City Heights wire art must go
City attorney says installations distract drivers from traffic signals
Mike Madriaga 8:30 a.m., Sept. 25
Escondido Stories
Nerd-Con controversy
No cred given to co-creator of annual gathering of freaks and geeks
Bridal-show planner Joel Jones wanted to host an event for local geeks who didn’t make it to Comic-Con. His first one-day Nerd-Con mixed fantasy nerd culture with live bands and drew 3000 to the California ...
Meth-troubled dad faces court dates
Repeat offender accused of kidnapping wife and child and more
A man who allegedly invaded a home in the remote eastern edges of Escondido, and was reportedly shot multiple times by the homeowner, is due in court on Wednesday, September 13. Noe Colimas Valladares, 28 ...
Thanks for the gas-price hike, Harvey (big jerk)
Predictable, even though West Coast's supply and main facility uninterrupted
Local gas prices jumped around 10 cents a gallon overnight on August 30, in response to the destruction and flooding from Hurricane Harvey. San Diego gas prices started rising slightly on August 25, the day ...
Gate-crashing repo man flees Escondido impound yard
“You can’t carjack your own car,” declares judge
On July 30, 2017, LeDarral Shakouriel Hollingsworth went to the Allied Gardens tow yard in Escondido to get some paperwork from his car, which had been impounded, according to his attorney. It was there, at ...
A snowball’s chance in Escondido
Baltimore-style shaved ice, best served with marshmallow sauce
If you’re interested in trying the sweetest, coldest treat you can get your hands on this summer, turn your attention to Escondido and a small shack called Baltimore Snowball. As its name suggests, the snowball ...
Escondido Feed & Pet Supply and Brewing Company
"It's a little less than 300 square feet. We had to be a little imaginative."
A 14-year homebrewer, Ketchen Smith has long dreamed of leaving his job in the medical device industry to start a brewery. "I wanted to go 15-barrel," he says, "and retire to brewing." Doing so would ...
Passing out food on the Pala reservation
Squash, peaches, nectarines
It's a slow Tuesday for Michelle Silva, a recreational aide at the Pala Youth Center near the northern border of San Diego County. Most of the center's charges, which number as many as 70 during ...
Homeless friend dies next to Auto Park Way
"I talked to him just yesterday and he seemed fine"
My husband came home on July 24, red-faced and on the verge of tears. "You aren't going to believe what happened," he said. "I was walking down the bike path near Auto Park Way and ...
Syrian refugees ask for money at Escondido Albertson's
Mixed response on West Valley Parkway
Customers Rage at Refugee Panhandlers in Front of Escondido Store A Syrian refugee family, panhandling in front of the Albertson's store at 1570 West Valley Parkway in Escondido, set off a firestorm of complaints from ...
Escondido mobile home owners push back against $7 rent increase
The dreaded long form
The rent hikes are small but steady. Escondido's mobilehome rent control ordinance protects seniors and disabled residents from steep monthly increases; not the $10 kind. However small, a routine bump in space rent can be ...
North County man on early release program re-arrested
Escondido police found stolen credit cards in his wallet
A man who was released from custody because of a California law that sent certain criminals from state prison to local jails and then “post-release community supervision,” was recently re-arrested in Escondido. David Charles Escovedo ...
North County Creeper wants to go directly to trial
The defendant couldn't wait to get out of the courtroom.
A man accused of being the North County Creeper admitted there is enough evidence to send him to trial, and thereby skipped public disclosure of details of his alleged child molestation crimes that would have ...
Free and not-free Fourth of July
Coronado, of course, but Mission Hills, Escondido, Mira Mesa and maybe a cruise on the Hornblower
God bless, John Adams. You can thank him for all the firework displays around the Fourth of July. In Philadelphia, July 4, 1777, 13 fireworks were set off to commemorate the 13 colonies. The colors ...
Escondido says no cell towers in your front yard — unless you live on a street like Citracado
Ben Hueso carries water for wireless guys
Like other cities, Escondido is planning for the mass deployment of fifth generation technology. As both officials and carriers see it, it's time to make the permit process for the "small cells" that can accommodate ...
Look for — but don't take — the copper ore remains
Rancho La Costa Preserve was full of mines
The Rancho La Costa Preserve, located in the cities of Carlsbad and San Marcos, is a popular destination for both hikers and mountain bikers. Situated between Batiquitos Lagoon and Lake Hodges, the preserve serves as ...
Lake Dixon clean-up — do it for Dottie
The most famous largemouth bass in history
Dixon Lake is a smallish, 70-acre reservoir outside of Escondido on the skirts of the Daley Ranch. Even though the lake doesn’t cover much surface area, the dam, completed in 1971, holds up to 80-feet-deep ...
On the way to the “super bloom”
The first bite was reminiscent of a backyard barbecue
We didn’t know where we were going, not at first. All I knew was that it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and I wanted to drive, ideally toward a field of flowers, as my news ...
Escondido neighbors call it sprawl
"Safari Highlands Ranch would be terrible for San Diego's wildlife."
On rugged land north of San Diego Safari Zoo Park, developers want to build a less exotic version of the park; a rich habitat for upper-income humans. The vision statement for Safari Highlands Ranch describes ...
North County has less heroin today
Forty-six gang members rounded up
Federal indictments unsealed yesterday (March 1) charge 55 drug dealers and gang members with crimes including money-laundering, robberies, vehicle thefts, burglaries, assaults, and trafficking in heroin, methamphetamine, and firearms. The gang members operated in North ...
The Würm has turned
Kid606 on the San Diego underground
“I was always under age when I lived in San Diego, so venues were mainly Ché Café, Soma, WorldBeat Center, and the occasional DIY thing,” says Miguel Trost de Pedro, aka Kid606, a 37-year-old electronic ...
The fight for a wood-burning fireplace
“It’s pretty nasty stuff. This stuff really is bad news.”
Several south coast counties restrict wood burning fireplaces, but San Diego isn’t one of them. Not yet. “Although it is not prohibited, wood burning in the home is a growing source of air pollution in ...
Who will drive the trout to Escondido next season?
Tailwalkers' trip from Nebraska no longer economically viable
Unfortunately, this may be the last year for large, record-setting Nebraska Tailwalker trout at three local lakes. The three-year contract with the Chaulk Mound Trout Ranch hatchery in Bridgeport, Nebraska, ends April 19, the last ...
Imagine eating woodrat stew in Felicita Park
Walk the site of one of the oldest and largest Native American villages in San Diego County.
Felicita Park provides a nice mix of easy-walking loop trails with negligible elevation conducive for young children in strollers and any fitness level. The ancient towering oaks provide shade, making this 53-acre fenced county park ...
Escondido residents resist water-treatment plant
Because: liquid ammonium sulfate, sulfuric acid, sodium bisulfite...
Escondido farms need affordable water. Though the city plans to build a recycled-water treatment plant, many residents drawn to a recent city-council meeting were not in favor of living near a “membrane filtration/ reverse osmosis ...
Soup scenario
Escondido gets organic vegan takeout
Driving along the main drag through downtown Escondido this week, I spotted a sign I’d never seen before: Vegan Soup Bar. I’d been planning on a burger, but it was raining and my feet were ...
Likely the first new suds center to open in 2017
That's Jacked Up (Brewery)
A new brewery in Escondido is newly licensed and ready to brew. Guided by the motto "Brew drink relax repeat," Jacked Up Brewery (800 W Grand Ave.) has a conditional use permit to operate in ...
Battery-powered in Escondido
New hardware touted as clean energy alternative
The nation's largest battery storage for energy is being constructed in Escondido — part of the shift away from fuel-burning power plants to cleaner energy, which can't be switched on when needed. San Diego Gas ...
Lake Wohlford opener angers anglers
Fishermen lose patience
Last week, the City of Escondido stocked Lake Wohlford with 6000 pounds of Nebraska Tailwalker rainbow trout for the annual trout opener on December 10. The lake had been closed since December 4, and the ...
The world-famous catfish is not world famous
But the hush puppies are pretty good, and the coleslaw is a surprise
At the top of a steep, winding drive to the northeast of Escondido, you’ll find tiny Lake Wohlford. The dammed lake is routinely stocked with trout for recreational fisher folk, and a mobile home park ...
North County wealth study
Poverty lower, incomes higher than countywide
North County is better off economically than the rest of San Diego County, according to a study released yesterday (December 7) by the Center on Policy Initiatives. It used data from the Census Bureau's 2015 ...
Dixon Lake record-breaking trout opener
“It’s a good day when ten- and twelve-pounders are being knocked off the leaderboard.”
December 2 was opening day for Dixon Lake’s 38th annual Trout Derby. With 6000 pounds of Nebraska Tailwalker rainbows stocked earlier in the week, derby and lake records were broken over the three-day event. Four ...
North County carjackers go 1-for-3
Perps traded an Acura and Honda for a Dodge
Sheriff's deputies reported that North County tow-truck driver narrowly escaped a carjacking attempt early Wednesday morning (November 30). A woman who stopped to help the thieves after one of them crashed during a getaway attempt, ...
Why the lunkers
No license required to fish Dixon Lake
Trout fishing in Southern California has been a put-and-take fishery. The trout caught in our lakes and rivers have been farm-raised and planted (put) for anglers (to take.) Instead of the rainbow trout stocked during ...
Layoffs at Stone Brewing
New CEO blames a decline in domestic growth
On Thursday October 13, Escondido-based Stone Brewing laid off approximately 5 percent of its work force. San Diego's largest brewery by sales volume, the company counted roughly 1200 employees on payroll prior to the layoffs, ...
The price of music promo
Singer Debora Galan finds out it's not All About Love
Debora Galan’s new full-length All About Love was originally planned for release as an EP in 2013. However, “I had to make changes in the production team after investing considerable funds and re-do some of ...
Puppy-mill protesters vs. Escondido Fire Department
City holds out on banning stores that sell pets of poor provenance
The Escondido Fire Department is being sued for restricting protesters' efforts against Escondido Pets (formerly known as California Pets), a commercial dog-breeder operating at the Westfield Shopping Mall in Escondido. According to an August 3 ...
Stone Hotel to rock in-room growler delivery
"Upscale kickass" 99 rooms adjacent to Escondido brewery
Stone Brewing has announced its longtime plan to build a hotel next door to its Escondido brewery will finally come to fruition. First reported in the Reader back in 2011, Stone Hotel was to be ...
Escondido impromptu
EEGsynth jaw-jamming in the woods of Escondido
A crowd has gathered around Per Huttner. He stands upright in a dark room, not moving, eyes fixed on a white sheet of paper in his hand, wires snaking from his skull. Doctor Stephen Whitmarsh ...
Stone officially brewing in Richmond
Stone beer in 28 countries, 50 states by end of the year
As it put together plans for its massive 20th Anniversary celebration, Stone Brewing announced in early July that its new 250-barrel brewing facility in Richmond, Virginia is officially online and producing beer. The morning of ...
Gas prices jump but maybe not too high
World oil prices decline following Brexit vote
San Diego area gas prices jumped 10 to 15 cents per gallon last week, with many stations pushing their cash price for regular gas over the $3.00 threshold. Surprisingly, the oil companies are not offering ...
Stone brewmaster gettin a move on
Mitch Steele to start his own brewery
Longtime Stone Brewing Company brewmaster Mitch Steele announced his departure today via YouTube, indicating June 30 will be his last day working for the nation's tenth largest craft beer company. Under his ten-year tenure, Stone ...
Edward, Prince of Wales, lived here
Melrose Ranch has quite a history
Current Owner: de Jong Family Beds: 5 Baths: 4 List Price: $28,000,000 Listing materials for Melrose Ranch, a “one of a kind property,” assure that the place has been “amazingly restored by a family of ...
Stone still fights establishment 20 years later
Brewery announces True Craft investment fund, celebrates Reinheitsverbot
The founders of Stone Brewing Co. went against the grain when they launched their craft-beer business 20 years ago, an effort that included fighting the beer establishment. Last week, outgoing CEO Greg Koch announced a ...
Charge the fence! — gas less than $2/gallon
Escondido station first in Southern California to cross the threshold
An Escondido gas station’s price drop yesterday (January 28) means San Diego motorists can join the rest of the country in buying gas under two dollars a gallon. On January 28, at 7:00 p.m., the ...
Nerdy New Year!
NerdCon collective throws a 24-hour New Year's Eve party in Escondido
One of the breakout entertainment success stories of 2015 was a one-day geek-rock festival called NerdCon. Think low-budget Comic-Con with live bands. The first-ever NerdCon, held in August at Escondido’s Center for Performing Arts, drew ...
Psych! Gas prices jumping
Say sayonara to Escondido's $2.31/gallon price of three days ago
As the Reader reported on December 14, gas prices in San Diego County reached a five-month low — $2.31/gallon at an Escondido station. But prices are turning upward. At around 3:00 p.m. on December 17, ...
Fishing season opens at Lake Wohlford
City of Escondido plans to stock 25,500 pounds of rainbow trout
Before first light, in the early-morning low-40s temperature, over 200 fishermen hit the opening day of trout season at Escondido’s Lake Wohlford. The December 12 opener was preceded a few days earlier with a 6000-pound ...
Escondido gas to cost less than $2/gallon?
“It’s our strategy to attract more business. We want more customers.”
As of 5:00 p.m. on December 12, the U.S. Gas station at 445 West 5th Avenue, at the corner of Centre City Parkway in Escondido, sold the lowest-priced regular gas in San Diego County. In ...
Fresh Stone beer for Europe Monday
December 7, a date that will live in local brewer's memory
Monday, December 7th, European countries will get their first official taste of Stone brews on draught, as the inaugural batch of beers out of the new Stone Brewing Berlin brewhouse will simultaneously debut at 6 ...
Lowering the water-to-beer ratio
Conservation becoming a factor in local craft
Last spring, California governor Jerry Brown issued an executive order mandating 25 percent reduced water consumption by the state's roughly 400 water agencies. Thus far, the mandate has impacted landscaping but not hampered beer production. ...
Two local lawyers disbarred
Both went to school at UC San Diego
According to the October edition of the California Bar Journal, two local lawyers, Charles Colin Cossio of Alpine and Louis Gordon Bruno of Escondido, have been disbarred. Cossio's disbarment involved moral turpitude. The state bar ...
Old brewery news
Personnel changes and expansions for venerable beer companies
Amid the startling number of new breweries opening these late summer months, some of the county's oldest and largest breweries are also making news with changes in packaging, production, and personnel. Coronado Brewing Company They ...
