Fire Department Management Analyst Alma Reyes was the recipient of May’s CEO Leadership Award.

Our video team spent some time with Reyes to get an idea of what her workday is like.

Northbound Fairview Road (Baker Street to McCormick) is closed due to a Mesa Water District (MWD) water main break.

Northbound traffic will be detouring at Baker Street.

The Bismark Way neighborhood will be affected by the water main shut down.

Public Services is working with Mesa Water District on the road closure, signal timing and  traffic control and coordination.

Our Engineering Division will be assessing the road condition and determining the extent of the damage.

 The duration of the closure has not been determined at this time.  

Two of the four community meetings with demographic mapping expert David Ely, of Compass Demographics, are set to begin this week on June 2 and 4.

The meetings are designed to introduce residents to the concept of districts and give them an opportunity to discuss and interact with others on the district mapping process.

These two meetings will be identical; attend the one most convenient for you.

Neighborhood Community Center
Thursday, June 2, 2016, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
1845 Park Ave. Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Halecrest Park
Saturday, June 4, 2016, 10 a.m. to noon.
3107 Killybrooke Lane Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Translators will be present to assist with language needs in Spanish and Vietnamese.

R.S.V.P.’s are requested, but not required, to help plan for the number of attendees and translation needs.

For more information or to R.S.V.P., please email districtelections@costamesaca.gov or call the City Clerk’s office at (714) 754-5225.

At the May Meet and Greet, City CEO Tom Hatch presented Management Analyst Alma Reyes with the CEO Leadership Award.

Reyes has been with the City of Costa Mesa since January of 2011, where she began her first job as a Management Analyst for the Public Services Department. In April of 2013, she transferred into the Parks and Community Services Department to serve as both the Management Analyst and Recreation Supervisor.

In November of 2015, Reyes moved into the Fire & Rescue Department to serve as a Management Analyst and Chief Dan Stefano praised her passion for public service, team value orientation and engaged professionalism.

She provides support to the Fire & Rescue Department in the following areas: Budget preparation, procurement of supplies and equipment, processing invoices, contract administration, managing/tracking funds, monitoring of department budget, and special projects (i.e. CIPs).

She also serves in various city committees.

Prior to working in Costa Mesa, Reyes worked for 10 years for the City of Hawaiian Gardens in various areas of local government including: Administration, Public Relations, Public Safety, Public Works, Recreation, Code Enforcement and Finance.

In addition to honoring Reyes, CEO Hatch welcomed three new employees, recognized three more for promotions and congratulated Public Services Director Ernesto Munoz on his upcoming retirement.

Costa Mesa citizens are invited to attend several community meetings throughout the city with demographic mapping expert David Ely, of Compass Demographics, to discuss the process of creating maps for voting district boundaries.

The meetings are scheduled June 2, 4, 15 and 18 and are designed to give residents an opportunity to discuss and interact with others on the district mapping process.

Ely will typically use sample maps as a starting point to give an idea of how equal population district boundaries might be distributed and solicit input and mapping ideas during these meetings.

The meetings will be held:

• Thursday June 2 at 7 p.m. at the Neighborhood Community Center, 1845 Park Ave.
• Saturday June 4 at 10 a.m. at Halecrest Park, 3107 Killybrooke Lane.
• Wednesday June 15 at 7 p.m. at St. Joachim Catholic Church, 1964 Orange Ave.
• Saturday June 18 at 10 a.m. at the Balearic Community Center, 1975 Balearic Drive.

Translators will be present to assist with language needs in Spanish and Vietnamese.

R.S.V.P.’s are requested, but not required, to help plan for the number of attendees and translation needs.

For more information or to R.S.V.P., please email districtelections@costamesaca.gov or call the City Clerk’s office at (714) 754-5225.

Kelly Shelton, assistant to CEO Tom Hatch, was presented with the CEO Leadership Award for the month of April. See that story here.

To get a better idea of what it’s like to be the assistant to the CEO, we spent some time with her and got a glimpse of what her day is like.

See the video for more.

Longtime Costa Mesa resident John Carpenter, who is retiring this year after 38 years as both a teacher and coach at Estancia High School, was the recipient of the Mayor’s Award at the Tuesday May 17 City Council meeting.

“Tonight, we are honored to have long-time Costa Mesa resident John Carpenter here to receive the Mayor’s Award,” Mayor Steve Mensinger said. “John has touched the lives of many throughout this community, especially youth through his work as a teacher and coach at Estancia High School.”

Carpenter move to Costa Mesa from El Paso Texas when he was 10 and attended Sonora Elementary, Davis Jr High, Costa Mesa High School and Orange Coast College.

In high school he was an All-American swimmer and a starter on the OCC National Champion Water Polo Team in 1972. In 1985, he was named Newport Beach Lifeguard of the year.

At Estancia, Carpenter spent his career both as the school’s water polo and swim coach and also as a biology teacher, serving as the Science Department Chair.

“I’d like to thank Mayor Steve Mensinger for this outstanding and humbling honor, I am deeply touched by it,” Carpenter said. “I’d also like to thank the City Council for all you do. I can’t believe 38 years have gone by, it’s been the most wonderful time in my life and it’s going to be harder to leave it.”

Public Services Director Ernesto Munoz has accepted an offer to become Director of General Services for a private asset management group, capping a 22-year career with the City of Costa Mesa that was highlighted by several major milestones including the restoration of wetlands at Fairview Park.

“Ernesto is one of the top engineers I have worked with in my 28-year career in government service,” City CEO Tom Hatch said. “His contributions to the Costa Mesa community are far reaching and we benefitted immensely from his vision and expertise. We are going to greatly miss him here at City Hall.”

Munoz was named public services director in 2012, overseeing a staff of 120-plus employees and managing a budget of more than $22 million and a Capital Improvement Program budget of $27 million. The city has more than $500 million in assets that fall under public services purview.

“Since I took over my responsibilities as director in 2012, we have implemented a very aggressive Capital Improvement Program and constructed approximately $100 million in infrastructure improvements,” Munoz said. “We continually improved the quality of services and at the same time achieved enhanced efficiency throughout the department.”

Under his leadership, public services also brought the City’s street system’s Pavement Condition Index from 77.6 to 86.3, which is well above the County’s average PCI of 77.

In addition to the Fairview Park wetlands project, Munoz oversaw City Hall’s seismic retrofit as well as the creation of major recreation and sports venues, including the Volcom Skate Park, the Angels Tot Lot and the Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex.

One of the pools created by Costa Mesa Public Services to restore the Fairview Park wetlands.

He and his staff have completed multiple street, drainage and alley improvement projects, many with significant grant funding. Most recently, the city entered into a partnership with the OC Fair and Event Center to create a new bio-swale development that will improve walkways and help manage storm water runoff into the Back Bay.

“This has been a very emotional decision for me as I have a deep bond to this community through great relationships with residents and businesses alike,” Munoz said. “I have the best and brightest staff any director can hope for.  I have received tremendous support, both from the Councils I have served as well as community members and CEO Hatch, and I don’t regret a minute of my 22 years with this great City.”

The Costa Mesa City Council is accepting applications to fill one vacancy on the Senior Commission.  Applicants must be a Costa Mesa resident.

The Senior Commission serves as an advisory body to the City Council in matters related to the operation of the Costa Mesa Senior Center.

There is one vacancy with a term expiration of February 2019.

For further information, please contact Acting Parks and Community Services Manager Justin Martin at (714) 754-5065.

Those interested must complete a Commission Application Form from the City Clerk’s Office or from the City’s website (www.costamesaca.gov/apply).

The completed application may be submitted online; mailed to Costa Mesa City Clerk at Post Office Box 1200, Costa Mesa, California, 92628-1200; faxed to (714) 754-4942; or hand-delivered to the City Clerk’s Office at City Hall, 77 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa.

The deadline is 5 p.m., Friday, June 10, 2016.

Appointments are tentatively scheduled for the June 21, 2016 City Council meeting.

For further information, please contact the City Clerk’s office at (714) 754-5225 or cityclerk@costamesaca.gov.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has closed the right lane of NB Fairview Road overpass on the NB I405 due to water damage.

The partial closure will be in effect Monday, May 16, 2016 through Monday, May 23, 2016. Bicyclists are advised to use extra caution as the pavement may be uneven.

Caltrans appreciates the public’s patience while we perform this work.

For more information, you may contact the District 12 Public information Office at (949) 724-2000 or log on to the Caltrans website at www.dot.ca.gov/dist12.

Newport-Mesa Unified School District (NMUSD) recognized and honored six high school seniors for their character and  leadership traits.

“We have a wealth of incredible students and it is gratifying to annually recognize a few of them,” said Superintendent Dr. Fred Navarro. “Getting to know students and their genuine good natured approach to life is something I look forward to each year,” he added.

The Character Trait Award Programs aims to highlight six seniors, one from each high school, who symbolize one of the six pillars of character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship.

Staff members from the six NMUSD schools nominate a student for each category and the final award choices are decided on by a small committee steered by Superintendent Dr. Fred Navarro.

Kaitlynn Kistler, Early College High School – Trustworthiness

Selected for the Character Trait Award of Trustworthiness, Kaitlynn is a dedicated, thoughtful, and hardworking student. She is a member of the National Honors Society and dedicates her time to assist struggling classmates and goes above and beyond to offer her support.

Ryan Kassel, Corona del Mar High School – Respect
Selected for Character Trait Award for Respect, Ryan is unfailingly courteous, kind and respectful to his peers, teachers, and coaches. He is captain of the Varsity Cross Country team and participates as an intern in the Biorobotics Lab at UC Irvine.

Menzin Echols, Back Bay High School – Responsibility
Selected for the Character Trait Award for responsibility, Menzin has maintained excellent attendance, stellar grades, and earned the respect and friendship of his peers as well as the Back Bay faculty and staff.

Clarissa Barragan, Estancia High School – Fairness
Selected for the Character Trait Award for fairness, Clarissa is good-natured, open minded and patient. She is respectful toward peers and staff and carefully listens to others viewpoints to ensure fairness among peers.

Peyton Espley-Jones, Newport Harbor High School – Caring
Selected for the Character Trait Award for Caring, Peyton regularly displays a caring, positive, optimistic approach to things. She is personable, compassionate, and driven to succeed. She is president of a student body of more than 2,500 students and consistently spends time and energy to improve the lives of others through her genuine caring nature.

Nora Vartanian, Costa Mesa High School – Citizenship

Selected for the Character Trait Award of Citizenship, Nora maintains a 4.3 GPA, while balancing her academic activities and activities outside of school. She is a member of the Madrigal Choir and the varsity cheer team. She advocates for the needs of herself and others and is active in her church and numerous community service activities.

The winning high school seniors reflect strong leadership traits and exuberate kindness.

Winners are applauded with a six foot banner showcasing their photo, winning character trait and school they represent displayed in the district lobby for one year. Students will also be recognized at a special ceremony June 7, 2016 at 6 p.m. in the Corona del Mar High School Performing Arts Theater.

Costa Mesa’s State Sen. John Moorlach will be part of a Town Hall discussion on Sober Living Homes tonight from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Laguna Hills Community Center.

Moorlach will be joined by state Sen. Pat Bates and Assembly Members William Brough and Matthew Harper as they discuss the laws governing residential recovery facilities as well as what cities like Costa Mesa have done to address the issue.

Also presenting tonight will be Costa Mesa’s Assistant City Attorney Tarquin Preziosi, who has played a key role in the enactment and enforcement of the city’s single family and multi-family ordinances.

The Association of California Cities Orange County chapter as well as the Orange County Association of Realtors are partner sponsors of the event.

Click here to see the entire agenda.

The Community Center is located at 25555 Alicia Parkway in Laguna Hills.