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As crews worked Wednesday to remove 100 eucalyptus trees from the area a motorist was killed by a felled tree along the shared border between Newport Beach and Costa Mesa, they were met by two protesters who want to save the trees.
“Obviously, this tragedy was horrible, but there might be a way to replant them, make them more stable,” said Margie Dorney, a Newport Beach resident, who with her husband, was protesting Newport Beach’s decision to remove the trees for safety reasons from street medians along Irvine Avenue between Westcliff and Dover drives.
The cities of Newport Beach and Costa Mesa announced Tuesday evening that contractors were going to remove between 100 and 107 trees that arborists determined potentially unsafe. A 29-year-old Tustin woman was killed Thursday afternoon when a 10-ton eucalyptus tree fell on her car at Irvine, north of 17th Street.
The trees are technically inside Costa Mesa city limits, but Newport Beach has the contract to maintaining the trees.
“It could very well be that there’s a problem with the roots, I don’t think we’ve done enough discovery yet to figure this out,” said David Hayes, a 61-year Newport Beach resident who lives up the street from the accident. “It just seems to me we need cooler heads to prevail.”
Dorney said only about 15 trees were remaining when they arrived to protest Wednesday morning.
Southbound Newport Boulevard will be closed from 19th to 18th streets until about 10 p.m. Tuesday because of a three-car crash, Costa Mesa police said.
Police said the three-car pileup has blocked the southbound lanes, and they will divert traffic exiting the 55 Freeway at Newport Boulevard.
Police reported there were minor injuries in the crash.
–Joseph Serna
Texas Gov. Rick Perry with his wife, Anita, speaks to a crowd of supporters at Roger's Gardens in Newport Beach on Thursday. (Scott Smeltzer)
CORONA DEL MAR — With a distinct Texan drawl and plainspoken message, GOP frontrunner and Texas Gov. Rick Perry revved up his growing Tea Party base in Orange County on Thursday, joking the area is fancy like a raspberry or blueberry pie.
Drenched in sunlight at Roger’s Gardens, hundreds of conservatives — many identifying themselves as tea partiers — hooted and hollered as Perry railed against President Obama and big government.
“Mr. President, we can’t spend our way to prosperity, it does not work,” he said to raucous applause. “Don’t spend all the money we have. They could learn a little of that in Sacramento.”
…Continue reading Gov. Perry visit CdM, stands in Reagan’s shadow again
COSTA MESA — Costa Mesa is hosting a housing options workshop at noon p.m. Friday at the Police Department’s Emergency Operations Center between the station and City Hall.
The brown-bag meeting is a chance for anyone who wants learn about the housing options for the city’s homeless, the differences between transitional and long-term supportive housing and its costs, among other topics.
The discussion will focus on one of the task force’s central questions: what to do with the city’s homeless population and how to, in some cases, transition them to stable living environments.
The workshop is free and open to the public.
Twitter: @josephserna
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, the Republican frontrunner for president, plans to make an appearance at Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Thursday, GOP officials said.
Perry is scheduled to headline the political rally with more than 1,000 GOP volunteers. Perry is in Southern California for tonight’s Republican debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
COSTA MESA — Two teen girls injured in a Labor Day car crash have been released from the hospital and are expected to make a full recovery, police said Wednesday.
The girls were riding in a four-door BMW driven by a 16-year-old Costa Mesa boy about 3:20 a.m. when he tried to turn north onto Coolidge Avenue from Baker Street but he was going too fast and crashed, said Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Phil Myers.
A third teen girl was also in the car at the time, Myers said. All three girls, two 16-year-olds and one 15-year-old, are from Costa Mesa.
One girl suffered a separated shoulder, another suffered a fractured eye socket and the third had bumps and bruises. The two with the more serious injuries were taken to a local hospital and released Wednesday.
Police said after the crash, the driver told the girls he would be back then ran off. He never returned, but police found him shortly after, Myers said. He was arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run. His identity has not been released because he is a juvenile.
Twitter: @josephserna
Earthquakes and hurricanes in the East, fires in Texas, no matter where you turn, Mother Nature is putting police and fire departments to the test.
If a major disaster struck Southern California, would you know what to do?
The Newport Beach Fire Department is offering disaster preparedness classes twice a week on weekdays or on a Saturday only schedule.
Starting at 7 p.m. Sept. 22, Newport will start its Tuesday-Thursday Community Emergency Response Team classes that teach students everything from search and rescue and disaster psychology to CPR and how to put out a fire. The classes last about two hours and conclude with a full-blown emergency drill Oct. 29.
…Continue reading Newport offers disaster preparedness training
COSTA MESA — The City Council on Tuesday approved contracting with one law firm to see the city through its workforce outsourcing effort, and a second law firm to defend those contentious outsourcing plans in court.
In a 3-1 vote, with Councilwoman Wendy Leece dissenting and Councilman Eric Bever absent, the council approved continuing to use the consultation of the Northern California-based HansonBridgett law firm for $295 to $325 an hour as Costa Mesa puts city services out for bids.
Costa Mesa also tapped the Jones Day law firm, for $495 an hour, to defend itself against a city employee group’s lawsuit that challenges the proposed outsourcing.
Neither contract puts a cap on how much the city can spend with the firms.
…Continue reading City Council OKs contracts with two law firms
A bodyboarder hangs on as he is catapulted down a set wave at the Wedge during building swell along the coast that is contributing to the flooding conditions. (DON LEACH, Daily Pilot / August 31, 2011)
The surf off Newport Beach is at 7 to 10 feet Thursday, with some 12 foot sets and up to 15 at The Wedge.
Newport Beach lifeguards said they are understaffed by two but The Wedge is covered. High tide is at noon, but flooding isn’t expected Thursday because Newport staff has put more preventative measures in place.
COSTA MESA — On paper, the 2011 Orange County Fair was a huge success.
An attendance record was set. In four weeks, more than 1.4 million people passed through the fair gates — a 21% increase from 2010.
Organizers saw other increases compared to last year as well: 21% in admission revenue, 35% in both carnival game and rides revenue, and 28% in food and beverage sales.
Double-digit gains across the board are great, fair officials say, but there is one number that sticks out to them: 8%.
That’s how much revenue went up for parking this year compared to last. With about 350,000 more visitors in 2011, the fair earned about $2 million in parking, which is about $100,000 more than last year.
…Continue reading Lack of parking remains a problem for O.C. Fair
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