Friends of Daley Ranch Board Meeting

September 20, 2022

 

Present: Jerry Harmon, Brocade Wu, Dick Althouse, Fred Woods, Ron Franzese, and Rick Mercurio; Darren Parker, City of Escondido Planning Dept., guest.

Jerry opened the meeting at 9 a.m. at the Train Depot

Darren Parker: He reported on the Mitigation Bank, and its lack of action the last couple years. There are a couple transactions in the pipeline. He has met with the San Diego Mountain Bike Association which wants some trail work, and would require a master plan update and a CEQA report. The Board discussed the need for biological monitoring on a regular basis, and the need to apply all monies earned from sale of credits toward Daley Ranch projects. Much of the issue is a political situation, with the Council having discretionary power. Brocade hopes that biological studies that are being done in Daley Ranch could be shared with FODR. She also brought up the idea of selling refreshments at the Ranch House, and possible entry fees. Jerry says he will follow up with the City’s property manager about acquisitions to Daley Ranch. He also is concerned about the wildlife tunnels under Valley Center Road.

Brocade says she will contact Dave Roberts about working with remote motion cameras that could potentially help with biological monitoring efforts.

Minutes and Treasurer’s Report: The minutes from the last meeting in June were approved by acclamation.

Rick had emailed the latest line item accounting to the Board. He noted that the account formerly known as Ivy, and now known as Delaware Funds, has lost a few thousand dollars in value due to the poor market conditions at present.

 Interpretative trail: Rick said that all but two signs have been produced, and the last two are ready for final approval. The mounting hardware has also been manufactured, and with Dick’s help and truck they were delivered to the Daley Ranch barn. As it turns out, the original two Audubon signs are the only ones with the original 2 X 3 size. The rest are 2 X 4. Do we want to offer Audubon the chance to have another sign, since we have an extra mounting station? The Board said yes, and Rick will contact Audubon about this

Rick is re-thinking his plan to squeeze all these large signs into the very short Middle Pond trail. He asked the Board for input on spreading them out over what he had originally envisioned: connecting Middle Pond to northbound East Ridge trail. He also sought input about having benches across the trail from some of the signs, with so much content to read. The Board agreed, and discussed making the trail a loop with East Ridge and Ranch House Road.

 

The next steps are to finalize locations for each sign, then arrange for volunteers to help with installation and with construction of the kiosk at the start of the trail. Fred will make initial contact to ask for possible Rotary Club assistance with installation.

Barn restoration: Dick reported that plan changes have been submitted, which should save money on some specifications. Dick is ready to continue working with the City on the new plans. Dick discussed issues around access to the barn, which could possibly involve cement sidewalks. Jerry will work with Dick on the barn project.

Annual picnic:  Brocade suggests March for a date, and Saturday the 25^th was agreed upon.

Newsletter: Rick wrote a feature article on volunteer Lee Dezan, including a photo of him. We also will use a few of his quality photos of flora and/or fauna. His portfolio of photos will also hopefully be showcased on FODR’s website and social media platforms. Jerry will write a President’s Message.

School Visits: Fred said that our grant application to SDF for $25,000 was declined. Rick spoke to their representative who praised our project but said competition was fierce. All school visits are scheduled with busses from March through May. Fred will email the Board the dates for the visits.

Next board meeting:  October 25 at Train Depot at 2 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Rick Mercurio, Secretary