Final 2010 Planning Commission Meeting Monday

WHAT ABOUT FITZPATRICK, MS. BARLOW?

We STILL don't know if Jim Fitzpatrick will be allowed to serve on the Planning Commission and the Costa Mesa Sanitary District Board simultaneously because City Attorney Kimberly Hall Barlow refuses to let the public know her decision before the City Council is informed. Unless she's derelict in her duties, one must assume that the council has already been informed since this meeting is right around the corner.
LAUDING RIGHEIMER?
First off they

CODE ENFORCEMENT UPDATE

Then, as part of the Consent Calendar, they will receive a Code Enforcement update, which tells them about 15 of our friends and neighbors who have recently felt the heavy hand of the law regarding their property around the city. If you care, you can read that report HERE and look for your neighbor's addresses and infractions.
NORMAL BUSINESS

HOMELESS TASK FORCE
At a joint study session with the Parks and Recreation Commission early in November the

EWWWW!

STARTLING STATISTICS

Some of the statistics, available in detail on the staff report, will get your attention, too. For example, "incidents" (ranging from Assaults to Traffic Stops and almost anything you can imagine in between) have gone from 111 in 2008, to 123 in 2009 to 634 for the first nine months of 2010! It's obvious we have a problem and something must be done to fix it. We have reached a point where young mothers simply refuse to take their children to the park, library, historical society and other amenities for fear of confrontation with homeless people.
NOT AN EASY PROBLEM TO SOLVE

WHAT ARE YOUR IDEAS?

I suspect City leaders will be soliciting input from residents if they actually do approve the formation of the task force. I know we will hear from some of the usual suspects exhorting us to chase the "magnets" out of our city - the social service entities that provide relief to the downtrodden - and to "drain the swamp" (bulldoze the "slums") so the "alligators" will go elsewhere. At a time of the year, when we normally think of spreading good tidings to all, those suggestions will seem more than a little heartless. Let's hope some of the really smart folks in this town step up with some good ideas on this subject. I'm sure willing to hear yours...
Labels: Costa Mesa Homeless, Jim Fitzpatrick, Jim Righeimer, Tom Hatch