Around Town: Costa Mesa Fire to conduct training exercises at Canyon Park

In preparation for the Fourth of July and the upcoming fire season, Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue will be conducting training exercises in and around Canyon Park Wednesday through Friday, between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Residents and park visitors are asked to use caution around any equipment or fire personnel activity during the training period. There will be approximately 12 team members present during each training session, along with two to three pieces of fire apparatus.

Fire Chief Dan Stefano says department team members will be unwavering in their efforts to be well-prepared for any emergency as the Fourth of July — a prime time for unintended fires —approaches.

A previous training was held at Costa Mesa’s Fairview Park June 9-11.

“California is coming off one of the most catastrophic wildfire years in history, and with the Fourth of July holiday upon us, this training is an imperative piece in our overall preparations,” Stefano said in a statement.

The exercises are designed to help firefighters prepare for battling vegetation fires by improving their knowledge of the local area and tactics used to combat wildfires. As such, personnel will be training on Canyon Park trails with dense vegetation and moderate terrain.

The training will exclude any live burn training modules to avoid environmental impacts and will adhere to all county and city requirements in place throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

For more information, contact Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue spokesman Capt. Joseph Noceti at (714) 754-5091.

Huntington Beach small businesses have Friday deadline to apply for COVID-19 relief

Small businesses in Huntington Beach have until 5 p.m. Friday to apply for a grant for COVID-19 relief.

Under the city’s COVID-19 Small Business Relief Program, businesses of up to 30 employees can receive a grant up to $10,000. The program is funded by $4.75 million in federal CARES Act funds.

Small businesses must meet each of the following criteria to apply: independently owned and operated, located in Huntington Beach in a commercial or industrial space, a legal business in good standing with a Huntington Beach business license for one-plus years, 30 full-time employees or less and $15 million annual gross revenue or less over the last three years.

Additionally, local small businesses must meet at least one of the following federal criteria: deemed non-essential and forced to close during COVID-19, sales down more than 25% over the previous three months, laid off at least one part-time or full-time employee or one or more employee contracted COVID-19 while at work.

Applications are available at HBready.com/biz-grants or on the first floor of Huntington Beach City Hall. Applications will be independently verified for eligibility by the Orange County Small Business Development Center. Should the request for grants be greater than the amount of funding available, SBDC will conduct a lottery to randomly select qualified small businesses to receive grants.

Pretend City Children’s Museum to reopen July 1

The Pretend City Children’s Museum is reopening on July 1 in Irvine. The museum announced its reopening date on Saturday and said that it has developed a comprehensive plan to keep it “a clean, safe and fun learning environment.”

The plan includes some modified operations and exhibits, increased cleaning, physical distancing and contactless exhibits. Cloth masks are now required of all staff uniforms and adult guests and children over age 5 will be required to wear masks that cover the nose and mouth.

Some exhibits will remain closed while others are disinfected frequently, and the museum will be closed midday to focus on cleaning. The museum will initially reopen to the public at 25% capacity on June 26 and will require a timed reservation. Tickets can be purchased at pretendcity.org.

Museum members will still have free admission.

CodeNinjas brings karate-themed tech learning to Newport

The children’s tech learning center CodeNinjas will open its Newport Beach location on July 1.

The karate-themed center, geared toward kids ages 5-14, is at 1835 Newport Blvd., Suite D-252. Its game-based curriculum is made up of nine “belts,” and is self-paced but not self-taught. Young coders publish an app in an app store by the time they complete the program.

Owner Jeffrey Lee, a software developer, and operator Christine Hsu, a clinical child and family psychologist, plan a grand opening celebration sometime in August.

The Newport Beach CodeNinjas can be reached at (949) 652-2633.

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