WEEK IN REVIEW

A freak chain reaction car accident Tuesday injured two Orange County

sheriff’s deputies on special assignment at John Wayne Airport.

The pair were trapped between three cars as they were conducting

routine vehicle inspections near the lower level rental car return area.

Sammy Black, a 22-year veteran of the Orange County Sheriff’s

Department, suffered multiple fractures to both legs, and Christopher

Hancock, who has been with the department about two years, escaped with

scratches and bruises.

The incident began, officials said, when George Mack, 80, of Salem,

Mass., who was driving through the rental car return area, stepped on the

accelerator instead of the brake and hit Black, who was inspecting the

trunk of a Ford Escort.

The impact shattered Black’s legs and caused him to be dragged 10 feet

by the Escort, which in turn hit a Chevy Lumina that Hancock was

searching. Hancock was sandwiched between the two cars.

The incident was treated as an accident, officials said.

* 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 .

An educated decision

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of Trustees last week

decided to send a clear message about its feelings on expansion at John

Wayne Airport when it rejected a limited expansion plan endorsed by

Newport Beach and Costa Mesa.

However, the board did express its support for extending the 1985

settlement agreement and its opposition to Measure W, which would allow

for a park at the closed El Toro Marine base. Officials from both cities

expressed disappointment in the board’s decision.

Costa Mesa City Councilman Gary Monahan compared it to political

suicide because the limited plan has been delicately negotiated. He said

if it falls apart, it could mean unlimited flights and no restrictions at

the airport.

And students at St. Joachim School in Costa Mesa got quite a workout

on Friday when they participated in the annual field day event at their

school to raise money for new textbooks.

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

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

A big party for the future

The more the merrier was the overall sentiment last week at Costa

Mesa’s redevelopment meeting, as the council appointed every interested

applicant to a committee designed to help decide the future of the

Westside.

The City Council -- acting as the Redevelopment Agency -- voted 4 to 1

to appoint 75 people to the Westside Redevelopment Action Committee and

reserved additional positions for representatives from various homeowners

associations and residents of north Costa Mesa.

Councilman Gary Monahan dissented, saying the group was too big.

“I’m glad so many people are enthusiastic, but we are not going to be

able to get anything done with such a large committee,” he said.

The redevelopment meeting at the Costa Mesa Senior Center attracted

about 200 people and sparked a general sense of excitement about

improving some of the city’s most impoverished areas. In addition to

focusing on the Westside, the council also voted to include the

Coolidge-Fillmore and Mission-Mendoza neighborhoods in the redevelopment

area.

“I was thrilled with the meeting last night,” said Councilwoman Libby

Cowan on Tuesday. “I’m very optimistic.”

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

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

A running golf gag

Permits issued for the annual Spirit Run and the Toshiba Senior

Classic golf tournament have put the two events in conflict, officials

said this week. On March 10, the run is scheduled to take place on the

street that provides access to parking for the golf tournament. Officials

were working with both sides to find a way both events can take place in

concert.

A machine one official described as a “gangly duck” may turn out to be

a beautiful swan for water quality in Newport Dunes lagoon. The city

plans to try out the InStreem water circulation machine for two weeks,

probably in early March, to decide whether its questionable appearance is

worth its benefits to water quality.

Contrary to original plans, an environmental study will be done on the

temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proposed to be

built on Bonita Canyon Drive. The environmental firm will have the tough

task of trying to assess the visual effects of the structure’s 124-foot

steeple.

Newport Beach made official its well-known stance on allegations it

violates church-state separation. In response to a lawsuit by a local

man, the city filed a response that its practice of not enforcing parking

meters near churches on Sunday morning is legal and appropriate.

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

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

Here’s looking at you

Bring on the lawyers.

Newport Beach City Manager Homer Bludau ordered an internal

investigation this week into the city’s waste disposal practices.

Bludau authorized the use of contract law firm Rutan & Tucker on

Wednesday, after the city’s 12-year practice of dumping sewage debris at

an Irvine landfill came into question.

The city acknowledged the dumping of sand, eggshells and other raw

waste was improper because it was not tested for heavy metals.

However, local water-quality regulators have downplayed the issue.

Between 1989 and 2002, the city shipped about 140 tons of the material

to the Frank R. Bowerman Landfill.

* 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 .