The Buzz Column, July 18

A ceremony to lay the cornerstone for the Norman P. Murray Community and Senior Center expansion will take place Friday, July 28, 10:30 a.m., at 24932 Veterans Way. Participants in the ceremony will include Councilman John Paul Ledesma, vocalist Diane Nill and Boy Scout Troop 661. Former City Manager Fred Sorsabal will preside, and Saddleback Laguna Lodge No. 672 and the Grand Lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons of California will present a bronze plaque. Groundbreaking for the expansion will take place on Aug. 5.

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Neil Lonsinger and Brian Skalsky are among Mission Viejo residents who have pulled papers to run for city council. Lonsinger has previously run for council, and Skalsky is a newcomer. Others pulling papers thus far include Jim Woodin, Michael Ferrall and Councilwoman Trish Kelley.

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A year ago during the effort to recall Capo school board trustees, one of the parents said of CUSD Supt. James Fleming, “He has to be a pretty smart guy just to remember all the lies he’s told. He tells different groups of people different things, and he must have a good memory to keep all the stories straight.” In what is certainly old news by now, Fleming resigned on Wednesday, July 19.

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Called by some the liar-in-chief, Fleming was in deep trouble as soon as former CUSD Communications Director David Smollar started spilling the beans to the Or. Co. Register. Smollar in June leaked the Enemies List to OCR, and “the Flem” responded by saying he knew nothing about the list. The trustees publicly backed him, alternately claiming the list didn’t exist or, if it did, everyone at the district had acted properly. On Wed., July 19, the Register revealed Fleming’s laughable claim that the purpose of the list – which he indeed knew about – was to prevent the 150 “enemies” from hacking the district’s computer system.

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Parents at the July 11 school board meeting demanded that the trustees fire Fleming. That’s not the way it works at CUSD where Fleming, not the trustees, called the shots. Beyond the P.R. nightmare of an Enemies List and Fleming’s conflicting stories in print, the trustees defended his statements and behavior. After being accused of dishonesty, malfeasance and corruption, the trustees looked foolish as well, and that may have been the last straw.

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Also in hot water is Registrar of Voters Neal Kelley, who now says he illegally allowed CUSD officials to view petition signatures so they “could get a sense of closure.” He had first claimed he didn’t know it was against the law, but his claim blew up in his face. At the July 18 meeting of the Board of Supervisors, Fifth Dist. Supv. Tom Wilson still seemed unconcerned, according to some South County residents in the audience. Amid calls for Kelley’s resignation, supervisors cautiously approved a study that would outline a potential investigation of the election official's department. County CEO Tom Mauk is expected to have that outline back on the supervisors' agenda by their Aug. 1 meeting.

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As reported in The Buzz last week, OC Superior Court Judge Michael Brenner on July 11 upheld the OC Registrar of Voter's invalidation of recall signatures. One of the parents responded, “Our attorney said that he did not expect us to prevail in Superior Court. He said a judge would not be inclined to make or change the law on his own and that, ultimately, this would have to be won in an appellate court.” The group has decided to appeal.

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Mission Viejo residents who are watching planned road improvements east of Antonio Parkway are trying to measure the impact on Crown Valley traffic problems. Some say that the city of Mission Viejo should “hold San Juan Capistrano’s feet to the fire” by addressing the matter of Ortega between Antonio and the I-5. A former Mission Viejo planning commissioner is asking about the option to shift Ortega to the Camino Capistrano off-ramp area and create an interchange there. He added, “If we don’t press for a solution now, it is hopeless, and Crown Valley will become a parking lot.”

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At the July 17 meeting of the Orange County Republican Central Committee, three incumbent CUSD school board members who are up for reelection didn’t get the endorsement. According to those who attended the meeting, Councilman Frank Ury was pulling strings with the good ol’ boys regarding endorsements for Mission Viejo council incumbents as well. While it might not surprise anyone to hear Council Members Trish Kelley and Lance MacLean didn’t receive the endorsement, Ury allegedly prevented Councilman John Paul Ledesma from getting the endorsement. Ury supposedly is trying to bring in his own council majority since he can’t get a second to his motions. Ury might be obligated to the out-of-towners who made big donations to his campaign in 2004. It’s hard to pay back all the favors when no one on the current council agrees with him.

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