Archive for Community

Wild, Windy Weather

Hold on to your hats!  We are under a high wind warning until 4 p.m. this afternoon.  There is also a red flag warning until 8 p.m. tonight.

* WINDS…AREAS OF EAST WINDS 25 TO 35 MPH…WITH GUSTS UP TO 65
MPH. ISOLATED GUSTS UP TO 85 MPH ON WIND PRONE SLOPES.

WIND…AREAS OF EAST TO NORTHEAST WINDS 25 TO 35 MPH…WITH
GUSTS TO 65 MPH. ISOLATED GUSTS TO 85 MPH. WINDS STRONGEST ALONG
THE COASTAL MOUNTAIN SLOPES AND IN THE INLAND VALLEYS.

Hopefully, there will be no ill effects from all this wind.  Batten down your hatches and hope for the best!

Windy

Posted in: Around the District, Community, Customer Infomation, Fire Danger, From the Office, High Wind Warning, Weather, Winds

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Monthly Board Meeting

Wednesday, May 14, 2014 is our monthly board meeting.  It starts at 10 a.m. sharp and takes place in the board room here at the district office.  Our address is 24917 Marion Ridge Road if you would like to attend.  We are right next to the fire station an the public is always welcome to attend.

Our board meetings are held on the second Wednesday of every month.  If you can’t make the meeting, you can check out our website at  www.pcwd.org to get the minutes from the meetings as well as all sorts of other information and helpful tips.  Hope to see you at the meeting!

board meeting audience

Posted in: Board Meetings, Community, Customer Infomation, From the Office

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Fire Safety Muster

The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council is having their third annual Fire Safety Muster on Saturday, April 26, 2014, from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. at the Idyllwild Community Center Site in the center of town.  This is a very important event because it provides mountain residents with information that they need in order to get ready for the upcoming fire season.

There will be many local and government agencies there to share information with everyone.  One of the featured attractions will be the U.S. Forest Service’s popular K-9 demonstration.  Other agencies will demonstrate activities and safety procedures throughout the day.  The Idyllwild Fire Department will demonstrate an extrication of a person from an automobile and several other fire agencies, including Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department and the Forest Service, will demonstrate hose lays.

Pine Cove Water District Booth

Pine Cove Water District Booth

MCFSC’s Woodies unit will be present and demonstrate how to split wood safely and some local tree contractors will demonstrate tree cutting.  You will also be able to register your telephone number, including cell phone numbers, with the Emergency Warning System.  If an evacuation were issued during a fire, this system will leave a message on every phone number registered within the affected area.

The Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit has agreed to demonstrate a rescues provide they aren’t called up to do a real rescue as has happened at the last two musters.  Many other participants, including yours truly, the Pine Cove Water District will be on hand with booths full of pertinent information.  Food and beverages will be available on site throughout the day.  So be sure to head on over to the muster and learn more about fire prevention, abatement, water conservation and much more.

Posted in: Community, Customer Infomation, Fire Abatement, Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council

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Conserving Water Tips

The Environmental Protection Agency, aka the EPA, has some great tips for saving water on their website.  Here is the link to their website where there are many more links to other websites.

http://www.epa.gov/greenhomes/ConserveWater.htm

There are lots of tips on saving water for both inside the house as well as out in the garden.   It is definitely worth reading.

Posted in: Community, Conservation, Customer Infomation, From the Office

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Stage I Starts Today

Just a quick reminder that we have moved into  Stage I Water Conservation, starting today.   Stage I is voluntary compliance and we have every confidence that Pine Cove Water District customers will rise to the challenge, as they always do!  Many of our customers are now practicing water conservation as a way of life and this is great news.

If you are not sure what all the different water conservation stages entail, please check the top of the blog for the page entitled Water Conservation Stages for more information.  If you have any questions, you can always call us at 951-659-2675 during normal business hours of 9 to 4, Monday through Friday.  Or you can email us at Becky@pcwd.org or Vicki@pcwd.org or drop by the office in person.  It is located at 249217 Marion Ridge Road, right next to the fire station.  Or you can write to us at PO Box 2296,  Idyllwild, CA  92549.

Remember that conserving water today ensures there will be water tomorrow.  We appreciate all the efforts our customers make towards conserving water.

Harvesting the Rain!

Harvesting the Rain!

Posted in: Community, Conservation, Uncategorized, Weather

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Help Support ARF

ARF, Animal Rescue Friends of Idyllwild, is our local animal rescue group and they do a fabulous job rescuing dogs and cats and finding them new homes.  They are currently collecting ink jet cartridges, cell phones and small electronics such as cameras, pagers, ipods, mp3 players, ipads, tablets, ebook readers, PDAs, video cameras, calculators, GPS and radar detectors, video games & accessories, video game consoles and handhelds.

Stitch, Mascot

Stitch, Mascot

If you have any of these devices gathering dust around your house, please bring them into the water district office and place them in the drop off box provided by ARF.  Or you can take them down to ARF yourself.  Either way, why not de-clutter your home and help save some animals at the same time?

Want to know more about ARF?  There is a link to their website here on the blog or you can just click this link.

www.arfidyllwild.weebly.com

 

Gracie, the office cat.

Gracie, the office cat.

Posted in: Animals, Community, Customer Infomation, From the Office, Pets and Animals

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Communication

Here at the Pine Cove Water District, communication with our customers is a top priority.  We think we do a pretty good job, however, at a recent meeting, we were informed that we need to improve communication with our customers.  With that in mind, we would like to ask your input on our communication methods and what you think we could do better or more of.  Below is a list of the methods we have employed and services we provide thus far.

  • We include a newsletter or information we think our customers will find useful in each billing cycle, which occurs every other month on the even months.
  • Information board in the office with all sorts of helpful tips and information.
  • Winterizing pamphlets that help our customers prepare for the cold weather.
  • Website and blog at www.pcwd.org and www.pcwd.org/blog.  These are available 24 hours a day and contain a plethora of information on not only the water district, but on a variety of interesting topics that we feel would be helpful to Pine Cove residents.
  • Community Outreach.  We have had a booth at the Earth Fair for several years now as well as the Book Fair at the Idyllwild School.  We also  speak at local meetings and the school when requested.
  • We have worked with the Idyllwild Garden Club as well as a local native plant grower.
  • We work with the Idyllwild Historic Society and have provided them with items to auction off.
  • We work closely with the Pine Cove Property Owners Association and provide information to them for their newsletters and speak at their monthly meetings when asked to do so.
  • We also work closing with the Fire Safe Council and provide them with water district information as well as providing our customers with Fire Safe Council information.
  • We are available by phone and in person Monday through Friday from 9 am to 4 pm and we are now open during lunch most days.  Our phone number is 951-659-2675 and our office is located at 24917 Marion Ridge Road, right next to the fire station.  Stop in and see us!
  • Free Stuff!  Water conservation kits, mulch and compost are currently available free of charge to help our customers conserve water indoors and out.
  • Public meetings and public hearings.  Our monthly board meetings and any public hearings are open to the public and we encourage our customers to attend.  If you are unable to attend our meetings, you may write a letter to the General Manager or to the Board of Directors and drop it by the office.  Or you can send it to PO Box 2296, Idyllwild, CA  92549.  You can also call the General Manager and voice your concerns.
  • Agendas and minutes for all meetings are posted on our website in case you are unable to attend our meetings.
  • Customer appreciation lunch when the budget allows.
  • Mailbox and paper machines for customer convenience.
  • Mail slot in water district office door for drop off of after hours payments or letters to the district.
  • A Transparency Award by the California Special Leadership District.

So what do you think?  Are we doing enough to let people know what is going on around the district?  What are your ideas?  What would you like to see us doing to keep everyone better informed?  We would love to hear your thoughts and ideas.  You can leave a message here on the blog, call us, write to us, stop by the office or email us at Vicki@pcwd.org or Becky@pcwd.org or Jerry@pcwd.org.  Talk to us!

Office workers

Posted in: Around the District, Board Meetings, Board Members, Community, Customer Infomation, From the Office

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Stage I Water Conservation

On Wednesday, March 12, 2014, our board of directors declared a water emergency at a public hearing.  Due to the current drought and the lack of winter snow and rain, they felt the time has come to move back into a conservation stage.  Stage I takes effect as of April 1st.

As most of you will remember from the last time we were in Stage I, this is voluntary compliance.  Customers are asked to conserve, whenever possible, the amount of water used for domestic and business purposes.  Fix leaking pipes, faucets and toilets.  Refrain from washing down or hosing off sidewalks and driveways.  Do not sprinkle unplanted areas for dust control.  Utilize the free compost and woodchips we provide to our customers to minimize watering in the garden.

In Stage I, water prices do not increase until the 4th tier of 18,000 to 24,000 gallons. Any increases will appear in the June bills.

As past experience has shown us, the residents of Pine Cove do a wonderful job of conserving water and we have no doubt that they will once again step up to the plate and do what they can to save as much water as possible.  We will be monitoring this situation very closely and will keep our customers informed on any new developments, good or bad.

Posted in: Around the District, Board Members, Community, Customer Infomation, From the Office, Water Conservation

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More Space Saving Ideas

Here on the hill, gardening is challenging for many reasons.  A short growing season, water restrictions and poor soil, micro climates and shade are just some of the issues we contend with.  As gardeners, we are forced to come up with clever ways to overcome these challenges.  Each gardener is different and has different wants and needs for his or her garden, so each person must customize solutions to fit their particular gardening needs.

One challenge many gardeners everywhere face, is space.  Or lack thereof.  This is why container gardening and raised bed gardens are so wonderful.  They allow us to garden without acres of land to till or to fit a garden into a spot that would be unsuitable for a traditional garden.   Everything from flowers to fruits and veggies to herbs, can be grown in containers or raised beds.

But now you want to branch out, literally, and grow some fruit trees.  A typical 1/4 acre lot can only hold so many trees and if your property is like mine, putting in a bunch of fruit trees would eliminate most of the usable space in my yard.  However, if the thought of walking outside and picking the perfect apples for a pie or a big, juicy peach is something you covet, then why not think about espalier?

espalier 2Beautiful!  So neat and tidy.

Espalier is the art of pruning and training trees and their  branches to be on one plane.  It is usually done against a fence or  a wall, however, by installing posts and wires, you can espalier a fruit tree just about anywhere in your yard or garden.  It is an excellent way to add fruit trees to your garden or homestead without taking up valuable real estate.

espalier 4Posts and wires for espalier trees.

Plus the fruit is extremely easy to pick as compared to normal fruit trees.  If you have ever attempted to pick the apples from the top of a tall apple tree, you will know what I mean and will appreciate being able to pick fruit easily and without a ladder, from an espaliered tree.

espalier 1Much easier to pick apples from trees that are espaliered.  Give it a try.  I will be doing this in my garden!

espalier 3

Posted in: Around the District, Community, Customer Infomation, Edible Landscaping, From the Office, gardening, Homesteading, The Garden

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Customer Pics

I always encourage our customers to send me pictures from around their yards showing what is happening here in Pine Cove.  Sue Hrbek and Wayne Olson sent me these pictures of a blue bird making use of the blue bird house they got from us last year.

Blue Bird house 4

Blue Bird house 5

Blue Bird house 3

Blue Bird house 2

Blue Bird house 1

This a good time to remind everyone with a blue bird house that now is a great time to clean them out so they are ready to go for this years birds.  They may be nesting earlier than normal this year do to the unseasonably warm weather.  So let’s be ready for them.

If you do not have a blue bird house of your own, stop by the water district office during regular business hours and we will give you one for FREE!  That’s right.  We are giving away free blue bird houses.  They are made from recycled wood right in the district workshop by the boys, Jerry and Jeremy.  Pick yours up today.

Posted in: Animals, Around the District, Community, From the Office

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