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City Moves Backwards The Mission Viejo City Council majority is on a roll … backwards. In addition to downgrading neighborhoods by adding apartment projects, council majority members Frank Ury, Trish Kelley and Dave Leckeness think 1940s-style billboards are a fine addition to the city. Following is a letter written by Palmia residents after Kaleidoscope presented its billboard proposal to the council. The issue was addressed in detail last week on this blog, http://missionviejoca.org/html/article118.html Dear Neighbors, Here is a copy of the e-mail we sent to those 3 Council members. You may want to contact them as soon as possible. We were unable to attend the meeting on Monday evening regarding the signage along the 5 Freeway as proposed by the Kaleidoscope. Our friends attended and believe the Council should really consider the remarks made by the lady who said that her grandkids use their iPhones--not signage. This center has always been considered a teen hang-out market--so it would be good that the Council think about encouraging the Kaleidoscope owners to use 21st Century rather than 1940s methods of advertising. It was my personal observation that nearly all of the letters from tenants of Kaleidoscope businesses seemed to have been written in the same format--probably on the same computer, as the font was exactly the same. Sure seemed like "boiler-plate" letters written most probably by the owners of the Kaleidoscope and signed by the tenants. It would be well for the City Council to contact the owner and encourage his tenants to think in terms of how teens decide where they are going. I find it hard to believe that they would make their decision based on some Times-Square type of ad along a freeway. Thank you for agreeing to not making an unwise "snap" decision on this matter. The quiet in our Palmia neighborhood has been ruined by the horrible crashing noises we are hearing as the asphalt and concrete UDR is demolishing is being slammed into trucks, then we hear the loud "beep, beep" as the trucks are put into reverse. Please don't let the other end of our city be ruined by another unwise decision. Thank you. Sincerely, |
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Politics as Usual Was there ever a time when the OC Republican Party didn’t have dissention in its ranks? A power struggle is nothing new, but one dissident group in OC makes it interesting. Two years ago, an Iranian woman from Irvine, Frances Akhavi ( http://missionviejoca.org/html/article212.html ), tried to take control of the OC Republican Central Committee. She recruited a strange assortment of candidates, including some non-Republicans who changed their voter registration to run for GOP Central Committee. Her group won enough seats in the 2010 Primary to control or influence approximately one-third of the GOP Central Committee membership. Aligning with Akhavi’s dissidents were several other Central Committee members who had an axe to grind with GOP county leaders. Some in Akhavi’s group bragged they would shut down the OC GOP headquarters, but they didn’t have enough votes to do anything except disrupt Central Committee meetings. No one should underestimate their ill will toward the Republican Party. Conflicts developed among the dissidents, and they began fighting with each other. By July 2011, the group split, and those remaining loyal to Akhavi were allegedly on her payroll. A club in South County that Akhavi had been funding, SOC912, broke away – separating itself from her control as well as her money. Thus, SOC912’s fancy events and SOC912 member Mike Munzing’s “Conservative Happy Hours” ended. In addition to losing her rent-a-riot SOC912 group, Akhavi’s money appeared to be gone. A written report circulated in 2011 connecting Akhavi to a wheeler-dealer who was indicted for running Ponzi schemes ( http://articles.latimes.com/2011/oct/12/business/la-fi-namvar-prison-20111012 ). One of Akhavi’s loyalists told an entirely different story, saying the money came from “Iranian media – TV and newspapers.” The written report about Akhavi didn’t reveal why she attacked the Republican Party of Orange County or who paid her to do it. Akhavi’s Central Committee challengers lost last week, including Linda Barnes, who runs Akhavi’s operations in Mission Viejo. The entire SOC912 slate in the June 2012 Primary lost as well, including David Duringer, Kevin Richardson, Steve Magdzniak, John Drew and Nina Davar. Akhavi’s former associate, Mike Munzing, was reelected to the GOP Central Committee on June 5. He is the only person remaining on the Central Committee in South County with direct ties to Akhavi and SOC912, although he has had a falling out with both factions. Munzing was the one who bragged that he had recruited the candidates to run as challengers for the GOP Central Committee. In the race last week, 22 candidates ran for six seats – a stampede of unknowns, most of whom had no connection to the GOP. Voters had no trouble rejecting the unknown candidates, but Munzing slipped by them. This blog correctly predicted that no challenger would win a seat on the GOP Central Committee in the 73rd Assembly District. Below are the six winners. Despite tens of thousands of votes yet to be counted in Orange County, the order of these six is unlikely to change. Norm Dickinson (20,346) |
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Hold CUSD Accountable FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 8, 2012 PARENTS AND TAXPAYERS JOIN FORCES TO DEMAND SOLUTIONS FOR STUDENTS & ACCOUNTABILITY IN CAPISTRANO UNIFIED Parents and taxpayers throughout Capistrano Unified School District (“CUSD”) have united to form “Hold CUSD Accountable” – a new organization opposed to current plans to further increase class sizes, shorten the school year and otherwise diminish the educational opportunities provided to students. Wayne Tate, Spokesperson for Hold CUSD Accountable, described the mission of the organization, “This is a well-organized, grassroots effort by parents, taxpayers and concerned community members to oppose the actions of a school board majority with misplaced priorities that will hurt students and taxpayers — they’re planning to protect the pay and benefits for the public employees by sacrificing our children and their education.” Faced with the prospect of additional drastic cuts in consecutive years, the community has lost confidence in the current district leadership which has continually favored employee compensation over student needs. Hold CUSD Accountable is bringing parents, community members, business leaders and taxpayers together to demand fiscal responsibility in an effort to preserve quality public education for students. Details of an emerging agreement between the majority school board and the Capistrano Unified Educator’s Association (CUEA), the teacher’s union were made public this week. The CUSD board of trustees has never shared its plans with the public, but the teachers union has provided their members with the details of these secret negotiations. CUSD is facing a $51 million shortfall. To cover this deficit, union leaders and the board majority are planning to further cut school programs, eliminate three weeks of instruction, dramatically increase class sizes in all grades and restrict parent access to teachers – while at the same time making no cuts to employee pay and benefits. In fact, employee salaries can actually increase under this plan. Wayne Tate concluded, “This is wrong – and it is unacceptable.” Hold CUSD Accountable plans to inform voters on these issues and others relevant to the November election, at which time four seats on the seven member school board will be contested. More information can be found at the organization’s website: http://HoldCUSDAccountable.org |
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Non-government Events Following is a sampling of events and activities that are not funded by taxpayers or promoted by the Nanny State. Please support private enterprise and non-profit groups. Taste of Orange County, Sat., June 16, noon to 10:00 p.m., and Sun., June 17, noon to 8:00 p.m., food and wine fest, samples from 50 restaurants and 40 wineries, cooking demonstrations and auctions, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, 8808 Irvine Center Drive, Irvine, 855-298-6696, ext. 2, http://www.tasteofoc.com A Taste of Greece, Fri., June 22, 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Sat., June 23, noon to 10:00 p.m., and Sun., June 24, noon to 9:00 p.m., festival of Greek dance, food and wine, St. Paul’s Greek Orthodox Church, 4949 Alton Parkway, Irvine, http://www.irvinegreekfest.com Mariachis at the Mission on Sat., June 23, 10:00 a.m. to 11:15 a.m., second and fourth Saturdays each month, free with paid admission to the Mission, Central Courtyard, Mission San Juan Capistrano, 26801 Ortega Hwy, San Juan Capistrano, (949) 234-1300, http://www.missionsjc.com/ Philippine Fiesta, Sat., June 23, 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., St. Kilian Church, eighth annual dinner dance, including music by Side Street band, St. Kilian parish hall, 26872 Estanciero Drive, Mission Viejo, (949) 770-0820, http://www.stkilianchurch.org Concerts at Lake Mission Viejo begin June 23 with Grand Funk Railroad. Other concerts include Allen Stone on July 7, Three Dog Night on July 21, Hunter Hayes on Aug. 4, Leon Russell on Aug. 18 and Hanson on Sept. 1. Concerts begin at 7:00 p.m. and are limited to lake association members and their guests. Call or visit the website for information, 949-770-1313, ext. 311, or http://www.lakemissionviejo.org Sawdust Art Festival opens June 29 on the festival grounds, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., 935 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-3030, http://www.sawdustartfestival.org Art exhibit, “Sacred Gold: Pre-Hispanic Art of Colombia,” through July 1, Bowers Museum, 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana, 714-567-3600, http://www.bowers.org “Taming of the Shrew,” through July 8, American Coast Theater Company, Vanguard University. Show times are 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, Lyceum Theater, 55 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, (714) 619-6424, http://www.actctickets.com Art exhibit, through Oct. 7, featuring the work of Peter Bo Rappmund, a Laguna Beach film and video artist, with his new “Ex-pose” series. Laguna Art Museum, 307 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-8971, http://www.lagunaartmuseum.org Michaels, ongoing and new classes throughout June: sewing, painting and crafts, 25310 Marguerite Pkwy, Mission Viejo, (949) 770-5001 Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores, ongoing and new classes: how to sew, decorate cakes, quilt, knit, crochet and more, 26672 Portola Parkway, Foothill Ranch, (949) 588-7420, http://Joann.com Movies, Edwards Kaleidoscope Stadium 10 in Mission Viejo, 27741 Crown Valley Pkwy, (949) 582-4020, get show times, watch movie trailers, see what's coming soon at http://www.moviefone.com/theater/edwards-kaleidoscope-stadium-10/32/showtimes Big Bucks Bingo, Wednesdays, 6:15 p.m. early bird and 6:45 p.m. regular games, Mission Viejo Elks Lodge, Marguerite and La Paz, Mission Viejo, 949-830-3557. Fun with Chalk, The 13th annual Street Painting Festival will be held on Saturday and Sunday, July 14 and 15, 2012, featuring re-creations of the Old Masters and original works, all by noted artists from all over the world and all created on the asphalt surface of the Bell Tower Community Center in Rancho Santa Margarita. For more information see http://www.funwithchalk.org |
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Political and Government Events Calendar Republican Party of Orange County 13th Annual Flag Day Celebration, Mon., June 11, VIP Reception 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., dinner 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., keynote speaker Gov. Jan Brewer, Hyatt Regency Irvine, 17900 Jamboree Blvd., Irvine, for tickets or information call (714) 453-0900 or visit http://www.ocgop.org/flag-day Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees, Public Hearings on Mon., June 11, 7:00 p.m., CUSD Special Education Local Plan Area, Adoption of the 2012-2013 Tier III Use of Categorical Flexibility Funds and Renewal of the Petition of Opportunities for Learning Charter School, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano, agenda and supporting documentation are published on the website 72 hours prior to a meeting, (949) 234-9200, http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/ ACT for America, Mission Viejo Chapter, will meet on Mon., June 11, 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:45 p.m., and the meeting begins promptly at 7:30 p.m. Guest speaker will be Al Rowley, author, “Islam in the Classrooms: History or Propaganda.” ACT meets at the Norman P. Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. Orange County Board of Supervisors, Budget Hearings, Tues., June 12, and Wed., June 13, 9:30 a.m., Board Hearing Room, First Floor, 333 W. Santa Ana Blvd., Santa Ana, (714) 834-3100. http://egov.ocgov.com/ocgov/Government/Board%20of%20Supervisors/Meeting%20Schedule Saddleback Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees will meet on Tues., June 12, 6:30 p.m., at the district office, 25631 Peter Hartman Way, Mission Viejo, (949) 586-1234. The next regular board meeting will be on Tues., June 12. http://www.svusd.k12.ca.us/ Moulton Niguel Water District meetings: Community Relations on Wed., June 13, 9:00 a.m., Engineering and Operations on Mon., June 18, 9:00 a.m., Finance and I.T. on Wed., June 20, 9:00 a.m., Board of Directors on Thurs., June 21, 5:30 p.m., 27500 La Paz Road, Laguna Niguel, (949) 831-2500, http://www.mnwd.com/board-of-directors/agenda.aspx Hugh Hewitt live broadcast, “The Obama Care Tour: What Will the Court Do?” Wed., June 13, 3:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., co-presented by KRLA 870 and the Nixon Library. Hewitt will moderate a debate between John Eastman and Erwin Chemerinksy at 7:00 p.m. Richard Nixon Presidential Library, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, CA (714) 364-1120, http://nixonfoundation.org/ai1ec_event/the-obamacare-tour-what-will-the-court-do/?instance_id=374 June 14 is Flag Day. Santa Margarita Water District meetings: Engineering Committee Meeting on Fri., June 15, 7:30 a.m., Finance Committee Meeting on Fri., June 22, 7:30 p.m.; Board of Directors will meet on Wed., June 27, 7:00 p.m., 26111 Antonio Parkway, Rancho Santa Margarita, (949) 459-6420, http://www.smwd.com Concert at the Nixon Library, Sun., June 17, the Azzoni Duo, violinist Sandra Azzoni Wood and pianist Christine Azzoni Dow. Doors open at 1:15 p.m., and concerts begin at 2:00 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Concerts are free and open to the public. Schedule is subject to change. Richard Nixon Library, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, (714) 464-1161, http://events.nixonfoundation.org/concerts/ Capistrano Valley Republican Women Federated, Wed., June 20, 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., guest speaker will be Dr. Barbara Stone, Marbella Country Club, 30800 Golf Club Drive, San Juan Capistrano, RSVP to Sue Schultz, (949) 240-6799, esue39@cox.net Saddleback Republican Assembly, Thurs., June 21, 7:00 p.m., program to be announced. SRA meets on third Thursdays at the Norman P. Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Jacaranda Room-B, Mission Viejo. For information call (949) 360-1717. South Orange County Community College District Board of Trustees, Mon., June 25. Meeting times unless otherwise posted: open session convenes at 5 p.m., followed by adjournment to closed session, open session reconvenes at 6:00 p.m. or 6:30 p.m., adjournment by 9:00 p.m. Ronald Reagan Board of Trustees Room, Room 145, Health Sciences/District Offices Building, Saddleback College, 28000 Marguerite Parkway, Mission Viejo, (949) 582-4999, https://www.socccd.edu El Toro Water District meetings: Engineering, Finance, Insurance Committee on Tues., June 26, 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.; Board of Directors on Thurs., June 28, 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. ETWD, 24251 Los Alisos Blvd., Lake Forest, (949) 837-0660, http://www.etwd.com/ |
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The Buzz OC Register columnist Martin Wisckol reported on a dissident group in the Orange County Republican Party, http://totalbuzz.ocregister.com/2012/06/07/dissidents-purged-from-o-c-gop-committee/86259/ . However, he seems to be writing about it from afar. He neither knows who is on which side nor does he distinguish a genuine reform-minded Republican from a non-Republican bomb thrower. Wisckol’s lists, including those added in the comment section, are inaccurate. *** The California Republican 2012 Fall Convention will be held at the Los Angeles Marriott Burbank Airport on Aug. 10-12. The 2012 Republican National Convention will be held in Tampa, FL, on Aug. 27-30. For the first time, national convention coverage will be available in an easy-to-access format, http://www.gopconvention2012.com/about-the-convention-without-walls/ *** The Orange County Registrar of Voters will continue posting daily updates at 5:00 p.m. on weekdays until all ballots are counted. The latest report as of this writing, June 8, indicated 17,125 ballots remain to be counted, http://www.ocvote.com/results/left-to-count/total-ballots-left-to-count/ None of the county’s 15,462 provisional ballots had been counted by 5:00 p.m. on June 8. *** Several Primary contests are still too close to call, including who will serve on the OC GOP Central Committee from Assembly District 68. The top three vote-getters in the 68th are Todd Spitzer (21,640), Fred Whitaker (14,891) and Mark Bucher (10,608), followed by Scott Voigts (9,676), Deborah Pauly (9,648) and Jeffrey Lalloway (9,612). Ray Grangoff is in seventh place for six seats with 9,588 votes as of the June 8 update. In another close race, John Draper (12,824) is in sixth place (for six seats) and Bill Dunlap (12.793) is in seventh place in the 74th Assembly District. *** The Supreme Court will rule on "ObamaCare" this month. Liberals, including the media, will likely express outrage if SCOTUS overturns all or parts of that law. They'll be especially miffed if the Mandate section is ruled unconstitutional as it should be. *** As reported by the Capistrano Dispatch, Outreach Ministry of Mission Basilica Catholic Church is a hosting a free brunch for senior citizens, 55 and over, on Sat., June 16, from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Parish Community Center. Food, shopping and door prizes will be available. For more information, contact Christina Puga at 949.234.1356 or email her at cpuga@missionparish.org |
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