Roberts Cottages on the beach to the harbor to Mission San Luis Rey.

Collins has seen a lot of change in downtown Oceanside over the years and cites particularly the new townhouses and condominium complexes in the area as well as new restaurants like 333 Pacific, Flying Pig and Privateer. But she says more attention needs to be paid to the north end of Coast Highway.

As she spoke, she pointed out vacant lots of two other corners across from the restaurant, a service station on the third and the closed Miramar motel and restaurant across the highway.

“We’re still needing some action on this end of town,” she said.

The story of the restaurant and a sample menu are available on its Website, harborhousecafe.net Story and photos by Lola Sherman

lunch restaurant all along – open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. seven days a week.

Collins is enthusiastic about the breakfast offerings, like apple, ham and brie or asparagus and bacon omelets. “We use Roma tomatoes and only 100-percent vegetable oil or olive oil, she said, and all baked goods – coffeecake, blueberry muffins and cinnamon rolls are made in-house.

In addition, the restaurant offers all kinds of hot beverages – espressos, cappuccinos, lattes and chai teas.

“There’s an Italian flair to our food,” Collins said, noting the family’s heritage and citing specifically the riva del garde omelet with homemade Italian sausage, fresh spinach, artichoke hearts and provolone cheese.

She also stresses healthful choices, like “muscle man” omelets or Greek yogurt topped with

homemade granola and fresh berries and drizzled with honey or the soup her mother, Lina, was enjoying one recent lunchtime. It is cream of spinach mixed with onion, corn and squash.

Also, she said, “We really try to promote families in here. It’s where friends and family feel at home.”

The restaurant seats 102, but there also a few tables for patio dining.

Inside, a mural of Oceanside highlights covers most of two walls, showing sites ranging from

People come back for the chicken tortilla soup and for the pulled-pork sandwiches with homemade barbecue sauce.

So says Paula Collins, operator of the Harbor House restaurant located at 714 North Coast Highway – in its present location since 1995 and previously just next door since 1959.

The property was bought in that year by Collins’ father, Anthony V. Spano.

Spano still runs the Red and White Superette, separated from the restaurant by a parking lot. At the market, he is joined by daughters Pamela Deneke and Gina Shank.

At the restaurant, Collins is joined by her sister, Annette Servi.

It was called Hamburger Heaven until the 1995 move and primarily has been a breakfast and

Spanos Family serves breakfast and lunch to O’siders since 1959

DOWNTOWN CONNECTION

SPRING 2014

Preserving and PromotingDowntown Oceanside

Since 2000

STAFFRick Wright

Executive DirectorKim Heim

Director, Special ProjectsGumaro Escarcega

Main Street Program ManagerKathy HammanOffice ManagerCathy Nykiel

Sunset Market ManagerMaryanne Bruce

Vendor LiaisonBeecher Young

Crew Chief

BOARD OF DIRECTORSRoseanne Kiss, ChairNorth County Printers

Sylvia SpivaPier View Market Kirk HarrisonHarney SushiTom LeBus

Seaside Financial ServicesMax Disposti

North County LGBTQ Resource CenterForrest Heyden

Asylum Surf and SkateKim Millwood

That Boy Good BBQDavid Schulz

Star Theatre CompanyCecil Goff

Nationwide Insurance

ADVISORSHoward LaGrange

Visit OceansideTracey Bohlen

City of OceansideDavid Nydegger

Oceanside Chamber of Commerce

MainStreet Oceanside701 Mission Avenue

Oceanside, California 92054(760) 754-4512

info@mainstreetoceanside.comwww.mainstreetoceanside.com

MainStreet OceansideSunset Market Oceanside

SpotlightMERCHANT

Uglow would like to see a downtown enclave of antique and upscale resale shops.“We all believe in this store and what it is going to bring to the Oceanside area,” Uglow said. “I picked Oceanside,” she said, because “It’s a great city with a great foundation.”

And she’s still selling sliders at the market, thinking ahead to the day when she will open a brick-and-mortar restaurant as well.

Plethora Galleria is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, but appointments may be made for other hours by calling 760-845-8711. Story and photos by Lola Sherman

Her late father, Russell Alston, also supported her, and Uglow said she is so lucky that her parents backed her and believed in her. She said her father, an engineer who died in December, told her “I taught you well.”

“It’s my first adventure” into such a retail operation, she said, but just by social media and word of mouth, “this little store has gotten a lot of attention.”

And she said “if you go out with a smile, I will have done my job. You don’t have to buy anything.”

She’s worked hard to keep prices more affordable than in the usual boutique, she said, with little – except for the furniture and art, of course, costing more than $30.“I know a lot of people do not have a lot of money,” she said, fingering some $5 scarves. “It’s nice to come to a little boutique that has unique things and is affordable.”

Also, she said, “I wanted to make this a sustainable store” For instance, she rehabilitated the shelves from the old Shelhoup’s Department Store in Vista. When she did, she found an old sign announcing the sale of screws – five for 5 cents.

Uglow figures roughly 50 percent of the merchandise in her store is new while the other half is resale.

Others bring in their products as well, like Sammi Dulay with custom designs in semi-precious metals and stones and Kris Welk and Nancy Duthie with their Beach Girls Soap body butters and tattoo treats.

Uglow’s husband, Paul, through his own business, Ugie’s, makes the unique surfboard art.

Son David Canady and daughter Courtnie Canady also help out, as does her friend, Lottie Height, Uglow said, so that Plethora Galleria truly is a family store.

Alysin Uglow has gone from selling sliders at the Sunset Market to selling just about everything else at her new Plethora Galleria in downtown Oceanside.

The store at 609 Mission Ave. offers jewelry and handmade greeting cards, large wall-hanging art fashioned from surfboards, vintage clothing, “Mid-Century Modern” furniture and phonograph players that still play vinyl records.

Plethora means “a lot” of something, and Uglow’s store lives up to that name.

She once had food-preparation experience in Encinitas elementary schools and drove a catering truck on Camp Pendleton for a couple of years, so it wasn’t a huge step to open a sliders stall in the Sunset Market, presented every Thursday evening by MainStreet Oceanside.

People come from as far as Orange County and Temecula for the beef and chicken sliders, she said.

But it is a bit of a leap to owning a “brick-and-mortar” store with clothing and furniture, etc., etc., etc.

Uglow said the store was her mother’s idea, and her mother, Lois Alston, 85, of West Covina has helped find some of the clothing she sells. “It was something she’d always wanted to do,” Uglow said.

Some of the ladies’ gloves featured in the store were her mother’s.

Alysin Uglow hopes her Plethora Galleria is a the beginning of a downtown trend

SpotlightPROFESSIONAL

community in Riverside County. Paul Cauthen’s “handle is ‘the surf man’ (and) he serves all the beach folks.” And Chase Bell is the expert working with seniors.

Albert also has kept his “doing business as” company name of Veteran Broker Service assisting the military but finds his Pierview Properties title “most fitting” now.

Story and photos by Lola Sherman

He started kindergarten at Mission Elementary School and also attended the no-longer-existing North Oceanside School.

When he was in the third grade, the family moved to San Diego.

But, he said, “I like North County far better” and “the beauty of Oceanside, particularly from a real-estate perspective” is that you meet “people from all over.”

It’s close, he said, to attractions at Petco Park and Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego or to Anaheim Stadium and to the Lindbergh Field airport in San Diego or John Wayne Airport in Orange County, but “yet you live a life free of the internal congestion.”

Albert went into real estate in 1978 and soon had offices “from San Ysidro to Victorville and all in-between”, always owning his own businesses.”

Then, he worked for another company for 10 years but left when it became a franchise.

Albert said he found that “the bigger you are the less you can pay attention to the personal needs of clients.”

He has nine associates now.

“Our agents are very diverse,” Albert said. For instance, Henry Ly specializes in the Vietnamese

David Albert believes his Pierview Properties at 302 N. Cleveland St. is located “in the true epicenter of Oceanside.”

He says the downtown district “is where every-thing starts – the whole vibe.’”

“I like it down here for the high energy,” Albert said during an interview in his real-estate office attached onto the side of the historic McKay building.

On the corner of Pier View Way and Cleveland, the building, constructed in 1908 as a dry-goods store by George P. McKay now houses the popular Pier View Coffee Shop on the ground floor.

Kristi Hawthorne, president of the Oceanside Historical Society, said records show the addition used by Albert probably was built in the 1950s and served for many years as the Railway Express Agency office.

“From the real-estate perspective,” Albert said, it’s easy to promote a city named for the ocean side. And the pier, visible from his office, “is the center of Oceanside,” he said.

Albert first came to Oceanside in 1951 when his father was a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton, and the family lived in the 800 block of Freeman Street – not all that far from his current office, established in 2011.

Pierview Properties

Full Service Real Estate Brokerage Since 1979sellers representation. home warranty plans. internet exposure. pre approved buyer services

... a fresh perspective ...

decisions are being made on new projects that “art and culture are on the plate,” Schulz said.

“It’s a great time for downtown right now,” he said.

As for the Star, Schulz said, “I’ve built really an amazing team here” with everyone either holding a university degree in theater or working on one.

Sandra Kopizke is director of music. Nicholas Prax is technical director and Katie Betian is production and office manager. She also consults on hair and makeup. Besides working on Star productions, they help the groups that rent the theater.

Probably, Schulz said, renters don’t have the same lighting, sound and technical expertise as Prax, but also the use of the theater’s own staff protects its equipment. “We know what they need,” Schulz said.

The Star has taken over a former barber shop and barbecue cafe next door for rehearsal space and Green Room where actors get ready to perform.

Still, Schulz said it isn’t enough. On occasion, the Star itself becomes a renter – of space at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, so Schulz would like to add a second floor to the old barber shop-cafe portion of the building.

And as for programming, he’d like to add an outreach to Camp Pendleton and take performances to the Marine base, especially for the children.

For now, he’s “really excited to be involved (on the board) with MainStreet Oceanside.” Story and photos by Lola Sherman

Center, had decreed there should be a theater there, but the city wasn’t very interested.

Ann Schulz spoke to the Star’s owner in Oceanside, he said, and then marched across the street to the Civic Center to see the mayor, thinking she probably would not get an audience. But, Schulz said, his mother got right in to see Mayor Dick Lyon, who was enthusiastic as was City Manager Steve Jepsen, who “understood the intangibles that art brings to a community.”

The city loaned the Poinsettia group some money – since paid off. Improvements instituted by Poinsettia include the stage, since enlarged to 35 feet by 20 feet – one of the largest in North County, David Schulz said.

The lobby, apparently patterned after big-city movie theaters of the era, is so large, Schulz said, that it easily accommodates a dinner party of 150 people (the theater seats 460).

Impressed with the theater, John Marx donated the decorative tile work in the lobby.

Easily as spectacular is the marquee from an earlier era, and , except for a few small pieces yet to come, that has been restored to its previous glory. Theater aficionados had hoped to get the marquee, 65 feet wide and six feet tall, fully restored for last year’s 125th birthday party for the city of Oceanside, but they didn’t quite raise the necessary $100,000 in time. But now, Schulz said, it’s the same neon in the same colors as the original.

He comes to the Star with credentials of his own – a degree in theater from Concordia University in Irvine and an international career both as a performer and a director.

But he said the travel that was exciting at 20-something became a drain at 30-something, especially with two children, so he and his performer wife, Heather, decided to settle down – in Oceanside. He took over management of the theater in 2009 when his mother retired.

The Star does six shows a year – two more than previously, but Schulz said the theater is rented out 270 days a year - up from 70 days when Schulz took over.

It is rented for everything from Genesis church services weekly to productions of several schools, such as Santa Fe Christian from Solana Beach and Tri-City Christian from Vista as well as the private Pacific Ridge School from Carlsbad.Casa de Niños preschool holds its graduations at the Star.

Schulz and Bill Ims from the Star board are active, along with Daniel Foster from Oceanside Museum of Art in a new consortium, to form a “North Coast Theater and Arts District”.

Its purpose, Schulz said, is to “promote downtown as a theater and arts district - for us to let San Diego and Orange County know that right here in downtown Oceanside the arts are flourishing with two performing-arts centers (the Star and the Brooks theaters) two museums (art and surf) and 10-12 pop-up art galleries.”And its purpose also is to make sure when

The Star Theatre has flourished so well in Oceanside, that its Encinitas roots aren’t missed at all.

Actually, it’s the current production company that traces its beginnings elsewhere.

The theater structure itself first was built in Oceanside in 1956, and there’s a bronze historical marker embedded in the lobby floor to remind everyone of that fact.

It was one of four downtown theaters – the others are the Crest, the Palomar and the Towne – in the heyday of movie entertainment. The Crest hosts church services, the Palomar was razed to make way for the Civic Center, and the Towne, rechristened the Sunshine Brooks Theatre, is city-owned.

At one time, all showed x-rated films, the regular movie business having been taken over by multiplex cinemas, mostly in shopping malls Now, both the Star and the Brooks feature locally generated live theater.

The Star had closed in 2000 when Ann Schulz of Encinitas found out that it was for sale. Schulz had founded the Coast Kids Theatre Co. in her own city 37 years ago. ”I basically was born into the theater,” her son, David Schulz, said.

Schulz, now managing artistic director of the Star, said “there’s a picture of me on he end of the stage in a baby carrier” while his mother directed shows.

His mother’s kids’ group performed mainly in the La Paloma movie theater in Encinitas but also at Oak Crest and Diegueño middle schools.

“We went anywhere there were more than 10 chairs,” he said. Ann Schulz hoped her nonprofit Poinsettia Center for the Arts could locate permanently in Encinitas.Her son said that the Paul Ecke family, whose land was used for the Encinitas Ranch Town

Star Theatre

MAY 3

MINGAFEST

An afternoon of food, beer and wine tasting, live music, art, and community.(See article in this newsletter.)Tickets $40.00 online/$50.00 at the door.www.oma-online.org1:00 pm to 4:00 pmOceanside Museum of Art704 Pier View Way(760) 435-3720

MAY 9 - 18

Star Theatre Company presentsHONK

Honk! is a musical adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen story The Ugly Duckling, incorporating a message of tolerance. The musical is set in the countryside and features Ugly – a cygnet (who is mistaken as an ugly duckling upon falling into his mother’s nest) who is rejected by everyone but Ida (his mother), a sly tomcat who only befriends him out of hunger, and several other barnyard characters.See website for times and dateswww.startheatre.bizHistoric Star Theatre402 N. Coast Hwy(760) 721-9983

MAY 16 - JUNE 1

Oceanside Theatre Company presentsNeil Simon’s LOST IN YONKERS

By America’s great comic playwright, this memory play is set in Yonkers in 1942. Bella is 35-years-old, mentally challenged and living at home with her mother, stern Grandma Kurnitz . As the play opens, ne’er do-well son Eddie deposits his two young sons on the old lady’s doorstep. He is financially strapped and taking to the road as a salesman. The boys are left to survive in a strange new world called Yonkers.See website for times and dateswww.oceansidetheatre.orgSunshine Brooks Theater217 N. Coast Highway(760) 433-8900

APRIL 26

California Surf Museum presentsSURF SWAP MEET

Looking for some cool surf stuff to buy, trade, or decorate with? Come on by and see what the tribe of collectors have brought to share. Boards, posters, magazines, books, clothing, gear, collectibles – all will be on display for you to haggle over at your leisure. Come early and have fun!6:00 am to 11:30 amParking Lot across from Surf Museum312 Pier View Way(760) 721-6876www.surfmuseum.org

APRIL 27

EARTH FESTIVAL

North County’s largest Earth Day celebration! Located in downtown Oceanside, the Earth Festival has free and exciting attractions for everyone! Enjoy the Children’s Eco-Zone, environmentally-geared booths, delicious food and dazzling entertainment. Check out the Vintage Market, Green Home Improvement area and a Water-Friendly plant sale. The Earth Festival will feature a home improvement section focused on water conservation practices that can be implemented in homes and landscapes. 10:00 am to 5:00 pmCorner of Tremont St and Pier View Waywww.greenoceanside.org

APRIL 26 & 27

DAYS OF ART

Oceanside Cultural Arts Foundation proudly presents the 22nd annual Oceanside Days of Art (ODA) being held on Saturday April 26th and Sunday April 27th 2014 from 10am to 5pm. ODA is a juried fine art festival featuring over 100 local artists selling a variety of unique artwork including paintings, sculptures, stained glass, ceramics, fine jewelry, photography and more. The festival which is offered free to the public has live stage performances, children’s and adult’s hands on art activities, street chalk artist, painting and sculpture demonstrations, and a delicious variety of food choices in the food court. The Oceanside Museum of Art located adjacent to the event will have free admission during both days of ODA.10:00 am to 5:00 pmCorner of Pier View Way and Coast Hwywww.ocaf.info

JUNE 7

Surfrider Foundation presentsBEACH CLEANUP AT THE PIER

Meet on the north side of the pier down on the beach. Bags and gloves will be provided, but we encourage you to bring your own reusable supplies if you have them. Contact david@surfridersd.org for more information.9:00 am to 11:00 amPier Beachwww.surfridersd.org

BEYOND DOWNTOWN

APRIL 19

EASTER EGG HUNTS

Joe Balderrama ParkBuddy Todd ParkFireside ParkLibby Lake Park

Various times. See website for details.www.oceansiderec.com

MAY 10

OCEANSIDE HERITAGE DAY

A day of family friendly fun with food, music and activities for all ages.$5.00 adults, $1.00 childrenHeritage Park220 Peyri RoadNoon to 4:00 pmwww.oceansiderec.com

JUNE 20

FREE CONCERT IN THE PARK

Featuring the Mar Dels, San Diego’s most well-known and loved nostalgia band. Since 1982 this popular seven-piece group has been performing dynamic renditions of the best music from the 50’s - 70’s.Rancho Del Oro Park4700 Mesa DrivePre-show 5:00 pmConcert 6:30 pm to 8:30 pmwww.oceansiderec.com

THURSDAYS ALL YEAR ROUND

Oceanside Farmers MarketPier View Way east of Coast Highway9:00 am - 1:00 pm(760) 754-4512www.MainStreetOceanside.com

Oceanside Sunset MarketPier View Way west of Coast Highway5:00 pm - 9:00 pm760-754-4512www.SunsetMarket.com

SpotlightMERCHANT

Unfortunately – a fate affecting both the flower shop and LIVE – the address to the stores is Coast Highway – in LIVE’s case – 212 N. Coast, Suite F – but there is no access from Coast, only from Artists Alley.

Shelton has been trying to get mapmakers to recognize the alley so people can find it more easily.

LIVE is open Mondays and Tuesdays by appointment, Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursdays from 11 to 9 and Friday and Saturday from 11 to 6. Story and photos by Lola Sherman

Goodell and her partner/boyfriend, Troy Howerton, opened the store in November.

Howerton is a professional “picker,” featured on television as a finder of real treasures. He sells online and to places as far away as Israel. The Oklahoma drawl of his childhood audible, Howerton said his interest in antiques was piqued by his grandfather, who took him to his first antique show when he was 15.

Goodell spent 20 years in Los Angeles in television production for the likes of HBO, Showtime, CNN ,9NBC, E! the entertainment channel and the Style Network.

“I’ve also been a collector on a personal level my entire life,” Goodell, a Chicago native, said. She said she was introduced to things old by her father who took her to vintage car shows.

The couple, together for about two years, came to Oceanside because his son attends school here.

“I really think that downtown Oceanside needs to be developed,” Bushnell said.

With the ocean and the pier, she said, it has the potential to be a Huntington Beach, a place to reflect the flavor old California beach towns.

The couple liked going to the Farmers’ and Sunset Markets in downtown Oceanside and met Sherry Shelton, who recently has opened a flower shop in Artists Alley and intrigued them with the history of the location, a block-long pedestrian walkway just east of Coast Highway between Pier View Way and Mission Avenue.

“We really liked the space” of a nearby empty part of the building covering that block. Goodell said. They put the project together in 80 days.

Goodell’s goal is to attract other antique dealers downtown to make it a destination.

The word “eclectic” does not begin to describe the new LIVE Store in Artists Alley.

Everything from old mail carts to an umbrella canopy for rent occupy the store. There are lots of handmade jewelry, metal filing cabinets, “shabby chic” vintage-style but updated furniture, old board games, milk cans, water coolers, dinnerware sets, sterling silver and “Miss Mustard Seed’s milk paint.”

LIVE, subtitled “the studio, the gallery, the store” offers the wares of 12 “anchor vendors,” supplemented by the works of additional artisans of every ilk from paintings to sculpture.

What makes the whole place different from a standard antique mall, says co-owner Nancy Goodell, is that it all comes together in what looks like “one cohesive unit”. LIVE is not a series of booths manned by individual vendors. “They all have their own style, but they blend well together,” Goodell said.

For instance, in one area, vendor Cara Golden sells what she calls “mantiques” - industrial-type items - “nothing too dainty.”

Included in her area is an old school desk , a hutch, a Paymaster adding machine that surprises Golden by still working and her favorite, a Barnum and Bailey circus poster from the 1940s.

Across the store, in the “romantic” area, Mistie Springs makes adjustments on the aforementioned canopy. “It’s part art, it’s an umbrella, it’s a canopy umbrella, “she says. She made it herself and said “burlap and lace are big right now.”

Eclectic doesn’t begin to describe the new LIVE Store in Artists Alley

towards a great event on May 3,” he said.

Besides, Foster said, “It’s going to be fun!”For several years, Oceanside Rotary’s principal fundraiser was a Crab & Ribfest on the grounds of Mission San Luis Rey. Club members sought a more lucrative effort.

Oceanside Rotary supports a number of charitable endeavors and is involved specifically in programs to improve the Crown Heights neighborhood just northeast of downtown and the scene of periodic gang violence.

Curtin said his target is to attract 1,000 people to this first MINGAFEST.

Admission is $40 in advance and $50 at the door. To purchase tickets, visit oma-online.org or call (760) 435-3721, or get your tickets at the door the day of the event.

Guests will enjoy wine, beer and food tastings from local artisans including 333 Pacific, Bull Taco, Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen, Hello Betty Fish House, Senor Grubby’s, Wrench and Rodent Seabasstropub, Beer Brewing Co., Belching Beaver Brewery, Indian Joe Brewing, Latitude 33 Brewing Company, Oceanside Ale Works, O’Neill Honey Company, Prohibition Brewing Company, Stone Brewing Co., California Fruit Wine Co., Lush Coffee & Tea, Wiens Family Cellars and Witch Creek Winery, among others.

The Giant Peach Band will play during MINGAFEST, and finalists in the Tri-City Talent Show will perform as well.

Story by Lola Sherman

Other nonprofits can benefit as well from the sale of MINGAFEST tickets.

Tri-City Medical Center is the title sponsor. The theme is “The Art of Building Healthy Communities.”

Curtin and Beate Russe from the museum are co-chairmen and have been planning the event with near-weekly meetings since last year. Russe, a former member of the museum board for about a decade, said she was asked to take part by Cheryl Weiner, current board president.

“The main reason I got involved was the vision that this event will help to build a healthy, active, exciting, successful and prosperous community,” Russe said, noting that when she and her husband Michael first came to North County from Berlin, Germany, 29 years ago, she “complained a lot about the lack of art, culture, good food and restaurants.”

What’s new, Russe said, is working “with another non-profit organization as a partner and putting on an event that is that big and hasn’t been done before.”

During a February “Mingler” to introduce other non-profits to the MINGAFEST concept, Daniel Foster, museum director, noted that it has fundraisers at other times of the year but nothing in the spring previously.

“At this critical time in Oceanside, it is essential that our community works together in collaboration and across sectors to achieve our greatest visions and hopes for Oceanside’s future,” he said. “The power of synergies and leveraging people, talents and resources in a collaborative approach is the recipe for building strong, healthy and prosperous communities.”

“Unfortunately,” Foster said, “it is a rare occurrence that many organizations come together – and stay together – to work towards a common vision and goal.

“MINGAFEST is a great collaboration among MainStreet Oceanside, Rotary, OMA and all interested nonprofit and community-based organizations to work

Downtown Oceanside will experience its first MINGAFEST from 1 to 4 p.m. on May 3.

What’s a MINGAFEST? Well, as the name implies, it’s a sort-of festival, this one with plenty of food, wine, beer and music to be presented outdoors at the Civic Center and sponsored by Rotary Club of Oceanside, Oceanside Museum of Art and MainStreet Oceanside.

But the MINGA part takes a bit more explanation. Mike Curtin, president of Oceanside Rotary. was impressed by a video presentation from the “Rotarians for Peace Symposium” a year ago in Toronto, Canada.

In that presentation, Marc Kielburger, a Canadian and founder of a group called “Free the Children,” told of its efforts to build a school in a remote area of the Andes Mountains of Ecuador in South America.

All the supplies had to be taken by donkey up a steep, narrow, winding path.

But it was harvest season at the same time, and all the crops had to be taken to market down the same path by donkey.

There literally was a “traffic jam” of donkeys on the trail, Kielburger said.

Since the school-builders were running out of time, Kielburger went to the “wisest, eldest woman in the community,” a sort-of chief, and explained the situation.

There was no problem, the woman said. “I’ll just call a MINGA.”

What’s a MINGA, Kielburger wondered, and the woman explained that in her native Quechua, language of the ancient Incas, it is “a coming together of people to work for the benefit of all.”She asked “what’s the word in English?”

Kielburger said at the symposium that he could think of a lot of words for “money” in his own language, but as for the coming together of people to work for the benefit of all, he reasoned that “volunteer” doesn’t quite work because that can be done alone, and “barn-raising” isn’t exactly what one would do in downtown Toronto (population 2.8 million) and a “riot for good” didn’t exactly work, either.

So Oceanside’s “coming together of people to work for the benefit of all” is keeping the name MINGA.

The fest involves principally not only the Rotary Club but the Oceanside Museum of Art and MainStreet Oceanside, which, because it stages weekly farmers markets in the area, has the expertise to help set up the event.

What the heck is a Mingafest?

The upstairs has been cleaned up, Lambert said, and is used for storage.

According to Kristi Hawthorne, president of the Oceanside Historical Society, the second floor was listed in the 1927 city directory as the Los Flores Hotel, in the 1950s as the Glencoe Hotel and in 1981 as the Hotel California.

Hawthorne said the street-level store has been Liberty Food Co. (1927 directory), Cory Dry Goods (1929 directory). Yarbrough’s Ladies Sport Shop and Western Auto Supply (both 1938). Elm’s Clothiers (1948 through 1959) and Oceanside Martial Arts (1977-81).

Lambert said it has been vacant for some time.

He said Mueller has other similar stores in the Inland Empire - Fontana, San Bernardino, Redlands and Yucaipa – and another new one in the High Desert (Hesperia).

Lambert said Mueller wanted a store on the coast and liked the idea of being in downtown Oceanside – and being close to Camp Pendleton. He said Marines, particularly those from the Midwest, already have bought quite a few guitars. They miss their music, Lambert said, and they want a guitar to play in the barracks.

“We offer the whole gamut of the music industry,” he said.

Lambert showed guitars ranging from $900 to $3,500 top-of-the-line instruments including new ones made of a solid piece of carbon fiber with no joint at the neck so it can’t break off with heavy use, as sometimes happens with a wooden guitar.

A complete Yamaha drum set costs $830.

Lambert’s own background is far from the world of music. He spent a dozen years as a professional mixed-martial-arts fighter.

He’s still laying in jewelry because it took so long to do the retrofit and get the store open, but already there are many rings, earrings, bracelets and necklaces available. Diamond studs are on

sale.

And there are large amethyst geodes as well.

Coast Jewelry & More has a pawnshop license. “We do pawn,” Lambert said, “but it’s not our main focus.” Also, he said, the store buys jewelry.

It is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. six days a week and to 7 p.m. on Thursdays. Story and photos by Lola Sherman

There’s an imaginary line down the middle of the Coast Jewelry & More store at 205 N. Coast Highway in downtown Oceanside.

On the left side of the line, the jewelry is displayed.

And on the right-hand side, the “more” - primarily musical merchandise such as guitars, drums, amplifiers and mixers - can be found.

The store opened only a couple of months ago after a major remodel/retrofit.

Manager Jason Lambert said the owner, David Mueller, knew that such unreinforced masonry buildings face state-mandated retrofitting for seismic safety in case of earthquakes and figured he just as well do the work now.

And Mueller has taken out the stairs to the second level – once a series of small hotels – and relocated them in the back alley, accessible only to store staff.

Coast Jewelry and More

SpotlightMERCHANT

window tinting to temper harsh sunlight and cool an interior – by as much as 22 degrees – and protect the furnishings

Lower temperatures not only save money by reducing air-conditioning costs by about 20-25 percent, Perry said, but using less electricity saves the environment as well. The savings mean the cost of the service is paid back in two-three years, he said.

Some people don’t like the idea of putting film on their windows because they think it will look like the darkened windows of a limousine, Perry said.

But he said he offers film that’s “clear as glass” – and that’s why it fools taggers.

Anti-graffiti measures are the second part of his business, after temperature reduction, Perry said.

The third part, he said, is offering protection from white calcium deposits that often collect on windows where sprinklers repeatedly have sprayed water onto the glass to corrode it. The process works on shower doors as well, he said.

Outside of Oceanside, SunPro customers have included “very large” businesses such as Sea World, Panera Bread, Jack in the Box, Wendy’s and In-N Out Burgers restaurants.

Story by Lola Sherman

Taggers may think they really are doing some damage when they scratch the windows at a business or school, for instance, but Marcel Perry says if SunPro Tinting Inc. has installed its special covering, the graffiti just lifts off with the film.

Perry’s business is headquartered in Encinitas, but he works all over North County.

He figures SunPro has served most of the businesses “up and down Mission (Avenue) and 101 (Coast Highway)” as well as many buildings in the Oceanside Unified School District.

SunPro also has installed two-way privacy film in the windows at local schools, Perry said.

That keeps any intruder from seeing into a classroom with children inside but allows the students to see outside. And, he said, there’s even anti-graffiti film on school stadiums.

He’s just finished, Perry said, putting film on all the windows on the front of the Ocean Villages building on North Coast Highway and, he said, he’s put it on windows in the nearby Civic Center.

Perry said a survey was completed as part of the city’s storefront improvement program of all businesses that have graffiti etching – 85 percent of them, as it turned out – from Ditmar Street to Pacific Street and from Pier View Way to Michigan Street in the downtown area, although the $100,000 price tag has prevented a project thus far.

SunPro has buffed out graffiti and placed preventative film on the windows of MainStreet Oceanside’s offices. In fact, Perry said, he donated that job because it was a learning experience – he was just getting to know how to do the process.

At the time, he said, every MainStreet window had been etched by taggers.

Perry bought SunPro, previously owned by Encinitas Glass, in 2010 and he still leases “a little space” from that firm. “Most of our work is in the field,” he said, because he doesn’t do cars but rather business and institutional buildings.

SunPro’s a family business involving his wife, Barbara, and son, Brian. Another son, Matthew, is stationed in Las Vegas with the Air Force.

Perry’s background is in engineering. so he said it didn’t take him very long to pick up science behind the tinting process. He previously worked in the petroleum-equipment industry and served in the U. S. Air Force.

The biggest part of his business, Perry said, is

SunPro

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Cecil Goff AgencyCECIL D GOFF

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Oceanside, CA 92054(760) 237-2882

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©2006 Nationwide Insurance Company of America. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Affiliated Companies. Nationwide Life InsuranceCompany. Home office: Columbus, Ohio 43215-2220. Nationwide, the Nationwide Framemark and On Your Side are federally registered servicemarks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. Not available in all states.

Mission Avenue Improvements Project moves closer to completionThe highly antipated Mission Avenue Improvements Project is moving quickly toward its projected June 2014 completion date.

The project creates a one-way “couplet” system by reducing Mission Avenue to two westbound lanes and changing the direction of the two lanes on Seagaze Drive to eastbound.

The extra real estate created by the narrowing of Mission Avenue will allow much wider sidewalks and will include street trees and furniture. Runoff water that formerly went straight into the ocean will now be diverted to state-of-the-art retention basins that will percolate the water into the soil.

Although access has been preserved for all businesses facing the project site, many of them have suffered a marked decrease in pedestrian traffic. The City of Oceanside and the general contractor have made every effort to lessen the impact of the construction on businesses by installing wayfinding signs in the area and covering awnings with protective plastic.

MainStreet Oceanside has hosted monthly meetings at their office to facilitate communication between the City, the contractor and the businesses.

Father Mike at St. Mary’s Star of the Sea Catholic Church has generously opened his private parking lot during the project’s duration to accomodate the patrons of businesses in the area.

In order to allow free access to the businesses on Freeman Street, the Thursday Morning Farmers Market has been relocated one block west and is now staged on Pier View Way

from Freeman Street to Cleveland Street. This new footprint will likely be necessary until the street construction is completed.

There are already signs of new economic activity along Mission Avenue. Two existing restaurants on the north side of the street, Rim Talay and Swami’s, are making plans to offer expanded outdoor dining opportunities. A new restaurant, Mission Avenue Bar and Grill, is currently under construction on the 700 block of Mission Avenue. The owners plan to be open before summer (MissionAveBarandGrill.com). Also, an alcoholic beverage license application on display in the window of 509 Mission Avenue indicates that Sumo Hot Sushi Bar and Grill is planned for that space.

Questions about the project should be directed to Nathan Mertz, Project Manager for the City of Oceanside, at 760-435-5619.

Mission Avenue Improvement Project

Morning MtgMainStreetMainStreet Morning Meeting Notes: April 1, 2014City officials asked at the April Morning Meeting of MainStreet Oceanside Tuesday what downtown business people would think about a possible traffic roundabout at the corner of Coast Highway and state Route 76. There’s no money for such a roundabout, David DiPierro, City Traffic Engineer, told the three dozen people in attendance. But DiPierro said it’s best to draw up plans in case grant funds can be obtained. For instance, he said, a $1.5 million grant from the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is helping to construct the current improvement project on Mission Avenue (total cost $3 million). DiPierro called the Coast Hwy/76 intersection the gateway to downtown and likened it to the new roundabout at Coast and State Street leading into downtown Carlsbad. A roundabout, he said, would replace the signal at the corner and would consist of two lanes turning southbound onto Coast and one lane northbound. There still would be Interstate 5 access from SR 76. Rick Wright, MainStreet Executive Director, asked about hotel access in the area. DiPierro replied that he doesn’t “like the idea” of a frontage road but believes there’s no firm rule against driveways onto a roundabout. The land around the freeway terminus is owned by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), DiPierro said, but it is willing to relinquish the more-westerly portion to the city. David Nydegger, Executive Director of the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce, said traffic from nearby Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base fills the roadway every Friday afternoon. “We’ll study it,” DiPierro said, but a roundabout is supposed to help traffic flow. And, he said, there would be no more left-turn accidents so he sees “a lot more advantages.” DiPierro told an inquiring Leslee Gaul, Executive Director of Visit Oceanside, that extensive landscaping installed by the City as gateway beautification will be maintained. A public meeting on proposals to upgrade the entire length of Coast Highway has been scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. May 15 at City Hall. DiPierro said 200 people attended a previous public meeting on the subject in South Oceanside. DiPierro said the City Council will be asked to fund the planning as part of its capital-improvements budget for the fiscal year beginning in July. He estimated the price of a roundabout at $1 million.

Gumaro Escarcega, MainStreet’s Program Director, said the mixer will be from 5 to 7 p.m. on the hotel’s second-level deck where attendees can “see a nice sunset,” view art, enjoy offerings from the Succulent Cafe and learn how decorating with such plants can help an office save water. He also told of the formation of a new group of Downtown Ambassadors. According to a news release prepared by MainStreet, it, the City and Visit Oceanside are collaborating on the project commencing next month and running from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Volunteers will guide visitors to restaurants, museums, shops, parking and transportation and get feedback from the tourists. Nydegger said the Oceanside Chamber will sponsor a forum featuring county supervisorial candidates Bill Horn and Jim Wood from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in the board room at MiraCosta College. Eileen Turk, City Parks and Recreation Division Manager, announced several upcoming events: an Easter Egg Hunt at 10 a.m. April 19 in Buddy Todd Park; Heritage Park Day May 10 with a $5 admission to benefit Friends of Oceanside Parks, the opening of a model-train exhibit in the park April 19, a concert with the Mar Dels June 20 in Rancho del Oro Park, July 3rd fireworks on Rancho del Oro Road, other concerts on the third Friday of June and July in Rancho del Oro Park and an August concert at Mance Buchanon Park Cathy Nykiel, Sunset Market Manager, told of new music and food choices, including a gluten-free bakery, at the weekly event. Nykiel also told of plans for the annual Independence Day parade June 28 and said that Nydegger has agreed to be Grand Marshal. Gaul said the annual Tourism Summit kicking off the summer season will be held at 8:30 a.m. May 8 at SpringHill Suites. Anne Speraw said the next production at the Sunshine Brooks Theatre, “Lost in Yonkers,” begins May 17, and her San Luis Rey Rotary Club will host a reception. DiFierro said the City would be opening the latest segment of the “Rail Trail” at 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 7, with a small ceremony near the railroad tracks at Wisconsin Street. The next monthly meeting will be held from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. May 6 in MainStreet office, 701 Mission Avenue.

Story by Lola Sherman.

By the time the roundabout concept gets to the council, DiPierro said, “we want to make sure the business community is behind it.” DiPierro also talked about concern for pedestrian safety now that the SpringHill Suites by Marriott hotel had opened in downtown Oceanside, and he recommended a four-way stop sign be installed at Mission Avenue and Myers Street at a cost of about $500. Eventually, he said, developers in the area will pay for a $200,000 signal at that location. Councilman Jerry Kern, in the audience, said it would be best to get the work done before summer. Another City engineer, David Toschak, reported on the status of the Mission Avenue improvements in the absence, on vacation, of project manager Nathan Mertz. Toschak said work will switch to another segment Monday. He said it still can be completed by June 21 if there isn’t too much rain to interfere. The threat of rain, he said, “is why it’s important to get the paving done today.” From the audience, Dee Layden of Ocean Sky Beads, said businesses are suffering from the construction in front of their buildings and some can’t afford to stay open because few customers can negotiate changed roadways and lack of visibility and parking. Jenna Roripaugh, City Environmental Specialist, reported on the plans for Earth Month. Beginning April 24th, both the Oceanside Farmers Market and the Sunset Market will no longer use plastic bags and styrofoam food containers. On Sunday, April 27th, North County’s Earth Festival will be held in Downtown Oceanside, which is also the weekend of the Annual Days of Art Celebration. Roripaugh said “Donate-First Day on Saturday, April 5, will give people a chance to take clothes and electronic waste to the El Corazon Senior Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nonprofit organizations will collect the items for re-use, she said. Also, Roripaugh said, there will be a free “Create to Educate Performance Showcase” at 7 p.m. April 25 in the Star Theatre, 402 N. Coast Highway. A reception will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. in the theater lobby. She said the performance will include a string ensemble and a drum corps from Oceanside schools. In addition, Roripaugh said, “green” business awards will be presented April 22 in conjunction with MainStreet’s next mixer - at SpringHill Suites. Information on Earth Month activities can be found on the website at www.GreenOceanside.org.

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