Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Business

Active Shooter Drill set for 10/22 at the Westfield MainPlace Mall

Posted on by Posted in Business, Public Safety, Santa Ana 3 Comments

MainPlace Mall

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: Westfield MainPlace Mall Active Shooter Drill October 22, 2014 at 2800 N. Main St. Santa Ana, CA

*** Media Advisory ***

(Santa Ana, CA) Today, Westfield MainPlace Mall has announced they will be holding an active shooter drill on Wednesday, October 22, 2014. The drill will allow participants from the mall, the Santa Ana Police Department, and the Orange County Fire Authority to work together during a realistic active shooter scenario. The purpose of the drill is to give mall employees and the police and fire departments an opportunity to exercise their response plans and procedures in the event of an active shooter in the mall.

Given the unfortunate occurrence of recent active shooter incidents around the world, Jonathan Maher, the General Manager of Westfield MainPlace, requested and helped plan the drill to ensure his personnel were familiar with procedures and had a chance to practice how they would react. Continue reading→

The City’s Measure AA is a huge Utility Users Tax increase!

Posted on by Posted in 2014 Elections, Ballot Measures, Business, Santa Ana, Taxes, Utilities 5 Comments

Measure AA is a tax increase

City administrators don’t lie all the time – they are sneaky and will lure you with half-truths and then lie to seal the deal. That is what the City of Santa Ana did this week when they issued a community advisory about their Utility Users Tax, which appears on our November ballot as Measure AA.

They started with the truth – The Utility Users Tax (known as the “UUT”) is a tax the City first adopted in 1975 on the usage of certain utility services (including electricity, gas, water, & telephone) within the City of Santa Ana. It is a general tax & used for general City services, such as police, fire, parks, library, planning and business inspection services & general administrative services. 

Then came the half-truth – “The California Constitution (Proposition 218) requires an election to approve any change in local taxes. A rate decrease from the current 6% rate to a reduced 5.5% is being proposed. Pending legislation may inhibit local voters’ rights to maintain their ability to vote for a tax. The ballot measure would protect the City’s 3rd highest revenue source from future threats & preserve the City’s ability to deliver city services.” Continue reading→

Bank of America grants $155K to six Santa Ana nonprofits

Posted on by Posted in Banking, Business, Charities, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Bank of America donates to OC non profits

Bank of America Awards $155,000 in Grants to 6 Santa Ana Nonprofits Supporting Community Development 

Irvine, CA – Bank of America recently provided 12 Orange County nonprofits supporting community development a total of $305,000 in grant funding. Six of the nonprofits are in the local Santa Ana area and received a total of $155,000 in funding:

• Arts Orange County
• Discovery Science Center of Orange County
• Habitat for Humanity of Orange County Inc.
• Latino Center for Prevention & Action in Health & Welfare
• Pacific Symphony Association
• OneOC (formerly Volunteer Center of Greater Orange County Inc.) Continue reading→

Mother’s Market & Kitchen’s 36th anniversary event set for 9/27 in Santa Ana

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Mother's Market in Santa Ana

More than 2,000 Orange County residents are expected to attend Costa Mesa-based Mother’s Market & Kitchen’s 36th Anniversary event on Sept. 27 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Mother’s Santa Ana store located at 151 E. Memory Lane.

The event is free and open to the public.

“Oldies, but Goodies” rock band, Full Spectrum, will perform and a balloon twister and face painter will be on hand to entertain the community. Drawings will be held for multiple prizes that include a paddle board, bicycles, gift baskets, gift cards and much more.  Continue reading→

American Apparel to pay $1M for accident that killed an employee in Garden Grove

Posted on by Posted in Accidents, Business, OCDA, Safety Leave a comment

Sewing machine accident

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release: September 9, 2014

Case # 30-2014-00741129-CU-BT-CJC

AMERICAN APPAREL TO PAY $1 MILLION FOR ENDANGERING EMPLOYEES BY FAILING TO PROVIDE SAFE WORK ENVIRONMENT

*Unsafe environment resulted in 2011 death of employee

SANTA ANA – The Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) obtained a $1 million settlement in a civil suit against American Apparel (USA), LLC, for failing to provide a safe work environment, which resulted in the death of an employee at an American Apparel Orange County worksite. The final judgment was received today and signed Aug. 26, 2014, in the Superior Court of California in Orange County by the Honorable David T. McEachen.

This case was referred to the OCDA by the California Department of Industrial Relations Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), which protects workers from health and safety hazards in California workplaces. Deputy District Attorney Kelly Roosevelt of the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit prosecuted this case. Continue reading→

Tokyo Bento now open at the CityPlace in north Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Business, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Tokyo Bento combo

Tokyo Bento has arrived in Santa Ana.  They offer Japanese lunch boxes at affordable prices and are located at the CityPlace, at 2775 Main St., in Santa Ana.  You can like them on Facebook here.

Tokyo Bento is a fast casual restaurant chain, serving core Japanese flavors with unique dipping sauces featuring global influences. A Yelper described them as ” It’s basically Flame Broiler set up with the Chipotle assembly model.”  Another Yelper had a worse comparison –  “Yoshinoya meets Chipotle. Yoshinoya for the Americanized Japanese food, Chipotle.” Continue reading→

DTSA can’t compete with the MainPlace Mall

Posted on by Posted in Arts and Culture, Business, Santa Ana 9 Comments

MainPlace Mall

Santa Ana is a city of families – with more people under the age of 18 than any other city in Orange County.  The transition in Downtown Santa Ana to a hipster paradise of bars, high-end restaurants and nightclubs has predictably chased families out of the heart of the city.  Where have they gone?  To the Westfield MainPlace Mall.

You see the majority of Santa Ana’s residents don’t want to pay $20 for raw hamburgers at the Playground.  They don’t want to drink until 2 am.  They don’t have an interest in the arts.  They are just trying to raise their kids, get them educated and live a good life.  What DTSA has turned into has no appeal to most of us – although it does attract the insecure folks who want to feel like they are hip. Continue reading→

Mexican Consulate honors Family Mortuary employee for work with Latino community

Posted on by Posted in Business, Latinos, mexico, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Family Mortuary of Santa Ana

Family Mortuary Works With Mexican Consulate to Ship Loved Ones to Mexico

Mexican Consulate Honors Family Mortuary Employee for Work with Latino Community

SANTA ANA, Calif., Aug. 26, 2014 – For 19-year-old Giovanni Lopez* from Santa Ana, losing his stepmother was an unexpected tragedy. Recently married and already caring for his younger brother, gathering the information to fulfill his stepmother’s dying wish to be buried in her native country was overwhelming for Lopez. Wanting to ensure a smooth process to allow his family to grieve, Lopez sought support from Family Mortuary in Santa Ana. Several days later, Lopez’s stepmother arrived safely in Mexico, thanks to the experts at Family Mortuary who worked with the Mexican Consulate in Santa Ana to compile the documents to meet all legal requirements for shipping a deceased loved one to another country.

For more than 17 years, Family Mortuary in Santa Ana has served Orange County families from a variety of cultures and religions. Along with its parent company Fairhaven Memorial Park, Family Mortuary continues the long tradition of providing customized funeral plans both at the time of need and through advanced planning. Continue reading→

Free Haz Mat and Underground Storage Workshops for local business owners

Posted on by Posted in Business, Education, Entertainment, Environment, Health and Medical, Orange County, Public Safety, Santa Ana Leave a comment

OC Health Care Agency Haz Mat and UST Portal Open Lab Training in Santa Ana

The Orange County Environmental Health Division is offering free training to Santa Ana business owners and operators. This agency regulates businesses that use or store hazardous materials at their facilities. These businesses include gas stations, auto repair shops, dry cleaners, manufacturing facilities (and any other type of industry where hazardous liquids, solids or compressed gases are used/stored).

They are required to submit a Hazardous Material Disclosure and Business Emergency Plan annually.  Historically, these documents would have been submitted to Santa Ana Fire (then the Orange County Fire Authority). There have been many changes in the past couple of years and now the OC Health Care Agency implements these programs.

The OC Health Care Agency will be hosting free workshops in Santa Ana, on September 9, 2014, for business owners and operators to help them navigate the complex requirements associated with the hazardous materials forms and underground storage tank programs. Continue reading→

Planning Commission to consider the Fourth Street Market’s CUP request on Monday

Posted on by Posted in Business, Entertainment, Food, Hipsters, Restaurants, Santa Ana 50 Comments

Fourth Street Market

Santa Ana’s Planning Commission will be considering a request by representatives of the Fourth Street Market for conditional use permits to allow a Type 47 Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) license, after hours operation, and a banquet use in the Specific Development 84 (SD84) zoning district on Monday, August 25, 2014 at 5:30 pm. (Click here to read the Planning Commission agenda).

The Fourth Street Market is the crowning gem of the Downtown Santa Ana (DTSA) gentrifiers.  It will be located at 201 East Fourth Street and is owned by Ryan Chase’s East End Partners.  What is this development?  Well it is a “groovy food hall” – and when it opens it will join five other hipster eating establishments including OC Mix in Costa Mesa, the Anaheim Packing House, the Union Market in Tustin and, by the end of the year, another high-end artisinal food complex in Mission Viejo, according to Orange Coast Magazine.

So far at the Anaheim food hall, the crowds have not let up – though many visitors have complained about the lack of nearby parking, according to the OC Register.

I found a public relations article that had quite a few details about what the Fourth Street Market will look like: Continue reading→

Bi-partisan legislation to reopen trade office in Mexico passes final legislative test

Posted on by Posted in Bob Huff, Business, california, Lou Correa, mexico, Politics, Republican Party Leave a comment

Governor Jerry Brown meets Mexico's President Enrique Peña Nieto

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 20, 2014

CONTACT: Damon Conklin (Senator Lou Correa), 916-651-4034, Bill Bird (Senator Bob Huff), 916-651-4029

Bi-Partisan Legislation to Reopen Trade Office in Mexico Passes Final Legislative Test

SACRAMENTO, CA: Legislation to help boost California’s exports to Mexico cleared its final legislative hurdle today, passing off the Senate Floor with unanimous support.

SB 928, authored by Senators Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana) and Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) would direct the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (“GO-Biz”) to establish a California trade office in Mexico City by January 1, 2016. Continue reading→

Does the new DTSA Blackmarket Bakery’s logo resemble the Islamic Jihad flag?

Posted on by Posted in Business, Food, Health and Medical, Restaurants, Santa Ana 20 Comments

Blackmarket Bakery Santa Ana

Blackmarket Bakery owner Rachel Klemek has signed a lease to open a bakery in the Santora Building at 211 N. Broadway in downtown Santa Ana, in a space that was previously a clothing store, according to the OC Weekly.

While the Blackmarket Bakery in Costa Mesa has very good Yelp reviews, the new Santa Ana location has upset a few local artists, who contacted me to complain about Blackmarket’s logo, which resembles the Islamic Jihad flag used by terrorists all over the world (see pictures below). Continue reading→

OC Clerk-Recorder and Tax Assessor to speak at Santa Ana Partners meeting on 8/13

Posted on by Posted in Business, Entertainment, Real Estate, Santa Ana, Sean Mill Leave a comment

Hugh Nguyen

Partners for Santa Ana presents Orange County Tax Assessor Webster Guillory and Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen

The Partners for Santa Ana are hosting their next meeting on Wednesday, August 13, 2014, at 10 am, with registration at 9:45 am, at the offices of the Orange County Register, located at 625 N. Grand Avenue, in Santa Ana.  The guest speakers will be Orange County Tax Assessor Webster Guillory and Orange County Clerk-Recorder Hugh Nguyen, who were both reelected in the June Primary Election.

This is an excellent opportunity to come meet and hear from two of the people who play such an important role in all of our transactions and find out what their offices are doing and how that may effect you and your clients.

This event is FREE to Realtors. Continue reading→

Build your own fancy pizzas at Santa Ana’s Pizza Rev starting on 8/14

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PIzza Rev Grand Opening in Santa Ana

Looks like Santa Ana’s going to be the next city in Orange County to get a fancy build-your-own pizza joint. PizzaRev, a Blaze Pizza/Pieology-style pizzeria will be opening the doors of its corner store on Bristol Street and MacArthur next Thursday, Aug. 14, 2014, according to the OC Weekly.

PizzaRev is a “build-your-own” fast-casual pizza concept that has reinvented the way America eats its favorite food. Guests are empowered to fully customize a personal-sized 11” pizza for under $8. Homemade dough options, flavorful sauces, delicious cheeses, and over 30+ fresh toppings, everything is on display at PizzaRev and assembled right before your eyes. The pizzas are then fired in a four-ton, 900 degree, stone-hearth oven producing a thin and crispy “Roman-style” pizza in just three minutes, according to their Facebook page. Continue reading→