The SC Times has released the results for the 4th annual Best of San Clemente People’s Choice “Ole Awards.”  The annual awards are voted on by the readers of the SC Times and honor the best businesses, places and services in San Clemente.  The results are entirely chosen by readers and reflect the pride that San Clemente residents show in the numerous local businesses and places that make San Clemente such a unique place to live and visit.

To view the winners of the “Ole Awards,” please click on this link.

If you are interested in discovering more of what San Clemente has to offer to residents and visitors alike, please visit our San Clemente Lifestyle section.

In an effort to raise the necessary funds to complete the long-planned La Pata/Vista Hermosa Community Park, the City Council of San Clemente has approved the sale of 14.8 acres of land adjacent to the development’s site to Target.  According to this article in the San Clemente Times, the sale will be for $13.8 million, with all proceeds from the sale contributing to the construction of the park.  If the deal is finalized, this will bring the total alloted amount of money set aside by the city for the park to $32.8 million, which covers the $32 million cost estimate of constructing this new park.

Obviously this is fantastic news for San Clemente residents and visitors.  The corner of Avenida La Pata and Avenida Vista Hermosa has long displayed signs of this proposed project, but like the long-delayed Marblehead Coastal development, the money has not been there to begin and finish construction.  Now that the City Council has approved the land sale to Target, not only will residents and visitors be able to enjoy the various sports’ fields and state-of-the-art aquatic’s center, but San Clemente will be gaining a great store in Target.  This will add more jobs to the area, both in construction and running the new Target, which can only be a good thing in these tough times.  The park will be a fantastic addition to the city of San Clemente, and a new Target is just icing on the cake.

To learn more about the La Pata/Vista Hermosa Community Park, including the proposed layout and features of the park, please visit this website.

To combat a large budget shortfall in the parks department after the new California state budget was recently adopted, state parks have decided to increase their fees to raise money in an effort to prevent closures of up to 100 parks.  In yesterday’s Orange County Register, this article highlighted the increases pertaining to San Clemente State Beach.  Day use camping has increased by $5 per day, and tent camping sites have increased by $10 per day.  RV camping saw the largest increase, going from $34 to $60 per day.

While price increases in a bad economy are never a good thing, in this case the ends definitely justify the means.  One of the great things about being a California resident is our access to a variety of campsites and recreational areas throughout the state.  From the mountains to beach camping, this is a relaxing and affordable way to take a vacation and makes California such a great places for residents and visitors alike.  With California in a budget crisis, the state legislature had to make cuts to a variety of areas, including $14.2 million from the parks department.  Facing potential closures of up to 1/3 of the total state parks and recreation areas in California, the department was left with no choice but to increase fees.  To risk the closing of 100 of these natural treasures is something this state should avoid at all cost.  I for one would be very disheartened if my wife and I would lose the ability to take our yearly camping trip to San Clemente State Beach.  Even though we now have to pay a little more to enjoy this fantastic place, the thought of losing the ability to go there at all makes the extra cost an easy decision and investment into our struggling parks department.

For more information on California state park fee increases and potential closures, please visit the parks department’s official website.

According to the San Clemente Times, Poche Beach, located in the area of North San Clemente next to Dana Point, has had poor quality ratings for years due to run-off from 4,400 square acres.  Advisories were posted on 210 of the 365 days in 2007.  Poche ranked number 7 on Heal the Bay’s 2009 list of 10 “Beach Bummers.”

To help cure the problem, a $3 million treatment system will be installed to remove particles from urban runoff and then unltraviolet light will zap the water to kill the bacteria.  The City of San Clemente hopes to see a big improvement in the water quality by this time next year.

Other San Clemente beaches, such as Pico, have had successful results.  The dry-weather runoff between Avenida Pico and El Camino Real is diverted to a nearby treatment facility and has resulted in the beach receiving an A in dry weather conditions.  San Clemente also has a diversion system for Linda Lane and Riviera Beach. 

While these beaches have solid rating for dry weather conditions, the diversion systems and water treatment facilities are not capable of handling wet weather conditions, and therefore, all the run-off during rains still go straight into the ocean.  Hopefully this will be an issue addressed in the near future.

For more information on San Clemente beaches, including ocean view homes and condos, feel free to contact us and we’ll gladly answer any questions you may have.

This Saturday and Sunday, a variety of holiday-themed events will take place in San Clemente, providing a great deal of fun activities for kids and families.  There will be four events, three on Saturday and one on Sunday.  The Saturday events include: “Santa Claws and Paws,” an annual fundraiser sponsored by the San Clemente/Dana Point Animal Shelter, where children and their pets may have their pictures taken with Santa; “Christmas at the Casa,” a tree-lighting ceremony at Casa Romantica from 5:30 to 9:00 pm; and “Holly Jolly Hoopla,” a children’s event at the Community Center where it will be converted into the North Pole, complete with real snow, stories with Santa, crafts and games, and Mrs. Claus’ bakery where kids can decorate their own cookies.  There are pricing options for the Santa photos and Casa Romantica event, but “Holly Jolly Hoopla” is free to everyone.

On Sunday, Metrolink will be bringing its Holiday Toy Express Train into San Clemente at two separate times: 5:45 pm at the North Beach train station, and 8:45 pm at the San Clemente pier.  The train will bear more than 50,000 lights, and there will be a 15-minute live show and a special appearance by Santa.

For detailed information on these wonderful holiday events in San Clemente, please view the Orange County Register’s article about the weekend.

According to this article in the Orange County Register, the San Clemente City Council approved a plan to build a 2,100-foot-long connection linking the Forster Ranch Ridgeline Trail to a recently-built trail in San Juan Capistrano.  This connection will allows San Clemente residents easy access to the variety of trails throughout San Juan Capistrano and into Cleveland National Forest.  As one of the interviewees in the article happily stated, “It’s going to be the Mountains to the Sea Trail.”  The City Council is allocating $20,000 to pay for the connection, and a completion timeframe has yet to be determined.

One of the primary assets to living in San Clemente is being in the middle of a beautiful natural setting, and outdoor junkies have a nice pick of hiking, biking and walking trails throughout San Clemente.  This move by the City Council is great news for outdoor enthusiasts and San Clemente residents, as they will now have easier access to the many trails of San Juan Capistrano along with a path to Cleveland National Forest.  The San Clemente City Council rightfully recognizes the amount of interest outdoor activities garner from its residents and consistently seek to improve the options, from building new parks to its support of the Coastal Trail in North Beach and this new trail connection.  If you have any interest in outdoor activities, you will find fewer places in Southern California to match the scope of all that South Orange County, including San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano, has to offer.

This Sunday, October 5th, the non-profit organization Family Assistance Ministries is holding their 23rd annual South County Hunger Walk in San Clemente.  According to this article in the OC Register, the Hunger Walk will begin at the downtown Community Center (registration begins at 1:00pm) and will parade through downtown San Clemente to Max Berg Plaza Park and back.  Last year, more than 300 walkers raised $46,000 for FAM in their biggest fundraiser of the year, and FAM hopes to have 500 walkers donating around $75,000 this year.

In these difficult economic times, families more than ever are looking to non-profit groups like FAM for help.  Through July, FAM reported more aid requests in 2008 than all of 2007, making a good showing at this fundraiser highly important for these struggling families.  You may choose to walk in the event and have sponsors donate to your cause, or you can simply donate to FAM - any little bit will help this wonderful organization to raise the funds necessary to feed these families.

For more information on Sunday’s Hunger Walk, please call (949) 492-8477 or visit the Family Assistance Ministries’ website. 

San Clemente State Park, located in Southeast San Clemente, has recently upgraded its visitor’s center providing a much better glimpse of San Clemente’s history according to this article in the Orange County Register.  Visitors and locals, both adults and children, can learn more about the surfing, wildlife, American Indians, and other aspects of the state park and San Clemente. 

For those unfamiliar with San Clemente state park, it is located just south of downtown San Clemente on the coastal side of Interstate 5 off the Calafia exit.  The state park has campsites with beach access to some of the most prestine and beautiful beaches in all of Southern California.  For more information, including maps and reservations, please visit the state park website.