Salinas to celebrate "National Night Out" on Tuesday

The City of Salinas and Community Alliance for Safety and Peace will host National Night Out Salinas from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Constitution Soccer Fields.

National Night Out is a free, family-friendly event. The goal is to help build stronger relationships between residents and the police in order to create safer communities.

National Night Out Salinas will feature entertainment, speakers, K-9 demonstrations, emergency vehicle tours, and an inflatable obstacle course.

The Salinas Police and Fire Departments, the CHP, and the Monterey County Sheriff's Department will participate, along with more than 50 community based organizations. Attendees will have the chance to learn about public safety programs and resources in the community such as community policing, drug prevention, community leadership development, neighborhood watch, public safety vehicles, and other anti-crime efforts.

Details
What: National Night Out
When: Tuesday, August 2, 2016 from 4 - 7:00 p.m.
Where: 1440 Constitution Blvd. Salinas
Who: Open to all
Cost: Free

Marina Coast Water District completes five-year water management plan

Stressing the need to develop recycled water supplies for outdoor irrigation for current and future Ord Community redevelopment and reduce demand for groundwater, the Marina Coast Water District has completed its five-year Urban Water Management Plan.

Required by state law, the plan includes analyses of projected water demand and supplies, conservation, demand management, shortage contingency plans, and the like through 2020.

Marina Coast general manager Keith Van Der Maaten said the plan is a key aspect of the district's capacity for supply clean water at relatively low rates.

The plan also accounts for projected growth in the district's service area in the future, and suggests there is adequate water availability for planned redevelopment in the Ord Community over the next five years.

Last month, the district agreed to share costs with the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency on a 10-mile recycled water delivery pipeline to district territory.

"We're excited to work with the MRWPCA and other agencies to stretch supplies and provide for environmental stewardship of our water supplies," Van Der Maaten said. "Reuse is a key to that end."

Salinas celebrates renovations to soccer complex on Wednesday

Members of Salinas Community Leadership Academy will show off improvements they've made to the Constitution Soccer Complex at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 27.

The Leadership Academy completed the renovations using neighborhood beautification grant, which they received in Apri. The group chose the complex as their community impact project for this year, and have now restored the rest rooms there.

The Constitution Soccer Complex is one of the largest and most-used athletic fields in the City of Salinas, hosting hundreds of kids, youth, and families on a daily basis.

The Community Leadership Academy is designed to increase our community's leadership capacity by giving residents the tools to enact positive social changes. Participants attend 11 workshops over a period of six weeks, gaining the skills needed to plan and carry out a community impact project. For more information, click here.

What: Constitution Neighborhood Beautification Project
When: Wednesday, July 27, 2016 at 5:30PM
Where: 1440 Constitution Blvd. Salinas
Free and open to the public. 

Greefield releases survey of community concerns

More than 60 percent of Greenfield residents surveyed said they feel safe in the city. And nearly half said gangs are not a problem in their neighborhood.

These are some of the responses found in a survey police representatives conducted earlier this month.  Representatives held 200 face-to-face surveys throughout the city in order to find out residents biggest concerns.

The surveys were conducted at randomly selected addresses by teams of officers and community members knocking on doors for in-person interviews. Community members who accompanied police also provided translation services. Addresses were randomly selected by a computer application.

Detailed results were presented to the Greenfield City Council and can be found here.

Salinas' first pooch park set to open next week

Salinas city administrators have converted an unused acre at Natividad Creek Park to welcome off-leash dogs and their owners starting Saturday, July 30, officials announced.

The City's Animal Services and Recreation and Community Services Division will hold a grand opening ceremony at 10 a.m.

Admission is free and open to the public for grand opening. Light refreshments will be served.

More information is available at 831-758-7306.

Monterey approves new massage establishment regulations; adopts state efficient landscaping regs

At Monterey’s Tuesday city council meeting, the council approved new regulations requiring massage establishments to have a conditional use permit and off-street parking. The new regulation mandates that the business must have one off-street parking space per 500 square feet or else it will not be issued a permit to operate. 

The city also noted the adoption of the state’s requirements for water efficient landscaping regulations.

New legislation requires that new construction projects with landscape areas of 500 square feet or more have to have a water efficient landscaping plan submitted and approved by the city.

The city adopted their present proposed regulations by staff back in 2010.

The California Water Commission created the rules for outdoor water use for landscapes in July 2015, which became law in December 2015.

Pacific Grove Library Improvement Project underway; city approves appointment of new police chief Amy Christey

Besides approving the admission tax measure for the November ballot while voting down the business license tax increase, the city of Pacific Grove on Wednesday approved an agreement with the Pacific Grove Public Library Foundation Corporation to fund the Library Renewal Project. The money will go towards ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) updates, painting the library’s walls and ceilings and new carpet, among other improvements. 

The council also approved the appointment of Amy Christey as the city’s new police chief with a salary adjustment to $151,000, what Christey currently makes as police chief in Morro Bay.

Wanna tell the CHP how you feel about its services? Take online survey

The California Highway Patrol is inviting the public to participate in a brief, online community service survey. The results will be used to address the public’s concerns, develop solutions to potential problems, and improve services.

“All professional organizations self-assess in an effort to improve the way they do business and ensure they are providing the highest level of service to its customers. It is no different here at the CHP,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow in a statement. “This community survey gives the public a voice and is an opportunity for the people we serve to evaluate us.”

The survey will be available on the Web site indefinitely, during the month of July, the link to the survey will be prominently featured on the CHP’s Home page. Participation in the survey is anonymous. To participate, click here.

This is the first time the CHP has participated in an analytical, third-party online survey.

FORA board votes to help fund Marina Coast recycled water pipeline

Agreeing to help fund the planned $26 million Marine Coast Water District recycled water pipeline, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority board approved an agreement on Friday last week that would dedicate up to $6 million for the proposal.
The nearly mile-long pipeline, part of the district's Regional Urban Water Augmentation Project, is designed to deliver potable-quality recycled water to the Ord Community as part of the redevelopment of the former military base.
Under the agreement, FORA will commit to reimbursing Marina Coast for pipeline costs through fiscal year 2019-20.
Last month, Marina Coast and the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency agreed to cooperate on the pipeline, which will also deliver recycled water to the Seaside basin as part of the Pure Water Monterey groundwater replenishment project.

AgTech Meetup Features Three Startups from Salinas-Based Incubator

The upcoming Salinas AgTech meetup will feature three of the startup companies that are housed at the Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology. The meetup will also serve as a followup to Forbes Reinventing America: The AgTech Summit, which will be held the week before.

The startups to be featured are:

Trace Genomics: Molecular assay for soil and seed-borne pathogens enabling detection of pathogens and beneficial organisms simultaneouslyv
specright: End-to-end packaging specification management
Inteligistics: Real-time pulp temperature tracking, reporting and alerting across the value chain

The event is open to all and free of charge. Food and drinks will be provided. A registration form can be found at here.

More information about the Salinas AgTech Meetup group is available at here.

More information about the Salinas AgTech Summit can be found here.

What: AgTech Salinas Meetup
When: Tuesday, July 19 at 6:00 p.m.
Where: CSUMB at Salinas City Center, 1 Main St., Salinas, CA 93901
Cost: Free