Julian Will Vote on Jess Martin Park Again
Commentary by Amber Ward

Photos by amber Ward

Jess Martin Park has been closed by the County since Dec. 31, 2007. Julian residents who own property in the San

Diego County Landscape Maintenance District Zone No. 2, which was determined by the County, were asked to approve a property assessment in December that would have funded the park's maintenance costs. Although the assessment failed to pass, the County Board of Supervisors has agreed that a second ballot should be issued, allowing Julian property owners to vote again on the assessment.

The proposed property assessment will cover 90 percent of the maintenance costs of Jess Martin Park, and the County will pay the remaining 10 percent. The County will also pay all overhead costs. One hundred percent of the assessment will go directly towards park maintenance, and it would be illegal for the funds to be used for any other purpose.

"Community parks that were established after 1973 in San Diego County have been required to secure a source of maintenance funding outside of the General County Fund," said Greg Schuett of the volunteer organization the Friends of Jess Martin Park, who have been tirelessly educating the community on the Jess Martin Park situation.

In 1993, Jess Martin Park was purchased from the Baptist Church by the County. An assessment was not passed in 1993 because a group of Julian citizens formed a non-profit organization called Intermountain Parks and Recreation (IPR). They took full responsibility of maintaining the park as well as assuming all liability. After several years, it became too difficult for a small group of volunteers to continue operating the small community park. Not only were there maintenance costs, but also skyrocketing liability insurance. Currently, the insurance costs for Jess Martin Park are $10,000 a year.

The County Board of Supervisors agreed at a Dec. 12, 2007 meeting to close Jess Martin Park indefinitely, and to move forward with a second ballot. Although a group of Julian citizens did ask the County to consider giving Julian a second chance at passing the assessment, it was ultimately up to the Board of Supervisors.

Of the 894 ballots that were returned, 45.6 percent of the vote were in-favor of the assessment and 54.4 percent were opposed. The vote only needed 50 percent plus one vote in favor to pass, so, in fact, it was extremely close.

There are several reasons why the County approved the second ballot. First, only 894 of 1,967 ballots were returned, less than 50 percent. One reason for this was because all Julian residents were under a mandatory evacuation during the first ballot mailing. The second reason for such a low voter turn-out was because the ballots were very ambiguous. They were mailed in a standard No. 10 white business envelope with a Long Beach, Calif. return address.

The ballots did have the words "election materials enclosed" printed in the lower right corner, but this was obscured by the mailing barcode sticker.

The second ballot will be mailed in a No. 10 yellow business envelope and will clearly have

"Jess Martin Park Ballot Materials" printed on the outside, along with a County of San Diego return address. There will also be no ambiguity on how much your property will be assessed. The ballot will make it very clear how much your assessment will be. The total amount will be plainly stated, you will not have to multiply by amount of acres, buildings, etc.

If the assessment passes, Dianne Jacob has promised "one-million dollars" in improvements for the park. Jess Martin Park will no longer be just a sports park. The master plan for Jess Martin will finally be a reality. Improvements include a paved multipurpose trail with exercise stations, horseshoe pits and several picnic areas. There will be a citizens advisory panel from Julian that will work closely with the County Department of Parks and Recreation to ensure local input and oversight.

If the assessment does not pass, the County will "return the land to its natural state." Not only will portable toilets and drinking fountains disappear, so will the playground equipment, the skate park, and the paved road leading to Julian's future fire station. The park will be demolished, and the land could possibly be sold to the highest bidder.

How the park will be affected is one thing, but how the community will be affected is another. Not only will AYSO soccer have to be played in Ramona, so will Julian's PONY Baseball league. There will be no adult softball, and according to Tim White, the Julian High School Athletics Director, "There will be no Julian High School Baseball," since they have to use the fields at Jess Martin Park for their practices and home games.

Jess Martin Park is the only community park within a 25-mile radius of Julian. The County is asking for Julian property owners to step-up and take responsibility for their only community park. If each property owner dedicates $44.36 a year to the park, Julian will have a beautiful, well-maintained park for everyone to enjoy. If not, there will be no park at all.