Aztec Basketball Revisited

SMITH OPENS AN OLD WOUND
In his Daily Pilot column this week, Steve Smith - nanny to us all - ripped the scab off the dormant issue of the failed plan for the use of the city's Downtown Recreation Center basketball courts on Sundays by an outfit called the Aztec Basketball League. You can read Smith's column HERE.

A LITTLE HISTORY
Let me refresh your collective memories on this subject. This whole thing began last May when the Recreation Division Staff brought the subject of the Aztec Basketball League to the Parks & Recreation Commission for approval - although it was clearly within their purview to approve it without the commissioner's OK. The contract would have netted the city approximately $40,000 in revenue. The initial discussion proceeded very briskly and positively and seem likely to win approval until one resident - a man who is known internationally for his racist views, our old buddy, The Mouth From Mesa North - stood and raised the specter of marauding ex-cons and child molesters terrorizing the Downtown Recreation Center.

COMMISSIONERS TURNED TO STONE
Then, when chair Kurt Galitski made a motion to approve the proposal, the other four commissioners looked like they had turned to stone - not a peep! No second was made, so the motion died and the potential for nearly $40,000 in much-needed dollars was lost to the city coffers. Then, in response to community outcry, the following month Vice Chair Mike Brumbaugh brought the issue back for consideration and it was approved, although "provisionally", until the staff could prepare a Request for Proposals to see if there might be other "bidders".

BEVER AT HIS WORST - WE HOPE
Then, municipal court jester Eric Bever, brought the subject before the City Council in July because he was worried that this league might be placing undo wear and tear on the basketball court! It's hard to imagine a more laughable, bogus reason, even from Bever. He also wanted to negotiate a higher rate, although the applicant - Army Staff Sergeant Rigoberto Bautista - had already agreed to paying our highest rate! It was at this meeting where Mayor Allan Mansoor, citing potential confusion by Costa Mesa residents who might want to participate but would assume it was a league for Latinos only, extorted the promise from Bautista to change the name of his league to the "Costa Mesa Sunday Basketball League". Apparently the word "Aztec" conjured up too many memories of Benito Acosta for him. The city and Mansoor were still in the middle of the civil lawsuit filed by Acosta and the ACLU.

BIAS FROM THE DAIS
This episode may well be the most egregious of the many such events in recent city history that demonstrate what I have referred to in the past as "bias from the dais". At every turn city officials threw up barriers in front of Sgt. Bautista - a decorated Marine and Army veteran and recruiter - and every time he met their unreasonable demands with dignity and compliance. They may be no better example of how the racial agenda of one man in this city has affected the way our elected leaders conduct themselves, as they march to his tune and cost our city money and stature among the community of cities in our region.

WHAT HAPPENED?
Today I spoke with Sergeant Bautista at his job in Santa Ana where he works as an Army National Guard Recruiter. I wanted to know what happened last summer after it appeared that the city had finally approved his use of our Downtown Recreation Center gym for his basketball league. As I suspected, Sgt. Bautista finally just gave up after all the hassles he experienced. His job required him to travel for a couple months late last summer so he couldn't attend any further meetings required by the city. He found a temporary home for his league on the far west side of Santa Ana - almost in Fountain Valley and Garden Grove - where it will be conducting it's championship tournament this week.

SANTA ANA VALUED BAUTISTA'S LEAGUE
Personally, as a resident of Costa Mesa, I'm ashamed of the way Sgt. Bautista was treated by our elected and appointed leaders last year. Bautista served this country for a dozen years as a Marine, then became a recruiter for the Army National Guard and will soon complete his 16th year of military service for our country. He formed the Aztec Basketball League and has operated it for several years in Santa Ana without problems. He has been a good and valued tenant for the city. Santa Ana bent over backwards to find a temporary venue for Bautista until the new gym is ready in April.

COSTA MESA TREATED HIM POORLY
Costa Mesa elected officials, on the other hand, did everything possible to make him feel unwelcome. While the city staff was working hard with Bautista to make a deal for the use of the Downtown Recreation Center court, our elected and appointed officials were listening to our racist laureate, The Mouth From Mesa North, and his unfounded rants about ex-cons and child molesters that would be invading our city. People have pooh poohed my suggestions that he calls the shots in this city. Well, this is a perfect example of exactly how he affects the agenda in our town. Until he stood before the Parks and Recreation Commission that May evening they seemed ready to approve our deal with Bautista. His rant before them completely turned them around. Only the public outcry that followed the meeting prompted Brumbaugh to bring the issue back for a re-hearing.

SHAME ON THEM!
Shame on our city for it's treatment of Bautista and his league. Shame on Mayor Mansoor and his cronies for allowing their personal racial bias to deprive the city of almost $40,000 in much-needed revenue. And, shame on them for demonstrating to the world once again that the City of Costa Mesa is a bastion of intolerance, where the agenda is driven by one man - an internationally notorious racist. Shame on them all and shame on us, the voters of this city, for electing people of such low character to public office.

Daily Pilot Editors Get It Right On Aztec Basketball

EDITORS PUT IN THEIR TWO CENTS ON AZTEC BASKETBALL
The editors of the Daily Pilot, our local newspaper of record, used their bully pulpit last Sunday to chime in on the issue of renting the Costa Mesa Downtown Recreation Center basketball court to an outfit called the Aztec Basketball League. You can read that editorial, entitled, "Leave hoops league to city staff", HERE. That league, owned and operated by Sergeant Rigoberto Baustista - a National Guard recruiter - has operated successfully and trouble-free for years out of Santa Ana, but was recently displaced by renovations at their facilities.

BAUTISTA JUST WANTED COURT TIME
Bautista approached the City of Costa Mesa a couple months ago requesting the opportunity to rent our court on Sundays, for which he was willing to pay our top rates. By utilizing the court 8 hours a week - all day Sunday - the Aztec Basketball League would displace fewer than two dozen drop-in players, some of whom are probably Costa Mesa residents, who played basketball and volleyball in the facility. The difference in revenue to the city will be almost $40,000 if the league rents it.

"THE MOUTH" INFLUENCED THE COMMISSION
At first, when this issue came before the Parks and Recreation Commission, it seemed to be getting favorable consideration until one local loudmouth, our old pal, The Mouth From Mesa North, stood and raised the specter of marauding ex-cons invading our city and terrorizing our women and children. When Parks and Recreation Commission Chairman Kurt Galitski moved to approve the request you would have thought the remaining commissioners had turned to stone. Not a peep could be heard from them, much less the necessary second to Galitski's motion. The issue died a painfully peaceful death.

COMMISSION PASSED IT UNANIMOUSLY
Then, in response to much community uproar - including comments that their decision, or lack of one, was racially motivated - Vice Chair Mike Brumbaugh brought the issue back for re-consideration at their next meeting. This time Sergeant Bautista was present to plead his case. The short version is that the commission approved the contract unanimously.

BIZARRE BEVER BROUGHT IT UP
Then, for whatever reason he might have had in his strange brain, City Councilman Eric Bever brought the issue to the City Council for review, which launched one of the most bizarre discussions I can recall. For example, as part of his discussion Bever suggested that we should negotiate a higher rate from Bautista, even though he was willing to pay our top rate. What do we call that - a Mexican surcharge?

BAUTISTA HAD NO CHOICE
Mayor Allan Mansoor - already running for Van Tran's Assembly seat - apparently had some contact with Sergeant Bautista and managed to convince him to change the name of his organization. Apparently he was concerned that Costa Mesa residents might feel that they were not welcome into a league that sounded too Mexican. Mansoor proposed that the contract be let to Bautista, who would manage the "Costa Mesa Basketball League on Sundays". Councilwoman Katrina Foley - aghast that the mayor had the nerve to require a business owner to change the name of his business - tried to get the mayor to respond to her questions. He simply - that's the only way he operates - restated his motion.

NOT-TOO-VEILED BIAS
For those of us who have watched Mansoor in action for most of this past decade, his intent was clear. He didn't want a business that reeked of Latino roots to be doing business in our facility. He didn't want Costa Mesa residents to be confused about the name and, hence, their opportunity to participate. This pronouncement was in spite of the fact that many Costa Mesa residents and teams already participate in the Aztec Basketball League.

THE EDITORS GOT IT RIGHT!
In their editorial, the Daily Pilot editors drive right to the heart of the issue. Their last paragraph begins with this sentence: "This is micromanaging on a level that's beyond comic." They finished their piece with this sentence: "Best to leave the management of basketball leagues to the Parks and Recreation Commission and the city staff." I couldn't agree more!

OBVIOUS AFFLICTION
It has become increasingly more clear as time passes that Mansoor - and to some extent Eric Bever and Gary Monahan - have become afflicted with BenitoAcostaPhobia - the fear and loathing of anything sounding Mexican. It's obvious that it continues to cloud Mansoor's judgment, just as it was clouded that fateful evening when he violated Benito Acosta's rights as a speaker before the City Council that has resulted in a lawsuit against him and the city.

WHAT WILL HIS NEW CONSTITUENTS THINK?
I find myself continuing to wonder how his new constituent base in the 68th Assembly District will interpret his anti-Latino actions. Will the large Vietnamese-American group wonder how broad his racial bias goes? They should. The Latinos already know how he feels about them...

CHANGE THE CITY AND OTHER BUSINESSES?
The editors suggested, I'm sure tongue-in-cheek, that, following Mansoor's logic, we should change the name of our city from Costa Mesa to Coastal Table - to avoid sounding too Mexican. In a blog comment in the Daily Pilot I recently wondered if the mayor will require Mi Casa, El Ranchito and Acapulco restaurants to change their names because people might think they are exclusively for people of Latino heritage. This is how ridiculous this issue has become.

STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES
The residents of this city are poorly served when it's highest elected official - the mayor - so flagrantly exercises his own racial bias in the conduct of his job. The mayor and his former pal, Bever, should be ashamed of themselves. The voters of this city deserve much, much more from it's elected leaders. It's one thing when they display their stupidity - they can't help that. It's an entirely different story when they blatantly display their racial bias...

New Basketball League - YES, Aztecs - NO

NEW BASKETBALL LEAGUE APPROVED
It was no surprise to me that the Costa Mesa City Council approved the contract with a new basketball league to use the Downtown Recreation Center, initially for six months, with a possible extension of a second six months period. Eric Bever's attempt to derail this contract was defeated on a 4-1 vote - Bever, of course, voting no.

MANSOOR'S ANTI-LATINO BIAS ON DISPLAY
What did surprise and disappoint me that our mayor, Allan Mansoor, was so willing to display his very obvious anti-Latino bias. During his motion Mansoor indicated that the contract would be between Rigoberto Bautista to manage the "Costa Mesa Weekend Basketball League" on Sundays.

FOLEY PRESSED FOR CLARIFICATION
Katrina Foley pressed Mansoor for a clarification because it seemed like Mansoor was requiring Sergeant Bautista to change the name of his business, Aztec Basketball League, as a condition of approval of his request to rent the facility. Mansoor dodged that question several times and never did answer it question directly, but it was clear to all present what he was doing. In fact, he refused to even say the words, "Aztec Basketball League".

BLATANT BIAS
This was the most blatant example of anti-Latino bias I can remember being displayed by a sitting Costa Mesa council member, much less a mayor. It was obvious from his discussion that he wouldn't even consider an entity called "Aztec Basketball League" in our city.

FESTERING BOIL
I suspect this is a deep-seated bias - one that has been made more obvious by Mansoor's legal difficulties with Benito Acosta. I think the legal action with Acosta is a festering boil for Mansoor and anything that reminds him of it is going to get short shrift during deliberations.

NO SURPRISE - "THE MOUTH" ATTACKS
One speaker, The Mouth From Mesa North, again tried to fan the flames of intolerance on this issue. He also took the opportunity to blast Parks and Recreation Commission Chairman Kurt Galitski - a man who has demonstrated that he won't take any of The Mouth's crap.

WHAT WILL MANSOOR'S MINORITY CONSTITUENTS THINK?
Mansoor is in full campaign mode now, gathering cash for his run for Van Tran's 68th Assembly District seat. As I watched him in action last night I found myself wondering how the various minority factions in the District will react to his clear bias. Will they have second thoughts about his assembly candidacy?

Hoop Dreams To Retirement Schemes - We've Got It All

It looks to me as though the City Council meeting tomorrow night will be full of fun.

BEVER'S ANTI-HOOPS DREAM
The first public hearing will be Eric Bever's dredging up of the Aztec Basketball League issue. I guess, based on his public pronouncements, old Eric is worried that a paying customer like this league will inflict unnecessary wear and tear on the basketball floor and other elements of the Downtown Recreation Center. Geez, that's what it's for, Eric! Right now it's severely under-utilized on Sunday and this contract resolves that issue. Do you think it's possible that, because Benito Acosta has taken an Aztec name, Bever doesn't want that word associated with anything in Costa Mesa?

MESSIN' WITH THE PLAN
Then the council will tinker with the Mesa West Bluffs Urban Plan. This one makes me nervous because this particular council has demonstrated some strange behavior in the past on Westside issues. It doesn't make me feel any better knowing that our municipal racist laureate, our old buddy, The Mouth From Mesa North, will most likely be there, fanning the flames and telling the council to get off their butts and get things changed on the Westside NOW!

CHANGING FILMING REGULATIONS
Then they address permits for outdoor filming in our city... One must assume this was generated in response to the recent Trinity Christian Center dust-up... Passage of this amendment would preclude any organization that has already received a conditional use permit from the requirement of a specific permit to film on a specific date.

SHOPPING CARTS
Under "Old Business" the council will give second reading to an ordinance requiring all vendors who provide 15 or more shopping carts for their customer's use to install a method of guaranteeing that those carts don't stray from their parking lots and litter our neighborhoods with lost carts. Presently we pay a contractor to round up any stray carts to the tune of $48,000 per year.

SWEETENING THE RETIREMENT POT
For the grand finale tomorrow night the council will consider an amendment to our contract with CalPERS to facilitate the proposed early retirement option that is part of the ten-point plan to balance this year's budget. I suspect this item might generate some interesting discussion. It's my understanding that the city hopes that 50 of the 145 people eligible for early retirement under that plan will do so, and that approximately half of those positions would not be filled. I think they may get a much bigger positive response to this plan, which may make life more than a little complicated for those department managers trying to maintain satisfactory service levels.

Aztec Basketball League Given Provisional Approval

AZTEC BASKETBALL IN - DROP-IN PLAYERS ARE OUT
The Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commission, at their meeting Wednesday evening, agreed to permit the Aztec Basketball League to use the Downtown Recreation Center on Sundays, displacing a few folks that have been utilizing that facility in a drop-in basis to play basketball and volleyball.

BIDDERS TO BE SOUGHT FOR NEW LEAGUE
The approval was on a provisional basis, month-to-month, while the staff prepares a Request for Proposals to create a Sunday Costa Mesa basketball league. Aztec Basketball would be allowed to bid on that contract, but would not necessarily be the successful bidder.

COSTA MESA TEAMS INCLUDED
It was interesting to note that the Aztec Basketball League presently has four teams made up of Costa Mesa residents, and could field two more except for space limitations. That kind of deflated the argument made by The Mouth from Mesa North about Costa Mesa residents being displaced.

ARMY VETERAN RUNS AZTEC
I'd would loved to have been inside The Mouth's head when the applicant, Rigoberto Bautista stepped to the podium to present his case in his "work clothes" - an Army uniform. Sergeant Bautista - a 16 year Army veteran - is a National Guard recruiter, who recruits in Costa Mesa. He's operated the Aztec Basketball League for nine years and has glowing references from his former landlords - the City of Santa Ana. His program takes people from age 16 and up and creates a healthy, competitive environment in which they can play and develop basketball skills. The Mouth, as we all know, makes a bid deal of having been a Marine - among other things.

PROGRAM INCLUDES FEMALE PLAYERS
Sergeant Bautista told the commissioners that he's more than willing to include more Costa Mesa teams if the facility is made available. Recreation Manager Jana Ransom told them that his program includes female players, too, and that we currently have no female basketball programs in the city. Bautista also indicated that he will give priority to new Costa Mesa teams if permitted to use the Downtown Recreation Center facility.

"THE MOUTH" BLOWS SMOKE
Undeterred, The Mouth stood and blew a smoke screen about potential parking problems and, since the Aztec Basketball League is a for-profit organization, wondered where the profit went - as if it's any of his blasted business!

STILLER PROVIDES VETERAN GUIDANCE
The only other resident to speak on the issue was former Parks and Recreation Commissioner David Stiller, who made many good points and spoke in favor of approving the request.

A couple of sidebars to the proceedings last night...

"THE MOUTH" RANTS AGAINST GALITISKI
First, during public comments, The Mouth stood and ranted and raved against Chairman Kurt Galitski for his comments appended to The Mouth's recent Daily Pilot commentary defending his position at the previous commission meeting. His demeanor was not just aggressive, it was down right threatening. It was clear that he was trying to bait Galitski into making an inappropriate comment - which he didn't.

BRUMBAUGH BLASTS ME
Of more interest to me, personally, was the tirade launched directly at me by Vice-Chair Mike Brumbaugh for the comments I wrote - also on The Mouth's commentary - in which I suggested that the four commissioners turned to lumps of stone when Galitski moved to approve this item last month. I suggested that they had been influenced by the comments made by The Mouth at that meeting. Brumbaugh didn't like my suggestions one little bit. I really can't blame him too much - no one in his right mind would want to be even peripherally associated with The Mouth.

HE CAN'T TAKE CRITICISM
Well, Mr. Vice Chair, that's just too bad. If you watch the tape, as I have - several times - you can see exactly what happened. The discussion was rocking right along, with no critical comments nor concerns expressed by any of you. Then The Mouth spoke and four of you were struck dumb. Not one of you stepped forward to second Galitski's motion - even for discussion. Not one of you raised any concerns about the proposal - which would have been handled at the staff level and you'd never have had it presented to you except the staff felt you should sign on in the case of a program that would displace a few drop-in basketball and volleyball players on Sundays.

FOUR LUMPS OF STONE
Nope, when The Mouth presented his "hypothetical" scenario involving ex-convicts who might come to town to play basketball and terrorize our young children using the pool or library, the four of you reacted as though someone had torn your tongues out. If you don't care for my characterization of your performance - or lack thereof - simply don't read them.

IF YOU CAN'T TAKE THE HEAT, MIKE...
Brumbaugh criticized me for not attending meetings to express my views to them, and for not running for public office. Well, Mike old buddy, we each do what we can do toward making this a better city. Yours apparently is participating on the commission and, on occasion, being influenced by speakers before you to the extent that you are frozen in place. My contribution is to observe, assess and report. Criticism comes with the turf you bought into when you accepted the assignment as a commissioner. If you don't like it, maybe you made the wrong choice. Besides, I'm just one guy - what do you care what I think, anyhow?

CONCERTS IN THE PARK CANCELED
Finally, on Wednesday the city announced the cancellation of the first three dates - July 7th, 14th and 21st - of the annual Concerts In The Parks series and mention was made about the cancellations by Ransom at the end of the meeting. The remaining concerts might be retained if some sort of sponsorship arrangement can be made. It's too late for those early in July. This is very sad, indeed, because thousands of Costa Mesa residents look forward to the concerts each summer.

Aztec Basketball League Is Back!

THEY'RE BACK!
Well, well, well.... it seems that the Aztec Basketball League is back!

DEJA VU
At their meeting on May 24th the Costa Mesa Parks and Recreation Commission will, once again, be requested to consider granting a permit to the Aztec Basketball League to use the Downtown Recreation Center each Sunday beginning June 20th.

GOOD FISCAL TRADE-OFF
If granted, they would displace fewer than two dozen casual, walk-in participants who use the facility for pick-up volleyball and basketball games. The city would lose roughly $3,430 in fees from that use and would, in exchange, be paid an annual revenue of $43,000 - actually, the city would realize just over $20,000 for the initial 6-month period that is being recommended - by the Aztec Basketball League.

FOUR LUMPS OF STONE
Some will recall that, at their previous meeting, the commission completely botched this issue. When Chair Kurt Galitski recommended approval the other four commissioners turned to stone - not a second to his motion, no discussion, not a mutter, not a substitute motion - nothing! The proposal died.

"THE MOUTH" AS SHEPHERD
Interestingly, this stony silence came in the wake of one Costa Mesa resident speaking on this subject - our old grumpy buddy, The Mouth From Mesa North. He - internationally notorious racist that he is - jumped to the speaker's podium and raised the specter of ex-convicts and pedophiles invading our city on Sundays under the guise of playing basketball and molesting our children. Apparently, the sheep on the Parks and Recreation Commission fell for his tripe.


ONE MORE TIME...
So, now we get a second shot of providing another revenue source for our city in these trying times. It will be very interesting to see if The Mouth gives an encore performance at Wednesday's meeting, and whether any other resident of this city stands to recommend the plan....

ALWAYS AN ADVENTURE
One thing is for sure - it's never a dull meeting when The Mouth tries to overlay his racial views on activities in our city.

"THE MOUTH" - AN EXAMPLE OF A WASTED LIFE
And, speaking of The Mouth, he took the opportunity on Father's Day to post on his blog a peculiar self-assessment of his own failures as one. Since he's been looking a little sickly of late, and because he seems now to have only fleeting interest in local events - choosing, instead, to sprinkle his pathetic blog with his views of international events and his warped views on race and the purity thereof - I suspect he might be more than slightly off his game. Who knows, this may be signs of early onset dementia. That, of course, is very good news for the rest of us who would prefer our city not be guided by the ravings of a racist loser. Perhaps he's finally stepped back and looked at his life and now realizes that he has managed to squander his prodigious intellect on hopeless racial rants instead of actually using it to make the life of those around him better. How very sad for him - and them.