Days added to 2003 Orange County...

Days added to 2003 Orange County Fair

Noting that attendance has continued to increase, Orange County

Fair officials decided Thursday that they would extend the annual

event another four days beginning next summer.

General Manager Becky Bailey-Findley said that change would spread

attendance over four more days to alleviate crowding. In extending

the fair the extra days, the event will now carry over four weekends

and will be closed on all three Mondays. The fair attracts more than

4-million visitors annually.

The 2003 fair, with tomatoes chosen as the agricultural component

of the theme, will be held from July 11 to Aug. 3. Operating hours

would remain the same -- 10 a.m. to midnight Friday through Sunday;

noon to midnight Tuesday through Thursday.

OCC will host negotiation workshops

Understanding the role of negotiating plays in the business world,

Orange Coast College has established a series of workshops to help

individuals learn negotiating techniques that will benefit them in

business and personal situations.

The students who participate in the Saturday workshops will learn

the inside secrets that will enable them to negotiate anything they

want without feeling intimidated or having to settle for anything

less. They will also learn negotiating techniques that will help them

get and keep people’s attention, deal with difficult people and use

the most powerful words to advance their viewpoint.

The workshops will be presented by Pearl Georgen, a professional

court-appointed mediator and a member of the L.A. Superior Court

Panel of mediators.

The first of four weekly workshops will be held from 9 a.m. to

noon Oct. 12. The individual workshops cost $48 plus an optional $25

material fee. The cost is $150 for all four at the same time. For

more information, call (714) 432-5880 or (888) 622-5376.

Five Crowns earns beautification honor

Five Crowns Restaurant has received the Business Beautification

Award of the Corona del Mar Business Improvement District. The

historic 1965 business went through extensive renovation recently,

earning it the honor from the district.

The restaurant, a Corona del Mar landmark owned by Lawry’s

Restaurants, Inc., is a replica of Ye Olde Belle, an inn outside of

London.

Newport-Mesa Unified preschools receive grant

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District’s preschool program got a

huge boost Tuesday when officials found out it received a $912,000

grant from the state.

The grant will enable the district to increase enrollment in the

program by 288 students.

Two hundred and forty of those students will be integrated into

the preschool program at the district’s Harper site, which currently

serves special education students. To accommodate the increase, the

district will renovate the Harper facility. The program expansion is

expected to start no later than the end of the year, said Jane

Garland, the district’s public information officer.