WEEK IN REVIEW

Students at Lincoln Elementary School in Corona del Marimmersed

themselves in the immigration experience this week, dressing up to

reflect the heritage of their ancestors and going through the various

steps of the immigration process. Many said they had newfound

appreciation for what their relatives went through.

And students from Harbor View Elementary School, also in Corona del

Mar, got an intimate lesson in Courage when they visited Orange County’s

Walk of Honor and heard about the experiences of the eight Congressional

Medal of Honor recipients from this area.

-- Deirdre Newman covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at o7 deirdre.newman@latimes.comf7 .

MORE HOMES FOR HOME RANCH?

Costa Mesa city planners and Segerstrom officials are scrambling to

fill an eleventh-hour request by Councilwoman Linda Dixon to reconfigure

the housing on the Home Ranch site.

Last week, Dixon suggested to C.J. Segerstrom & Sons that houses be

built on the part of the 93-acre parcel currently proposed for industrial

use. The imbalance between jobs and housing in Costa Mesa bothered Dixon,

she said, and she wanted to figure out a way to address the need for more

homes.

Paul Freeman, a spokesman for C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, said the

developers would be willing to meet her request as long as the council’s

final decision would not be delayed. He expects a vote on the project

this month, he said.

Freeman said Dixon’s suggestion is plausible as long as thedevelopers

get the OK from the prospective industrial park tenant to move them to

the southeast portion of the former lima bean field.

-- Lolita Harper covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at o7 lolita.harper@latimes.comf7 .

MONEY MATTERS

Two months after terrorist attacks crippled the nation’s airlines,

passenger traffic at John Wayne Airport has begun to stabilize a steady

15% below pre-Sept. 11 levels.

The airport has also begun to notice huge shortfalls in revenue

generated from landing fees, rental cars, restaurants and other

concessions. A clearer picture of those drops will emerge in December.

Also, California State Parks officials have begun analyzing where they

could find funding to pay for the restoration of the 46 cottages at

Crystal Cove State Park.

That process went hand-in-hand with Assemblyman John Campbell’s

critique of parks officials for failing to adequately discuss finances.

Campbell, the vice chair of the assembly’s budget committee,

challenged the state to “show me the money.”

-- Paul Clinton covers the environment and John Wayne Airport. He may

be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail ato7

paul.clinton@latimes.comf7 .

COVERING UP

A years-long effort to cover the city’s reservoir could be sped up as

a result of the Sept. 11 attacks. City officials are looking for ways to

fund the estimated $4 million cost of purchasing a flexible, plastic

cover for the Big Canyon Reservoir in Corona del Mar.

A majority of the few dozen residents who attended a Koll Center

informational meeting Monday said they were miffed that a consultant for

the expansion project ducked out before answering questions. The event

turned into a one-sided debate over the 250,000-square foot project

that’s the subject of a Nov. 20 special election.

Responding to residents’ complaints that the scores of ducks flocking

around one Grand Canal home have created a smelly nuisance, city

officials have drafted a law to restrict feeding and breeding waterfowl

in the city. The law would allow kids with a slice of bread to feed the

ducks but would prohibit incubation and the types of feeding that create

a nuisance or discourage the bird migration.

-- June Casagrande covers Newport Beach. She may be reached at (949)

574-4232 or by e-mail at o7 june.casagrande@latimes.comf7 .

WAITING IN JAIL

Thomas Michael Murphy, 54-year-old Balboa Island man, is in jail after

he was found guilty Thursday of touching three young girls

inappropriately and possessing a large volume of child pornography.

Murphy faces life in prison, but his fate will be determined by

Superior Court Judge Frank Fasel during the Jan. 11 sentencing.

Murphy was found guilty of four felony counts of lewd act with a child

below 14 years of age and one misdemeanor count of child pornography.

Each of the felony counts includes an enhancement that states Murphy

committed the crimes with the intent of gratifying his sexual desires.

Newport Beach Police arrested the former self-employed scuba

instructor on May 2, 2000 after they seized about 10,000 photographs and

200 movies from his computer at his Ruby Avenue home. Two girls aged 9

and one other 11-year-old came forward with the allegations.

In other news, Newport Beach Police and the Orange County Coroner are

still investigating the suspicious death of a a 41-year-old Huntington

Beach man found dead Monday at the base of a parking structure on Newport

Center Drive.

Jeffrey Paris Wall was an attorney with O’Melveny & Myers in Newport

Center. Police say further tests are being performed on Wall to determine

whether the incident was a homicide, suicide or an accident.

-- Deepa Bharath covers public safety and courts. She may be reached

at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at o7 deepa.bharath@latimes.comf7 .