By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY – Staff Writer

The first speaker at the June 1 meeting of the Lake Arrowhead Municipal Advisory council – attended by council members Jim Grant, Jenny Hueter and Peter Venturini – was Sandy Benson, general manager of the Mountain Transit District, who announced that the free weekend trolley, starting June 15, will be connecting the communities this summer.

The trolley will travel a loop from SkyPark to Highway 173 to Lake Arrowhead Village to Cedar Glen and back to the Village, through Blue Jay Village on Highway 189 to Twin Peaks and back to Skyforest by Highway 18.

It is planned that on Saturdays there will be a narrated tour loop pointing out points of interest at noon, beginning in mid-June; there are some minor details still being finalized with the Rim of the World Historical Society. It is hoped that this tour of the mountain will encourage the use of the bus by tourists.

This trolley and the weekday bus service on Routes 2 and 4 will be free on the mountaintop for the next two years, with the hope that bus ridership will increase as it did in Big Bear when it increased by 225 percent when they offered free bus service. The busses are heated and have air conditioning, have well trained drivers, and offer dependable service.

COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS

Erik Holmes from the county’s Blue Jay road maintenance yard spoke on the pothole repairs that are currently in full force. The SeeClickFix app for cell phones is working well as each morning they see the reported locations and add them to their lists of repairs to do. Through this app, the reporter takes a picture of the needed repair and sends it to the road department.

The repairs are prioritized and repaired as soon as possible. High-volume county roads get the top priority in immediacy for repairs; the materials are in stock for swift repairs.

County roads has completed the road edge projects on Kuffel Canyon and the ones in Arrowhead Villas and West Cove Circle in Running Springs. They are starting others, as pothole repairs continue. They are using a temporary asphalt repair material, but the temperature must be at least 60 degrees to use it, and the spot must be dry. For a full asphalt repair, the temperature must be 70 degrees, so the recent fog and colder temperatures are slowing them down. They are replacing damaged signs as they are discovered. Holmes asked all to use SeeClickFix to report damaged ones. He also reported they are hiring for their department and to apply on the county website.

It was reported by others in the room that Caltrans had run out of repair materials for pothole repair and was awaiting a shipment, which is why the numbered roads and highways are delayed in pothole repairs.

A community member mentioned his fence had been destroyed during the snow removal efforts; when he reported it, he was told that, since an emergency had been declared, the workers had immunity from the damage to fences, electrical boxes, and other structures they may have caused.

Lewis Murray, Supervisor Dawn Rowe’s representative at the meeting, said he learned about the immunity by listening in on a meeting which he had attended but was not sure how that immunity, if it applied, worked and to whom it applied.

MAC OPENING

It was announced that MAC member Ken Stowe has sold his home and is moving off the mountain, which was the reason he was not in attendance. Lewis Murray described how to apply for the opening by going to the county supervisor’s website and click on Clerk of the Board to find the Lake Arrowhead Municipal Advisory Council tab and apply for the opening. The opening will be posted for 30 to 60 days and then either interviews will take place or the supervisor will just choose from the applications submitted.

The county agencies are quickly switching from winter response to summer mode since Memorial Day weekend has already passed.

Sheriff’s Capt. Lupear reported that the department’s patrol boat is already in the water at Lake Arrowhead and was responding to calls over the holiday weekend and preparing for the Independence Day holiday weekend, with visitors and fireworks. They are seeking to get better winter response tools including snow cat equipment and tracks to install on the wheels of their OHV equipment. They need it because Green Valley Lake always has lots of snow and needs emergency responses.

The CHP, U.S. Forest Service, County Fire and Cal Fire also reported on their changeover from wintertime to summertime response preparations and those details. They are all at full staffing levels and all are fully trained at the end of their training periods. The weeds, although growing, are coming from very wet soils, so the fire danger is currently lower. The pile burning of the Grass Valley fire clearance project is being done as the weather cooperated, after which a broadcast burning of the area will take place. They anticipate a very controllable fore season but warn residents to report any fires and dangerous situations.

Jenny Hueter of the Rim Rec and Park District said FEMA had moved out of the Twin Peaks Community Center and that SBA was at the Rec and Park office in Rimforest for a while longer to finish up on claims. The park district programs are starting up and the fields are being readied for the sports season. There will be a Cornnament tournament in July and the Run Through the Pines will be in August, both taking place in Crestline. Check out their updated website at www.Rim-Rec.org for all the programs offered or call the office in Rimforest at (909) 337-7275 with questions, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

RIM SCHOOLS

Rim High school has identified 80 leaks in their roof and the 300 wing was flooded with several inches of water from so much water entering the building. The other schools also have leaking roofs because of their age and the significant snowstorm. The district is getting estimates for repairs.

ARROWHEAD LAKE ASSOCIATION

More than 100 docks were damaged by the winter storms. The 100 boats that were sunk have all been rescued and are undergoing repairs. The ALA fishing tournament attracted 75 fishermen and women and kids, who caught trout and bass with awards presented in many categories. Now that school is out, the beaches will be open seven days a week. Fireworks over the lake will be on Sunday, July 2 at 9 p.m.

SUPERVISOR ROWE’S REPORT

Lewis Murray reported that the board of supervisors is reviewing the short-term rental situation and will be asking for input, so use the short-term renter 24-hour hotline, whenever problems occur, at (800) 205-9417. They added extra enforcement officers over the Memorial Day holiday weekend and will have more enforcement this summer. They have increased from two to three officers per night to eight last weekend and dealt with those reports called in and were proactive when they heard or saw problems at previously reported problem locations and issued citations.

Several residents in attendance explained the problems they are suffering with nearby short-term rentals. Murray asked people with complaints to please contact him personally and he would look into the issues. A discussion on banning short-term rentals in some cities in the state ensued; since the mountains are not a city, they do not have that power to ban them from the area. They are looking at what Palm Springs is doing as an example of limiting the percentage in an area, density within a neighborhood and considering noise monitoring devices being required for places with numerous sound complaints.

Former MAC Chairman Scott Rindenow and Roberta Rindenow listen to commentary during the June 1 Lake Arrowhead MAC meeting.

HWY 173

A report was given by Scott Rindenow on the committee and their discussions with Caltrans about opening the back Highway 173 for emergency and regular use. This will require state and federal transportation funding to pay for the project. They have an upcoming meeting with Caltrans and have an excellent video of the entire length of the road but have no idea at this time of any additional damage done to the roadway by the snows.

It was requested that Burrtec attend the next meeting to explain the changes in the trash collection requirements, since the information sent to all residents was not that clear.

The next Lake Arrowhead MAC meeting will be held at the community room of the county office building in Twin Peaks on Thursday, July 6. To be added to the notification list of these meetings, contact Lewis Murray through Supervisor Rowe’s office.