New Santa Ana | Tag Archives: Santa Ana

Mayor Correa?

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2014 Elections, Lou Correa, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana 20 Comments

Could State Senator Lou Correa, who is terming out this year, be thinking of running for Mayor of Santa Ana? That is what I heard today from Vern Nelson, the editor of the Orange Juice Blog. Nelson cited an anonymous source in Sacramento when I spoke with him this afternoon.

It makes a lot of sense. Correa has huge name I.D. and he lives here in Santa Ana, in the Floral Park Neighborhood. Why not run for Mayor?

I suppose it depends on what our current Mayor, Miguel Pulido, will do in November but it sure looks like me might retire from local politics. And even if he didn’t, a Correa campaign would squash him and anyone else. Continue reading→

The SAUSD reacts to the killing of a student, Rubi Rubio, by a robber

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, Santa Ana, SAUSD 2 Comments

The SAUSD reacts to the killing of a student, Rubi Rubio, by a robber

“We are saddened by the tragic passing of one of our own, 15-year old Rubi Rubio, who died from the result of her injuries after being robbed while walking in Santa Ana. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family, friends, teachers, classmates, and to all those who knew her well. We are here for them during this difficult time, and we have extended our services in the area of grief counseling. Continue reading→

The OC Fair Express kicks off July 11 from eight locations

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Costa Mesa, Orange County, Orange County Fair, Santa Ana, Transportation Leave a comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 8, 2014

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Joel Zlotnik, (714) 560-5713; Eric Carpenter, (714) 560-5697

OC Fair Express Kicks off July 11 From Eight Locations

New mobile app allows riders to buy tickets in advance, $2 each way and $3 fair admission

ORANGE – The Orange County Transportation Authority is bringing back the OC Fair Express bus service with locations across the county for just $2 each way, allowing riders to save time and money.

The OC Fair Express will provide non-stop weekend bus service from eight locations to the OC Fair from July 11 to Aug. 10. Buses will run hourly between noon and midnight on Fridays and 9:30 a.m. and midnight on Saturdays and Sundays. Continue reading→

Strong opposition to the proposed Santa Ana streetcar emerges

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Business, Civic Affairs, Planning, public works, Santa Ana, Transportation 3 Comments

A number of Santa Ana businesses and neighborhood groups, including the Santa Anita Neighborhood Association and the Santa Ana Business Council, as well as neighborhood leaders, congregations and others are beginning to voice their concerns about the proposed Santa Ana Streetcar project.

Below is an example of this opposition, in the form of a letter from the Santa Ana Community & Business Alliance to the Santa Ana city leaders: Continue reading→

Santa Ana Climate Action Plan community stakeholder meeting set for 7/24

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Entertainment, Environment, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Save the date! The City of Santa Ana is holding a community stakeholder meeting to provide information on the current status of Santa Ana’s Climate Action Plan and to discuss the greenhouse gas emissions reduction measures. The meeting is interactive to receive your ideas and priorities on the proposed measures for the Climate Action Plan.

Continue reading→

National Gay Pride Blood Drive event set for July 11 at The Center Orange County

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Entertainment, Health and Medical, LGBT, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Join OC Pride, Gay For Good, MenAlive, DeColores OC, The Center OC, OC Young Democrats, Orange County Log Cabin Republicans and other LGBT organizations from around Orange County for a festival in association with The National Gay Blood Drive, on Friday, July 11, 2014, from 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm, at The Center Orange County, located at 1605 N Spurgeon St., in Santa Ana.

The FDA bans gay and bisexual men from donating bloo…d. This ban was established in 1983 before HIV testing capabilities. The ban prevents otherwise eligible people from contributing to the Nation’s Blood Supply and perpetuates inaccurate stereotypes and stigma about the LGBT community. Continue reading→

OC Young Democrats mixer to feature the head of the Assoc. of OC Deputy Sheriffs

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Democratic Party, Entertainment, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana, Youth Activities Leave a comment

The Orange County Young Democrats are hosting their monthly mixer on July 9, 2014, at 7 pm, at Bistro 400, in Downtown Santa Ana. The meeting will feature guest speaker Tom Dominguez, the President of the Association of OC Deputy Sheriffs, who are in the process of getting a raise from the Orange County Board of Supervisors. Perhaps Dominguez will be buying everyone drinks?

The proposed two-year labor deal from county supervisors includes a pay hike and improved health coverage to partly cover the requirement that deputies pay all of their employee pension payments in year 2 of the deal, according to the OC Register. Continue reading→

Man sentenced for raping women under guise of spiritual cleansing

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Alberto Flores Ramirez

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release: July 3, 2014

Case # 12CF1076

MAN SENTENCED TO 45 YEARS TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR FORCIBLE RAPE OF TWO WOMEN HE MET ONLINE UNDER PRETENSE OF PERFORMING SPIRITUAL CLEANSING

*Second victim came forward after seeing media coverage on the original case

SANTA ANA – A man was sentenced today to 45 years to life in state prison for forcibly raping two women after luring them under the pretense of performing a spiritual cleansing. Alberto Flores Ramirez, 39, San Clemente, was found guilty by a jury April 22, 2014, of two felony counts each of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, one felony count each of sexual penetration by foreign object by force, attempted forcible oral copulation, and a sentencing enhancement for sex crimes against multiple victims. Continue reading→

Broadway road construction will limit traffic to one lane in each direction

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in public works, Santa Ana, Traffic Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana

Advisory: BROADWAY CONSTRUCTION WILL LIMIT TRAFFIC TO ONE LANE IN EACH DIRECTION BETWEEN CIVIC CENTER DR & 17TH ST

Broadway construction will limit traffic to one lane in each direction between Civic Center Drive and 17th Street through Wednesday, July 9, 2014. Continue reading→

Santa Ana has $461M in unfunded public employee pension liabilities

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Labor, Santa Ana 8 Comments

The Orange County Grand Jury has issued a new report on “Orange County City Pension Liabilities” and it turns out that the City of Santa Ana is very much in the hole.

Santa Ana has accrued $886M in public safety pensions and another $670M in other labor pensions. The bad news is that Santa Ana only has $639M in market value assets to pay off the public safety pensions (for retired firemen and police officers). Cops and firemen can retire at 55, and do so with huge pensions that can be in the six figures. Continue reading→

First OC Zine Fest set for July 12, at Diego’s Downtown in DTSA

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Arts and Culture, Entertainment, Literature, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The first ever OC Zine Fest hopes to promote zine culture in Orange County, on Saturday, July 12, 2014, from 11:00 am – 5:00 pm, at Diego’s Downtown SA, at 224 E 3rd St, in Santa Ana.

The OC Zine Fest will create connections between zinesters in the area, and encourage artists and non-artists to discover zines as an alternative form of expression. Continue reading→

Kim Pham murder trial to start with jury selection on Monday

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Courts, Crime, Santa Ana 2 Comments

The Kim Pham murder trail is finally set to begin next week. You may recall that Kim Pham was the young lady who was literally kicked to death by female patrons, including Marie Brito and Vanesa Zavala, of the now-defunct Crosby bar, a hipster joint in Downtown Santa Ana that is now called the North Left.

Here is the message that Kim Pham’s family posted on their Facebook page about the upcoming murder trial: Continue reading→

Wil marijuana dealers become Santa Ana’s new political power players?

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Drugs, Marijuana, Politics, Santa Ana 18 Comments

A proposed Santa Ana City Council sponsored ballot initiative to tax and regulate medical marijuana collectives could soon create a situation where, of some 150 shops city officials estimate are selling the drug, only 12 would likely be allowed to continue operating, according to the Voice of OC.

The city’s proposal would restrict the shops to industrial zones and would also be banned from opening within 1,000 ft. of schools, parks and residential areas. Only a fraction of land isolated to the city’s southern corners meet the requirements, meaning 18 to 24 shops could open, officials estimate, according to another Voice of OC article. Continue reading→

Santa Ana based Corinthian Colleges to sell off or close over 100 campuses

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Education, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Facing heavy losses and a crackdown by government agencies, Corinthian Colleges — one of the largest for-profit operators of trade schools and colleges — will largely cease operating under an agreement with the federal Education Department, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Corinthian, a publicly traded firm with 12,000 employees serving 72,000 students, negotiated a deal late Thursday with the U.S. Department of Education to sell off the bulk of its more than 100 campuses and wind down the rest, according to the Wall St. Journal. Continue reading→

Free lamp exchange for SCE residential customers on July 12

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Art Pedroza Posted in Energy, Entertainment, Santa Ana Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: Free Lamp Exchange for SCE Residential Customers on July 12

Exchange your old lamps for new, energy-efficient fluorescent lamps at a Lamp Exchange sponsored by Southern California Edison (SCE) in partnership with the City of Santa Ana. The exchange will be held on Saturday, July 12, 8 a.m.–3 p.m., at Home Depot, 3500 MacArthur Blvd., Santa Ana.

The exchange is open to all residential customers of SCE with a limit of 10 lamps per household. You must bring your SCE bill and CA driver’s license. Continue reading→