Carbon Canyon, Wind and Wildfire Risk

In the wake of October's devastating wild fires in northern California, the Los Angeles Times from last Friday the 24th had this lead headline on its front page: "Fire policies sidestep key factor: wind."

Bettina Boxall's article goes on to discuss a realization made by University of Washington atmospheric scientist Cliff Mass's realization after studying a pair of high-resolution weather models on 8 October when the conflagration broke out: "Oh my God, look at he winds?  What if people were paying attention to this? What could they have done?"

Boxall continued:

As California puts more people and houses on one of the planet's most flammable landscapoes and the grim list of deadly wildfires grows longer, some experts say it's time to take stronger steps.  Among them: Ban development in wind corridors where wild lands repeatedly burn . . .

As Alexandra Syphard, a research scientist with Conservation Biology Institute notes:

In Southern California, every single year the conditions are there for a severe wildfire.  You have Santa Ana wind conditions every year.  You have summer drought every year, high temperatures.

Alex Hall, an atmospheric sciences profesor at UCLA, added:

There are certain corridors where the winds tend to travel.  We also have the ability to predict event by event where the winds are going to be the strongest. 

But with wind mapping and forecasting not shown in the wildfire policies of the State of California, the problem becomes, as Syphard expressed it:

I often hear people say that if we construct our buildings correctly and put enough defensible space around it, then we don't need to worry about where you put the houses.  But they don't necessarily fireproof your house.  You can see that by some of the houses that burned in recent years.

Despite the passage of law five years ago that requires local jurisdictions to include wildfire risk when updating general plans and approving housing projects, Boxall wrote, "there appears little inclination to place especially fire-prone areas off limits to development."

What then followed is a quote from Mitch Glaser, assistant administrator for the regional planning office in Los Angeles County: "we have to consider property rights."  He went to say that, while changes in the layout and size of housing projects are made, no denial of an application was made because of the risk of fire.

Boxall continued: "The building continues even in areas where it is virtually guaranteed that a wind-whipped fire will roar through sooner or later."  She also noted that in France there are new regulations that ban development in hazardous fire zones in the southern part of the country.  A natural resources advisor with the University of California cooperative extension system told Boxall, "it's not terribly popular.  But they do have the ability to make that happen."

This takes the matter then to local jurisdictions and land-use planning.  Richard Halsey, director of the California Chaparral Institute, commented:

Local municipalities are so concerned about their tax base and private property rights and making money that they're not addressing the real risks.

He recommends barring development in high-risk locations or, if it is done, then requiring residents to sign waivers that they forego fire protection, though he followed by stating "I don't know if politically that's ever going to happen."

The article also addressed above-ground power lines and the addition of weather observation stations on poles or requiring that lines be routed underground (which is a significant expense and, in some cases, difficult with terrain).  Shutting off power for public safety reasons was also discussed.

Notably, what San Diego Gas and Electric has found in its monitoring of wind in a county that has been heavily affected by wildfires in recent years is that "it turns out the county's strongest winds don't blow through passes or canyons, as previous thought . . . [and there is] remarkable variability in wind strength across relatively short distances."

In 2014, a new program with that utility, the U.S. Forest Service and UCLA was launched and the Santa Ana Wildfire Threat Index is intended to rank threats based on weather and moisture in vegetation.  At the end of October, "one of the strongest Santa Ana events in years hit Southern California" and the ranking was high, just below the worse of extreme.

For Carbon Canyon, this article has great relevance.  While District 12 of CalTrans on the Orange County side of the canyon put up signs several years ago noting an extreme fire hazard, this designation was not made for the San Bernardino County side by District 8.  A wildfire, however, won't heed the sign difference and stop burning at the county line.

Moreover, while San Diego's experience is that the strongest winds may not be in canyons and passes, that in no way suggest that these areas don't funnel high winds and pose great risks.  They certainly do, as most recently was demonstrated in another pair of destructive Santa Ana Canyon fires in September and October and as the history of wildfires has shown in Carbon Canyon (1929, 1958, 1978, 1990 and 2008 being just the worst of many such conflagrations.)

A United States Geological Survey video "Living with Wildfire," which was the subject of a post here a few years ago, warns of high winds at upper elevations as well as gullies and other natural features serving as funnels for winds up from canyons to those plateaus and ridges on adjacent hills.

Private property rights, property tax revenues and other factors will continue to influence decision-making at the local level, but these will be dwarfed by the financial and human cost of catastrophic wildfires, the intensity and frequency of which are growing.

Our local officials in city and county government and in fire-fighting will continue to face these issues and articles like this as well as the USGS video, in addition to mounting studies of wildfire conditions and causes, will, hopefully, bring more needed attention to a growing problem.

After all, most of the remaining undeveloped land in our region are in our canyons and hills—precisely those areas most in danger of extreme wildfire risk.  The Hillcrest project of 76 units is slowly progressing on the north side of Carbon Canyon just east of Sleepy Hollow and the subdivision is surrounded by wildfire-prone areas with many homes at the ridge top and plateaus where winds are strong, carrying embers well over the defensible spaces put into the project.

Across Carbon Canyon Road, directly south of Hillcrest, the proposed Hidden Oaks, of over 100 units, will soon be heard by the city's planning commission and council.  Again, the project is sited on hillsides, plateaus and ridges with steep topography to Soquel Canyon on the south and Chino Hills State Park (98% of which burned in 2008) beyond that.  Many home sites are, once more, in higher elevation with strong winds.

It is likely that city staff will cite private property rights, future revenue, and improvements in planning for fire as reasons for approving the project, even as our knowledge of the issues with the risk of wildfire grows.  Unfortunately, prospective buyers will not be made aware of that risk and will be lulled into a sense of false security when they move into these new subdivisions.

Carbon Canyon's Cabin Eats Restaurant

The latest restaurant to operate in a spot that has had several over the years in the largely-empty Olinda Village shopping center is Cabin Eats, which opened within the last few weeks.

It's a pretty sparse interior with plastic folding chairs, basic folding tables and not much in the way of decor.  A TV sits high in the corner and there are a couple where there is outside seating.

The restaurant is advertised as being open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day and offers Mexican and American food. The menu has breakfast and lunch sections, though, for some reason, there is no separate dinner portion. 

Going there last night, our group of three had nachos, a veggie burrito with red sauce, and cheese enchiladas with mole, along with a Caesar salad.  American selections include fish and chips, a grilled cheese sandwich, and a variety of burgers and the breakfast menu will be worth a visit, as well.  Drink are sodas and water with no alcohol served.

The food was pretty good.  The salsa served with the chips was pretty tasty and had a little kick to it.  The mole was good, as well, and the others liked their selections.  

Overall, it didn't measure up to the food at Sol de México, which operated there for a number of years before the short-lived Stone's Smokehouse, which was decent, or, going further back, the excellent Las Redes (anyone remember the name of the pretty good Italian place that was there for a minute or two maybe a dozen or so years back?) but it was still enjoyable.  

The server was good at checking in to see how things were going and the chef said hello and thanked our group for stopping in, so that was nice to see.

As our group discussed, the question is how long this or any other restaurant can survive in a shopping center, built in 1964 when local centers were more sustainable, which looks older and shakier with each passing year.  There were no other patrons last night during our visit and it will take a steady, regular stream of clientele to keep the business afloat.

So, let's hope enough people give it a try and like it that Cabin Eats can get established, but the restaurant business is tough as it is and the location makes the challenge that much greater.

David Purington Reminiscences of Sleepy Hollow, Part One

Well, given that we just celebrated Thanksgiving and the last post here was about something provided by a neighbor, this is an opportune time to move to another Sleepy Hollow-related set of posts, with material provided by another neighbor--with thanks given to both!

These items consist of typescripts by Purington and appear to have been done in the late 1970s and early 1980s.  There are a total of ten of these related to Carbon Canyon history and they will be bundled together in sets over coming months.

They'll be presented through scans of the originals, cropped and touched up to enhance readability.  An occasional note will be added when needed to help clairfy certain portions of the accounts.

We're starting with a four-page piece titled "Sleepy Hollow: Some Water Development and Family History" that seemed the best way to start the series, because it gives some background on the community from its founding in 1923, two years after Purington's father bought the land, up to the date of writing in 1978 when he was planning for development of a ranch he had in Sleepy Hollow.

To better read the pages, click on them to see them in an enlarged view in a separate window.

Note 1: The Oak Grove and Joe Tatar's (originally called Ichabod's) Restaurant is the area on the north side of Carbon Canyon Road, where the Party House Liquor Store building is located.  In this document, Purington mentions that he built the building on this property--this appears to be the now-shuttered store building.

Note 2:  The original Purington house and the community church are across from the eastern intersection of Carbon Canyon Road and Rosemary Lane.  The first water well was near the house along the creek.

Note 3:  The original plat map of Sleepy Hollow, from 1923, is on file with the County of San Bernardino and was reproduced on this blog.

Note 4:  Lookout Ridge is the area at the top of the northern portion of Sleepy Hollow, north of Carbon Canyon Road.

Note 5:  The tennis court, swimming pool, and area where the 4th of July picnic and stockholders' meeting was held was between the Purington place and the current liquor store property, along the creek on the north side of Carbon Canyon Road.

Note 6:  Known also as "Tidwell Oaks", the store and restaurant were located at the east end of the community on the south side of Carbon Canyon Road, where the store still stands right off the state highway, the two-story Tidwell home is at the back, and six other units exist, although all in advancing states of decay.

Note 7:  When Purington mentions existing water reservoirs (or tanks), the one on the south side of Sleepy Hollow at the top of the hill was removed a couple of years ago by the City of Chino Hills.  There is still a tank at the top of the hill on the north end.

Note 8:  In discussing acquiring water outside the community, Purington mentions the land of Mrs. Anderson across from Western Hills Golf Course.  This was formerly the Oasis Country Club and is now the Western Hills Oaks subdivision, established in the mid-1960s.  Purington wrote a separate essay about the water supply for Sleepy Hollow, which will be posted soon.

Note 9:  Purington's discussion of the Sleepy Hollow Volunteer Fire Department is expanded upon in a separate essay, to be posted later.  The Fire Hall, on a lot assigned to the local water district, became a community building where the current Sleepy Hollow Community Building is situated south of Carbon Canyon Road on Rosemary Lane.

Note 10:  Purington's home, destroyed in the big canyon fire in 1958, was situated below Lookout Ridge on the north side of Sleepy Hollow.  He mentions the remodeling of the original family home, which, again, still stands next to the highway.  Members of the Stearns family still live in the canyon.

Note 11:  Purington's pointed criticism of the water supply in Sleepy Hollow continues to be an issue, with varied pipe sizes throughout the community, though there have been marked improvements in the last few years.

A Different Kind of Tagging in Carbon Canyon

Usually, mention of tagging on this blog has had to do with occurrences of graffiti sprayed on signs, guardrails and, especially, the gradually crumbling original water tank of the La Vida Mineral Springs resort (which, since Thanksgiving was just two days ago, has, thankfully, remained free of such embellishment in recent months.)

The tagging referred to here in this post, though, has to do with an interesting little discovery made a couple of months ago by a neighbor of mine here in Sleepy Hollow.  While working on the steep hillside on his property, he unearthed a metal ring with six tags on it.

Though the ring and tags were dirty, rusted and pitted, the tags have on one of the faces the stamped wording: "B.O.U.H.S. / 55 / WOOD / SHOP."  It seems pretty obvious that the tags were used by the woodshop classes at Brea-Olinda Unified High School in 1955, probably for tagging trees (almost certainly the oaks that abundantly grow in the canyon) that were desired for wood for the class.

Whether the woodshop teacher or a student lived in the house next to which the tags were found or whether there were trees on the property that were identified for tagging isn't known.  The house had an initial part that goes back to the early days of Sleepy Hollow in the 1920s with a 1950s addition.

Anyway, my neighbor thought it was a cool little find, so he passed it on and this post does the same, even if it's just a little element of our canyon's history.

Tres Hermanos and Potential Public Use

Today's Champion has an article by Marianne Napoles on Tres Hermanos Ranch, located in Tonner Canyon just north of Carbon Canyon, and the continuing controversy over its potential future uses.

Napoles repoted that "The City of Industry reiterated its commitment to use the 2,450-acre Tres Hermanos Ranch for open space, public use, and preservation purposes" following last week's determination by the state's Department of Finance that it would not act on the sale of the ranch to the city for $41,5 million. 

Further, it was observed that Industry stated "it is not proposing a 450-megawatt solar facility" on the property, with documents suggesting the possibility of one up to that size.  This was confirmed in a statement made by Chino Hills City Attorney Mark Hensley, who told the paper that document he'd seen indicated that the project "could be up to 450 megawatts, but there are various numbers in various documents."

Paul Philips, city manager in Industry, was quoted as saying "we will collaboratively with interested stakeholders and residents to ultimately create a space for people to enjoy."  A restrictive covenant was part of the sale that would only allow for the three stated uses cited above.  Philips went on to say that there will be a plan for Tres Hermanos coming in the near future.

Officials in Chino Hills and Diamond Bar continue to express the belief that their lawsuits challenging the legal validity of the sale will be upheld in the courts, with Chino Hills council member Peter Rogers referring to "this shroud of secrecy" about Industry's plans keeping the city "vigilant in seeking information that defines this project."  Hensley added that "when you [Industry] are constantly working to hide the facts from the public and are untruthful when you are caught, it results in a lot of mistrust and confusion."

Diamond Bar City Manager Dan Fox stated that the sale, executed, in his view, "so Industry could have more cash to develop a massive solar generating facility is clearly inconsistent with" the long-range property management plan for the Successor Agency to the City of Industry Urban Development Agency.  The argument is that the sale should have been for the maximum monetary value for the benefit of public entities like the two cities.

To further explain their positions, Chino Hills and Diamond Bar have added pages to their web sites, with the former offering this page and the latter presenting this one.  The City of Industry has posted this press release on its website in the aftermath of the finance department's announcement.

Madrona Appeal Rehearing Denied

Yesterday, judges from the fourth district of the California Appeals Court issued a ruling denying the petition of a rehearing before the court of the decision rendered in mid-October substantially upholding the superior court verdict in the Madrona case.

This matter involved a proposed 162-unit development in Carbon Canyon between Sleepy Hollow and Olinda Village in Brea and the trial court ruled for Hills for Everyone and fellow plaintiffs who alleged that the City of Brea failed to follow its own ordinances in approving the project.

Old Standard Life Insurance Company, a bankrupt Idaho company in state receivership, appealed, through its OSLIC Holdings, LLC variant, and then lost in the decision rendered about three weeks ago.  Yesterday's action ends the matter at the appellate court level and OSLIC and the State of Idaho now have to determine whether to take the issue to the California Supreme Court.

So, stay tuned for whether this matter moves to the state's high court.

State Finance Department Takes No Action of Tres Hermanos Ranch Sale

The State of California's Department of Finance has issued a decision to "take no action" regarding the sale of the nearly 2,500-acre Tres Hermanos Ranch, north of Carbon Canyon, to the City of Industry.

The department indicated that, in its review of the sale, it determined that the transaction was approved by the Successor Agency to the City of Industry Urban Development Agency and that it had no objection.

The cities of Chino Hills and Diamond Bar requested a review because of concern that the sale price of $41.5 million, being far less than anticipated sale value and other offers topping $100 million, would result in significant financial losses.

Both cities have also filed two sets of lawsuits challenging the sale on the grounds that the sale did, as both claim, violate the state's law for disposing of former redevelopment land, as well as not meet state environmental review laws.

So, the legal wrangling will continue at the courts and Industry's proposed solar farm project, with promises for provision of the public use of other portions of the ranch, remains in play.

Read more in this San Gabriel Valley Tribune article just posted online today.

Big Ballers in Carbon Canyon

It's news now, though rumors go back a few months, that the Ball family, which has garnered a great deal of national attention through the basketball talents of Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo and the publicity-generating promoter and budding enterpreneur that is their outspoken father LaVar, has purchased Chino Hills' largest home, located here in Carbon Canyon, and is renovating the structure. Here is one online article about the purchase.

A YouTube video shows a brief tour conducted by LaVar of the building and there are photos and news articles galore about the purchase and the family.  There isn't anything that could be said here that isn't found in dozens and dozens of places elsewhere.

But, there is an angle to add to this story going back almost twenty years.  When my wife and I lived in another part of Chino Hills, we got memberships to the brand new LA Fitness down the street.  My wife, who is dedicated to fitness, was doing her usual tough workout one day, when a man about our age walked up and, impressed with her intensity, started giving her some friendly encouragement.

A few minutes later, she walked over and introduced me to a guy standing about 6'5" and weighing well over 250 pounds.  After a handshake and a comment about how hard my wife was working out, LaVar Ball went back to his training.  We'd occasionally run into him and chat before returning to our routines.

When our older son was born in 2002, we'd ended our memberships at LA Fitness.  On a weekend, we were walking with our son in a jogging stroller up a steep street near our house when we saw the unmistakable figure of LaVar standing in the garage of his home where he did personal training.  Recognizing us, he hollered over to come by.

We went into the house and met his wife Tina and then were introduced to three little guys.  Lonzo was not quite 5, LiAngelo was 3 or 4 and LaMelo was 1 or 2.  After talking for a bit, LaVar, knowing I'd coached some high school basketball when I was in college, took me to the backyard to show me his set up.  He then told me that he was going to train his sons to be basketball players.  I don't remember if he mentioned the NBA, though I seem to recall that, and, knowing him, it is entirely possible.  I do remember thinking that he had pretty audacious plans with kids who were so young.

We saw LaVar out in his garage once in a while on our walks and then moved to the Canyon in 2004 and lost contact.  Then, ten years later, after reading an article in the local Champion newspaper about the phenom brothers, Lonzo, who was a sophomore, and LiAngelo, a freshman, and the up-and-coming Chino Hills High team that they led, my wife and I went over to Ayala High for a cross-town matchup.

There was a decent size crowd there, but nothing like the attention that steadily grew over the next few years.  Once we went over to the Ayala side of the gym, I pointed out LaVar and Tina to my wife and we walked onto the court.  We got no further than half-court when La Var rose up from his seat, pointed at us, and bounded out to greet us.  I was more than surprised that he remembered our names.  He was as friendly and gregarious as usual and Tina was typically gracious, too.  As for that game, I remember clearly being very impressed with the Ball brothers and their skills and abilities, but surprised at how wide-open their game was.  It only got wilder from there.

That part is well known and oft discussed.  I saw a fair number of games in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, but it was nearly impossible to get in during the 2015-16 campaign when the team went undefeated and was ranked #1 in the country.  I did go to the Southern Section semifinal at Ayala against Mater Dei, in which Chino Hills dismantled the Monarchs 102-54 (there was actually a running clock at the end).  Last year, I saw one game at U.C.L.A. with Lonzo and one Chino Hills contest, an overtime loss to Mater Dei in an open division playoff game at U.S.C.

Now, Lonzo is a rookie with the Lakers learning the ropes in the N.B.A., LiAngelo has just played an exhibition game with U.C.L.A. with the regular season starting in about a week.  LaMelo, however, was pulled from Chino Hills High and is being home schooled.  LaVar insists that his training and playing in A.A.U. ball will prepare him for U.C.L.A., but there is also the matter of the Big Baller shoe issue and eligibility.  He's a talented player for sure, scoring 92 points one game last year, so we'll see where he goes from here.

As for LaVar, his public persona is hotly debated.  To some, he's doing a disservice to his sons with his boasts and often outrageous comments.  To others, his persona is a publicity tactic and he's working to keep his sons in the spotlight to their future financial advantage.   Whether all three will eventually play in the N.B.A. (many feel LiAngelo is the least likely), the Balls have already achieved remarkable success.

What stood out to me was when I stood in the long line to get into the Ayala gym before that Mater Dei game.  I started talking to the person behind me, who was a teacher at Chino Hills.  I asked her what she knew about the Ball brothers and she said they were not only respectful and a pleasure to have in her class, but that they were excellent students—credit also goes to their mother, who is recovering from a severe stroke.

Hopefully, the hype, constant attention, critiques on 24-hour cable channels and endless online websites and social media platforms, the family's Facebook reality show, and so on, don't turn into a long, deep rabbit hole with a disappointing end.

As for that Carbon Canyon house the Balls bought, it was the subject of an early post on this blog, just as the Great Recession, largely brought on by a housing crash, was on its way.  It may be no small irony that the realtor representing the Balls was Richard King, who built and lost that home.

2nd Lawsuits Filed by Chino Hills & Diamond Bar Over Tres Hermanos Ranch Sale

As reported by Jason Henry of the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, the cities of Chino Hills and Diamond Bar have filed separate lawsuits, and for the second time, challenging the sale of the 2,450-acre Tres Hermanos Ranch to the City of Industry by the Successor Agency to the Urban Development Agency, the former redevelopment agency of the City.

The first suits were filed on the ground that the sale violated state laws governing redevelopment property liquidation.  These new filings argue that Industry's purchase and its recently revealed plans violate California's environmental statutes and are "an illegal gift of public funds."

Chino Hills City Attorney Mark Hensley accused Industry of having "rigorously concealed" the planned solar project and so "failed to maximized the value of the land," as well as rejected an offer of purchase for over $100 million.  Technically, the rejection was from the Successor Agency, which includes of city and county officials.

Industry countered by saying that the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, is not yet at issue because the city is researching the potential for the property and has not advanced to the stage with the solar project to have it be applicable to that law.

Chino Hills Mayor Ray Marquez issued a statement stating that there was a concern "that Industry will use their position as a public agency developing the land for public benefit' to proceed without any input from the residents and the City."

Notably, perennial Chino Hills city council Rossana Mitchell, at a recent meeting, accused Marquez of favoring housing on Tres Hermanos, which she stated most residents do not want, and Marquez responded strongly that this was not the case.

Henry's article concluded by observing that Industry's solar farm plan could be boosted by state policies geared towards ramping up alternative and renewable energy sources.  He noted that the state, nearly a decade ago, agreed to waive CEQA requirements for a proposed football stadium in Industry near the Walnut and Diamond Bar borders and implied this could be attempted at Tres Hermanos.

For more, here is the Tribune article.