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MARCH 13, 2015 The Monterey Peninsula is home to hundreds of small businesses, WOMEN in BUSINESS including many owned and run by dynamic, entrepreneurial women whose success stories are an inspiration to us all. A Feature Section inside this week’s Carmel Pine Cone Read all about them in this issue of The Carmel Pine Cone! VolumeThe 101 No. 11 Carmel On the Internet: www.carmelpinecone.com Pine Cone March 13-19, 2015 TRUSTED BY LOCALS AND LOVED BY VISITORS SINCE 1915 LIFEGUARD SEEN AS SOLUTION TO BEACH DROWNINGS CUSD takes By CHRIS COUNTS legal action to WHILE HE conceded there is no way to prevent every drowning at Monastery Beach — which is infamous for its deadly surf — a California State Parks official said the most oust student effective way to combat the threat would be to hire more life- guards and station one at the beach. But that, he said, would n Lawsuit: Student wants to require money — something his agency lacks. “inflict pain” on classmates, staff “The best thing we could do, if we had the funding, would be to put a lifeguard at Monastery Beach on weekends and By KELLY NIX holidays,” Monterey district superintendent for California State Parks Mat Fuzie told The Pine Cone. “We need some- HE HITS, kicks, pushes, slaps, spits and throws things body there to go up and down the beach and educate people. at teachers, staff and students, and Carmel Unified School But we still could lose people because of the inherent dan- District officials have had enough of his violent outbursts. gers of that beach.” Though he’s only 9 years old, CUSD contends that the The beach is not only risky for swimmers and SCUBA behavior of one Carmel River School student is so awful — divers, it can even be deadly to people who stick to the sand, and dangerous — that it has been forced to take court action as was evident Feb. 28 when a woman visiting from Illinois, to get him booted from the district. The Pine Cone has decid- Linda June, and her daughter, were swept into the sea by a ed not to name the student because of his age. A warning sign at Monastery Beach, where eight people have died wave. The daughter survived, but June didn’t. As recently as March 3, the fifth-grader threw a rock at since 2006. The incident attracted both media attention and a public his teacher and threatened to stab school workers with a pen- outcry — some of it critical of state parks’ inability to stop cil. such drownings. In response, Fuzie offered his perspective “It took three adults to wrest the pencil from the [boy],” and dispelled some misconceptions. according to a March 9 complaint filed in Monterey County Supreme Court to rule on Over the past nine years, three people have been swept Superior Court by CUSD that seeks a temporary restraining into the ocean and drowned while walking along the beach, order from the student and his removal from the district. water district ‘user fee’ Fuzie said. An additional two people drowned while trying to Court documents paint a picture of a disturbed boy, who save others. During the same time period, three divers died has amassed a whopping 58-page disciplinary record during just offshore, for a total of eight deaths at the beach. (Another By KELLY NIX just 21 months for behavior that also includes “throwing five divers died at nearby Point Lobos State Reserve.) objects such as rocks and books, destroying property and Fuzie said the deaths of the divers are a separate topic THE CALIFORNIA Supreme Court is expected to threatening to hurt people.” decide in the next few months whether Monterey Peninsula water customers will again incur a surcharge on their month- See DROWNINGS page 12A See STUDENT page 21A ly water bills that they haven’t been required to pay for five years. California American Water customers paid a 8.325 per- Veterans cemetery at Fort Ord gets biggest donation cent “user fee” on their bills until early 2010, when a California Public Utilities Commission judge denied Cal By KELLY NIX The Steins, of Royal Oaks, made news in January when it Am’s bid to collect the charge — which it forwarded to the was announced they had set aside more than $400,000 for the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District to fund its A U.S. Marine Corps veteran and his wife, through their Watsonville Public Library, a place where they spent lots of Carmel River mitigation efforts. estate, donated more than $1 million to the California Central time. “The last time the user fee was collected, it [raised] about Coast Veterans Cemetery at Fort Ord, which breaks ground Their $1.1 million will probably be used for the second $2.9 million” in one year, water district general manager Friday. phase of the cemetery project, which is expected to cost Dave Stoldt told The Pine Cone. The $1,129,480.46 donated by Robert and Elayne Stein, about $30 million. The first $10 million phase, which will who died in 2014 and 2013, is the largest private donation include 5,000 niches for cremation remains on 17 acres, is See FEE page 14A since serious fundraising for the cemetery began about two years ago. The executors of the Steins’ estate, Larry and See DONATION page 27A Corrie Cardon, presented the check to Law would compel Jimmy Panetta during a ceremony in Santa Cruz Wednesday afternoon. retirement homes to “Robert Stein is a former Marine, and he Mission starring in car ad and his wife wanted their remains to be interred at the Central Coast Veterans give back deposits Cemetery,” Panetta, a Monterey County Deputy District Attorney, told The Pine By KELLY NIX Cone. “And they wanted to make sure it got built. This is a powerful donation.” A CARMEL Valley man’s battle with a Pacific Grove The check has been handed to the retirement home to get back more than $250,000 belonging Community Foundation of Monterey to his late mother’s estate has spawned the introduction of County, the nonprofit that established the legislation designed to give more rights to seniors and their Central Coast Veterans Cemetery Fund. families. The roughly 30-minute event at the On Feb. 26, Senator Bill Monning introduced SB 475, Santa Cruz County Courthouse drew which would require retirement facilities to refund in full a Camel Mayor Jason Burnett, Congressman resident’s deposit for an apartment or other “living unit” Sam Farr, former State Sen. Bruce within 14 days after it’s been resold, or 90 days after a resi- McPherson, former Assemblyman Fred dent has vacated a unit — whether it’s been resold or not. A Keeley and others. lump-sum payment would go to heirs if a resident dies, Burnett said Thursday that he was sur- according to the bill’s language. prised by the amount of the donation. Under the current law, retirement facilities are not com- “I didn’t know the dollar amount until it pelled to refund tenants or their estates for housing deposits was announced yesterday afternoon,” said until after a facility resells a unit, a process that can take Burnett, who, with Panetta, has led local The Carmel Mission was one of the locations for a Jeep commercial shot in years and tie up seniors’ funds. It can also prevent heirs from fundraising efforts. “It’s incredibly gener- January. This screen grab from TV advertisement shows a Jeep Cherokee driving ous and will continue the [fundraising] through the courtyard. See page 3A. See DEPOSITS page 20A momentum we need.” Have the complete Carmel Pine Cone delivered every Thursday evening to your iPad, laptop, PC or phone. Free subscriptions available at www.carmelpinecone.com 2A The Carmel Pine Cone March 13, 2015 By Lisa Crawford Watson Middle school lauded Sandy Claws for green efforts Beautiful beach boy Traven, now 8, and his person usually go down to By MARY SCHLEY Carmel beach around 13th Street, and head up the shoreline to where Ocean Avenue drops down into CALIFORNIA SUPERINTENDENT of schools Tom SURELY THEY thought they were getting away the sand, all in pursuit of the ball. Torlakson nominated Carmel Middle School as one of four with something. “My arm gives out long before Traven’s ready to institutions to compete in the U.S. Department of Education Slipping out the side gate when no one was look- quit,” his person says. “I don’t think he’d know what to Green Ribbon Schools recognition program, which “honors ing, Hunter, a yellow Labrador retriever, named by a do with himself at the beach if I didn’t have a Chuckit!” schools that excel in energy conservation and environmental writer in honor of author Hunter S. Thompson, would Although Traven has his eye on the ball, beachgo- education.” The schools were also named Green Achievers, cross the road to get to the other side, where a pretty ers are very aware of Traven and his classic beauty, the highest honor in the state’s Green Ribbon awards pro- little Lab was waiting all morning for his visit. Their making him one of the more photographed canines gram, at a conference at the El Monte Union High School families were unaware of their trysts until the neigh- on Carmel Beach. District in Los Angeles County last week. bor dog delivered her litter. According to the state, Green Ribbon Schools demon- Hunter’s household, who had always strate stellar achievement in three areas: reducing environ- thought they’d like to have a puppy, were mental impact and costs; improving the health and wellness pleased with the news.