OC Blog

Our Growing Blogpen

Since we joined with Red County magazine, readers may have noticed some changes in the ole Blogpen.

For one thing, I've retired the beloved OC Blogpen masthead graphic. No one was more attached to it than me, but once we began adding contributors who post under their own names it didn't make sense to continue it. I just couldn't see representing Chuck DeVore with a cartoon icon.

As I've mentioned we've also expanded the Blogpen with some of OC's leading political lights, and will likely add additional contributors in the future. Readers have already read posts by Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, public affairs consultant Jeff Flint and author Quang X. Pham. Hugh Hewitt will begin contributing later next month, and I've also convinced two of my old bosses, Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle and former Sen. John Lewis, to join the Blogpen.

Since the single biggest issue facing Orange County on the November ballot is the renewal of Measure M, I'm working to make Red County/OC Blog  a vital forum of debate on this issue in order to present a vigorous, informative and on-going discussion and vetting of the various claims and counter-claims about what a renewed M will and will not do.

As consultants to the pro-M campaign, I expect Jeff Flint and John Lewis to kick in their two or three cents on M (as well as other issues), and I've added another member of the renew M team, Meg Waters, to the Blogpen.

On the other side of the M ring is Jack Mallinckrodt, one of the signers of the anti-M ballot argument and a veteran of the redoubtable Drivers for Highway Safety. You can read Jack's debut post here (he'll post under his nickname, "mally".)

As you can see, Red County/OC Blog remains dedicated to brining you the best and liveliest commentary, analysis and inside political stuff in Orange County -- and it's only going to get better in the coming months.

Wireless In Mission Viejo?

I stopped over at my buddy Frank Ury's blog to see what's happening. As readers know, Frank is the Mayor Pro Tem of Mission Viejo.

Yesterday, Frank posted a response to  consitutent's misconception about a potential city-wide WiFi network:

Frank: I already have internet at my house, which I pay for with Cox. So why should the city spend money to provide me with something I already have. If you have that much extra money, why not refund it to the taxpayers instead of thinking of unnecessary ways to spend it.

Answer: The city is not going to spend money to bring wireless internet to your home. The Council is reviewing the applications from several vendors to provide the SERVICE to the residents of Mission Viejo as an alternative to other carriers. The goal is to give consumers the choice of which internet provider to use by expanding the number of companies competing for your business. The city will evaluate the proposals and and may eventually grant easements for the equipment to be installed. The carriers will then compete for your business.

No cost to the city, thanks for the question. Frank.

Anaheim has paved the way for a free market approach to city-wide WiFi systems, and my hunch is the entire county will be de facto wireless within a few short years.

Project S: A Billion Dollar Blank Check

A centerpiece of the Measure M renewal plan is the Citizen’s Oversight Committee, tasked to ensure that funds are spent as promised in the accompanying expenditure plan. That feature was also part of the 1991 measure M, and evidently worked; at least I know of no claim that the funds were spent other than as promised.

But what if the plan did not specify how the funds were to be spent. Then “oversight” would be meaningless. Arguably, that is the case for “Project S” in the present Measure M Renewal.

Project S is described as “a competitive program for local jurisdictions to broaden the reach of the rail system to other activity centers and communities”. A billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) are allocated to this program.

The projects are to be judged and selected on a list of 11 criteria ranging from Traffic congestion relief, to Cost Effectiveness and a Long Term Operating Plan:

“These connections may include a variety of transit technologies such as conventional bus, bus rapid transit, or high capacity rail transit systems as long as they can be fully integrated and provide a seamless transition for the users”.

“No single project may be awarded all the funds under this project.”

The problem is, those are very broad, subjective criteria. For example consider the ill-fated CenterLine Light Rail System. It had been found and OCTA knew as long ago as the 1999 CenterLine EIR that it would actually make overall mobility and congestion worse due to the adverse impacts of its exclusive guideway on street traffic exceeding its beneficial ridership. Nevertheless CenterLine light rail continued to be advocated and represented to OC and to FTA as a cost effective mobility improvement up until the time of its defunding by FTA in November 2004 on the basis of “questionable” and “unacceptable” travel time and cost effectiveness estimates and subsequent “put-on-hold” action by the OCTA board in February 2005.

The “no single project” criterion could be simply resolved by minimal cooperation between two adjacent cities.

So there is little doubt that even projects so counterproductive and wasteful as CenterLine could be said to fit the criteria for Project S.

Does it make any sense to trust the same persons that would knowingly allow, supervise, and advocate such a counterproductive boondoggle with a billion dollar blank check?

And Over At Orange Juice...

...Tim Whitacre reports on the results of last night's OC GOP Endorsement Committee meeting and actually pays Mike Schroeder a compliment:

I have to admit, the meeting was well-run by Mike Schroeder and he actually stayed within the By-Laws, only once or twice pushing (but not exceeding) the limits!

Also, Art Pedroza reports on the apparently self-generated vagueness surrounding the partisan inclinations of Santa Ana City Council candidate Tino Rivera. According to Art, the registered decline-to-state is telling Democrats he's a crypto-Democrat and Republicans he's a crypto-Republican. If true, it won't be the first time a local government candidate just told people what they want to hear in hopes of being elected. That type of politician is, unfortunately, not an endangered species.

It reminds me of a guy who used to be an up-and-comer in county GOP circles and narrowly lost an Assembly GOP primary in 1994. If you were having a conversation with him and asked his opinion about an issue, he'd respond by asking, "What do you think?" and then do an excellent job of seeming to agree with you.

Distracted In San Clemente

Total Buzz posted yesterday about how Adam Probolsky is running circles around the anti-property rights side in San Clemente's Shorecliffs War.

Adam commented on how they are making him the central issue. I had the same conversation with Adam this weekend, and he's right. The pro-height restrictions crowd is overly focused on Adam's role as a paid consultant to the anti-height restrictions group -- and if they remain distracted, they will pay a political price.

Personally, I hope they remain distracted, because it makes it more likely the councilmen who voted for the height restrictions will be replaced in the November election.

Assembly Bill ON KOCE Sale To Be Voted On Today

FR publisher Jon Fleischman posts again today on AB 523 -- "an outrageous effort by the Coastline Community College District in Orange County to make a de facto gift of nearly $20 million in public funds" to finance the KOCE Foundation bid for the station.

Jon reports that AB 523 (introduced by Tom Umberg and now authored by Carol Liu) will be heard today in the Senate. This bill richly deserves defeat. It's immaterial whether one's preference is for KOCE to remain an OC newsy station or become part of a religious broadcasting network. Daystar, under state law, submitted the better bid. Peel away the pious pleadings and AB 523 is an attempt to ex post facto rig the bidding for the KOCE Foundation.

Some highlights from Jon's post:

ORANGE COUNTY GOP COMMITTEE TAKES ACTION...
Last night, the important Endorsements Committee of the Orange County Republican Party was considering a request by Coastline Community College Trustee Mary Hornbuckle for an endorsement for the party.  The Committee voted overwhelming to recommend that Trustee Hornbuckle NOT be endorsed, and a major factor in their deliberations was Hornbuckle's opposition to selling KOCE to the highest cash bidder (as provided by state law).

WHERE IS THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER?
Still the Orange County Register is silent.  Nothing from their beat reporters.  Nothing from their investigative reporters.  And the silence is deafening over at the Register's Editorial page.  The Register's financial gain (KOCE would become a major tenant of the Register under the deal) should be trumped by the need to shine light on this bad deal.

Here's hoping AB 523 goes down in flames...and why is Lynn Daucher supporting this bid rigging? She's still listed as a co-author as of yesterday.

Gustavo In The LA Times

I forgot to post this yesterday: an op-ed by OC Blog compadre Gustavo Arellano complaining about the pinche complaining about his Mexican Spanish.

Pobrecito!

Red County/OC Blog News Roundup -- August 29, 2006

Today's top stories from behind the Orange Curtain:

A Different Commute Is Ahead For OC, LA -- LAT
With Orange County's job growth, fewer workers are expected to head north each day, while those heading south into the county will keep increasing.

Land Purchase OK'd For Transportation Hub -- LAT and OCR
The city's plan to build one of the largest transit centers in Southern California cleared a major obstacle Monday.

Editorial: A Knife, Gunshots, Then Lots Of Questions -- OCR
Police slaying of a 19-year-old woman reinforces the need for an independent review panel

Handing Over The Reins -- OCR
Outgoing Los Alamitos Unified school board President Marilyn Bates reflects on a difficult year with the district.

Former Girlfriend Guilty Of OC Athlete's Murder -- LAT
She could get life in prison. Her sometime boyfriend had testified against her in a plea deal.

A Pioneering Store Opens At South Coast Plaza -- DP
More than six miles of wire line the walls of one of South Coast Plaza's newest stores, but anyone who enters the nation's first Pioneer retail store will only see the living rooms and entertainment systems of their dreams.

Sentencing Delayed In Condo Scam -- OCR
Judge reschedules hearing until after another trial in the Huntington Beach case.

Son Of Mexican Singer Fatally Shot -- OCR
Irvine resident Trigo Figueroa was killed in a melee after one of his father's concerts.

Irvine Man Bit In Head By Coyote -- OCR
He was relaxing in a spa when the animal bit or scratched him on the head, then fled.

$100,000 To Get Another One To Ride The Bus

Last week OCTA issued a $100,000 RFP for its annual Bus Marketing and Outreach Program, triggering some thoughts on the utility of these OCTA efforts to pry people out of their cars and prod them onto the bus.

OCTA has been conducting this program for at least the last five years. I was actually a sub-contractor to the sub-contractor on the bus marketing program during 2002 and 2004, which targeted (respectively) seniors and youth.

For $100,000, OCTA (according to the RFP) wants the winning consultant needs to put together a marketing and outreach program targeting:

• Current riders
• General public, commuters
• Employers
• Students -- middle school, high school and college students
• Senior Citizens
• Persons with Disabilities

In other words, OCTA wants an outreach program that effectively targets everyone in Orange County for just $100,000.

Now, I'm a believer in not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good, but this doesn't even rise to that level. Despite the absurdly board target audience that includes current riders, the real goal of these marketing and outreach programs is to convince people who aren't using the bus to use the bus. The virtues of riding the bus are extolled at senior centers, ROP fairs, etc, in the hopes that seniors, students, etc. will get out of their cars and get on a bus.

This is a well-intentioned exercise in futility. People ride the bus because they don't, for whatever reason, own or have access to a car. Once you have a car, you're probably not going to ride the bus anymore because being in a car beats being on the bus any day of the week.

Granted, riding the bus does have advantages, and the OCTA bus system, for a government enterprise, is well run: it's clean, safe, simple to master, saves on automobile wear and tear, etc.

However, the bottom line is people vastly prefer getting around by car because it is faster, more convenient, more comfortable and you -- not the OCTA -- control your travel schedule.

I doubt OCTA really believes in the value of this program. They budgeted $250,000 for the 2002 program, but just $100,000 for the 2006-2007 program. This program exists because it exists -- bureaucratic inertia at work.

Outreach programs are great for consultants (I know). And in fairness, the consultants and the OCTA staff involved do their best to design and implement effective programs that are successful within the scope of the programs.

But in a larger sense, these programs are futile endeavors. Does anyone seriously think a $100,000 marketing/outreach program is going to make a dent in getting people to use the bus instead of a car? The program's budget could be cut to $50,000 or inflated to $500,000 and I doubt the impact on bus ridership would be appreciably different.

Say It Ain't So!: Judge Rules Sierra Club's Challenge To East Orange Development Is "Unfounded"

I spotted this item on Orange Councilman Jon Dumitru's blog:

This is the "Press Release" that was issued on Friday afternoon.

ORANGE, Ca. – In a ruling issued on Friday, August 25, 2006, the city of Orange and The Irvine Company prevailed in a lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club challenging the city’s approval of The Irvine Company’s planned residential development in East Orange.

Judge Stephen J. Sundvold ruled that the Sierra Club’s challenges to the environmental impact report (EIR) were unfounded and that the document properly analyzed the development’s potential environmental impacts. Judge Sundvold found that in many instances, the Sierra Club failed to raise the issues it argued at trial in either its original complaint or during the environmental review before the City Council. He stated that this requirement was “a matter of due process” and that challenges to EIRs were “not a cat and mouse game.”

You can read the entire press release on Jon's blog.

As an Orange resident and property rights advocate, I am elated at this news. And kudos to Judge Sundvold for castigating the Sierra Club's political manipulation of the EIR process as a means to  achieve a political objective: stop any development by the Irvine Co. of its own property.

The Sierra Club and its local soviet, the Orange Hills Task Force are obvious losers on this ruling. Groups like this derive their political clout via litigation more than the ballot box. If they cannot prevail in court against the East Orange project, they may as well pack it in because their chances of stopping it via the political process are nil.

The Orange Hills Task Force has been savaging Orange Mayor Pro Tem Carolyn Cavecche, the front-runner in November's mayoral contest. Carolyn tried to be reasonable last-year during the approval process and hear their side out. She even urged the Irvine Co. to drop a small, 50-home portion of the project located at the mouth of some indispensable canyon. But since she wasn't willing to adopt their agenda of denying the Irvine Co. the exercise of its property rights, they have been savaging her ever since with full page ads in the Foothill Sentry community newspaper.

It's also bad news for Orange mayoral candidate Mike Alvarez, who has allied himself with the Sierra Club. Mike told the Orange City News this spring that he supported the Sierra Club lawsuit, although he's later tried to backtrack privately.

Orange is a conservative town. Although it has its pockets of NIMBYism, enviros like the Orange Hills Task Force lack strength among Orange voters. While this may be a case Alvarez securing allies where he can find them, in this instance he's latched onto one that knows how to file lawsuits and make noise, but cannot persuade the people who live in Orange to support its antt-property rights agenda.