Remembering My Friend, Again...

A GREAT FRIEND
Today, July 30, 2016, would have been the 75th birthday of my friend, Larry Moore.  If he was still alive we and our families would find a way to celebrate this day together as we did so many times during the 57 years he and I were best friends.  Instead, we simply remember what a wonderful man he was, and what a great friend he was to so many people.

I MARK THIS DAY EACH YEAR
I've written about his each year, marking his birthday and also marking the day he passed away in December, 2003.  Last year I wrote about him HERE.  This year, with all the tragic loss of police officers lives across the country, I think of him more than ever.

THOUSANDS OF FRIENDS
Larry was a member of the Los Angeles police Department for 31 years and he spent the last half of his career as the Athletic Director at the Police Academy.  This plaque is mounted at the Police Academy in his honor.  He had tens of thousands of friends around the world from his law enforcement activities.  I knew many of them and considered them my friends, too.

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMIGO
Today my wife and I will mark this day with some special quiet time and remember all the wonderful times we spent with Larry.  I hope each of you are fortunate to have such a great friend in your lives.

John Stephens Fundraiser Sunday

IT'S CAMPAIGN SEASON!
Just a reminder that Costa Mesa City Council candidate John Stephens is holding a fundraiser on Sunday, July 31, 2016.  It will be held at 1503 South Coast Drive, Costa Mesa, 92626 - In The Atrium.  There is plenty of parking available.

GET TO KNOW JOHN STEPHENS
Stephens is an outstanding candidate to fill one of the three positions that will be contested in November.  I encourage you to find your way to this event, spend some time getting to know John, and contribute to his campaign.

DETAILS BELOW...
Here's the flyer announcing this event.  Click on the image to enlarge it for easier reading.

Parks & Rec. Commission Tweaks The FUAP, And More

IMPORTANT ISSUES CONSIDERED
The Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commission met again last night and dealt with a couple important issues.  You can read the agenda HERE.

ABOUT MS. MERCURIO
Before we get to the important parts of the meeting, let me report to you that rookie commissioner Julie Mercurio - she who recently withdrew from the City Council race - attended this meeting, although you wouldn't know it if you depended solely on audio for your information.  During the entire 2 plus hours of the meeting, with the exception of when she started the meeting by leading the Pledge of Allegiance, she was not heard to utter a single word.  Even then, we couldn't tell if she spoke or lip synched it.  In fact, it looked like she didn't even turn on her microphone the entire evening.  We presume she can actually speak, since she looks like she's whispering in Commissioner Kim Pederson's ear in this image.

SHE CONTRIBUTED NOTHING!
During Public Comments two speakers criticized Mercurio's selection.  In fact, Cindy Black presented a slide show of all the applications for that appointive position to demonstrate how unqualified she was for the position.  A couple of the commissioners, including my friend, Byron de Arakal, angrily defended her selection, citing the fact that she was a mother as reason enough for her appointment.  I almost choked when he said that!  Since this was early in the meeting he probably had no idea that she would become the invisible woman, offering not a single thing to the proceedings.  It was clear at the time that her appointment was solely to give her some visibility during her council campaign.  Last night she demonstrated just how unprepared she is for this assignment.  The two items on the agenda were pithy enough that every commissioner should have had something to contribute to the discussion.  All the others did.

STEP DOWN, JULIE!
So, enough with this charade... I'm asking Ms. Mercurio to simply step down - resign from the commission and let one of the other applicants be appointed to fill out Don Harper's term which expires in February.  If we're going to pay her $100 a month for her service, she should at least try to provide some.  Her continued presence on the dais is a constant reminder of the partisanship that rules our city.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
During Public Comments Beth Refakes reminded us that the Military Affairs Team is, once again, collecting lightly-used cocktail dresses, ball gowns and accessories for the wives of the men of the 1/5 Marines at Camp Pendleton for the Marine Ball.  Donations may be left in the lobby at City Hall.

Rocky Evans again asked the commission to consider extending the operating hours of the Skate Park.

Mark Arblaster, who runs a club soccer organization, announced that his group is helping a struggling  recreational soccer group with their expertise and financial aid.

Kim Hendricks asked that the rope barriers for some of the vernal pools in Fairview Park be re-installed.  She also offered criticism of Mercurio's appointment

Cindy Black reminded the commission of the proximity of Banning Ranch to Talbert Park and then offered criticism of Mercurio's appointment.

CONSENT CALENDAR
Back to the meeting.  The commission passed the Instructional Class Proposals on the Consent Calendar - they were all Ice Skating-related - without discussion.

FUAP REPORT AND MODIFICATIONS
The first item on the agenda was the spring Field Use Allocation Report (FUAP) and amendments to the existing policy.  Recreation Manager Justin Martin led the discussion.  You can read the staff report HERE.  This is the completion of the first year this new FUAP has been in existence and, based on the report, the results are quite positive.  The staff and the users had some tough going sorting out the residency requirements.  Only one user - Newport Mesa Friday Night Lights - failed to produce sufficient numbers of verifiable residents to retain Group 3 status, and will have limited use of fields.

APPROVED WITH MODIFICATIONS
After lengthy discussions the commission, led by Chairman Brett Eckles, approved the Field Use Report and recommended modifications to the changes to the FUAP, including tightening up the definitions of what constitutes a "strike" against a group under the new Code of Conduct section.  The staff will tinker with it following the direction provided by the commission before this issue is presented to the City Council for approval.

TALBERT PARK
The other item on the agenda was the Review of Talbert Regional Park Final Habitat Restoration Plan, HERE.  You can plow through the 168 pages if you wish.  City Engineer Bart Mejia led this discussion and had assistance from Susan Brodeur from Orange County Parks.  The commissioners heard the report and heard from members of the public, each of whom expressed a desire to keep Talbert Park as natural as possible.

BOB'S IMAGES
Vice Chair Robert Graham provided some photographic information to demonstrate some things that could be done to make that area more accessible.

MOVING IT FORWARD...
Eventually the commission moved to partner with OC Parks to search for and apply for grants and other funding opportunities to fulfill the estimated $22 million necessary to complete the plan as presented.  They also recommended Alternate 1 and segments of Alternates 2 and 3 for future consideration.  Both de Arakal and Graham suggested that we should think big in this process - it's going to take quite awhile because of the many governmental entities that will have their oars in this water.

HIGH PRAISE FOR MARTIN AND STAFF
The evening finished with Martin providing his report on recent activities - none of which was included in the online staff report.  Suffice it to say that things in the Recreation Division are looking up, with enhanced activities at the Senior Center and throughout the city.  Several commissioners, including Kim Pederson,  praised Martin and his staff for their outstanding work.  The next meeting is August 25th.

BYRON WANTS SECURITY AT FUTURE MEETINGS!
One last thing... at the very end of the meeting de Arakal said he was going to ask CEO Tom Hatch and Police Chief Rob Sharpnack to assign a Sergeant-at-arms to all future Parks and Recreation meetings!  This is very strange!  I've attended most of these meetings and the crowd (a generous term for the few people normally attending) have NEVER been rowdy - EVER!  I don't know what was going on at that meeting last night, or why he felt it necessary to take that step, but he mentioned safety.  Maybe with Ms. Mercurio comes a more rowdy crowd... who knows?

Parks & Rec. Commission Tackles Meaty Issues

SOME HEAVY STUFF ON THE AGENDA
Chairman Brett Eckles and the Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commission meets again on Thursday, July 28, 2016 beginning at 6:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers and will deal with some pretty meaty issues.  You can read the full agenda HERE.

NEW ICE SKATING-RELATED CLASSES

On the Consent Calendar there is one item, HERE, in which the commission will be asked to consider and approve eight (8) new Instructional Class Proposals, all of them ice skating-oriented.


FUAP REPORT
There is no Old Business on the agenda, but there are two New Business issues for the commission to consider.  The first is the Spring 2016 Field Audit Report and Amendments to the Existing Field Use and Allocation Policy, HERE.  This one could include some dicey discussion.  It seems that all user groups met the requirements of the program - except one, Newport Mesa Friday Night Lights (NMFNL).  That group reported less than half the required local residency requirement.  That will relegate them to a Group 5 status and severely limit their opportunities to use fields covered by the plan.  Extensive documentation, including graphics, are included in the staff report.

CODE OF CONDUCT ADDED
Also included is the staff recommendation for inclusion of a Field Use Code of Conduct in the FUAP.

TALBERT PARK RESTORATION
New Business #2, HERE, is a review of the Talbert Regional Park Final Habitat Restoration Plan.  The staff recommends that the City partner with OC Parks to search and apply for grants and other funding opportunities and recommends the implementation of Alternative 1 with select elements of Alternates 2 and 3.  The staff report is comprehensive - long, for you slow readers - and will require the commissioners to pay attention and do their homework on this issue.

WILL JULIE SHOW UP AND HAVE DONE HER HOMEWORK?
It's the middle of summer, so I wonder how many commissioners will attend this meeting.  I'm particularly interested to see if rookie Commissioner Julie Mercurio shows up, since she bowed-out of the City Council race last week and the apparent sole purpose of appointing her to this commission was to give her visibility for that race.  And, I wonder if she will actually do the heavy lifting required to understand and make an informed decisions on both the New Business items listed above.  I guess we'll see tomorrow night.

Two Projects Approved By Short-handed Planning Commission

DICKSON ABSENT, MATHEWS RAN THE MEETING
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission met again Monday night although Chairman Rob Dickson was absent so Vice Chair Jeff Mathews conducted the meeting.

DONATIONS OF DRESSES FOR THE WIVES OF THE 1/5 MARINES
During Public Comments Beth Refakes reminded everyone that the Military Affairs Team is accepting donations of cocktail dresses, ball gowns, and accessories for the wives of the 1/5 Marines.  Donations may be dropped off in the City Hall lobby.  She also expressed concern about the blocking of the right-most northbound lane on Harbor Blvd. between Newport Blvd. and 19th Street and asked for someone to investigate it.

SOBER LIVING/MONAHAN/EPISCOPAL CHURCH
An unidentified person drew the commission's attention to a Daily Pilot article by Laurene Keane.  She also expressed concern about our "stack-a-shack" building.  She also addressed her concern about the relationship between the operator of Yellowstone Recovery, the pastor at the Episcopal church at Bay Street and Orange and lame duck councilman Gary Monahan.  She stated that the neighbors are concerned that there may be a scheme to put a sober living facility at that site.

GO TO THE FAIR
During Commissioner Comments Colin McCarthy expressed the view that folks should attend the Orange County Fair and also support local businesses.

GRATEFUL TO REFAKES
Stephan Andranian thanked Refakes for all the good work she does with the Military Affairs Team, and for her frequent updates.

Commissioner Tim Sesler and Vice Chair Mathews had no comments.

ANOTHER SMALL LOT PROJECT ON 23RD STREET
Public Hearing #1 is the small lot subdivision for four units at 127 23rd Street.  It's pretty straightforward, with no variances.  Three members of the public spoke and expressed concern about overflow parking.  This project will be conditioned to require parking in the garages.  McCarthy affirmed that it meets all requirements.  The commission approved it, 4-0, in very short order.

56 UNITS REPLACING STORAGE SITE AT 929 BAKER STREET
Public Hearing #2 is the removal of a 30-year-old public storage facility directly adjacent to the Newport Mesa Unified School District Headquarters.  The property in question is at 929 Baker Street and was zoned for Medium Density Residential many years ago  .  The plan is to replace the storage facility with a common interest development with 56 detached homes.  Although this project requested some deviations, it exceeds the parking requirements.  It included a 1 acre private park.

DEVIATIONS
One of the deviations requested is a reduction in the setback adjacent to the Paularino Channel, from the required 20 feet to 12 feet.  They also requested a reduction of space between units in order to provide more common open space, and that space should be 40% but they are requesting 39.5% to accommodate the additional 13 parking spaces.  The density of this project meets code.  Former senior city staffer Peter Naghavi represented the developer.

TRAFFIC FLOW
Transportation Services Manager Raja Sethuraman addressed the trips into and out of the project.  There will be an increase of more than 300 daily trips over the current use.  He addressed the issue of traffic flow into and out of - no left turns would be permitted out of the project.  He also addressed the resident-only permit parking petition submitted by the neighboring street - Milbro.  That petition will be heard by the City Council in September.  The project will NOT be a gated community.

RESIDENTS CONCERNS
Eight members of the public spoke on this issue and most of the concerns involved overflow parking and the possibility of the extension of Post Road into this project site.  Several agreed that this use would improve the neighborhood.  Rick Huffman reminded the commission that this project would NOT trigger a vote of the people under the Smart Growth Initiative.  Others, including Milbro resident Brian Valles, expressed concern about traffic flows, the loss of privacy and shade as existing trees are removed.  He wrote a lengthy letter to the commission outlining his concerns.

APPROVED!
After a short discussion the commission approved this project as conditioned on a 4-0 vote.

TAXI/UBER PICK UP LANE ON HARBOR
Sethuraman addressed Refakes concerned about the loss of a lane at The Triangle on Harbor.  He affirmed that it is currently permitted on certain nights of the week from 7 p.m. - 1a.m. for taxi/uber pickup.  He will investigate. 

Another Small Agenda For Planning Commission Monday Night

ONLY TWO ITEMS ON THE AGENDA
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission, guided by Chairman Rob Dickson, meets again on Monday, July 25 2016 beginning at 6:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers for what may be another short meeting.  The agenda may be viewed HERE.

A FOUR-UNIT SMALL LOT DEVELOPMENT ON 23RD STREET
Public Hearing #1, HERE, is yet another small lot development, this on at 127 East 23rd Street.  The commissioners will hear the request to construct four units on this lot.  This project has no deviations from the Municipal Code.

REPLACING STORAGE WITH HOMES
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is the proposal to replace a public storage facility at 929 Baker Street, behind the headquarters of the Newport Mesa Unified School District, with a 56-unit common interest residential development.  The timing of this proposal is interesting.  Recently the Planning Commission heard a request to replace existing businesses along Bristol Street just east of Red Hill with a new storage facility.  The applicants in that project cited the demand for storage in Costa Mesa, yet here were are, trying to replace an existing storage facility with more homes.  Curious, no?

MORE SOBER LIVING APPEALS COMING UP
Apparently this short meeting will allow the Planning Commission to get some rest in advance of what we're told will be an avalanche of sober living appeals, to the extent that Director of Development Services Gary Armstrong told them in a recent meeting to expect an accelerated schedule - more meetings per month - for the next few months.  That should be fun.

Julie Mercurio Bails Out

 RUMORS CONFIRMED
As more than a few of you already know, sources tell me that City Council Candidate Julie Mercurio used her platform on the Costa Mesa Public Square to confirm recent rumors that she has withdrawn from the race.

CAN'T RAISE THE CASH
In her announcement she cites her inability to raise campaign funding  in sufficient quantities to conduct an effective campaign.  That's probably true - it costs a load of money to run a successful campaign, even it little old Costa Mesa.   She told those who can read the CMPS that she doesn't hang out in the right social circles to generate enough campaign cash.  Interesting, since I suspect there was plenty of cash to be had if those guys running the show really wanted her to stay in the race.

WAS PRESSURE INVOLVED TO HELP MANSOOR?
However, more than a few of us around town wonder if at least part of her decision came from pressure from the "powers-that-be" in town asking her to step aside to make former councilman Allan Mansoor's campaign less complicated.  He's told us he's running again - a second bite of the apple.  His first tour on the council resulted in a divided city, with Latinos, in particular, feeling unsupported by his regime.

LEADERSHIP?  NAH! 
Actually, that word - regime - may be too generous.  It implies that he was the leader of a movement, but his leadership skills are so marginal that nobody would consider him the leader of anything.  And, his tour in the State Assembly was a disaster, where he showed no leadership at all.

BYE-BYE!
So, we bid a fond adieu to Ms. Mercurio as a candidate.  She may now return full time to her role as the High Priestess of the Costa Mesa Public Square, where only the anointed are permitted to participate and dissenting voices will continue to feel her wrath.  Oh, yes... she closed her announcement with a recruitment plea - gotta run those CMPS numbers up no matter what!

WE'LL BE WATCHING
In the meantime, we get to watch her serve our city on the Parks & Recreation Commission - that high-visibility position to which she was recently appointed to raise her municipal image.  We hope she takes her term seriously, even though it will likely be a short stint.  Her term expires in February.

A Wonderful Profile of Officer Lance Healey

CEO'S LEADERSHIP AWARDS
Many of you already, through subscription, see the profiles of the CEO Tom Hatch's Leadership Awards.  Below you will find a link to one that you REALLY need to view.

LANCE HEALY
This one features CMPD officer Lance Healey, a recent recipient of the award.  It's good from so many standpoints that it should be a Must See for everyone.

KUDOS TO CMTV
Thanks to Brad Long and the CMTV crew for the excellent presentation.  Enjoy.  Click HERE for the link.

More Controversy About Smart Growth Initiative Rebuttal

YET ANOTHER WEIRD TWIST
And yet another curious situation has arisen in the case of Eleanor Egan's lawsuit against Costa Mesa City Clerk Brenda Green and Orange County Registrar of Voters, Neal Kelley, to have segments of the rebuttal to Arguments For the Smart Growth Initiative removed because the document "is not really a rebuttal, since it does not address anything in the Argument For the initiative measure."  She goes on to say, "most of the statements contained in the Rebuttal are demonstrably false, and the rest are not capable of being proven either true or false but are misleading and inconsistent with the requirement of the Elections Code."

CO-CONSPIRATORS
The signatories on this so-called "Rebuttal" are Julie Fowler, Chuck Perry, Lee Ramos, Christopher Bunyan and Jim Righeimer.

BACKGROUND
I wrote about this issue earlier, HERE, and Luke Money wrote about it in the Daily Pilot, HERE.

WE'RE PAYING RIGHEIMER'S LEGAL FEES?!
Now comes the new twist.  Informed sources tell me that the City of Costa Mesa will be covering all legal costs incurred by Jim Righeimer in this matter!  And, further, the attorney that will represent him is Patrick Munoz, the high-priced lawyer from Rutan and Tucker - the firm that was retained to cobble together an initiative to compete with the Costa Mesa First's Smart Growth Initiative.  That certainly has the aroma of conflict of interest.

GREEN, YES... RIGHEIMER, NO!
Now, I can see where the City will represent City Clerk Brenda Green - she is simply doing her job, and Egan's beef isn't with her, nor Neal Kelley.  Her complaint is that the rebuttal is false and misleading, as stated above, and she doesn't want it to appear on the ballot.  I have no problem with Green receiving city-paid-for legal help.

NOT APPROPRIATE, AND MAYBE ILLEGAL!
I DO, however, have a problem with my tax dollars being spent to cover whatever legal costs Righeimer incurs in this venture.  He signed the rebuttal as a private citizen, not as the Mayor Pro Tem of the City.  This issue was NOT addressed by the City Council, nor were they asked to waive conflict of interest - a very likely situation.  Instead, someone high up in City government simply decided to make a gift of taxpayer dollars to Righeimer to cover his legal costs in this misguided, malicous and falacious effort.

WHO AND WHY?!
So, I want to know who made that decision and why?  What authority has been given to whom to make such a decision without council approval or even consideration?  Who decided that it's OK to spend our money to facilitate misleading the voters by placing lies on a ballot measure?  Was it CEO Tom Hatch?  Was it contract City Attorney Tom Duarte?  Just who made that decision?  And, if it's OK to cover Righeimer's legal costs, what about the other four signatories?  If they incur costs will we be paying those, too?  Quite frankly, this stinks!