Six Fallbrook groups given funding

Eleven organizations, including six in Greater Fallbrook, were allocated District Five Neighborhood Reinvestment Program funding during the March 27 meeting of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

The supervisors’ 5-0 vote provided grants of $50,000 to the Fallbrook Sports Association; $44,000 for the Fallbrook Center for the Arts; $30,000 aiding the Boys and Girls Club of North County; $20,000 to assist Devil Pups, Inc .; $15,000 benefiting the Fallbrook Chamber of Commerce, and $4,664 for the Bonsall Education Foundation.

The Neighborhood Reinvestment Program is intended to provide grants to non-profit organizations for the furtherance of public purposes at the regional and community levels. In addition to non-profit organizations, county supervisors can also fund schools and fire departments, and supervisors can also use money from their budgets to supplement other county funding for specific county projects such as parks, roads, and libraries. Each county supervisor recommends the allocation of his or her Neighborhood Reinvestment Program funds, although those allocations must be approved by a majority of the board.

The Fallbrook Sports Association constructed the Fallbrook Sports Park and now maintains the sports park which is also known as Ingold Community Sports Park. The park serves approximately 4,500 Fallbrook and nearby community residents on a weekly basis. The fields currently have a natural grass surface, which not only requires watering and constant maintenance but makes the field subject to deterioration and the periodic need for sod replacement. Because of the condition of the fields after use, they are only able to be utilized approximately one-third of the time. The Neighborhood Reinvestment Program grant will help cover the costs to convert one grass field at the sports park to artificial turf, which will allow for year-round usage as well as for the reduction of maintenance and water costs.

The purpose of the Fallbrook Center for the Arts is to expand the arts experience in the Fallbrook community and establish Fallbrook as an arts destination for both residents and visitors. The Neighborhood Reinvestment Program allocation will help cover the cost of replacing the existing lighting with energy-efficient illumination and will also upgrade the computer system.

The Boys and Girls Club of North County was established in 1962, but its building was once Fallbrook High School and is 75 years old. The facility needs renovation and repairs to continue its youth programs safely and effectively, and the Neighborhood Reinvestment Program grant will help cover the cost to renovate the social recreation room.

Devil Pups, Inc., is a United States Marine Corps program which helps boys and girls attain the moral, tenacity, and strength of character traits which are required to succeed as adults. The Devil Pups program at Camp Pendleton has operated every summer since 1954. The Neighborhood Reinvestment Program grant will help purchase boys and girls uniforms for the summer program.

The grant for the Fallbrook Chamber of Commerce will allow for the purchase of furniture, computers, computer software, computer equipment, and a phone system for the chamber’s new office. The chamber recently moved to an office in Downtown Fallbrook, and it has also increased its membership by 20 percent over the past two years which has led to the need for greater telecommunications and computer system efficiency. The furniture at the chamber office is several years old and is significantly worn.

The Bonsall Education Foundation assists in the implementation of programs designed to benefit the students of the Bonsall Union School District, and it also maintains the Little Bonsall Schoolhouse. The Bonsall Education Foundation is in the process of restoring the old schoolhouse and is seeking to maintain its historic status through an architectural study called the Historic Structure Report. The Neighborhood Reinvestment Program allocation will reimburse the foundation for costs associated with replacing the roof on the historic schoolhouse.

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