New OC Animal Care Shelter- The Board directed County staff to work with the City of Tustin, the South Orange County Community College District, contract cities, and the Department of the Navy to consider the use of land the County will receive on the former MCAS Tustin for a new OC Animal Care Shelter.

State of the Jails Report- Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens and Assistant Sheriff Mike James presented a "State of the Jails" report to the Board. The report followed up on the audit conducted by the consulting firm, Crout and Sida, and focused on the areas of reform policies and procedures, security, staffing, and training. The report highlights great performance when compared to similar sized jail facilities. To view the presentation, please click here.

Habitat Restoration at Mason Regional Park- The Board approved the plans and special provisions for Habitat Restoration at Mason Regional Park. In December of 2003, the Board declared an emergency and initiated the removal of sediment and vegetation from San Diego Creek Channel to improve flood protection. As part of this action, the County is required to meet certain habitat restoration requirements as set forth by Federal and State agencies. The County will restore approximately 10 acres of habitat in Mason Regional Park located between Ridgeline Drive and Culver Drive in the City of Irvine. The restoration will create and enhance Mulefat Scrub, Southern Willow Scrub, and Coastal Sage Scrub habitats. The restoration includes invasive plant species removal, shallow depth excavation and grading, irrigation installation, native habitat planting, and hydro-seeding. This will be followed by five years of maintenance, monitoring, and reporting. The restoration is expected to begin September 15, 2009, outside of the nesting season, and to comply with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. To view the project location map, click here.

Workforce Investment Act grant- The Board accepted $9,000,000 of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for the Orange County Workforce Investment Board. This unprecedented level of funding will provide additional training programs to help workers acquire new skills and regain employment. It will also provide for additional hours of service at One-Stop Centers throughout the county. Click here for One-Stop locations.

Orangewood Children’s Home Donation- The Board accepted a donation in the amount of $13,173.14 from the Phyllis Frances Couture Revocable Trust. The gift will assist in supporting social, educational, recreational and other enriching activities for children and youth placed at Orangewood Children's Home.

OC Animal Care Community Outreach Committee- The Board appointed Janette Thomas, as the Third District appointee to the OC Animal Care Community Outreach Committee for a two-year term. Janette is a resident of North Tustin.

CAST 20th Anniversary- During the Board meeting, I presented a Resolution to the Child Abuse Services Team (CAST) to commemorate their 20th anniversary. Click here to read the resolution. Click here for pictures.

OCLA Graduates- The Board honored the recent class of County employees who graduated from the Orange County Leadership Academy, which is a program sponsored by the County at Chapman University. I would like to congratulate Lou Bronstein, one of my policy advisors, on his OCLA graduation!

TCA Docent Program- The San Joaquin Hills and Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agencies announced a new environmental docent program at their board meetings this week. The Environmental Docent Program seeks volunteers to be Transportation Corridor Agencies Docents. Docents will lead tours of the Agencies restoration sites and teach the public about Orange County’s native environment. The program will focus on four mitigation sites; the Siphon Reservoir, Upper Chiquita, Bonita Creek Channel and the SR-73 Laguna Canyon area.

Each year, the TCA has invited the public to experience these restoration sites during its annual series of guided spring tours. These free tour events are a wonderful opportunity for TCA to showcase its mitigation efforts to the community and to teach others while in the pleasant surroundings of restoration sites. For the past several years, the tours have been full and have not been able to accommodate all who wish to attend. This new program will allow members of the public the opportunity to experience these sites through guided tours all year round.

For more information about TCA’s Environmental Docent Program and for more information on how to become a docent, click here.

April Commission Meeting- The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) held its monthly Commission meeting on Wednesday, April 8, 2009. The Commission voted to continue adoption of the annual budget to the May Commission meeting, and directed staff to report back on issues related to costs for potential consultant studies, IT issues, facilities, optional benefit plans, and a plan for reserves.

John Wayne Airport Lease with Virgin America, Inc.- The Board approved the Certified Passenger Airline Lease between the County of Orange and Virgin America, Inc. The airline was allocated five class A spots as well as ticket counter space in Terminal A. The airline is currently scheduled to provide service to San Francisco. For more information on Virgin America, Inc. please click here.

Airport Traffic- The Airport provided details of the Los Angeles area basin air traffic to the Bay Area. According to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, for the 2008 calendar year, John Wayne Airport enplaned 361,200 passengers to Oakland International, 173,591 passengers to San Francisco International, and 346,018 passengers to San Jose International for a total of 880,809 passengers to the Bay area. For information on other airport traffic, please click here.

Last weekend, Mary and I attended a reception in Panorama Heights at the home of Laurie and Blaine Molsberry. Along with many of their neighbors, the Molsberry’s wished to show their appreciation to the County for its efforts in improving the roads in the area. I was also joined by Chief Engineer Nacho Ochoa and his wife, Michelle, along with Senior Engineer Wilfried Niemann, who was responsible for the project’s design, advertisement, award, and inspection. Nacho shared that in his over thirty years working at the County, this was the first thank you reception he has been invited to attend. Click here for pictures from the reception.

I attended the Orange County Sheriff’s Advisory Council’s 21st Annual Medal of Valor luncheon. Each year, the Sheriff’s Advisory Council honors men and women from the Sheriff’s Department and from the community who have provided meritorious service in the areas of valor, courage, merit, lifesaving, and including those who have received a Purple Heart. Proceeds from the event go to benefit Project 999. This fund, Project 999, is named after the radio code, "Officer Needs Help-Emergency," and it provides emergency assistance for officers injured in the line of duty or for families of officers killed in the line of duty. To view the program from the event, featuring many gripping stories of sacrifice and service, please click here. For pictures from the event, please click here.

Mary and I attended an Orange County Women in Transportation Seminar roast honoring Art Leahy for his service at OCTA. For pictures, click here.

I met with Steve Wilburn, Chairman and CEO of FirmGreen, Inc. to discuss potential energy conversion technologies for application at County landfills. FirmGreen is an integrated energy company involved with identifying and developing new and emerging green technologies and alternative fuels.

I met with Steve Delaney, chief executive officer of the Orange County Employee Retirement System (OCERS), and Bob Griffith, chairman of the Board of Retirement of OCERS. We discussed OCERS portfolio performance, OCERS Board appointments in 2008, and future rates and projections for the system.

Mary and I attended the Orange County World Affairs Council dinner featuring a keynote speech by former World Bank President James D. Wolfensohn on the current financial crisis and emerging role of China and India in the global economy. Click here for pictures.

I met with Dr.’s Sharps, Nguyen, and Jensen from the Orange County Psychiatric Society (OCPS) to discuss issues related to mental health in the county.

Mary joined me for lunch with my staff to celebrate my birthday on April 8th. Chief vocalist, Mario Mainero, for the Second District stopped by to sing me happy birthday. Click here for pictures.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Good Friday, The Way of the Cross- Each year, on Good Friday, the Diane and Daniel Dulac family host an outdoor "Stations of the Cross" hike on his property in Baker Canyon. The walk starts at 1:00 pm and covers approximately one mile. For more information, including a map to the location, please click here.

Easter Egg Hunt and Pancake Breakfast in Tustin- On Saturday, April 11th from 8:30 am to 11 am, the City of Tustin Parks and Recreation is sponsoring an Easter Egg Hunt and Pancake Breakfast at the Tustin Sports Park. Click here to view the event flyer.

Easter Pancake Breakfast at the Modjeska Fire Station - Modjeska Canyon will be hosting an Easter Pancake Breakfast at the Modjeska Fire Station on Sunday, April 12, 7:00 am to 11:30 am. Cost for admission will be $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children. There will be an Easter Egg Hunt at Modjeska Park at 2:00 pm.