From the left, Dean of Sierra High School, Cynthia Frutos, Fillmore Middle School Principal Todd Schieferle, and FMS Assistant Principal, Tricia Godfrey, address the Fillmore School District Board at Tuesday’s regular meeting.

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Fillmore Unified School District Superintendent Jeff Sweeney introduced administrators of Fillmore Middle School, Fillmore High School and Sierra High School to district trustees Tuesday, November 3, 2009.

The focus was on student learning for the 2009-2010 school year. Todd Schieferle, Principal of FMS said the focus of the middle school this year is Safety, Learning and Love. He said safety is the highest priority; a zero tolerance for violence and a firm discipline policy is in place.

Focus on learning, according to Schieferle, is based on what we want students to learn; how we know each student has learned; and how we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning. He went to to say we use assessments for the state guidelines. He said we use a support system to cover those concepts still needing to be learned. “A 25 minute period for refining skills is available four times a week.” Student-teacher pacing guides help students to master assigned state standards, also.

Tricia Godfrey, Assistant Principal said that CONTINUED »

Fillmore Unified School District

The Fillmore Unified School District received a petition for the conversion of Piru Elementary School to a charter school to be known as the Piru Charter School. The District Governing Board held a public hearing on the provisions of the charter on Wednesday, October 21, at which time the Board considered the level of support for the petition by teachers employed by the District, other District employees, and parents. Over 200 attended that meeting.

Based on the District’s review and analysis of the charter petition and the information gathered at the public hearing, the District Board will either grant or deny the charter. That meeting will occur at Piru Elementary School in their auditorium on Monday, November 9, at 6:00 p.m. Translators will be present at the meeting. Transportation to and from Rancho Sespe will be done by car pooling. Also, child care for elementary age students will be provided.

A copy of the petition can be viewed at the Superintendent’s Office, 627 Sespe Avenue, Fillmore, CA.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

On 10-30-09, at approximately 12:40 P.M, Deputy Biter, the Fillmore Police Department motorcycle officer, observed Jesus Hernandez 23, Fillmore, riding his bicycle north on B Street, at First Street, in the City of Fillmore. Deputy Biter observed Hernandez fail to stop at the posted stop sign. Deputy Biter attempted to stop Hernandez for the violation by using his voice and his police lights and siren. Hernandez fled from Deputy Biter and was ultimately stopped in the 800 block of Second Street.

During the investigation, Deputy Biter discovered 13 individual“baggies” of narcotics packaged for sale (about 13.9 grams) and narcotics paraphernalia. Hernandez was booked at the Ventura County Pre-Trial Detention Facility for possession of narcotics for sale, transportation of methamphetamine, possession of narcotics paraphernalia, and resisting or delaying a police officer.
Courtesy of Fillmore Police Department.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

An Oxnard man crashed into a metal guardrail on Sycamore Road near Seventh Street, breaking his neck. He was transferred to Ventura County Medical Center for treatment.
Francisco Romero Gutierrez, 19, was driving west on Sycamore Road, when he hit the rail, injuring two passengers. Cesario Sandoval, 21, sustained serious internal injuries, and Jose Luis Solorzano, 18, received cuts to his head and arm. Both men are Santa Paula residents.
Gutierrez was arrested on suspicion of felony drunken driving in the November 1st crash.

MEASURE F CITY OF FILLMORE FAIR RENT AND HOME OWNE
5/5 100.00%
Vote Count Percent
YES 159 14.10%
NO 969 85.90%
Total 1,128 100.00%

Piru Charter School petitioners made a presentation to the FUSD board on October 21st, 2009.
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On October 21, 2009, the Fillmore United School District Governing Board held a public hearing on the proposal to remove Piru School from the District, and make it a separate Charter school run independently of the District. Following are five of the statements read at the meeting by both opponents and supporters of the Charter conversion:

Richard Durborow
First of all, we want to thank everyone for being here this evening and for taking part in the process of creating a “new choice” in public education. Tonight this determined and accomplished petitioning group is prepared to take a big step towards assuring that your children will not only experience improved student learning today but for generations to come. I applaud their efforts and commitment for wanting to make a profound difference in the lives of children. It is with great anticipation and excitement about the future success of your children and their students that has led them to design this high quality charter petition. This petition not only defines what it means to be an “educated person” in the 21st Century but also includes how learning best occurs. This petition reads like a good book. If you haven’t read it I suggest you do. And just like all good books the charter petition tells a compelling story; a story of next steps and high expectations, a story of how all students can reach high levels of academic achievement, how all students can be supported in a school climate based on mutual-respect and self-discipline, how all parents can be assured that their child’s teacher is using classroom instruction that works, and how all students can grow to become healthy lifelong learners. Thank You, Richard Durborow Before we go any further this evening I want to address the issue of misinformation about Migrant Education. Let’s clear this up right now. Migrant funds will continue at Piru Charter School! All migrant programs will remain in place at PCS!

Greg Spaulding
Let me start by thanking the school board CONTINUED »

Fillmore Veterans Memorial building came alive last Thursday night, October 22, as several hundred residents came to ask the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) why it was requiring flood insurance on approximately 1,500 Fillmore homes.

The informational meeting was hosted by Bert Rapp, Fillmore’s Director of Public Works, FEMA’s Ed Curtis, Region IX Engineer, and FEMA flood insurance expert Jana Crutchfield.

Rapp began the evening with a history of flood occurrences in Fillmore and a PowerPoint explanation of the area’s prospective flood areas. He explained the recertification process for all levees in the United States, which are reviewed every five years for reaccreditation.

But the spirit of the evening was in the questions and concerns of the citizens who came to the microphone to express those concerns. Paul Schifanelli spoke on behalf of the elderly who live at the El Dorado Mobile Home Park. Resident Joel Quintero encouraged the county to question FEMA’s rezoning. Diane Scoggins drew one of the few laughs of the evening when she said her house was in the flood zone, but not her backyard, and wondered if she could get half the insurance needed. David Reeves question the financial impact on not only the individual homeowner but the greater cost to the community in levee retrofitting. Rapp answered his question with a breakdown of subsidy involving grants and builder funding.

He explained how two-dimensional CONTINUED »

HK&C partner Mark Alpert.
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Pictured (l-r) Soroptimists Nora Toledo and Oralia Herrera, with Mayor Patti Walker presenting them with two proclamations.
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Fillmore City Council began with Closed Session conference with legal counsel regarding existing litigation, El Dorado Estates v. City of Fillmore. The representative for El Dorado Mobile Home Park Estates is Mike Cirillo of Star Management. Cirillo filed an application on March 5, 2009 for a Vesting Tentative Tract Map. The application proposes to convert the existing 302-space park from a rental park into a resident-ownership park where park residents would be able to purchase the lot(s) their coach sits on. City staff has been working with Cirillo and the park’s legal counsel, Hart, King & Coldren (HK&C), in reviewing and processing the application in accordance with the Fillmore Municipal Code, the State Permit Streamlining Act, the State Subdivision Map Act, and the State’s Mobilehome Parks Act.
A Letter of Incompleteness, dated April 1, 2009, was sent to Star Management. Application was re-submitted on June 10, 2009, deemed incomplete on July 10, re-submitted July 23, deemed incomplete on August 19th. An Appeal of Incompleteness to Planning Commission was filed on September 2, decision was made to uphold City Staff’s “incomplete” determination on October 21, 2009. A request on behalf of Star Management was filed on October 22 to appeal the Planning Commission’s decision to city council. An Appeal of Determination of Incompleteness, presented Tuesday night by HK&C partner Mark Alpert, covered five “incomplete items”: Offer to purchase, with estimated price and estimated space rent; 60 day required Notice; Demand for 43 new parking spaces under Fillmore Code; Property Right “Peer Reviewed” by certified inspector; and FEMA map and flood calculations.
Alpert, representing El Dorado Mobile Park (owner Nancy Watkins), refuted each “incomplete item” citing case law (Sequoia case), lack of city authority, and pre-empting of local ordinance. According to Alpert, the April 1st Letter of Incompleteness did not expressly state Star Management’s application was “incomplete”. He also stressed that El Dorado residents were advised about the option-to-buy, and that a tenant impact report will be served on residents at least 15-days before hearing. Alpert stated that since his client is not an apartment building, etc., they are not subject to several of the city’s demands. And that the city has no authority to require an inspection of any kind regarding the “so called Peer Review Inspection Report,” but added that the inspector was licensed, a statement that was refuted by city staff, who said they spoke with the inspector directly. He said that although he retains several certifications, he is not a licensed building inspector. The point may be lessoned by the fact that only one permanent common structure is involved in the inspection, the park’s clubhouse.
Alpert continued to build his case for reversal of the CONTINUED »