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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-10-16; Parks & Recreation Commission; 1006-5; Katrina Relief Waveland MississippiPARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION - AGENDA BILL AB# 11006-5 MTG. DATE: J10/16/06 STAFF: SPICKARD CITY OF CARLSBAD KATRINA RELIEF FOR WAVELAND, MISSISSIPPI |NFQ ACTION RECOMMENDED ACTION: Receive a report on the efforts that the City of Carlsbad and its employees made to support Waveland, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina struck. ITEM EXPLANATION: In August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit land and devastated many Southern Gulf States. As the news spread of this massive disaster, some City of Carlsbad employees felt a need to help our neighbors. A small committee was formed which represented several city departments. The committee decided that they would like to assist another city that had a similar make up as Carlsbad. Efforts to make contact in the affected area were difficult. Ultimately, Waveland, Mississippi was selected to be the City that would be the recipient of Carlsbad's relief efforts. Initially it was hoped that City of Carlsbad employees could help rebuild a park at the entrance to the City of Waveland. After some time it became quite evident that this was not going to be possible as communication with the area continued to be a challenge and Waveland had much higher needs than a park at the time. As the holidays approached, our sadness for the citizens of Waveland grew. A "Dear Santa" campaign was developed. Every family (50+) that wrote a Dear Santa letter received gifts and gift cards. City staff donated over $5,000 towards the relief effort. City Council gave authority for surplus items such as a police car, and office equipment to also be donated. A playground slide was donated by one of the City's playground equipment vendors. Many other items to benefit the Police Department were also donated. A local truck rental firm provided a truck so that all of the items could be transported to Waveland. On April 18, 2006 two Police Officers headed to Waveland with all of the donations. Upon arriving in Waveland, the Officers went to a local Home Depot and purchased trees, flowers, etc. to be planted in an area of a park now known as the "Carlsbad Corner." After staff returned from Waveland, the Committee still had approximately $1,400 left from employee donations. Several weeks ago the Committee agreed to make arrangements so that every Waveland employee would receive a turkey for Thanksgiving. We are continuing to accept donations in hopes that enough money will be raised so that some additional traditional Thanksgiving "fix'ins" can also be provided. Donations will be accepted at several Carlsbad events, such as the Fall Festival at Leo Carrillo Ranch. EXHIBITS: 1. Copy - North County Times Article, September 11, 2006- Carlsbad park project "thriving" in Mississippi n 101 Cruise event "This is great," Daley said. "We didn;t expect this much participation. And everyone seemed to be having a good new time." laid- This event is called a "rolling igh- car show" because owners drive vin- their cars and trucks by the on- hot lookers — instead of parking nile their cars for event judges and ly. spectators to stroll past, fea- Participants who registered hot their vehicles in the show were g to entered in a raffle to win either tley, a $500 first prize or one of five 101 $100 prizes. the In addition, awards given in various categories, such as the be- "Cruiser that Gidget Would [igh- Choose," the "Best 1940-1950 Ve- side hide" and the "Best Cruiser on the 101." Two of the best sites to watch the cruise were at The Strand near the Oceanside Pier, and the Del Mar Racetrack. Awards were given at the racetrack. Two of the judges, Lamar Parks of Vista and Randy Reams of Temecula, said they were im- pressed by the cars they saw at the event. The pair are car aficionados who are launching a free publi- cation, Horsepower Trendz Mag- azine, in November. Parks said the main criteria he used in judging the vehicles in Sunday's cruise were the lines of the body, the paint and atten- tion to detail. "I search for a unique look > CRUISE, B-7 irner VP any chores om players for success tice and game fields, high school athletic directors, football coordinator Mike Sommers and cheerleading coordinator Sarah Rivera, board members, coaches and par- ent volunteers, do- ing what he can to de- flect attention from himself. But those who work with the league's first vice presi- dent are equally as quick to sing his praises. "Jasen is invaluable to > TACKLES, B-6 DON BOOMER / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Jasen Boyens is vice president of San Marcos Pop Warner, a position that puts him 'in charge of nothing.' he said. uiego where stui local histi years EXHIBIT 1 Activiti as an Eagl terHaproL, ing students. The boxes hold not only ancient arti- facts, but also early examples of tribal pot- tery, along with gold-rush-era treasure. When young explorers uncover some- thing significant, they are given the chance to speak with a real archaeologist such as Margaret Hangan, in charge of Cleveland National Forest's Heritage Resources, and Jim Whitaker, the lead collection specialist > DIG, B-7 Carlsbad park project 'thriving' in Mississippi BARBARA HENRY STAFF WRITER CARLSBAD — The hurricane-damaged city park in Waveland, Miss., that Carlsbad city employees refurbished six months ago has grown into a beautiful spot. ..••<•, "Every time I pass by there I think of you guys," Waveland's donations coordina- tor Kathy Finn said in a telephone inter- view, referring to the Carlsbad workers who tackled the project in December. Rain has fallen nearly every day since July in the Gulf Coast community, and "the plants are thriving," s}ie said. The live oak trees and the magnolias — plants that grow wild in the region and are known for their beauty — are doing particularly well, she added. The shouts and laughter of children have also been present in the park. An influx of some 300 youths celebrated the start of softball season earlier this summer, she said. A small community some 50 miles out- side New Orleans, Waveland gained nation- > PARK, B-6 fi ON lent tor nocks Florida Magnitude-6.0 earthquake strikes Gulf of Mexico. See The Back Page. Do you have a news story you think might warrant coverage in the North County Times? Visit www.nctimes.com, look for the button shown at left and send us an e-mail. Reach us:• E-mail: newstip@nctimes.com • (760)740-5425 I I PAPER MISSING? J Call (760) 740-5456 Community News.. B-2 Internet Poll &3 Local Briefs...... B-3 The Back Page ... &8 NORTH (JOUNTY 1IMES rue- out tizer jach rtic- d. • for >n in he's stars :sity liza- tig a cing fql- cess tball :cess 3 the n in stto :apa- said ards less- Lheir id of ;ame luch than >and ," he Mar- 798- PARK Continued from B-l al media attention last fall be- cause many of its police de- partment employees survived Hurricane Katrina by clinging to a bush outside their build- ing. Hearing of the town's dev- astation, Carlsbad employees decided to informally adopt Waveland last fall. They signed up for a pay- roll deduction program, par- ticipated in a "Dear Santa" ef- fort and convinced the City Council to donate a bunch of surplus office equipment. This newspaper is printed on recycled paper. ; Temecula Career Fair r 13th • llam-3pm Casino •kway Hosted By NORTH COUNTY TIMES I THECALIFORNIAN wwwjictiniss.coin RODENT SPECIALISTS Since 1921 _«««!»Locally Ownedand Operatedlit our website: wwwjiy4rext4.com 3FING YOUR HOME IS THE SOLUTION FOR RAT PROBLEMS :lusion Program Offers: pping • Deodorizing of Urine Damaged Insulation In December, the city sent a moving van packed with of- fice furniture, computers, a drafting table and other items to Waveland. Behind the truck, they towed a donated police car. Cash donations have to- taled $5,739, said Julie Clark, Carlsbadls human resource di- rector. Most of that money has been distributed, but $1,459 remains in the fund and city officials will be discussing what to do with it in the com- ing weeks, she said. Many challenges remain for Waveland. Nearly all of the city's infrastructure — its pipes, its roadways,and its government buildings — need to be replaced, Finn said. And many residents are still living in temporary trail- ers provided by the federal government. In an e-mail she sent to Carlsbad officials in mid-July, Finn wrote that they are all "getting a little weary, not weary enough to give up, just weary enough to not be as ef- ficient as we'd like." :' The situation "in some ways seems harder than those . first few weeks," she added. She mentioned that a Har- vard psychologist recently told them that they were now in the "disillusionment stage" of recovery from the disaster. '"I couldn't agree more," she wrote, adding that chal- lenges the community faces range from delays in getting housing reconstruction loans to the challenges of removing huge fallen trees. "A small town usually has small town problems. We are now faced with 'world-class problems,' "she wrote. Earlier this month, she said the town's biggest need is for building materials. Do- nations of gift cards to The Home Depot or Lowe's Home Improvement are particularly welcome, she added. KUBQTA CURRENT FORECAST ORANGE HOT DEALS