State Budget Update- The Board received an update from County Executive Office Budget Director Frank Kim on the status of the State Budget impacts on the County. To view the latest update, please click here.

North Tustin Advisory Committee- The Board appointed Peter Schneider to serve a three-year term on the North Tustin Advisory Committee (NTAC). I would like to thank Rich Wagner for his nearly 12 years of service on NTAC.

Assessment Appeals Board- The Board re-appointed Habib Malik of Irvine to the Assessment Appeals Board for a full term.

Real Estate Fraud Prosecution- Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas presented the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Annual Report for FY 2008-09 to the Board. The Real Estate Fraud Unit, is a specialized unit which prosecutes, investigates, and deters real estate crimes. To read the report, please click here.

Workers Compensation Insurance Fraud Investigation Grant- The Board approved receipt of a grant in the amount of $3,114,894 from the California Department of Insurance for the District Attorney’s continued participation in the State Workers Compensation Insurance Fraud Investigation and Prosecution Program. The grant will fund the District Attorney’s involvement in the program until June 2010.

Newport Dunes Waterfront Family Inn- The Board approved a series of lease documents that will facilitate the development of a waterfront family inn at Newport Dunes. Newport Dunes is a 102-acre recreation facility on County-owned tidelands in Upper Newport Bay within the City of Newport Beach. The property includes a 450-slip marina, a boat launch ramp, a dry boat storage facility, an RV park, a beach and swimming lagoon, and a restaurant. It also includes an undeveloped 13-acre parcel entitled for a 275-room family inn hotel. The lease documents are consistent with the Letter of Intent between the County and Newport Dunes defining the lease terms to accommodate development of the hotel by Windsor Newport Dunes LP. Windsor has entered into a franchise agreement with Embassy Suites for the Newport Dunes hotel. For an aerial photo of the Newport Dunes property, click here. For a drawing of the Windsor hotel site plan, click here.

Landscape Maintenance at Yorba Regional Park- The Board approved a contract with Landscape Inter-Cal in an amount not to exceed $120,150 for landscape maintenance services at Yorba Regional Park. The services include seasonal mechanical and chemical edging, irrigation system maintenance and repair, aeration, minor facility maintenance, landscape maintenance, and trash collection.

Shelter at Yorba Regional Park- The Board approved the plans for the demolition and replacement of 35 shelter canopies at Yorba Regional Park. The existing canopies are wood-slat roof structures that have deteriorated and will be replaced with new, pre-finished, fabricated steel tube support structures with solid standing seam metal roofs. The existing shelters provide only partial shade; the new canopies will provide full shade and drier conditions during inclement weather.

ATS Re-engineering Project Update- The Board received a presentation on the Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V) of the Orange County Assessor’s Assessment Tax System (ATS) Re-Engineering Project. The IV&V presentation provided a validation of the project scope, progress toward the completion, and cut-over to the new system for production of the yearly assessment rolls. The IV&V reviewed the design approach and the work already completed by the Assessor’s office on the requirements and the functionality of the re-engineered system. The IV&V also reviewed the revised delivery schedule and estimated cost necessary to complete the project. To view the presentation, please click here.

Flood Control Channel Maintenance- The Board approved a contract with the Orange County Conservation Corps (OCCC) in an amount not to exceed $297,000 for the maintenance of flood control facilities and roadways. The OCCC is a private, non-profit organization providing job skills to young men and women. As part of this contract, the OCCC will provide work crews to the County to clean flood control channels. This includes removing obstruction, vegetation, and installing erosion control.

Social Work Field Experience- The Board approved Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with Azusa Pacific University and California State University, Dominguez Hills for undergraduate and graduate fieldwork experience in the County’s Social Services Agency. This non-financial MOU affords an opportunity for students majoring in social work to complete their required fieldwork in a public government setting.

Green Jobs Grant- The Board approved receipt of a grant in the amount of $937,890 from the State of California Employment Development Department for "green jobs." The Project will train 112 Orange County at-risk and disconnected youth ages 16 to 24 for a variety of green careers in eco-friendly industries while they continue their education and contribute to the greening of their communities. Participating youth will receive pre-employment, work maturity and life skills training. For more information, please click here.

AB 939 Surcharge Grants- The Board approved $2.5 million in AB 939 Surcharge Grants and Funding Assistant Agreements with cities and school districts throughout the county. These grants will help support recycling and waste diversion efforts by school districts, cities and other local jurisdictions in cooperation with the regional leadership of the County. To view a list of the grant recipients, please click here.

OCTA/City of Irvine Cooperative Agreement- The OCTA Board of Directors approved a cooperative agreement with the City of Irvine regarding the provision of additional funding for the Jeffery Road Grade Separation Project. The agreement calls for OCTA to transfer Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds from the Irvine Fixed Guide Project, a project which the City has decided not to proceed forward with, to the Jeffery Road Grade Separation Project. The Jeffery Road Grade Separation Project has experienced additional costs due to delays associated with utility relocations and conflicts. Construction of the grade separation is currently underway and is expected to be completed in December 2010.

ARTIC Design Award- The Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC) Project was awarded the "Outstanding On-The-Boards Site Plan" and Gold Nugget Awards from the Pacific Coast Builders Conference. Congratulations to the City of Anaheim, OCTA, and the various design firms working on the project.

Central County Major Investment Study- I attended a meeting of the Central County Major Investment Study (MIS) Policy Working Group. The MIS is in the second phase of the study and is reviewing various long-range alternatives for future road and mass transit investment options in central Orange County. At this week’s meeting, the Policy Working Group reviewed more information on the various alternatives under study and heard information regarding several new arterial alternatives for improving traffic congestion. The Working Group directed staff to continue studying the new alternatives and decided to eliminatethe two SR-57 extension alternatives which require tunneling under the Santa Ana River due to poor cost/benefit performance. The intent of the MIS is to improve mobility, lower delay times, and lessen congestion through the central corridor of the county. Click here to see a map of the study area.

Olive Heights- I toured the completed sidewalk improvements in the Olive Heights area with the County’s Chief Engineer Ignacio Ochoa, and his staff. We were greeted by Olive Elementary Principal Kathryn Martin and a few students. The project included new sidewalks around Olive Elementary School and a slurry seal for the asphalt on Orange-Olive Road between Buena Vista Road and Lincoln Avenue. The project also included the rebuilding of a retaining wall at the corner of Olive Elementary School. The project was completed in two phases to accommodate the heavy use of the adjacent streets by parents during the school year. Part of the project included installation of debris traps in the storm drains to stop road trash from flowing to our ocean. For pictures from the tour, please click here.

Mary and I attended the Tustin Area Council for Fine Arts (TACFA) production of Anything Goes at Peppertree Park in the city of Tustin. For pictures, please click here.

I met with Public Administrator/Public Guardian John Williams to discuss his response to a supplemental Grand Jury report.

I attended a Library Allocation Task Force meeting to review a draft report related to the allocation of resources to the 34 libraries within the Orange County Public Library system. This study was commissioned by the Library Advisory Board. The final report is expected to be released within the next thirty days.

Mary and I attended the final summer concert at Hart Park featuring Film at Eleven who played classic Motown and R & B hits. This concert closed another wonderful summer of music on Thursdays at Hart Park which has become a tradition for the City of Orange.

I met with Dr. Kurt Stauder and Dr. Marie Torres from AltaMed to discuss Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) in Orange County.

I attended a lunch sponsored by the Orange County Forum featuring keynote speaker Henrik Fisker, CEO of Fisker Automotive, who spoke about the future automobile industry and electric cars. Mr. Fisker drove his prototype luxury plug-in hybrid car which reportedly achieves a 100 mile per gallon fuel efficiency. For pictures from the luncheon, please click here.

I visited with Orange County Register reporter Jennifer Muir to discuss a variety of issues impacting the County.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

ATEP Community Forum- The Advanced Technology Education Park (ATEP) is hosting a community forum on Monday, August 31, to discuss its expansion from 1 acre to 30 acres on the former Marine Base in Tustin. For more information, please click here.

All Canyons Clean-Up- The Inter-Canyon League, Fire Safe Council, Ware Disposal, Canyon Septic, and Trails4All are requesting volunteers for their annual trash clean up. The event is scheduled for September 19 from 9 am to 4 pm, but volunteers are needed in the upcoming weeks to help organize the event. For more information, please click here.

Angels for Summer Readers- On Thursday, August 27, the Angels Baseball Foundation provided an opportunity for Orange County Public Libraries summer reading winner Madison Sinclair to announce "Play Ball" at the Angel’s game. Madison is a ten year old resident of Laguna Beach who read at least 12 books during the summer. For pictures from the event, please click here. Thank you to Angel’s Baseball Foundation for your continued support of OC Community Resources’ programs.

Angels for Animals- OC Animal Care will be featured at Angels Stadium on Saturday, September 12 for the second annual "Angels for Animals" event to promote animal adoptions. Proceeds from the event will benefit the shelter and rescue organizations. For more information, please click here.

Orange County Rescue Mission Food Drive- The Orange County Rescue Mission, which includes the Village of Hope in Tustin is asking for food donations. Donations are accepted at the Village of Hope, Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm. For more information about the Orange County Rescue Mission, click here.

Asian Citrus Phyllid Quarantine- On August 25, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) notified the County that the Asian citrus phyllid (ACP), a serious exotic insect pest, was detected in the city of Santa Ana. This pest transmits a devastating disease known as huanglongbing (HLB) to citrus trees. This is the first time the pest has been trapped north of San Diego and Imperial counties. Until it can be established, CDFA will restrict movement of regulated plant material, including host plants, at wholesale and retail nurseries within five miles of the find site. The total area for ACP treatment includes 12.3 square miles. Please click here for a map of the program boundary and detection area. For more information on the Asian citrus psyllid and huanglongbing disease, please click here.

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

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