The Old Globe will hold its annual open house at the Globe Plaza on Saturday, June 9, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

This free event will feature live performances, including scenes from the 2007 Shakespeare Festival, costume displays, backstage tours, a children’s craft area, the Avenue Q Mobile, refreshments and much more.

In attendance at the event will be Globe executive director Louis Spisto, founding director Craig Noel, as well as Mayor Jerry Sanders. Presiding over the Open House will be Queen Elizabeth, played by Deborah Taylor, Globe associate artist.

The open house will also kick-off the 72nd Shakespeare Festival season, featuring Hamlet, Measure for Measure and The Two Gentlemen of Verona. The featured shows will run in nightly rotation in the outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre from June 16 through September 30.

Shakespeare at the Globe dates back to the institution’s artistic roots, when, in its very first year of existence, the theater presented 50-minute versions of Shakespeare’s plays. From 1949 to 1984, the bard’s work became an even more integral part of the Globe’s programming, with the creation of the annual San Diego National Shakespeare Festival – a summer-long event in which at least three Shakespearean works were presented by a repertory company. Revived in 2004, the Globe Summer Shakespeare Festival has become one of the most celebrated classical festivals in the country.

This year’s Shakespeare productions will be part of a six-play summer season, including a special presentation of the Tony-winning musical, Avenue Q, running from June 30 through August 5 at the Spreckels Theatre; Noel Coward’s Hay Fever, playing in the Old Globe Theatre July 14 through August 19; and the magical comedy Bell, Book and Candle, by John Van Druten, playing in the Cassius Carter Centre Stage August 4 through September 9.

The Old Globe is located at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park.

For more information on the 2007 Summer Season, contact Globe Ticket Services at 619- 234-5623 or visit the Globe Web site at www.theoldglobe.org.

The city and county of San Diego recently announced that two government agencies are the recipients of a joint Justice Assistance Grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The total grant is $891,154. The city of San Diego will receive $605,985 to be used for police automation, vehicle, safety, forensic, personnel, training and miscellaneous equipment, maintenance and resources as needs are identified. The county of San Diego will receive $285,169 to be used for drug courts and gang prevention. All expenditures will contribute to the safety and efficiency of law enforcement and crime prevention services throughout San Diego County.

The Hillcrest Town Council (HTC) will hold its monthly meeting at the Joyce Beers Community Center on Tuesday, June 12. The HTC meetings are held the second Tuesday of each month and begin with the Hillcrest Neighborhood Watch at 6:30 p.m. The general HTC meeting begins at 7 p.m.

The mission of the resident’s group is: “To provide a voice to and enhance the quality of life for Hillcrest renters and homeowners and to support actions that benefit our neighborhood.”

The facilitated meetings are open to anyone in the area who wants to get involved in “giving the village a voice” by giving input on issues important to Hillcrest residents. HTC sub-committees have been formed to tackle four major issues already identified. Sub-committees include crime, development, litter/graffiti and the Hillcrest Centennial. Anyone who attends the general meeting that would like to become more involved with the group is invited to participate on the sub-committees. Sub-committee meetings take place at various times throughout the month.

The Joyce Beers Community Center is located in the Uptown Shopping District at 1220 Cleveland Ave.

For more information about the Hillcrest Town Council, call 619-260-1929 or visit www.hillquest.com.

Townspeople is currently seeking volunteers who are good with people and who have basic computer and database knowledge. A few hours a week from volunteers will help the non-profit organization, which offers housing assistance to people living with HIV/AIDS, to continue its mission to serve the San Diego GLBT and HIV/AIDS communities.

For more information, contact Dawn Miranda at 619-295-8802 or e-mail dawn@townspeople.org.

The Hillcrest Centennial time capsule will be buried at the south end of the Vermont Street pedestrian bridge on Saturday, June 9.

According to time capsule organizers at the Hillcrest History Guild, there is still time to include a small item for Hillcrest residents to discover 100 years from now.

A ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the repair of the bridge and the time capsule will take place in July.

Items must be received by the Hillcrest History Guild no later than Friday, June 8.

For more information, contact Nancy Moors or Ann Garwood at 619-260-1929 or visit www.hillcrestcentennial.com.

A number of volunteer positions are available for San Diego Pride weekend, which is scheduled this year for July 21-22 – a week earlier than in past years. The celebration attracts each year more than 700 volunteers for areas such as ticket sales, parade support, beer garden, setup, medical, safety and more. Volunteer crewmembers who work a five-hour shift at either the parade or festival will receive two-day festival admission, a meal ticket per shift, a souvenir T-shirt and an appreciation barbecue scheduled for Aug. 12.

Those interested can sign-up on the Pride Web site or attend one of the Saturday afternoon volunteer sign-up sessions in The Center’s auditorium, located at 3909 Centre St. in Hillcrest. The next sessions will be held at noon on Saturdays, June 16 and June 30.

The June 16 session will include free pizza and soda for the first 100 people who sign-up. The latter session will offer American Sign Language services.

“Volunteers can select their preferred shifts and the areas in which they would like to work, either online or by attending one of the sessions,” said Patty Zwolinski, volunteer coordinator for Pride.

“Pride is successful because we have a very supportive business community and a supportive corps of volunteers. Dedicated volunteers have played a significant role in helping to raise over $1 million, which San Diego LGBT Pride has distributed to non-profit community organizations since 1996,” said Ron deHarte, executive director of San Diego Pride. “Volunteering is a great way to meet new people, get directly involved with the Pride celebration and help to make a difference in our community.”

For more information, call 619-297-7683 or visit the San Diego Pride Web site at www.sandiegopride.org.

The California State Senate recently approved legislation that provides relief to domestic partners who paid unexpected, discriminatory property taxes prior to Jan. 1, 2006. SB 559 passed the Senate with a 23-12 vote.

The Fair and Equal Taxation for Surviving Partners Act, which is authored by Sen. Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, and sponsored by Equality California, rolls back tax increases for domestic partners who separated or lost a partner before a 2006 law went into effect protecting them against unfair property reassessments.

“When families are in crisis, the last thing they need to worry about is an increased financial burden, which could force them to lose their home,” said Geoff Kors, EQCA executive director. “Before 2006, domestic partners faced undue tax hardships upon the death of their loved one or upon separation. Until there is marriage for same-sex couples in California, the inequalities created by domestic partnerships need to be remedied by legislation like this.”

California law allows certain exemptions from the fair market value reassessment of property upon a change in ownership. Transfers between married spouses, domestic partners, parent and child, and grandparent and grandchild are excluded from reassessment, sheltering them from an increase in tax burden when property changes hands between family members.

Although domestic partners received this tax exemption beginning on Jan. 1, 2006, couples that transferred property prior to that date did not receive the same benefit. Kehoe’s Fair and Equal Taxation for Surviving Partners Act would apply this exemption to registered domestic partners who were wrongly taxed before 2006, ensuring that their property tax bills are adjusted accordingly.

“This legislation ensures that all loving and committed couples are treated fairly and receive equal tax protections,” Kehoe said. “Domestic partners that were vulnerable to costly property tax reassessments deserve relief.”

The Fair and Equal Taxation for Surviving Partners Act, which was drafted by Lambda Legal, will be heard next in Assembly policy committees.