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It’s spring break time, which means during the next several weeks, you may notice more kids, teens and families walking and biking around town. Today, I’ll share some important safety tips, plus these updates:

• 2024 TGIF concert plans announced
• Spring blooms in the Village
• Be a household detective on World Water Day
• The author of ‘The Maid’ is coming to Carlsbad
• Jazz trio to perform Saturday at the Schulman
• Overnight freeway closure on northbound I-5
• No rail service this weekend
• What’s on the agenda for the next City Council meeting

Staying safe on the road during spring break

Longer days and school holidays mean more people will be getting outdoors. Please take care on the roads, especially when it comes to the most vulnerable users of the road – walkers and bicyclists. 

You may have seen reports earlier this week of a 48-year-old father who was killed while bicycling along the coast in Encinitas. We won’t know the circumstances until the investigation is complete, but we do know that tragedy on local roads can occur in an instant.

5 steps to a safer spring break

1. Talk to children about the rules of the road, including rules for pedestrians and bicyclists and Carlsbad-specific e-bike rules. You can also share this video as a refresher.
2. Remember that anyone under 18 is legally required to wear a helmet while riding a bike. Make sure the helmet fits properly.
3. Eliminate distractions. Put your phone away when walking, driving or biking.
4. When driving, slow down and allow extra time to get where you need to go.
5. Encourage your young riders to sign up for our April 20 bike and e-bike safety class taught by Carlsbad Police officers who are certified bike instructors. Space is limited and advanced registration is required.

Don’t forget to check our weekly map of major city construction projects that could cause traffic delays along your route. Remember, the map only shows city projects, not work being done by utilities or private companies.

See more traffic safety tips on our website.

2024 TGIF concert plans announced

With several new security measures already planned for the 2024 TGIF Concerts in the Parks season, the City Council decided Tuesday not to proceed with a ticketing or registration process for this summer’s events. Also on Tuesday, staff provided an update on concert planning, including announcing the dates and locations of the nine concerts this summer:

Stagecoach Community Park

June 21

June 28

July 5

July 12

Calavera Hills Community Park

July 19

July 26

Aug. 2

Alga Norte Community Park

Aug. 9

Aug. 16

Poinsettia Community Park was dropped from the lineup this year because other parks were better suited to security needs, such as the ability to establish a clear event perimeter with controlled access points, the size and location of the fields, and other issues related to the park’s configuration.

The City Council also approved an ordinance Tuesday that allows for security screening of concert attendees. This will include screening adults and teens with a metal detector wand and checking bags for weapons. Alcohol, glassware, cutlery and other picnic supplies will continue to be allowed. 

Why the changes?

At the City Council’s Dec. 12, 2023, meeting, Police Chief Mickey Williams recommended bringing the popular summer concerts into better alignment with safety planning for other major public events. At that meeting, the City Council approved a list of security improvements that were based on best practices for major public events.

According to Police Captain Reid Shipley, the city’s goal is to retain the overall community feel of the concerts while acknowledging that safety needs at large public events have evolved in recent years.

More information about the 2024 season, including the band line up, will be announced in May.

To get email updates about TGIF Concerts in the Parks, sign up on the city’s website.

Art blooming in the Village

If you’ve visited the Village in the past few days, you may have noticed some colorful paintings in storefront windows. It’s all part of Spring Kaleidoscope, a temporary art installation made possible by the city in partnership with the Carlsbad Village Association.

The Carlsbad Village Association chose 10 local and regional artists, from Carlsbad, Vista, Oceanside, Escondido and San Diego, to help springtime come alive in the Village with images that evoke the change in season. Artists are collaborating with over a dozen downtown businesses.

• The city’s Cultural Arts program includes a wide variety of permanent and temporary exhibits.
• Bringing art into the community through temporary art projects is a major goal of the city’s Arts & Culture Plan.
• Partnering with local businesses has the added bonus of drawing more people to patronize local shops they might otherwise not be aware of.

Through April 21, the spring-themed artwork will be on display throughout the Village. (See a map of locations.)

We caught up with a couple of the artists to learn more about their inspiration.

More behind-the-scenes videos will be added as the artists finish their work, so stay tuned. 

Be a household leak detective on World Water Day

World Water Day is this Friday, a perfect time to think about small ways we can help conserve our most precious resource. It may sound strange to talk about conservation with more rain in the forecast, but saving water is always a good thing to do in an arid climate like ours. 

One easy way to save water (and money) is by staying vigilant about household leaks. Household leaks waste nearly 1 trillion gallons of water annually nationwide, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A faucet that drips just 10 times per minute wastes nearly 1.5 gallons of water in a day, and 525 gallons in a year.

Checking for leaks is easy, no plumber necessary. Here’s how:

• Check your water bill. If you notice an unexplained increase, you could have a leak.
• Turn off all your water faucets and appliances that use water and then check your water meter (usually out by the street). Wait 15 minutes and check it again. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak. (Tip: You can take a quick before and after photo on your phone to compare.)

• Identify toilet leaks by placing a drop of food coloring in the toilet tank. If any color shows up in the bowl after 10 minutes, you have a leak. (Be sure to flush immediately after to avoid staining the tank).
• Examine faucets and shower heads for any water on the outside of the pipe. Don’t forget garden hoses.

Find more water-saving tips on our website.

The author of ‘The Maid’ is coming to Carlsbad

In Nita Prose’s “The Maid,” a quirky hotel maid named Molly enters the suite of an infamous and wealthy man, only to find him dead. To make matters worse, Molly soon becomes the lead suspect. Molly transforms from maid to amateur sleuth in this popular Clue-like whodunnit tale.

“The Maid,” published in 2022, has since become a New York Times bestseller and is a Good Morning America Book Club pick. A movie is also in the works (there are at least two other movies called, “The Maid.” The one based on this book has not come out yet, in case you were checking).

“The Maid” is also the book selected for Carlsbad Reads Together, a month-long citywide book club with special events and activities to connect the whole community through a love of reading. The author will be featured during a special discussion at the Schulman Auditorium.

An Evening with Nita Prose

Thursday, April 18, at 6 p.m.

Schulman Auditorium

Dove Library

1775 Dove Lane

We expect a big crowd for this event, so if you plan to attend, please arrive early. We’ll start handing out numbers for admission at 5 p.m. and open the doors at 5:30 p.m. Once all the numbers have been handed out, a standby line will form, and people will be admitted as space allows.

Carlsbad libraries have digital, print and audio versions of the book available to check out, along with other Carlsbad Reads Together selections:

• For teens: “Sadie” by Courtney Summers
• For children: “Detective Mole” by Camilla Pintonato

Visit the library website for more details, including some of the other fun activities planned for Carlsbad Reads Together.

Jazz trio to perform Saturday at the Schulman

Vaughn Fahie began playing songs by ear on the accordion and keyboard at just 8 years old, while also arranging his own music. Throughout high school, he perfected his piano skills and was then introduced to the clarinet and alto saxophone. 

Fast forward to today, and Vaughn’s music and positivity are entertaining audiences throughout Southern California. You can enjoy Vaughn and his jazz trio this Saturday at the Schulman Auditorium.

Vaughn Fahie Jazz Trio

Saturday, March 23, 7:30 p.m.

Schulman Auditorium

1775 Dove Lane

Doors open at 7 p.m., and seating is first come, first served. This concert is part of the city’s Front Row Saturday series, where we showcase new and emerging artists from Carlsbad and across the region.

Overnight freeway closure on northbound I-5

We have gotten word that all northbound I-5 lanes between Carlsbad Village Drive and State Route 78 will be closed overnight Monday for construction work related to the Build NCC project, which includes widening I-5 and other improvements to the region’s transportation infrastructure and environment.

The closure will begin at 11:30 p.m. and end at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday.

If you need to be out at these hours, please follow detour signs and drive with caution around the construction area.

You can get SANDAG’s construction updates about projects on this part of I-5 by signing up for project emails.

No rail service this weekend

The North County Transit District asked us to let you know that there will be no coastal rail service Saturday and Sunday between the Oceanside Transit Center and Santa Fe Depot in San Diego.

This kind of routine closure happens several times a year so crews can do maintenance and infrastructure work along the tracks. Service should resume by Monday morning.

Learn more on the NCTD website.

What's on the agenda for the next City Council meeting

The next City Council meeting will take place Tuesday, March 26, starting at 5 p.m. in the City Council Chamber. Topics will include:

• Authorizing city staff members to act as the city’s agents on its claims for state disaster relief for the recent storm emergencies
• An update on the ongoing negotiations to relocate SDG&E’s North Coast Service Center from its current location near Carlsbad Boulevard and Cannon Road  
• Designating seven trees around Carlsbad as heritage trees to recognize them as historic and cultural resources for the community
• A contract to repair a retaining wall along Park Drive, west of Bayshore Drive
• Extending the term of an engineering agreement for a new recycled water tank being built near the corner of Black Rail Road and Poinsettia Lane
• Continuing local storm-related emergencies to remove debris from the Buena Vista Creek channel and repair a slope between El Camino Real and Trieste Drive. Local emergencies must be renewed at each regular City Council meeting until the emergency is declared over.
• Appointing one member to the Library Board of Trustees and three members to the Arts Commission
• Adopting an ordinance that will allow for security screening at the TGIF Concerts in the Parks
• A public hearing on state bonds to be issued by a developer to renovate the 138 apartments in the Laurel Tree Apartments affordable housing complex off Aviara Road, south of Palomar Airport Road
• Approving plans and authorizing bidding on a project to install a type of speed bump along sections of Park Drive, Black Rail Road, Plum Tree Road and Carrillo Way in response to community concerns about speeding.

See the agenda and staff reports.  

The City Council encourages your participation. You can get agendas and staff reports emailed to you directly, and if you want to provide input, you can email council@carlsbadca.gov before the meeting or come in person and fill out a request to speak.

If you want to watch from home, we have three options:

1. Watch the meeting live on the website
2. Watch a recording of the meeting afterward
3. Watch live or a replay throughout the week on the city’s cable TV channel, Spectrum channel 24 and AT&T U-verse channel 99

Board and commission meetings are also livestreamed on the city’s website and available to watch afterward. You can see the meeting schedule on our city calendar.

Since we started this week with spring, I’ll end there too. Here’s what our city Sculpture Garden looked like (and sounded like) on the first day of spring this week. The Sculpture Garden is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please come by and enjoy a peaceful break in your day. It’s just north of Cole Library, next to the community garden. The current exhibit will be on display through August.

Take care, and I’ll be back next week with more updates.

Scott Chadwick

City Manager