Foothills Sentry September 2024

Page 3 Foothills Sentry SEPTEMBER 2024 Apply Online sccollege.edu/apply Late-Start Classes Begin Oct. 14 Enroll in Fall 2024 Late Start Classes Free Tuition: First-time college students can receive two years of tuition-free education, regardless of income! Flexible Schedule: Classes available in-person, online or hybrid! GARRETT SMITH FOR ORANGE CITY TREASURER The ONLY Candidate with 10+ years of Finance Experience 2024 Financial Analyst Finance Manager Financial forecasting / budgeting www.smith4treasurer.com Paid for by garrett smith for treasurer City of Orange 2024 - fppc # Pending OC Fair Board set to evict equestrian’s protesting higher fees By Carrie Graham Boarders at the OC Fair & Event Center Equestrian Cen- ter who had not signed their in- creased rental contracts are run- ning out of time to find a new home for their horses. Those who have not paid up or moved out by Aug. 23 were threatened with “removal of property.” A number of the occupants had been holding out hope that they can sit down with the fair board to negotiate a more reason- able contract. Instead, they were served with 30-day notices to sign the new agreements or move out. When those 30 days were up, all who still hadn’t signed were locked out of the arenas, turnout spaces and round pens, effective- ly confining the horses to their stalls. Many have expressed concerns over the decision to ban the hors- es from exercise areas, including Supervisor Katrina Foley, whose district includes the fairgrounds. “The fair failed to consider the variety of horse breeds that require room to run and trot to remain safe and healthy,” said Foley. “The fair’s inadequate no- tice prevented the boarders from seeking alternative facilities due to health screening requirements and impacted waitlists, given the various regional facility clo- sures.” Higher fees, lower service The rent hikes, which will gradually increase prices from $644 to $979 over the next sev- eral months, will make the eques- trian center’s rates the most ex- pensive in Southern California. However, Brian Lochrie, Presi- dent of Communications Lab, a public relations firm represent- ing the equestrians, says the rent increase is only part of the is- sue. The new contract includes a 50% deposit per stall, but with no clear definition of what would be considered normal wear and tear versus damages. He says it also doesn't specify where the horse will actually be housed. “It would be like signing a rent- al agreement with a landlord for an apartment and he says, ‘okay I’ll rent you an apartment but I’m not telling you where it is;’” Lo- chrie explains. The new contracts also fail to specify who will be financially responsible for repairs to the facility. The center has fallen into disrepair, with visible rust in places, and boarders want to make sure they won’t be on the hook for repairs down the line. Macki Hamblin, who has five horses and runs her business, Connected Equine, out of the cen- ter, has sought help from outside sources. Hamblin traveled to Sac- ramento to speak during public comment at the recent California Department of Food and Agricul- ture meeting. She says she hasn’t signed yet, because the way the current contracts are written puts her and her horses at risk. A contract with holes “There is no defined space in the contract so they could tech- nically lock the horses out of the usable spaces even after it is signed,” says Hamblin. “It is very vague about who is responsible for facility repairs, and they could make me liable for unknown costs.. Especially since the cur- rent county-hired operators haven't done any deferred main- tenance in the year and a half they have been there.” The fair board has been un- moved so far. Fair Communica- tions Director Terry Moore said that while the horses may not have any concept of rent, "their owners do." But when asked how a task like evicting 30-40 large animals would actually work logistical- ly, she simply reaffirmed that it would happen. “We have no in- formation at this time regarding the removal of property from the equestrian center,” she said. The Fair Board intends to exer- cise its rights to remove property from the state-owned fairgrounds if boarders had not signed the rental agreement by the due date. Orange council incumbents will retain seats The incumbents on the Orange City Council whose seats expire this year have not been chal- lenged by anyone, and are, there- fore unopposed in this Novem- ber’s general election. The filing deadline was Aug. 9 at 5 p.m. No one stepped up to run against Mayor Dan Slater and Councilmembers Jon Du- mitru (District 2), Ana Gutierrez (District 5) and Kathy Tavoularis (District 3). Slater will be back for his second two-year term. In Orange, the mayor may serve for three consecutive two-year terms before being termed out. The councilmembers will hold onto their seats for another four years. Dumitru and Gutierrez are each finishing up four-year terms and are eligible to run for another four before term limits exclude them. Tavoularis was originally appointed in 2021 to replace Mike Alvarez. She ran for the of- fice in 2022 to finish out his term, which expires this year. She, too, is eligible for another four-year stint. The last time Orange incum- bents faced no opposition was in 2016. At that time, Mayor Tita Smith and Councilmembers Mike Alvarez and Mark Murphy would have been the only ballot items exclusive to Orange voters, and the city opted to drop out of that election entirely. This year, the city has other is- sues on the ballot. Orange voters will decide on a city treasurer and two initiatives: the proposed one- half-cent sales tax and legalizing safe and sane fireworks. Horses were locked out of exercise areas. Boarders at the OC Fairgrounds equestrian center protest steep rent hikes levied by the Fair Board.