The Buzz

A Mission Viejo activist knew something was up when he saw five police cars going toward The Shops in a big hurry on March 9, the day a jewelry store was robbed. He said, “The armed robbery didn’t help our image as the safest city, but maybe car thieves at the mall will relocate after seeing the quick response.”

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A Buzz reader says the time is right for south Orange County cities to join together for law enforcement: “Mission Viejo currently pays more than $1 million a month to the Orange County Sheriff’s Dept. In San Juan Capistrano, they’re paying approximately a third of their annual budget to the County Sheriff. If the South County cities got out of the county system, they would bypass the pension mess and the county’s political bureaucrats. Each city has its own favorite for a chief of police. Mission Viejo could have Jack Anderson and San Clemente could have Bill Hunt.”

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Did any former Capo school district administrators benefit personally from taxpayer funds? The neighbors of a highly compensated former administrator alleged his home was remodeled and upgraded by CUSD contractors. Reports are emerging about an administrator who recently left the district whose landscaping at his new home may have been funded by the district. According to the report, district employees would clock in and then go to his house to work.

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A Capo school district constituent reacted to budget cuts: “CUSD claims to have education as its first priority. What does it say about priorities when a district first looks to firing teachers when cutting costs?” Another Capo resident commented about CUSD’s leadership: “The new superintendent, Woodrow Carter, is more diplomatic than James Fleming was, but I cannot otherwise tell the difference between the two when it comes to policies and views. It’s as if Fleming is still there.”

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A resident with eagle eyes pointed out a public notice in the Mar. 21 Saddleback Valley News. The city will hold a public hearing on Mon., Mar. 31, beginning at 5 p.m. to discuss the council’s moratorium on converting all public and/or private open space and recreational land via general plan, specific plan or zoning ordinance amendments. It’s a meaningless ordinance with an appearance that council members are protecting residents from a developer building a high-density housing project on the Casta del Sol golf course. The moratorium can be extended by the council for a period of 10 months and 15 days. It would end a couple months after the November election. Residents have predicted the developer won’t try to get the golf course property rezoned before the election. Council members apparently agree.