Due to the observation of the Labor Day holiday on Monday, there will be no residential street sweeping Sept. 2 through Sept. 6, 2019.

This coincides with the Costa Mesa Sanitary District, which also observes this holiday by pushing trash collection back one day.

This results in residential gutter lines being cluttered with trash cans making it impossible for street sweeper operators to do an efficient job. There should be no parking citations issued during this time.

Street sweeping will resume back to normal schedule the week of Sept. 9.

In lieu of sweeping streets, the following are a list of task that clean streets operators will be conducting next week.

• City wide alley street sweeping
• Sweeping of park parking lots and other city owned facilities
• Accident call outs and special request
• Night route sweeping on all arterial streets

For more information, residents can call the city’s street sweeping hotline at (714) 327-7471, which has been updated with this information.

Shirley is a Bridge Shelter senior client who previously wound up on the streets after a divorce where she found herself having to solve her medical problems and ward off criminals all on her own.

After years of living without a home, Shirley eventually entered the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter.

It wasn’t an easy entry at first. Shirley twice decided to leave the facility because she wasn’t yet ready to move forward with her housing plan; but, the shelter’s outreach and in-reach workers had compassion for her and convinced her not to give up hope for a life inside.

Fortunately for Shirley, she was recommended for a voucher by the Orange County Housing Authority (OCHA) and her case manager was able to collect the rest of her documentation to turn into OCHA for her housing voucher.

She is now retrieving and completing the necessary paperwork to get her housing voucher and has sent the documents to OCHA.

Only by stabilizing this client through the availability of a shelter bed and a coordinated and compassionate approach to case management, will he/she be able to complete her housing plan.

Shirley’s story is just one illustration of how the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter staff team is going above and beyond to get clients onto a path of hope.

For more information about Costa Mesa’s efforts to end homelessness, please visit our website at www.costamesaca.gov/homelessness.

On Monday, Aug. 26, the California State Senate approved Resolution SCR 21 to name a portion of the 55 Freeway after Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue Captain Mike Kreza, who was fatally struck by a vehicle while riding his bike off duty in November of 2018.

The freeway will be named the Costa Mesa Fire Captain Michael Kreza Memorial Highway from 19^th Street in Costa Mesa to MacArthur Boulevard.

“Fire Captain ‘Ironman’ Mike Kreza will always be in our hearts and now his memory will be imprinted within the gateway to the community for which he loved and served for 18 years,” Costa Mesa Fire Chief Dan Stefano said.  “The Costa Mesa fire family is grateful for this incredibly special tribute to Captain Kreza, an honor we will all treasure, most notably his wife Shanna and their daughters Kaylie, Layla, and Audrey.”

Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley also expressed her gratitude for the honor.

“It is so fitting that there will now be a memorial highway that runs through our city bearing the name of Capt. Mike Kreza,” Mayor Foley said. “He was a distinguished Costa Mesa firefighter and much-loved family man, whose character, integrity, and singular commitment to Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue earned him the respect and admiration of his fellow firefighters, the members of the greater Costa Mesa community and the countless other individuals whose lives he touched.”

SCR 21 was first introduced by Orange County state Senators Patricia Bates and John Moorlach, and Assembly Members Bill Brough and Cottie Petrie-Norris were the principal co-authors in the state Assembly. SCR 21 passed both houses unanimously and has gained widespread support statewide, starting at home with the Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue Department, the Costa Mesa Firefighters Association, the City of Costa Mesa, California Professional Firefighters, and the California Fire Chiefs Association.

Once SCR 21 is officially chaptered, the installation process will be discussed and steps to move forward will be set into motion.

The Cultural Arts Committee along with the Parks and Community Services Department are proud to host the fifth annual ARTventure event.

This free two-day cultural arts event is scheduled for Friday Sept. 6 and Saturday Oct. 7 at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in the beautiful, multi-tiered glass lobby of the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

This one-of-a-kind juried exhibition of art, will showcase the work of local artists in a variety of media, including but not limited to: oil, watercolor and acrylic paintings, metal sculpture, wood and leather crafting, fashion, photography, fiber art and mixed media.

Friday, Sept. 6 from 5 to 9 p.m. will be an amazing evening filled with art, live music, and refreshments as we celebrate the incredible talents of local artists with an opening reception and awards presentation. Then on Saturday, Sept. 7  from 10 a.m. to  3 p.m families will be treated to a day full of live art entertainment, including musical, theatrical, literary, culinary, and hands-on demonstration.

This free community event is organized in partnership with the City of Costa Mesa and The Segerstrom Center for the Arts, highlighting Costa Mesa’s “City of the Arts” motto.

For event details, parking information or to RSVP, visit www.ARTventureCM.com.

Serve the People is a private non-profit organization located in Santa Ana that provides health care services to people who struggle to find a doctor, dentist, optometrist or a counselor for care. Their mission is to provide the physical, mental, emotional and mentoring needs of the poor, children, sick, needy, uneducated, oppressed and lost people regardless of race, religion or gender.

Last week Serve the People coordinated the visit of a Mobile Vision Clinic at the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter where shelter clients were provided free vision tests and glasses.

Partnerships with organizations like Serve the People allow the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter team to better serve those experiencing homelessness in Costa Mesa.

Many volunteer opportunities are available at the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter. These opportunities are an easy way for the public to take an active role and help create positive change in the community. For more information, please contact AlyssaS@mercyhouse.net.

City Manager Lori Ann Farrell Harrison presented Amber Haston with the City Manager Leadership Award at the monthly Meet and Greet at City Hall on Thursday Aug. 22.

“Amber has proven to be a critical member of the Finance and greater City team,” Farrell Harrison said. “I am very impressed with all she does and appreciate her hard work and dedication and I know her colleagues do as well. Congratulations to Amber for a job well done.”

Haston joined the Costa Mesa team in May of 2017 as a Management Analyst in the Public Services Department. She transferred into the Finance Department in December of 2018.

Upon her arrival in Finance, she has reinvented the role of the Finance Department Management Analyst, focusing on key special projects and performing complex financial analysis and forecasting. Additionally, she continues to provide budget support to all budget liaisons, as well as assistance in forecasting as part of the surplus/deficit projections for FY 2018-19.  She served as a critical lead budget team member, and worked with Public Services to develop the Capital Improvement Program budget.

Concurrently, due to her purchasing experience, she was also asked to step in, along with Purchasing staff, to serve as the Buyer and dedicated Management Analyst for procuring items for the temporary Bridge Shelter in order to the meet the City Council goal of opening the shelter by April 2019. Her involvement was instrumental to the successful opening.

Some of her other key responsibilities include developing and managing the Finance Department’s budget and procurements, reviewing all City staff reports for fiscal impacts on behalf of the Finance Department, and work on special projects. Some of these special projects include the Citywide Fee Study and Cost Allocation Plan, updating the Capital Asset Needs Ordinance, implementing vendor and bid management software, and preparation and implementation of an electronic signature policy.

Haston attended Colorado State University and holds a bachelor’s degree in business management with a specialization in Public and Non-Profit Management.

In addition, City Manager Farrell Harrison welcomed Jackqueline Nguyen as the new Buyer and Louis Li as the new Budget Specialist in the Finance Department.

In Parks & Community Services,Caitlin Huerta and Wendy Pacheco are new Community Services Leader III working at the Senior Center.

Also in Parks and Community Services,Emily Pulaskihas been promoted to Recreation Specialist and Amir Ardalanhas been promoted to Senior Lifeguard at our Downtown Recreation Center.

When the Network for Homeless Solutions first contacted Samuel in 2014, it was learned that he suffered from a traumatic brain injury and depression exacerbated by chronic drug use. At one point, Samuel was able to maintain housing in the City and also participate in a variety of odd jobs and volunteer church activities.

But soon things took a turn for the worse. The cumulative effects of his chronic drug use caught up with him. His erratic behavior caused his roommates to evict him. He eventually lost his apartment and became estranged from his family. He became violent and blacked out after excessive drinking and drug use, to the point where others could not be around him.

The Community Action Partnership of Orange County works to strengthen individuals and families by providing health services, workforce development and community engagement programs.

The organization also operate a 58,000 square-foot food bank complete with commercial grade refrigerators and freezers capable of handling 20 truckloads of perishable food. Volunteers receive and package about 26,000 boxes of food each month for distribution to 50 sites across the county.

The Costa Mesa Police Department was one of just a few local agencies involved in a large investigation into the illegal distribution of opioids beginning in late 2018.

Because of these efforts, a local opioid dealer and his accomplices are facing criminal charges after a major collaborative investigation led by the Federal Department of Justice and a team that included Costa Mesa Police and federal and state law enforcement agencies.

The investigation resulted in the arrest of a Huntington Beach resident indicted for reportedly shipping as many as 2.6 million fentanyl pills nationwide.

Click here to read the press release from the U.S. District Attorney’s Office.

“We are aggressively confronting the opioid crisis through our partnership with law enforcement,” Mayor Katrina Foley said. “Thank you to Costa Mesa police and our law enforcement partners for the excellent work to expose and root out these modern day drug dealers in our community. We will continue to hold these individuals who prey on our residents accountable.”

Costa Mesa Police Capt. Bryan Glass credited his officers for working to stem this major drug crisis.

“We are proud of the work and efforts our officers continuously put towards these types of crimes, which directly affect our community and the nation,” said Costa Mesa Police Capt. Bryan Glass.

In addition to Costa Mesa Police, the case is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Western Cyber Crimes Unit, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Department of State, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation and the Chamberlain Police Department.

This successful investigation is one of the many ways the City of Costa Mesa is holding illegal businesses accountable.

In April of 2019 the City of Costa Mesa filed a lawsuit against the manufacturers and distributors of pain medications who are the root cause behind the national opioid crisis.

City Manager Lori Ann Farrell Harrison joined Assistant City Manager Tammy Letourneau to present Ian Carter, Equipment Mechanic III, with the City Manager Leadership Award at the monthly Meet and Greet on Thursday July 25.

“Ian sets a great example as a dedicated and hard-working Costa Mesa city staff member,” Farrell Harrison said. “As one of only two fire mechanics, he works long hours to keep our fire equipment and city fleet in top condition. I am grateful that he is on our team.”

Carter arrived in Costa Mesa in 2013 and has 20 years of experience as a heavy equipment mechanic. As the primary fire mechanic, he is responsible for maintaining all Fire Apparatus, ambulances and other fire equipment.

When the city lost several mechanics in 2017, Carter stepped up during the staffing shortage to manage the city’s fleet of more than 350 vehicles. Carters’ knowledge, skill level and professionalism was evident right away and he has proven to be an invaluable asset to the City of Costa Mesa and the Equipment Maintenance Section

In addition to honoring Carter, Letourneau welcomed several new employees, including new City Manager Farrell Harrison, and celebrated one retiree leaving after 30 years of service.

In Parks & Community Services, Joe Huynh is a new Senior Community Services Leader. Connor McMurdo is a new Senior Lifeguard working at the Downtown Recreation Center. Venci Vilchis and Yuridia Zarate are two new Community Services Leader II.

Kenneth Tu is a new Police Officer, and Casey Chu and Michelle Nguyen are new Interns working in the Public Services Department in the Transportation Division.

Executive Secretary Corrie Viera is retiring after a 30-year career, in which she started as an Office Specialist I for Public Services Department in the Transportation Services Division. Corrie has a great relationships with all staff she has encountered while working for the City. Enjoy your retirement, Corrie!

The City of Costa Mesa sealed its victory in the groundbreaking case involving Yellowstone Women’s First Stop House, Inc. and two other entities after Federal District Judge James Selna ruled in the city’s favor.

This latest ruling punctuates the city’s resounding victory in December of 2018 when a jury disposed of most of the Yellowstone case by unanimously agreeing the city’s sober living ordinances are not discriminatory and do not violate the Fair Housing Act.

“This ruling by the Honorable Judge Selna, determining the enforceability of our local laws, allows us to continue to protect patients and the public from those operators who are more concerned with profits over patient care,“ Mayor Katrina Foley said. “It confirms once again that investing in the litigation and fighting to keep our ordinance was the right thing to do not only for our Costa Mesa community, but others as well.”

In the court case, the City of Costa Mesa was represented by lead trial attorney Jennifer Keller of Keller/Anderle LLP.

“The Costa Mesa City Council stood tall and refused to be intimidated by the Plaintiffs,” Keller said at the time. “These victories are not just for the people of Costa Mesa and those in recovery homes, but also for every city in California.”

The City’s law, passed in 2014, was written to balance the rights of all citizens – including residents of group homes – to live in and enjoy Costa Mesa’s single-family neighborhoods.
The City implemented the law to protect the entire community from operators of unlicensed facilities which exposed residents to dangerous conditions and created public nuisance concerns.

Yellowstone, another sober living home and an industry trade group brought the original suit in the Central District of California in 2014. Numerous city employees and officials testified before the eight-person jury.

They spoke about the need for the law and discussed the City’s efforts to help those rendered homeless after being kicked out of sober living homes, including many people recovering from drug and alcohol addiction who had been enticed to Costa Mesa from out of state.

Several neighbors of poorly run recovery homes testified about the way these facilities mistreated recovering addicts and the impacts they had on the community.

After a four-week trial before Judge Selna, the jury deliberated for half a day before returning the verdict on all counts in favor of the City of Costa Mesa.

The verdict and Judge Selna’s ruling on July 16 are big victories for Costa Mesa as it means the city can continue to enforce its ordinance, which regulates sober living home operators in single family neighborhoods, including limiting the number of residents to six or fewer and maintaining a 650-foot buffer between non-licensed sober living homes.