Foothills Sentry - January 2025

Page 5 Foothills Sentry JANUARY 2025 JOHNSON MOTORCARS 34 Years of Specializing in the Service and Repair of Mercedes-Benz Gary Johnson 714-997-2567 982 N. Batavia # B13, Orange, CA 92867 gary@johnsonmotorcars.com @ ramblingroseoc Guest Commentary By Joel Robinson A 400-acre wildlife corridor and a NativeAmerican village site between Irvine and Peters Canyon Parks are being destroyed. We were surprised to see The Irvine Company (TIC) removing wildlife habitat from the north- west corner of Jamboree and Santiago Canyon Road on Mon- day, Dec. 16. Tractors pulling mowers and hand crews with ma- chetes and landscape equipment were removing above-ground vegetation on the 400 acres that TIC wants to blanket with 1,180 houses (Orange Heights). TIC cleared approximately 35 acres of coastal sage scrub and grassland. This area supported white-tailed kite, coastal Cali- fornia gnatcatcher, grasshopper sparrow, western meadow lark, northern harrier, Belding's orange throated whiptail and countless other resident and migratory spe- cies. On Wednesday, the com- pany cleared another 30-40 acres on the southwest end along Jam- boree at the Tustin border. White sage, sagebrush and other coastal sage scrub species were bull- dozed from an entire hill. After calling Steve Gibson, senior environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW), we learned that CDFW quietly ap- proved The Irvine Company’s Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for the Crotch's bumble bee last Fri- day without communicating to the public. We are shocked and dismayed by the lack of transpar- ency of CDFW. For the past few months, they did not respond to our emails, calls or requests to be included in this discretionary California Environmental Qual- ity Act (CEQA) process. Prehistoric village threatened The Irvine Co. plans to exca- vate CA-ORA-556, the prehis- toric Native American village site that qualities for the California Register of Historic Resources. All of the recovered artifacts were of stone dated to the Late Millingstone Horizon, over 3,500 years ago. It was described as an extensive lithic scatter consisting of metates, manos, cores, flakes, projectiles and a bifacial knife. The original recorder reported that a “possible cemetery” was “likely” located approximately 100 meters east of the site. “It is estimated that 90% of archaeo- logical sites in Orange County have been destroyed to make way for development. This makes the remaining archaeological sites of utmost importance, as they are the only tangible remains of Cali- fornia’s 10,000 years of Juaneño/ Acjachemen and Gabrielino/ Tongva history," reports Pat Mar- tz, emerita professor of Anthro- pology College of Natural and Social Sciences and president of the California Cultural Resources Preservation Alliance, Winter King, our attorney with Shute, Mihaly and Weinberger LLP, is in the process of filing a temporary restraining order, preliminary injunction and law- suit challenging the ITP on the grounds that CDFW violated CEQA by issuing the permit without any subsequent or sup- plemental environmental review. We need your help. The destruc- tion of wildlife habitat, including coastal sage scrub and grassland, on the Orange Heights Project is threatening special status species, including Crotch's bumble bee, least Bell's vireo and mountain lions, which is a violation of the Endangered Species Act. Please take action and donate to support our lawsuit by visiting naturalist- for-you.org/noorangeheights. Naturalist-for-you Joel Robin- son is leading No Orange Heights, a growing group of neighbors and residents of surrounding commu- nities who oppose the housing de- velopment and hope to preserve the environmentally sensitive acreage. Library services cut Dear Editor: The Orange Public Library and branches are teeming with activity. Middle school, high school and college students arrive daily to do research or study for finals. Homework help is on the rise, as students encounter new concepts in science, technology and math. Senior citizens arrive, morning, noon and night to meet friends and share insights on books, local politics and the arts. Moms and dads are searching resources to find housing, jobs, helpful hints for toddler education. The library is an active and useful place. The Orange Public Library staff is a dedicated group of professionals who stand ready to serve Orange and the greater community. They are creative, thoughtful, solution-oriented individuals who deserve better from the Orange City Council. In reviewing the budget cuts made by the Orange City Council on June 11, 2024, it is apparent that the library has been unduly burdened by these cuts. The Council agreed to cut $5,072,368 from the city’s budget. Of that $5,072,368, the amount cut from the Orange Public Library budget was $509,368, 10% of the total reportedly “city- wide” budget cuts, although the original library budget is just 4% of the City’s total budget. With the inability to hire for the 12 vacant positions, including the loss of the Director of Library Services position, the library’s budget has been cut by a whopping $1,509,368. That is a 30% (approximately) cut of the total amount of reportedly “city-wide” budget cuts. I understand the community’s concern for the loss of the beloved Treats in the Streets and the Tree Lighting Ceremony. I am sure if the community truly understood how the council has decimated the library services budget, they would be up in arms over this as well. The remaining very dedicated staff are doing the best they can under very difficult circumstances, doing their own jobs as well as taking on other position’s responsibilities, including janitorial duties, both inside and outside the library building, assisting customers at the information desk, writing grant proposals, doing minimal purchasing of supplies. Yes, all regular library tasks, but with minimal staff to accomplish customer care. The community is feeling the pinch, and they need to know what the situation is. I believe it is the Board of Trustees’ role to speak clearly to the community about this situation. The concern of the Board of Trustees is echoed by the Friends of the Library Board and the Orange Public Library Foundation Board. These volunteer community leaders are committed to improving this difficult situation. The Orange Public Library is an important community service, and the Orange Public Library staff is trained to deliver the highest quality service. That is now impossible. I understand that cuts need to be made, but every department must be burdened equally. Council needs to review the budget and restore the library staff’s ability to do their jobs in the way the community and Council expect. Rebecca Martinez, Chair, Orange Public Library Board of Trustees Mary Galuska, President, Friends of the Orange Public Library David Bustamante, President, Orange Public Library Foundation Kim Nichols, Treasurer, OPLF Cathy Smith, Secretary, OPLF Michelle Hernandez, OPLF Victoria Owens, OPLF Priscilla Selman, OPLF Larry Cohn, OPLF Lynn-Marie Frediani, OPLF Executive Director Augie Rocha and Lecturing Knight Kevin Wagner Joel Robinson prevents grubbing equipment from proceeding. Shop with a Cop and the Orange Elks The Irvine Company started habitat removal right before the holidays The Orange Elks supported their community partner, the Or- ange Police Department. Lec- turing Knight Kevin Wagner presented a check in the amount of $1475 to the City of Orange Police Association for their Shop with a Cop program. The children, selected from the Friendly Center and Youth Centers of Orange, get the opportunity to shop with a uniformed officer and spend $100 for themselves and their family at Walmart in Orange. OC Dems feature Supervisor Sarmiento The Central Orange County Democratic Club will welcome Orange County Supervisor Vi- cente Sarmiento to its Wednes- day, Jan. 22 meeting. Supervisor Sarmiento will discuss the outlook for Orange County in the new year and answer questions about local issues. Snacks and conversation begin at 6:30 p.m.; the general meeting starts at 7 p.m. Visit the club calendar, Mobilize.us, or the club Facebook link to access the link to RSVP. Central OC Dems includes the communities of Tustin, Tu- stin Hills, Orange, Villa Park, and surrounding communities. Democrats from all communities in Orange County are welcome to join. Meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday of each month at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 1221 Wass St. in Tustin. Central OC Dems is not affiliated with St. Paul’s.