COSTA MESA One of city’s founders and...

COSTA MESA

One of city’s founders and greatest advocate dies

The venerable historian of Costa Mesa, Bob Wilson, passed away

Jan. 4 of congestive heart failure. Wilson worked arduously to get

the city incorporated in 1953 and served as mayor three times.

* City leaders announced Monday night that another proposed

settlement agreement has been reached with former City Atty. Jerry

Scheer. Peter Brown, the attorney who represents the city, is

confident that all parties will sign this agreement. The last

agreement fizzled because Senior Deputy City Atty. Marianne Milligan

didn’t sign it.

-- Deirdre Newman

EDUCATION

Community college district on financial watch list

The state chancellor’s office has placed Coast Community College

District on a financial watch list to monitor its operating budget

more closely. Coast and a dozen other community college districts

statewide were on the list, released Wednesday by the chancellor for

California Community Colleges, which identified financially troubled

districts. Coast is listed as a Priority 3 district because its

budget reserves slipped below the 5% recommended by the chancellor’s

office.

* UC and community college students will see fee increases up to

44% under the budget proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday.

Community college fees will go up from $18 per unit to $26 per

unit to help prop up the state budget. UC fees will increase 10% for

undergraduate students and 40% for graduate students. Public schools

would receive $216 more per student next year, but some special

programs might get reduced funding under the proposed budget.

* The State Board of Education Thursday approved a request by

Newport-Mesa Unified School District to waive a $750,000 penalty for

not providing enough instructional time to students at one high

school. To offset the 30 hours lost, the district agreed to add 1,800

instructional minutes this academic year and next at Middle College

High School.

* Newport Harbor High School’s newly-refurbished swimming pool is

open for business. The new pool has fresh tiles, new decks with

better drainage and a state-of-the-art timing system, making it a

potential venue for national swimming meets.

-- Marisa O’Neil

PUBLIC SAFETY

Costa Mesa police bust extensive pot farm in office

Costa Mesa police arrested 42-year-old Paul Harrington on

suspicion of cultivating the marijuana for sale after they searched

the office of Starving College Students Moving Co. in the 2000 block

of Placentia Avenue on Tuesday.

Detectives found about 1,050 plants as well as another one pound

of marijuana and a handgun. Harrington had set up an extensive indoor

cultivation organization. The total value of the drugs seized were

estimated at $450,000. Harrington also stole electricity to grow the

plants indoors, officials said.

* Costa Mesa saw an increase in violent crimes but a decrease in

property crimes during the first nine months of 2003 compared to the

same time in 2002, a report released by the state attorney general’s

office on Wednesday showed.

Overall, crime in the city was up by 1.4%. Violent crimes, a

category that includes murders, rapes, robberies and assaults,

increased by 10.4% and property crimes -- burglaries and auto thefts

-- dropped by 1.6%.

-- Deepa Bharath

ENVIRONMENT

County denied ability to clear overgrown San Diego Creek

Orange County officials learned they can’t proceed with clearing

part of San Diego Creek, which they say has a reduced floodwater

capacity, because it’s overgrown and full of sediment. The California

Coastal Commission’s executive director on Wednesday rejected an

emergency permit request for the creek clearing and asked the county

to use the usual permit process.

-- Alicia Robinson

NEWPORT BEACH

Greenlight plans to sue city over Marinapark vote

The Greenlight committee announced plans to file a lawsuit against

the city within a few weeks over a vote on the Marinapark hotel

project. Though the matter is scheduled to go before voters,

Greenlight leaders say that it should be labeled a Greenlight vote.

City Council members disagreed that the hotel project triggers a

Greenlight vote because it’s not expected to generate too many

peak-hour car trips. Greenlight leaders want Measure S guidelines

changed to include total floor area in the list of factors used when

considering hotels. City officials are considering a similar move.

-- June Casagrande