TimesOC: Could O.C. get its first Latino supervisor in 15 years?
Good morning and welcome to the TimesOC newsletter.
It’s Friday, Nov. 19. I’m Ben Brazil, bringing you the latest roundup of Orange County news and events.
There has not been a Latino representative in the Orange County Board of Supervisors for 15 years, despite Latinos making up nearly a third of the county’s population.
That may change after the board approves a new district map on Monday. Reporter Hannah Fry wrote this week that all five of the maps that are currently being considered create a majority Latino district, something that has been lacking as current district boundaries divided predominately Latino communities in Santa Ana and Anaheim.
One of the maps, referred to as 5A1, also creates an opportunity for the Asian community to have an “influence district,” with nearly 30% Asian voters.
The county and cities are undergoing the redistricting process for the first time in a decade following the national census. The supervisors will decide the final map that determines the shape of the districts they represent. Some have criticized the process for the potential conflict of interest. In nearby Los Angeles County, the redistricting process is being carried out by an independent commission.
Others are also pointing out that a few of the maps are indicative of gerrymandering and seem to favor Republicans, despite the county no longer being the conservative stronghold it once was. Orange County is now purple and hasn’t been majority white in two decades.
Supervisor Katrina Foley, one of two Democrats on the five-member board, claims that she has been politically targeted because a proposed map divides Costa Mesa, where she lives, and Newport Beach. Costa Mesa is also included with the Asian influence district. Foley is white.
As noted by Fry, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach share a school district, homeless shelter and similar community concerns.
“It’s hard for me to sit here and not feel that this is political targeting,” Foley said. “Under the California Fair Maps Act, one of the criterion is that you cannot politically target even a person that is on the dais.”
Julia Gomez, a staff attorney with the ACLU, told Fry that many of the proposed maps create an advantage for Republicans in three of the five districts.
“The Fair Maps Act explicitly prohibits partisan gerrymandering and provides that the board ... shall not adopt supervisorial district boundaries for the purpose of favoring or discriminating against a political party,” she said.
MORE NEWS
The California Highway Patrol and the state have agreed to pay a $4.5-million settlement to a Santa Ana woman who alleged that a CHP officer sexually assaulted her. Xavier Aguirre allegedly groped the woman on the side of the freeway and later showed up at her home and sexually assaulted her again. “This was an outrageous abuse of police power by Officer Aguirre. He was in uniform, on duty, and used his power as a patrolman to detain and then sexually assault this poor lady. And he did it twice. On the same day. She was beyond scared,” said Dave Ring, who represented the woman along with attorney Neda Lotfi.
Two motels in Costa Mesa may soon be used for permanent supportive housing as part of a program to provide shelter for the homeless during the pandemic. The two motels could provide up to 140 units of housing. “This is so necessary,” Mayor Pro Tem Andrea Marr said. “We can build all the homeless shelters we want, but unless we have an avenue to provide housing … we’re not solving the problem. This actually solves the problem.”
At the beginning of the pandemic, homeless people started living in the parking lots of a Mexican cultural center in Santa Ana. Then the city started fining the center for not keeping the area clean. Now, the city is seeking nearly $40,000 from the nonprofit to pay for the cleanup of the area.
Cal State Fullerton students who are food insecure now have access to a permanent food pantry at the school. My colleague Sarah Mosqueda wrote that the food pantry is designed to feel like a grocery store. Since it opened in August, the pantry has had 2,400 visits, but those numbers will increase as more students return to campus.
Police mistook a water bottle in a black bag for a gun when they shot and killed a Santa Ana councilman’s cousin in late September. That information was revealed in a video recently released by Anaheim police that addresses the killing of Councilman Johnathan Hernandez’s cousin, Brandon Lopez, who was shot after a car chase and hours-long standoff at a construction area in Santa Ana. Hernandez has said Lopez was suffering from a mental health crisis and Anaheim police unnecessarily escalated the situation.
LIFE AND LEISURE
Preservationists are looking to protect an old gas station in Orange that looks like something you would see in a fantasy book. My colleague Gabriel San Román wrote that the future of the building, which opened in 1928, is in dispute as preservationists remain at odds with property owners.
As Thanksgiving approaches, the owners of Electric City Butcher in Santa Ana want the public to ask where their turkey comes from. The sustainable butcher shop is dedicated to environmental and social responsibility and respect for the animals they butcher. “Environmentally responsible farms, in most cases, are not only reducing their carbon footprint, but they are also placing carbon in the soil, they are reversing climate change on their farms,” said one of the owners.
Despite being on Earth for nearly a century, Joe Bush continues to walk Bolsa Chica State Beach every morning. Known by friends as “Grandpa Joe,” the World War II and Korean War veteran was celebrated by friends this week at his favorite beach.
After Bill Bracken spent 25 years cooking in nice hotels, he decided he wanted to feed people that were more in need. In 2013, he decided to open two food trucks in Garden Grove to feed the hungry. But the program is much more than just the two trucks. Bracken’s Kitchen also supplies meals to shelters, churches and after-school programs. It also has a culinary training program.
SPORTS
One of the primary goals for the Angels this offseason is to improve on the mound. The team’s first move this week was to acquire Noah Syndergaard, who is a good young pitcher, but hasn’t thrown more than two innings in the last two seasons due to coming off Tommy John surgery. Reporter Jack Harris wrote that the Angels will need to make more moves to fix their pitching, which last season ranked 22nd in earned-run average, 26th in innings pitched and 16th in strikeout-to-walk rate.
Harris also wrote this week about Angels star Shohei Ohtani’s legendary season. “His performance was that unprecedented. That historic. That unique,” Harris wrote.
Stay in Touch
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