Surf, turf and a cease-and-desist: American Legion post harnessed by Newport Beach
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Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Oct. 8. I’m Carol Cormaci, bringing you this week’s TimesOC newsletter with a look at some of the latest local news and events from around the county.
Regular readers of this weekly missive may recall the Snug Harbor Surf Park project, which may soon be constructed on acreage that’s in the middle of the Newport Beach Golf Course, recently received the endorsement of the Newport Beach City Council.
As is the case with so many developments in cities everywhere, the Snug Harbor proposal has its detractors, and at least a couple of them, Tim Sullivan and Benny Hallock, belong to the venerable Newport Harbor Post 291 of the American Legion, which (and here’s the rub) leases its building from the city of Newport Beach.
Sullivan and Hallock did not cleanly separate their affiliations with Post 291 from their efforts to quash the project, which included a patriotic-themed rally on July 3. This raised eyebrows in a city hall where the artificial surf wave enterprise has been welcomed as if it’s the next best thing to Newport’s iconic Wedge.
And so, a letter was dispatched over the summer to the organization by the city’s real property administrator, Lauren Wooding Whitlinger, advising Post 291 that state law forbids the use of publicly-owned facilities for unauthorized “political” activities, according to Gabriel San Román’s reporting on the chastisement for the Daily Pilot.
The letter also strongly suggested there might be tax implications for the post, according to the story: “[Wooding Whitlinger] further argued that opposing the surf park fell outside the scope of allowable activities for a federally tax-exempt veterans organization that otherwise focuses on veteran welfare, patriotic celebrations and member services.”
This little dustup could prove inconvenient for the Orange County Young Republicans, whose annual legislative reception is expected to be held in the Legion’s hall — the leased city-owned building that is forbidden by law to be used for political activities — later this month.
Wondering how allowing that gathering could be squared with the lawful use required within the publicly-owned building, San Román learned that “City officials were previously unaware of the event and will review it to determine whether it constitutes an unauthorized political activity.”
MORE NEWS
• Police swept through Hoag Hospital just after 7 a.m. Tuesday after receiving a 911 call reporting a shooting there, the Los Angeles Times reported. But when officers arrived there were no signs of a shooting and hospital staff said there was no emergency. So the incident is being investigated as a possible “swatting call” made by someone who hoped it would result in police swarming the area. In more upbeat news, Hoag officials broke ground last week on a project that will bring a new substance abuse recovery center to the hospital’s campus.
• During a celebratory gathering held Saturday, UC Irvine officials announced its ambitious “Brilliant Futures” campaign, which sought to raise $2 billion, not only met that goal within six years, but surpassed it by $400 million. The funds raised were in support of learning, research, student support and infrastructure at both the college and its clinical enterprise, UCI Health.
• Democrat Katie Porter, the UC Irvine law professor and former member of of the House of Representatives who unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate last year, is campaigning to be California’s next governor. She received an endorsement Monday from EMILYs List, a prominent organization that promotes female candidates who support abortion rights, according to a report in The Times. Porter has a small edge in the polls among the many Democrats running for the seat. The primary election will be held next June.
COURTS, PUBLIC SAFETY & CRIME
• The trial of a man accused of killing both of his parents and their housekeeper in the family’s Newport Beach home got underway this week. Camden Burton Nicholson, 34, pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Jurors will be asked to consider charges in two phases, one to decide guilt and the second to determine if he was criminally insane at the time. The defendant’s parents, Richard and Kim Nicholson, were killed on Feb. 11, 2019, and housekeeper Maria Morse was murdered the next day.
• A man driving an SUV died early Saturday after leading Huntington Beach police on a pursuit, running red lights and crashing into another vehicle. The chase started shortly before 1 a.m. after police were notified of a vehicle being driven recklessly in the area of Pacific Coast Highway and Brookhurst Street. The driver was pursued until he struck the other vehicle and a pole at a high rate of speed near the intersection of Beach Boulevard and Warner Avenue.
• A Huntington Beach woman pleaded guilty Thursday to embezzling about $2.8 million from a Garden Grove-based instant noodle maker. Tae Miyaji Jones pleaded guilty to seven counts of mail fraud and three counts of wire fraud. Jones also agreed to turn over stolen goods such as jewelry and designer bags as well as homes in Alabama and Hawaii.
• David Robert McDonnell, 75, of Laguna Beach, was sentenced Monday to four years in federal prison for embezzling nearly $6 million as the executor of the estates of wealthy clients, City News Service reported. U.S. District Judge James Selna also ordered McDonnell to pay $5.9 million in restitution.
• When first responders arrived at the scene of a single-car crash that had been called in at 11:33 p.m. Sunday, they found the driver of the vehicle dead inside of it, according to CNS report. The motorist’s vehicle, which had been traveling southbound on the San Diego (405) Freeway in Irvine, struck a sign and a right shoulder wall before stopping.
SPORTS
• In a ceremony held last Thursday, 119-year-old Huntington Beach High School inducted its first-ever Hall of Fame class. Kathy Doyle, Le Anne Karasik, the 1922 track team, Eddie Morris, Harry ‘Cap’ Sheue, Darrell Stillwagon, Buddy Belshe, Art Worthy, Tony Gonzalez and Brett Simpson are the initial inductees. To read all about their athletic accomplishments, visit reporter Matt Szabo’s story on the event.
• Speaking of Huntington Beach High athletes, quarterback Brady Edmunds, completed 21 of 23 passes for 385 yards and seven touchdowns when his team played visiting Laguna Hills High Friday night. Edmunds connected five times for scores with his go-to receiver Troy Foster, as the Oilers “opened their Epsilon League football campaign with a 65-10 homecoming destruction of visiting Laguna Hills,” writes contributing Daily Pilot writer Scott French.
• On Saturday in Studio City, the top-seeded Newport Harbor High boys’ water polo team was challenged by some strong competitors during the Elite Eight tournament, but ultimately won its second straight title.
• Warm Springs, a 2-year-old filly, died Saturday after she won the ninth race at Los Alamitos Race Course, according to a CNS report. Her death is listed as “non-musculoskeletal” on the California Horse Racing Board’s website. Warm Springs raced five times during her brief career, placing first in two of them. She is the 12th horse to die from a racing or training injury at the
Cypress track this year.
LIFE & LEISURE
• The pews at St. James Episcopal Church in Newport Beach were filled Sunday morning with people accompanied by their pets, mostly dogs, who were there to celebrate the annual feast day of St. Francis of Assisi and Blessing of the Animals ceremony. The church’s pastor, the Rev. Canon Cindy Voorhees, told Daily Pilot contributing writer-photographer Susan Hoffman, “We call it our third most holy day of the year, Easter and Christmas being the first two.”
• If you are one of the legions of fans of Girl Scout cookies, here’s a heads up: When the annual cookie sale comes around in the first quarter of next year, there will be a new flavor for you to consider. Girl Scouts of Orange County recently announced the debut of “Exploremores,” a rocky road-inspired sandwich cookie that was served up during a special tasting event hosted by Andrei’s Restaurant in Irvine. The new chocolate cookie has marshmallow and almond-flavored creme in the middle, according to this report by TimesOC reporter Sarah Mosqueda.
CALENDAR
• “I See Them Run and Hide, Every Time” opened Saturday at downtown Santa Ana’s monthly ArtWalk. The site-specific installation is meant to challenge the viewers’ perceptions of color, which is informed by artist Roger Reyes’ color blindness. The work can be viewed at 125 N. Broadway in Santa Ana, through Jan. 1.
• St. Mary Armenian Church will host its annual Armenian food festival this weekend. The event include church tours, raffle prizes, games for kids, boutique shopping and live Armenian dancing. Hours are 3 to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $5. St. Mary Armenian Church is located at 148. E 22nd St., Costa Mesa. For more information and to purchase tickets, click on this link to the the festival’s website.
• The Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library will host bestselling crime novelist Walter Mosley at an author event set for this Sunday, Oct. 12, from 4 to 6 p.m., at Central Library, 7111 Talbert Ave., Huntington Beach. Mosley’s latest Easy Rawlins book, “Gray Dawn,” was published last month. Tickets are $15 for members of the group; $25 for non-members and can be purchased through Eventbrite at: eventbrite.com/e/an-afternoon-with-walter-mosley-author-talk-book-signing-tickets-1721732541379
Until we meet again next Wednesday,
Carol
KEEP IN TOUCH
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