June 4, 2015 The Acorn

WLV honors outstanding citizens By Sylvie Belmond

belmond@theacorn.com

Continuing a tradition that began in 1999; the City of West­lake Village recognized three of its residents last week for their volunteer work, civic pride and commitment to the betterment of the community.

The 2015 awardees are Jemma Wildermuth, James Brink and Paul Plotkin.

"We can't be a strong city without volunteers," Mayor cd• Davis said.

Westlake Village residents nominate the citizen and youth of the year, and the Lo~ An­geles County Commission for Older Adults asks every city in its county to select one senior to be honored as an Older American of the Year during a llincheon at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

This year, Westlake Village did not receive any nominations for Citizen of the Year, so the city chose one of the two remain­ing 2014 nominees, who were

. reviewed by a committee along

MARY·MCGINNES/Acorn Newspapers

MANY THANKS-Westlake Village's2015 awardees for their volunteer work, civic pride and commitment to the betterment of the community are, from left: Jemma Wildermuth, Citizen of the Year; Paul Plotkin, Older American of the Year; and James Brink, Youth of the Year.

with the two nominees for the 2015 Youth of the Year and a staff recommendation for an Older American of the Year.

Wildermuth, a longtime resi­dent who has volunteered at White Oak Elementary, Lindero Canyon Middle and Agoura High schools, was chosen for the 2015 Citizen of the Year award. She is a member of the Cultural Recre­ation Advisory Board and heads the decorating committee for the annual city celebration.

"She's very conscious about people and the environment that we're in," Davis said.

Wildermuth received a $500 check, which she donated to Tree People.

James, a senior at Agoura High School who will study political science at USC this fall, was named 2015 Youth of the Year. He's a member of the As­sociated Student Body, and the commissioner ofIT and advertis­ing at his school. He volunteers for the nonprofit United Track Club and at Westlake Village City Hall helping to digitize and catalog the city's historical archives.

An administrative intern for the city, James helped archive over 40 percent of the city's docu­ments, Davis said.

The high school senior is also a trained lifeguard, an intern for

the Agoura Hills city manager's office and an L.A. County super­visor field volunteer.

James received a $500 schol­arship.

Plotkin, the Older American of the Year for Westlake Village, is a member of the Disaster Re­sponse Team and the city's Vol­unteers· on Patrol. At city events he provides traffic control and first aid, and performs additional duties.

Awardees received commem­orative piaques, and their names will lie included along with those of past recipients on a large plaque permanently displaye_d in the Cify Council chambers.

Ai:. the meeting on May 27, the council also recognized Chatsworth Products Inc. as part of a quarterly business recogni­tion program with the Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Com­merce.

Chatsworth Products is an employee-owned corporation that provides security products and services for information technology. The company has three manufacturing sites in the U.S. and sales offices around the globe.

Patty Thompson, an admin­istrative assistant for Westlake Village, was recognized at the meeting for her I 0 years working at City Hall.

June4, 2015 The Acorn

Musicians kick off JGlf series

Photos by SUSAN WEININGER Acom Newspaper.s

ALL THAT JAZZ-Abdve, band director Chad .Bl('jom conducts t he/Agou·ra High Sch~oJ Studio Jazz Ensemble d1;1r-ing the TGIF Summer Night concert on May 29 at the Westlake Village Civic Center. The evening featured performances bY.the jazz bands from Un:dero canyon Middle School and Agoura High School. Right, Joe·Genavia, an Agoura High senior, cuts l0e>se with a guita·r selo dn the son·g ·~ 1 nvita~loh" du~ing the c.oncert. The show kicked off the 2015 TGIF Summer Night series of free gutdoor entertainment events sponsored by the City of Westlake Village.

The Acorn

Drilling FromPage1-

the underground supplies D1ay not be sufficient to keep the lake full.

Drilling for a third well is taking place next to the lake along Triunfo Canyon Road near Golden Leaf Drive. The "-'Socia­tion said testing has indicated the possibility of water at the site.

But Jefferson said the tech­nology for finding water in small, fragmented aquifers such as the one below Westlake Village is imprecise.

"That makes it difficult to find water, and it makes it more unpredictable to know how much there is," he said.

If the well is dry, the associa­tion will continue to search for other water sources to keep the lake filled.

Water from the local aquifer is not potable, but it is suitable for the lake, which serves as a fishery and bird sanctuary, Jef­ferson said.

The drilling began May 21 and wfll last two to three months. Work hours were set from 8 a.m . to 5 p.m. on weekdays to mini­mize disiuption for residents in the area. All traffic lanes will remain open, and a temporary bicycle and pedestrian path was set up around the site.

Last year, some residents expressed concern when they

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June4, 2015

Drill~ng for water • Lake running low, new source needed-

By Sylvlo Belmond be~~Ko<n..con'

'Orilllng i• untlorway nlong . Tuunf'o a11yon Road in Westlake ViUngc to find • new water sourcco ror d~1>letcd Wcstlokc L1kc. '

Built in lho lntc 1960s. the mnn,mnde lake relic.~ on urider­groimd waler during dry rnonlM.

Tiie freshwater lukc has cig)u miles or :ihorclinc nnd conlains 3boul a hnlr-blllion gallons of wntcr when full. It is·surruundcd by more than 1,300 homes ruid is used for boaling llltd fishing.

In summer, a lnrgc amount of water is lost through evaporation.

noticed the lake's management company had set up a temporary connection to· a fire hydrant in order to up the water level.

The potable water belonging to Las Virgenes Municipal Water District was used intermittently to fill the lake. But topping off the lake with potable water this year will not be an option due to the serious drought.

'

From May 1hroug)1 eptembcr, lite stale Depnrtmcnl. of \Vuter R~oun:cs ulSJl requires operators 10 rnlcuse some of the lnke 's wnicr imo Triunfo Creek 10 protce1 pln111 nnd nnimol specie$ downmcnm.

Etl Jcn<:rs n, v!cu president of Westlake Lake Monogcmcnt Assocln.tion nrtd choir of the group's 1 tcr resources comu1it· tee.. snid 1l1e season's lnte rains helped, but as tcmpcmlures ri c, the lake will need $Upfllics from :i local uquifcr to maintnin the \\'B ter lev.:ls nccdcd for hctilthy ft•h and wi'ldlire,

The llSSOClntion us two un· dcrground wells that arc fed by Ote quircr.

Due I<> the pcrst<1cnt drQught,

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June4, 2015

Man's body found at the WLV Landing

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department says there is no evidence·ofhomicide or foul play in the death of a 75-year-old man whose body was found floating near the dock at the Westlake Lake Landing Wednesday morning.

A fisherman called authorities after he saw the Caucasian male floating in the water by the marina

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RICHARD GILLARD/ Acorn Newspapers

GUARD DUTY-Deputies secure The Landing dock.

The Acorn

RICHARD GILLARD/Acorn Newspapers

POLICE LINE-Police cordon off The Landing at Westlake Lake where a man's body was seen floating.

Deceased From Page 1 -

on Lindero Canyon Road shortly after 7 am. on lune 3.

, Firefighters pronounced the man dead at the scene. He was identified as Stuart Ivan Salt­man, with a last known address in Westlake Village.

The Los Angeles County

Department of Coroner also responded to the scene.

"There is no apparent foul play," Capt. Pat Davoren of the Lost Hills Sheriff's Station said.

The cause of death is pending an autopsy.

It is conceivable that the man fell in the water following a medical crisis, such as a stroke or heart attack.

-Sylvie Belmond