Sign Up Now: Heritage Park Library Virtual Book Club
Every other Friday morning, the Heritage Park Library hosts the online Chapter-A-Week Book Group....
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City Council Hears Nearly 3 Hours of Testimony from Residents Voicing Their Concerns Over Toxic Emissions from Asphalt Plant
The September 14th Irvine City Council meeting included nearly three hours of public comments from frustrated residents in north Irvine who believe that emissions from the asphalt plant located about a mile from their homes has led to a public health crisis.
All year, homeowners have pleaded with the Mayor to have the City step in and help. Those requests have largely been denied. Advocating on behalf of the residents, Councilmember Agran has repeatedly requested that the Mayor schedule a special City Council meeting and public hearing on the matter. Agran’s requests have also been denied by the Mayor and her Council majority.
The issue finally made it onto the Council agenda as a City staff “presentation.” However, residents took advantage of the Public Comments portion of the meeting to voice their concerns over the plant’s proximity to homes and schools.
Irvine Taxpayers Advance Another $5 Million to OC Power Authority as Environmental Leaders Speak Out Against the Energy Start-Up
The Orange County Power Authority (OCPA) was established last year, promising to sell Irvine and other Orange County residents cleaner, less expensive electricity than what they currently purchase from Southern California Edison (SCE).
Nearly a year after those promises were made, a growing number of environmental leaders who originally supported the OCPA say the energy start-up appears to have no real interest in delivering clean energy from renewable sources.
According to an article in the Orange County Register, OCPA’s target of 57% clean energy (free from fossil fuels) by 2030 doesn’t even meet the State’s minimum goal of 60% by 2030. It is worth noting that SCE is on track to reach 80% renewable energy sources (mainly solar and wind) by 2030.
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Support Irvine’s Annual Fall Food Drive
Each year, the City of Irvine hosts an annual fall food drive throughout the month of October....
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Irvine Ranked Safest City in America for 16th Consecutive Year
This week, the FBI released their annual report of America’s safest cities. For the 16th...
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Community Poll Results: Irvine Residents Overwhelmingly Oppose City Council Renaming the Great Park
At their August 10th meeting, the Irvine City Council voted 4-1 to rename the 15-year-old Orange County Great Park. (Councilmember Larry Agran was the only NO vote.)
Already known to most people simply as the “Great Park,” Mayor Farrah Khan and Councilmembers Tammy Kim, Anthony Kuo and Mike Carroll voted to strip away the words “Orange County” and rename the park the “Irvine Great Park” or the “Great Park in Irvine.”
The name change could cost taxpayers upwards of a million dollars — to change all of the official documents, signage, and marketing materials.
After receiving hundreds of responses to our latest poll, 94% of Irvine residents say they oppose the name change.
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All-Veterans Organization Continues Advocacy Work on Behalf of a Beautiful Veterans Memorial Park & Cemetery at the Great Park
Many believe the latest scheme to derail the Veterans Memorial Park & Cemetery on the “ARDA” site at the Great Park is VALOR, which is a political action committee that was established and funded with $800,000 back in 2018 by developer FivePoint, during their first attempt to derail the Veterans Cemetery in Irvine.
VALOR wants the Veterans Cemetery alongside the busy, polluted 91 freeway (Gypsum Canyon), just a few miles from the Riverside County line, and more than 20 miles from Irvine.
When asked about the latest scheme, U.S. Army veteran Ed McNew said: “I have personally gathered thousands of signatures from Irvine residents regarding this issue, and I am quite sure that the vast majority of our Irvine neighbors —young and old — still support our efforts to build a beautiful Veterans Memorial Park & Cemetery on the ARDA site at the Great Park.”
October is the Perfect Month to Plant Your Veggie Garden
Fall planting season is here! It’s a terrific family activity — teaching your kids how to...
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Irvine to Receive $56 Million from the American Rescue Plan Budget: How Will the Funds be Spent?
As part of the Biden administration’s American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the City of Irvine is receiving $56 million to be spent on civic improvements over the next three years.
The federal funds are intended to help cities “Build Back Better” by rebuilding and improving infrastructure, and strengthening and expanding direct human services that have been badly damaged by the COVID-19 pandemic.
City staff has drafted a plan for allocating the funds, divided into five areas. The recommended plan will be presented to the City Council for discussion and action at the Council’s October 12th meeting.
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Why Haven’t Irvine Residents Been Updated on the Orange County Power Authority … Even Though Irvine Taxpayer Money is Funding the Project?
In November 2020, environmental advocates were excited to learn that the City of Irvine was leading the effort to establish a California Community Choice Energy program, known now as the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA). The City of Irvine is funding the project through 2022.
Irvine City Councilmember Mike Carroll is the Chairman of the five-member OCPA Board. Mayor Farrah Khan also sits on the Board.
Now, nearly a year after the OCPA was established, clean energy advocates are voicing serious concerns regarding the lack of transparency and a series of questionable decisions by the OCPA Board, including the hiring of an inexperienced CEO who is being paid $239,000. And Irvine taxpayers — who are funding the OCPA — have been kept in the dark as to how their money is being spent. (So far, Irvine has advanced $7.5 million to the OCPA and will be responsible for millions more over the next year.)
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