Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Monthly Archives: February 2010

Dog parks in Irvine and Costa Mesa are a huge success!

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Costa Mesa, irvine, Pets, Santa Ana Leave a comment

I visited Costa Mesa’s Bark Park on Saturday, this weekend, and also visited the Irvine Central Bark Park. My goal was to find out how these facilities work, and whether or not folks are using them. As my readers know, I am proposed turning the little-used Lawn Bolwing Center, in Santa Ana’s Santiago Park, into our own dog park.

I found that the two parks had some similarities and a few differences.

Both parks were hopping with dogs and their owners.  Just as I figured, the dog park concept is HUGE.  There is a lot of demand.  I spoke to dog owners at both parks.  They all indicated that they use the facility regularly.  Some of them come there daily!  I also asked all of them if they ever heard of lawn bowling.  Only one retired fellow had ever heard of it, out of some forty people that I spoke to.

Costa Mesa’s park is run by a community non-profit organization. It opened in 1994.  Here is the rundown from their website: Continue reading→

Is lawn bowling still relevant to the people of Santa Ana?

Posted on by Posted in Latinos, Santa Ana, Seniors, Sports 14 Comments

When I suggested that we replace the Dale Griggs Lawn Bowling Center, located at Santa Ana’s Santiago Park, I had no idea what the sport of lawn bowling was all about.  But I had an idea that the lawn bowlers were not from Santa Ana.

Don’t ask by the way who Dale Griggs is.  I tried to find out.  I suspect he was a past elected official.  There is almost no information about him available on the Internet.  But his name still lingers at Santiago Park.

Yesterday I took my dog for a walk – and brought my camera.  As you can see in the slide show above, these folks don’t appear to be from Santa Ana.  One of the cars, which had a lawn bowler license plate, even had a City of Fountain Valley sticker on it.

Here is what the Santa Ana Lawn Bowling Club has to say about themselves and their sport, on their website: Continue reading→

2010 U.S. Census jobs now available

Posted on by Posted in Anaheim, california, Civic Affairs, Federal Government, Literature, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

logo_census

Hundreds of thousands are needed for temporary 2010 Census Jobs

The U.S. Census Bureau is recruiting temporary, part-time census takers for the 2010 Census. These short-term jobs offer good pay, flexible hours, paid training, and reimbursement for authorized work-related expenses, such as mileage incurred while conducting census work. Best of all, census takers work right in their own communities.

Census taker jobs are excellent for people who want to work part-time, those who are between jobs, or just about anyone who wants to earn extra money while performing an important service for their community.

Call 1-866-861-2010 now, testing is going on at many locations. The Census forms will be in the mail soon and census day is April 1st.  Click here for more info.

Download the practice test, as a good score is important considering the number of applicants. Continue reading→

City of Santa Ana agrees to clean up graffiti at Santiago Park

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Crime, Graffiti, Nature, Santa Ana Leave a comment

I recieved an email response today from Gerardo Mouet, the Director of Parks and Recreation in Santa Ana, regarding my complaint about the explosion of graffiti at Santiago Park.

Here is an excerpt from Mouet’s email:

Thank you for your email. I am glad the Parks and Recreation staff were able to clear the brush to help deter the lewd conduct. I will direct staff to coordinate with the Public Works Agency, who is responsible for graffiti removal, and remove the graffiti at Santiago Park as soon as possible. Also, staff will work on solving the issue of the pools of water you point out.

Thank you Mr. Mouet!  Continue reading→

Is it time for a dog park in the City of Santa Ana?

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Pets, Santa Ana 40 Comments

Santa Ana Dog Park

Wouldn’t the Santa Ana Lawn Bowling Center make a nice Dog Park?


Did you know that the City of Santa Ana has no dog parks?  I called today and spoke with a lady at the City of Santa Ana’s dog license department.  She was very helpful! 

She said that we have 11,835 dogs currently licensed in our city.  And she figures there might be even more dogs that are currently unlicensed.  While I have questioned the cost of our licenses in the past, they do accomplish a couple of positive goals, in that they help to assure that dogs are properly vaccinated – and that they are fixed.

The lady at the dog license department also told me that the only dog park in the area is in Costa Mesa – and they don’t like it when out of town residents bring their dogs to their park, as it is hard to corroborate that the dogs are fixed and vaccinated.

I have an idea for a dog park, in Santa Ana, at NO COST to our city!  The Lawn Bowling center, at Santiago Park, is only used four times a week.  Gerardo Mouet, the Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Director, verified this today in an email I received.  “The Lawn Bowlers practice on the bowling area on Tuesdays and Thursdays and play on the weekends.” Continue reading→

Democratic Party’s Pre-endorsement Caucus set for March 20, in Orange

Posted on by Posted in california, Democratic Party, Elections, Orange, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

2010 Democratic California Convention Logo

The Democratic Party of Orange County (DPOC), which is based in Santa Ana, is conducting a Pre-Endorsement Caucus at the IBEW Hall, in Orange, on March 20.  Below are the details:

The 2010 California Democratic Party State Convention will be held in Los Angeles on April 16-17-18. Information about the convention is available at cadem.org.  The state party will open a special convention website in mid-February.

Prior to the convention, each of the state party’s 21 regions will hold a pre-endorsement conference to allow local Democrats to recommend candidates for endorsement. These recommendations will then be forwarded to the convention where the actual endorsement takes place. Continue reading→

DPOC hires Long Beach Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske as their new Director

Posted on by Posted in Democratic Party, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

gerrie schipske

This just in from the Democratic Party of Orange County (DPOC).  They have finally hired a new Executive Director, Long Beach Council Member Gerrie Schipske.  What this means for Henry Vandermeir, who filled in capably during the search for a new E.D., is anyone’s guess.

DPOC names Gerrie Schipske as new Executive Director

I am pleased to announce that Gerrie Schipske is the new Executive Director of the Democratic Party of Orange County.

Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (D-47th CD) says, “I join with Orange County Democrats in extending a warm welcome to the Honorable Gerrie Schipske and congratulate the Democratic Party of Orange County on its selection of Ms. Schipske to serve as the DPOC Executive Director. I look forward to working with her and the DPOC in helping to elect Democrats as we move forward to the November 2010 elections.” Continue reading→

O.C. Deputy Sheriffs sue County of Orange to stop early release of inmates

Posted on by Posted in Courts, Orange County, Public Safety Leave a comment

AOCDS Logo

Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs, 1314 West Fifth St., Suite A, Santa Ana, CA  92703

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 16, 2010

FOR MORE INFORMATION: (714) 285-2800

ORANGE COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FILE LAWSUIT AGAINST COUNTY OF ORANGE TO STOP EARLY INMATE RELEASES

County Has Already Released Over 300 Jail Inmates Early During First Few Weeks Of New Policy

SANTA ANA – The Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs (AOCDS) filed a lawsuit today against the County of Orange to stop the County from releasing hundreds of jail inmates early, before their scheduled release dates. Citing recent changes in state law as the reason for their new early release policy, the County has released over 300 inmates early from Orange County jails since January 25. Continue reading→

Can a non-Latino become the next Mayor of Santa Ana?

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Elections, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana 6 Comments

Jim Walker

Could Jim Walker become Santa Ana’s next Mayor?

When Santa Ana community activist Jim Walker ran against Santa Ana Councilman Vince Sarmiento, in 2008, he did so with very little money. But Walker ended up with over 37% of the vote, according to Smart Voter.

In 2006, Thomas Gordon ran against Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido, with zero money, and he got over 24% of the vote, according to Smart Voter.

Now Pulido is being challenged by Al Amezcua, a local lawyer who has had some electoral success, as a past member of the Rancho Santiago Community College District’s Board of Trustees. Both of these men are well known and can raise money. But will they split the Latino vote and allow a non-Latino to become the next Mayor of Santa Ana?

In 2008, the Latino vote split scenario almost happened when Pulido was challenged by Councilwoman Michele Martinez.  Pulido won with only 55% of the vote.  Martinez got over 29% of the vote.  Community activist George Collins got almost 8,000 votes and ended up with just under 14% of the vote. Continue reading→

A walking tour of Santiago Park turns up lot of graffiti

Posted on by Posted in Santa Ana 15 Comments

I visited Santa Ana’s Santiago Park again this weekend, on Sunday, Feb. 14.  I wanted to see if indeed the brush had been cleared.  It was also my intention to follow up on what Santa Ana Police Department Chief Paul Walters told me last week, about his department’s increased effort to arrest perpetrators of lewd conduct.

On the positive side, the wildflowers are blooming.  And yes, much of the shrubbery and trash has been cleared.  And while I was there I observed a Santa Ana park ranger, checking the area.

On the negative side, I was aghast at the explosion in graffiti at the park.  You will see all of that in the slide show above.  I also found numerous condom wrappers.  How long they have been there is a mystery, but they were on the south side of the river, not far from the eastern playground at the park. Continue reading→

Politicians show up at the Little Saigon Tet Festival

Posted on by Posted in Democratic Party, Janet Nguyen, Jose Solorio, Loretta Sanchez, Lou Correa, Orange County, Santa Ana, Veterans, Vietnamese 5 Comments

I visited the Tet Festival Parade today, over in Westminster, and took a lot of pictures, which you can enjoy in the slideshow above.

A number of protesters did show up to back up the gay Vietnamese activists in the parade, but they didn’t cause any trouble.  Everyone just looked happy to be there.  Click here to read about the anti-gay backlash by some Viet community members.

It was a beautiful day for a parade.  The parade route was lined with local residents and their kids.

There were a lot of politicians and candidates there, including: Continue reading→

Correa presses for continued homeowner tax protections

Posted on by Posted in Anaheim, california, Housing, Lou Correa, Real Estate, Santa Ana, Taxes Leave a comment

Senator Correa Holds Hearing to Press for More California Jobs

Senator Lou Correa­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ ­ 34th Senate District

For Immediate Release
February 12, 2010

Contact: John Scribner (916) 651-4034

Correa Presses for Continued Homeowner Tax Protections

SACRAMENTO, CA – State Senator Lou Correa (Orange County) is jointly authoring legislation that would extend relief to California homeowners who continue to be plagued by injustices of a tax on a phantom gain, a taxable event generated by a foreclosure.

In 2008, Senators Correa and Michael Machado authored Senate Bill 1055 (SB 1055) which established California’s conformity to the federal cancellation of debt (COD) income exclusion. This provided state income tax relief to distressed California homeowners who had to terminate mortgage loans for a principal residence due to a short sale or a loan restructure. The tax relief provision of this law expired in January 2009. Continue reading→

SAPD working hard to stop lewd conduct at Santa Ana’s Santiago Park

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Crime, Public Safety, Santa Ana 5 Comments

Another man lurking at Santiago Park

Nine of these guys were arrested by the SAPD this week at Santiago Park

I met today with Santa Ana Chief of Police Paul Walters and two of his police officers, from the SAPD.  One of them, Hank Couisine, is a Special Investigator.  The other works in Vice Squad. 

We met to discuss the ongoing problems at Santa Ana’s Santiago Park with regard to men who go there to lurk and to engage in lewd acts.

My recent post about this situation triggered a lot of action at Santa Ana’s City Hall.  Walters asked the Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Department to clean up the brush at the park, to give these creeps less places to hide.  They did so once and are planning another clean-up soon.

Walters also sent in the troops.  In fact they arrested nine men just yesterday, just after dusk!  They employed decoys very effectively.  We wrote about that tactic previously as well.  Click here to read that post.

Walters noted that his department uses software to collect crime data and then they focus their crimefighting areas on hot spots in the city.  Santiago Park is the only park with substantial lewd conduct problems. Continue reading→

Delhi Center to host childcare entrepreneurial training

Posted on by Posted in Education, Latinos, Santa Ana, Women, Working Families, Youth Activities Leave a comment

Delhi Center

The Delhi Center, in Santa Ana

The Delhi Center will host their first Childcare Entrepreneurial training in March.

They have scheduled two orientations, on Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 6 o’clock and on Monday, March 1st, 2010 at 6 o’clock.

If you know someone who might be interested in becoming a licensed childcare provider or can benefit from the training please let them know about this program.  Click here to see the information in English and click here to see it in Spanish.

The program will be taught in Spanish.

Here is additional information about the program: Continue reading→

Xerox appoints Dave Pritts Region Vice President for greater Orange County region

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Dave Pritts

Photo: Dave Pritts, Region Vice President, Xerox, Greater Orange County Region

News from Xerox

For Immediate Release

Xerox Appoints Dave Pritts Region Vice President for Greater Orange County Region

SANTA ANA, Calif., Jan. 22, 2010 – Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) has appointed Dave Pritts region vice president, Greater Orange County region. This region includes Orange County, Inland Empire and southern/eastern areas of Los Angeles County.

Pritts and his team are responsible for delivering business results through the sales and marketing of Xerox’s complete portfolio of offerings – including office systems, production printing systems and global services – throughout the region. Continue reading→