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The Rise of the Little People

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A Carlsbad Fairy Tale

Once upon a time, in the land of pink-tiled roofs, the clueless King Hallmat of the Village-by-the-Sea was troubled as he sat on his throne. The Little People were at the castle gates, carrying torches and pitchforks, chanting, “Down with the king! Down with the king!” His subjects were angry because he brought to the village the slippery Sir Caresnot, the black knight of Tinsel Gridloc, the largest kingdom in the land, 1,000 furlongs to the north.

A stonemason by trade, the black knight was known for despoiling one-of-a-kind villages with identical temple squares honoring Plutus, the god of wealth. His grandest, The Grovel at Tinsel Gridloc, brought streams of carriage traffic from beyond what the eye could see.   [Read more…]

Public Prayer Challenges Carlsbad Council’s Credibility

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Carlsbad Leaders Hear from Referendum Winners

“Okay, ladies and gentlemen, we’re off to a good start,” said Carlsbad Mayor Matt Hall, after Councilmember Mark Packard’s opening prayer spurred murmurs from the audience, one member declaring, “Separation of church and state, Dr. Packard!” That led to Dr. Packard’s stern reproach from the dais, “Do not take offense when none is intended.”

The closing words of Packard’s prayer, “We pray for these things in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” were what stoked up the crowd. Mayor Hall, realizing his rosy greeting was premature, wisely called for a ten-minute break.

Twenty Carlsbad residents lined up to speak about the city council’s receipt of the report by the San Diego County Registrar of Voters of a sufficient number of signatures on the referendum to overturn the Carlsbad city council’s August 25 approval of the 85/15 Agua Hedionda South Shore Specific Plan for 85% Open Space and 15% Retail Initiative.   [Read more…]

L.A. Developer Awakens North County’s Sleeping Village by the Sea

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Lessons Learned by Rick Caruso, Elected Officials and Carlsbad Voters

By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

Signatures have been validated on a referendum overturning Carlsbad’s city council approval of a shopping center on the shore of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon. It’s time to reflect on lessons learned from the developer’s failed attempt to bypass city voters, the normal review and approval process, and the California Environmental Quality Act.

When L.A. developer Rick Caruso approached city officials three years ago, they urged him to build community support for his plan. They must have assured him 48 acres of land adjacent to the pristine lagoon would be the perfect place for a shopping center.   [Read more…]

Carlsbad Referendum Signatures Stun Caruso, City Council Pals

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Strawberry Field Owner’s Campaign Donations Revealed

By Richard Riehl

It must have been quite a shock for L.A.’s Caruso Affiliated executives to see the stack of signed petitions delivered to the Carlsbad city clerk’s office last Thursday. The 9,000 signers of the referendum petition are calling for a public vote on the developer’s plan for a lagoon-view shopping center, as promised in the title of the initiative, Measure to be Submitted Directly to the Voters.

When the Carlsbad city Council unanimously approved his plan on August 25, Caruso had already spent nearly $3 million on signature gatherers and a blizzard of glossy, full-color mailers to persuade 20,000 Carlsbadians that his plan to build a shopping mall was all about saving the Strawberry Fields.

The day after the council voted, a grassroots group, Citizens for North County, announced its plan to launch a referendum drive. Caruso had to redouble his marketing campaign. But this time his mailers, accompanied by daily prime time TV ads, featured headshot photos of and quotes from all five city Council members, as well as the owner of the Strawberry Fields. Each repeated the lie that signing the referendum would destroy the Strawberry Fields, despite the promise of Prop D to preserve them, passed by voters in 2006. The Caruso mailer included a detachable, postage-paid card to return to the city clerk for signers of the referendum to have their names withdrawn.   [Read more…]

No ‘Bird’s Eye View’ of Nordy’s-On-The-Lagoon

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By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

While paid signature gatherers raced through neighborhoods representing themselves as concerned citizens on a mission to save the Strawberry Fields, a glossy mailer appeared in my mailbox titled, A Bird’s Eye View of the Agua Hedionda 85/15 Plan, with a full color sketch of an aerial view of the site.

Birds apparently can’t see shopping centers. The verdant landscape is littered with thumbnail photos of a family at a picnic table, a man picking strawberries, a couple strolling down a path and a guy inexplicably carrying a surfboard, as he walks away from the waveless lagoon behind him. A small amphitheater is nestled amid the lush greenery.

Read the fine print to discover what’s missing from the sketch, the “outdoor retail, shopping, dining…promenade.” After the Carlsbad city council unanimously approved the plan, despite the promise of its title in the document filed with the city clerk on May 12, “INITIATIVE MEASURE TO BE SUBMITTED DIRECTLY TO THE VOTERS” (my emphasis), it’s become clear that birds were not the only ones who failed to see the entire developer’s plan.   [Read more…]

Carlsbad City Council Backs Caruso Bogus Claims

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Strawberry Fields Not Threatened by Vote

By Richard Riehl

Caruso Affiliated’s latest glossy mailer features the smiling faces of the five city Council members who voted unanimously to approve the developer’s plan to build a Strawberry Fields mall. Directly below the beaming politicians is the plea, Don’t let outside interests end the Strawberry Fields and take away what’s ours, followed by the command, DON’T SIGN THE PETITION. You’re invited to “get the facts” from a link to Caruso’s corporate marketing campaign.

You’d think our public officials would refer us to the city’s website, where you can find unbiased documents related to the developer’s plan, like Prop D, passed by the voters in 2006, and the entire Agua Hedionda South Shore Specific Plan (AH-SP). So I went to the city’s website, where I found this. “The City of Carlsbad did not sponsor the initiative and, by law, no public resources may be used to advocate for or against an initiative or referendum.”   [Read more…]

Have You No Shame, Mr. Caruso? Carlsbad Residents are Not ‘Corporate Interests’

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The Strawberry Fields Mall marketing campaign heats up

By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

When my wife and I arrived at Alga Norte Park last week to be among the first to sign the referendum to let us vote on the city Council’s decision to allow a developer to build a shopping center on the Hedionda Lagoon, we found two tables there, the first set up to dissuade those of us headed for the referendum table nearby.

The folks supporting the Caruso development were pleasant enough, inviting us to hear their side of the story. But having already been duped into signing a petition to “save the Strawberry Fields,” only to learn we’d been misled, we headed straight for the referendum table a few yards away.   [Read more…]

Choosing Real Citizen-Led Advocacy to Preserve Carlsbad’s Open Space

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By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

After vowing never again to sign a petition, my wife and I are headed to Alga Norte Park to sign one. It’s our attempt to make up for foolishly falling for the pitch to support an initiative to “save the strawberry fields.” The man with the clipboard at my door claimed he was a member of a group of concerned citizens, rallying to save them.

A day later I learned how I had been sweet-talked into abandoning my skepticism of California’s bogus initiative campaigns. He was far from the public-spirited do-gooder he represented himself to be. The guy walking away with my signature was paid for its delivery to the developer who was rallying to bring a strip mall to the strawberry fields.   [Read more…]

Preserve Carlsbad Open Space the Right Way: Let Us Vote

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By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

When it comes to air pollution, the Carlsbad City Council’s report on the Agua Hedionda Initiative, the “9212 Report,” reads a little like “close enough for guv’ment work.” When it comes to traffic congestion, it’s a developer’s faith-based initiative. But when it comes to the city’s projected $2.6 million a year tax revenue windfall it’s, “Whoopee, we’re gonna be rich!”

City staff took 2 ½ months to write the August 7 report. The Council and general public will have had 17 days to read and think about what’s in its 254 pages, and the 542 additional pages of supporting documents, before next Tuesday, August 25, when the Council will decide whether to approve the plan with no further review, put it on the ballot for voters to decide, or take more time to think it over.   [Read more…]

The Trump Immigration Plan, Like His Candidacy, Mostly Smoke and Mirrors

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By Richard Riehl / The Riehl World

After weeks of generalizations about his positions on the issues, Donald Trump released his first policy paper last weekend, Immigration Reform That Will Make America Great Again. Its three core principles are building a wall that can’t be scaled or tunneled under, enforcing current law, and “improving jobs, wages and security for all Americans.” It’s clear that applies only to citizens. He lists a series of solutions to problems he believes he can solve, citing sources to support them. But following the links provided to those sources reveals the distortions and exaggerations that serve as the smoke and mirrors of his proposal. Here are a few of the more dishonest examples.   [Read more…]

Duped by Signature Campaign for Strawberry Fields Mall in Carlsbad

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The perversion of citizen led petition drives by big money

By Richard Riehl

My afternoon nap was disturbed last month by the sound of a man’s cheery voice from behind the screen at my open front door.

“Hello, hello!”

Awakening from a sound sleep, I shuffled to the door to find a man standing there, holding a clipboard. He didn’t introduce himself, just explained, “We’re gathering signatures to save the strawberry fields.” I didn’t recognize him, but his easy way led me to believe he was a fellow resident of our 40-unit condo community.

Despite full knowledge of our HOA ban on door-to-door solicitation and my own vow never to sign a petition without knowing the details of what it meant and who was pushing it, I allowed the phrase, “save our strawberry fields” to cloud my better judgment.   [Read more…]

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