Great Park, ice rink, animal care: 2015 in Irvine
The past year saw Irvine top the list of America’s safest cities for the 11th straight year, with a smooth transition to a new police chief, and seemingly little to do beyond scraping gum off sidewalks to keep the pristine
Still, 2015 was eventful in the political arena as a 4-to-1 Republican majority took over the City Council and tangible progress started to show in the drawn-out saga of the Orange County Great Park.
Here are the Daily Pilot’s top news stories from Irvine in 2015, listed in reverse chronological order. Crime and education stories are covered in separate articles.
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City plans ice rink partnership with Ducks
The council unanimously approved plans in November for a state-of-the-art ice skating facility as a centerpiece sports complex in the Great Park western sector. Pending an environmental impact review, the city will partner with H&S Ventures, the management company that operates the NHL Anaheim Ducks, to develop the complex featuring four ice rinks.
H&S will build and operate the facility under the umbrella of the nonprofit Irvine Ice Foundation, with the mission of promoting youth hockey among other ice sports for the community. A $25 million commitment from Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli will launch construction. Groundbreaking is planned for late 2016, with the facility expected to open in early 2018.
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Memorial honors service members 50 years after plane crash
In June, Irvine dedicated a permanent memorial at the Great Park as a tribute on the 50th anniversary of the 1965 El Toro Marine Base airplane crash that claimed 84 lives. Moments after takeoff, 72 Marines and 12 Air Force crew members died when the Boeing C-135 jet crashed in to a hillside.
An interactive kiosk designed by 15-year-old Jordan Fourchet of Newport Beach as his Eagle Scout project tells the story of the crash with homage to each victim.
The Vietnam-era service members had been denied the designation of killed in action as the transport crash occurred on American soil.
In the days before the memorial dedication, family members and friends of those lost on June 28, 1965 were permitted to tour the crash site on Loma Ridge, three miles east of the former air base.
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UCI culls trees to combat infestation
A spring infestation of tiny tree-boring beetles in April forced officials to cut down close to a thousand trees on UC Irvine property.
The invader is known as the polyphagous shot hole borer, a tiny beetle about the size of a sesame seed. It was first identified in Southern California in 2003. Major infestations began to surface in 2011, first in Long Beach, then Los Angeles, and has now spread to Riverside and Orange Counties, and more recently, San Diego.
Campus groundskeepers first noticed signs a serious problem in December 2014, with officials able to confirm widespread infestation early in the year. Tiny tell-tail boreholes in trees are often undetectable unless the bark is removed. It’s estimated the pest may have been introduced at UCI two to three years before they were discovered.
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Great Park Audit cites waste, mismanagement
The final report on the Great Park Audit was delivered in March, concluding the ongoing project included mismanagement and budgetary irresponsibility leading to waste of tens of millions of dollars among more than $200 million in expenditures between 2005 and 2012.
The 143-page report, with an additional 13 pages of exhibits, includes the potential for legal action to recover money paid to contractors for professional negligence, under false claims or conflicts of interest.
The audit was approved by the City Council in January 2013 with an original budget of $240,000 and expected completion in four months. The audit was completed more than two years later at a cost in excess of $1.3 million.
The audit itself is now under investigation by the state Joint Legislative Audit Committee. At issue is the performance of the Great Park audit subcommittee consisting of Irvine City Council members Christina Shea and Jeffrey Lalloway amid allegations the audit was drawn out in order to impact the November 2014 general election. Results of the investigation are expected in early 2016.
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Irvine Animal Care Center head resigns under pressure
In late January, Senior Administrator Michelle Quigley resigned her position as head of the Irvine Animal Care Center amid a City Council review of shelter operations. The shelter’s chief veterinarian resigned a month earlier.
The review was ordered after former Irvine animal care employees and long-time volunteers, backed by dozens of concerned animal advocates, voiced concerns at the November 2014 City Council meeting. A parade of speakers expressed deep mistrust over management and euthanasia practices at the center.
After the organizational review and a nationwide candidate search, the city named J. Kevin Hertell as the center’s new manager in August.