Thoroughbred -- a street divided
"I read your story about Thoroughbred," Barbara Fuller told me over the phone. "Bah-humbug."
Fuller lives on the east side of Sapphire, which is on the other side of the Christmas lights but close enough so there's trash up and down her neighborhood. Fuller and many of her neighbors just want those who sell food to visitors on Thoroughbred to use their profits and clean up the neighborhood.
"This really bugs me," Fuller said. "It's like this every year but this year, it's really bad."
People are thoroughly divided on Thoroughbred.
One visitor left this comment on the Daily Bulletin Web site: "My 3 year old granddaughter would gently hug the tiny snowmen and lighted mechanical reindeer and tell them she loved them, then she would say, "They make me so happy!"
A slightly less happy neighbor, however, had this to say, "They take all of our parking, trample our lawns and I don't remember having a voice or vote in all of this madness. It seems to me that this tradition has grown too large for comfort."
Some have vowed to complain to the City Council on the matter. But by the time the next meeting rolls around, Jan. 6, the lights will already be dark.
Fuller lives on the east side of Sapphire, which is on the other side of the Christmas lights but close enough so there's trash up and down her neighborhood. Fuller and many of her neighbors just want those who sell food to visitors on Thoroughbred to use their profits and clean up the neighborhood.
"This really bugs me," Fuller said. "It's like this every year but this year, it's really bad."
People are thoroughly divided on Thoroughbred.
One visitor left this comment on the Daily Bulletin Web site: "My 3 year old granddaughter would gently hug the tiny snowmen and lighted mechanical reindeer and tell them she loved them, then she would say, "They make me so happy!"
A slightly less happy neighbor, however, had this to say, "They take all of our parking, trample our lawns and I don't remember having a voice or vote in all of this madness. It seems to me that this tradition has grown too large for comfort."
Some have vowed to complain to the City Council on the matter. But by the time the next meeting rolls around, Jan. 6, the lights will already be dark.
My family has both relatives and several close friends who have houses on the Christmas part of Throughbred and surrounding streets with lights. We visit several nights each year and enjoy watching the festivities from the homeowers side of things.
Each year there are discussions about how big this tradition has grown. How this house or that house has expanded and gone bigger! Even those particpating as homeowners are at odds with one another. There are some key issues. How soon should the lights be put up? When should they be turned on? Thanksgiving, first week December? What direction the cops should have the traffic flow, or should there be limitations on cars. Maybe walkers only between certain hours. When should they be turned off each night and and taken down after Christmas?
Quite a problem is Trash, and trust me, there is alot of it including alcohol bottles and cans, used baby diapers, vendor remains.....cig and cigar butts. Often a boy scout troop will help clean up after a weekend night, but they don't help the poor neighborhoods surrounding the primary streets with lights. There is no real organization that controls the overall festivities so no group is really accountable
Another major problem is NO restroom facilities. One Saturday night I was there and our friends were asked at least a dozen times where the restrooms were located. OR can we come in and use your bathroom? Apparently some neighbors advise to use the yards of the few hourse not participating with lights (it's dark). Others say go down to Target Center. Of course with parking and traffic, no one is going to travel or make it that far. They find an alternative. Never mentioned in articles are how often people use yards etc. in the less lit areas to releive themselves. BTW, it's not limited to urination. Those putting up the lights say it's a sacrifice and after one month are glad when it's done, only to start planning for the next year, in early spring.
I have watched this really grow over the past 10 years. Just by seeing the numbers of personnel, it is a major issue and cost to the city. We hear little about how the expense for the police, city workers, barricades etc. gets funded. Do we really have that many extra officiers on weekend nights to direct traffic, sit in cars ard block back entrances, walk the routes? Are they paid overtime? If this is there regular shift who watches the rest of Rancho? Maybe the Daily Bulletin could check that aspect out in these tight economic times. Many of the houses are now making this commercial by selling food etc. Is the city health inspector monitoring some of the food etc? How about electrical inspections? Some of these megamega watt installations violate any reasonable safe installation. I have a feeling the city really wants to avoid getting involved with some of these issues being it would violate the Christmans Spirit.
Possibly the city should allow commercial type vendors to setup on the perimeter (such as those at concert in the park) to help fund expenses or if nothing else to make this a real community event.
I'm not trying to be a fuddy dud but the size of this has created a real mess and expense for the entire month of December. The spill over impact for the citizens residing within a mile is being ignored by city government. Not everyone feels the impact brings out the Christmas spirit.
Possibly the benefits to the community out weigh any cost consideration and those impacted should just shut up. However I think some broader planning and understanding of the issues should be checked out and and at minimum understood at this point in time, cause next year it will only grow bigger.
Excellent points, Santa party expense to others. I don't have answers to all of your questions and I'm afraid an article about these trash and traffic issues will have to wait. You are right about the police presence and barricades costing taxpayers' dollars. Since Dec. 16, about nine to 15 people from the Sheriff's Department are there. Some of these are sheriff's officers and others are volunteers. Some neighbors wanted the sheriff's to come earlier in December but the police chief told me that's too many resources deployed for such a long period of time.
We have lived on the east side of Thoroughbred for 21 years. The Christmas lights were a community "secret". There were horse drawn carriages and wagons. It was a beautiful and low key event for many years.In the last 10 years the crowds have really increased but this year was the worst. I have never seen so much trash the morning after or such large groups of people loitering around after hours as I have this year. The public safety issues are a real concern. If anyone in my neighborhood would need emergency medical help there is no way they could get through the gridlock traffic.The barricade says "Residents Only No Lights". Everyone drives right around it, so the barricade is pointless unless the police would stand guard there. The residents that put this on need to pay for the police presence, the trash clean up and they need to provide restroom facilities. That is a sanitation issue. The selling of food is another story. I work for a school in the Alta Loma School District and we have to go through safety and sanitation training. We also have regular inspections from the County Health Dept. How can residents lawfully sell food with no training, no business license and no health inspections? The City of Rancho Cucamonga better step up and investigate these critical issues before they have a major lawsuit on their hands for looking the other way. Major violations are occuring and we can no longer be silent for fear of being called a scrooge. This has to be worked out so that all residents of this city have equal rights and freedom from being held hostage during the month of December. I urge anyone with an opinion on this to support us at the next City Council meeting . Its not too late to start working on a solution for next year.
The residents of Rancho sure love to ask government to fix their problems. It sounds like neighbors bickering with each other. No matter what action the City takes, if any, someone is going to be unhappy.
Neighbors bickering with each other? You missed the points of the author and other comments. It has grown well beyond a neighbor issue. It is a community issue.
When you have several thousand cars and 3-6 thousand people coming into an area, that's more than some neighbors bickering. It's the people coming in from outside the neighborhood causing this to become a growing concern. Not to fault those coming to see the lights because that is why so much work is done by residents. Were asking for help since it has grown well beyond a neighborhood festivity scene.
Even if neighbors on these streets organized to take on some of the issues, they could not do much without the authorization of the city officials.
Long Time Rancho Rssident, how do you say, "there hands are tied"?
Holidays are miserable living up by the lights. Have to hurry home before it gets dark and stay there rest of night as one cannot get out. I am sick of this and grows a bigger nuisance each year. I will be first in line to complain to City Council and try to put a stop to this or at least some better plans that are also respective of those living in area.