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Mike Story Is One Of Six Men Of Distinction Chosen By Assembly Woman Brown

30 Jun 2015 Leave a comment

by rialto-now in Assemblymember-Elect Cheryl Brown, Ca, City of Rialto, Inland Empire, Mike Story, Rialto, Rialto, Sunrise Church, youth Tags: Assemblymember Cheryl R. Brown, Colton Parks and Recreation Commission, Michael Story, Mike Story, Pastor Samuel J. Casey, Rikke Van Johnson

Assemblymember Cheryl R. Brown (D-San Bernardino) has chosen six outstanding men to be recognized for their dedication to activism and community leadership.

The honorees have been selected based on their achievements and reputations as respected role models who contribute their time and energy to make a positive difference in the 47th Assembly District.

The 2015 Men of Distinction include: San Bernardino City Councilman Rikke Van Johnson, 6th Ward; Paul Rasso, Chair of the Colton Parks and Recreation Commission; Rialto City Administrator Michael Story; James McNaboe, a community volunteer and veterans advocate; Pastor Samuel J. Casey, New Life Christian Church; and Larry Burgos, a lifetime community advocate based in Bloomington.

Well its about time that Mr. Mike Story gets his due with this awesome recognition of being an outstanding leader in Mrs. Brown’s District. The other five men are lucky to be included in Mr. Story’s company. Why do we say this?

Mike Story has been a fixture here in rialto for over 30 years and has touched many lives.
Mike has raised two awesome children and is still married to his awesome happy wife known as the first lady of Rialto.
Mike has worked his way through the city and has made every opportunity to make Rialto a better place to live, work and play in the areas he had control.
Mike led by example when times got tough and slashed his salary and benefits as a way lead by example and show everyone that he will work with us through the hard times.
No person has ever had a more open door policy than Mike, helping residents with little and big issues even after hours.
Mike is a conduit of information and resources. Are you having a hard time navigating the city offices? Mike is like a super powered tour guide to give you the access you need to find a quick response.

Portions of this article were provided by Ashley from Assembly Browns office.

Major Brain Freeze Opened in Grand Fashion

28 May 2015 2 Comments

by rialto-now in Assemblymember-Elect Cheryl Brown, Ca, City of Rialto, Coffee Nutz, Ed palmer, In & Out, Inland Empire, Public Safety, Rialto, Rialto, youth Tags: Brain Freeze, business owners, city of rialto, frozen yogurt, Inland Empire, Major Brain Freeze

Very few business owners open a new location quite like Peter & Linda at Major Brain Freeze. Major Brain Freeze owners make the whole day a party and an experience. They day started off with a ribbon cutting and there were representatives from the city, city council, assembly member Browns office, the chamber of commerce and police department.

Part of the grand opening is the ribbon cutting but the best part is getting to meet the people behind the Frozen Yogurt creation. Peter & Linda franchise owners of two Waba Grill restaurants decided to take on the world of Frozen Yogurt and have never looked back. Rialto is their 4th location and when we asked them if there were plans for a fifth they said were just enjoying the right now but you never know what the future holds.

Peter the husband of the dynamic duo that is taking the Inland Empire Frozen Yogurt world by storm has roots here in Rialto. He lived here as a child and went to school here. The husband and wife team have worked hard to strategically position their restaurants in vibrant areas with high traffic. In addition to high traffic they are the only dessert option in the centers where they are located making Major Brain Freeze the obvious choice for the sweet ending to your meal.

Major Brain Freeze is more than just a Frozen Yogurt shop its a visual masterpiece. It also reminds many of a retro candy shop with a wide variety of topping choices some customers can go a little overboard….. The owners are fine with that they say have a little fun. They also provide a good sized fresh topping bar as well as yogurt chips, shredded coconut and CANDY ANTS!!!!!!!!!!

We interviewed Andy Carrizales about this addition to the North Rialto Development pad. We asked Andy what he thought of Major Brain Freeze as a potential customer competitor. Andy said that his business Cones Creamery makes hand made Ice Cream and he thought it was good that Rialto residents have an option locally if they are looking for frozen yogurt.

We would like to welcome yet another great team of owners to the city of Rialto.

With so many options for your sweet treats it appears that Major Brain Freeze has taken one more city by storm……..

Major Brain Freeze Grand Opening

12 May 2015 Leave a comment

by rialto-now in Ca, davidsMarketing, Inland Empire, Josef (Joe) Britt, Rialto, Rialto, youth Tags: Brain Freeze, frozen yogurt, North Rialto

Have you been to Major Brain Freeze in North Rialto? Well if you haven’t been there yet this Thursday will be the perfect time. The owners the “WABA KIDS” will be there all day with awesome giveaways, a ribbon cutting at noon and lots of fun and of course come try their frozen yogurt and expansive topping bar. Walking into their store is like entering a fun retro candy shop they have almost every candy topping imaginable.

Is The Drop In Jazz Fest A Rialto Sponsored Event?

13 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

The debate continues on whether the Drop In Jazz Fest is a city sponsored event or not. Mayor Robertson and Mr. George Harris say that it is not. The problem is if I told you I was not a clown yet wore clown makeup, juggled and had a red nose & big red feet would you believe me? Here is where the debate continues:

The Drop In Jazz Fest is being given airtime and production time on the Rialto Network. Something that is not available for non city events or facilities.
Most of the work to prepare for this event has come from city staff that were on city paid time. From public works leveling out a special parking lot, admin staff working on paperwork, special intervening on behalf of councilmembers Scott & Baca Jr, use of police and fire staffing, special reduction in public safety costs & ability to shut down a PUBLIC park to use it for a private use that is outside of its intended purpose.
All of the marketing has been RIALTO nothing else. Also they are supposed to repay all of the city employee time and resources would be repaid. well they have dropped the price of general admission twice now. They stared at $80 each and now they are $50 each this is more a sign of desperation most of the time a successful event will get more expensive as the event draws near not cheaper.
The newest show that this is not a private event and a de facto City Event is the massive banner that is now hung on the outfield netting advertising the “The 3rd Annual RIALTO Drop In Jazz Fest” it states that is is to benefit the Rialto Youth Collaborative but it is not being put on by the Rialto Youth Collaborative it is put on by RIALTO for their benefit.

Remember they say it’s not a Rialto event?

I am not against kids or performing arts as accused by some. As a representative for many local artists there is no bigger supporter of the arts but if the public needs to follow the rules so should the city leadership. Also shame on the East Rialto Kiwanis for presenting such a horrible example to our youth when it comes to abusing Alcohol. We need to show our kids that you can have a good time at a venue without getting drunk. Don’t forget these people will be piling into cars and driving through our city streets and the public freeways. Who will arrest all of these drunk drivers?

Video by rialto-now

Rialto Community Coalition Works On Youth Conference With Congressman Aguilar

10 Apr 2015 Leave a comment

On Tuesday the Rialto Community Coalition held their regular monthly meeting Tuesday April 7th. The Agenda originally had one item working on developing a Youth Leadership Conference, a last minute addition made the meeting run over. Congressman Aguilar who is home in the district came to sit in on the meeting and offer support where he could.

The meeting was well attended and their were people from all sections of the community in attendance. Joseph Williams from YAP (Youth Action Project) introduced Congressman Aguilar and offered a platform for Congressman Aguilar to address the group. Congressman Aguilar spoke about the work he was a part of when a elected member of Redlands City Government in regards to Redlands Social Host Ordnance and their Safe Places program where the city helped create safe opportunities for students. Congressman ended his time by offering support from his office where the Coalition needs it.

The meeting was very well attended and headway was accomplished in regards to the Youth Leadership Conference. What was accomplished was a location, date and there was some discussion on what types of workshops would be provided. This meeting was not only adults but youth had a key roll in developing this conference. There were youth from Carter High School’s BLSA Club, Middle School Students from the Rialto area, youth from Etiwanda High School & local Christian Youth Speaker Rizzy Rider.

Some of the desired outcomes that the coalition wanted to see come from this effort was to see students become Rock Stars in their groups when it comes to Drug & Alcohol use, to see teens succeed beyond their circumstances and continue to see a positive change in the illegal use of drugs and alcohol through education.

Agencies and organizations in attendance were Lil Saints Productions, Carter High School, Congressman Aguilar’s office, All Nations Realty, Etiwanda High School, Rialto Democrat Club, Vibe Fitness, Rialto Police Volunteers, Rialto Neighborhood Watch Program, SOLA Communities, Transforming Lives Charter School, Market Solution Services & Inland Valley Drug Free Coalition.

Information that has already be agreed to is:

Youth Leadership Conference

At Bob Murphy School

May 2nd 2015

Want more information on the Coalition or the Youth Leadership Conference go to http://www.facebook.com/rialtocoalition

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Rialto City Council Addresses Cuba & A $500,000 Giveaway

24 Mar 2015 Leave a comment

March 24th at 6pm Rialto City Council will address many issues on the nights agenda. The public will be given an opportunity to see five presentations, three more approvals for more training, discussion on Fireworks and a $500,000 giveaway. If you only attend a few Council Meetings this one will be one you don’t want to miss here is what we see are the highlights:

Presentations & Proclamations:

Out of the five items under this heading we see three that stand out.

Rialto resident Don Griggs as Assembly Member Brown’s 2015 Unsung Hero.
Cuba Sister City Presentation
Introduction of new Rialto Police Officers

There are a lot of questions over the Mayor and Councilmember Scott pushing Rialto into a position that should be left up to our Federal Government. Also it will be nice to meet the three new police officer that Rialto recently graduated from the academy.

Consent Calendar & Miscellaneous:

The Consent Calendar is the place where large amounts of money is spent, more and more people are being sent to travel all over the country on the cities dime and policy can be changes without a serious vote. Items to watch for include:

$23,213.95 for purchase of office furniture for Rialto Police Detectives.
Travel request for City Clerk Barbara McGee.
Travel request to Vegas for two planning commissioners.

The office furniture for the Rialto Police Detectives what is a problem is $67,935 is being spent from within the Miscellaneous portion of the agenda. Many times this portion is quickly approved with little oversight so unless someone catches an item that is not in line with the communities needs. The travel on the other hand is getting out of control once again. Two years ago a special audit was done to find that Rialto officials were abusing travel in regards to public funds. The two years following travel has been at a minimum and under control. Now that Ed Scott is back on council it seems every single agenda has travel requests inside. We can’t afford to fix our own water system without jacking up water rates or fix our roads but we can spend thousands to send elected officials all over the country.

Tab Items:

This is a longer meeting agenda with 12 tab items this meeting won’t be short by any means. This agenda includes a discussion of Fireworks Enforcement in the city of Rialto, a $500,00 one time giveaway, road contracts and a contract to develop an affordable housing project.

Amending the Fireworks Ordinance.

Fireworks in Rialto are out of control and for some reason the city claims to be doing more but the community never sees any results. Last year there was talk of more money and resources that were utilized to reduce illegal Firework use. Even though the police and fire departments held their heads high our community suffered. Veterans suffer from serious reactions to the popular 4th of July activity as seen here in this news story.

The addition of Safe And Sane fireworks was to replace the aerial Fireworks that can be so dangerous. So when people decide to stay home from the major aerial displays they should not have to be bombarded with fireworks falling on their heads and military grade explosives shaking their homes. Many of the people who complain year after year have the same people breaking the fireworks law each year yet police seem to not be able to get them in line. Last year the community was further insulted by the addition of a special hotline where senior citizens that could not hear you or understand you feilding calls. Police dispatch would transfer you or just hang up!!!!! The main reason they give for not being able to shut them down is we can’t prove that they have illegal fireworks because they put them away when we arrive. So how are they going to cite property owners for what they claim they can’t see?

One time $500,000 give back.

For those employees that gave and sacrificed during the tough years of Rialto recovering from the housing recession the city is going to show them that their efforts did not fall on blind eyes well almost all employees. FULL TIME employees that are not currently on probation will receive a one time bonus.

Rialto City currently has 134 part time employees & 268 full time employees that are eligible for this one time bonus of 1,838.62. If employees have been with the city for less than 1 year as a full time employee ( which means you are on probation), they would not be eligible for the bonus.

This comes from six departments (excluding the City Administrator, City Attorney, City Treasurer and City Clerk. They are Police, Fire, Development Services, Administrative and Community Services, Management Services & Public Works. City Council, City Treasurer, City Clerk, City Attorney, City Administrator and department heads will not be receiving the bonus.

Why are the Part Time employees being overlooked? We reached out to Councilman Shawn O’connell and asked this very question. His response was that the original reason to give this to full time employees is they took pay cuts, paid more towards retirement & paid more for their benefits to help the city in a hard time. What people who have not worked in todays part time environment is we have part time staff doing the work of a full time staffer. When full time staff get squeezed full time staff dumps more work on an already underpaid, under compensated part time staff member. Also Rialto part time staff are at the lowest end of the pay scale. Rialto part time staff make minimum wage and climb up a small payscale ladder very, very slowly. Many of the people we depend on the most daily are part time staff from recreation, child services and senior center staff are part time but we count on them to provide us with top notch professional service.

Road Contracts

There are two different road contracts on the agenda tonight. What makes this stand out is Monday their was a information meeting for a road contract and it appears nobody was notified until after it was already started. Proving once again Rialto is behind in notifying the community.

New affordable housing projects

TAB Seven is a request to give some select companies access and ability to build a new low income project in the city of Rialto. Watch tonight as certain people are connected to these companies that may not be illegal but they look really bad and raise some serious questions.

These are the items that stand out to us here at Rialto Now but this is in no way a complete list of the entire agenda. We encourage everyone to go to http://www.rialtoca.gov and look at the entire agenda for themselves.

Video by rialto-now

Rialto City Council Meeting March 10th

09 Mar 2015 Leave a comment

Well tomorrow is another regular meeting for the Rialto City Council. Below we are highlighting some areas of interest and potential items to keep a look out for.

PRESENTATIONS:

Presentation-Update on Rialto Jazz Festival-George N. Harris II

Director of Administrative and Community Services

I am not against raising money for our youth and our music programs. I regularly support our youth, their programs and fundraisers what I am against is the following:

The Special Events Committee isn’t playing fair with all parties in the city of Rialto. To allow the Mayor, Administration Director and other powerful leaders shut down a public park for a private event. Other people in Rialto have been told no by this committee so why doesn’t everyone have to play by the same rules?
Raising money for youth and making Alcohol the back bone of the efforts. Don’t we have enough places for alcohol to flow freely? Why must we bring 3 thousand people to get drunk then drive away to get into an accident? What message is this sending to our youth?
Not city sponsored says city staff but city resources are being used and will be used that day. I’m sorry but its hard to see the separation between the city and the event.

Presentation-Fire Success Story: Saving Starbucks-Mat Fratus

Fire Chief

Introduction of new Public Works Director/City Engineer:

Robert Eisenbeisz- Mike Story, City Administrator

CONSENT CALENDAR:

D.1 15-120 Request City Council to Set a Public Hearing for March 24, 2015, to

Consider Adopting an Ordinance Amending Chapter 5.20 of the Rialto

Municipal Code Imposing Strict Liability on Property Owners or Persons

in Control of Property who Violate Fireworks Possession or Discharge

Restrictions.

Its wonderful that they created a harsher fireworks penalty but who is going to enforce it? Our public safety agencies have not shown people here in the city that they can make a sizeable dent in the situation. I’m sorry but telling us about all the raids they did doesn’t compute on July 4th when our city is lit up like a war zone. I think the bad guys want them to find those stashes so that the public safety agencies can declare a victory and the bad guys can still profit from illegal fun.

TAB ITEMS:

TAB2 15-131 Request City Council to Continue the Public Hearing to March 24, 2015

to Consider: (1) Adoption of Resolution No. 6692 Approving a Mitigated

Negative Declaration (Environmental Assessment No. 12-23); (2)

Approving Conditional Development Permit Nos. 712 and 720 for West

Colton Rail Terminal, LLC (WCRT) and Kinder Morgan Energy Partners,

L.P. (KMEP); and (3) introduce Ordinance No. 1557 “An Ordinance of

the City Council of the City Of Rialto, California, Granting to West Colton

Rail Terminal LLC, the Nonexclusive Right, Privilege, Authority, and

Franchise to Lay and Use Pipelines and Appurtenances for Transmitting

and Distributing Ethanol for any and all Lawful Purposes under and

along the Public Streets, Ways, Alleys and Places, as the Same Now or

May Hereafter Exist, within Said City”.

This is an issue from the February 9th meeting where nobody knew who owned the existing line or if it was still any good. Also the issue of the tank farm storage fee was also a cause for concern lets see what 60 days has done for the situation.

TAB4 15-136 Request City Council to Adopt Resolution No. 6704 to Budget

Anticipated Land Sales Proceeds in the amount of $14,510,568 from the

Sale of Airport Property and to Budget Contracted Distributions in the

amount of $4,153,664 for Fiscal Year 2014/15.

Medline & Niagara Proceeds 610-400-7150-7711 $14,510,568

LHR Note 610-500-7150-2011 ($ 2,561,115)

SBIAA 610-500-7150-2011 ($ 1,592,549)

City of Rialto 610-500-7150-5010 ($10,356,904)

City of Rialto 010-400-0001-9610 $ 10,356,904

Why are we taking 4,153,664 from these two land sales and putting it into a budget that is almost over? Were waiting for an answer from the city.

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Fate of Rialto Police Dog Is Now Known

26 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

I have a relationship with Rialto Police and I just happen to know the officer and his dog pretty well. So when the SB Sun printing the story of the Police Dogs fate the comments on social media made me sick. My wish is that the SB Sun would do everyone a favor and stop using Social Media if they don’t plan to monitor the response their posts get.

According to the story in the SB Sun article written by Greg Cappis:

“Jango, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois, will be returned to Adlerhorst International Inc. — a police dog training facility in Jurupa Valley — which will look after him for the rest of his life.

Adlerhorst officials signed a memo of understanding, agreeing to care for the dog, according to Rialto police Capt. Andrew Karol.

He said the department purchased Jango from Adlerhorst and wanted to make sure the dog would retire to a comforting and caring home.”

According to the same story Captain Andy Karol stated:

“Mastaler has not been punished and, per procedure, will undergo an administrative investigation, which has not been launched, according to Karol.

Jango’s retirement reduces Rialto’s K-9 force to three dogs.

No decision has been made yet as to whether he will be replaced.

“It’s not really creating a lag for our department but at some point we may determine that we may want to increase that back up to four,” Karol said.”

As you can see from the video above Officer Mastaler has excellent control of the dog as displayed at the Rialto Family Festival in 2014 (See video above).

Video by rialto-now

Major Brain Freeze Opens Up In Loma Linda

13 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

by rialto-now in City of Rialto, davidsMarketing, Dine 909, http://www.facebook.com/pages/Davids-Marketing/156816741049580, IE Gourmet Food Trucks, In & Out, Inland Empire, joseph williams, Lynn Hirtz, Rialto, Rialto, youth

As we prepare for the opening of the Rialto Major Brain Freeze we wanted to let you know you can check them out before they land in Rialto in about two months according to the owners.

Major brain freeze is celebrating another store opening in Loma Linda on February 13th 10am to 10pm

Loma Linda Major Brain Freeze Yogurt, GRAND OPENING, tomorrow, Friday the 13th! Yaee! Ribbon Cutting at 10am and fun give always all day long till we close at 10pm. Come celebrate our beautiful new location. We cant thank you enough for all the love and support. On the corner of Mt View and Barton Road.

January Coffee With The Chief Re-Cap

14 Jan 2015 2 Comments

by rialto-now in Andy Carrizales, Assemblymember-Elect Cheryl Brown, Burglury, Ca, City of Rialto, Community Coalition, Crime, davidsMarketing, Dr. Michael Neeki, Ed palmer, Inland Empire, Public Safety, Rialto, Rialto, Rialto Police Department, SCAT, Shawn O'Connell, SWAT, youth Tags: Chief Farrar, Colton, Crime Stats, Redlands, Rialto, rialto police department, San Bernardino

Hello Rialto Now readers!!!!! An awesome time was had by all at the first Coffee With The Chief in Rialto for 2015. Why was it awesome you ask? Well first off its kinda nice to have a strong yet open Chief of Police. So many people hold Police Chiefs and their command staff on such a high pedestal that they become “LIKE” gods. When they are simply men and women that will risk their lives for complete strangers. Now that fact isn’t something to be taken lightly but it also isn’t a reason you can’t stop and ask them a question.

Today’s Coffee With The Chief covered a lot of areas today. It was held at the Coco’s restaurant on Valley and Riverside Ave’s and the waitress was super nice as she took care of each persons order and kept the coffee flowing. Chief Farrar was in attendance along with Cpl. Marquez, two Detectives, three Lieutenants and Captain Deanda. Chief Farrar began by welcoming everyone and went over these topics:

Crime Reduction – Overall Crime was down by 20% in 2014. Chief Farrar said that crime had been dropping for a while now and does expect crime rate to level off.
Women’s Law Enforcement Fitness Challenge – On March 21st Rialto Police Department will be taking any females interested to the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department physical agility course and going over the physical agility course portion of the tests and training to become a Sworn Police Officer. Chief Farrar said its his goal to attract more females into Police Work and hoped that this event would be the catalyst to attract them. The most difficult portion Chief Farrar said was scaling the 6ft wall and that they would help the women learn a technique that would lend them success on this obstacle.
How does Rialto Compare in Crime Stats to other cities? – Chief Farrar said that he has been asked this multiple times and has been reluctant to venture down this road because of the differences each local city faces. He decided to look into it finally and the results were promising. Chief Farrar compared Rialto to three other cities that touch rialto, have police departments (not sheriff) and are of comparable size. Cities he used where Fontana, Redlands, Rialto & San Bernardino. Rialto had a lower overall crime rate than all cites that were used. Redlands had a lower violent crime rate than Rialto. Even though Rialto has more residents than Redlands.
Promotions – Chief Farrar said that the Department is looking to do some more promotions in the next 4-5 months these promotions will add two more captains.
Work Load Study – Rialto Police Department will be doing a Workload Study to better evaluate if the work load is being evenly distributed. Rialto Police is now at 103 Sworn Police Officers and is only down 3 budgeted Sworn Positions. Chief Farrar hoped that the workload study would give them a clear idea of where to look to add more resources and or staff.
Rialto Police Appreciation Awards – On February 20th Rialto Police will be recognizing staff and community members.
20/20 Interview – Captain Randy Deanda was interviewed by ABC News 20/20 show about the Judith Oakes case. Judith Oakes is the former Rialto Unified School District employee that was caught and convicted of stealing school lunch money down her bra to the tune of over 1 million dollars.
Request a Training – Rialto Police Detectives went over the police program that offers training to local businesses on how to best protect themselves from becoming a crime victim.
Cold Cases – Rialto Detectives also let us know that they are waiting on the DA’s office to approve the case files they have on two cold cases in Rialto. Since 2013 the Detectives Office has closed 8 cold cases.
Use of Force & Police – I asked a question about training for local community groups especially the Flores Park Neighborhood Watch in better equipping our residents on how to properly handle a situation with a officer and avoid the horrible situation on both ends. Chief Farrar said that the key is to follow the instructions to allow for a more positive outcome more often and avoid tense standoffs that should have never happened.

Below are a series of You Tube videos that show a reporter and a civil rights activist undergoing a use of force training with Maricopa County Sheriff. Chief Farrar said this is a great way to see how a situation where someone isn’t following instructions can lead to horrible consequences.

http://youtu.be/b5PuLeR7Wt8 Video 1

http://youtu.be/uVOQs8yb9P4 Video 2

http://youtu.be/tk-bXyNbsCE Video 3

http://youtu.be/yfi3Ndh3n-g Total Interview

http://youtu.be/pAJXP0okzwk Post Interview