$75K allocated for Fallbrook projects

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors allocated $75,000 in District Five Community Projects funds for Fallbrook organizations during a May 15 allocation of Community Projects money.

The Fallbrook Music Society will receive $30,000 for Symphony Pops on the Green costs, the Mission Resource Conservation District will have an additional $15,000 for trash pickup vouchers, the Fallbrook Fire Safe Council will be allocated $10,000 to help clear brush in Greater Fallbrook, the Fallbrook Rotary Club will obtain $10,000 for its Lobster on the Green event, and the Fallbrook Sheriff’s Senior Volunteer Patrol received a grant of $10,000 to help fund community events.

Each county supervisor has a discretionary Community Projects budget which may be used for schools and non-profit organizations which provide services to county citizens and can also be used to supplement other county funding for specific county projects. Allocation of the funds requires approval of the Board of Supervisors. Supervisor Bill Horn had the support of his colleagues after recommending the distribution of his Community Projects funds.

The Fallbrook Fire Safe Council was established in November 2002, nine months after the Gavilan Fire destroyed more than 40 homes. The Fallbrook Fire Safe Council seeks to educate citizens in the areas of fire disaster prevention, preparedness, and recovery and to connect residents to appropriate informational resources. In 2006 the Fallbrook Fire Safe Council initiated a vegetation abatement program, and the Community Projects grant will help clear 180 acres of high-danger brush in Fallbrook, DeLuz, Rainbow, and Bonsall.

The Mission Resource Conservation District’s purpose is to maintain land and water quality; it has no regulatory powers but utilizes educational programs to work with farmers, businesses, and homeowners. Its activities include partnering with Keep Fallbrook Clean and Green on various beautification projects, and the current focus on Keep Fallbrook Clean and Green is addressing Fallbrook’s ongoing problem with illegal dumping. Keep Fallbrook Clean and Green has created a voucher program for low-income Fallbrook residents so that unwanted large items can be disposed of at the Fallbrook Refuse Company disposal sites rather than along local roads, in canyons, or in other remote locations. The Community Projects allocation allows Keep Fallbrook Clean and Green to purchase the disposal vouchers at $28.00 per voucher and to distribute the vouchers to more than 500 households.

The Fallbrook Music Society was formed in 1977 and seeks to expose the community to live music. That allows symphonies and live orchestras to provide performances in Fallbrook as well as larger urban communities, and the Community Projects money will help offset the cost of hiring the San Diego Symphony to perform at the annual Symphony Pops on the Green event in Fallbrook.

The Fallbrook Rotary Club has existed for more than 60 years and currently has approximately 115 members. Its activities include support of local charities, youth and educational programs, senior and community projects, and beautification services such as highway cleanup and graffiti removal. Each September the Fallbrook Rotary Club holds a fundraiser titled Lobster on the Green at the Grand Tradition, and the Community Projects allocation will help cover the cost of this year’s event.

The Sheriff’s Department utilizes a Senior Volunteer Patrol program for public safety activities which do not require confrontations with suspects. The Senior Volunteer Patrol handles vacation home checks and the YANA (You Are Not Alone) outreach program to the elderly and disabled and also assists with school activities and traffic control as well as with various administrative activities for the Sheriff’s Department. The Fallbrook Senior Volunteer Patrol has breakfast and lunch events, Thanksgiving and Halloween dinner events, a volunteer dinner, and Christmas Parade participation, and the Community Projects funding will allow the Senior Volunteer Patrol to purchase food, decorations, and promotional materials for those events.