Homeless Funds, Grumpy Geezers and Red Light Cameras

HPRP FUNDING APPROVED
As anticipated, the Costa Mesa City Council, when confronted with facts, came to it's senses and passed unanimously the request for HPRP funds at their meeting tonight. Once the lationphobes on the council received sufficient assurances that none of those dreaded illegal immigrants would see one single penny in the federal dollars they voted to move forward. I thought for awhile that they were going to require the vendors to sign in blood...

"THE MOUTH" IS "SCROOGE"
This, of course, is good for all residents of Costa Mesa because it helps those among us who are less fortunate. And, also as anticipated, The Mouth From Mesa North stood before the council and recommended rejecting the federal dollars. His solution was to just tell those among us who are homeless or about to become so to just hit the road and find somewhere else to live - somewhere they can afford. He suggested Santa Ana. I guess we all now know what Scrooge does in the off season.

RED LIGHT CAMERAS REVISITED
Another interesting event occurred tonight, as well. The issue of red light cameras was again presented to the council. Answers were provided to questions some council members had at an earlier meeting and it was announced that the vendor, Nestor Systems, had been purchased by another outfit - the deal closed on Tuesday. The other group apparently has successful contracts for red light systems in 170 cities around the country and, according to their representative, have no problems anywhere. He asked for a chance to present his pitch to the staff before a decision was made regarding Nestor. The council could have chosen to simply cancel the contract tonight.

MANSOOR VS. THE FACTS
When it came time to vote Mayor Allan Mansoor demonstrated, once again, that he's not a guy who will let facts cloud his opinion. He made a motion - read from a prepared script that could only have been made BEFORE the meeting - recommending the cancellation of the contract. Gary Monahan seconded it. Katrina Foley offered a substitute motion recommending the issue be postponed for 30 days, during which the staff could meet with the successor vendor to hear their pitch and make recommendations to the council. Eric Bever and Wendy Leece tied offering the second to Foley's motion. That motion passed, 3-2, so the issue of red light cameras in our city is not yet dead.

GRUMPY FEENEY'S STRIKE AGAIN
And, once again, the perpetually irritating Ernie Feeney stood before the council with her gripe du jour about the Senior Center Management. I think she needs to find a physician to surgically remove that burr from her behind. Once again she attempted to influence the council with half-truths about Senior Center issues. In recent months her unfounded, but adamantly-expressed, complaints and insinuations about the Senior Center and it's management have generated way, way too much staff time trying to sort facts from her fiction. Yes, she has every right to express her opinions, but she needs to realize that before too long they will be falling on deaf ears because they are proving to be consistently baseless. In any event, she and her loud-mouthed husband need to find another hobby... perhaps they can help the aforementioned Scrooge fill his bag with lumps of coal for Christmas Eve.

FISLER HONORED AT MONDAY'S PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
On a happier note, I forgot to mention the very nice proclamation that was presented to former Planning Commissioner Jim Fisler Monday night at the commission meeting. Chairman Jim Righeimer read the plaque to Fisler, who resigned last month to become a member of the Mesa Consolidated Water District Board, and his former peers all expressed their appreciation for his service to the city during his time on the Planning Commission. Fisler acknowledged those who had influenced him and mentored him on the commission, including Bruce Garlich, Eleanor Egan and Donn Hall. Even though I've teased Fisler over the years, no one can refute his work ethic while on the commission. It should serve him well on the Mesa Consolidated Water District Board. Good luck, Jim...

The Winds Of Change

ALL HANDS ON DECK - FINALLY
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission meeting tonight, though brief, was interesting nonetheless. It got off to a good start because all five members showed up for this meeting.(Note: original image - a tornado - apparently caused some readers consternation. So, I swapped it out for the unambiguous image now shown.)

RIGGY TAKES THE HELM
Right off the bat, as anticipated, Carpetbagger Jim Righeimer was elected, 3-2, as the Chairman. Fisler and Sam Clark voted no. Then, in a surprise to me, Steve Mensinger nominated Jim Fisler to retain his seat as Vice Chair, who was confirmed unanimously.

SELF-SERVING SERMON IGNORED
Before the considerations for Chairman were made - and while Fisler still had control of the dais - he provided a little self-serving sermon about the Planning Commission's role in city government and made his point that he thought the person elected as Chairman should have many years as a city resident, with years of experience on other commissions (he specifically mentioned the Parks and Recreation Commission) and committees. Obviously, he was talking about himself. Of course, the new guys just ignored him and chose Righeimer. One had to chuckle.

NOT YOSEMITE SAM, BUT...
There's a new sheriff in town now. It's clear that a "Righeimer" Planning Commission is going to be one that will enforce the rules or force changes to them. I suspect we'll see this group - at least the majority - cutting fewer applicants some slack in their applications. I expect to see fewer conditional use permits and variances issued. This was evident tonight when the proposed restaurants at the location at 19th Street an Harbor Blvd., where the Pasta Connection lived for four decades, were denied because of inadequate parking. Fisler was a happy guy because he's tried to get the previous commission to take a stronger stand on parking. Way, way too many strip malls and shopping venues in this city are severely under-parked.

DONN HALL ILL
Mention was made tonight about the illness of former Mayor and most recent Planning Commission Chairman Donn Hall's illness. Hall is apparently in the hospital because Fisler mentioned it tonight during the meeting. During his decades of service to this city he proved to be a "man of the people", frequently getting his hackles up when he felt personal rights were being violated by "the system". We wish Donn Hall and his family well...

Only Two Running, So Far

TWO HORSES IN THE STARTING GATE - SO FAR
The last word I had from the City Clerk last week is that, so far, only two candidates had actually pulled the necessary papers to run for City Council in Costa Mesa this year - Councilwoman Katrina Foley and former councilman, mayor and current Costa Mesa Sanitary Board member Gary Monahan.

FOLEY - BACK INTO THE BATTLES
Foley was the highest vote-getter in her run for city council four years ago and, although usually on the short end of many issues because she and Linda Dixon must frequently butt heads with the Mansoor/Bever/Leece majority, Foley continues to force important issues into the arena of public debate.

MONAHAN - FOR HIMSELF FIRST
Monahan - a three-term council member before being termed out in 2006 - will attempt to again elbow his way back to the municipal trough. You may recall that he is the only council member to ever qualify for a municipal pension. Right now that amount would be minimal, but another couple terms would go a long way to make his declining years as a pub owner and father of six more comfortable.

LET US COUNT THE WAYS
When considering candidates this year Monahan makes it pretty easy. All you have to do is remember that he thinks of himself first. Those of you paying attention will recall that a year ago he stood before the council and lobbied hard for the issue of a directly-elected mayor to be placed on the ballot. He was joined by then-mayor Allan Mansoor, who refused to even consider term limits for the position. Wisely, that scheme died on the vine. I think both Mansoor and Monahan envisioned themselves as "mayor for life". You may also remember that he campaigned for his current seat on the Sanitary District board as a guy who saw the need for reforms and would immediately move to make them if elected. Well, he did. He immediately moved to give himself and the other board members a pay raise and you, the rate payers, a rate increase. As I said, Monahan thinks of himself first...

BEVER AND DIXON?
The next few weeks should show us more candidates for the three positions on the city council this year. It is assumed that Eric Bever will run again - more's the pity for the city. His inept attempts at combining the job of mayor with that of a stand-up comic is getting pretty old. Linda Dixon is playing her cards very close to her vest. She may have had enough of having her position on the dais marginalized by the majority that has done everything possible except locking Dixon and Foley out of the chambers to ignore their presence and votes.

FISLER HAS TIME TO CAMPAIGN AGAIN
Rumors persist about Jim (I'm a realtor here in town) Fisler, current Vice Chair of the Planning Commission, occasional commenter here on this blog and part of the self-anointed "improver" group is going to run again. We have to assume he will make that decision within the next couple week. With the real estate market doing as poorly as it has been lately, Fisler will have plenty of time for municipal duties.

BUNYAN, AGAIN?
Former candidate Chris Bunyan has immersed himself in civic activities since he last ran and is presently immersed in saving Banning Ranch. In fact, he's footing the bill for a workshop on that subject from 6:30 - 8:30, Monday, July 21st at the Neighborhood Community Center near Lions Park for that purpose. He's been an off-again, on-again potential candidate. The last word I had from him was that he was not going to run... we'll see...

WHAT ABOUT RIGGY?
And then there's Riggy, the carpetbagging Planning Commissioner and Orange County GOP good old boy Jim Righeimer... we don't know if he's going to toss his hat into the ring this time around. If he does, that would make the election very interesting. He would undoubtedly get a lot of support - that means bucks - from the OC GOP. Riggy has said he's not running. If he did, he'd have to give up his weekly column on the Daily Pilot - a forum he's used to attempt to present "conservative views" to us all - when he's not pillorying applicants before the Planning Commission, that is. (Sorry, a smaller photo wouldn't accommodate his ego.)

NEWBIES?
I find myself wondering if we're going to see any new faces this time around. I hope so, although I'm not sure what a ballot with a dozen candidates will accomplish except to confuse the electorate.

THE FLAG GOES UP IN AUGUST
By the middle of August we'll know for sure who wants to compete for the opportunity to shape the city for the next four years. Then the fun begins... Stay tuned...