site.

3. Handicapped parking is available on Wharf 2 before 6:30 p.m. Vehicles must display a placard. Please ask for access at any street barricade point.
4. The Lower Presidio at DLIFLC and POM will be closed to vehicle traffic all day. Community members are encouraged to walk into the lower Presidio Historic Park to access this traditional viewing site. It will be open to pedestrians only.

9:15 p.m. - Fireworks Display over Monterey Bay. Please be patient: Arrive by 3 p.m. and be prepared to stay at least an hour AFTER the fireworks as traffic will be EXTREMELY CONGESTED. Vehicles will not be released from the waterfront parking lot until at least 30 minutes after the show. Please follow the signs and obey all personnel on site. It will take time get home.

May16th. Mountain lion(ess) invades PG & sets up residence on Asilomar. It's been eating family pets according to some locals.

March 5th. Good Old Days is coming April 3rd. & 4th. The PG old boys are won the latest round of the PG Golf Clubhouse fight this week with the petition that would have put it up to the public for a fair vote being thrown out by the city clerk on grounds it didn't have a few choice lines of necessary text. Not long after that the city clerk got a huge Golden Parachute approved for himself by the same city council members who are for the new Clubhouse. Do we really need this kind of thing in PG? The city council members want you to call & let them know how you feel about this Clubhouse.

January 22nd. 2004. Ah, it's cold. Hey, if you haven't figured it out yet, Local News is faster on the message board, Also, to see the biggest collection of Monarch butterfly photos of every stage of a Monarch's life, more than 350 photographs, come to this site: http://www.redshift.com/~handy/monarchs/

December 24th, Happy Holidays. The petition to keep them from putting in 'Obbink's Private Golf Clubhouse' succeeded & the signatures were submitted to be put on the ballot in march. Estimated cost is $3.5M, but in reality it is $7M+ due to the cost of the bond. If they hit bedrock when putting it in the cost may even be higher. Read more about it at the message board: http://www.morriefisher.com/forums

December 7th. December in PG: Snow in the Park, Inns tour, Las Vegas style street lighting & high surf.
Average selling real estate prices for August 2003, which is a very hot month for sales, are down from August 2002 in PG (We could only find August sales data). 2002: $711,800 2003:$688,900
These are average prices & do not reflect the size of the unit. Largest decline in sales prices appears to be Pebble Beach, where prices fell almost 50% from 2002: $2,051,000 to 2003: $1,270,000.

November 25th. The Monarch butterflies have arrived in PG.

Oct.3rd Our message board is being set up with a new ISP & it should be back shortly, I hope. Thanks for the patience. The Butterfly Parade is tomorrow, Oct 4th. What happened to turboweb.net ? Looking turboweb.net ?
It appears they are off the net & took our money too, without issuing a refund or even giving us time to backup . I mention that in case you're searching the net for them.

Sept. 28th.

This appears to be a small attempt by a local restaurant to comply with local ADA regulations by putting a table in front of the restaurant. When in fact, I believe they could just put a small elevator in the back porch area. I also disagree with their use of cobblestones & large plants on the public sidewalk planter area, which further obstruct access.

September 7th. News story links: PG Police Capt. caught in indecent exposure in Carmel
"The Monterey County District Attorney's Office filed an indecent exposure charge Friday against recently retired Pacific Grove police Capt. Bill Kennedy.

Chief Assistant District Attorney Terry Spitz said the misdemeanor charge stemmed from an incident in which Kennedy, 57, allegedly exposed himself in the parking lot of The Crossroads Shopping Village in Carmel on Aug. 10.
Spitz would not provide additional details but other law enforcement officials said two women called the Monterey County Sheriff's Office that day to report a man masturbating in the parking lot. The man was gone when deputies arrived, but the women reportedly provided the license number of the man's car. Kennedy was questioned later at his home in Pacific Grove."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/6707704.htm

PG $tore$ get 8 ADA lawsuit$ PG to correct Rec trail

August 24th. THE GREAT SHRIMP slaughter
Yet more toxic discharge sent into the Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary: PG has the sidewalks steam cleaned in the business area once a year at this time, but does not collect the resulting liquid, which contains alot of animal poop & oils which is allowed to run into the gutter where it drains from the storm pipe at the bottom of Forest Ave. right into the ocean. Could it have caused this great shrimp slaughter? Where tens of thousands of shrimp surfaced & laid on the beach? Children play in the water at Lover's Point & a local beach concession, owned by someone with an environmental degree, encouraged them to swim in this toxic oil & poop soup by renting boards & other beach items. It looks pretty, however the stench was very thick.

(Left: Shrimp Right:Children bathing in the ocean at the same time)

Free BBQ & food. Come one & all, invite your friends & your whole city to the Country Club Gate BBQ, Thursday August 24th 3 to 6pm at Country Club Gate, Forest & David Ave., PG.

August 16th. Locals are ranting in the latest P.G. Press, you can read it at: Http://www.93950.com/press

July 13. Rents in P.G. are getting more reasonable. We used to carry a list of apartment & housing managers on this site, but we don't do that anymore because they got too many calls. As of July, 2003, here are some real examples:
On 16th street, one half block to Lover's Point, a cute cottage (A real hot surfers spot): $875 1 bed 1 bath
On Cedar, which is 3 blocks to Lover's Point, 1 bedroom, 1 bath. washer, dry, water garbage paid: $850
On Lighthouse, near top of a mountain, huge bay views, very clean, a slightly older modern apt: 2 bedrooms $900.00

June 30th. Joints (Shoulders, fingers, knees) getting to you? You might have Chilblains (perniosis). It is a reaction to cold, nonfreezing temperatures. It is seen most often in young people who have Raynaud's syndrome and people who are exposed to damp, cold weather. www.webmd.com

June 29th. The P.G. Feast of Lanterns is coming in July. Here are some quotes of a chinese woman's view of it:

The mayor of Pacific Grove, dressed in a blue silk bathrobe (why do people always wear bathrobes when they want to look "Oriental"?) introduced the play, the centerpiece of the festival, the Legend of Blue Willow.

In the middle of the play, my friend Kazuko suddenly noticed the music and laughed, "That’s Japanese Obon music. What is it doing in the middle of this Chinese play?" The next thing we knew, there was a white woman in a kimono (complete with fake Japanese hair) serving tea. In the ocean close to the stage, a fire-breathing (thereby European) dragon swam by.

But this was done straight. It was all made up, they knew it was all made up, their costumes were totally made up, and many details were culturally and historically impossible. If this took place a long time ago, far away in small town America, I could understand; but in this day and age, only two hours from San Francisco, there is no excuse for being so clueless, so tacky, so offensive. It was as if the whole city was celebrating 200 years of western stereotypes and misconceptions about "The Orient."
http://www.imdiversity.com/villages/asian/article_detail.asp?Article_ID=6273

June 12th. We are working on a second website which is going to have our forum & large photograph libraries, hopefully & it should be up as soon as the transfer is complete. PG does NOT have a firework display on the 4th (P.G. has a rather skimpy, but okay display during the Feast of Lanterns, last saturday of July). P.G. has a 4th of July celebration at Caledonia Park right in back of the PGPO starting at 11am-2pm & a BBQ ($5) at eleven thirty.

Monterey does have a 4th of July display.
This is their city memo (BTW, they set it off just off wharf #2 on a barge not wharf #1, there are also lots of illegal fireworks set off on the beach in Monterey, don't try this on any beach in PG!)
9:15 p.m. - Fireworks Display over Monterey Bay. Please be patient: Arrive by 5 p.m. and be prepared to stay an hour AFTER the fireworks as traffic will be EXTREMELY CONGESTED. Please follow the signs and obey all personnel on site. It will take time get home.

June 8th. P.G. keeps City forester at half time at about $35,000 per year. P.G. Gazette newspaper gives up. Love this gem, Chamber says P.G. economy not so hot (duh):
"...especially with the economy not so good."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/6042192.htm

June 6th. Lover's Point is closed this thursday to next monday due to a sewer spill. They seem to ignore the fact that there is a continous spill flowing into Lover's Point 24 hours a day from the gutter pipe. I tested the gutter pipe water & it's full of poop, however, it would take a complicated test to determine whether that is from humans or animals.

In the meantime, the Recreational Trail needs $500k. :
"Pacific Grove will get some help fixing its storm-damaged Rec Trail with a challenge grant from the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District.

The park district's board of directors has committed up to $50,000 to match community contributions, including other grants. Pacific Grove's Rec Trail is part of the Monterey Bay Coastal Trail, which the park district conceived of in the 1970s and built in cooperation with the cities it crosses. While the cities are responsible for maintenance of their portions, costly structural damage to the trail in Pacific Grove warrants park district help, district General Manager Joe Donofrio said.

Pacific Grove officials have estimated that fixing erosion damage from storms last winter are likely to cost more than $500,000. The city has earmarked $100,000 toward fixing the trail in its draft 2003-04 budget, and is seeking grants from various sources."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/6028486.htm

May 29th. Another sweet deal gets made: They just got a 5 year lease renewal this year from P.G. City, but they also own (according to their website) a 5000 sq.ft. Monterey beach front house, a 5,500 sq.ft. Pacific Grove beach house & an approx. 2 acre parking lot between Wharf #1 & #2 in Monterey. Yet, their rent of prime Pacific Grove city beach property was raised to just 12.5% this year (From 10%) & is based only on a percentage of their kayak, bike & Etc. rentals. Therefore, they don't have to be open when they don't want to be! So, the city probably receives no payment for the property because they appeared to not be open any or all of Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb & March! That is free rent & free storage for 6 months of the year from the P.G. taxpayer! Also overlooked, with addional locations, they probably meet the requirement of a 'chain store', which aren't allowed in P.G.: Three or four locations with the same menu....

P.G. tree guy gets ax. Seven others laid off & city employees to take a 3.5% pay cut.
"The City Council took the action during a budget session Wednesday. Several council members expressed displeasure at wielding the ax but agreed it was necessary.

"I'd like to keep everyone," council member James Costello said. "I really hate to lose a single person but I don't see another way."

Other layoffs approved by the council are for a deputy city clerk, street sweeper, two maintenance workers, fire clerk dispatcher, city electrician and library shelver. In addition, 10 positions now vacant won't be filled under the draft city budget. The council will discuss the draft budget again Wednesday and is set to approve the document June 18."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5967397.htm

May 24th. Happy Memorial Day Weekend 2003. Tourism is down quite a bit this year & it's foggy & wet today. More stories on yet another corruption scandal in P.G.:

A summary of this scandal from our lovely paper, the Coast Weekly:

"Well, there's Morrie Fisher, the mayor who's rumored to have plotted to overthrow outgoing police chief Scott Miller in favor of promoting one of his buddies in the department. There's councilmember Susan Goldbeck, who has threatened the city with a lawsuit, unless City Manager Ross Hubbard turns over employee records. Goldbeck, who's been met with just a bit of resistance, (think Squid asking a shark for a bite of calamari) says that the Brown Act (which says that public agencies in California make decisions in front of the public) "is a joke in PG." There's charges by Goldbeck that most of the council members and do major squid-pro-quo, um, that's quid-pro-quo for the city employees.

Goldbeck also says Hubbard plays 18-holes of golf on the days there are city council meetings..."

Early retirement given as reason

"The police chief is out in Pacific Grove, and the gloves are off for everybody else.
Long-embattled Chief Scott Miller would say Friday only that he is taking early retirement, effective at the end of the day. City Manager Ross Hubbard and Mayor Morrie Fisher characterized Miller's departure as no more than that, and wouldn't make any additional comment.
Others had a lot more to say. Miller's enemies were celebrating and his friends were accusing the mayor of forcing out his longtime nemesis so his friends within the Police Department can move up."

"Asked for a comment on the verdict, Miller issued a statement that said, "This verdict strikes a blow to cronyism." The comment was rumored to have angered Fisher."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5884218.htm

Councilwoman, residents suspect Miller was forced out

"Pacific Grove Police Chief Scott Miller, whose retirement announcement last week has some in town suspecting he was forced out, has hired an attorney to sort out his status with the city.

Monterey lawyer Michael Stamp said Tuesday that he's having "ongoing discussions with the city... about what happened and where we go from here." However, "there has been no decision of filing a lawsuit at this time," he said."

"Councilwoman Susan Goldbeck, who believes Fisher and other City Council members pressured City Manager Ross Hubbard to fire Miller or force him to resign, said she'll raise questions about the matter at tonight's City Council meeting. The council meets at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 300 Forest Ave.
Goldbeck said that Councilman John Stidham recently told her that he and other council members had decided to fire Hubbard."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5910602.htm

May 18th. PG Chief of Police quits!!! (About time). Pagrovian restaurant also calls it quits (Update: Reopened under new management).
"The police chief is out in Pacific Grove, and the gloves are off for everybody else.
Long-embattled Chief Scott Miller would say Friday only that he is taking early retirement, effective at the end of the day. City Manager Ross Hubbard and Mayor Morrie Fisher characterized Miller's departure as no more than that, and wouldn't make any additional comment.

Others had a lot more to say. Miller's enemies were celebrating and his friends were accusing the mayor of forcing out his longtime nemesis so his friends within the Police Department can move up.

"This just stinks because a good man is being offered up on the altar of political cronyism led by Mayor Morrie Fisher," City Councilwoman Susan Goldbeck said Friday. "It's a fact.""
O'Connell said Friday that Miller had inherited minor morale problems when he was named chief and that he had turned them into major problems.

"I'm shocked" over the chief's retirement, O'Connell said. "And happy."
Miller routinely violated employees' rights in dealing with grievances, O'Connell said."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5884218.htm

City seeks volunteer applicants for special-events committee

The city of Pacific Grove is seeking volunteers to serve on the newly created special events committee. The committee will develop a process for permitting special events, review applications for events, and assist event sponsors.
The committee will consist of seven members: two business owners in the downtown business district; two residents, at least one who lives along the ocean front and one who lives in an area where special events are held; two members of the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors; and one resident who does not fall into any of the categories above.
Application forms are available at City Hall, 300 Forest Ave. The deadline is 4:45 p.m. May 30. For more information contact the recreation director at 648-5730.

May 15th. PG to get new budget. $1.4 million shortfall predicted.

"Pacific Grove will indeed face layoffs, pay cuts and reduced services to balance its budget.

Unforeseen spikes in retirement and workers compensation costs are the main culprits, City Manager Ross Hubbard told the City Council on Wednesday. All city employees are being asked to accept pay cuts of 3.5 percent for the 2003-04 fiscal year, which beings July 1, Hubbard said.

Staff cuts called for in the draft budget presented to the council would mean reducing hours at the city library and youth center and creating added burdens for other city employees. Positions to be eliminated if the draft budget is approved as is next month include the city forester, a deputy city clerk and a street sweeper.
In addition, several positions that have become vacant in the past year will not be filled, Hubbard said. Since 1999 the city has gone from 140 to 117 employees, he said."
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5866674.htm

----------
PG School Budget News:

"In January, he threatened to slash Pacific Grove's $17 million budget by almost 20 percent and Carmel's $27 million budget by twice that.

As furious parents lobbied Sacramento, the school boards prepared to cut programs. Carmel sent out layoff warnings to half its teaching staff. Pacific Grove considered closing an elementary or middle school.

But Wednesday brought great news for those schools. Carmel would have to cut only up to $1 million, or 3.5 percent of its budget, and Pacific Grove about $1 million, or 6 percent. "
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/5866678.htm

May 12th. Price of gas in PG: $1.70's next to PGPO.

Two Hazards to Children in PG?

1) Why was pressure treated wood used in the newer playground addition at Caledonia park?

(Chromated Copper Arsenate seen in green hue in wood, above)
Chromated copper arsenate (CCA) is the most widely used
wood preservative in the United States. Containing
chromium, copper, and arsenic.

Hazards of Treated Wood in Playground Equipment
By: A Statement from Chairman Hal Stratton
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

"I am announcing that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) today scheduled a Commission Briefing for March 12, 2003 to consider the petition to ban the use of chromated copper arsenate (CCA) pressure-treated wood in playground equipment.

.....The staff maintains that an individual child's risk from arsenic in CCA-treated playground equipment will vary depending on many factors. Those include the amount of arsenic released from the CCA-treated wood, the amount of arsenic picked up on the hands, the number of days and years the child plays on the wood, and the amount of arsenic transferred to the mouth by hand-to-mouth activity. The staff considered these types of exposures in calculating the increased lifetime risk of developing lung or bladder cancer.

CPSC staff states this increased risk to children is primarily due to exposure to arsenic residue on children's hands followed by hand-to-mouth contact. The report says transfer of the arsenic from the hand to the mouth can occur during and after playing on pressure-treated wood playground equipment. " Full story:
http://www.daycare.com/story/arsenic.html

2) The ocean water at Lover's Point in PG which children are swimming is loaded with e. coli bacteria & several other kinds of bacteria. I know a child who got a rash the day after swimming in this water. This occured on two seperate occassions a few months apart on the same child. The water that comes from the gutter pipe 24 hours a day 7 days a week unabated into Lover's Point.

Above Photo taken May 15, 2003, of the gutter water flowing into the bay. It was a nice sunny day.
This water was tested at the Monterey Bay Aquarium & the results were:

Per 100ml.

Fecal Coliform Count: 8664
Recreational limit for fecal coliform: 400
Fecal Coliform limit, drinking water: 0

Enterococci bacteria (This is a bacteria specific to human sewage, but may also come from animals) count: 6867
Limit: 104

Total coliforms: 24,192
Total coliforms Limit: 10,000

My suggestion is to NOT allow children to swim in this water until the gutter water is sent to the water treatment plant. This project is in the works. Also, the beach should be posted with signs saying to keep children out of the water or to avoid contact with it. Where are our elected representatives when you need them?

April 24th. Gas prices are down to around $2.09 for regular near PG PO. Lugo's is about to close. The old Designer Loft store at Forest & Lighthouse is now a french antique store. Capsicum has closed. Holman's plans a 600 room hotel, big parking lot, condos, retail space but has asked the city to pay $20k for a study.

April 10th: Good Old Days, the weekend ofApril 12 is going to be smaller this year & rained out! Fewer vendors are coming & a massive storm is also due on Saturday & Sunday.....Also, cities are keeping their police forces local, so expect a much smaller police motorcycle competition. We expect about 20-30,000 people, but we have only 6 cleaning people to clean (This is the chamber of noncommerce's idea of cleaning), except on Sunday after the event. Keep PG clean.

Local News is now at the Message Board
Some news stories on the message board:
->600 Unit "Ghost of a" Hotel planned, no mention of the sewer impact.
->State of California/FCC start a free DO NOT CALL LIST to keep telemarkers from calling you. Register now at:
nocall.doj.state.ca.us.com
->Gas price lists for PG.
->State of PG economy

January 4th. News this week: A 15 year old girl was raped in P.G.

December 17th. Need storm info? We got it, see some pictures of PG & the surf as the storms came in this week on the message board.
(Below: Lighthouse & Congress in front of PG PO)

December 7th.
In an attempt to prove to the City Of PG & Monterey County that PG is polluting the ocean water continuously, I took a sample of the water that comes from the gutter pipe at the bottom of Forest Ave. in PG to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Reseach lab. We used a 24 hour test. The water is fresh & not diluted by ocean water & not affected by sunshine or other environmental factors. The observed & tested flow rate was about 5 gallons per minute (About 2,628,000 gallons per year! (Does not include storm water). This water is NOT safe!

Gutter Pipe from which sample was taken at 9:30am Dec. 2nd 2002 (Above)

Per 100ml.

Fecal Coliform Count: 8664
Recreational limit for fecal coliform: 400
Fecal Coliform limit, drinking water: 0

Enterococci bacteria (This is a bacteria specific to human sewage, but may also come from animals) count: 6867
Limit: 104

Total coliforms: 24,192
Total coliforms Limit: 10,000