Foothills Sentry May 2021

Foothills Sentry Page 4 May 2021 Contact Peggy Baranyay to make a reservation. (714) 828-1289 • (714) 502-4720 • swtmthr@sbcglobal.net General Meeting & Luncheon: Friday, May 21, 2021 10:30 AM Registration - 11:00 AMMeeting Meeting Location: Santa Ana Elks Lodge #794 1751 S. Lyon Street, Santa Ana 92705 ORANGERWF.ORG Reservation Required $25 cash or check payable to ORWF SPEAKERS: Trevor O’Neill, Anaheim City Councilmember Housing issues; Challenges & Solutions during the yearlong pandemic. Kelly Ernby, OCGP Voter Registration & Precinct Operations GOP strategies to increase voter registration & precinct campaign volunteer opportunities. JOIN US FOR POLITICAL EDUCATION and COMMUNITY AWARENESS Men Welcome! Santiago Hills landscape assessment will increase Property owners in Santiago Hills can expect their annual landscape assessment district fee to go up this year. The Orange City Council will hold a public hearing on the increase at its June meeting. The contract for Santiago Hills landscaping expires this June. The city requested bid propos- als for a new four-year contract. Nieves Landscaping, the current contractor, submitted the most re- sponsive and lowest bid. The $1,234,140 four-year bid reflects an increase of 14% over the expiring four-year contract. Higher costs are attributed pri- marily to cost-of-living adjust- ments, higher labor and materials costs, and steeper insurance rates. Property owners will not be as- sessed the full increase. Jumps in the annual landscape assessment approved by voters in 2015 are limited by the Consumer Price Index; staff will be recommend- ing a 1.5% raise at the June meet- ing. The additional costs are, ac- cording to city staff, “financially sustainable.” Many Santiago Hills residents have asked the city to stop using chemicals to curtail weeds and pests in the community landscaping. Orange Community Services requested bidders to include prices for chemical-free abatement and also for a total pesticide-free approach. The lowest bid for chemical-free maintenance was 51% higher and pesticide-free 71% higher than the Nieves bid for status quo weed, insect and rodent management. Community Services sent out a survey to Santiago Hills property owners in February asking them if they would favor a transition to organics and the resulting higher cost, or if they would prefer to retain current chemical-based maintenance techniques. Of the 1,475 surveys sent, 204 were returned. Of those, 85% favored keeping the current program; 12% opted for organics; and 3% picked both. Santiago Hills is one of two communities in Orange that pays a landscape assessment fee to the city – instead of a homeowners’ association -- to manage common area maintenance. Serrano Water District recognized for proactive efforts Serrano Water District (SWD) and Orange County Water Dis- trict (OCWD) were recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers-Orange County (ASCE-OC) for their work on a PFAS treatment plant. The award highlights the agencies’ proactive efforts to remove per- and poly- fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from groundwater supplies. OCWD focused on PFAS fol- lowing a lowering of the state’s health advisory levels for two PFAS chemicals, perfluoroocta- noic acid (PFOA) and perfluo- rooctane sulfonate (PFOS), in February 2020. The state’s action prompted Orange County water agencies, such as SWD, who pump water from the aquifer to take dozens of wells out of service and rely on more expensive imported water for their primary supply. OCWD will design and construct 10 PFAS treatment plants, including SWD’s, with the goal of getting plants online within two years to fully utilize the basin again. “Our agency proactively took two impacted wells out of service to continue providing high-qual- ity, reliable water,” said SWD General Manager Jerry Vilander. “Through a collaborative process with OCWD and our community members, the PFAS treatment plant will support our priority to get drinking water wells back in operation later this year to contin- ue our legacy of providing a sus- tainable water supply to the resi- dents and businesses we serve.” PFAS contamination was caused by chemical manufactur- ers. To protect ratepayers and ensure PFAS costs are borne by the companies that developed and manufactured them, OCWD and 10 of Orange County’s public wa- ter agencies have filed a lawsuit. City surplus property sold for affordable housing The City Council approved the sale of three houses on La Veta Avenue to HomeAid, a nonprofit that provides low-cost shelter and housing, at its April 13 meeting. HomeAid will pay $700,000 for the properties, and create six dwelling units. Three existing houses will be renovated using Old Towne Historic Design Stan- dards, and an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) added on each lot. The city purchased the proper- ties at 617, 625, and 637 West La Veta Avenue between 1992 and 1999 for a planned street widen- ing. The widening project never moved forward. The city declared them surplus in April 2020 and, as dictated by law, notified other public agencies that the property was for sale at market value. HomeAid was the only en- tity that submitted a proposal to purchase the properties from the city. HomeAid has successfully developed 59 housing projects in Orange County that have added 1,451 shelter beds across the en- tire homeless continuum of care spectrum. These facilities range from emergency housing, to in- terim housing, and permanent supportive housing. The six housing units on La Veta will be kept affordable for 55 years, designated for people earning 50% or less of the Area Median Income. Dan Adams appointed Orange’s next police chief Captain Dan Adams has been appointed as Orange's new Chief of Police, effective July 4. Adams will replace Chief Tom Kisela, who is retiring on July 3 after 35 years with the Orange Police Department, including the last five as chief of police. Adams began his law enforce- ment career with the City of Orange Police Department 31 years ago. He most recently com- manded the department’s largest division, Field Services, where he was responsible for over 130 employees and managed the de- partment’s patrol services, traffic bureau, neighborhood enhance- ment team, homeless engagement team, communications center, and SWAT team. Adams had previ- ously led the Support Services Division, where he was directly responsible for the department’s budget, hiring and training, crime prevention and homeland secu- rity. Adams was born and raised in Orange and is a graduate of Or- ange High School. He and his wife Lesly have two adult sons. Adams spent many years as a youth hockey coach, where he focused on mentoring kids with character-based values. Adams holds a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice Management. Ground was broken for the OCWD PFAS treatment facility, April 12, to be built on SWD property in Villa Park. The structure, which will rise only 10 feet above ground, is slated for fall completion. Three surplus houses on La Veta will be refurbished for low income housing.