May
31
OC Register ranks Los Alamitos USD # 2 in OC & Los Al High # 5
Filed Under Education & Schools | 2 Comments
(5/31/09, by Dave Emerson) This morning’s Register brings good news to our local school district and high school. In a detailed review of all 64 Orange County, CA, public high schools our home school cracked the top ten for the first time, trailing only Anaheim USD’s selective Oxford, Fullerton’s Troy, and Northwood and Uni in Irvine.
I’m pretty sure that makes Los Al #1 in the County for high schools with less than 50% of their students of Asian-American ancestry, whatever that means.
The Register survey based the results on a combination of almost three dozen performance quality measures utilized by the state for the 2008 school year. While 50% of the ranking was based on Read more
May
30
Cypress traffic mitigation revisited: Los Al Council looks at SeaCoast Grace expansion Monday
Filed Under 2009 Issues, City Council Meetings, Traffic | 6 Comments
View of SeaCoast Grace's admin building & present auditorium taken from site of planned new auditorium
(5/30/09, Los Alamitos, by Dave Emerson) Once again the Los Alamitos City Council has a busy agenda for it’s regular meeting this Monday. Appointing Commission members, a Katella no-parking zone, and selecting a non-profit to run LosAlTV are only 3 of 9 items on which the Council will be taking action.
We’ll post the agenda later this weekend, but for now we’ll focus on Los Al City staff input on how to respond to Cypress’s SeaCoast Grace Church’s expansion plans.
Cypress’ City Council will be meeting a week later to consider a Conditional Use Permit Amendment for the expansion of the church, located at 5100 Cerritos Avenue. The church wants to a a 2nd auditorium/sanctuary building of 38,031 square feet in Read more
May
26
The Eco-General Strikes Back: Our big recycling field trip
Filed Under 2009 Issues, The Base, Traffic | 13 Comments
(Los Alamitos, 5/26/2009, by Dave Emerson) I felt like I was riding a school bus on a field trip, except everyone on the bus was adults. And we had military escorts wearing camis instead of teachers. And Mayor Edgar, with JM sitting across the aisle in the same row. Plus assorted other Council Members and Commissioners from both Seal Beach and Los Alamitos.
It just might have been the biggest gathering of local officials assembled in one vehicle since Fred Freeman arranged for that infamous Towne Car ride. Maybe bigger.
A variety of vehicles was waiting to transport us to the compost site.
There we were–me and almost 80 of my new BFFs in two buses riding directly across the only controlled military landing field left in our part of this dysfunctional state on a mission to see . . . Read more
May
26
“O.I.C.” Artesia’s “Bloodless” Bullfights challenged by animal rights group
Filed Under Neighboring Communities, News you can use | Leave a Comment
(5/26/09, by Dave Emerson) We Realtors come across all sorts of little known facts in the course of our work. I still remember how startled I was over twenty years ago to learn that there’s an active bull ring in our neighboring town of Artesia. Having grown up in Lakewood with a great aunt living in Artesia, I was surprised I’d never heard about it.
Artesia has a variety of ethnic communities, including Portuguese-Americans, Asian Indian-Americans, and some Argentine-Americans. The bull ring has been located behind the Portuguese Community Center in Artesia for years.
The L.A.Times reports that a humane officer with Animal Cruelty Investigations Read more
May
26
O.C. Human Relations calls neighborhood meeting Wednesday, 5/27
Filed Under 2009 Issues, News you can use | Leave a Comment
The tag of the Northwest Orange Skins covered one side of the van
5/20: Wednesday morning update. Due to a prior commitment I will not be able to attend this informal meeting, but would love to have at least one person report back to us on what took place. If you can stop by and report back, please mention it in a comment below now, then report back after the meeting by way of another comment. If nobocy’s volunteered yet, maybe you’d like to try your hand at being a neighborhood reporter! The more the better.
The idea here really is to make this a community website, not my website. Here’s your chance!
(Los Alamitos, 5/26/2009, by Dave Emerson) In an effort to respond to issues raised in April by the hate crime/vandalism/grafitti in Apartment Row, the Orange County Human Relations Commission has called an informal meeting at Little Cottonwood Park this Wednesday evening from 6 – 7.
I spoke with James Armendaris about the meeting today, who indicated it was called to allow the community, especially those living in Apartment Row, to address concerns with representatives from the Los Alamitos Police Department. In addition there will be a representative from the Anti-Defamation League as well as a victim’s advocate.
At the time of the incident concerns were expressed Read more
May
25
Is it Seal Beach vs. Los Al @ two Base meetings on recycling tomorrow, Tuesday, 5/26?
Filed Under 2009 Issues, City Council, George Briggeman, The Base, Traffic | 20 Comments
The view last week from Rossmoor Highlands back yards.
(5/25/2009, Los Alamitos, by Dave Emerson) The Joint Forces Training Base is now routing 10 – 15 big 18wheeler trucks on a circuitous route through Los Alamitos five to six days a week as part of their new 5 year green waste recycling program.
The come and go by taking the 405 freeway to the 605 freeway to Katella to Lexington. Once they enter the base the trucks backtrack to the western side of the base where they follow a narrow road directly behind Rossmoor Highlands all the way around the perimeter of the Base until they finally arrive at the recycling site northeast of Arbor Park. Then they turn around and exit by the same crazy spiral, occasionally passing incoming 18 wheelers on the narrow road.
General Combs, who will be retiring this year, was hoping to route that traffic more directly off of Lampson, but ran into a major snag when Read more
May
21
Your input needed for LATV
Filed Under 2009 Issues, LosAl TV | 1 Comment
(Los Alamitos, 5/21/09, by Larry Strawther) What would you like to see on LATV? More city government meetings? More local arts? More high school concerts and plays? More sports? Less sports? Maybe you’d just like the whole thing to go away. Whatever the case, we’re providing you a forum to make your voice heard with our LATV survey.
Some of us think LATV, if managed properly, can be a very valuable tool in this community — not just for coverage of local events (sports AND non-sports), but for education (advanced training at Los Al HS in audio-video, the third largest industry in this country), and also for helping local business in a way that could definitely have a positive financial impact for this city and community.
Obviously, I have my thoughts on what the people in this community would like to see on LATV, and so do others. But the facts are none of us truly know what the community wants, so why not actually ask them?
If you’d like to make your opinions known, go here to take our survey:
May
19
8:10 this morning: No waiting on aisle 2!
(5/19, Los Alamitos, by Dave Emerson) Which is worse: a $23 billion deficit with 2 years of tax increases or a $15 billion deficit with 4 years of tax increases.
Those are the two options our duly elected rocket scientists in Sacramento came up with for we, the people, to choose between.
Today you and I get to decide which is the lesser evil: Runaway taxes or major budget cuts.
For the record, I voted no on 1 A-C and yes on 1 D-F, although D and E were a bit of a coin toss. If you want to know why, or to catch a mini-debate on school vouchers, Read more
May
18
Your real-time and later reporting and comments on tonight’s (5/18) Los Alamitos City Council Meeting
Filed Under 2009 Issues, City Council Meetings | 18 Comments
(5/18/09, Los Alamitos, CA) This is the place to report or comment on another exciting City Council meeting, whether you’re at the Council, watching on LosAlTV3, or just commenting on what others have said or on the agenda (click for complete agenda with links to staff reports).
As always, we ask Read more
May
18
Los Al 50th Anniversary Plans on Council Agenda
Filed Under 2009 Issues, City Council, City Council Meetings | 3 Comments
(5/18/09, Los Alamitos). Among other things at tonight’s Council meeting will be a discussion of staff recommendations for celebrating Los Alamitos’ 50th anniversary in 2010. Here’s some of the suggestions the staff has given the Council on the topic :
Proposed Anniversary Mottos:
- Celebrating 50 Years of Excellence
- Celebrating 50 Years of Progress
- Honoring the City’s History and Progress
- Commemorating 50 Years of Community
- Remembering the Past and Looking to the Future
- 50 Years of Service to the Community
- Celebrating Our Past, Creating Our Future
- Los Alamitos Celebrates 50 Years of Vision
Here’s the staff report on the topic: Read more
May
16
Vote Tuesday, 5/19! Thoughts, Recommendations, and your comments on Props 1 A – F
Filed Under 2009 Issues | 15 Comments
(Los Alamitos, 5/16/2009, by Dave Emerson) Well, I finally sat down and tried to wade through the 63 pages Debra Bowen mailed you an me attempting to explain a mere six ballot propositions. I already know the thinking of the “liberal” LA Times (yes on everything but 1B), the libertarian OC Register, KFI”s simplistic but entertaining John & Ken (no on everything), and the League of Women Voters (detailed below), but thought I really should try to figure it out for myself.
Bad idea.
As I attempted to scan through tMs Bowen’s summary of what prop 1A would do, I realized Read more
May
15
Council moves from “neutral” to “favorable” on Rossmoor
Filed Under 2009 Issues, City Council Meetings, Rossmoor | 10 Comments
Moving towards annexation?
(Los Alamitos, 5/15/09, by Dave Emerson) Earlier this week in a special meeting called by Mayor Troy Edgar, the Los Alamitos City Council voter 4 – 1 to move from a position of “neutrality” to a “favorable” view of having Rossmoor in Los Alamitos’ “Sphere of Influence” (SOI).
The SOI is a designation made by the County’s Local Agency Formation Comission, who has been given the task of getting unincorporated communities like Rossmoor either incorporated or annexed into neighboring communities. The SOI is generally regarded as potentially a first step in the process of annexation.
A sudden Special Meeting with a small audience
Mayor Edgar said he called the meeting just days earlier when the “weekly,” an update mailed to all City Council Members, indicated that the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission had received no feedback from Los Alamitos on their reconsideraton of the matter scheduled for Wednesday morning’s LAFCO meeting.
With the meeting called on short order, the agenda was not posted here until an alert citizen tipped me off Read more
May
15
Monday, 5/18 Council meeting to discuss Katella commercial overlay and 50th anniversary celebration
Filed Under City Council Meetings | 1 Comment
(by Dave Emerson) This coming Monday the Council only has one meeting scheduled so far. Most of the agenda for this Monday’s Regular meeting is “routine,” as you’ll see from the agenda below.
The two most interesting new items are discussions of the City’s Read more
May
14
Deep discounts on games just down the street
(Los Alamitos, 5/14/09, by Dave Emerson) One thing you’ve got to love about Los Alamitos is the great sports events in town or near by.
That’s at every level–from t-ball at St. Hedwig’s & Los Al Pony Leagues and kiddie soccer at AYSO through the incredible athletic programs at Los Alamitos High School, right up to 2 of the best “Big League” teams in pro sports just down the street (Katella).
Right now the Angels have the best starting rotation in the majors. . . with three of there top starters on the disabled list! (4 if you add in the tragic loss of Nick Adenhart to a drunk driving with a suspended license!)
Today in two classic match-ups our Angels face off against the evil Red Sox at 12:30 today while the amazing Ducks take on the mighty Red Wings in News Enterprise editor Brian Smith’s home town of Detroit at 4 our time in a do-or-die Game 7 of the NHL’s Western Conference semi-finals. (We’re taping it to view at about 5. Skipping the commercials and intermission we should be watching live by the 1st overtime.)
What you may not realize is that amazing seats are available Read more
May
13
Red UFOs over Los Alamitos Base?
Filed Under The Base | 3 Comments
(5/13/09, Los Alamitos, by Dave Emerson) If you live in or were visiting the southern half of Los Alamitos tonight, you might have noticed sequences of red lighted objects slowly rising and lowering over the Joint Forces Training Base between 8 and 9 p.m. It was a bit like an intermittent light dance.
At first, I thought it was somebody playing with his or her new toys at Little Cottonwood Park, but upon further investigation I discovered Read more
