*** How we are spending the donation funds raised ***

The first $5,500 will cover the majority of supplies needed, but there is also some equipment that the Club will need to maintain the grass year after year.

– The first big thing to get the weeds under control is to spray the entire 3 acres.  There is a unit that we will purchase that is towed behind the Lawn Mower or Gator.  I has a 40 gallon water tank to mix in the liquid products and then will spray a track about 6 feet wide when towed.  This same unit will be used to apply the liquid fertilizer in the same way.

– Consumable supplies.  The grass seed, fertilizer, and herbicide are the consumables we will need to purchase and apply annually.  We probably don’t have to over-seed every year but we do need to fertilize and take care of weeds more often.  This will be a $900 to $1700 annual expense but we will become part of regular annual operating expenses.

– Equipment rental. One thing we need to rent in called a ‘Plug Aerator’, its basically like a giant spike roller to aerate the soil.  Because we have a large area of LZ to cover we will try to rent a machine that is basically self-powered like its own little tractor.  Worst case, funding restrictions considered, there are are towable units to rent.

The above expenses total nearly $6000.  We would like to extend our total fundraising goal to $10K to cover an unexpected expenses, but here is what we could also use the additional funds for:

Gopher Smoker – You all have seen how bad the gopher mounds got in the spring.  they weren’t as bad during the summer because the little buggers move out into the eastern approach area to be under the shade of the taller brush.  There are hundreds of them! I had professional pest control services quote us for gopher mitigation services (i.e. mass murder), and the quotes were between $7500 to $10K.  The club can’t handle an annual recurring expense that high but there is an alternative – there is a $2500 machine that is essentially a smoke generator, you stick a tube into the tunnel and pump smoke into the tunnels which kills the Gophers with carbon monoxide.  This is the most effective machine on the market today, several Farmers in the Inland Empire are using these machines with great success. (Insert Gopher Smoker Pic Here).

More details about why and what we are doing, for those who feel inclined for some light technical reading:

This year we enjoyed greener grass for a longer part of the season.  I cannot take any credit for this, we simply had an abnormal amount of rainfall.  The added rain along with a healthier than normal snow-pack that melted in the spring kept water levels and water pressure very high up at the pond.  We want to capitalize on the healthier, more hydrated conditions and keep the green for as long as possible.

I took a soil sample from the LZ in December of 2022 and had it analyzed at a lab located in Anaheim.  The report shows all of the critical nutrient levels in the soils that are important for agriculture.  As I expected, the nitrogen levels are critically low so we desperately need to fertilize. I’ve attached that soil report to this point if you’d like to read it.

The BOD members who made the motion or vocally supported the motion to end the relationship with the XCR have not been clear about their intentions or seem to be aware of the very real risks. More importantly, the current CSS leadership has absolutely no plan whatsoever for getting these benefits by other methods.  The “idea” being thrown around is to replace the LZ grass with artificial turf, but the quotes being offered are for a cost of over $1,000,000!!  Even “used” artificial turf, installed by club member labor, would cost in the several hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Aside from the cost, the idea of having turf cover the LZ is terrible if anyone stops to think about safety aspects of landing on turf and how that turf is going to feel in 100 degree heat. We have studies in hand from Penn State that show artificial turf temps reach 50 degrees higher than ambient temp, so I would fully expect the LZ to be at least 150 degrees in the summer. Does that sound safe to anyone?

Also, reports from at least one CSS member to SB County Code Enforcement is the reason there will no longer be horses on the XCR land or their caretaker Gene, who provides an important service driving PG pilots to/from various launches and has done the Lion’s share of Heavy Equipment Operator work along with Tim Ward to develop the site.  Is this how we thank him for his sweat and heart, by making him homeless? Forcing the horses off the XCR property also incurs additional expense on the Ranch owners; is this how we thank them for their efforts to protect the club from the encroachment of developers?