Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue’s Fire Prevention Specialist Brenda Emrick recently returned from a week long trip to China.
The recent trip included eight days of instructor development to provide U.S. representatives the expertise needed to observe and support previously trained CERT China instructors in delivering a basic CERT course to a Beijing audience
The latest utility box artwork pieces were recently installed and features both historic Costa Mesa photography as well as a funky artwork named ‘blue men’.
The boxes are located at the intersection of 19th St. and Harbor and at 17th St. and Santa Ana.
These vibrant pieces of art come from images secured by the City’s Historical Preservation Committee as well as local artist Ben Brough.
The reconstruction of Fire Station No. 1 continues to make progress.
Demolition of the original station was completed in March and hazardous material abatement, site grading, and foundation compaction is now complete.
The building foundation has been constructed using one inch diameter steel bars and 3,750 psi concrete containing up to 1.5” aggregate rock.
Construction of masonry block walls for interior and exterior partitions has begun, and reinforced steel bars are in place. Grout for the block walls is scheduled for sometime this week.
The steel reinforced concrete floor slab is next to be constructed and the building will continue to go vertical from there.
Construction is tentatively scheduled for completion in Spring of 2018.
The Costa Mesa Police Department has been conducting undercover operations throughout the month to deter the sale, purchase, and use of illegal fireworks in the City of Costa Mesa. To date, over 600 lbs. of illegal fireworks have been seized with multiple arrests. Illegal firework enforcement will continue through the 4th of July.
Fireworks without the Safe & Sane logo are illegal and it is a crime to sell, purchase and possess illegal fireworks. Possession of just one illegal firework is a misdemeanor and punishable by a first time offense of a $1,000 fine and/or imprisonment. To report illegal fireworks use and suspicious activity please call (714) 754-5252.
On Thursday, June 22 City Manager Tom Hatch named Daniel Inloes the winner of the June City Manager Leadership Award at the monthly Meet and Greet.
Inloes, a senior planner in the Development Services Department is responsible for processing development applications and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). He is also the Project Manager for the selection and implementation of the City’s new Land Management System.
Inloes is very involved in the City’s Economic Development Program which promotes the advantage of doing business and development opportunities in Costa Mesa.
In addition to his work with the City, Inloes is also an adjunct professor at Univerity of Southern California’s Sol Price School of Public Policy, where he teaches Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Prior to beginning his work at Costa Mesa, Inloes worked at the City of Camarillo as a planner, was a sole proprietor for a few years and also worked at SCAG as a Regional Planner.
In addition to honoring Inloes, City Manager Hatch welcomed a handful of new employees to the city, including Dylan Sickler and Larry Grihalva from Fire and Rescue.
Hatch also welcomed the newest members of the Parks and Community Services Department, Caleb Fleener, Josue Recinos, Mark Moreno and Nathan Zotea.
Amanda Del Prato, Iridyan Jimenez, Samantha Perez-Reyes, Jackie Rodriguez, Elizabeth Romo and Ana Villicana were introduced as the newest members of the Police Department.
Finally, Amber Haston of the Public Services Department was also recognized.
Firefighters continue to prepare for what is predicted to be an active fire season.
As part of their training, firefighters are performing progressive hose lays (used when we have to travel long distances, sometimes over 1000’) and exercising their communications plan.
Additionally, each firefighter is required to deploy their fire shelter, which is a last resort if they find themselves in a burn over situation.
The Costa Mesa Police Department collaborated with the Orange County Probation Department last week to conduct compliance checks on offenders subject to Post-Release Community Supervision (PRCS), per the State Prison Realignment Assembly Bill 109.
These checks were designed to locate and audit the activity of local criminal offenders residing within the City of Costa Mesa who are under the supervision of OC Probation.
Officers completed 27 residential home checks of offenders and contacted 43 individuals, 23 of which were and classified as PRCS/Probation offenders and five of which were on formal probation with gang terms.
The compliance checks resulted in eight offenders being arrested for violations of the conditions of their probation and/or new criminal law violations, and two other individuals being cited for having an open container in public.
On Thursday, June 15 Mariners Christian School held it’s graduation ceremony for the Eighth Grade Graduating Class of 2017. Eighth grade students, families, friends, and the entire MCS faculty and staff gathered in the beautiful sanctuary at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach to present diplomas, listen to music and keynote speakers, view a slideshow of middle school memories, and acknowledge key student accomplishments and leadership awards.
The program included:
Eighty-three eighth grade students received their diplomas while wearing formal white graduation gowns in the lovely setting of St. Andrews Church.
Every 10 years, the City has the opportunity to provide updated address and map data to the U.S. Census Bureau in preparation for the decennial U.S. Census.
The draft data for the 2020 Census will be distributed to planning staff for review.
The Local Update of Census Addresses, or LUCA, is the only opportunity offered to review and comment for our jurisdiction prior to the 2020 Census. The Census Bureau relies on a complete and accurate address list to reach every living quarters and associated population for inclusion in the census.
Since accurate address count is essential to ensure an accurate census count for Costa Mesa; city staff will be diligent to provide updated data. The data will be provided in form of Customized Geographic Information System (GIS) software, which will be easy to update and minimize inaccuracies.
Actively participating in the Census and providing accurate information is important since the Census count is the base for all population estimates for the next 10 years. The count determines the apportionment of political representation, and determines the distribution of federal and state dollars.
At a recent Energy Partnership meeting, the City of Costa Mesa received its award for reaching Silver Status within the partnership.
The Partnership, formed in 2010, currently consists of the cities of Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, Newport Beach, Westminster, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach, and Irvine.
Staff representatives meet monthly to discuss long-range energy efficiency goals and projects that are relevant to each city. Costa Mesa recently completed the direct install program sponsored by Southern California Edison.
The program allowed for all City facilities, with the exception of the City Hall campus, to receive lighting upgrades at no cost, thus saving Costa Mesa approximately $60,000 in onetime general fund expenditures.
Assistant to the City Manager Dan Baker is the liaison to this committee and is always interested in projects that seek energy efficiency.
Assistant City Manager Rick Francis has accepted a new role with John Wayne Airport as the Assistant Airport Director.
Francis joined the City of Costa Mesa in 2012, as part of the City’s executive management team. While much of his responsibilities include working closely with City Council and Department Directors, Francis has most notably led the city’s efforts in finding solutions for homeless issue, working closely with the residential and business communities and the city’s Network for Homeless Solutions.
Prior to joining the City of Costa Mesa, Francis worked for the County of Orange in a number of capacities. As Chief of Staff to Second District Supervisor John Moorlach, Francis was responsible for working with the Board of Supervisors, the County Executive Office and various County departments. Importantly, he advised Supervisor Moorlach on JWA-related matters including the Settlement Agreement, budget and infrastructure development – including the construction of Terminal C. Before joining Supervisor Moorlach’s office, Francis spent 13 years at the Probation Department where he was responsible for oversight of the Program Support and Research Division.
Francis holds a Bachelor’s degree in religion from Vanguard University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from American Public University. He is also a graduate of the County’s Leadership Academy and Enlightened Leadership programs. He has broad ties to the community including membership in the Association of California Cities-Orange County Homelessness Task Force and the Mental Health Services Act Steering Committee.
The fields that the Los Angeles Chargers football team will use for Summer 2017 Training Camp are undergoing final preparation before lush sod can be laid at the site.
Phase I construction included extensive grounds preparation as a means to support the highest quality sports turf available. The Chargers will be releasing an official Summer Training Camp schedule soon.
The camp, which will be free and open to the public for viewing is scheduled to begin in late July.