This week’s meeting of the City Council of Big Bear Lake opened with two presentation items, including a proclamation recognizing Big Bear Discovery Center Director Denis Thomas (who retires in January after an eight-year run) and the oath of office to the Big Bear Lake Fire Department’s new paid call firefighters Jared Cheek, Jenny Plumhoff, Brian Geary, Brandon Draucker and Carl Birkholm. The December 14 meeting adjourned, under just-elected Mayor Liz Harris, in memory of Ernie Stoll (a former World War II fighter pilot and, more recently, longtime volunteer with Citizens on Patrol) and Curly Musgrave of Crestline (an entertainer at the Cowboy Gathering, who passed away on Sunday). In the spaces in between, the City Council approved the final tract map for an eight-lot subdivision on the northwest corner of Fox Farm and Sandalwood; approved the name change on portions of Lakeview Drive and Paine Road to Big Bear Boulevard (at a cost of $2600 in new signage); approved the first reading of an ordinance that would deny the establishment of medical marijuana dispensaries in Big Bear Lake; and approved the preliminary report prepared for the Village Specific Plan update process, directing staff to contract with RRM Design Group for completion of the update. Big Bear Lake City Council also adopted a resolution in support of the Local Taxpayer, Public Safety and Transportation Protection Act of 2010, a future ballot initiative that, if passed, would amend the state constitution and, essentially, close the loopholes that have allowed the legislature to borrow from cities, counties, and special districts.
