4th District candidates face off in Newport forum

By Erik Holmes, OCLNN

NEWPORT BEACH – The six candidates vying to represent the 4th District on the Orange County Board of Supervisors squared off Wednesday in a forum addressing a broad range of topics of both local and county-wide interest.

Sponsored by the OC Public Affairs Association, the forum at the Pacific Club in Newport Beach was a polite affair with candidates in agreement on most issues. The race, which is officially nonpartisan, features three Republicans and three Democrats, all but one of whom currently serve on city councils.

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Business Week names Irvine fifth best city for startups

By Staff, OCLNN

Business week recently released its list of the best cities for startups and Irvine ranked fifth.

The rankings were based on 11 factors—including the number of startups, quality of the workforce, and resources like universities and venture capital.

“Irvine boasts an educated, international workforce, a University of California campus, and abundant space in office parks,” the magazine reports.

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Whole Foods in San Juan Capo? Residents write love letters to high-end shops

By Cheryl Pruett, OCLNN

San Juan Capistrano takes its matchmaker role seriously when it comes to attracting new businesses.

City leaders are playing Cupid, giving residents letters to customize and send to businesses they’d like to fill vacant retail space. And, like any love interest, the businesses are dreamy: From REI to Bristol Farms, the city is shooting for some of the most desirable stores.

Dawn Schanderl, a 31-year-resident of San Juan Capistrano, didn’t aim low. She sent letters to Morton’s Steakhouse, Van’s shoes and Whole Foods, among others.

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Man charged for sending white powder to Costa Mesa collection company

By Erik Holmes, OCLNN

A Pacific Grove man will be arraigned Friday for allegedly mailing an envelope containing white powder to a collection company after becoming angry about a parking ticket, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office announced.

William Louis Poolman, 52, is charged with one felony count of mailing a false weapon of mass destruction. He is being held on $100,000 bail and, if convicted, faces up to three years in prison.

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History: Orange County had a mine of its own

By Jennifer Bauman, For OCLNN

Most Orange County residents, even natives, probably don’t know that the county was once home to two mining boom towns: the silver-mining town of Silverado, and Carbondale, which thrived on coal.

At the peak of the county’s mining frenzy in the late 1800s, Silverado Canyon’s population jumped to about 1,500, creating a bustling community that included three hotels, several stores, a couple blacksmith shops and two post offices. More than a half-dozen saloons quenched miners’ thirst and numerous brothels flourished to satisfy their physical desires.

But assistant archivist Chris Jepsen of the OC Archives says the county’s mining boom was short-lived because the local bedrock is so fractured that valuable ores are difficult to find.

“There’s a little bit of everything in the Santa Ana Mountains, but not enough for it to pay,” Jepsen said. “That’s why so many operations went bust.”

… Continue Reading: History: Orange County had a mine of its own

County eyes $11M wireless network for cops, fire, poor

By Erik Holmes, OCLNN

One day soon, a police commander in charge of a manhunt in an Orange County neighborhood might be able to sit in an operations center miles away and watch live aerial surveillance video being shot from a helicopter, allowing him to better direct the search and apprehend a suspect more quickly.

Or a resident of one of the county’s poorest neighborhoods who has never had internet access could go online to look for a job or take a college course using a high-speed connection he previously couldn’t afford.

… Continue Reading: County eyes $11M wireless network for cops, fire, poor

Mission San Juan Capistrano gets boost from Juaneno Tribe

By Cheryl Pruett, For OCLNN

The Juaneno Band of Mission Indians set the record straight Tuesday morning. Any doubt about the tribe’s support of Mission San Juan Capistrano and its administration was quieted.

About 120 tribe members carried sage incense rather than protest signs as the tribe presented its first-ever resolution of support for the Mission.

The gathering served as a gesture of solidarity just weeks after the Diocese of Orange took over the Mission’s historic cemetery — where many of the tribe’s ancestors are buried — because it had fallen into disrepair. The Tribe and the Mission support that move.

… Continue Reading: Mission San Juan Capistrano gets boost from Juaneno Tribe

Lake Forest program uses music to help autistic children

By Nancy Aziz, For OCLNN

Making friends has never been easy for Katarina Zambrana. The 11-year-old with Asperger’s Syndrome says sometimes it’s so discouraging she doesn’t even want to try.

“Sometimes they don’t understand me and they get mad at me,” says Zambrana, who lives in Mission Viejo. “They make me feel bad inside and I don’t like it. Also, they tell others to leave me alone. I have a certain way of saying things and seeing things, and they don’t like it or take it wrong.  But I am a really nice person.”

Zambrana was diagnosed with Asperger’s, a mild form of autism, at age three. Her struggles mirror those of many autistic children; they want friends, but lack the social skills necessary to make them.

… Continue Reading: Lake Forest program uses music to help autistic children

O.C. hospitals to experiment with bundled medical fees

By Mike Reicher, OCLNN

When a hospital charges a knee replacement patient for surgery, it’s only the beginning. Next on the bill is a fee for X-rays, one for the artificial joint, doctors visits, tests and hospital care.

Some O.C. hospitals are going to try combining the bills into one lump sum. Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Laguna Hills and others in California will consolidate those bills into one “bundled” fee under a pilot program announced Monday.

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Fullerton teen arraigned in newborn killing

Yoselin Torres Tovar, 18, of Fullerton (OC District Attorney)

By Erik Holmes,  OCLNN

A teen mother is scheduled to be arraigned Friday on charges of murdering her baby minutes after giving birth by stabbing the child multiple times and hiding the body in her closet, the Orange County District Attorney’s office announced.

Eighteen-year-old Yoselin Torres Tovar of Fullerton is charged with one felony count of murder and one felony count of assault on a child with force likely to produce great bodily injury resulting in death. If convicted, she could face 25 years to life in prison.

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