The Buzz (Corrected 05/04/09)

Recall update: proponents of the Lance MacLean recall say the signature drive is on track to reach the halfway mark within the next few days. Organizers have anticipated for two weeks that half of the 9,300 required signatures will be collected by May 8. Throughout the month of May, recall supporters will be at storefronts in retail centers around town. Residents wanting to sign the petition should look for tables with bright yellow signs. Recall proponents expect to finish getting signatures well ahead of the Aug. 25 deadline.

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Several interesting stories have come from recall supporters who live near MacLean. Two of MacLean’s neighbors came to a volunteer’s table last week, and they were eager to sign the petition. One said, “Is there any way we can recall him from our neighborhood? Whenever the parents are out of town, the kids have big, noisy parties that disturb everyone nearby. They’re real inconsiderate, and we’ve called the police. When squad cars show up, most of the kids run out and hide while a few of them go out to schmooze with the officers. The police leave and the party is back on.”

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Storefront volunteers get an earful about which issues are hot in various neighborhoods. At Albertsons on Muirlands, residents talk about schools closing, unwanted cell towers, too many homes converted to assisted living and poorly maintained public property. At Trader Joe’s, the hot topic is council majority members MacLean, Ury and Kelley going on record to promote apartments on top of stores across from city hall and then lying about it at the April 20 council meeting. At Albertsons on Olympiad, residents mention MacLean wanting to sue the Capo school district and “throw the kitchen sink” at the cash-strapped district. In south Mission Viejo, the Crown Valley PORKway fiasco gets frequent mention.

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A resident followed up on city hall’s alleged celebration of Earth Day. Last year, the city marked the occasion by dumping hundreds of easels on public property and hiding costs of an outdoor photo gallery. This year, the city bought thousands of plants, giving the impression residents were going to plant them during the April 25 Artes de la Vida event. This blog initially received a report that thousands of unused plants had been relocated to Lower Curtis Park. An activist checked out Lower Curtis and reported that some of the plants may have been relocated there. The resident was primarily responding to last week’s Buzz column:: “I agree with the person who said there wasn’t much interest. If it hadn’t been for the programs with children performing, the whole thing would have been a flop. Children can’t drive themselves to a program where they’re performing, and parents paid no attention to all the tents and booths.”

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Reader feedback: “I want to know how the city is explaining all the new trees and plants along Crown Valley that need irrigation and tremendous amounts of water. Residents can expect to get notice of water rationing, but the city can water all it wants. I’ve lived in Mission Viejo for 30 years, and I saw the city do something similar in the 1990s. We first paid for a lot of new plants in the medians that required a lot of water. Then we got notice to conserve. The city used the excuse to pull out all the new plants and put in a different variety that needed less water. Is that what’s coming next – a citywide replanting spree under the guise of saving water when most of the planting has been done during a three-year drought?”