Sign Up for SCE’s Summer Discount Plan
In October, all Irvine residents will be transferred from their current provider of electricity —...
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Irvine Residents Sound Off on OCPA
Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan and Councilmember Mike Carroll led the effort to establish the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA) and to have Irvine taxpayers fund the Power Authority through 2022, with no City oversight.
On April 1st, all businesses operating in the City of Irvine were transferred out of their current electricity provider — Southern California Edison (SCE) — and automatically enrolled in OCPA, at a higher monthly rate.
In October, all Irvine households will be transferred from SCE and enrolled in OCPA, also at a higher rate.
Our latest Irvine Community Poll asks readers if you support Councilmember Larry Agran’s call for a forensic financial audit of OCPA.
Within a week of releasing the poll, hundreds and hundreds of Irvine residents weighed in, with 98% (yes, you read that right!) firmly behind Agran. And, scores of readers felt strongly enough about the matter to include a comment.
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Check Out the Latest Art Exhibit at City Hall
A new art exhibit is on display at City Hall (located at 1 Civic Center Plaza). The exhibition...
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Irvine Residents to Begin Receiving Notices About Being Transferred from SCE into the New OCPA Plan
Throughout the month of August, all Irvine residents are scheduled to receive a notice that on October 1st they will be transferred from their current provider of electricity — Southern California Edison (SCE) — and automatically enrolled in the new Orange County Power Authority (OCPA), at a higher monthly rate.
OCPA was originally promoted by Mayor Khan and Councilmembers Kuo and Carroll with the promise that OCPA would provide all Irvine businesses and households with electricity from “cleaner” renewable sources at a lower cost than SCE provides.
However, rate schedules released by OCPA show that Irvine customers will be paying more for electricity under the new OCPA plan. In fact, Irvine business customers that were switched to OCPA last spring are now paying 5% to 12% more for their electricity.
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Irvine City Councilmember Tammy Kim Refuses to Allow Irvine Voters to Decide on District Elections
Irvine’s current “at-large” election system often precludes local neighborhood representation because multiple elected Councilmembers can live in the same area of the City, leaving other areas of the City unrepresented.
District elections would divide the City into geographic districts, allowing voters in each district to elect their own City Councilmember, who must also live in that district.
Councilmember Larry Agran has been the only member of the Council to publicly support both expanding the Council from five to seven members and going to district elections. Agran stated that he believes strongly in local democracy and that Irvine voters should determine how Councilmembers are elected, not the five-member Council. (Under Agran’s proposal, the Mayor would continue to be elected by all Irvine voters while six Councilmembers would be elected by district.)
Councilmember Tammy Kim voiced her strong opposition to district elections and attempted to introduce a separate motion, having the Council publicly state that Irvine will not move to district elections and will not allow Irvine voters to make the decision themselves.
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Free Outdoor Concerts at Mike Ward Community Park in July & August
Summer is the perfect time to head to the park with friends and family to enjoy some great music, good food and quality time together.
City Council to Discuss Councilmember Larry Agran’s Proposed Veterans Memorial Park on the “ARDA” Site at the Great Park
For nearly six decades, the ARDA site at the Great Park was an integral part of the iconic El Toro Marine Corps Air Station (El Toro MCAS).
Irvine voters have continuously voiced their support for building a Veterans Memorial Park & Cemetery on the ARDA site. In fact, there have been two citizen-led ballot measures regarding the ARDA site. In both cases, nearly 20,000 Irvine resident signatures were gathered to qualify the measures for the ballot. And, Irvine voters overwhelmingly defeated the previous Council’s scheme to hand the ARDA site over to FivePoint for massive development — 63% of Irvine voters said NO!
Councilmember Larry Agran has repeatedly asked his Council colleagues to support his proposal for a beautiful, environmentally-friendly Veterans Memorial Park — filled with trails, forests, memorial gardens, and an aviation museum.
Agran says that “a Veterans Memorial Park would not only honor our City’s rich military history but would also offer an aesthetically-pleasing amenity for residents in the area. And, it could be built quickly, without raising taxes or generating massive amounts of outside traffic.”
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Free Outdoor Movies at the Great Park
Summer is the perfect time to head to the Great Park to enjoy an outdoor screening of a family-friendly film.
Will District Elections be on the November Ballot?
Last year, the City of Irvine was threatened with a lawsuit for violating the California Voting Rights Act by continuing to elect members of the City Council through an “at-large” election process rather than “by-district.”
An at-large election system often precludes local neighborhood representation because multiple elected Councilmembers can live in the same area of the City, leaving other areas of the City unrepresented.
District elections would divide the City into geographic districts, allowing voters in each district to elect their own City Councilmember, who must also live in that district.
Since taking office, Councilmember Larry Agran has been the only member of the Council to publicly support district elections.
During the July 12th City Council meeting, an item has been added to the agenda to discuss district elections. It is expected that Agran will ask for a measure to be added to the November 2022 ballot, allowing Irvine voters to decide the matter.
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Good News for Democracy in Irvine
In January 2021, Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan, Vice Mayor Anthony Kuo, and Councilmembers Tammy Kim...
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