Sign of the times
Temecula code enforcement officer Jean Voshall prepares to post a violation notice on this vacant house on Kingston Drive. Voshall is part of a team of inspectors who follow up on complaints of code violations such as dead lawns, junk cars and algae-clogged swimming pools that incubate mosquitoes. The goal is to help keep up neighborhood home values and the appearance of houses emptied because of the ongoing mortgage meltdown. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
According to city officials, as many as 15% of Temeculas 22,500 single-family homes could be bank-owned or in some stage of foreclosure. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Code enforcement officer Jean Voshall peeks through a broken fence at an abandoned house near Loma Linda Road in Temecula. Right to privacy laws prevent her from entering a property without the owner’s permission unless there is imminent danger to someone inside. It gets to you after a while,” Voshall said. “All of these families... where did they all go? (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Environmental health technician Kelly Kersten spreads pesticide made from corn husks over a mosquito-infested pool in the backyard of an abandoned house off Loma Linda Road in Temecula. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Signs of the times at Vista DelMonte and Calle Contento roads in Temecula’s wine country illustrate the area’s need for buyers of its foreclosed houses. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Overspray covers a concrete pipe cover on a painted lawn at a bank-owned house in southern Temecula. Many abandoned homes are cared for by neighborhood homeowner associations in an effort to keep up values for remaining residents. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Riverside real estate agent Gary Lupo blames loan companies for Temecula’s problems. “This was all caused by greed, on the part of everyone,” he said. “People didn’t have to do anything except have a pulse and they were given a loan.” (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
A school bus rolls through downtown Temecula’s historic Old Town Front Street. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
The Pechanga Casino and Hotel complex looms over a densely developed area of Temecula. Based largely on its upscale image, Temecula’s population has nearly doubled this decade, rising from about 57,000 in 2000 to 101,000 today. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
