Advertisement

Group looks at providing more activities for residents

Share

Ideas for recreational activities and plans for entertainment events are being embraced by members of the Ramona Village Design Group.

According to Village Design Chair Rob Lewallen, the group is excited about working on a possible skate park in Ramona, an idea that was suggested by a Ramona High School student attending the village design meeting last month as part of a civics class assignment.

Lewallen said the design group is also discussing the possibility of bringing disc golf to the community and considering potential sites. Similar to the game of “ball” golf, disc golf consists of throwing various plastic discs for par at above-ground targets.

Another idea that the design group talked about is a nature kiosk at the Ramona Intergenerational Community Center (RICC) planned on Main Street between 12th and 13th streets.

The design group has been reviewing the Phase I village design document which mentions a nature center that will now be called a nature kiosk. The kiosk, Lewallen explained, would highlight the natural assets of the Ramona area including Mount Woodson, Mount Gower and the Ramona Grasslands. To discuss this idea further, Lewallen is planning on having Dave and Lee Bitner from the Wildlife Research Institute speak at the March 11 village design meeting.

Lewallen is especially enthusiastic about an upcoming event that he is co-chairing along with Chris Anderson, a Realtor and chair of the Ramona Community Planning Group.

The first Ramona Bluegrass and Old West Music Festival is scheduled for the weekend of May 8 and 9, he said. The two-day event will be held at the Ramona Outdoor Community Center and will offer overnight camping. With eight hours of music on Saturday, May 8, Lewallen said the festival will feature bluegrass and “old cowboy” music. Sunday morning may include bluegrass gospel, he added.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Lewallen.

A musician himself, Lewallen said the festival may include bluegrass jam sessions and workshops for children.

Lewallen will be performing before the festival at the Wildlife Research Institute’s fundraiser on April 17. Another upcoming music event, he said, is the Ramona Music Festival, March 20, at Dos Picos Park. That event is being put on by Ramona’s Kiwanis and Rotary clubs.

The village design group continues to work on the Phase II design plans and is scheduled to meet with San Diego County Supervisor Dianne Jacob in mid-March in hopes of obtaining more funding. Lewallen said the additional funding would allow them to work on the colonnade—from Etcheverry to Pala streets—and on Old Town.

“These will be much easier than the Paseo,” Lewallen said, referring to the section of town from Pala to 10th streets that the design group focused on during their work with consultant Howard Blackson.

Another source of funding could be a CalTrans grant, applied for by the group. Although members thought the grant would just be applied to medians in town, Lewallen said they found it could also be used for the Phase II plans.

Installing landscaped medians, mainly in Old Town, has been discussed by the group to make the town center more pedestrian friendly and to calm traffic.

Advertisement

At a time when local news is more important than ever, support from our readers is essential. If you are able to, please support the Ramona Sentinel today.