Seven-Year-Old Irvine Resident Ivy ZhiYi Mao Takes Second Place in International Music Competition
Last August, seven-year-old Irvine resident Ivy ZhiYi Mao began violin lessons...
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Is the Orange County Power Authority in Crisis Mode? Board Members & Staff Appear to be Turning on One Another
Over the past year, news outlets across Southern California have been publishing articles that detail the troubles and missteps of the six-member Orange County Power Authority (OCPA) board.
The board is led by Irvine City Councilmember Mike Carroll. Mayor Farrah Khan is also a board member, serving with Carroll as Irvine’s representative.
The OCPA board first drew media scrutiny when they hired longtime County staffer and political operative Brian Probolsky. With zero experience in the energy field, Probolsky was named CEO of the newly created multi-million-dollar Power Authority.
Even though Irvine taxpayers are funding OCPA, neither Carroll nor Khan have allowed any public presentation or discussion regarding how Irvine taxpayer dollars are being spent. When asked about financial transparency, Carroll told Voice of OC last year: “We’re not in a typical public agency. This is not a civil service … this is about as private as a public agency can get.”
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Two Longtime Irvine Residents Share Memories of Working at the Former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station at the Great Park
Irvine Community News & Views recently caught up with longtime Irvine residents Ted Bernez and Tony Rivas. Both men worked for more than 20 years at the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS El Toro) at what is now Irvine’s Great Park.
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OCPA Hit with a Nearly $2 Million Fine Levied by the California Public Utilities Commission
During the May 24th Irvine City Council meeting, Councilmember Larry Agran used his 3-minute time allocation during the “Announcements” portion of the meeting to publicly state his concerns regarding the lack of transparency at the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA).
In April, all businesses operating in the City of Irvine were automatically transferred from their previous provider of electricity — Southern California Edison (SCE) — and enrolled in OCPA, at a higher rate. In October, all Irvine households will be transferred to OCPA, with a similar rate hike.
Agran announced that the OCPA has been fined $1.96 million by the California Public Utilities Commission for failing to purchase enough electricity to ensure that its customers are provided with uninterrupted service.
Agran asked: “Where is the oversight? Where is the transparency? Where is Irvine taxpayer money going? We need answers right now because our City’s future, both economic and environmental, is at stake.”
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New Book Celebrates History of Chinese-Americans in Irvine
How cool is this? The South Coast Chinese Cultural Center has published a new book that documents the history of Chinese-Americans here in Irvine.
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City Councilmember Larry Agran Sounds the Alarm Regarding the Lack of Transparency at OCPA
During the May 10th Irvine City Council meeting, Councilmember Larry Agran used his 3-minute time allocation during the “Announcements” portion of the Council meeting to publicly state his concerns regarding the lack of transparency at the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA).
The City of Irvine is funding the Power Authority through 2022. So far, $7.7 million of Irvine taxpayer money has been advanced to the OCPA, with no oversight by the City.
Agran has repeatedly requested that a full report be provided at a public City Council meeting regarding the status of OCPA. Due to Mayor Farrah Khan’s unpopular “Rule of Two” — requiring support from a second Councilmember — Agran’s latest request didn’t make it onto the May 10th Council meeting agenda, which is why Agran said he was forced to voice his concerns publicly during the Announcements portion of the Council meeting.
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Student-Led Nonprofit Receives “Brighter Futures Youth Award”
We Rise Above (WRA) is a national student-led nonprofit that works to educate and prevent sexual harassment and sexual violence.
Irvine’s local chapter, IUSD WRA, was recently honored with the “Brighter Futures Youth Award” for their work.
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Mayor Khan & Vice Mayor Kuo Keep Public Discussion of District Elections Off the Irvine City Council Agenda
Last year, the City of Irvine was accused of 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 voters throughout the entire City elect all members of the City Council; this often results in two or three elected Councilmembers living in the same area of the City, leaving other ares 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.
As cities grow, most decide to switch to district elections since it’s viewed as a more equitable voting system to ensure that every part of town has its own elected representative. In recent years, a majority of Orange County cities have transitioned to district elections.
For the past year, Councilmember Larry Agran has asked his Council colleagues to publicly discuss the City transitioning to district elections. However, Khan and Kuo have kept Agran’s request off the Council meeting agenda, even though the City has been threatened with a possible lawsuit that could cost Irvine taxpayers millions of dollars if the City does not transition to the more equitable system of district elections.
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The Latest on the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA)
In 2019, the previous City Council — led by now-Mayor Farrah Khan, now-Vice Mayor Anthony Kuo and current City Councilmember Mike Carroll — decided to have the City of Irvine join Orange County Power Authority (OCPA).
Carroll is Chairman of the six-member OCPA board and Khan is also a board member. (Both Carroll and Khan receive compensation for their positions on the OCPA board.)
This year, every business operating in the City of Irvine and every Irvine household will be transferred from their current provider of electricity, Southern California Edison (SCE), and enrolled in the OCPA plan.
In April, all Irvine-based businesses were transferred over to the new OCPA plan, with commercial customers now paying as much as 6% more each month for their electricity usage. In October, all Irvine households will be transferred from SCE to OCPA, with a similar price hike.
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UCI Students Rally To Protest Potential Abortion Ban
UCI students gathered Tuesday afternoon (May 10th) outside the Student Center to protest the...
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