Gains & Losses

GAINS

A WALL FOR SAFETYThe children at Southcoast Early Childhood Learning

Center can continue to feel protected, since Costa Mesa City Manager

Allan Roeder decided to let a wall surrounding the preschool playground

to stand. Neighbors living near the school asked the city to remove it,

saying it encroached on public property and created a hazard. Preschool

officials implored the city to let it stay, saying it ensured the safety

of the children. “I think the underlying issue is whether an encroachment

should be allowed at this site,” Roeder said last week. “Examining the

criteria, we felt it should.”

SERVICE WITH A SMILE

Parents who visit the school district headquarters on Bear Street may

find themselves wondering if they took a wrong turn off the freeway and

ended up at Nordstrom. Last week, school district employees attended a

customer service seminar, getting tips on how to handle angry parents and

other sticky situations. “It’s the Nordstrom approach,” said Newport

Harbor High School Principal Bob Boies.

FUNDING FOR FAMILIES

The future of Families Costa Mesa is secure at least through December,

thanks to a grant from Hoag Hospital. The collaborative, which includes

Share Our Selves, Save Our Youth and St. Joachim Catholic Church, was

squeezed out of Families and Communities Together grant money and wasn’t

quite sure how it would make it through the rest of the year -- until

Hoag Hospital stepped up to the plate. “It’s a wonderful statement of

support that what we’ve been doing is making an impact and we’re needed,”

said Karen McGlinn, director of Share Our Selves and chairwoman of the

collaborative.

LOSSES

RITALIN THIN

A sizable group of Corona del Mar High girls have found Ritalin is good

for treating more than just attention deficit disorder. They learned that

if they crush up the tiny white pills and snort them, it will cure their

hunger. The problem is, it’s addicting. “We’re a very

appearance-conscious area,” said Corona del Mar mom Marianne Scott, a

member of a school-culture task force that attempts to raise awareness of

eating disorders on campus. “ ... We can’t point the finger at the kids

or the school. We need to look at ourselves as a community and wonder why

we emphasize appearance so much, and how it trickles down to our children

in horrible ways,” Scott said.

NO MORE SNUG

It was Newport’s very own Cheers -- Snug Harbor. The dive bar gave its

last call Saturday night, ending 45 years of spirits and stories. “It’s

been beautiful,” one longtime patron said. “I love this place. I’m

heartbroken.”

AN EXPLOSIVE SITUATION

A Huntington Beach man is suspected of planting a homemade bomb behind a

strip mall in the 2200 block of Fairview Road. Police found the device

and 19-year-old Anouvong Kounlavong after receiving complaints that

Kounlavong and a group of juveniles were loitering behind an arcade in

the mall. Kounlavong was booked on suspicion of possessing a destructive

device.