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.

New (Upgraded) Pool Coming Soon To Big Bear!

Big Bear, Ca, January 17, 2012, 4:00pm - Swim enthusiasts will be happy to know that construction on the pool at the sports ranch off of Highway 38 will begin in early March.  According to Reese Troublefield, General Manager for the Big Bear Valley Recreation and Park District, enhancements to the current pool will begin in March, weather permitting, and could be completed as early as late May.  Enhancements to the pool will include two lanes for lap swimming, an efficient heating system, an ADA walk in area, and a slide.  Supervisor Neil Derry told KBHR that he is excited about the enhanced pool opening up this summer, and that the County of San Bernardino donated $180,000 to the project.   The Soroptimists of Big Bear Valley raised and donated $380,000 to the pool enhancements in June of 2011.  Funds were raised over a three-year period, with a majority of the donation coming from Man About Town Campaign efforts.  The pool, once reopened will feature swim lessons, and lap swimming designated times.

CSD Meeting May Announce New General Manager

Big Bear, Ca, January 17, 2012, 12:00pm - The Big Bear Community Services District will hold their meeting tonight due to yesterdays Martin Luther King Day holiday.  The meeting will include employee service recognition awards, information on which board members have been assigned to committees, and a board member will be elected to the Association of California Water Agencies.  The board will go into closed session where they will speak with legal counsel over existing litigation, and will also discuss the appointment of a new general manager.  It has not been confirmed if the appointment of a new GM for the CSD will occur at tonight’s meeting, which will take place at 5:30pm in the CSD offices located on Big Bear Blvd, just east of Greenway.

Veterans Sought for No-Cost Job Training

San Bernardino, CA, January 16, 2012, 8:00am – The San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board is seeking 50 veterans discharged from the military during the last four years to participate in free job training programs for local green industries. The deadline for veterans to complete their no-cost training and obtain a job certification is March 31, 2012. The program is open to a total of 100 veterans, with 50 of those openings reserved for veterans who separated from the military in the past 48 months. Openings for the recently discharged veterans are still available. The training programs will teach the skills needed for green jobs available with local employers. Green industries include solar panel maintenance and installation, sustainable and recycled products manufacturing, transportation and logistics using alternative fuels and hundreds of other industries. Interested veterans can apply at the San Bernardino County One-Stop Employment Resource Center in Hesperia, Rancho Cucamonga or San Bernardino.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Fire Level Has Been Increased To Very High: Fire Restrictions Elevated

Big Bear, Ca, January 13, 2012, 4:00pm - The US Forest Service has elevated the fire danger level to very high due to the dry, warm weather the San Bernardino County and other areas have been experiencing.  Fire Danger increases with the unseasonable warmer, drier weather along with persistent Santa Ana wind conditions.  Fire officials are closely monitoring the weather and fuel conditions, adjusting staffing levels, and increasing or lowering fire use restrictions as deemed necessary. The following fire restrictions and guidelines are now in effect on the San Bernardino National Forest areas:  Wood and charcoal fires are permitted only in developed campgrounds and picnic grounds and within agency provided fire rings or camp stoves.  Campfire permits are required for propane and gas stoves and lanterns used outside of developed recreation sites.  Recreational shooting is limited to Public Shooting Ranges operated under special use permit only, except those engaged in legal hunting. An approved spark arrester is required for any internal combustion engine operated on designated forest routes. These include chainsaws, generators, motorcycles, and off-highway vehicles.  Smoking is limited to an enclosed vehicle or building, or within a Developed Recreation Site. And as always, fireworks are always prohibited on the San Bernardino National Forest. The US Forest Service will be aggressively citing those who do not comply with the posted restrictions.  Forest visitors are encouraged to “Know Before You Go” and call ahead to the Big Bear Ranger Station to check on location conditions and restrictions at (909) 382-2790

DWP Offers New Features, Technology And Expanded Community Resources Through A Redesigned Website

Big Bear Lake, CA, January 13, 2011, 3:00pm - The City of Big Bear Lake Department of Water recently launched its new website. The new site reflects the personality of the Big Bear Valley while incorporating a host of new and improved features and functionality. The new site is easy to navigate and breaks down information for customers and visitors into My Account, My Community, My Water Supply and My Water Department. You can request free indoor audits, report a leak or set up auto-pay on your account. Information goes well beyond water management and includes emergency preparedness, information on upcoming projects and a community calendar. In addition to emergency information, a new “E-Notify” option on the homepage allows visitors to sign up to receive alerts from specific departments about special events, bidding on contracts, public meetings, job opportunities and a variety of other activities. You can choose to be notified via email or mobile phone text message. General Manager Reggie Lamson says the site is intended to be “more than a place to pay your bills”, it’s also a place “where people can find community events on the calendar, request a speaker for club meetings, or learn about what they should do if they think their pipes are frozen.” Along with functionality comes fun stuff like a photo gallery and postcard module that allows people to send virtual postcards featuring scenes from around the valley. Community members are invited to submit their best photos for consideration. Local organizations are encouraged to submit events for the community calendar and information for the Resource Directory. Visit the new website at www.bbldwp.com.

Jerry Lewis Announces Retirement From Congress

Big Bear, Ca, January 12, 2012, 1:00pm - Representative Jerry Lewis announced this week that he will retire at the end of this term after 46 years in elected office and 33 years representing San Bernardino and Riverside County in Congress. Lewis is the longest-serving Republican member of Congress from California, and the first member from the state to be Chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.  Lewis issued the following statement on his retirement plans: “I will not seek re-election to the Congress in 2012. After months of consultation with loved ones and family, my wife Arlene and I have decided to retire from public life. We are deeply grateful to so many who have provided their support over the years. I have worked hard to justify that support. Thank you all and may God continue to bless America.”   Lewis has done a great amount of work in the last 46 years, and locally helped contribute to the elimination of more than a million dead trees to reduce fire danger in and around the San Bernardino National Forest. He worked with Sen. Dianne Feinstein to secure $500 million more to eliminate fire dangers throughout Southern California. As a result of the work with San Bernardino County and forest service officials, fire danger has been dramatically reduced in the past few years.  With elections just around the corner for 2012, Assemblyman Paul Cook who earlier last year announced his intention to run for San Bernardino County Supervisor, announced last week his intention to instead run for the Congressional seat that will be left open after Lewis retires.

San Bernardino County Supervisors Cut Their Own Benefits

Big Bear, Ca, January 11, 2012, 9:20am - The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors yesterday voted unanimously to reduce their benefits by nearly 40 percent, making board member compensation comparable to Riverside, Orange, and San Diego counties and will result in saving taxpayers more than $240,000 a year. “At a time when we are asking all of our staff and all of our departments and all of our programs to do more with less, at a time when our residents and taxpayers are running their households and their businesses and their lives with less, it is incumbent on us as elected leaders of this county to show that we can do more with less, too,” said Second District Supervisor Janice Rutherford, who proposed the cuts.  Supervisors eliminated several types of benefits currently provided to members of the board, including their retirement pickups, contributions toward 401(k) and 457(b) savings plans, and medical expense reimbursements.  The 2010-11 Grand Jury reviewed board salaries and benefits last year and concluded San Bernardino County compensation was not comparable to what was provided in other counties. The board responded by directing the creation of the benefit reduction ordinance which was approved yesterday.

Major Special Events Committee Looks to Solve Dilemmas and Decide Policy

Big Bear, Ca, January 11, 2012, 8:00am -The Major Special Events Ad-Hoc Committee will meet again tonight at 4:00pm in the Civic Center Training Room.  The committee will continue discussing major special event policy by going over the purpose of the committee, reviewing current policy framework, and will discuss dilemmas and how to address them.  Currently the Old Miners Association and the Big Bear Lake Chamber of Commerce have requested to hold events on the same date and at the same location.  The Old Miners want to hold their Chili Cook Off that has been around for years, and the Big Bear Chamber of Commerce, a business organization, wants to hold a BBQ fest both on the same date in July, and in the Bartlett Parking Lot.  According to City of Big Bear Lake Director of Intergovernmental/Community Relations Cheri Haggerty, dilemmas like this have happened before, and the committee will look to resolve the problem, and to develop a standard operating procedure for dealing with similar dilemmas in the future.  The committee will also discuss utilizing alternative venues for city events such as the Convention Center, Meadow Park, Rathbun Lot, Veterans and Rotary park.   The use of Bartlett Parking lot will also be on the discussion, and whether or not its use should be limited to once a month, and if it should be allowed for use at all during busy months such as July.  The meeting is open to the public, and community members are encouraged to speak during public comment time.

City Council Decides Route To Go With Improvement Agency

Big Bear, Ca, January 10, 2012, 12:00pm - The Big Bear Lake City Council met last night for their regularly scheduled meeting, and the main topic of discussion was the Improvement Agency, and its future.  Last year the state of California passed Assembly Bill 26, which eliminated all improvement agencies for all cities across the state.  Improvement Agency funds, which come from property taxes in designated areas collected for cities, would be then funneled back to the state.  Assembly Bill 27 was put in place so improvement agencies could continue, but would be changed so that they would have very specific projects to work on, however the state supreme court found AB 26 to be legal, and AB 27 to be constitutionally illegal, essentially eliminating all improvement agencies.  To continue with contracted projects that started before the elimination of improvement agencies, the Successor Improvement Agency was created and will be in place until all contracts will be completed, and all bonds are paid.  The County of San Bernardino Tax Assessor will take over the role of collecting and distributing the funds, which were once collected by the improvement agency.  The county will then distribute the funds to other taxing agencies, such as: the City of Big Bear Lake, the Fire Protection District, Bear Valley Unified School District, among others.  The City Council then approved to move forward with having the improvement agency repay a loan made to the IA for over $4.6 million by the city, which was loaned when the IA was in its infancy. Council will further discuss the best way to use this repaid loan.  It was agreed that this loan repayment should not be used in the general fund to cover on going day-to-day expenses, and could be used for either capitol improvement projects or continuing with business assistance improvements.

« Previous Page — Next Page »