Santa Ana’s Planning Division and a team of interagency staff will be hosting a Santa Ana SB2 Ordinance Stakeholders meeting today, March 23, from 2 pm to 4 pm, at Santa Ana’s City Hall. With input from a wide array of stakeholders, an SB2 Emergency Shelter Ordinance will be drafted this summer. Continue reading
Man lurking at Santiago Park
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Date: May 22, 2012
Contacts:
Susan Kang Schroeder, Chief of Staff , Office: 714-347-8408, Cell: 714-292-2718
Farrah Emami, Spokesperson, Office: 714-347-8405, Cell: 714-323-4486
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY APPLAUDS SANTA ANA FOR EXPANDING LAW TO KEEP REGISTERED SEX OFFENDERS
OUT OF CITY PARKS AND PLAYGROUNDS
SANTA ANA – The City of Santa Ana enacted a law yesterday to expand child safety zones to protect children from registered sex offenders in city parks, playgrounds, and other children’s facilities after a first reading of the ordinance. The Santa Ana City Council voted unanimously to pass the ordinance yesterday, May 21, 2012. There will be a second reading of the Ordinance June 4, 2012. The Ordinance becomes effective 30 days after the second reading. The ordinance incorporated many of the County’s Sex Offender Ordinance to their existing Child Safety Ordinance. The City Council includes Mayor Miguel Pulido, Mayor pro tem Claudia Alvarez, Council Members David Benavides, Carlos Bustamante, Michele Martinez, Vincent Sarmiento, and Sal Tinajero. Continue reading
UPDATED: Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido found four votes on the City Council last night, but as it turned out that was only so the City Attorney could review the contract that will be offered to acting City Manager Paul Walters, to make him the permanent City Manager. The decision to give him that post will be done in closed session but the contract, per the city charter, will have to be voted on in a City Council meeting – and Pulido will need five votes to approve that contract. That may not be easy as some on the Council want Walters to step down as Chief of the Santa Ana Police Department, and there is some debate as to whether or not Deputy Chief Carlos Rojas would become the interim Chief during a national search to replace Walters.
I reported earlier this weekend that Mayor Miguel Pulido and the rest of Santa Ana City Council had taken away the interim label from City Manager Paul Walters, and that he will also continue to serve as our Chief of Police. However I received a call from a city hall insider later today that turned this story on its head.
As I now understand it, the City Council is split on this and some of the Council Member still want to engage in a national search for a new City Manager. Apparently there are some forces at the SAPD that also want to move on with appointing a new Chief of Police, in Deputy Chief Carlos Rojas. However that too has become a divisive matter as there are some at city hall who want to engage in a national search for a new Chief of Police and others who want Walters to continue to serve in that capacity. Their argument is that the SAPD will lose a lot of clout if Walters is replaced as Chief of Police by Rojas. Continue reading
Community: City of Santa Ana Public Works Agency Scheduled to Host 2nd Community Graffiti Clean-up Day
SANTA ANA, CA (May 21, 2012) – Join the City of Santa Ana, Public Works Agency for their second Graffiti Paint-Out Day. Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 2, from 9am to noon. Coffee & donuts will be provided along with T-Shirts for first 100 registered volunteers for the event. We’ll provide the tools, gloves, paint and training. All you need to do is join us to help beautify our community. Continue reading
Men lurking at Santiago Park
Orange County District Attorney Media Advisory
For Immediate Release: May 18, 2012
Contacts:
Susan Kang Schroeder, Chief of Staff, Office: 714-347-8408, Cell: 714-292-2718
Farrah Emami, Spokesperson, Office: 714-347-8405, Cell: 714-323-4486
WHO: Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Chief of Staff Susan Kang Schroeder
WHAT: Will attend the Santa Ana City Council meeting Monday in support of enacting a City ordinance to create a child safety zone in city parks to further protect children from registered sex offenders. This will be the first reading of the ordinance. The Council will discuss whether Santa Ana should enact a City Ordinance similar to the County Ordinance proposed by Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Supervisor Shawn Nelson (Fourth District) and passed unanimously by the Orange County Board of Supervisors on April 5, 2011. Continue reading
City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County
Community: CITY OF SANTA ANA ANNOUNCES SUMMER JOBS + PROGRAM
A Call to Local Businesses to Help Our Youth by Participating in the Summer Jobs + Initiative
SANTA ANA, CA (May 17, 2012) – The City is pleased to announce its participation in President Obama’s Summer Jobs + Initiative. The President is calling on businesses, non-profits, and local government to join his Summer Jobs+ initiative and provide pathways to employment for youth this summer. Continue reading
Santa Ana Council Member Sal Tinajero may put an item on an upcoming City Council meeting agenda to get rid of the Downtown Santa Ana Pbid, a property assessment that is collected and spent by a non-profit, Downtown Inc. There has been a lot of anger on the part of small businesses made to pay these fees (either directly as property owners or passed on to them in their leases by their landords), but who feel that they don’t draw benefit from Downtown Inc’s marketing, which has apparently benefited the Downtown restaurants and bars more.
Need more proof of that? Tara Jimenez, the owner of Drapes Vintage, was hired by Downtown, Inc. to run workshops to teach local Downtown businesses how they could make their stores more appealing to the downtown’s changing demographic,” according to the Voice of OC. But she is now closing her business – and she has turned on Downtown Inc. too. Continue reading
City of Santa Ana Climate Action Plan Community Meeting – CANCELLATION NOTICE
The Climate Action Plan meeting that was previously set for May 23, 2012, has been cancelled. A new notice will be sent out once a new meeting time and location have been determined. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Continue reading
For Immediate Release
Contact: Ray Román, Executive Director/ netz 4 Life, Ph. (949) 293-3662, www.netz4Life.org, ray@netz4Life.org
GET FIT – GET HEALTHY!
(Santa Ana, CA) – The City of Santa Ana has partnered with local Organizations such as: netz 4 Life, Latino Health Access and Northgate Markets in order to promote their 6th Annual 2012 Health & Fitness Fair at Centennial Park/ Godinez High School gymnasium. The event date will be Saturday the 19th of May, 2012 from 9am- 2pm. Over the past 6 years this event has become a celebration for local Community members, Organizations and leaders to establish the importance of being active, having fun, while endorsing the “I Work Out!” initiative, “Get Fit– Get Healthy!” This initiative has been introduced by netz 4 Life along with their “Leave No Rim Netless” Campaign and “Reaching Out- One Neighborhood at a Time” to inspire at-risk youth to become active leaders within their own community and continue to dream and believe that they too can make a difference. Continue reading
Santa Ana Police Department Alert: OC Marathon 2012 Road Closures, OC Marathon 2012
The Santa Ana Police Department would like you to be aware that the Orange County Marathon will take place this Sunday, May 6th in the cities of Santa Ana and Costa Mesa.
Normal traffic flow and commute times along the marathon route will be affected, and detours will be in place. Road closures will be in effect from 5:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Continue reading
Santa Ana Police Department Advisory
SAPD will deploy extra police personnel to deal with the influx of cruiser activity experienced on Cinco de Mayo
In an effort to provide a safe environment and minimize the impact on our local neighborhoods, the Santa Ana Police Department will be deploying extra police personnel to deal with the influx of cruiser activity experienced on Cinco de Mayo (Saturday, May 5th). In years past, the City of Santa Ana has contended with large crowds, congested roadways, criminal activity, and quality of life issues that affect our residents, businesses and visitors. Continue reading
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 2, 2012
CONTACT: Lani Shotlow-Rincon, 213-480-0809 x226
A COMMUNITY OF FRIENDS BREAKS GROUND FOR VISTA DEL RIO, A NEW DEVELOPMENT SERVICING DISABLED ADULTS IN SANTA ANA, CA
Los Angeles, CA. – A Community of Friends (ACOF), Foundation for Affordable Housing (FFAH), and AMCAL Enterprises will celebrate the ground breaking of Vista Del Rio, a new development in Santa Ana, CA. Vista Del Rio is a 41-unit, new construction project that will provide developmentally and physically disabled adults with high quality affordable housing with modern amenities and on-site services.
The ground breaking will take place on Thursday, May 3rd, 2012 at 1:00pm. The event will be held at the Vista Del Rio development site located at: 1600 West Memory Lane, Santa Ana, CA. Continue reading
Well I can’t say that I am surprised to see that Don Cribb is coming out against the purchase of the Santora building by Irvine’s Newsong Church. Cribb has always been anti-family and now he is also showing himself to be anti-Christian. He lives on my street, in the Park Santiago neighborhood. I once heard him tell a neighborhood meeting that he wanted the city to get rid of the large picnic tables at Santiago Park. Well of course he would posit that anti-family point of view. That is par for the course when it comes to Cribb.
Cribb likes to call himself the founder of the Santa Ana Artists Village. Well, it seems to have been his idea but there were a lot of people involved. But his real vision went beyond embracing the arts. The movement was really all about changing Santa Ana at its core and disenfranchising Latinos. Continue reading
I was pleased to read in the O.C. Register that Santa Ana Council Members Sal Tinajero, Claudia Alvarez and David Benavides voted, as the Public Safety Committee, to change a city ordinance so that residents may keep chickens in their backyard, provided they are at least thirty feet from any neighbor’s property.
Deputy Santa Ana Police Chief Carlos Rojas, who oversees field operations as well as animal control, said his staff looked at a variety of issues, and contacted both Orange County officials and the Centers for Disease Control. Like other city officials, he said he wasn’t sure why the 100-foot standard was adopted, according to the O.C. Register.
Well, the law was ridiculous and it was designed to keep chickens entirely out of our backyards. It was passed years ago when white City Council members regularly used city ordinances to punish Mexican American residents, who often kept chickens in their backyards, having come from rural traditions in their home country. Some of our residents are still clinging to the old racist ideals. Just look at Tim Rush’s comments at this link. Continue reading
Karina Onofre has announced that she is running for Ward 5 on the Santa Ana City Council, which is currently represented by Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Claudia Alvarez, who has apparently termed out after serving for three four year terms. Alvarez reportedly is going to sue to get on to the ballot.
Onofre works for a fellow named Mike Dalati, at Santa Ana Property Management, a company that manages rental properties. She is also apparently the publisher of Mundo Latino Magazine, but their website appears to be defunct. You can however learn a bit about this publication at this link. Onofre states on that website that “Our goal with MUNDO LATINO WORLD magazine is to Strengthen Latinos & the Whole WORLD in unison with tips on healthcare, eating, excercising, love poem.” I have never seen nor heard of this magazine but apparently Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez gave her an award for publishing it. Sanchez must have dug those love poems! Continue reading