Kern River Valley Revitalization (KRVR) held their monthly Steering Committee meeting last Wednesday, Nov. 7, at Cerro Coso College in Lake Isabella to discuss local current events and topics. KRVR is a collaboration of local agencies, business owners, and concerned citizens working to facilitate the social, natural, and financial health of the KRV for this and future generations. Everyone in the Kern Valley is invited to come share their ideas at the Steering Committee meetings, as everyone who lives here is a stakeholder in our community’s future.
USFS Planning Improvements to Cyrus Canyon Motocross Track
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The track is located on 20 acres of property next to the waste transfer station in Kernville, and the Forest Service plans to create a 1.5 mile motorcycle track there so that kids and dirt bike enthusiasts will have a safe and contained place to ride. Currently, the track is surrounded by barbed wire, which will be replaced with smooth wire or orange netting to prevent injury to riders. Also, Kern County has discussed putting in a well to mitigate dust concerns, and they are also considering improving the service road to access the track more easily. Ehmann said that the Forest Service hopes to contract the management of the track to one or more groups or individuals.
Cheryl Borthick, Kernville Chamber of Commerce President and KRVR board member, said that there are 58,000 motorcycles in Bakersfield city alone, and that by creating the track, Kern Valley could receive some of the green sticker money for improvements and management. 'This will increase revenue to the Kern Valley and create a safer place for kids to ride,' said Borthick.
The Forest Service currently has a draft Memorandum of Understanding, which will assist in applying for grants for the needed improvements, and they are seeking support from local organizations, businesses, and community members who are interested in seeing this project move forward. If you are interested in supporting this project, contact Brenda Ehmann at the Kern River Ranger District at 376-3781.
Kernville Chamber of Commerce to Assist with Improvements to Randall Field
Cheryl Borthick announced that the Kernville Chamber of Commerce is seeking to enhance the baseball field next to the Rodeo Grounds to get it up to Little League standards by March, 2008, so that it can be used for Little League baseball, softball, and t-ball games. Kernville Chamber has set aside $4,000 for improvements to the field, but Kern Valley Little League President Dana Yasin said that while that is very helpful, and they are very grateful for the assistance, more donations are needed to make the improvements necessary to be acceptable to the National Little League Association.
The children involved in Little League recently held a work day, where they helped to create dugouts for the field. 'Over 300 Kern Valley boys and girls ages 5-16 play in local Little League teams, and this is the only community softball/baseball field in the Kern River Valley, so we need to step up the standard,' said Yasin.
Items needed for the enhancements include chain link fence, 22-26 tons of infield mix, one ton of brick dust, dugout covers, break away bases, home plate, and a scoreboard. The cost of operation for the local Little League is $23,000-$26,000 per year, and the children of families that cannot afford the minimal dues are allowed to play for free. Borthick said that the Kernville Chamber, which owns Randall Field, will not charge Little League for the use of the field.
If you are interested in making a donation to help with this endeavor, contact the Kernville Chamber of Commerce at 376-2629.Report on MDMRC&D Non-Profit Conference
KRVR Board Member Ron Wermuth reported on the California Association of RC&D Councils 'Partnering for Non-Profit Sustainability and Financial Stability' conference which took place Oct. 3-5 in Morro Bay. The conference educated participants on attracting endowments to ensure funds for future years, how foundations are formed, fundraising, and planning. It also showcased successful non-profit organizations that have successful and sustainable programs, such as the Cal Poly student farming project, where students grow food that is sold to sponsors, who in turn are guaranteed locally grown, seasonal produce regularly. Conference participants also took a field trip to Old Creek Ranch, which is a former dairy farm turned organic farm.
Hospital Update
Jeanette Rogers announced that the Kern Valley Healthcare District has hired a new CEO, who begins next week, replacing Bob Duncan, who resigned so he could allow his daughter to finish her education at her home town school. She also told the group that the 10th annual All-Valley Intergenerational Heart Walk will take place on Feb. 23, and KVHD is seeking both sponsors and walkers for this event. Money raised at the heart walk will be used to complete the Skilled Nursing Facility upgrades. For more information about this event, contact Jeanette Rogers at 376-4419.
Upper Kern Fishery Trust Committee Report
Steve Anderson of the Kern River Valley Forest Service Ranger District announced that the Upper Kern Fishery Trust Committee met on Oct. 23 to discuss the status of the grants they allocated earlier this year. California Fish and Game has been able to get more wardens in the forest, who have done three patrols in the Golden Trout Wilderness. The first patrol had 130 contacts and 30 citations, and the two subsequent patrols showed over 100 contacts without any citations. 'Word is getting out that this area is being patrolled,' said Anderson.
The UC Davis genetics research is going well; so far they have isolated a strain of Native Kern River Rainbow Trout, which is a candidate for endangered species listing. Some people have threatened to contaminate the areas if the fish are found to prevent the endangered species listing, so the aforementioned patrols are more necessary than ever.
Anderson announced that the next cycle of grants is due Feb. 1 for the April meeting. To learn more about the available grants and guidelines, visit www.krvr.org/communityforum/upperkernfisherytrust.
KRVR.org Update
KRVR.org Website Administrator Richard Rowe reported that there are now 625 links on the website, and a new comprehensive menu for those links, which include 'What is KRVR?,' 'Monthly Steering Committee Meeting,' 'Fire Information,' 'In Case of Emergency,' and more. Rowe has taken out some items, including blogs and RSS feed due to spam infestations, which had gone up to over 400 each day, which he subsequently deleted, but that task was very time consuming. Now, Rowe reports, spam listings approximate 40 each day, which is much more manageable.
BLM Warns of Mining Scam in Kern Valley
Gregg Wilkerson of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) said that three companies have started mining scams around the lake, where they stake mining claims on BLM and Forest Service land and then advertise them on Ebay as vacation retreat property, misusing the mining law. This has created many problems for BLM and the people who have been duped by this scam, and residents are asked to beware of these advertised properties, as a mining claim is only good for extraction of the minerals on the land; a mining claim does not include ownership of the property.
KRVR meets the first Wednesday of every month, and the public is welcome and encouraged to attend. The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 5, at 9 a.m. at Cerro Coso Community College. For more information, visit www.krvr.org.
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