Monthly Archives: August 2018

Vintique Boutique Owner Pleads Guilty To Fraud Charges

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Another dealer of antiques stealing from people. Then writes hot checks to hide the crime!

Monterey County District Attorney Dean D. Flippo announced today that on August 10, Michael Frank Schellhous, age 50, has pled no contest to felony grand theft by embezzlement, felony grand theft from an elderly person, and misdemeanor petty theft from an elderly person.

In 2014, Schellhous operated a consignment shop in downtown Pacific Grove by the name of Vintique Boutique. He developed a relationship of trust with many individuals in the community and encouraged them to consign jewelry, furniture, and other personal property with him. Schellhous agreed to sell these items on their behalf for a percentage of the proceeds. However, rather than abiding by this agreement, he pawned or sold the items and refused to pay the consignors or return the unsold items upon request.

After several victims persisted in seeking payment, Schellhous opened a checking account using his partner’s personal identifying information but never deposited any money into the account. He then wrote multiple checks to victims from this account as “payment,” despite his knowledge that the account had no funds. When the victims attempted to cash the checks, they were returned for non-sufficient funds and the victims incurred additional expenses. He also remained in possession of other valuables belonging to these victims, most of which he never returned.

The District Attorney’s Office identified at least five victims, three of whom were over the age of 65 at the time of the theft, and estimates that Schellhous embezzled approximately $37,000.00 worth of personal property through this scheme. On August 9, 2018, Judge Mark Hood sentenced Schellhous to four years of felony probation, 180 days in county jail, and full restitution to his victims. Judge Hood immediately remanded Schellhous into custody upon sentencing. As terms of his probation, Schellhous must not engage in any consignment business, hold any position of trust for elder adults, or possess any checks in the name of another person without the approval of his probation officer.

Vintique Boutique Owner Pleads Guilty To Fraud Charges
Monterey County DA

 

Hart Mansion Closing. This Is Not A Repeat From 2010

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Another case of needing to spend more time with family. Sure, the owners are moving to “wine country”. Spend more time with fermenting grapes.

Hart Mansion

The Victorian home, built in 1893 and known as the Hart Mansion after Dr. Andrew Jackson Hart for whom it was built, is now on the market for $2 million. The four bedroom property — often featured on the town’s annual Home Tour when it was still held, and in national publications — has served as a tea room and special event venue since 2015, five years after the current owners Jim and Kathy Turley bought it in 2010.

While the Turleys initially planned for it to be solely their residence, the two said that because so many people were coming up to their front door and trying to come in and look around, they decided to find a way to open it to the public.

Hart Mansion Closing. This Is Not A Repeat From 2010

Durell Hotel Doesn’t Mesh Well

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I think it’s a well piled mess.

Rudy Fischer says changing the color will make it perfect.

“It’s a completely different design,” said Mark Brodeur, director of community and economic development, about the newest plans. “The other Victorian look didn’t mesh well in the immediate neighborhood. This design meshes a lot better with the museum and the library.”

Councilman Rudy Fischer also mentioned the building’s change of color.

“We have these tan buildings in the library and museum and he had this greenish/gray color,” said Fisher, noting the latest change in hue.

Durell Hotel Doesn’t Mesh Well

Think You Are Saving The Planet By Recycling?

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Think again, substainable people.

Recycle The Cedar St Times

Feeling pleased that your conscientious recycling is helping to save the environment? Not so fast. Your yogurt container or takeout clamshell might end up in a dump thanks to a ban on discarded items that the United States had been sending to China for processing.

This year, China followed through with its threat to prohibit the import of U.S. plastics, mixed paper and other materials that it says were turning the country into the world’s garbage dump. The repercussions from the new policy have been quick and nowhere close to sorted out in communities across the U.S.

Think You Are Saving The Planet By Recycling?

Lighthouse Curve Just 6th Place For Traffic Congestion

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More tax dollars spent on stoplights to route the tourists and tourist industry workers. Where would we be without tourists?

Narrowing the sidewalks on Lighthouse or making Hawthorne one way to Pvt Bolio were all great ideas, but they are all pro-car and not an option.

Lighthouse Curve

On an average day 54,000 cars come around the Lighthouse curve passing Private Bolio Gate to the Presidio of Monterey. That is more vehicles than travel any given spot on Highway 1, Highway 101, Highway 68, or Highway 156 in Monterey County.

The first step has been adding adaptive traffic signals.

“What this system does is every two and a half minutes it makes decisions based on the traffic that is coming,” Renny said.

The signals also keep a history of traffic so the system can make predictive decisions. A portion of Lighthouse Avenue in Monterey already has the signals but by Summer 2019 the city plans to install the lights stretching from David Avenue and Lighthouse Avenue all the way to English Avenue and Del Monte Avenue.

The money for the project is coming from a grant, neighborhood improvement fund dollars and Measure X.

Lighthouse Curve Just 6th Place For Traffic Congestion

Less Steinbeck, More Stockton: Red’s Station On The Way Out

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Fischer says you’ll never notice it. Who needs to? As if anyone from P.G. will afford the 10 apartments in this block.

Now
Reds Station

Future. Notice that the new 5th floor of the Holman is missing in the drawing.
Reds Station Replacement

“The residents who live on Walnut or 10th Street or Asilomar Avenue won’t even notice anything — they won’t even see or hear the changes downtown. In fact, most of the city will see no change except that the city has more money to take care of their streets,” added Fischer.

Now, the project will be put on the city’s water wait list. While the last time the gas station there was modified was in 1992 (after being built in 1957) it is not on the city’s historic resources inventory. Still, there’s a great history behind the original gas station that once existed there. That was the Flying A service station that was owned and operated by Everett “Red” Williams. Known as Red’s, it was where John Steinbeck and other characters of the time in the 1930s would often congregate.

Less Steinbeck, More Stockton: Red’s Station On The Way Out

California Firestorms Good For P.G. Tourism

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Don’t give Moe any ideas.

Moe Ammar Dont Buy American

The conditions caused by the California wildfires that have affected a number of tourists visiting popular summer destinations like Wine Country and Yosemite have conversely led to a surge in visitors to Pacific Grove.

That’s according to Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce President Moe Ammar who said that in particular, the number of foreign visitors to America’s Last Hometown has nearly doubled this summer, according to statistics gathered from the town’s tourist information center.

“It’s very unfortunate what’s happened there but the fact that we don’t have any fires on the Monterey Peninsula is good for us,” said Ammar, who noted the cancellation of his own family’s upcoming trip to Yosemite.

California Firestorms Good For P.G. Tourism

Red’s Station Gets No Love

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Tear it down, ask for a FOUR STORY BUILDING in it’s place.

Reds Station

Gerald Leigh had proposed a larger four-story building
that included 14 residential units, two workforce housing units and 32 parking spaces, but withdrew the proposal after citizen complaints. He resubmitted plans for a smaller three-story building minus the affordable housing element and with only 10 market-rate residences and 20 parking spaces.

Stupid things Moe says

“Since the chamber recruited the developer and worked so
hard to gain its approval, [the city’s OK of the project] is the
highlight of my 25-year career at the chamber,” Ammar said.

Red’s Station Gets No Love