City Council Of Big Bear Lake And Mayor Jahn Present Proclamations

Big Bear Lake, CA, May 17, 2012, 8:00am - The City Council of Big Bear Lake and Mayor Jahn presented three proclamations at Monday’s city council meeting.  For his years of service and dedication to our community as commander of the California Highway Patrol, Arrowhead office, Lieutenant Rick Saunders was thanked and acknowledged.  It was noted that Lieutenant Saunders was a great friend of the mountain communities because of his local knowledge and deep commitment.

The Executive Director for Southern California Association of Governments also received a proclamation from the Mayor for his accomplishments to develop the 2012 Regional Transportation Plan.

The highlight for many in the Council chambers was a proclamation given to Julia Seaman, an art instructor at Big Bear High School, for leading her students in a project that completed over 140 ceramic bears to be given to every bike racer in Friday’s Amgen Tour of California “Climb to Big Bear”.

And Ruth Lorentz Associate Planner was recognized for receiving the Best Practices Award” from the Inland Empire Section of the American Planning Association for her work on the recent revised Sign Ordinance.

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City of Big Bear Lake Adopts Social Host Ordinance

Big Bear, CA, April 27, 2012, 8:00am – Social hosting laws have been adopted recently by the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors making it illegal for adults to provide a place for under-aged drinkers to congregate or what is commonly known as “partying”.  The same type of ordinance is about to become law in the City of Big Bear Lake as well.  On Monday evening at their regularly scheduled meeting, Big Bear Lake City Council moved forward to make hosting a party where alcohol is provided or available for non-legal drinkers a violation of the law.  Previously when this issue was brought before the council, members questioned the intent of the rules.  They were concerned that perhaps property owners who rent their property could be snared by default.  Captain Tom Bradford expressed that this new law would be an effective tool in combating teen alcohol abuse.  Bonnie Schaffer of Operation Breakthrough, a drug and alcohol abuse agency in Big Bear, echoed the same thoughts and went on to say that access to alcohol and drugs is a problem for our local youth as it is now a prevalent issue even with our Middle School aged youth.  As a parent, here is what you need to know.  If you or someone else provides a place for anyone under the legal drinking age to have a party where alcohol is available either anywhere in the home or brought into the home, you are in violation of the law and will be subject to fines and possible jail time.  Schaffer, in a later memo, expressed her gratitude by carefully reviewing the new law and tailoring it for Big Bear’s unique situation.  Michael Perry who represents a coalition of private home rental property owners expressed their view that the revision protected an owner who could not know if a property was being used as a teen party hot spot and in fact shifted the responsibility to the person who at the time of the violation was in control of the property.  Bonnie made it clear that the high school graduation season is upon us and that they want Big Bear youth to have a sober grad night.

City of Big Bear Lake Has Mid-Year Budget Review by City Council

Big Bear Lake, CA, March 20, 2012, 4:00pm - The Big Bear Lake City Council conducted their mid-year budget review last week.  With the elimination of Improvement Agency funds budget adjustments were deemed necessary.  However, even with that loss, the City is reporting that they are still operating within their means and have kept a balanced budget even with the elimination of approximately $112,000 for the rest of this Fiscal Year 2011-2012 and a nearly $760,000 loss for Fiscal Year 2012-13.  In order to account for this, they have and will continue to downsize staff by 5.2 Full-Time Equivalent positions.  That personnel savings equates to $476,000 for the next fiscal year alone.  Most of these positions were vacated by retirements or resignations in which the positions were not refilled.  Reducing contractual services next year will also create additional budget savings.  Items such as  Environmental Impact Reports, routinely done by outside firms, will now be processed in-house by the Planning Staff.

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Big Bear Lake City Council

Big Bear Lake, CA, March 12, 2012 3:00 pm – The Big Bear Lake City Council will convene tonight for it’s regularly scheduled meeting.  After a 5:00 pm closed session meeting regarding issues of litigation the Open session will begin at 6:30 pm at the civic center.  Among the items to be discussed with possible approval is the adoption of the Countywide Vision Statement which among other goals seeks a vibrant economy that creates county wide prosperity.  The Council will receive a presentation from Bear Valley Electric regarding their application to the California Public Utilities Commission for their proposed rate increase.  In other business the council will decide how to distribute nearly $41,000.00 to local community based organizations as part of the Community Development Block Grant Program.  The Council is also considering changing the development code which will allow a storage yard, maintenance and office facility to build in a commercial 2 zone thus paving the way for Southwest Gas to proceed with their new facility on Sandalwood.  And finally in order for the Big Bear Lake Department of Water to proceed with a 5,000,000 low interest USDA bond issuance the council must take affirmative action approving the terms and conditions.  The public is welcomed to participate in person or watch the proceeding on Charter Channel 97 or through the live stream on the City of Big Bear Lake web site.

Big Bear Lake City Council Meeting Results

Big Bear, CA, February 28, 2012, 3:00pm – The Big Bear Lake City Council, during their regularly scheduled meeting, voted to delay taking a position regarding the proposed rate increase from Bear Valley Electric Service.  Although this item was initially put on the agenda as a consent item it was pulled and tabled for a later date allowing Mayor Bill Jahn who was absent at the meeting to participate in the discussion as well as giving an opportunity for Bear Valley Electric Service to present their position on the proposed increase.  A date when this item will be returned to City Council will be announced later.  The City Council also received a report on the multi-million dollar rebuilding project for the Big Bear Lake Village L area.  Although the City’s Improvement Agency was dismantled as a move to rescue the states budget crisis this was one of the projects that had prior approval.  This project will be completed without additional assessments to property owners.  The project will completely reconstruct the Big Bear Village in four phases beginning on April 2^nd and completing perhaps as early as late September.  Construction will include all new streets and related lighting, additional trees, street signs, pavers, two outdoor fire pits, curbs, gutters and sidewalks.  Within each phase of the construction only one section and side of the street will be effected allowing for one way traffic and to be open at all times.  Heavy construction will be limited to mornings and evenings and no construction will be done beginning Friday afternoon through Sunday.  David Lawrence, City Engineer working with Lyle Hayes IA Director, has two public meetings scheduled on March 8^th and 15^th to discuss the impacts to the Village businesses.  In addition they intend to use every measure possible to communicate with the businesses and let everyone else know that these businesses will be open during the construction.  According to City Manager Jeff Mathieu once this and other IA projects such as this are completed the day and age of redevelopment for this and other cities in California will come to a final end.

UPDATE: Meeting Cancelled

UPDATE: January 23, 2012, 3:00pm – Meeting Cancelled due to Inclement Weather.

Big Bear, Ca, January 23, 2012, 12:00pm – The Big Bear Lake City Council will meet tonight for their regularly scheduled meeting at 6:30pm in Hofert Hall.  Council will discuss beginning implementation for the Wood Shake/ Shingle Replacement Program, widening and sidewalk grants for Paine Road and Bartlett road in the Village area,  Hasan Ikhrata, the Executive Director of the Southern California Association of Governments will do a presentation on SANBAG’s 2012 Regional Transportation Plan/ Sustainable Communities Strategy.  The meeting is open to the public, who is encouraged to speak during public comment time.

Bill Jahn Remains City Mayor

Big Bear, Ca, December 13, 2011, 12:00pm - The City of Big Bear Lake City Council has reorganized for the 2012 year, as they held elections for council positions at their meeting last night.  Bill Jahn will remain as the Mayor of the City of Big Bear Lake with Jay Obernolte stepping in as the new Mayor Pro Tem.  This will be Jahn’s fourth year serving as Mayor, with two years of service in 2006 and 2007, and his time as Mayor this year in 2011.  David Carretto was elected as the Fire Protection District Board Chairman, with Jay Obernolte as the Vice Chairman.  For the Improvement Agency, Liz Harris was elected as the Chairwoman, and Rick Herrick as the Vice Chairman.  The Council seats held by Mayor Bill Jahn, and Liz Harris will be up for election in 2012, and Jahn has stated that he is running for State Assembly in the new 33^rd District, in which Big Bear is a part of.  Elections will take place in the fall of next year.

Major Special Events Committee Meeting Reviews Options

Big Bear, Ca, December 6, 2011, 1:00pm - The City of Big Bear Lake will hold a Major Special Events Policy Ad-Hoc Committee meeting on Wednesday, December 7^th at 4:00pm in the Civic Center Training Room.  In November the committee met to discuss what kind of events the City would like to see take place, and to create policy’s in regards to major events. The December 7^th meeting will review a questionnaire that was distributed to committee members, which is comprised of Council members Liz Harris and Dave Caretto, Planning Commissioners Craig Smith and Joe Pacelli, and various business owners throughout the city.  The questionnaire breaks major special events into six different categories: Signature events such as the Fourth of July, Civic Events like Halloween in the Village, Cultural events like Art on the Lake, Charitable events, Athletic events such as Snowshoe the Bear, and Commercial events. Committee members were then asked to state what kind of events they would like to see during different times of the year, and at different venues.  The results will be reviewed at the meeting, in which the public is encouraged to attend, and provide input during comment time.

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City To Discuss Major Events in Big Bear

Big Bear, Ca, November 22, 2011, 3:00pm - The City of Big Bear Lake will hold a Major Special Events Ad-Hoc Committee Meeting this coming Monday, November 28^th.  The purpose of the meeting is for council to set committee goals, to overview existing policies and background for events, will discuss proposed major event Winterfest, and will discuss what kind of large events the city would like to see come to Big Bear in the future.  The meeting will take place at 4:30pm on the 28^th, in the Civic Center Training Room located at City Hall, and is open to the public.

Meeting to Discuss Village L Improvements Overviews Plans

Big Bear, Ca, November 11, 2011, 3:00pm - The City of Big Bear Lake Improvement Agency and the Planning Commission will hold a joint special workshop on Monday, November 14^th at 10:00am in Hofert Hall.  The purpose of the meeting is for members of both the Improvement Agency and Planning Commission to receive an update on progress on the design for the Village L streetscape and Knickerbocker channel trail capital improvement projects.  The objective for the streetscape projects is to replace current walkways to enhance and improve pedestrian walk-ability, and the overall aesthetic appearance of the Village L.  For the Knickerbocker channel trail, the objective is to provide a new trail for pedestrians and bicyclists with a connection to the lake, and to link to a future parking lot to be constructed somewhere on Knickerbocker road.  The Improvement Agency and Planning Commission will be provided with updates from the projects contractors, RRM Design Group and the Matich Corporation.  If the timelines for design and approval go as planned, it is thought that construction on these projects could begin as early as next spring.  The public is invited and encouraged to attend the meeting.

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