Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Santa Ana

Santa Ana City Council to honor New Santa Ana blog co-editor Sean Mill tonight

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Sean Mill

The Santa Ana City Council will honor New Santa Ana blog co-editor Sean Mill at tonight’s City Council meeting

The Santa Ana City Council will be honoring our co-editor Sean Mill at tonight’s City Council meeting, which starts at 6 pm, at the Council Chambers, located at 20 Civic Center Plaza.  Councilman Sal Tinajero will be presenting Mill with a Certificate of Recognition.

Mill was appointed to the Santa Ana Planning Commission by Tinajero in January of 2007, and he recently resigned. Mill will be focusing his efforts on helping to build this new blog, amongst other community projects. Continue reading→

Free candlelight concert coming to Santa Ana’s Episcopal Church of the Messiah on Sep. 27

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Larry Karush

Jazz Pianist Larry Karush will be appearing in concert in Santa Ana on Sep. 27

You are invited to the Episcopal Church of the Messiah, in the heart  of historic Santa Ana, for the first Concert by Candlelight of the  2009 – 2010 season.  And it is FREE!

Jazz pianist Larry Karush is the featured  performer; he is an improvising pianist/composer with roots in Jazz,  20th century western music, African-based percussion, and the music of  North India. From Carnegie Hall to the Purple Onion, he has performed  solo piano concerts of original music throughout the United States in  addition to festival appearances in Canada, Europe, and South Africa.

This free concert in Santa Ana will be Sunday, September 27, 2009, at 7:00 pm, with a festive Champagne reception afterward in the Parish  Hall. The Episcopal Church of the Messiah is located the southeast  corner of Bush Street and Civic Center Drive (614 North Bush). For  directions or more information, please click here, or  call 714/543-9389. Continue reading→

Free rock concert coming up at Morrison Park on Sep. 19

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The Undercover Girls band

The Undercover Girls will be playing for free at Santa Ana’s Morrison Park on September 19

“The neighborhoods of north Santa Ana will host their ninth annual concert in the park on the evening of Sept. 19,” according to the O.C. Register.

The concert will feature “The Undercover Girls,” a classic rock cover band.  The event is free to attend, but tables that can seat eight people are available for $25.

This year’s theme is “Simply Purple” and attendees are asked to dress the part; there also will be prizes awarded for the best purple table. Continue reading→

Latin American collections coming to the Bowers Museum this month

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fernando-botero-bath

The works of Colombian artist Fernando Botero are coming to the Bowers Museum

The Bowers Museum has a pair of exciting exhibitions coming up that feature Latino artists!  Here is the latest information from their website:

The Baroque World of Fernando Botero,  September 12 – December 6, 2009

Colombian artist Fernando Botero’s unique style is recognized and renowned world-wide for the voluminous forms and sensuous figures found within his painting, sculpture and works on paper. Botero’s observations and portrayals often take on religion, politics, and history as subject with an equally critical and comical approach. The Baroque World of Fernando Botero includes over 100 paintings, sculptures and drawings dating from the 1950’s to present. Compiled from Botero’s personal collection, this is an opportunity to view many never exhibited works that the artist reacquired or never parted with. Themes such as faith and contemporary life in Latin America, early works and sculpture, and still-life portraits, and subjects that reference European art history, are presented in eight separate sections. Using a broad range of media, the Colombian-born Botero has created a world of his own, one that is at once accessible and enigmatic. Continue reading→

How can we revive Santa Ana’s downtown?

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Downtown Santa Ana

Santa Ana’s downtown is a ghost town at night, but should it be?

Have you visited downtown Brea, Fullerton or Huntington Beach recently?  All three of those areas are absolutely jam-packed most evenings.  Why is Santa Ana’s downtown so moribund by comparison?

I visited the Art Walk at the Artists Village last night and it was great to see folks actually visiting our downtown.  But I also observed them leaving in droves fairly quickly.

How can we keep them around – and get them to spend more money on our local vendors?

This weekend the Orange Street Fair is racking them in by the thousands – but we could be doing that every Saturday night! Continue reading→

Visit Bowers Museum and Heritage Museum for free today!

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Bowers Museum

Santa Ana residents get to visit a couple local museums for FREE today!  Get out and go to the Bowers Museum and the Heritage Museum of Orange County TODAY.  Don’t forget to bring an I.D. to get in free…

The Bowers Museum is pleased to offer free admission to Santa Ana residents, with proof of residency (e.g., driver’s license, utility bill, etc), on the first Sunday and third Tuesdays of every month.

The Bowers is located at 2002 N. Main St, Santa Ana, CA 92706, (714) 567-3600.

Also, the next Target Free First Sunday is September 6th!  On the first Sunday of every month, visitors to the Bowers can enjoy free access to the museum, Kidseum, and all activities all day, thanks to the Target Corporation. Target Free First Sundays are very popular and to prevent overcrowding, visitors may have to wait outside for admission. The Cultural Festival begins at noon and activities will run until 4:00PM.  Click here for Cutural Festival details.

Continue reading→

Afro-Mexican photo exhibit at Calacas the highlight of the Santa Ana “Art Walk”

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Afro Mexican Photo at Calacas Exhibit

The highlight of Saturday night’s “Art Walk” didn’t even take place within the Artist Village.  Hands down the highlight of the evening was Sal Rojas’ Afro-Mexican photography exhibit held at wonderful little store, Calacas, located at 324 W. 4th Street #B in downtown Santa Ana.

The exhibit, which was presented by BrownPride.com, was called “The Third Root | La Tercera Raiz” and “captures the life of Afro-Mexicans and their communities”.  Rojas did a magnificent job with the photos that bring to life the Afro-Mexican culture.

Afro-Mexicans make up more than 5% of Mexico’s population; yet remain invisible to the majority of Mexicans. Continue reading→

Rocky Horror Picture Show playing at Santa Ana’s Yost Theater tonight!

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rocky-horror-oc-2-350

Let’s do the time warp again – in Santa Ana!

The original Rocky Horror Picture Show movie is playing TONIGHT at Santa Ana’s Yost Theater, at 12 midnight.

The Yost Theater is located at 307 Spurgeon St., in downtown Santa Ana.  The Rocky Horror Picture Show is presented every first Saturday of the month, at 12 midnight. Continue reading→

O.C. Labor Federation celebrates Labor Day at the Santa Ana Zoo

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Orange County Labor Federaqtion at the Santa Ana Zoo

Local politicians lined up to greet those at today’s Labor Day celebration at the Santa Ana Zoo

My son Jacob and I visited the Orange County Labor Federation’s special Labor Day celebration at the Santa Ana Zoo today.

They had a great turnout – and a lot of fun for the families in attendance.  There was a jumper and a sport-themed inflatable attraction; cotton candy, snow cones (raspados!), hot dogs, soda and chips, and plenty of games.

And, as one might expect, a whole bunch of local elected officials and political candidates showed up to greet the attendees.  Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s Buccaneer Pizza as good as promised

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Buccaneer pizza

I read about Santa Ana’s new Buccaneer Pizza this week over at the OC Weekly and decided to try them out on Friday night.

I found a postcard they sent us but the coupon was expired.  So I called them and asked if they would still accept the expired coupon.  Of course they did!

The Buccaneer special was $19.95 for a large pizza with one topping, a Caesar salad, a free order of chicken wings and a 2 liter soda.  We added an order of their garlic cheese bread sticks.  We also paid for an extra topping on the pizza.

We ordered a pepperoni with black olive pizza.  The crust was as good as promised, as was the sauce.  But the olives floated on top and fell off.  Better to bury them in the cheese I think.  The pizza was however fantastic.  And it was big and fluffy with generous toppings. Continue reading→

Sean Mill resigns from the Santa Ana Planning Commission

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Sean Mill

Sean Mill has resigned from the Planning Commission, effective today.  Mill says he is going to focus his energies on building the New Santa Ana blog and on helping Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido to launch the new “Bank on Santa Ana” program, which will help the under-served residents in town to open bank accounts.  Many of these residents have never had a bank account available to them.

Mill said “I am going to dedicate my time and energy to help get the New Santa Ana blog up and running and to help promote the City of Santa Ana in a positive fashion.” Continue reading→

SAPD To Receive Secretary of Defense Freedom Award for 2009

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BadgePatch

Myself and all of us at the New Santa Ana blog would like to pass along a hearty congratulations to Chief Paul Walters and the Santa Ana Police Department on being named one of the winners of the Secretary of Defense Freedom Award for the year 2009.

As you may remember in a post written by me on June 25th I announced that the department had been named a finalist for the prestigious award.  Chief Walters received the good news from the folks in Washington D.C. yesterday letting him know that he and the department had won.

As I stated in my June 25th post, the award is the U.S. Government’s highest recognition given to employers who go above and beyond the call of duty when supporting employees and their families while the employee is serving in the military.

Chief Walters let the terrific men and women of his department know of this tremendous honor via email yesterday.  I too received a copy of the Chief’s email and would like to share it with all of you: Continue reading→

Who are your favorite Santa Ana City Council Members of all time?

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John Acosta

My favorite Santa Ana Council Member of all time is John Acosta

When I first came to Santa Ana, I recall that the City Council included Lisa Mills, Tom Lutz, Pat McGuigan, Rob Richardson, Ted Moreno and of course Miguel Pulido.  Over the years I have seen others come and go, including Brett Franklin, Lisa Bist, Mike Garcia and Alberta Christy.

In recent years we have seen newcomers arise, including David Benavides, Vince Sarmiento, Michele Martinez, Carlos Bustamante, Sal Tinajero and Claudia Alvarez.

My favorite Council Members would include Franklin, McGuigan, Garcia, Moreno and Martinez.  Christy was also one of the nicest Council Members of all time.  I don’t really know much about the Council Members who predated this crowd, although my absolute favorite of all time would have to be John Acosta.

Who have been YOUR favorite Council Members over the years?  And why? Continue reading→

Things to do & places to go in Santa Ana, Part Two

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The Heritage Museum of Orange County

Here are a few more fun places to go and things to do here in Santa Ana:

The Heritage Museum of Orange County
3101 West Harvard Street, Santa Ana, CA 92704, (714) 540-0404

Friday: 1:00 p.m.- 5:00 p.m, Sunday: 11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.*
Other times are available by appointment only for groups of 10 or more.

Prices:
Adults: $5, Seniors/Children: $4
Free parking!
Free use of grounds during public hours, AAA/Access Member Discounts

Special for Santa Ana Residents Only: Free Admission & Tour on first Sunday of every month. Continue reading→

Afro-Mexican photo exhibit coming to Santa Ana on Saturday, Sep. 5

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Sal Rojas the Third Root

BrownPride.com Presents “The Third Root | La Tercera Raiz”
A Photographic Exhibition That Captures the Life of Afro-Mexicans and their Communities by Salvador Rojas

CALACAS 324 W. 4th Street No. B Santa Ana, Ca 92701
Opening Reception: Saturday September 5, 2009 6 pm-11 pm

Photographer Sal Rojas will take you on a visual journey exploring the Roots, Culture & Life of the Afro-Mexicans. Afro-Mexicans make up more than 5% of Mexico’s population; yet remain invisible to the majority of Mexicans.

The Third Root is a visual experience like no other, as it unveils the unseen community of the Costa Chica area of Oaxaca and southern Guerrero, Mexico. Look into the eyes of those who have been suppressed from Mexico’s mainstream culture, as the photographs tell their story. This photographic exhibition hits Calacas located in the heart of Santa Ana, California September 5, 2009. Continue reading→