August 3, 2017

Orange County

Voice of OC: Santa Ana reverses plans to downsize jail, after new plan is said to save money and jobs

Acting Police Chief David Valentin, who recommended City Council members approve the changes, said it would prevent the layoffs of 26 jail employees while also cutting the city’s budget deficits by $4 million this fiscal year and $6.2 million next fiscal year.

 

Fullerton courthouse temporarily closed Thursday due to power outage

The outage was caused by a failed electrical transformer, Orange County Superior Court spokeswoman Gwen Vieau said. Workers were installing a temporary generator on Thursday afternoon.

 

OC Register: Anaheim Convention Center expansion booked and (almost) ready to go

A newly expanded wing of the Convention Center is nearly complete. Officials from Visit Anaheim, the city’s marketing and tourism bureau, said the new building dubbed ACC North will officially open on Sept. 26. And it will quickly be put to use.

 

OC Register: District’s change to trustee areas might change city representation

If evenly divided, each trustee area would include about 18,000 voters. Candidates would be required to live in the designated area, and only voters residing in the area would be allowed to vote for that area’s trustee. Obviously, campaigns would be less costly.

 

OC Register: Costa Mesa approves raises for upper-level fire employees and design for Harbor Boulevard median project.

Other provisions in the contract call for executive leave to be eliminated and a cap on vacation from 526.4 to 448 hours based on a 56-hour work week and from 424 to 320 based on a standard 40-hour work week.

 

OC Register: Lake Forest approves timeline to switch to district-based elections, but keeps options open for fight.

The Council decided to place measures on the next general municipal election in 2018 to give residents a say in how many districts they want and whether they want a directly elected or at-large mayor.

 

California

Sacramento Bee: Where rent control battles are emerging in California

In 2016, voters in the Bay Area cities of Richmond and Mountain View enacted rent control, coupled with companion measures that make it harder for landlords to evict people. Tenant advocates hailed their success at the ballot box as a demonstration of “renter power” building throughout the state.

Publication Date: August 3, 2017