Foothills Sentry February 2020

Foothills Sentry February 2020 Page 5 "Short-term" continued from page 1 and get our codes in order.” He then suggested the council vote to ban STRs right then and there. Mayor Mark Murphy was more tempered. “Sounds like we’re headed in that direction,” he said, “but I have a hunch there are already laws on the books that apply. There are boarding house rules. We have to get on top of frequent abusers. I suggest the owner should be on site, and a single-family home shouldn’t be advertised as 18 beds. But I want to exhaust what’s on the books before we create more regula- tions.” There are provisions in the books to combat some of the complaints against STRs. They include property maintenance regulations, litter prohibitions, noise limits, parking restrictions and party ordinances. To date, however, they have not been consistently applied to STR. Ways to go Kim Nichols, noting that she owns a rental property in New- port Beach, said she “has a heart” for people who were responsible, but doesn’t want investors buy- ing property for short-term rent- als. “Putting twin beds in the living room is just wrong,” she said. “My biggest concern is that we sit here without an ordinance, and we have 200 Airbnbs.” “What I’m hearing,” City Manager Rick Otto summarized, “is to bring options back to the council at a later date, either restricting them completely, or making them owner-occupied. We’ll also look at the addresses identified as ‘problem children.’ There might be code violations that we haven’t addressed.” The council encouraged staff to fine-tune the options sooner than later. “I want this to be an expedited process,” Monaco insisted. “It’s impacting lots of people.” “I won’t vote for anything that’s in r-1,” Alvarez advised. “It’s off the table.” Trinity Brewer of Tustin was selected by Girl Scouts of the USA to appear on the packaging of Thin Mints and Shortbread cookies that will be sold during this year’s Girl Scout cookie program. Brewer is one of six scouts recognized by the national or- ganization as a “cookie pro” for her outstanding approach to meeting new customers and helping her troop meet its sales goals. For the 2020 cookie campaign, she is featured experiencing activities made possible by earnings from cookie sales. She has been a Girl Scout since she was a kindergarten Dai- sy, and enjoys serving her community with her troop. She used her cookie proceeds to organize a “Backpacks 2 Fill the Gaps” project that distributed over 50 backpacks filled with toilet- ries to the homeless community. For that, she earned the Silver Award and Take Action Award. “Through the Cookie Program,” she says, “I’ve learned that the number one reason people do not buy a product is because they haven’t been asked. This has encouraged me to be brave in sharing with people, and taught me how to network. I have also learned how to manage money. Girl Scouts has given me the opportunity, voice and skills to help my community.” The Girl Scout Cookie Program is running in Orange County until Sunday, March 8. Cookie booth sales, in front of grocery stores and retail locations, begin Fri., Feb. 14. Each and every purchase of Girl Scout Cookies is an investment in Orange County girls and their leadership capabilities, both now and in the future. Tustin Girl Scout featured on cookie boxes Tustin Girl Scout Trinity Brewer is one of the faces of scouting seen on Thin Mint and Shortbread cookie packages.