Foothills Sentry January 2020

Foothills Sentry Page 4 January 2020 The Costco mega gas station in The District has 22 fueling stations. The one proposed for neighboring Tustin Ranch will have 32. Tustin Ranch resident Denise Berg left, and daughter Morgan believe the mega gas station is harmful to public health in general, and will worsen the 18-year-old’s existing medical condition. "Outraged" continued from page 1 15, in front of an overflowing room of outraged residents who demanded an independent study, not conducted and paid for by Costco. Councilman Barry Cooper, the sole dissenting vote, said, “Cost- co Gas is not my issue. This lo- cation’s proximity to homes is. Tustin Ranch Road and Bryan Avenue have become extensions of the 5 Freeway during the day and a drag strip at night. Adding Tustin’s second Costco station only three miles from the first will worsen an already lengthy trip for parents trying to drop off kids at school. I would venture to say home values will be impacted too.” Protect Tustin Ranch has, to date, collected more than 1,000 signatures from community members seeking to prevent this mega gas station from breaking ground. The lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court prevents Costco from starting construc- tion. Citizens have also announced a petition to recall Tustin Mayor Allan Bernstein. The recall notice explains: “Mayor Allan Bern- stein has demonstrated a pattern of behavior in which he ignores community concerns. In 2018, he voted to place a homeless shelter within 500 feet of an elementary school without consulting the community or school district. Gassing up “Now, Bernstein is at it again, having voted to exempt this mega gas station from the California Environmental Quality Act. To restore faith that our city coun- cil represents the best interests of Tustin Ranch residents, Allan Bernstein must be recalled and replaced by an official who puts the interests of people first.” “Lots of my friends at school now have what I have,” Morgan Berg reports. “We formed a sup- port group called the Zebras. You [city council] may be helping this corporation grow stronger, but there are people who need you to make the right decision. This gas station is not in our best interest.” Clear and present danger “And what about the other people with fragile immune sys- tems?” Denise Berg adds. “In fact, 42 percent (census tract 525.25) of this one square mile consists of children and seniors, the two populations most vulnerable to air quality issues.” “Perhaps Costco should con- centrate on the nightmare that has already been created at The District before trying to open a second edition of the same night- mare,” Cooper suggests. “Some folks think that a second Costco will alleviate traffic at the first. I disagree. I intend to stand with the citizens of Tustin Ranch and protest this new Costco gas sta- tion. Quality of life has much more value than big money cor- porations.” The recall petition for can be accessed at ProtectTustinRanch. org. For more info, contact Pro- tectTustinRanch@gmail.com. New state legislation has in- troduced more stringent require- ments for the disposal and treat- ment of solid waste that will re- sult in higher costs for ratepayers. Effective this month, Orange residential ratepayers will see an increase from $13.60 to $17.47 for carts; commercial bin user fees will jump from $54.63 to $65.90. The majority of the residen- tial increase will cover the costs to process organic wastes under the state’s new mandates. Green waste, formerly considered “daily cover” for landfills and therefore counted as a percentage of a ju- risdiction’s recycling mandate, is now deemed “disposed waste.” Cities are seeking alternate ways to recycle organics so they don’t end up in landfills. We’ll always have Perris CR&R, Orange’s waste hauler, currently has a Regional Organics Anaerobic Digester in Perris that can process co-mingled organics (food and green waste) in compli- ance with state law. It is one of the few such facilities in Southern California and, until now, did not handle all of the green waste that CR&R collected. Because there is no longer an advantage to dump- ing organics in landfills, more CR&R trucks will be making the trip to Perris. Orange continues to boast disposal rates among the lowest third in the county. Meanwhile, down the street in Villa Park, waste is collected and processed by Republic Services. It advised the city of the need for rate increases and calculated the costs to compost green waste at a facility in Chino. Republic estimated an annual expense of $134,000 to divert green waste from landfills. The increase is estimated to be less than $20 per quarter per household. The city elected to hire a con- sultant, FH&H, to review Repub- lic’s proposed rate adjustments to ensure that ratepayers are being treated “reasonably.” The con- sultant will be paid an hourly rate based on time and materials not to exceed $19,900. Rocket science Under the contract, FH&H will obtain Republic’s rate adjustment proposal from city staff, request additional information from the waste hauler, review its plans for diverting residential green waste, validate the rate calculations, compare those adjustments with those charged to other cities and discuss the terms of a proposed agreement with the city and Re- public. The FH&H contract came up for approval at the Dec. 17 city council meeting. “Why are you going to pay someone $19,000 to review num- bers that the council could do it- self,” Villa Park resident and for- mer city council member Diana Fascenelli inquired. “We don’t have $19,000 budgeted for this. You hired [city manager] Steve Franks because he is a negotiator. Let him negotiate a trash contract. We’ve had a great relationship with Republic. Read the report; don’t spend $19,000.” The council approved the ex- penditure, 5-0. FH&H may, if budget limits permit, make a pre- sentation at the Jan. 28 council meeting. Local trash hauling rates increase