VOICE OF THE PEOPLE: Our County Roads Need Safety Measures

Photos Courtesy of Steve Grasha

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
Our County Roads Need Safety Measures
Center Divider Lines - Speed Limit Signs - Stop Sign Reflectors

How fast do you have to be going to flip a car when swerving to avoid a rabbit in the road?

A few months ago, Jim Fosbinder, B-BAR-H Resident, contacted Riverside County about putting yellow center divider lines on 20th Avenue and Bubbling Wells Roads. He received a phone call from Riverside County stating there wasn't enough traffic on either road to justify center divider lines.

On July 9th, Steve Grasha, B-BAR-H Resident, asked Brenda Salas, MAC Project Manager, if we can get an updated traffic study of the roads to justify more safety measures for 20th Avenue and Bubbling Wells Roads. He requested the study be conducted in January not July.

The photos above were submitted by Steve Grasha. The woman said she swerved to avoid hitting a rabit and flipped her car. That was one heck of a swerve! We all need to be careful when driving on 20th Avenue and Bubbling Wells Roads. The traffic is fast, furious, and there are very little controls.

Bubbling Wells Road & 20th Avenue need:

- Center Divider Lines for lanes
- Speed Limit Signs
- No Dumping Signs
- Stop Sign Reflectors (or flashing lights) for night vision

Drive Defensively at All Times!

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE: We Oppose a Second Entrance to Our Neighborhood & Higher Taxes!

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
We Oppose a Second Entrance to Our Neighborhood & Higher Taxes!
by Andy Biswas, B-BAR-H Resident

Riverside County approved the building of a second entrance into the North End of the B-Bar-H Ranch using our tax dollars accumulated in the CSA 115 funds. None of the people who live here were given an opportunity to voice our opinion of this new entrance until now!

Talking with many of the residents, we do NOT want the second entrance into our area. We were told the second entrance is for emergency purposes, but we do not think a second entrance and the spending of our tax dollars is the solution for any emergency! We can't predict the future, and we cetainly do not want our tax money spent on something we don't need or with little guarantee it will help in the time of an emergency! There's absolutely no guarantee a second entrance is the solution for an emergency.

First, we like the safety of having one way in and out. Our area gets uninvited people driving through all the time looking for ways to vandalize the unoccupied homes. It's good to know, when these uninvited people enter, they must leave the same way. Many of us have already escorted unwanted visitors from these premises. If there's a second road to exit, it's just an invitation for trouble makers to come and go as they please.

Second, the traffic will increase. Right now, the speeders come zipping down our streets at high speeds. Having a second entrance/exit will only cause people to use this area as a thorough-fair. We do not want more traffic in here coming and going from both ends.

Third, we like the privacy, and we bought these homes because it is a quiet, secluded area. Opening it up and using our tax dollars to create more problems is not what we want. We need to maintain the roads we have now, not add more roads! Plus, using our tax dollars to add a road not needed or wanted may cause our property taxes to go up! We do not want to pay higher taxes for a road we do not want or need.

People say the second entrance is for emergency purposes. But, our current entrance located at El Serape and Bubbling Wells is huge. Between the Arch and the roads around it, at least 4-5 lanes can be used by cars in case of an emergency. If you look at the current large entrance design at the Arch area, we have 2-3 entrances/exits from this property.

We truly believe the approval of this second entrance and road was made without consulting or asking any of the residents, and we are upset. If you do NOT want the second entrance built, please leave a comment on this blog post. We are asking everyone who reads this blog to help us stop the building of a second road into the North Side of the B-BAR-H Ranch.

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Please leave a comment, an opinion, or reaction to this blog post. Or you can send an email to Webmaster(at)PaintbrushTrail.com.

Please attend the MAC Meeting on July 9, 2009, at 6:00 p.m. at the VFW to voice your opinion on how your tax dollars are spent for roads & lighting. Details are listed below.

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Municipal Advisory Committee (MAC) Announces It's Arrival to Help Our Neighborhood!

You're Invited!
Our FIRST MAC Meeting
July 9, 2009
VFW Hall
6:00 P.M.

We are excited to say the least. Riverside County's Brenda Salas, Project Manager, Economic Development Agency for Riverside County is heading up a Municipal Advisory Committee (MAC) for our area! This is the best news we've had in a long time to create a forum and get assistance for the things we need, want or don't want for our neighborhood!

There's been a long list of things accumulated over the past few years, and now we'll have the forum to get things accomplished through the proper channels. The MAC includes the CSA 115 tax funds for roads and lighting -- CSA as we knew it is now a part of MAC -- with MAC taking the lead to help us get things accomplished. At our last Neighborhood Meeting we learned there's money in the CSA 115 fund appropriated for roads and lighting. Now, we'll have a forum to discuss our needs for the appropriated funds.

Here's a partial list of some of the items many of our neighbors request:

• B-BAR-H Arch "Park Area"
• Road Signs
• Stop Signs
• Speed Limit Signs
• No Dumping Signs
• Speed Bumps
• Center Divider Lines
• Barricades Where Needed
• Street Lights
• Improved Road Maintenance
• Barking Dog Help
• VFW Needs Our Help (Commander George to explain at the meeting)

A voice in how our tax dollars are spent is top priority for many of us. Do we want to spend our tax dollars on building another road into our neighbohood? Or should we use the funds to maintain the roads we currently use? These questions and other topics should be brought to the MAC for discussion on July 9th.

Here's the invitation from Brenda Salas:
You are invited to attend the first Municipal Advisory Committee (MAC) meeting on July 9, 2009, at 6:00 p.m. at the VFW Hall. See details below. Please attend. This is an important kick-off meeting.

Purpose of the MAC
5th District Municipal Advisory Councils (MAC) were formed by the direction of Supervisor Marion Ashley in order to bring government to the people. These meetings allow for community input and updates on projects happening in surrounding unincorporated areas of Riverside County. They serve as a forum to provide updates from various Riverside County departments and a venue to take back topics of importance. The purpose of the MAC is to advise, recommend proposed action, and receive reports regarding matters including, but not limited to; public safety, planning, health, transportation, parks and community development within the unincorporated territory. The MAC will also have regular updates regarding CSA 115 as this is a venue for a broader range of topics.

Please attend our first meeting. We’ll set a schedule for upcoming meetings on July 9th. We look forward to getting the entire area involved in the MAC process to create strong Community Involvement for the continued success of your neighborhood in Riverside County.

Thank you,
Brenda Salas
Project Manager
Economic Development Agency
County of Riverside

(Your comments are always welcomed, and your presence at this first meeting is very important. Please attend! Thank you!)

B-BAR-H Ranch Arch Repair - March 22, 2009

Frank Torres, Cochran Communications Construction
Sunday, March 22, 2009

Pat Carney, North B-BAR-H Ranch Resident, coaching Frank Torres of Cochran Communications Construction.

Jim Fosbinder, North B-BAR-H Ranch Resident

Walter Santos (left) and Bill Bentinck, North B-BAR-H Ranch Residents

On March 22, 2009, Cochran Communications Construction came to the resue and repaired the B-BAR-H Ranch Arch. The Arch was built around 1929, so at 80 years old, the Arch deserved some TLC. In 2007, the Arch was struck by a DUI from Bubbling Wells Road. The neighbors on the North side of the B-BAR-H Ranch gathered early on a Saturday morning to rebuild the broken down structure, and the last remaining item to repair, was the logs shown in the photos. The logs were jolted during the DUI accident and they remained hanging until March 22, 2009. Special thanks to Pat Carney, El Serape resident. Pat called Cochran Communications Construction and arranged to have Frank Torres come to our rescue. We thank Jason Cochran for helping us solve this long-overdue problem.

Neighbors gathered on this very windy day to watch the historical event! Jim Fosbinder, Bill Bentinck, Walter Santos and Pat Carney held their breath watching the skilled Frank Torres maneuver the repair. We all thought the wind would prevent the repair, but Frank handled it skillfully.

Special thanks to the North Side B-BAR-H Residents who donated time and money for this repair. Our neighbors deserve recognition for stepping forward to help preserve this special piece of the B-BAR-H Ranch history: Bill Bentinck, Walter Santos, John Annala, Mark & Sharon Boden, Fred Philippi, Bob & Rose Alsup, Steve Grasha, Jim Fosbinder & Anna Miller, Pat & Sue Carney, Larry Hoffing and Betty Woods.

Cochran Communications Construction
36630 Cathedral Canyon Dr

Cathedral City, CA 92234
Phone: 760-328-6778

Jason Cochran & Frank Torres

Do you want to say, "Thank You?" Click here and write a note of appreciation for Cochran Communication Construction.

B-BAR-H Ranch Neighborhood Pride . . . . . . . . . . . . Our Heroes!

Click Here to See the Complete Slide Show

B-BAR-H Ranch Neighborhood Pride!

About Clean Up Day
The B-BAR-H Neighborhood Clean Up Day held from 8-Noon on March 14, 2009, was a HUGE success thanks to B-BAR-H Residents and partners from Riverside County Code Enforcement -- Chaka Ferrel, Community Improvement Specialist, Officer Rich Arriola, Riverside County Code Enforcement, Grace Escobar, Media Relations and Barry Busch, Board Assistant to Supervisor Marion Ashley.

Riverside County Code Enforcement said this was the first event they've ever seen with such a large participative turn out by a small community. There were over a dozen volunteers wearing orange Riverside County T-shirts scouring the neighborhood and working at the dumpster site on March 14th. Please look at the Slide Show to see all our friends and neighbors!

We take pride in sharing this blog and thanking EVERYONE who participated in the March 14, 2009 community clean up event sponsored by Riverside County Code Enforcement. There are about 90-100 occupied homes in this area. According to the day's event, every home in the subdivision participated with the exception of about 5-6 homes. That's a record turn out for Clean Up Day!

The Volunteers
Special thanks are extended to the men and women who used their private vehicles, trucks and wagons to scour the neighborhood and carry trash to the dumpster. Without people like Dorlane Stanley, Curtis Schway, Bill Bentinck and Bob Alsup the day's event would've been less impressive. Curtis, Bill and Bob spent four hours driving through the subdivision loading their trucks to capacity with garbage and trash. Dorlane (DL) Stanley walked through fields and empty lots the entire morning hauling rubbish to the dumpster. Our hats go off to these residents.

Others who helped all morning include: Rose Alsup, Pat Carney, Larry Hoffing, Chayo Duarte, Jose German, Juan Villalobos, Joy Brown, Randy Blom, Gabriel Duran, D. Bonilla, Fred Phillipi, Jim Fosbinder, Anna Miller, Chris Georgesco, Walter Santos, John Annala, and others whose names we don't have at the time of this writing.

Children volunteered to go on foot throughout the neighborhood with bags and pickers. We are sorry we don't have their names to post here today, but they have become our blog's poster kids! See their pictures above and in the slide show. The children came back to the dumpster with full garbage bags continuously throughout the morning. Their photo is our website's icon! Thank you for showing pride in your neighborhood. You are wonderful children with a very good Mom. Thanks for encouraging your children to take pride in their neighborhood!

Take a few minutes and drive through the neighborhood. Just about every home and yard is clean with the exception of a few places. Actually, we ran out of time and dumpster room. We filled two full dumpsters. The dumpsters were full by 11:45 a.m., and we actually had to turn away a few last truck loads. We encourage people to arrive earlier next time to make sure we get everything dumped.

About the Arch
The day's event covered a dual purpose. During the clean up, we discussed and planned a "Save the Arch" event. All sorts of suggestions were discussed: make the Arch area into a park, repair the broken logs, paint it, fill the area with rocks, fundraising event, purchase the land, etc. The B-Bar-H Ranch Arch was built in 1929, and the residents want to keep it intact. They are willing to donate time and money to preserve the Arch. Help preserve the Arch by joining the effort. Contact Webmaster(at)Paintbrushtrail.com.

Early Saturday morning, March 21, 2009, everyone is going to meet at the Arch once again to clean up the Arch area, repair the broken log and discuss future plans. Pat Carney, El Serape Road, arranged to have professional assistance to help with the log repair. Chayo Duarte, El Serape Road, is arranging to bring a dump truck of large boulders and rocks to the Arch to create a barricade and protect the Arch from possible vehicle accidents. We almost lost the Arch a few years ago due to a DWI accident.

We're asking neighbors to make a donation to help preserve the Arch. The log repair is going to cost $200. We will all donate what we can to cover this cost. Please arrange your schedule to stop by the Arch on Saturday morning, March 21, 2009 to share ideas and make a donation. The B-BAR-H Ranch Arch is the entrance to our neighborhood and it's something we have all grown to love. Contact Webmaster(at)Paintbrushtrail.com.

View the Slide Show to see the B-BAR-H Neighborhood Clean Up Day
March 14, 2009