Another Heated Exchange At City Council

 LET'S GET ON WITH IT...
Yeah, OK, I know that's a strange title, but it's the truth,  but first, let's cut to the chase...

ADIOS COSTA MESA MOTOR INN, HELLO, NEW LIBRARY AND LOOK OUT, GROUP HOMES!
Last night the Costa Mesa City council gave the second reading to the re-zoning and code amendment that will facilitate the demolition of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn, to be replaced with luxury apartments; it gave second reading to the latest Group Home Ordinance and agreed on a new library complex at Lions Park.  More on all those in a minute.

MAYOR'S AWARD
At the beginning of the meeting Mayor Steve Mensinger, in his usual clumsy fashion, presented his Mayor's Award to Hydee Beth and Donna Barnhard-Swift for their tireless work in the local schools.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
Among the nine speakers during Public Comments Beth Refakes lead off and reminded us of the Toy Drive for the children of the 1/5 Marines, currently deployed from Camp Pendleton.

Long time community activist Cindy Brenneman stepped up and told the council that events in Paris last week reminded her that she should not be afraid of speaking her piece before them, even though it might cost her a volunteer position.

Chuck Perry spread a rumor about the Boy's Club on Tustin Avenue shutting down.  Subsequent discussions on this made the eyes of the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem light up as they contemplated yet another chunk of land that might be available for defiling.  Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer was not yet in the room.

An unidentified person raved about the Veterans Day celebration at the Fairgrounds on the 11th, thanked the women on the council for attending, chided the men for NOT attending and observed that the CMPD missed a recruiting opportunity.  It is widely believed that Mensinger and Righeimer chose to miss that celebration because it was hosted by organized labor.

Young Farooq Ansari stepped up to introduce a program that may help fill the knowledge gap among school-age children and was referred by Councilwoman Katrina Foley to Recreation Manager Travis Karlen for followup.

Ralph Taboada again suggested the council re-prioritize their spending, with less going to roads and fields and more consideration for Pension pay down.  He criticized the city for not negotiating with Public Safety organizations, observing that it has cost nearly $1 million in pension contributions that the organizations would have made by now that are being paid by the taxpayers.

Former councilwoman Wendy Leece spoke of Paris, then demanded - again - to know the status of the Fire Department redeployment plan that is now two and half years old.  She also wondered about Fire Station #1, and the study that was done a few years back that suggested a better location would be at the corner of Harbor Blvd. and Baker Street.

Another unidentified person asked Righeimer - now finally in attendance - to recuse himself from the upcoming vote on Group Homes because he was affiliated with Scott Baugh, who was paid to lobby on behalf of sober living groups.  She also displayed the bubble map showing group homes that appeared on this blog earlier.  Righeimer denied ever working for Baugh.

COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS
During Council Member Comments Katrina Foley led off with comments about the recent Art event and the Veterans Day event, citing that it was a bi-partisan event and asked CEO Tom Hatch to be sure the city is represented at such events in the future, including publicizing them.  She also asked for 15 volunteers to be docents for the upcoming Costa Mesa Home Tour on December 3rd.

Sandra Genis spoke about the Veterans Day event.  Regarding Affordable Housing, she observed there is a "lot of State and Federal Money" available, but we need to have a site.  She encouraged the City to actively seek such a site.  She addressed the rumor about the Boy's Club, telling us that the City does own the land on which it's located.

Gary Monahan had nothing to say - at that time - as usual.

Righeimer began by telling us that he and Mensinger attended the Veterans Day ceremony at St. John The Baptist School - where his children have attended, and said there was not a dry eye in the house.  And then the fun began....

INAPPROPRIATE, POSSIBLY ILLEGAL, BEHAVIOR
Righeimer, for whatever reason, decided it was time for him to violate the law by commenting on the status of the labor negotiations between the City and the Public Safety organizations.  He and Mensinger are forbidden to participate in the negotiations with the Costa Mesa Police Association due to the lawsuit they filed against the CMPA.  As he began Foley interrupted him to remind him he was forbidden to comment on this issue because of the conflict of interest.  Mensinger tried to shut her up.  She pleaded with City Attorney Tom Duarte to intervene, and he reminded Righiemer that he could only speak in general terms.  Righeimer kept talking, she kept talking until finally, once again, Mensinger banged the gavel Righeimer gave him when he took office and called for a break.  It didn't help.  When they returned Righeimer came armed with information from the City web site, but Foley interrupted him again, pleaded with Duarte again, who reminded Righeimer again, and he kept on talking.  When he finally finished Foley got the last shot - she accused him of grandstanding and sarcastically thanked him for possibly blowing up their negotiations and making it difficult to recruit officers when our staffing numbers are down.  I looked around the room, which included a dozen students observing government in action, and wondered what they must be thinking about this display...  Good Grief!

MENSINGER
It was finally Mensinger's turn, so he asked Hatch to follow-up on the Boy's Club rumor, spoke about the Veterans Day event at the school, the Fire Station and staffing.

OOPS, AGAIN
Then it was time for the CEO's report, but Mensinger almost forgot Hatch - again... he does that a lot.  Hatch briefly spoke about following up on all the items mentioned, El Nino preparations, the issues in Paris and CMPD and CMFD preparedness

RESIDENT-ONLY PARKING
One item was pulled from the Consent Calendar - #7, the "Resident Only Parking Permit" issue for certain streets in the Halecrest section of town.  Mensinger decided to actually hear that item immediately instead of trailing it to the end of the meeting, per policy.  Five residents spoke to the issue - four in support and one against.  The one against lived in the apartments across Baker Street that are the crux of the problem.  After a half hour of testimony and discussion the item was approved on a 5-0 vote.  It would have been anyhow if it had not been pulled for separate discussion.  The remainder of the Consent Calendar earlier passed in one vote.

COSTA MESA MOTOR INN
Next up was Old Business #1, the second reading of the rezoning request and code change for the Costa Mesa Motor Inn to be demolished and 224 luxury apartments built in its place.  Unlike when it was first heard by the council, only four speakers addressed this issue.  There was no other staff report presented since it was a second reading, nor was anything offered by the applicant nor his representative, former city official, Don Lamm.

SAME ARGUMENTS, PLUS HAYNES
We heard many of the same arguments by council members about that motel "not being a place to raise families", and yet there are many families living there.  We had sprung on us, and on some members of the council, too, the fact that Larry Haynes of Mercy House has offered to volunteer - free of charge - to help displaced residents of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn find new housing.  You will recall that many of them may qualify to receive the stipend from the owner that could be as much as $5,500 dollars.  Plus, the owner has offered to give the city $200,000 toward helping other displaced people with housing issues.  There was some confusion on the dais about how those funds will be administered.  Foley, for example, apparently thought Haynes would be involved in that money, which Righeimer denied.

KEEPING THE PRESSURE ON
One of the speakers asked if the City would back off their active pressure on other motels in the wake of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn situation.  Righeimer blurted out, "Absolutely not!"

GENIS WON'T SUPPORT
Genis said she wouldn't support the motion, again, because it was not properly handled in the process.  She mentioned the Mitigated Negative Declaration as being improper and went on to cite inconsistencies in the General Plan, including the 54 dwelling units per acre that's being granted for this project.

"I'M HERE TO CLEAN UP THE COMMUNITY!"
Righeimer made a motion to move it forward and, during the subsequent discussion, snapped at Foley on the issue of affordable housing, saying "You bring a project!" and later said "I'm here to clean up the community."  Funny, I don't recall anyone asking him to do that.  Foley replied that "Mayor Pro Tem Righeimer acts like he's the only one who did anything good up here." and again accused him of grandstanding.  She expressed distrust of what she called "machinations" going on behind the scenes.

CONFLICTS WITH THE DEAL MAKERS?
At that point Genis asked for a report from the City Attorney on the possible conflicts with council members "Putting together a deal", then voting on the specifics of those deals.  Righeimer is notorious for spouting off about making deals.  The votes on this issue were both 4-1, with Genis voting no.

SOBER LIVING ORDINANCE
A little after 8 p.m. we took up Old Business #2, the Sober Living ordinances for other than R-1 zones.  During the presentation mention was made of a Supplemental Staff Report dealing with vehicles being used to transport "clients" around town, from residences to meetings.  No such document was available for review in the council chambers.

ANTICIPATING LAWSUITS
A half-dozen people spoke to this issue.  The first was Fernando Pedregon, representing Solid Landings.  He continued to be concerned about the provision in the ordinance that requires the operator to transport a dropout client back to their home.  He cited HIPPA regulations - those folks are considered ill - and offered to work with the City to find a solution.

TRYING TO TRAP JAY
Jay Humphrey addressed his concern about contiguous units on Royal Palm, observing that they were within the 650 feet restriction zone.  When he stopped speaking and left the podium Monahan called him back and asked him if he supported the item.  Humphrey reiterated his position on the proximity issue, but Monahan persisted.  It was very clear that he was trying to get Humphrey on the record on this issue - most likely to be used against him during the upcoming election season.  It is presumed Humphrey will run again, having lost to Righeimer in the last election by only 47 votes.

GROUP HOME NUMBERS MAY BE VERY LOW
An unidentified speaker observed the map that had been presented by another speaker earlier and speculated that the numbers of group homes on that map could be only half-way to being accurate.  It's possible, she opined, that we might have 500 group homes in this city, and that we cannot regulate state licensed facilities.

COSTA MESA "GROUND ZERO" FOR GROUP HOMES
Wendy Leece observed that Costa Mesa had become "Ground Zero" for group homes in Orange County, and wondered why.  She also observed that we are "really weak in enforcement".

SUPPORTS THE MODEL
Grant McNiff, who told us up front that he does not own nor operate such a facility, opined that the peer management model is valid, and that we should work together to toss out the bad operators.

REFUTING RIGHEIMER'S DENIAL
The unidentified speaker who first showed the map spoke again, attempting to refute Righeimer's denial of working for Scott Baugh - who was lobbying for sober living interests in Sacramento.  She presented a press clipping from an online radio show that identified him as working for Baugh, but was distracted from presenting it.  She told us that we should be considering the City of Orange ordinance as a model.

HATCH COMPARING NUMBERS
Following more discussion Hatch told us his staff had looked at the map presented last night and tried to compare the locations the City knows about with the total number on the map.  He said 27 of the locations will require further investigation, and thanked the activists who prepared the map for their work. 

PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
Just before 9:00 p.m. the council passed both items on 5-0 votes.  Let the lawsuits begin!

NEW LIBRARY AND COMMUNITY CENTER
Finally, we got to New Business #1, the plans for the new library/community center and improvements at Lions Park.  Assistant CEO Tammy Letourneau kicked it off, then handed it to  the consultants.  I'm not going to try to cover every word, every slide that was shown during the presentation by consultant Steve Johnson of Johnson Favaro.  I'll show you a few that are particularly relevant, but suggest you go to the City web site, click on CMTV at the bottom of the home page, then select Videos On Demand and look for the council meeting clip.  You can use the "jump to" feature to fast-forward to this item.  Johnson's presentation is excellent - I've heard it a couple times now - and Interim Finance Director Steve Dunivent's presentation of funding options is also well worth watching.

NEW FACILITIES, MORE PARK SPACE
In a nutshell, the plan approved last night calls for the demolition of the existing Neighborhood Community Center and the erection of a two-story new library on approximately the same site.  Then, once that's completed, the existing Donald Dungan Library building will be renovated to become the new community center.  One of the byproducts of this plan is the creation of another acre of park space within the footprint of Lions Park.  Parking, although modified will be basically the same number of spaces.

FUNKY NUMBERS
Genis took exception to the numbers used by the consultants regarding available space and how the numbers were calculated.  She chose not to vote against the proposal, but asked the staff to investigate exactly how high-volume users might find replacement sites.

FUNDING OPTION #3
There were several funding options for consideration.  The staff recommended number 3, which is defined on this slide.  It balanced cost and the interest in getting this project going sooner than later. And, it includes funding for a replacement Fire Station for the crumbling #1.  The new complex will cost around $35 million and the new fire station will cost over $8 million.

COUNTY OF ORANGE LIKES THE PLAN
Helen Fried, Orange County Librarian (the County of Orange runs the Dungan Library) spoke and heartily endorsed the plan.  The county has agreed to staff the new, expanded library. 

LOTS OF CONVERSATION RESULTED IN APPROVAL
Four members of the public spoke, including MaryEllen Goddard who, with her husband, Art, have long sought a new library in our city.  Finally after 90 minutes of presentations, discussions and speakers, the council voted 5-0 to move forward with the staff recommendations.  There were cheers in the audience.

Excitement Anticipated At City Council Meeting

ANOTHER INTERESTING MEETING AHEAD

As mentioned in my previous post, the Costa Mesa City Council meets again on Tuesday, November 17, 2015 beginning at 5:45 p.m. in Council Chambers and, although there are few items on the agenda, once again we anticipate a contentious and, perhaps, long meeting.  You can read the complete agenda HERE.

CONSENT CALENDAR
Early in the meeting the Consent Calendar will be considered.  As most know, these items - ten (10) this time - are theoretically considered as a group, with one vote.  However, a staff member, council member or member of the public may "pull" an item for separate discussion.  If that happens the council forces the consideration of those items at the very end of the meeting.  Many times, when a meeting runs long, they will have out waited concerned citizens who leave before their chance to discuss an issue they feel is important.  It's just another method to stifle dissent in our city.

WARRANT 2546

So, let us talk about a few of the items on the Consent Calendar.  Item #3, HERE, is Warrant 2546, which lists bills recently paid.  I'll list a few of the items that caught my attention.  They're listed in order as they appear on the Warrant, if you wish to plow through the document.

• Admin Sure Inc - $41,387.10 - Wkr Comp Admin Svcs Oct-Dec 15
• City of Huntington Beach - $22,330.00 - Helicopter Svcs, Sept 15
• Clean Street - $57,524.98 - Street Sweeping Svc, Sept 15
• G4S Secure Solutions - $57,607.56 - Jail Svcs, Sept 15
• Jones & Mayer - $155,118.38 - Legal Svcs, Various (Many)
• Keolis Transit Services, LLC - $16,036.02 - Sr. Mobility and Medical Transport
• Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth - $23,150.20 - Legal Svcs, Various
• FTOG - $3,462.50 - Procurement Consulting, 10/12-22
• Filarsky &Watt LLP - $3,793.10 - Legal Svcs, Sept 15
• Government Staffing Services, Inc. - $9,525.50 - Temp Svcs
• Keyser Marston Associates, Inc - $5,692.50 - Consulting svcs
• LSL CPAS - $576.00 - COIN Fiscal Analysis Svcs, Sept
• Mercy House - $5,994.92 - Mental Health Outreach Consulting
• Pacific Municipal Consultants - $4,200.00 - Consulting Svcs for Group Home
• Time Warner Cable - $11,130.17 - Internet for Sr. Center
• Civil Source - $27,482.00 - Construction Mgr, Aug 15

Of course, there's much, much more on that warrant.  We continue to rack up legal fees - this time it was over $180,000.

NEW HEAVY EQUIPMENT

The Consent Calendar also includes some very hefty equipment purchases.  Item #4, HERE, is for the purchase of a new dump truck for $181,344.16.  Item #6, HERE, is for the purchase of a new asphalt patch truck for $173,044.96 and Item #10, HERE, is for the purchase of two (2) Fire Engines for $1,340,961.44, which totals nearly $1.7 million. 

RESIDENT-ONLY PARKING

Also of interest are two requests for "resident-only" parking in sections of the city.  This is becoming a regular occurrence, particularly in light of the tendency of those in charge to permit higher density housing throughout the city.  These two requests are from our neighbors in the Halecrest community, Item #7, HERE, and Item #8, HERE, requesting such restrictions on Parsons Street.

COSTA MESA MOTOR INN - AGAIN

Although there are NO Public Hearings scheduled Tuesday, there's still plenty of action ahead.  Old Business #1, HERE, is the second reading of ordinances involving the re-zoning and a general plan amendment for the replacement of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn with 224 luxury apartments.  The first reading brought out demonstrators and many speakers opposed to this project, primarily because it eliminates affordable housing.

SOBER LIVING ORDINANCES REDUX
Old Business #2, HERE, is the second reading of ordinances involving group homes in other than R-1 residential zones.  This item is also very controversial and also brought out many speakers for the first reading, including one operator who haughtily told us "You don't even know where we are!"  Other proponents of the sober living industry - a $35 billion business - told us we will see many more lawsuits, which I don't doubt for a minute.  So let's talk about this one for a minute.

ACTIVISTS JUST KEEP DIGGING
Activists concerned about the proliferation of sober living homes in our city - we are told by city officials that Costa Mesa has many, many more such facilities than other Orange County cities - have dug into this issue and done their own investigations.  They have informed city officials when they discover previously unknown sober living facilities and worked hard to be sure city officials are aware of goings-on with many of those sites.

HOW BIG IS THE PROBLEM?
This weekend I was provided with information you may find interesting, including the graphic below, which gives a snapshot of sober living facilities in our city.  According to those who provided this information to me, the 83 blue points on the map are state licensed facilities - the "State of California, Department of Health Care Services Licensed Residential Facilities and/or Certified Alcohol and Drug Programs" report dated November 1, 2015 was used to determine those locations.  The 218 red points are unlicensed sites compiled by community activists.  For a better look at this map click HERE, which will take you to the Google map used and allow you to expand it for greater detail.

COMPARING NEIGHBORING CITIES
Additionally, the person who prepared this map also looked at how many licensed facilities exist in surrounding communities and, using 2013 population figures, found this information:
Huntington Beach (pop. 197,575) has 19 facilities registered with the state.  That's one for every 10,399 persons.
Santa Ana (pop.334,227) has 34. That's one for every 9,830 persons.
Irvine (pop. 236,716) has 4. That's one for every 57,929 persons.
Newport Beach (pop, 87,273) has 19. That's one for every 4,593 persons.
Fountain Valley (pop. 56,707) has 6. That's one for every 9,451 persons.
Costa Mesa with 83 (pop. 112,174) has one for every 1,351 persons.  
That should get your attention.  So, let's see how this discussion goes Tuesday night.

FINALLY, THE NEW LIBRARY/COMMUNITY CENTER
The final item on the agenda, New Business #1, HERE, is the consideration of a new Donald Dungan Library, Neighborhood Community Center and Park Improvements at Lions Park.  The council will hear this delayed presentation and be asked consider building a new library; renovate the existing Donald Dungan Library to be used as a community center; the demolition of the existing community center and proposed parking and landscape developments.

WE'RE TALKING BIG BUCKS!
They will also be asked to approve a further development and direct staff to return with an update on the funding options.  We're talking more than $30 million - even greater if they consider one of the options that includes costs for a new Fire Station #1, on the other side of town.

BIG DECISIONS
And, authorize the Mayor to execute a second professional services agreement with Johnson Favaro for architectural services for nearly $3 million for a five (5) year term, with a two year option.

LONG-TERM IMPLICATIONS
I just hope this issue isn't heard after midnight, because this council - and most councils - seldom make good decisions after that hour.  And this issue has some HUGE financial implications - costs the taxpayers will be forced to swallow for the next two or three decades, depending on the choices selected.

Addressing Homelessness In Costa Mesa

FIRST THE HOMELESS TASK FORCE...
As some who follow this issue closely may know, a couple years ago the City of Costa Mesa formed a Homeless Task Force, which threw itself headlong into the growing issue of homelessness in our city.  Public meetings were held, the definition of a "Costa Mesa homeless person" was created and outreach to faith-based organizations were established.

...NOW THE NETWORK FOR HOMELESS SOLUTIONS
Then, that organization - which had a significant public input element - morphed into something called the Network For Homeless Solutions, which is a closely-held group within City Hall that continues to attempt to conjure up solutions to the problem of homelessness in the city.  Unfortunately, based on a conversation I had with Assistant Chief Executive Officer Rick Francis - the city's extremely capable point man on this issue - it's not possible for a resident to participate in the group.  I know... seems strange, doesn't it, to exclude members of the public who are actually experiencing, first hand, the impact of the homeless folks in our city?  But, that's the way it is.

HERE'S THE LINK
Anyhow, there is now available on the city web site, HERE, a full array of information on this group, with links to helpful bits of information.  Nowhere does it say how one can join the group, only how to volunteer or donate to other groups working the issue.

LIKE BEATERS DRIVING A HERD
In the meantime, we demolish picnic pavilions (Lions Park) remove picnic tables and lock restrooms (Wilson Park) and remove covered bus benches throughout the city.  Those activities can only be interpreted as being designed to make homeless folks even more uncomfortable than they already have been.  If the goal is to drive them out of town, it may well on the way to succeeding.

AND IRONY...
And, in an ironic twist, the City Council just approved demolishing the Costa Mesa Motor Inn, which will almost certainly result in more folks residing in our city being forced out onto the streets, into their cars or seeking shelter wherever they can.  We live in strange times.

TREATING SYMPTOMS
Now, don't misunderstand me... homeless is a HUGE problem and, clearly, not one easily solved.  As has been said more than once - the solution to homelessness is a home - but there's no evidence that this city is doing anything toward that goal... we're treating symptoms, not the malady.

EMPEROR JIM WILL "FIX IT"!
However, at the last council meeting - the one that ran until 1 a.m. and in which we spent most of the time talking about the demise of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn and, tangentially, the loss of around 50 affordable housing units - at the 4:18:00 on the video HERE, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer began a nearly fifteen minute rant, telling us we didn't understand about financing affordable housing, that he'd done it while on the Orange County Housing Commission and on the board of Mercy House, so we should shape up and shut up because HE - the royal HE - was going to fix it!

JIM RIGHEIMER, "CANCER-FIGHTER"...
He told us that HE is going to put on the ballot next year a $20 million bond which was, theoretically, going to facilitate the creation of affordable housing in the city!  Yep, he's going to ask us to give him twenty million bucks for affordable housing.  He kind of just waived off the "technical details", as you'll see if you go to that link and drag the scroll bar over to that mark.  It was another of his "just trust me" moments!  He talks about the owners of the Costa Mesa Motor Inn finally seeing the light, realizing that this motel model doesn't work anymore.  HE DOESN'T tell you that one of the reasons it doesn't work is because he and his majority have crafted ordinances and other rules of enforcement that have bludgeoned them into submission.  And, near the end of his little rant, he implies that he hopes other motel owners will also see the light so these "cancers" can be removed from our city.  Yeah, he used that word several times to describe long-time businesses in this city.

...WHEN, IN FACT...

That's actually pretty funny when you think about it.  There are more than a few people in this town who consider him and his majority as the real cancers in this city.  They've made Costa Mesa less safe through their ignorant, vindictiveness toward public safety organizations.  They gutted what was arguably one of the most effective, professional police departments in the region by capriciously establishing an arbitrary staffing level that was 25% below previous deployment models.  They abandoned the A.B.L.E helicopter program, a force multiplier in police work and the model for ALL other municipal helicopter programs in the country.  They delayed the recruitment of officers to replace those seasoned veterans who, due to the toxic nature of their management, left for other venues or retired earlier than anticipated, which resulted in the department having to operate 20% below that already-inadequate staffing level for more than a year... and counting.  They've delayed the implementation of the Paramedic Transport Van program, even though we've spent over $1.5 million for the equipment, half of which sits unused - apparently protecting the lucrative medical transport business of a major campaign contributor.   These acts, and many, many more, are the true cancers in our city.

HERE'S MY PRESCRIPTION
So, here's my solution... let the ballot box become our "chemotherapy".  Let your vote be the surgical knife that excises the cancerous growth that is the Righeimer/Mensinger/Monahan majority from our body politic.  Monahan will be termed out - evacuated from the system again like a painful kidney stone finally being passed.  Mensinger now has a body of "work" that demonstrates he is unfit for office.  It's time for this electorate to tell these guys that we're tired of their malignant mismanagement and they have to go.  It's time to shrink the tumor that has invaded our city and repair the damage done.