NOISE MONITOR LEASE- The Board unanimously approved a lease agreement with the Tustin Unified School District for the continued placement of an airport noise monitoring station at Columbus Tustin Middle School. The noise monitor will continuously measure aircraft noise 24 hours a day. The noise monitoring station is an essential part of the County's enforcement of John Wayne Airport's noise ordinance. Currently, John Wayne Airport has ten monitoring stations located north and south of the airport.

IRVINE REGIONAL PARK IMPROVEMENT - The Board approved allowing the County to advertise for bids on the construction of entrance improvements at Irvine Regional Park. Improvements to the main vehicular access entrance to Irvine Regional Park will include new signage, electronic gate access, replacing the entry kiosk, landscaping and site improvements. The proposed project will incorporate entrance and access improvements to provide access for the Boy Scouts’ Outdoor Education Center located adjacent to the northern boundary of Irvine Regional Park, now under construction. This project is will be jointly-funded by the County and the Boy Scouts.

ROAD IMPROVEMENT CONTRACTS-The Board approved allowing the County to advertise for bids for the slurry sealing of various unincorporated local, collector, and arterial streets throughout various unincorporated islands including the Santiago and Silverado Canyon areas. For a map of the project location, click here.

COMMUNITY SERVICE PARTNERSHIP - The Board approved a Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) between the County of Orange, in conjunction with the Orange County Workforce Investment Board, and the Irvine Unified School District for "one stop shop" community services. Services include responding to the needs of businesses, job seekers, and students through an integrated workforce development system. All involved agencies are committed to work with the partners to adopt policies and universal access for all customers, including those with special needs such as literacy deficits, physical or mental disabilities, limited English language proficiency, and other economic or geographical barriers to service or employment.

COLD WEATHER SHELTER PROGRAM - The Board approved an agreement with Council of Orange County, Society of St. Vincent de Paul for their continued operation of the Cold Weather Armory Emergency Shelter Program. This program provides shelter beds at night for the homeless during the colder months from November through April. The shelter serves approximately 300 homeless persons each night of operation at the Santa Ana and Fullerton National Guard Armories. St. Vincent de Paul also supplies homeless clients with clean clothes and hygiene products and schedules appropriate referrals to clients in need of medical attention, transitional housing, job opportunities, and other supportive services to break the cycle of homelessness.

MEASURE M FUNDING- On Monday, the OCTA Board of Directors voted to increase the Measure M allocation to the SR-57 freeway by $22 million so that OCTA can add one general purpose lane on the northbound SR-57 between the SR-91 and Lambert Road. This additional funding will allow OCTA to expedite the design work on the SR-57 widening project approved in the Renewed Measure M. By funding the design work now, OCTA will be ready to build the project as early as 2010.

IMPERIAL HIGHWAY SMART STREET- The OCTA Board of Directors unanimously approved an additional $2.2 million for the Imperial Highway Smart Street Project. This additional funding will be used to improve Imperial Highway between the SR-57 and Rose Drive and will greatly enhance mobility along this corridor in the cities of Brea, Fullerton, and Placentia.

METROLINK STATION SECURITY- The Board of Directors directed staff to proceed with the Metrolink Video Surveillance System Deployment Program. The Metrolink Video Surveillance System Deployment Program is a pilot program at the Buena Park, Fullerton, Irvine, Orange, Santa Ana, and Tustin Metrolink stations which will install video surveillance and security measures to increase the security of our rail infrastructure. In addition to the security enhancement, this program will also result in a more integrated communication network, better risk management and increased transit safety.

GOLDEN GUARDIAN SECURITY EXERCISE- The OCTA Board of Directors voted to transfer title of two retired OCTA buses to the City of Anaheim Police Department for use in the "Golden Guardian" Security Exercise. This security exercise is a State of California sponsored terrorism preparedness drill which will include the participation of each Orange County city and the County of Orange. It will allow our emergency response teams to prepare and train so that they can quickly respond in the event of a terrorist attack.

Congratulations to the staff of the Harbors, Beaches and Parks Department for their recognition in the September edition of Landscape Architect and Specifier News highlighting their renovation of Holderman Park in North Tustin.

Congratulations to Carol Bone, of Tustin, on being honored as Volunteer of the Month by the Republican Party of Orange County.

Congratulations to John Hanna, of Orange, on being selected as the Vice-Chairman of the Community College League’s Advisory Committee on Legislation. In addition to his Post as Vice-Chairman, John is the President of the Board of Trustees of the Rancho Santiago Community College District.

I met with Irvine Mayor Beth Krom and Mayor Pro Tem Larry Agran to discuss transportation issue in the City of Irvine.

I had the pleasure of welcoming attendees to the Orange County Business Council’s 2007 Workforce Development Conference featuring Keynote Speaker Wing Lam, Founder and CEO of Wahoo's Fish Tacos. Wallace Walrod, Vice President of Research and Communication for the Orange County Business Council presented the 2007 Workforce Indicators Report, comparing last year's OC workforce and education trends with todays. For pictures, click here. For a copy of the presentation by Wallace, click here. For a copy of the 2007 Workforce Indicators Report, click here.

My staff attended an event at the Friendly Center, a family and Community Resource Center located in the City of Orange. The center was recently selected by the California Family Resource Association (CFRA) as a model agency and one of the top four Family Resource Centers in the state with Mental Health Services. Leticia Alejandre, Executive Director of CFRA presented the Friendly Center with the official designation, I provided a proclamation, and Mayor Carolyn Cavecche provided a proclamation to celebrate this event.To view photos, click here and to learn more about the Friendly Center, click here.

Helen Fried, Acting County Librarian, made presentations on the Orange County Library system at the Villa Park and Irvine City Council meetings. To view the presentation, click here.

Orange County Assessor Webster J. Guillory provided the Board with a memorandum detailing the current and historical property foreclosure rate in Orange County. In his memorandum to the Board, the Assessor highlighted the low rate of foreclosure compared to neighboring counties. Click here to view the Assessor’s charts.

This week, a report released by the FBI listed the city of Irvine as the safest big city in the nation for the third straight year. I would like to congratulate the Irvine City Council and Irvine Police Chief David Maggard on this recognition and on making safety a top priority in the city of Irvine. According to FBI statistics, violent crime in Irvine dropped to 6.68 violent crimes per 10,000 people in 2006 while the nation saw an increase in violent crime. To view the FBI's report, click here.

Upcoming Events in the Third District

On Saturday, the City of Irvine will be hosting its 6th Annual Global Village Festival at Colonel Bill Barber Marine Corps Memorial Park from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. The festival will feature ethnic cuisine from around the world, entertainment, and educational exhibits. For more information, click here.

The Friends of Orange Public Library Fall Book Sale will be held at the Main Library & History Center Community Room on Saturday, September 29 from 10 am - 3 pm. For more information please call the Friends of the Orange Public Library at (714) 288-2424.

This Saturday the City of Brea will host its annual Wellness Festival from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Brea Community Center located at 695 E. Madison Way. It will demonstrate heart healthy samples, medical screenings, free massage, and numerous community and corporate organizations. For more information call (714) 990-7100 or click here to view a flyer for the event.

The 8th biannual El Modena reunion will be held at Moreno’s Restaurant in Orange on Saturday, September 29, from 5 p.m. to midnight. To reserve tickets or for more information please call (714) 369-2181.

It is a pleasure to serve the constituents of the Third District.

Please pray for our armed forces and our foreign services personnel.