Newsletter: TimesOC: Is Disney paying its share in Anaheim?

Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Sept. 27. Here’s what’s been happening around O.C.

TOP STORY

The money battle outside the Happiest Place on Earth

Over the last two decades or so, as Disney’s annual profit has soared, the company has secured subsidies, incentives, rebates and protections from future taxes in Anaheim that, in aggregate, would be worth more than $1 billion, according to public policy experts who have reviewed deals between the company and the city. Disney has negotiated these pacts with a carrot-and-stick approach — one that has often included the company’s threat of directing its investment dollars elsewhere. Los Angeles Times

COURTS

Seal Beach killer avoids death sentence, receives life in prison

A former tugboat captain who carried out Orange County’s worst mass shooting was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for killing eight people at a Seal Beach salon in 2011. Los Angeles Times

AROUND THE COUNTY

O.C. domestic violence shelter houses pets of survivors alongside their owners

Having already endured physical and emotional abuse from her husband, the Orange County woman knew it was time to leave when he threatened to harm her kitten. TimesOC

At Corona del Mar Middle School, kids can’t use cellphones at lunch. The result? They talk

Corona del Mar Middle School Principal Rebecca Gogel stood a few feet from a paper sign proclaiming no cellphone use when she saw a boy, head down, tapping away on his phone during Wednesday’s lunch break. At other middle and high school campuses in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, that wouldn’t be a problem or even unusual. But at CdM Middle School, it was both. Daily Pilot

Poseidon’s environmental plan doesn’t halt criticism of proposed H.B. desalination plant

Poseidon Water announced this week that its proposed ocean desalination plant in Huntington Beach would employ an environmental protection and energy efficiency plan. But that didn’t halt criticism of the controversial facility. Daily Pilot

Neighbors blame smelly black dust on cleanup at former Ascon landfill in Huntington Beach

An odorous black dust that homeowners believe is emanating from cleanup activities at Huntington Beach’s defunct Ascon landfill is coating cars, homes and plants and is difficult to remove, residents say. Daily Pilot

POLITICS

This millennial is running as an independent and thinks he can unseat Orange County Rep. Dana Rohrabacher

Orange County Rep. Dana Rohrabacher officially has another challenger. Kevin Kensinger, 33, is an investor from Aliso Viejo and is running as an independent in the 48th Congressional District. Los Angeles Times

Milo Yiannopoulos plans to speak at Cal State Fullerton despite protests and criticism

Conservative firebrand Milo Yiannopoulos will speak at Cal State Fullerton on Oct. 31, the campus’ College Republicans chapter announced amid an attempt to block the appearance. Los Angeles Times

FOOD

Dinner group showcases Vietnamese food and culture

Stefan Nguyen loves introducing Americans to Vietnamese food. TimesOC

Bracken’s Kitchen takes healthy meals to impoverished people

The chef and founder of the Huntington Beach-based nonprofit Bracken’s Kitchen prepares more than 1,500 healthy meals each week for local homeless and needy families in what he sees as a new, chef-driven model combating food insecurity. TimesOC

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