Singeing Supervisor Candidate's Digits

FEET TO THE FIRE, AGAIN
Last night the four candidates for the Orange County 2nd District Supervisor race met at the Costa Mesa Community Center and were grilled for a fast-paced hour by Barbara Venezia and her merry mob of interrogators - Daily Pilot Editor John Canalis, City Editor Alicia Lopez, Orange County Register columnist Jack Wu and Voice of OC Editor-in-Chief Norberto Santana, Jr.

THE "VICTIMS"
 Board of Equalization Vice Chair Michelle Steel, Coast Community College District Board member Jim Moreno, Assemblyman Allan Mansoor, and Huntington Beach City Councilman Joe Carchio endured this edition of the now-famous Feet To The Fire Forum - the seventh in the series - and all walked away without the need of resuscitation.

BROUGHT HER OWN CROWD
Steel brought with her an enthusiastic crowd of admirers, who were planted front and center fully a half-hour before the event began.  Support for the others seemed sparse and scattered by comparison.

FRENETIC PACE
The "format" - described by some as Jerry Springeresque - was rapid and random, with some candidates being able to fully answer questions and others not so much.  As has been the case in previous events like this one, interrogators talked over each other and candidates and some were left with their hands in the air as the questions moved on without them.

ATTENTIVE CROWD

That being said, at the end of that whirlwind hour I suspect most in the audience of around 100 souls  had a pretty clear idea of each of the candidates.  I notice several other political players in the room, including some of the young cadre of OC GOP up-and-comers.  Supervisor Todd Spitzer was there, but termed-out John Moorlach - who's seat is in play for this election - was not.  And, our matriarch of Orange County politics, former Assemblywoman, State Senator and Secretary of Education Marian Bergeson, attended this one, too.

FORGO PENSION?
Canalis led off the questioning by asking each of the candidates whether, if elected, they would forgo their pensions?  Steel said yes.  Moreno gave a long answer about trying to use it to fund necessary programs.  Mansoor said he "probably would", then danced around the issue, stating that he was not "independently wealthy" - a slam at Steel.  Carchio said he had done so in Huntington Beach and saw no reason to change.

MORE PENSIONS
The question then turned to whether they would support a move to remove Supervisor's pensions.  Only Moreno answered that one, and then only partially, before the conversation got sidetracked into a broader "pension" dialogue.  Santana attempted to get each of them to answer specific questions, but they each dodged them like a ring full of bullfighters.  Moreno said pensions are "a horrendous problem".  Mansoor said he led by example - indicating that he didn't take any pay raises while in Sacramento.  That, of course, didn't answer the question.  Carchio discussed his experiences in Huntington Beach.

CALOPTIMA
The issue of the beleaguered CalOptima program came up.  Several of the candidates didn't seem to have done their homework on it so the discussion sank.

TO MANSOOR - WHY THIS MOVE?

Mansoor was asked why people who supported him just two years ago for his current seat should support him now for this move, speculating that they might worry that he would jump again in another couple years.  He said, "I can respect that", but that he was supporting Huntington Beach councilman Don Hansen for this role, then he chose not to run, so he felt there needed to be someone with strong roots - again alluding to Steel's perceived carpetbagger status.  He indicated that "we need someone who can hit the ground running." - meaning himself.

 SPEAKING OF CARPETBAGGERS
Jack Wu, during that discussion, made an oblique reference to Costa Mesa Mayor Jim Righeimer, talking about how Mansoor appointed him to the Planning Commission only a short time after he moved to Costa Mesa from Fountain Valley.  The discussion was frenetic, but Mansoor was clearly rattled by that one.  He said something curious about Righeimer "being able to walk over from Fountain Valley."

 A LITTLE BACKGROUND
Each managed to include a little personal history, including Carchio.  His verbal resume seemed tailor-made for the job of Supervisor.  He's been on the Huntington Beach City Council, lived in Orange County 35 years, coached baseball and football, is the Chairman of the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), is in the PTA, on the board of the Orange County Waste Management Board, the Vector Control Board, California League of Cities and many others.  I got exhausted just listening to the list.

REALLY?
There was an amusing exchange when Mansoor was asked why he was running when Carchio was running.  He said he "liked Joe, but I don't think he can win."

MORENO
At that point Moreno discussed his background working as a Deputy Supervisor in Los Angeles County for thirteen years - part of his 35 years in that county government.  He also spoke of his time on the Coast Community College District Board for the past 7 years, during which more than 60,000 students received degrees or transferred to other schools.

 SHOW ME THE MONEY...

At one point each candidate was asked to tell the panel how much money they had in their campaign war chests, excluding personal loans to it.  Their answers were:

Carchio - $75,000

Mansoor - $100,000

Moreno - $40,000

Steel - $550,000

GULP!
Yes, that is NOT a typo... Steel has more than a half-million bucks to spend!  Mansoor told the crowd that he's been outspent in every race he'd ever run in and won them all.

A RECORD OF..... ?
When asked about his accomplishments in Sacramento Mansoor was unable to point to any bill of his that had passed - he apparently forgot the one that took the word "retard" out of the official Sacramento lexicon.  Funny, because that was it - his "accomplishment".

SOON ON TV...

And on and on... it was much like watching doubles badminton, with candidates taking giant whacks at the shuttlecock, only to have it drop softly at the feet of the opponent.  Still, it was entertaining and you'll soon be able to watch it on Newport Beach Television and, if they provide a DVD to CMTV, on that station, too.

IMPRESSIONS
I came away with the following impressions:

Michelle Steel is probably a very smart woman and probably really knows her subject matter, but she has a problem communicating it in memorable sound bites.  She has a gigantic war chest and likely will outspend all the other candidates combined.  That doesn't make her the best choice, though.  There's this whole "carpetbagger" perception issue and the almost slobbering embrace by the OC GOP hierarchy that just doesn't seem to square with her actual qualifications.  Early in the race and my mailbox seems to have something from her campaign every day.

Allan Mansoor, a brand new father, seemed very defensive and was clearly the most aggressive candidate on the stage.  His not-too-subtle barbs aimed at Steel demonstrated to me that he thinks she's the one to beat.  He's in the unenviable position of having decided to bail out of his current gig with no apparent fall-back position if he loses to her.  And, virtually all the big name GOP support is going to Steel.  Having watched him in action for more than a decade I can say that Mansoor is, well, Mansoor - an affable, not very smart and ineffective politician who seems very uncomfortable with that role in life.

Jim Moreno has a lifetime of public service, including some very relevant experience working for an LA County Supervisor - whom he did not name, by the way.  His experience on the Coast Community College Board is also impressive.  He was not rattled last night during the verbal food fight we witnessed.  I came away from the evening thinking he was probably a pretty steady hand.

Joe Carchio - a man whom I've never met before - had the best "resume" of the bunch.  His experience seems to perfectly position him for this job - he actually does know Orange County.  He's held several elected and appointed positions simultaneously and, apparently, successfully and he managed the chaos the best last night.  He was unflappable.  I don't know what kind of a council member he has been in Huntington Beach, nor am I familiar with his other contributions as a member of other boards, but I'd like to know more.  If I had to vote today, based only on what I know about the candidates right now,  I'd vote for him.

NEXT UP - COSTA MESA CANDIDATES IN SEPTEMBER
So, another Feet To The Fire Forum in the can.  The next one is way, way out in September, on the 18th, when the Costa Mesa City Council candidates will get their chance to be spindled and toasted on the campus of Orange Coast College - a new, larger venue.  Thanks to Barbara Venezia and her team for another enlightening, entertaining evening.  Again, I found myself wanting more...

It's Gonna Be A Long Week...

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY...
The first part of this week is going to be very busy for those of us who try to attend most events.  This time I will fail because of scheduling.  I'll try to gather information and report - even if it means getting it from a taped replay.

PLANNING COMMISSION AND FEET TO THE FIRE
Monday, April 28, 2004 has two conflicting events - the Costa Mesa Planning Commission meeting, beginning at 6:00 in City Council Chambers at City Hall and the next Feet To The Fire Forum, which begins at 7:00 (doors open at 6:30) at the Costa Mesa Neighborhood Community Center.

LIVE MUSIC AT "THE BOULEVARD"
The Planning Commission has a full agenda, HERE.  There are four (4) public hearings scheduled.  The first one, HERE, request permission for a bar, The Boulevard, located on Newport Boulevard near the intersection of Harbor and Newport Blvd, to have live music from 3 p.m., until closing at 2:00 a.m.  The staff recommends approval.

MORE SERVICE BAYS AT THE HONDA STORE
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is a request to modify the Conditional Use permit at the local Honda dealership on Harbor Blvd. to allow expansion of the service operations, including converting a portion of the present facility into paint booths.

A QUICK HEARING
Public Hearing #3, HERE, is the annual review of the development agreement for Segerstrom Town Center.  This seems like a no-brainer, but one never knows.

ERASING MOTEL LONG-TERM HOUSING
The final Public Hearing, #4, HERE, is the biggest item on the agenda.  This one bears the title, "Code Amendment CO-13-03 - To Title 13, Chapter IX, Article 8 Governing Motels.  Reading through this staff report and the draft amendment to the codes involved, it seems pretty clear that the goal here is to reduce the number of motel rooms used as long-term stay units to ZERO.  Presently motels are authorized to use up to 25% of their rooms as long-term stays units.  Although I won't be there, I suspect there may be lively discussion on this one from members of the Costa Mesa Affordable Housing Coalition, among others, because there are virtually NO other housing alternatives from low or very low income folks in this city except motels.

 *****

FEET TO THE FIRE, PART 2
As mentioned, the second of this campaign season's Feet To The Fire Forums is scheduled for Monday, as well.  Barbara Venezia and her crew of interrogators - Daily Pilot Editor John Canalis, City Editor Alicia Lopez, Voice of OC Editor-in-Chief, Norberto Santana, Jr., and Orange County Register columinst Jack Wu - who did a good job last week of toasting the toes of Assembly candidates will tee up to fry some feet of the candidates for the Orange County 2nd Supervisorial seat being vacated by termed-out Supervisor John Moorlach.

 FOUR SUPERVISOR CANDIDATES TO BE FRIED
Anticipated to attend this bunyan-boiler are the following candidates:  Coast Community College District board member Jim Moreno; Huntington Beach Councilman and retired business owner Joe Carchio; California Board of Equalization Vice Chairwoman Michelle Steel and 74th District Assemblyman Allan Mansoor.

FIREWORKS GUARANTEED
This event promises to have all the fireworks to which we've become accustomed over the past few years.  For example, Mansoor recently took Steel to court on her ballot designation - and won.  Although some accuse her of being a carperbagger - moving to the district only recently - Steel has the support of most of the OC GOP hierarchy, which apparently has decided Mansoor has outlived his usefulness and have dropped him like a hot potato.  It promises to be an interesting night, especially for Mansoor, who just became a father last week.  Congrats to Mansoor and his lovely wife, Janniffer, on the arrival of their new daughter, Avalon Jane Kimberly Mansoor on April 23rd.

SEE YOU THERE...

The doors open at 6:30 at the Costa Mesa Neighborhood Community Center, 1845 Park Avenue (Lions Park) and the big show begins at 7:00 p.m.  See you there.

Catching Up

VIDEOS TO WATCH...
Catching up on some interesting video now available to us for viewing after the fact.

COSTA MESA BRIEF CANDIDATE VIDEOS

Our "pal", Barry Friedland over at Costa Mesa Brief, captured the discussion by 2nd District Supervisorial candidates Allan Mansoor and Michelle Steel at the Newport-Mesa Tea Party confab last Thursday evening.  Each segment is just under 30 minutes long, but are certainly worth viewing - especially if you are searching for information to make an informed decision in the Primary Election in June.  You can watch the Mansoor segment HERE and the Steel segment HERE.  There are two other candidates running for that office, but apparently neither were invited to this event.  In fact, when I asked Tea Party Tom Pollitt about it earlier in the week, he had no clue

 about other candidates.  Then, again....

BARRY'S DOING A GOOD JOB
I must give old Barry credit.  He's providing excellent video coverage of important events in the City.  His coverage, for example, of the Costa Mesa Sanitary District Town Hall last month at which the proposed Organics Recycling program was explained, is quite good.  You can watch that one HERE.

HATCH ON CITY TALK
There's a brand, new City Talk segment available for viewing on the City website, HERE.  Host Dane Bora asks City Chief Executive Officer Tom Hatch a variety of questions about the current state of affairs in the city.  Viewing this clip will be thirty minutes well-spent.

In wrapping up the segment Bora asked Hatch a series of four questions.  The last one went like this:

Bora - "If you could grant one wish for Costa Mesa, what would that be?"

Hatch - "A more, ah, civil discussion about, ah, about, ah, moving this community forward.  We're doing some great things.  We have a lot of great people who care deeply and love this town.  Ah, we, ah, our tone and approach is, ah, is, makes it hard.  And, we have such strong opinions, and change is difficult and so, I hope we have more of a civil discussion moving forward." 

WHAT WAS HE THINKING?...
I've replayed that segment a couple of times.  I'm sure Hatch is correct - a more civil discourse could make it easier to move forward.  I found myself wondering just who he might have been thinking of as he haltingly uttered those words.  Was he thinking about the cadre of concerned residents who take time from their lives to study important issues, then present themselves before the City Council and other official bodies to offer their questions and views?

Or, might he have been thinking about some current elected officials who sometimes veer from the path of civility when addressing folks speaking to them, and other council members, as well?

Or, might he have been thinking about those of us who write critically about issues and events in The City?

Or, was he contemplating all of the above?

AN EARLY NIGHT TOMORROW?  WE'LL SEE...
Tomorrow's City Council meeting, which gives the appearance of being relatively brief, may surprise us.  Much depends on how many speakers take the time to exercise their right to address concerns with the council - even though Mayor Jim Righeimer continues to fine-tune his obstructionist moves to keep that from happening.  I'm predicting a departure by 10:25 p.m.  We'll see.

Planning, Budgets, Charter And Tea Partiers

A BUSY WEEK AHEAD IN COSTA MESA
It's going to be another busy week in Costa Mesa.  Four important meetings on four consecutive days... Whew!

PLANNING COMMISSION AGENDA
Monday, February 10, 2014, the Costa Mesa Planning Commission will hold its first meeting of the month in City Council Chambers beginning at 6:00 p.m. and has a full agenda, HERE:

• Code Enforcement Update, HERE.
•  Public Hearing#1 - A request for first and second story additions at 3384 Wimbledon Way, HERE.
•  Public Hearing #2 - A request for major changes at the Wild Goose, 430 and 436 East 17th Street, HERE.  This has been requested to be continued until February 24, 2014.
• Public Hearing #3 - A 36-unit development at 2023, 2025 and 2027 Placentia Ave. HERE.
• Public Hearing #4 - A Conditional Use Permit to sell wine at 3315 Hyland Avenue, Suite H, HERE.
• Public Hearing #5 - A Conditional Use Permit to sell distilled spirits at 3313 Hyland Avenue, Suite #A6, HERE.
• Report on G&W Towing CUP status and recent noise complaint, HERE.

CITY COUNCIL BUDGET STUDY SESSION
On Tuesday, February 11, 2014, the City Council will meet in Council Chambers at 4:30 for the Mid Year Budget Review, HERE.  This meeting will include a discussion of the use of the $7.1 million surplus, actual revenues and many other subjects.  There are eight (8) attachments that are worth a look.  Click on the item to link to the attachment:
1. Analysis and Recommended Uses of the FY2012-13 Surplus
2. Mid-year Budget Report Summary—General Fund 
3. General Fund Revenue Chart
4. Budget to Actual Analysis—General Fund Revenues
5. General Fund Total Expenditure Chart
6. General Fund Salary & Benefit Chart
7. Budget to Actual Analysis—General Fund Expenditures
8. Contingency Funds

If you take a few minutes and scan those charts you'll find some interesting information.  For example, on #8 you will see that almost 70% of the Contingency Fund has been depleted, and how.

 Under #7 you'll see a department-by-department list of how much of the budget for salaries and benefits have been used during the first six months of the fiscal year.  For example, the CEO's Office has only 40.28% remaining while the several segments of the Police Department have significantly more than 50% remaining.

CHARTER COMMITTEE MEETS WEDNESDAY
On Wednesday, February 12, 2014 the Costa Mesa Charter Committee, facilitated by Drs. Kirk Bauermeiser and Mike Decker,  meets again to continue its relentless slog toward the creation of a Charter document that the City Council will find acceptable.  The meeting changes venues this time and will meet beginning at 6:00 p.m. in Conference Room 1A - a much cozier venue than the Emergency Operations Center, which is not available.  The agenda may be viewed HERE.

Specific items on the agenda are:

• A Review of the Minutes, HERE.
• Meeting Summary and Review of Norms, HERE.
• COIN, HERE.
• Conflict of Interest, HERE.
• Form of Government, HERE.
• Pension Timeline, HERE.
• Proposed Charter Language, HERE

A BUSY NIGHT FOR THEM
A look at this agenda gives me the sense that it will be a long meeting and it's likely that they won't finish all the items on the schedule.  The clock is ticking since they hope to have a final document ready to present to the City Council by the end of this month.  We'll see.

TEA PARTY MEETING
And, for you rabid partisans, the Newport Mesa Tea Partiers hold their monthly meeting on Thursday, February 13, 2014 at the Halecrest Swim and Tennis Club, 3107 Killeybrooke Lane from 6:30 - 8:30 and will feature among the speakers the grand pooba himself, Scott Baugh, plus Second District Supervisor candidates Michelle Steel and Allan Mansoor.  I will not be at this one, but I suspect Old Barry Friedland will have his Costa Mesa Brief camera on hand to film the event and post it on his YouTube site.