Foothills Sentry March 2021

Page 5 Foothills Sentry March 2021 Circulation … 41,750 Published on the last Tuesday of each month and distributed to residences, businesses, libraries and civic centers. 714-532-4406 Fax: 714-532-6755 foothillssentry.com 1107 E. Chapman Ave., #207 Orange, CA 92866 © Foothills Sentry 2020 Publisher/Editor Anita Bennyhoff 1969-2013 Editor Tina Richards editor@foothillssentry.com Sports Editor Cliff Robbins sportseditor@att.net Graphic Designer Aimee Armstrong graphics@foothillssentry.com Advertising Sales Andie Mills advertising@foothillssentry.com 714-926-9299 Office Manager Kathy Eidson officemanager@foothillssentry. com Pick your poison Dear Editor: Santiago Hills residents recent- ly received a letter from the city regarding landscape assessment fees, stating that switching from chemical pesticides to organics would double the cost. I believe that letter was negligent and dis- honest. The letter was mailed out one day after the February city coun- cil meeting, and “input” is due before the March meeting. I be- lieve city staff does not want us to bring this to the council’s at- tention. None of the bids received are included on the city’s website for public review. If I tried to request these through city records, it would take longer than the feed- back period for me to receive a reply. In the RFP, vendors were asked to submit a proposal for a pesti- cide-free option. Those results have not been shared with home- owners. Three of our parks in Orange are now pesticide-free and main- tained by the same landscape company as the Santiago Hills Landscape District, at NO IN- CREASE IN COST. Santiago Hills Park has been pesticide-free for 1.5 years. Yet, we are sup- posed to believe a 45% increase in our assessment fee would hap- pen for a transition to organics? Neighbors are discussing this online and the wording of this document makes it seem like there is 1.) a vote; and 2.) that it’s only about cost. Of course, no one wants taxes to go up, especially not in a pandemic. But many of us don’t want to be poisoned, ei- ther - is there no other mutually satisfying solution? Residents have had ongoing concerns about the landscap- ing maintenance in this area for ages. We now have no forum to discuss the issue, as city staff do not hold regular town halls with us -- they’ll blame it on COVID, I’m sure. But you cannot tell me a Zoom town hall cannot happen right now! Residents should be included in decisions made about our assess- ment fees. Given that they are looking to award the contract before the April city council meeting, I feel like staff has already made up their minds, and are trying to si- lence concerned residents who just want our children and pets to be able to play safely in our neighborhood! I propose that this be agendized for the next city council meeting. I would ask councilmembers to vote to ban synthetic pesticides (Speedzone and Ranger Pro/ RoundUp) in the City of Orange. Jess Barber Orange Silent majority Dear Editor: I’m sharing a voicemail mes- sage I left for the Orange City Council before 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16. I chose to use the voice- mail option, as I wanted Council to hear my words directly. I ex- pressed my disappointment in the decision to stop reading public comments live or using another live platform so members of the public could provide live com- ments more safely and remote- ly. Thank you for recognizing that we have an off-campus student housing problem in our beloved community. Admitting there’s a problem, not looking the other way, is the first step in finding so- lutions. Tonight’s urgency ordinance starts this process and gives us time to get the details right to fix the real problem. I look forward to participating in future work- shops as it moves forward. Similarly, action on the quali- ty-of-life and safety issues well known in East Orange must also receive the same attention. As a resident and property owner on the east side of town, I believe the landfill operation at The Trails at Santiago Creek site and unpermit- ted contaminated debris dumping at the Chandler site need swift ac- tion. Perhaps, an update on the timing of the report requested by the mayor pro tem in January on these matters can also be provid- ed. Following the law, indepen- dently understanding what hap- pened (and is happening), and delving into the details to docu- ment oversight and accountabil- ity, shows us that local control re- ally matters to the city. We want the same action and land use pro- tections for our neighborhoods, just like our friends and property owners do downtown. Adrienne Gladson Orange Dear Editor: The challenges of COVID-19 are exposing the underbelly of city leadership. While the City of Orange seems to embrace the op- portunity to exclude public com- ments and involvement in city council meetings, other public bodies allow residents to Zoom from home in order to share their comments during meetings. I was appalled to learn of the new pub- lic comment rules, which cleverly shuts out the public. The reading of resident comments has been abruptly stopped at council meet- ings. Now the only way to get your voice heard is to risk exposure to the virus by going in person to the council chambers. There you can speak to the councilmembers and the public who are sitting at home via the virtual setup. Who came up with this idea? Since technology easily allows public comments to be delivered from home by the speakers, one can only make assumptions as to why the Orange City Council has orchestrated such obstruction to public commentary. The pub- lic has a right to hear, in context, what their neighbors are saying and should be given the oppor- tunity to insert comments them- selves in real time, as we always have had. The message seems to be that the council really doesn’t care to hear comments, and they certainly don’t care if the city at large hears them either. Kim Plehn Orange Dear Editor: This letter is to call your at- tention to what I believe is a sub- stantial violation of the Ralph M. Brown Act. The nature of the violation is as follows: In its meeting of Feb. 9, the city council took action to pre- vent public comment submitted by email or in writing from being read during time of public com- ment. Instead, the only means for providing public comment at the Feb. 16 special meeting was in- person in council chambers. The action taken was not in compliance with the Brown Act in that it violates the American Disabilities Act by not accommo- dating individuals with disabili- ties who cannot attend the coun- cil meeting due to their disability and vulnerability to COVID 19. They must be accommodated so as to participate and provide their comment to council in a manner that would also be heard by the public and put on the record. Furthermore, a state executive order mandates that a local legis- lative body that holds a meeting telephonically or electronically allow the public to observe and address the meeting telephoni- cally or electronically. Council should acknowledge that its action violated law by pro- hibiting participation by individu- als with disabilities and members of the public who could not attend and make public comments in person. As members of the pub- lic were not allowed to comment electronically or in writing to be read aloud at the Feb. 16 meeting, any comments that were not read would also be in violation and should be read at a later meeting. Council should provide assur- ances that all meetings conducted telephonically or electronically will allow everyone the option to participate and provide public comment that will be of public record. Doug Vogel Orange city hall, no written comments read) surprised me, and the public as well. It threw me for a loop.” Try again Indeed, the two-person turn- out at city hall indicated many residents did not know about the live option and had submitted written comments. They were subsequently dismayed to learn that those emails would not be read aloud. The silence was per- ceived by many to stifle public See "Orange council" continued from page 1 comments, instead of encourage them. Rick Otto reiterated the tech- nical difficulties involved with hosting two meetings or enter- taining phone-in comments. “Staff preference was to do it the way we did it tonight,” he said. Murphy asked council members whether they wanted Otto to try another approach or keep the method rolled out for that meeting. Mike Alvarez, Jon Dumitru, Chip Monaco, Kim Nichols and Murphy said “yes” to the current model; Arianna Barrios and Ana Gutierrez voted “no.” Short-term tempest Dear Editor: Short-term rentals are prohib- ited in our city. They are not an allowable use under the zoning code. That should be the end of the story. The major issues facing our city have to do with planning: the Chapman expansion, the North Tustin Street corridor, group homes, the General Plan housing element update, and the acces- sory dwelling unit and short-term rental fiascos. Planning should not be piece- meal, as it will impact Orange forever. Our city council should be pro- active with the goal of protecting existing neighborhoods. Allow- ing short-term rentals in quiet neighborhoods disrupts the qual- ity of life for residents seeking peaceful living. Converting homes to short- term rentals originally intended for long-term residents is totally counterproductive. It’s going backwards and works against the city's requirement to increase its housing capacity as there may be quotas imposed by other agencies that pressure the city to support developments that degrade exist- ing neighborhoods. Approving a short-term rental program will take more existing housing offline. The unintended consequences are endless, including subletting schemes promoted by venture capitalists wanting to profit off the short-term rental market. The downside of STRs is not just bad relations for those who live next to them, but for the neighborhoods that find dubious developments encroaching on them to compensate for the reduc- tion in housing caused by STRs. Our elected leaders must be proactive. Reinforce that our quality-of-life matters. Our neigh- borhoods should be protected and not turned into hotel zones. It’s really simple, just enforce the zoning code that’s on the books. David Hillman Orange Orange scholars feted Orange resident Jack Breuer was named to the Dean’s List for the fall semester at Sam Houston State University in Texas. Na- thaniel Freeman, was named to the Dean’s List at George Fox University, Oregon. At the Uni- versity of Wisconsin, Carissa Loeper made the Dean’s List. Catharine Christiansen achieved Provost’s Honor Roll status for the fall semester at Whitworth University in Washington. Jason Lembo and Nicole Snyder were named to the President’s List at Gonzaga University in Spokane, and Samantha Lembo, Cassidy McDonald and Alexis Rivas were named to the Dean’s List there.