Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Tag Archives: Orange County

The County of Orange approves $1.6M to prevent the homeless from returning to the riverbed and the Civic Center

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Homelessness: County Approves $1.6 Million to Prevent Return of Riverbed & Civic Center Encampments

Orange County is taking steps to prevent the return of homeless encampments at the Santa Ana Civic Center and Riverbed, which were permanently cleared earlier this year.

Today, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved $1.6 million for supportive housing services for homeless individuals that were removed from the Santa Ana Riverbed and Civic Center. In March, the county cleared 13,950 needles, 400 tons of debris and 5,279 pounds of hazardous waste from the Riverbed encampment. Continue reading→

The Rancho Santiago Community College District just blew $1M on a ridiculous lawsuit

Posted on by Posted in Education, Orange County, Politics, Raúl Rodríguez, Santa Ana 3 Comments

Raise your hand if you just blew $1 million dollars! (Pictured: RSCCD Trustee John Hanna)

The Rancho Santiago Community College District (RSCCD) just blew $1 million dollars of taxpayer money fighting a ridiculous lawsuit that never should have happened in the first place. And the lawsuit came about because of complete and utter mismanagement at the RSCCD.

Plaintiff Marisa Hernandez worked for the Rancho Santiago Community College District on and off for a number of years without any complaints about her performance. In 2013, she was hired as an administrative assistant. During her one-year probationary period, her performance was to be evaluated at three months, seven months, and 11 months. At the completion of 12 months of probation, she would be considered a permanent employee. Continue reading→

Santa Ana homeless update from O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, Crime, homeless, Orange County, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Study Session on Homelessness

This week Chairman Andrew Do called for a Study Session on Homelessness for the Orange County Board of Supervisors.

The meeting focused on building the County’s System of Care including mental health system integration, existing permanent supportive housing and units that in the pipeline, and federal funding sources allocated to the County and cities in Orange County. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council has decided to sue all Orange County cities over the homeless issue

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City of Santa Ana

Community: Santa Ana Expands Legal Action on Homelessness. City Will Add All Other Orange County Cities to Lawsuit

SANTA ANA, CA – On Wednesday evening, the Santa Ana City Council directed the City’s legal counsel to take legal action against all Orange County cities and the County of Orange to compel parties to take immediate steps toward addressing homelessness throughout the County. Santa Ana will file the action by the end of the week.

The decision from the Santa Ana City Council closely followed a Tuesday afternoon decision from the Orange County Board of Supervisors to unanimously reject a shelter site proposal by south county mayors. Last week, the group of mayors proposed putting a homeless shelter in a remote canyon on property currently used as a pre-school and public library. The County has tasked cities with identifying and proposing homeless shelter sites. Continue reading→

The County of Orange has bolstered mental health services again

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, homeless, Mental Health, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Orange County Bolsters Mental Health Support Services

By: First District Supervisor Andrew Do

Orange County is bolstering its non-crisis mental health support hotline after experiencing a 56 percent surge in non-emergency calls last year.

The Orange County Board of Supervisors approved a new contract today that will provide more than a half-million dollars in funding for OC Warmline, a free and confidential non-crisis service for residents that are experiencing a mental health problem or behavioral health issue. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council decides to sue the County and several cities over the homeless issue

Posted on by Posted in Civic Affairs, Courts, Housing, Huntington Beach, irvine, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment

City of Santa Ana

Community: Santa Ana Council Calls for Legal Action on Homelessness. City to Sue County of Orange, Irvine, Laguna Niguel and Huntington Beach

SANTA ANA, CA – On Tuesday night, Santa Ana City Council directed the City’s legal counsel to move forward with a lawsuit against the County of Orange and the cities of Irvine, Laguna Niguel and Huntington Beach for their opposition to sheltering the homeless on available County land. A County plan to locate three temporary homeless shelters in each homeless services region of the County had been adopted earlier in March but was subsequently rescinded by the County Board of Supervisors following opposition from those cities. The City’s legal action seeks to compel the parties to take action rather than merely say “no” to being part of the solution. Continue reading→

OC Health Care Agency completes assessments of the Civic Center’s homeless

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OC Health Care Agency Completes Assessments of Homeless Individuals in Civic Center

Santa Ana, Calif. (April 13, 2018) – As of April 10, the OC Health Care Agency (HCA), in partnership with the City of Santa Ana Police Department, completed all assessments of homeless individuals residing in the Civic Center. The Civic Center area is bounded by Civic Center Drive to the north, Santa Ana Boulevard/Fourth Street to the south, Flower Street to the west and Sycamore Street to
the east.

As of April 12, the Plaza of the Flags area in the Civic Center was cleared of any encampments. Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s homeless shelter is getting more restrooms and showers

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By: OC Supervisor Andrew Do

New restrooms and showers will be coming to the only walk-in emergency homeless shelter in Orange County.

Today, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved the installation of a new 7-unit restroom facility and 8-unit shower facility at the Courtyard Transitional Center in Santa Ana. In October 2016, Supervisor Andrew Do spearheaded the effort to open the emergency shelter in Santa Ana, which now houses as many as 450 homeless each night and has transitioned 281 people to long-term housing.

In addition to short-term steps to increase restrooms and showers at Orange County’s only emergency homeless shelter, County Supervisors approved an additional $3.48 million for recuperative care beds as part of the county’s Whole Person Care pilot program. The total is now $8.38 million towards recuperative care for the homeless. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana River Trail has been cleared of the homeless and has reopened

Posted on by Posted in Bicycles, Crime, homeless, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Closed Portion of Santa Ana River Trail to Reopen April 7

Santa Ana, Calif. (April 6, 2018) – A portion of the Santa Ana River Trail from Memory Lane in Santa Ana to Taft Avenue in Orange was closed to the public on January 22, 2018, for an environmental remediation project. It was anticipated to remain closed for up to three months.

The County has made significant progress on the project, and a modified public access route will be restored April 7, 2018. Continue reading→

251 homeless transients refused shelter and services after exiting the Santa Ana River trail

Posted on by Posted in homeless, Orange County, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Photo by Tim Houchen

County Concludes 30-Day Motel Program for Individuals Previously Encamped along the Santa Ana Riverbed

Santa Ana, Calif. (April 2, 2018) – As of March 28, 2018, the County of Orange concluded its 30-day motel program for individuals previously encamped along the Santa Ana Riverbed. The program, which began at the end of February 2018, involved 697 individuals and 51 motels throughout Orange County.

While the full text of a memorandum from County Executive Officer Frank Kim is available online, below are highlights from the data. Continue reading→

The homeless squatters are finally getting cleared out of the Santa Ana Civic Center

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City of Santa Ana

Community: Santa Ana Works with County to Connect O.C. Civic Center Homeless Population with Emergency Shelters and Services

Today, the Orange County Health Care Agency, City of Santa Ana, CityNet began a joint, enhanced effort to connect the homeless population within the Orange County Civic Center’s “Plaza of the Flags” to emergency shelters and services. The planned joint effort will enforce a U.S. District Court ordinance to prohibit overnight camping within the Civic Center campus, starting on April 2. Continue reading→

This week’s Cochino List includes El Moctezuma Restaurant in Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Disease, Food, Food & Health, OC Health Care, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The OC Health Care Agency has released a list of the eateries they inspected and shut down for the week of March 23-30. Most of these eateries reopen pretty quickly after the health inspectors determine their issues have been resolved. Here is the list:

  • El Moctezuma Restaurant, 809 N. Fairview St., Santa Ana; rodent infestation; closed March 28, reopened March 29.
  • AnQi Gourmet Bristo, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa; cockroach infestation; closed March 28, reopened March 29.

Continue reading→

Imagine if every church in Orange County took in a few homeless people…

Posted on by Posted in Churches and Religion, homeless, Santa Ana 3 Comments

I wonder how many of those Irvine residents that showed up at the O.C. Board of Supervisors meeting this week to complain about the homeless will be at church this Easter Sunday praising Jesus – who pretty much asked his followers to take care of the poor?

It is one of the dichotomies of conservative Christian Orange County. There are churches all over the place but they minister, for the most part, to the well-off and mostly ignore the downtrodden. Continue reading→

The OC Board of Supervisors voted today to oppose California’s Sanctuary State law

Posted on by Posted in california, Civic Affairs, Crime, immigration, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 27, 2018

Contact: Denis Bilodeau, 714-749-6386

Orange County Supervisors votes to join the Department of Justice litigation against California State Law Senate Bill 54 “California Values Act”

SANTA ANA, CA— Today on a vote of 4-0, the Board of Supervisors authorized and directed County Counsel to intervene in the pending case United States v. California, Case #18-264 on behalf of the County of Orange. The Department of Justice’s lawsuit seeks to restore the federal government’s Constitutional authority and sole jurisdiction over immigration issues and end the existing conflict that local law enforcement encounters with state law. The County of Orange seeks to join this lawsuit. Continue reading→

This week’s Cochino List includes Friendly Market and Euclid Market

Posted on by Posted in Disease, Food, Food & Health, OC Health Care, Orange County, Public Safety, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The OC Health Care Agency has released a list of the eateries they inspected and shut down for the week of March 16-23. Most of these eateries reopen pretty quickly after the health inspectors determine their issues have been resolved. Here is the list:

  • Friendly Market, 910 W. Myrtle St., Santa Ana; rodent infestation; closed March 21, reopened March 22.
  • Euclid Market, 630 S. Euclid St., Santa Ana; operating without a valid health permit; closed March 20, reopened March 20.
  • La Siesta Mexican Food, 1010 N. Batavia St., Orange; cockroach infestation; closed March 20, reopened March 21.

Continue reading→