City News/Alerts

City Projects Updates

Infrastructure
Next week, wastewater crews will continue with the annual citywide pipeline cleaning. Water crews will install a water meter vault. Maintenance crews will move rocks from City Hall to Jimmy Durante Boulevard for a landscaping project.
 
Capital Improvement Program
The contractor for the Sewer, Water, and Arterials Paving project completed potholing and locating existing underground utilities.  Next week, demolition and grading will begin along the south shoulder of Via de la Valle.

Public Safety Update

Sheriff’s Update
Greetings from the Sheriff’s Station!  Below is a breakdown of the eight Sheriff cases completed in Del Mar last week:
 
Carry Concealed Dirk or Dagger:                                1
Battery:                                                                        2
Drunk in Public:                                                            1
Failure to Maintain Vehicle Lighting Equip:                  1
Burglary from Vehicle:                                                  1
Under Infl uence of Controlled Substance:                   1
Vandalism:                                                                    1
 
Fire Department Update
This week, the Fire Department responded to 15 medical aids, two fires, two fire alarms, one fuel spill, and multiple other miscellaneous responses.  With the beginning of the new year, the Fire Department will be working to conduct Annual Fire Inspections and Fire Hydrant Maintenance/Inspection. 
 
 
While it looks like the worst of the rain from this storm is behind us, we will be receiving more rain throughout the week.  Here are some driving safety tips from CHP to keep you safe on the road:

• Make sure wiper blades are in good working order. If they are more than one year old, they may need to be replaced. Make sure wiper fluid is topped off.
• Tires should be checked to ensure proper tread depth. It should be no less than 4/32 of an inch for proper traction on wet roads. Also, make sure pressure is correct for each tire.
• Vehicle lights should be checked to make sure they are in good working order. Headlights should be turned on whenever windshield wipers are in use, as required by law.
• One of the most important things to do when driving on rainy roads is to slow down. People mistakenly blame wet weather for accidents, when many accidents are actually caused because the driver failed to adjust for weather conditions.
• Accounting for slippery conditions, drivers should allow themselves extra distance following behind another vehicle, as vehicles move farther on wet surfaces before stopping after braking.
• Never drive through standing water because it is impossible to tell how deep it is.
• Watch out for hydroplaning. At higher speeds, water can build up between tires and the ground causing loss of traction and contact with the pavement.
• If hydroplaning occurs, drivers should react by letting off the accelerator. But do no brake. Ease off the steering wheel. Don’t turn the wheels while hydroplaning because you can lose control.   Slow down until traction is regained, then keep speed slow.
• It is also important to remember to pay even closer attention to driving during inclement weather. Do not text and drive, which is illegal under any condition, and stay off the phone unless it is an emergency. Of course, always wear seat belts.
• Also, first responders will be out on the roadways assisting motorists, so look out for their safety.

Beach Conditions
The recent series of strong storms that hit the region brought further damage and erosion to the beach.  The large surf and high tides provided quite a punch in the morning hours by Wednesday and Thursday as it reached the seawall with force.  The rising waters splashed up over the wall in multiple areas, especially north of 27^th Street.  Multiple staircases were ripped from the wall Thursday morning due to the force. 
 
Lifeguards spent much of the week on Alert II status available for local swiftwater emergency calls.  Fortunately, major emergencies were avoided, however we were able to provide assistance with many flooding issues in the Beach Colony and cleared the beach (what few people there were) on Wednesday due to the lightning and tornado warning during the mid-afternoon.    
 
Lifeguards were requested to assist Public Works in exploring Anderson Canyon adjacent to the south-bound lane of Camino del Mar on Thursday morning.   Lifeguards were able to assist with exploring the amount of erosion and damage to the area by using ropes to lower down into the canyon to images of the area by drone. 
 
Looking further out, the next few weeks (if not longer) are forecast to bring a steady supply of large waves and periods of inclement weather.  The 10-day forecast is calling for a reasonable chance of rain mid to late next week.  Satellite images are showing multiple storms dropping south from around the Aleutian Islands and into a similar jet stream pattern that the storms this week took.  This pattern is more indicative of “El Niño” storms than our prior storms this season.  Additionally, by dropping further south, the systems have a greater chance of picking up equatorial atmospheric moisture giving the potential to provide the significant rainfall of which we have been reading in recent seasonal forecasts.

Other Announcements

Weekend Rail Service Closures and Los Peñasquitos Rail Construction Planned
Construction crews are working to replace four wooden trestle railway bridges as part of the Los Peñasquitos Lagoon Bridges Replacement Project. During January, workers will continue to install support columns on three of the bridges. To date, more than 80% of the piles have been installed at the northernmost rail bridge and its remaining center piles will be installed by late January.  Nearby Carmel Valley residents can expect nighttime noise from construction activities.  During three weekends in January (Jan 9-11; Jan 16-18; and Jan 23-25), rail service will be temporarily suspended between Oceanside and San Diego along the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) coastal rail corridor due to planned construction.  No passenger or freight trains will run through the corridor between early Saturday morning and early Monday morning. Regular passenger rail service will resume in time for the morning commute on Mondays. The construction schedule is weather permitting.  For train schedule information, please visit GoNCTD.com, Amtrak.com, and MetrolinkTrains.com. 

Employment Opportunities

None

Upcoming Events/Meetings

• Tuesday, January 12:
  • Planning Commission:  6:00 p.m., Del Mar Communications Center

• Wednesday, January 13:
  • Parks and Recreation Committee:  4:45 p.m., City Hall Annex

• Thursday, January 14:
  • Sea-Level Rise Stakeholder-Technical Advisory Committee Community Forum:  6:00 p.m., Powerhouse Community Center

 
For the most current calendar of upcoming events, visit the City’s website at www.delmar.ca.us.