preserving, protecting, and defending the rural character
and natural resources of Carmel Valley since 1949
Carmel Valley Association
Weekly Bulletin
|
|
The League of Women Voters of Monterey County
will present a free talk titled:
Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District: “Creating Healthy Communities and Natural Landscapes through Coalitions”
Live-streamed General Meeting at noon on Wednesday, March 10, 2021. Dr. Rafael Payan, Executive Director of the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District (MPRPD) will discuss the formation and purpose of the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District and its properties. Since 1972, MPRPD has been instrumental in creating 24 parks and open spaces and it now operates 12 of them.
Dr. Rafael Payan joined the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District in 2013. He has 40 years of experience in the parks and resource conservation sectors. Dr. Payan will share his ideas about MPRPD’s potential opportunities in scientific research, recreation and environmental education, community health and safety. The pursuit of ‘smarter government’ can be achieved through coalition building, making this a guiding principle for MPRPD.
A question and answer period will follow.
This talk will be recorded and posted on the LWVMC website (under Luncheon Videos): https://my.lwv.org/california/monterey-county
|
|
Firewise in Carmel Valley
In California, millions of homes sit precariously within wildfire risk areas. Last year alone, 9,917 incidents burned nearly 4.3 million acres and 10,488 structures — mostly in the state’s remote, rural areas. No longer a seasonal event, the threat of wildfire is now yearlong in California.
To help mitigate this increasingly urgent threat, the nonprofit Fire Safe Council For Monterey County (FSCMC) firesafemontery.org serves local communities and individual property owners by creating awareness, presenting information, facilitating access to available resources and providing assistance with coordinating efforts to better prepare for wildfire.
FSCMC has joined forces with the National Fire Protection Association’s Firewise USA® recognition program to help neighbors to reduce wildfire risks at the local level. The Fire Safe Council congratulates two neighborhoods in Carmel Valley for becoming the first Firewise USA®-recognized communities in Monterey County, Robles del Rio and Rancho Tierra Grande.
Get a framework for action
A neighborhood will organize a board or committee to oversee the process, obtain a wildfire risk assessment with an action plan, and host an outreach event to inform neighbors on how to make their homes and properties safer during wildfire season. The criteria help get a community started toward annual, systematic action to reduce their risks from brush, grass and forest fires.
Learn about wildfire
As people go through the process, they learn about wildfire risks in the community and the simple things they can do to reduce them. They connect with experts – local fire fighters, state forestry professionals, and national researchers – to continue to learn about fire and find resources to accomplish fire-safe actions.
Get peace of mind
Knowing that they are using the best information available and actually taking steps to reduce the risk of damage from fire helps people start to feel safer in their environment and in their homes. Having a plan for what to do in the event of a fire helps people become calmer and more prepared to act quickly.
Community-building
As neighbors get together to do work, often meeting one another for the first time, they build a stronger bond with each other. This strengthening of community ties can benefit residents in many ways and is especially helpful during an emergency or an evacuation.
Access to funding and assistance
Preference is sometimes given to Firewise USA® sites over other candidates when allocations of grant money are made for wildfire safety or fuel mitigation. The reason is that there are invariably more requests than available funds when grants are available through state or federal agencies. If requests are equally worthy, some officials tend to have more confidence in communities that have demonstrated the foresight of becoming a recognized Firewise USA® site.
Richard Bates
FSCMC, Firewise USA Coordinator
Golfndoc1@yahoo.com
831-214-5907
|
|
Two Monterey County Advisory Groups Recommend Adoption of CVA Recommendations Concerning Affordable Housing at
Rancho Cañada Village
Meeting on consecutive evenings of February 16 and 17, the Carmel Valley Land Use Advisory Committee and the Monterey County Housing Advisory Committee both endorsed CVA's position that affordable housing in the Rancho Cañada Village meet the Carmel Valley Master Plan requirement of 35% affordable units, rather then the 20% the developer requested.
The project will go to the Planning Commission. You can read the developer's proposal and public comments at on the county's website:
|
|
From Carmel Valley Save Open Space:
Carmel Valley Save Open Space (CVSOS) is seeking a board member with fundraising experience. CVSOS has heard some willingness from the new owner to negotiate a purchase of one of three parcels. We have assembled the financial and volunteer support of hundreds of local residents, including pledges should such a purchase opportunity arise, and support for operational funding.
CVSOS also established itself as a non-profit 501(c)(3). We are positioned for a dedicated fundraiser to make the most of the good will we have accrued with our ongoing community building. If you are interested, please contact Cynthia Hall at cynthiabhall@comcast.net or by phone at 831 659-4463.
|
|
Saturday, March 20 – Sunday, March 21, 2021 from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m.
California Wildlife Day is celebrated every year on the spring equinox, in collaboration with other environmental organizations throughout the state of California.
You will have an opportunity to connect with wildlife experts, see live streams and recordings about wildlife, student exhibitions of art, poetry, and science projects during this online event.
Allow nature and wildlife to be your inspiration.
Illustration by Emily Underwood
Cosponsored by Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District and Carmel River Watershed Conservancy.
|
|
Fire Safety and Carmel Valley: A Webinar Series
From Katie Swensen, Thriving Earth Exchange Fellow (note date change for Defensible Space):
Mark your calendars! The Carmel Valley and Thriving Earth Exchange wildfire webinar series is tentatively scheduled for five one-hour webinars on the following dates and topics:
⮚ Roofing risks and home hardening (Thursday, April 1 @ 5:30pm)
⮚ Defensible space (Wednesday, April 14th @ 5:30pm)
⮚ Public safety and power (Thursday, April 29 @ 5:30pm)
⮚ Vegetation and the fire landscape (Thursday, May 6 @ 5:30pm)
⮚ Emergency and evacuation planning (Thursday, May 13 @ 5:30pm)
Each one-hour session will include short talks by wildfire experts (i.e., from the local fire districts, CalFire, universities, community program officers) followed by a Q&A session. We hope you will join us live for these science-backed and community-focused presentations, though each webinar will be recorded and available online for later viewing. More information on speakers, finalized schedule of topics, and how to access these webinars will be available soon!
This webinar series is the first of (we hope) several outcomes of a community-based wildfire mitigation project led by Carmel Valley resident Meredith Nole and Jamie Tuitele-Lewis of the Monterey County Resource Conservation District and in collaboration with CVA (Scott Hanham), CalFire (Jonathan Pangburn), and Thriving Earth Exchange (Katie Swensen). Stay tuned for more project updates! The Thriving Earth Exchange is a program that aims to facilitate community science—connecting scientists with communities to jointly develop and implement a science-backed project that addresses community priorities (such as wildfire!).
|
|
Here's a web site to check to see
if your area is scheduled for a power outage:
|
|
From the Big Sur Land Trust:
Stay healthy! Research continues to show that parks and open spaces provide health benefits beyond just physical exercise. Fresh air and organic compounds produced by trees may be a natural pharmacy that can help support our immune systems. Along with other important recommended precautions, none of us should forget our Vitamin N — Vitamin Nature!
If solo time in nature sounds right for you, visit our website and sign up for a self-guided hike on one of our spectacular conserved properties. In the meantime, to be cautious, we are suspending our guided hike program for the foreseeable future. We will let you know as soon as they are available again.
Be Well,
The Team at Big Sur Land Trust
|
|
Issues of Concern to Residents of Carmel Valley |
|
Make sure you are signed up to receive emergency alerts!
|
|
Pris Walton, President
Carmel Valley Association
|
|
Carmel Valley Association is one of the oldest, largest, and most successful community organizations in Monterey County. We are entirely volunteer, with no paid employees. Our mission is to defend the beauty, resources and rural character of our beautiful valley. We do that by working with residents, businesses, and government.
CVA was instrumental in the adoption of the Carmel Valley Master Plan and recently settled a lawsuit with Monterey County regarding traffic measurement and capping future development on very favorable terms for our valley. Our volunteer experts represent Carmel Valley's interest, testifying before governmental bodies concerning development, water, traffic, road signs, and other quality of life issues.
We keep valley residents informed about important issues and events with our weekly email Bulletin, which goes to over 1200 residents, and our quarterly Newsletter, which is mailed to over 7,000 valley addresses.
or reply to this email
|
|
Header photo by
Carmel Valley Photographer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
