As part of an agreement the city has reached with a voting rights advocate law firm, City Hall will be hosting three Meet the Expert meetings as it prepares for a voter district formation initiative headed for the November ballot.

The meetings to be held in Conference Room 1A are the first of many that will take place before the measure goes to vote.

The Meet the Expert meetings are designed to be small, face-to-face events with no more than two or three people at a time.  Members of the public will meet with a technical consultant, David Ely of Compass Demographics, who will give community members the opportunity to use geographic information system tools to better understand how boundaries are developed.

In order to participate in the Meet the Expert sessions please call the City Clerk office at 714-754-5225 to schedule an appointment.  The first meeting will be held this Friday, May 6, beginning at 10 a.m. The next two meetings are schedule for Thursday May 12, beginning at 10 a.m. and Saturday May 14, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

There will also be two rounds of community meetings in the month of June and those dates will be forthcoming.

On Tuesday May 3, Mayor Steve Mensinger presented the Mayor’s Award to Tammy Guadagno, the operator of the Chick-Fil-A restaurant on Harbor Boulevard, citing the organization’s strong support for local schools and community groups.

“It’s exciting to see Tammy’s passion for our community and how she has ingrained that into her team of employees,” Mayor Mensinger said. “We are grateful for Chick-Fil-A’s investment in the Costa Mesa community and the positive impact they are having on the local economy.”

Guadagno thanked Costa Mesa and said she gives back so much because the community takes care of her and her employees. In turn, she wants to return the favor and take care of Costa Mesa in any way she can.

“It is one of the best communities I’ve ever been involved in,” she said. “I’ve lived in a lot of places and I’m not going anywhere. Costa Mesa is where I’m staying forever. It’s an amazing city.”

The City of Costa Mesa filed a public nuisance complaint against the New Harbor Inn, a rare civil abatement move that, if successful, will bring the blighted and crime-infested motel on Harbor Boulevard under court control.

“As we saw with a recent stabbing at a local motel, these establishments continue to be a detriment to our community and are havens for prostitutes, drug users and other criminal elements,” said Costa Mesa Mayor Steve Mensinger. “By taking this action against this public nuisance, the City Council is trying to eliminate the unlawful use of the property.”

Since 2010, the New Harbor Inn generated nearly 1,800 calls for service and it is a known locale for drug storage and sales and multiple narcotics arrests. The motel is the source for a disproportionate amount of police calls.

Click here to see a copy of the complaint.

In addition to the criminal activity, inspections at the New Harbor Inn have turned up multiple code violations over the years including substandard property maintenance and health, life and safety violations.

In March of 2014, 79 violations were found in 33 rooms and in August of 2012, the property received fire code violations after it was discovered that 30 rooms had no smoke detectors, there were improper exits, non-operational fire extinguishers and fire hazards caused by extension cords.

According to the complaint filed in Orange County Superior Court Central Division, the city is asking for myriad remedies enforceable by the court including but not limited to:

• Shutting down the hotel temporarily or permanently.
• Appointing a receiver or court officer to take over operations and assume management and control of the property.
• Requiring the property owner to comply with existing law and completely revamp its business procedures, hire armed security guards and improve lighting and other areas of concern.

Recently, the city and Costa Mesa law enforcement have had to increase enforcement efforts on motel operators whose properties have multiple calls for service and are the venue for criminal activity such as drug use and sales and prostitution.

In a unanimous vote, the city council voted in closed session to take this legal action against the New Harbor Inn. If the court grants the city’s request to shut down, or place a court-appointed receiver over  the New Harbor Inn, that would be a major victory for residents and business owners who regularly have to deal with the criminal activity.

“Costa Mesa works hard to encourage and support our local businesses and residents,” Mayor Mensinger said. “But this drastic intervention is necessary given the pattern and practice of bad business operations.”

After a string of dumpster and small brush fires throughout the weekend, Costa Mesa Fire and Police personnel conducted an arson investigation that led them to a 13-year old male Costa Mesa resident.

The boy was arrested for the related arson incidents and later booked at OC Juvenile Hall.

Click here to read the press release of the arrest.

SMART Camp, which is a collaborative program between the City of Costa Mesa and the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, will be back again this summer. The free summer camp will be held Monday through Thursday July 5 – Aug. 4 on the campus of Costa Mesa High School.

The Sports Camp will include: Aquatics, basketball, cheer, football, soccer, softball, tennis, track, volleyball and wrestling. The Music Camp will include jazz band and orchestra lessons and the Arts Camp will include two and three dimensional visual art projects and theatrical acting.

A new acting component has been added to the Arts Camp as well.

In an effort to increase participation, organization and registration, this year’s SMART Camp registration will be available online through the City’s ActiveNet registration software as well as in person at City Hall, Balearic Community Center, Neighborhood Community Center, and Downtown Recreation Center.

Progress continues in the preparation of the construction documents for the reconstruction of Fire Station No. 1.  The station was originally built in 1961 and is currently experiencing foundation settlement causing structural damage. The station is not built to current building codes and standards, and does not provide efficient multi-gender accommodations.

The Public Services Department in coordination with the Fire Department is working with WLC Architects to complete the construction documents for a state of the art Fire Station.

The new station will be equipped with a three-bay and double-deep apparatus room, ten fire fighter dorm rooms, administrative offices, kitchen, dining room, day room, physical training room, EMS training room, mechanic shop area, and emergency medical supply room within the 11,675 square foot building.  Additional site features include an emergency generator, fuel station, hose drying tower, and a City emergency supply storage unit.

The new station will provide direct access to Adams Avenue in an effort to minimize emergency response time and improve traffic safety. The floor plan is being designed and coordinated to ensure that usability and circulation are maximized.

The new station will achieve LEED Gold certification and exceed California Title 24 Energy Code requirements by at least 15%. The attached architectural concept was approved by the Planning Commission in January. It is anticipated that bidding on the project will begin in the summer of 2017 with award of the contract by the council in October of 2016. Construction is anticipated to begin in January 2017.

At the Mesa Water District’s Board of Directors regular meeting on Thursday April 14, the City of Costa Mesa was recognized for its water conservation efforts and presented with the “Mega” Mesa Water Saver award.

Through the city’s efforts, along with other local agencies, businesses, schools and residents, the water district has reached and exceeded the state’s 20 percent conservation mandate with over 21 percent reduction in water use from June 2015 through February 2016.

“The 10 Mesa Water customers we’re recognizing today include property owners and managers with varying responsibilities, who are clearly dedicated to doing the right thing and engaging in activities that achieve higher-than-average water savings during this extended drought,” said Mesa Water Board President Shawn Dewane. “We’re proud to be part of a community so dedicated to water efficiency.”

The water district focused on outdoor watering, reducing water waste at residential, multi-family, business and government properties.

Customers who increased water efficiency beyond expectations were responsible for higher-than-average water savings ranging from 31 percent to 56 percent.

Businesses and Homeowners’ Associations amended their outdoor watering for larger landscapes to comply with Mesa Water’s watering schedules that changed with seasonal temperatures and weather.

Single-family homeowners and local government agencies implemented additional water-saving techniques, including installing a pool cover, replacing thirsty turf with water-wise landscaping, updating old irrigation with drip irrigation, reducing sprinkler times, installing smart-timers, and decreasing off-peak utility use.

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The following were recognized at Thursday’s event by Mesa Water’s Board of Directors as “Mega” Mesa Water Savers:

• Janice and Steven Frates
• Susan and Geoff West
• Brookview Homeowners’ Association
• Harbor Village Apartments
• C.J. Segerstrom & Sons
• Mariners Christian School
• Vanguard University
• City of Costa Mesa
• John Wayne Airport
• Newport Mesa Unified School District

College Park Elementary School’s Mandarin Immersion Program is accepting applications for the 2016-2017 school year.  The program is available to kindergarten and first grade students who reside within the N-MUSD attendance boundaries.  Enrollment is open district-wide and is not restricted to the College Park attendance zone.

Mandarin Chinese is the native language of more than 870 million people, making it the most widely spoken first language in the world. Kindergarten students currently in the program will transition to a Mandarin program in first grade, with the goal of continuing through middle and high school.

N-MUSD also offers two additional specialty elementary school programs – a Modern Scholars program at Adams Elementary and a Spanish bi-literacy program at Whittier Elementary.   These programs are available for kindergarten students and first grade students (limited spaces available for first grade).

The District also offers Signature Academies at each high school, offering students a global competitiveness to better prepare them for college and career success. Students enrolled in Signature Academies receive unique curriculum options and supplemental activities that complement the core academic programs at N-MUSD high schools.

Signature academies include specialty programs centered on key, industry leading careers and areas of study such as Science, Technology, Engineering and Arts and Math (STEAM). Each of the four N-MUSD High Schools offer unique programs, which are open to all ninth grade students within the N-MUSD, regardless of their zone of residence.  Click here for more information about the N-MUSD Signature Academies.

The application deadline for elementary school specialty programs and the high school signature academies is Friday, April 15, 2016.

The California Department of Education (CDE) awarded twelve elementary schools in Newport-Mesa Unified School District (NMUSD) with the California Gold Ribbon Award, in recognition of their outstanding educational programs and practices that contribute to closing the achievement gap.

The Gold Ribbon program replaces the California Distinguished Schools program during the two years that California is developing new assessment and accountability systems. The California Gold Ribbon Schools Award was created to honor schools while the California Distinguished Schools Program is on hiatus as California transitions to new assessment and accountability systems. Traditionally, the Distinguished Schools Program honored public schools that showed improved student outcomes as measured through standardized testing and reporting scores and additional measures.

The Gold Ribbon program is different from the California Distinguished Schools program in that it focuses on recognizing schools that demonstrate academic progress through the implementation of the new State standards.

The seven NMUSD schools in Costa Mesa that were honored with the California Gold Ribbon Award are:

Davis Magnet School

Davis Magnet School was recognized as a Gold Ribbon School for their success in closing the achievement gap, engaging parents and community and use of technology through their project based learning, which focuses on improving achievement in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

Sample project based learning at Davis Magnet School include a rollercoaster challenge, where students create a rollercoaster to learn about motion and force; develop a bio-waste digester, which teaches students about waste matter, renewable energy, chemistry and more. The project based approach to learning has resulted in 75 percent of Davis students meeting or exceeded English language arts standards and 74 percent meeting or exceeded math standards, based on the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium data. These percentages are 39 to 125 percent higher than district, county, and state averages. Learn more about Davis Magnet School at http://davismagnet.nmusd.us.

Kaiser Elementary

Kaiser Elementary uniquely serves students in grades three through six and was selected as a Gold Ribbon School for their success implementing their Read All Day (RAD) Program. The RAD program includes various tiers of instruction, grounded on new state standards, student assessments to determine the tier of instruction that best suits each student’s need, and creating a community culture of reading.

The RAD program has resulted in a 24 percent increase in student reading proficiency. Based on 2015 Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium data, English learners exceed state averages by nine percent, socio-economically disadvantaged students exceed state averages by 11 percent and special education students exceed state standards by 18 percent. To learn more about Kaiser Elementary please visit http://kaiser.nmusd.us.

Killybrooke Elementary

Killybrooke Elementary School was recognized as a Gold Ribbon School for their success in implementing a college and career readiness program centered on universal achievement (as a No Excuses University school) and technology integration.

Killybrooke has made great strides in increasing achievement of all students and closing the achievement gap for English Learners and socio-economically disadvantaged students, through six systems designed to help all students achieve, with technology (including 1:1 Chromebooks for students in grades 3-6) used as a tool to maximize student learning.

Assessments show improvement, with Academic Performance Index increasing from 667 to 867, English language arts proficiency increasing from 27 percent to 67 percent, and math proficiency increasing from 31 percent to 75 percent. Student scores exceed County and State averages. Learn more about Killybrooke Elementary at http://killybrooke.nmusd.us.

Paularino Elementary

Paularino Elementary School was recognized as a Gold Ribbon School for their success in creating a culture of universal achievement through their program, Reading Our Way to College. Paularino Elementary became a No Excuses University school to inspire students to attend college and also implemented an Accelerated Reader program to encourage students to read independently.

Implementation of these reading programs and other programs, focused on improving students’ character virtues- such as fairness, responsibility, respect, caring, trustworthiness and good citizenship- have resulted in a 21 percent decline in the number of students reading two or more years below grade level. To learn more about Paularino Elementary please visit http://paularino.nmusd.us.

Pomona Elementary

Pomona Elementary School was recognized as a Gold Ribbon School for their reading instruction program, which uses small group dynamics to deliver adaptive reading instruction for students to achieve academic success. Students that require intensive intervention are placed in groups as small as two, while students who have mastered grade level foundational skills receive teacher support to move beyond grade level expectations.

The reading program, which is flexible and adjusted throughout the year, has resulted in ten percent more students scoring at benchmark reading levels. STAR testing data showed an 18 percent drop in students reading two or more years below grade level. Learn more about Pomona Elementary at http://pomona.nmusd.us.

Sonora Elementary

Sonora Elementary School was recognized as a Gold Ribbon School for their No Excuses University: We are College Bound program.

The We are College Bound program is designed to close the achievement gap between students in traditionally low-achieving sub-groups by implementing continuous data assessments to develop individualized academic intervention plans and address social-emotional and behavioral needs of students.

Sonora Elementary has twice been named a California Distinguished School and a Title 1 Achieving School. Learn more about Sonora Elementary at http://sonora.nmusd.us.

Early College High School

In 2015, the first year of the California Gold Ribbon Program, the California Department of Education recognized NMUSD’s Early College High School (ECHS) with a Gold Ribbon Award. ECHS partners with Coastline Community College to offer students the opportunity to earn both a high school diploma and a year or more of transferable college credit.

With a 100 percent graduation rate, ECHS offers smaller classes, on-campus college classes, dual-credit classes, easier transition to higher education and financial savings of completing college credits in high school.

ECHS is top ten ranking among all public high schools Orange County and has the highest California Department of Education rating of 10/10, for seven consecutive years. Learn more about ECHS at http://earlycollege.nmusd.us.

Estancia High School’s award winning drama department ends the 2015-2016 season with the presentation of Urinetown, a hilarious tale of greed, corruption, love and revolution in which water is worth its weight in gold.  The Tony award winning musical sheds a satirical light on the drought, extreme political agendas, and musical theatre itself.

Urinetown premiered on Broadway in 2001 with Estancia alumna Spencer Kayden as Little Sally, the loveable pig-tailed girl who helps explain the plot.  Kayden is also known for her membership in the recurring cast of comedians on the sketch comedy series MADtv and also played the role of Mrs. Pepper in the popular Nickelodeon kids series Blue’s Clues.

Performances will be held April 28 – 30 at 7:30 p.m. in the Costa Mesa High Performing Arts Center, 2650 Fairview Road.  Tickets are $10 for students and $15 for general admission and are currently available for presale. Tickets will also be made available at the door.

For ticket information call Pauline Maranian at (949) 515-6537 or the ASB office at (949) 515-6506.

The 20-plus members of Costa Mesa’s Telecommunications Bureau received some special recognition this week as city, police and fire officials celebrated the National Public Safety Communicators Week that runs through April 16.

The week, sponsored by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International and celebrated annually, honors the thousands of men and women who respond to emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the world’s citizens, according to a statement on the association’s website.

City CEO office staff, including CEO Tom Hatch, was one of several departments to provide food, deserts and beverages to the team as a way to honor and thank them for the work they do.

On Wednesday April 13, Hatch and others visited the bureau, located just behind City Hall, and met with members of the telecom team and got a demonstration of their duties.

“They provide quality customer service to residents by continually and quickly helping to solve problems for the community,” Hatch said.

CEO Tom Hatch and telecom Supervisor Sandra Marquez

The communications officers who work in the bureau take in more than 100 calls a day and put in 12 and sometimes 18-hour shifts taking calls from accident victims, suicidal, belligerent and despondent callers or victims of fire or crime.

“How often do you have to take a call from someone who is having perhaps the worst experience in their life,” said Costa Mesa Police Lt. Keith Davis, who supervises the Telecommunications Bureau. “They do it every single day.”

Davis noted the bureau is only one of two in the county that manages all dispatch duties for a single city.  The telecom team handles both emergency and non-emergency calls for police, fire, animal control maintenance and water services. They provide members of the public with directions on how to respond to medical emergencies.

Davis, who has supervised the crew for a little more than a year, said he’s learned a lot about just what they do.

“I think they are extremely deserving of the recognition,” he said. “This is an opportunity to tell them that we do appreciate them and there are a lot of people dropping by and recognizing them. It makes them feel they are not unnoticed. They are real excited.”

Davis pointed out that the dispatchers and call takers end up being spokespeople for the city. How a member of the public is treated can really change perceptions.

“It helps to have talented people,” he said. “I thought I knew a little bit about dispatch. I had no idea about the scope of their responsibilities. Doing what they do on a daily basis, especially being short staffed, is even more admirable.”

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