Where to Park Amid Ongoing Construction at the CAC

A view of the entrance to the underground parking lot and the walkway to the CAC which is still being poured.
Things are going to change after September 29 – that’s the last day county employees and the public will be able to park in the north lot at the CAC. On September 30, the new underground parking garage will open to the public, elected officials and assigned staff.  General Services will close the north building entrance and fence off the north lot to begin work on the next section of the waterfront park.

So, where will other County employees go to park? Let’s start with parking for those employees coming to the CAC for meetings.

The new 96,000-square-foot underground parking structure, which can be accessed from Ash Street, will have 250 parking spaces said Suzanne Evans, Waterfront Park project manager. The majority of those spots - 178 of them- are for our customers, disabled parking, and people attending public hearings.

Employees in their personal vehicles who are traveling to the CAC for meetings or other business may park in the public spaces in the underground garage, which now have a three-hour time limit to accommodate longer appointments, Evans said. Those in a County vehicle can park in metered spaces on the street for free.  

The other 72 spaces will be reserved spots for assigned county employees and department vehicles, she said.

The underground garage will be outfitted with security cameras in the stairwell and throughout the garage. Existing cameras on the building lookout to the construction area and along the lighted and fenced-in walkway to the south door of the CAC, said Evans. Two security guards will also patrol the lot in the day and another guard will be assigned to it after hours.

ABM parking will operate paid public parking in the new garage after hours and on weekends, but CAC employees who work late or on holidays and weekends may park in the public spaces in the underground parking garage as long as they display their County parking permit and have their badge. People who park in the reserved spaces may be ticketed unless the space is assigned to them.

New parking permits will be distributed to CAC employees who previously parked in the north lot and are not assigned to the underground lot. Those employees will be assigned to a new lot at Ash Street and Kettner Boulevard, to Lane Field or the Broadway north parking lot. Employees already assigned to Lane Field or Broadway North parking lot will remain in their assigned lots.

Shuttle service will continue to make two stops on the way to the CAC. The shuttle is stationed at Lane Field in the mornings and picks employees up there and at the Broadway north lot then continues to the CAC east entrance. In the afternoon and again at the end of the day, the shuttle stations itself at the CAC east entrance to take employees back to their vehicles.

On Dec. 2, General Services will begin construction on the CAC’s new employee parking structure at Cedar Street and Kettner Boulevard. That means November 29 is the last day CAC employees can park in the Cedar and Kettner lot. Employees assigned there will receive new parking permits for either the Broadway north or Lane Field parking lot.  

The new 10-level employee parking structure with approximately 650 spaces is set to be completed in early summer 2015, said Dave Timber, project manager for the Cedar-Kettner parking garage. The structure will have three underground levels, seven levels above ground and will be integrated with the Little Italy-County Center trolley stop, he said.

The employee garage will have a glass elevator with views to the west and north and a temporary plaza on the street level that will include outdoor furniture and trees, said Timber.

To learn more about the Waterfront Park project, including a map of employee parking lots, visit the  CAC Waterfront Park Construction page on InSite.

Make the World a Better Place Saturday for Coastal Cleanup Day

Wish you could volunteer, make the world a better place and still kick it at one of our world-famous San Diego County beaches or waterways?

Then this is the weekend for you!

Saturday is California Coastal Cleanup Day! And there’s still plenty of room to volunteer a few hours — from 9 a.m. to noon — to hang out with other cool people and help clean more than 90 sites stretching from Oceanside to the U.S. Mexico border and from the coast to Lakeside’s Lindo Lake.

The annual statewide event is put on locally by I Love a Clean San Diego; sponsored by our County; financially supported by Board of Supervisors Chairman Greg Cox and Supervisors Dave Roberts and Ron Roberts; and last year collected and got rid of more than 80 tons of cigarette butts, caps and lids, food packaging and recyclable plastic!

All you need is a bucket, work gloves, a reusable water bottle and to check here to register to become a part of a really worthy — and rewarding — event.

“Coastal Cleanup Day is one of my favorite events of the year because you see residents from all communities and from large companies rolling up their sleeves to clean up our beaches, bays and waterways,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Greg Cox.

Marsha Cook, as part of the Department of Public Works Watershed Protection Program, has been working every day for years to protect local beaches and waterways. (Much of the litter, pollution and yuck that ends up in our beaches, bays, creeks and rivers is swept up and carried from our neighborhoods and communities by rainfall and that out-of-control sprinkler running down your street.)

But Cook said Coastal Cleanup Day is one of her favorite days of the year, and an event she’s been taking part in for many years because there is such a sense of satisfaction.

“There’s a really neat energy about the day,” she said, “there’s an electricity in the air, an enthusiasm — and a wonderful sense of accomplishment. If you can help out, please consider a few hours in the sunshine doing a good deed.”

Saturday’s event will officially kick off with a media event — Supervisor Cox is one of a number of speakers — at 9 a.m. at Gompers Neighborhood Park in Chollas View. But with more than 90 locations, there’s probably a Coastal Cleanup site near you.

So volunteer! Make the world a better place! And have a great time!

All volunteers must sign a waiver to take part; kids under the age of 18 needs a parent or guardian’s signature.

And if you do take part, we want to hear about it. Take a photo or two and we may show them off on InSite! Email the picture with your name, department and location where you did the cleanup - preferably an exact address. Even if you don't have a picture, send us a note saying where you took part.

As Fires Raged, Employees Scrambled to Help Victims

10 years After Wildfires, Lessons Learned Help Prepare County for Future Disasters 

Local Assistance Center veteran Carey Riccitelli took this picture of the Fallbrook LAC in operation during the 2007 wildfires. 

They arrived with soot on their faces. Some had lost homes or businesses.

Some of the 2003 wildfire victims arriving at the County’s Local Assistance Centers (LACs) were crying, while others were dazed or overwhelmed.

“You could see it in their face, they were lost and didn’t know where to go,” said Randall Krogman, Administrative Services Manager II with the Department of Animal Services.

Within days of those devastating wildfires sparking, Krogman was assisting victims at one of the County’s new Local Assistance Centers. It was the first time the County had launched the one-stop-shop resource centers, which are designed to offer a full range of services to victims.

Krogman co-managed the LAC in Valley Center during the 2003 wildfires, and roved between the Ramona and Fallbrook LACs during the 2007 wildfires.

Nearly a decade ago in October 2003, the fires had come on with great speed and ferocity. Employees responded quickly and heroically. But as with any new endeavor, they scrambled to respond to evolving—and unpredictable--needs and conditions.

“We knew we were disaster service workers, but nobody really knew what that meant,” said Carey Riccitelli, a Community Health Promotion Manager with HHSA assigned to the LACs during the 2003 and 2007 fires. “We hadn’t seen it in action.”

The County has come a long way since those early days of Local Assistance Centers. Today, hundreds of employees have been pre-assigned roles and extensively trained on how to manage and operate LACs when the need arises. A series of trainings are underway again this month in advance of peak wildfire season. About 150 employees are taking the two hour refresher classes designed to give an overview of how to manage and operate the LACs.

Leslie Luke, a Group Program Manager with the County’s Office of Emergency Services, said three separate teams are trained to staff and run a LAC, in addition to a team ready to oversee them. The County has also readied employees to work in the County’s Emergency Operations Center and volunteers to staff 2-1-1, the free 24 hour information hotline and database.

The LAC training began as part of a broader effort called the Advanced Post-Disaster Recovery Initiative. Approved in 2011, the initiative aims to better prepare the region for natural and man-made disasters and speed up recovery efforts. Among the key components is pre-training groups of employees to help citizens recover from disasters, restore community lifelines such as water and power and rebuild communities.

Back in 2003, employees had not been trained in how to run a LAC. But within a few days of the fires starting, many were tapped to go work at one of the first LACs being established in trailers, schools and community centers. They set up the centers so that residents went to FEMA first, then Red Cross for immediate needs such as food, blankets, hotel vouchers and sandbags. Then residents would go to any County departments or agencies for permits or more information. A counselor was available to help with mental health services.

Some victims were “totally devastated” and had lost everything, Krogman said, while others had lost some or all of their small businesses. Others had lost a water tank or trailer on their property. There were homeless people who arrived looking for help too.

Some victims were not accustomed to or comfortable asking for help, Krogman said.  They spoke a variety of languages—and there weren’t enough translators.

Others walked in with their children and needed child care assistance while they got help.

The LACs were very crowded when residents first found out they were there, Krogman said. The crowds kept flowing in. Daily traffic ranged from 70 to 300 residents a day, he said.

“We made it up as we went along,” Krogman said. “Fortunately, the County has a lot of resources so we were able to get what we needed as we went along.”

Employees’ roles were defined along the way, Riccitelli said.

John Rosenthal, Community Relations Manager for the Department of Child Support Services, was dispatched to the Ramona LAC in 2003 to help with communications and media relations. He did whatever work was needed, from carting bottles of water, distributing food to residents to checking in with the County’s then Department of Media and Public Relations.

After 2003, the County used many of the lessons learned to prepare for future disasters. Rosenthal and others used that experience and knowledge when the 2007 wildfires came around.

At the LACs, everyone had a better understanding of the impact such an event could have on residents and communities, Riccitelli said.

“It wasn’t just you need shelter and food, it was wow, you’ve been through a crisis,” she said. “It felt more cohesive, more community oriented…People felt like the County was their friend in this.”

The planning and training has only gotten more sophisticated.

The Office of Emergency Services has worked to identify any gaps in the system at LACs. They asked LAC workers what would have made their jobs easier, and as a result added translators, and an ombudsman and chaplain to each LAC staffing plan. LAC staff members also wear vests identifying their roles and have been trained to approach residents who are alone or in need of help.

“We tried to identify every aspect of what didn’t work, what did work and what would be nice to have and tried to add that,” Luke said.

Over the years, the LACs have become more and more focused on the survivor. The number of agencies and nonprofits prepared to respond has grown too. And if LAC staffers haven’t made it to an in person training, they can view a series of online videos on the County’s Office of Emergency Services website to prepare.

“A lot of our lessons were just in time,” Luke said. “We were reactionary. Now we can be more proactive.”

Of course, something new and different is always going to come up—that’s how you grow, Luke said.

“But we’re in a better position now,” Luke said. “We learn from each one of these events and we adjust and adapt.”

As challenging as it was to work at LACs during the devastating wildfires, Krogman said it was also the most gratifying experience he’s had as a County employee.

“You get to see and help the victims face-to-face, and you’re able to see how many needs they have,” and help them directly, he said. “You get emotionally attached and invested in what you’re doing. It was very rewarding.”

Sitting at the Bench

All rise, the Superior Court of San Diego County is now in session, the Honorable Michael D. Washington  presiding.  

Judge Washington was sworn in as San Diego County’s newest Superior Court Judge at a 1:30 p.m. ceremony today.  California Gov. Jerry Brown recently appointed Washington, a Republican, to serve.

Judge Washington, 54, of Temecula, brings extensive experience in criminal law to the Bench.  He has been an attorney in the San Diego County Public Defender's Office since 1994.  

Before joining the Public Defender’s office, he was a judicial extern in Federal District Court for the Honorable Rudi M. Brewster.  Since 2003, he has also served an adjunct professor at the University Of San Diego School Of Law. In addition, he works as a faculty member for both the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and Lawyers Without Borders.

Judge Washington earned a Juris Doctor degree from California Western School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from San Diego State University. He fills the vacancy created by the passing of Judge George W. Clarke.

Innovative County Programs Grab Three CSAC Merit Awards

Terrific job Health and Human Services Agency employees! Your efforts on three innovative programs were recognized by the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) from more than 200 other county programs that applied this year.

An independent panel of judges with expertise in county programs and challenges selected the award recipients.

The three CSAC Merit Award winners were:

San Diego County – Live Well San Diego an ongoing plan launched by the County to promote health, safety and a thriving region. The plan aims to steer people away from a state of chronic disease and spiraling health care costs.

The plan includes three components: Building Better Health, Living Safely, and Thriving. Since it was adopted, the plan has helped nurture farm to institution relationships including 14 school districts, one independent school and some senior meal contractors and restaurants. The County is also helping to improve the health of its employees with worksite wellness activities such as boot camp, Zumba and yoga classes.

San Diego County – Blueprint: Comprehensive Services for Homeless Mentally Ill is a program with a goal to reduce homelessness in the mentally ill by providing a combination of services, housing and community support.

The Blueprint for Recovery uses a team approach to stabilize a mentally ill person and helps him develop independent living skills such as cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping and money management.  To reach out to the community, HHSA developed a Housing Matters media campaign to reduce stigma, housing discrimination and landlord/community fear of the mentally ill.

San Diego County – Technology & Aging Coalition was created to help educate older adults about technology so they won’t become isolated as the technology is absorbed more and more into society. The goal is to help senior citizens get on email and the internet. The coalition also educates tech companies about the needs of this population.

The coalition, which includes nonprofit and for-profit organizations, started in 2010 after an Aging Summit on Technology drew more than 2,000 older adults interested in learning more about technology. The coalition put on three Get Connected public events, printed a Technology Resource Booklet with various useful websites, and created a listing of technology-related classes and clubs offered at libraries, senior centers and community centers with computer labs.

Still Committed to Safety

One of the keys to staying safe - is staying healthy. Watch above to learn about the connection as we move into a new year of the Work Safe/Stay Healthy program. WSSH website

Ready, Set—Enroll in HR Benefits Starting Sept. 30

 

Are you interested in changing your health insurance plan? Maybe you want to put away more money in a health savings account?

Mark your calendars. This year’s Open Benefits Enrollment period starts Monday, Sept. 30 and runs for three weeks, ending at the close of business Monday, Oct. 21. The benefits you select will become effective Jan. 1, 2014 and last through calendar year 2014.

Enrollment is optional. That means if you’re happy with your current benefits and don’t need to make any changes, you don’t need to do anything. Your 2013 designations will automatically roll over into 2014.
The major exception is if you participate in the Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). Employees who take advantage of these accounts must re-enroll in their benefits each year.

Unlike last year, employees can expect only minor changes to the County’s 2014 Benefits offerings. Those include:

•    Employees can contribute more to their Health Savings Accounts (HSA). Maximum contribution levels have increased to $3,300 per year for an individual or $6,550 for an employee +1 or more. Employees who are 55 years or older can contribute an additional $1,000 per year.

•    The monthly cost for an HSA account has dropped from $3.50 to $2.75 for accounts with a balance of less than $5,000.

•    Anthem Blue Cross will replace CVS Caremark as the pharmacy vendor for Anthem Blue Cross traditional plans (non-high deductible plans), starting Jan. 1, 2014. All Anthem Blue Cross traditional plan members will receive a new medical card in the mail that can be used at both doctor’s offices and pharmacies.

•    Non-represented employees and employees in bargaining units who have a newly adopted agreement with a term of June 28, 2013 – June 25, 2015 will see 5 percent increases to their County flex credit contributions for 2014. Employees who are in a bargaining unit that has not yet reached a successor agreement will not see a change to their flex credit rates until negotiations with their unit have concluded and MOA’s have been adopted by the Board of Supervisors.

•    Some monthly premiums will increase, while others will stay the same or drop. Premium increases for County medical plans are the most modest in recent years. Plans with rising premiums include Anthem Blue Cross’ Full Access, Select and PPO plans and Kaiser Permanente’s Traditional HMO and High Deductible plans. Premiums for the Anthem Blue Cross High Deductible Plan will remain the same. Meanwhile, premiums for the County’s VSP Vision and United Concordia DHMO and PPO Dental plans will decline.  

For more information, visit the County’s Human Resources Open Enrollments website or call the Benefits office at (888) 550-2203. You can also attend an upcoming Open Enrollment Educational Seminars, scheduled at the following dates and times:

•    9/16 12 to 1 p.m. – 220 W. Broadway, 6th Floor Orientation Room

•    9/16 1 to 2 p.m. -- NBC Building, 225 Broadway, 8th floor Conference Room

•    9/16 4 to 5 p.m.—CAC, Bayview Room

•    9/18 9 to 10 a.m. – COC, Room 171, Building 5560

•    9/20 12 to 1 p.m. – Vista Courthouse, Jury Lounge

•    9/27 3 to 4 p.m. – El Cajon Courthouse, Jury Lounge

•    9/27 3 to 4 p.m. – HHSA, 690 Oxford St., Chula Vista

Why Should You Get a Flu Shot?

Yep, it’s time to roll up your sleeve again. It’s time to get your flu shot.

Starting Monday, you will be able to get a flu shot at several locations in the County.

“Every employee is encouraged to get a flu shot,” said Don Turko, director of the County Department of Human Resources. “We’re offering the flu shot at County facilities to make it easier for employees. Plus, it’s FREE.”

Why is it important to get a flu shot?

It can prevent you from getting sick…and prevent your co-workers and family members from getting sick too.

If avoiding the fever, aches and pains does not convince you, consider this.

Last year, 65 San Diegans died from complications from the flu. That was the highest number of deaths ever reported in San Diego County, including during the 2009-2010 H1N1 Pandemic Flu season.

“Influenza can be a serious and deadly disease, especially for the elderly and young infants, as well as for people with chronic conditions like heart disease or diabetes,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “The best protection against the flu is to get vaccinated. Get yours now.”

Influenza, regardless of what type, can be deadly. That is why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone six months or older should get a flu vaccine every year. The vaccine is safe and effective. It takes about two weeks for immunity to develop after getting vaccinated.

This season’s flu vaccine offers protection against Influenza A H3N2, Pandemic H1N1-like, and Influenza B strains.

In addition to getting the vaccine, there are other precautions people can take to avoid getting sick: wash your hands thoroughly and often, use hand sanitizers, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth and clean commonly touched surfaces. If you are sick, stay home, rest, drink plenty of fluids, and avoid contact with others.

Probation Methods Encourage Kids to See Own Potential

Marcus Brady, retired Supervising Probation Officer, at left and Correctional Deputy Probation Officer Stephanie Howell, at right, flank Adriana Boutte (center), her grandfather and friend, as she accepted a $400 scholarship from the African American Probation Officers Association recently.

Things could have gone very differently for 18-year-old Adriana Boutte. She got involved in gangs at the age of 12 and was in a lot of fights. A joyride landed her in Juvenile Hall for the first time and she went in and out of there through middle school due to her defiant behavior.

But she turned her life around with the help of several probation officers. And last week, Boutte started classes at City College with a $400 scholarship she received from the African American Probation Officers Association to help her with registration, books or anything she might need to succeed.

 
“I’m pretty sure I’ll never go down that road again,” says Boutte of her criminal past. “I know I’m capable of a lot and I know God has a purpose for me and I’m doing everything in my power to live up to that.”

Among the officers who took an interest in Boutte were Stephanie Howell, Correctional Deputy Probation Officer II, and now-retired Supervising Probation Officer Marcus Brady. Both nurtured a relationship with the troubled girl and kept her on track throughout her supervision and beyond it.  

Howell, who has worked for Probation for 19 years, treats all the young kids who come through the court-ordered Youth Day Center, Central school the same. She reaches out to them and tries to form connections and encourage them, but there have been a few like Boutte who hold on after they have completed their probation.

“I feel like she is a daughter to me,” Howell now says of Boutte, but she was not an easy person to reach at first.

“I didn’t really care. I didn’t see how much of a waste of time it was so I just kept getting locked up for violations or not doing what they told me to do. It was just like constant violations from (ages) 12 to 15,” Boutte says.

Then Boutte got shot in the arm while she was out and was locked up again for her role in the crime that led to the shooting. Her boyfriend at the time was also locked up. She was unable to use her injured arm while it healed, and none of her so-called friends reached out to her.  She began to take stock of her life and feel depressed, and she started connecting a bit with the probation officers around her.

 
Boutte spoke to Howell at length about what she really wanted to do.  Boutte wanted to go back to school and eventually go to college. Howell directed Boutte to counseling for coping skills and encouraged her whenever she started going off track.

“I just continuously reminded her of her goals. I could see that she had the ability to do it. She’s a very, very smart girl,” says Howell.

Howell’s approach is what Probation calls an Integrated Behavioral Intervention Strategies (IBIS) and is how Probation’s entire staff is being trained. The approach calls for probation officers to counsel those on probation by talking with them about what circumstances and behaviors led to their trouble and what they want to do with their lives instead. Howell said it is an approach they have used at the school for years because it works.

“I have a lot of support from Officer Howell and Officer Brady,” Boutte says.

Boutte stayed in touch with Howell and Brady after leaving the Youth Day Center in 2011. She updated the probation officers on her grades at San Diego High School where she earned As and Bs in all her courses. Because of that, Howell encouraged Boutte to apply for the probation officer association’s scholarship, which Boutte won.

Boutte also told the officers about her progress with the Second Chance job readiness program for probationers. Boutte graduated from the program and later went back to Second Chance as an intern to help run a land restoration project in Alpine with other probationers.

Howell and Brady cheered her on at her track meets and attended her high school graduation last June.

“She is doing really well,” Howell says. “We do what we do (as probation officers) because we want to help them. If you get to see just one child make that change in their life, then it truly is all worth it.”

Cutting Down on Sugar, Fat Leads to Sweet Payoff

Sheriff’s Employee Makes Dramatic Health Turnaround after County Screening

Josh Ritter used to drink five or six Pepsis and root beers a day. He’d crack his first open in the morning after he woke up, sprinkle them throughout the day, and sometimes have one right before bed.

The 54-year-old Sheriff’s Community Services Officer stashed Hot Tamales, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Hershey’s bars and other candies in almost every room of his house.

Ice cream was another favorite indulgence.

“I was a sugarholic,” said Ritter.

He talks in the past tense because he’s made drastic changes since being diagnosed with diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure after a County health screening in March.

Enticed by the $100 incentive to complete a County health screening, Ritter visited a Kaiser Mobile Health van at the North County Regional Center in Vista, where he works. A nurse expressed alarm after taking his blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure readings, suggesting he go see his doctor that same day.

He went the next day, and after getting the diagnoses, immediately began transforming his eating habits.

He’s made remarkable progress, losing 26 pounds since March. He’s managed to drop his blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure to within normal ranges.

Ritter’s success story alone makes the incentive program worth it, said William Erese, the County’s Wellness Coordinator.  

It shows the importance of learning about your health.

“Just knowing how much risk you face can be the push or kick that wakes people up and into making lifestyle changes,” he said. The significance of “avenues like this where you get that information cannot be understated.”

Erese emphasized that the Employee Wellness Program isn’t only for people who have health issues. Wellness screenings, for example, can also help people re-confirm that they are healthy.

After Ritter got the diagnoses, one of the first things he did was start reading food labels. He’d never really done that.

He started avoiding foods with cholesterol, and severely cutting down on red meat, chips and other fatty and sugary foods. He now eats more chicken than steaks and hamburgers, more salads and fruit, and drinks just one or two diet sodas a day.

He’s also cut his portions. Sometimes he still splurges, say on a Hot Pocket sandwich, but rather than eating two, he’ll have one. Instead of consuming a king size chocolate bar, he’ll eat a mini-sized bar.

“That takes care of the craving,” he said. “I’m still getting that hit, without it being the overload.”

He also takes a few medications that help with the conditions.

Ritter’s co-worker Mary Crooks, an office support specialist with the Sheriff’s Vista Court Services Bureau, said watching Ritter’s progress was inspiring. Crooks went through a health transformation a few years ago, too, shedding 30 lbs. She serves as a Wellness Champion, a County employee who volunteers their time to help plan, promote and organize wellness programming.

“Everybody here saw him lose the weight, and we were all like, ‘wow, good job,” Crooks said. “But I think the reason it’s so impressive too is he didn’t waste any time on this. He got busy and took care of it.”

Ritter said his weight had ballooned after he got married a few decades ago, and stayed there. His doctor would tell him to lose some pounds, advising him to eat less. He was able to slowly lose about 25 pounds over the past five years. But he was still overweight.

Since March, he has lost the additional 26 pounds.

Ritter wasn’t entirely surprised about the diabetes diagnosis. His father and both brothers were also diagnosed with it around the same age, in their mid-50s.

After learning he had it too, Ritter decided to take action. He said he has a lot to look forward to. He loves his job, his wife and his three children. And when he’s not working, he is an avid Renaissance re-enactor and a longtime Comic-Con volunteer.

He said he jokes a lot, but that he was as serious about making these changes and he has been about pretty much anything in his life.

“Do I want to drop dead in the next four or five years or do I want to address it?” he said.
For more information on the County’s Employee Wellness Program, visit its website.