Debris Removal Welcomed by Open Roads

 Street Cleaning at B-BAR-H Ranch
Just-In-Time for Spring 2011

Just in case you were not home that bright, crisp morning when the street sweeper arrived, here's a few photos to document the memorable occasion.  My phone started ringing, emails started arriving, and residents were pleased to see their MAC make another community accomplishment! 

Sometimes working through red-tape takes time, dedication and work, but the results are shared for the common good of all.  We thank County Staff for working with us to get the roads cleaned.  Now, we need to work with the County to make sure street cleaning remains a part of the CSA 115.

There's nothing better than taking your dog for a walk, riding your bike or powering your electric wheelchair on a clean surface!  Not to mention making a turn onto your street without fish-tailing, slipping or sliding your  vehicle.  Driving into a clean community we all call home truly feels and looks great!

We Don't Want to Lose CSA 115 Road Cleaning!!!!

By Anonymous, South B-BAR-H Ranch Resident

It took B-BAR-H Residents and Community Leaders over a year of debate with Riverside County to finally get roads cleared of built up sand, stone and debris. Street sweepers/cleaners arrived immediately once the document defining road maintenance was located.  

Miscellaneous extended road maintenance -- Street Cleaning -- is defined in the Resolution of Intention and currently part of the taxes we pay.

The CSA 115 Resolution of Intention defines Road Maintenance for B-BAR-H Ranch:

Click Here
to read the
CSA 115 Resolution of Intention
defining Road Maintenance

We don't want to lose street cleaning, and the County may take it away.  Under the current CSA 115 tax structure the B-BAR-H Ranch receives:

• Miscellaneous Extended Road Maintenance
• Road Improvement 
• Lighting (to pay an electric bill and replace bulbs)

Think carefully before changing any of the current CSA 115 tax structure until Riverside County presents a full and accurate report of the past and a detailed plan for the future of our roads.  As a resident of the ranch for many years, it's important to see how much money has been collected and how it's been spent. 

The CSA 115 Law currently protects the roads in our community.  Please take decisions to modify CSA 115 as it is defined today seriously.  We don't want to lose Miscellaneous Extended Road Maintenance and Road Improvement!

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(The person who submitted this blog post requested to remain anonymous.  We honor anonymous submissions.  If you would like to make an anonymous submission, please Contact Us today.)   

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Voice of the People: Stop Political Corruption!

Road sign leaving Hope, AZ

by Chris Georgesco, North B-BAR-H Resident

This is Shocking News I have heard about the MAC meeting in regards to neighborhood B Bar H. I find it unacceptable to see Riverside County treat our neighborhood with unaccounted funds and expenditures. Our Taxes are paid and regulated for the maintenance of roads and lighting with all due consideration. I have seen the City Council in the City of Bell, and Desert Hot Springs take advantage of Citizens and their Tax Funds. I am hoping we do not end up in the same category.

No decisions should be made about appropriating funds to maintain our neighborhood till the accounts have been reviewed since 1977. Expenditures and Appropriations Accessed on the account most definitely have to be made public. It is expected of every tax payer and need be made public by the County. I do not wish use the word Robbed till the County has a had a chance to make their accounting public.. I find it odd putting money into account that has been misappropriated. I would like my credit funds returned if no such documentation can be provided. Authority does not give a Office the right to use our money for other purposes than collected for. It is Tax Fraud in that our tax's are not being used as collected. This seems to be a trend of 21st Century Politics and I do not wish to become a Victim.

Please provide the home owners of B Bar H Ranch a Honest account of of our tax's, before making decisions about our roads and maintenance. I find quite scary that that County officials can be so blunted about misappropriation of funds.

PLEASE PROVIDE AN AUDIT OF THE TAX MONEY COLLECTED AND SPENT BEFORE MAKING ANY DECISSIONS.  I AM A AFRAID THAT I AM BEING ROBBED BY THE COUNTY OF THE MONEY SET ASIDE FOR MAINTAINING OUR COMMUNITIES ROADS AND CLEANING OUR STREETS. I JUST WISH TO RECIEVE THE SERVICES WHICH MONEY HAS BEEN COLLECTED IN THE FORM OF PROPERTY TAX.

7700 Prisoner Jail in OUR Back Yard!

by Steve Grasha, North B-BAR-H Ranch Resident

The County of Riverside intends to build the largest prison in county history at the entrance to Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley Covering an area the size of 100 football fields, the prison complex will house 7,200 inmates. It will cost $500 million to construct.

Although our 9 cities only have 16% of Riverside's Population, we will house 66% of the criminal population when this project is completed.

Riverside County Supervisors say that this will benefit our economy and safety. Opponents disagree and say that it will damage our $4.5 Billion Tourism industry and be a magnet for criminal gangs from all over the state and county.

Come to this important event to hear both sides of the debate.

Find out if becoming a prison town is what is best for our economy, our safety and our way of life.


Saturday, March 26 · 9:30am - 11:30am

Camelot Theaters - Large Auditorium
2300 E. Baristo Road
Palm Springs

Show us the M O N E Y !!!!!!

CSA115 Financials 2003 - 2010

We asked County Staff to provide a full accounting of the CSA115 tax fund from 1977 - 2010.  

We received the eight summaries listed below.  They cover Accounting Records for 2003-2010.  Each report includes expenditures for Road Maintenance and Road Improvements, Street Lights (SCE electricity) and Account Administration.  The Economic Development Agency (EDA) charges CSA115 a few thousand dollars annually to administer the fund.

• 2003 Fiscal Summary
• 2004 Fiscal Summary
• 2005 Fiscal Summary
• 2006 Fiscal Summary
• 2007 Fiscal Summary
• 2008 Fiscal Summary
• 2009 Fiscal Summary
• 2010 Fiscal Summary

Please note:  We asked EDA to provide a breakdown for Road Maintenance and Road Improvements.  County Staff said they will provide this information to us at the May 12, 2011 DHS MAC Meeting.

The Brown Act Simplified

Here's simple, straight-forward information regarding the restrictions for our Neighborhood Meetings with respect to the Brown Act. 

There's been some confusion about how MAC Board Members can talk at meetings.  Simply stated....  Here's the rules for the MAC Board Of Directors (BOD):

1. Individual contacts or conversations between a member of the legislative body (BOD) and any other person is OK.
2. The majority of the legislative body is not allowed to meet to develop a collective concurrence as to the action to be taken on an item by the members of the legislative body (BOD).

These are the only two rules we must follow when participating in our Neighborhood Meetings. 

What it means is this: 

1. Members of the board can talk one on one with anyone about anything at any time!  
2. The majority of members of the board (3 or more) can NOT meet to discuss decisions on actions they will take on an item they will be asked to vote upon at a later date.

In other words, we can talk about anything we want at our Neighborhood Meetings!  The only restriction is we can't have three board members present talking about how they are going to vote on an upcoming item.

I hope this is a relief for many meeting attendees.  It certainly allows us to feel a bit more relaxed communicating with our neighbors.  The term "Brown Act Laws" can sound intimidating, yet it isn't at all.  It basically gives guidance for common sense behavior for members of a legislative body to act appropriately.

This information was taken directly from the MAC Member Procedures Handbook.  I reviewed the information and discovered we can openly discuss any information we want to talk about.  Plus, all the information from our MAC meetings is public information and can be shared openly at all times. Questions?  Contact Us. 

Nine most terrifying words

The nine most terrifying words in the English language are,
'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'
Ronald Reagan

40th president of The Untied States (1911 - 2004)

By Steve Grasha, North B-BAR-H Resident

These are the words I thought of as I listened to county staff making a presentation at the last MAC meeting!

Our community needs to give serious consideration to the proposal to gut CSA115  if we approve the county's proposal we may find ourselves with no recourse when it comes time to repair and maintain our roads at an acceptable level as the county deficit looms at 200 Million dollars this coming year.

We have paid 1.5 million dollars to our special district since it's inception and the county can only account for less than One Hundred Thousand of it. The funds were to only be used for road maintenance and improvements within CSA 115 which is B-BAR-H Ranch.

I believe it would be wise to make no changes to our current CSA until we have adequate answers from the county as to what they have done with our ONE MILLION FOUR HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.

This is money that was only to be used within the boundaries of our ranch and the boundaries of the LAW.

For Rent? For Sale? For Lease? List it here!

By Tania  Smith, North B-Bar-H Resident

If you or someone you know has a B-BAR-H Ranch house for rent or for sale, post it here.  We'll keep an ongoing list of available properties for you on the blog.

In order to keep our neighborhood homes occupied, we will list availabilities on this blog.

If you have a home for rent, lease or sale please let us know, and we'll post availability with a description of the home and the pricing along with your contact information on the B Bar H Ranch Neighborhood blog for prospective tenants. 

Click the Contact Us link at the top of the blog, and send the details in an email.  Include the address, contact information and any other information you'd like a prospective buyer/renter to know. 

March 9, 2011 - Home Intrusion Robbery

Don't open the door until you know who is on the other side!!!

Agency:	Palm Desert Station
Station Area:	Palm Desert
Written Date:	March 10, 2011	Time:	1230 P.M.
Incident Date:	March 9, 2011	Time:	3:00 P.M.
Incident Location:	67-800 block of Clubhouse Dr., Desert Hot Springs
Reporting Officer:	Sergeant Florez
File Number(s):	O110680017

Details:

On Wednesday, March 9, 2011, at approximately 3:00 P.M., deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Palm Desert Station responded to 67-800 block of Clubhouse Dr. in the unincorporated area of Desert Hot Springs regarding a home intrusion robbery. 

The homeowner was confronted by an intruder in his residence after hearing a knock on the door. The suspect struck the victim several times with an object before taking property from the residence. Witnesses observed the suspect leave the area in a silver-colored Toyota Corolla with a white male adult in the passenger seat. Detectives from the Palm Desert Sheriff's Station responded and assumed the investigation. 

Local agencies were notified and a short time later Desert Hot Springs Police observed a vehicle with occupants fitting the description. The vehicle was stopped and the occupants detained for the Sheriff's Department. The driver was positively identified as the person leaving the residence and was identified as 51-year-old Palm Desert resident, Quinton Gray. The passenger was interviewed at the Palm Desert Station and later released. Gray was booked into the Indio Jail for robbery. 

The victim was taken to Desert Hospital and treated for his injuries. He was later released. 

Anyone with information can call the Riverside County Sheriff's Department-Palm Desert Station at 760-836-1600 or Crime Stoppers at 760-341-Stop (7867). 

The Riverside County Sheriff's Department-Palm Desert Station would like to remind all citizens to be aware of their surroundings and report any suspicious activity, including any vehicles or persons to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department-Palm Desert Station by calling 911, or calling our dispatch center at (760) 836-3215.

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