Mailbag: Photo op masked the real issue of poverty in Oak View

Shame on the state of California and city of Huntington Beach for proudly touting the spending of $6.5 million on sidewalks and rainbow-colored crosswalks in the Oak View neighborhood when this is the poorest neighborhood in H.B. I am the president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and we serve this neighborhood along with many other charitable organizations. The families living here typically live multiple families to one apartment, depending on charity for food, rental and utility assistance, clothes and school supplies for their children.

The situation is getting worse every day. We visit these families in their homes as we provide them with rental assistance as their rents are being raised and feed them twice a week at our food pantry. We spend on average $20,000 per month on assistance provided by our parish donations and have been running out of funds by the end of the month. This means families being evicted and put on the streets and utilities being shut off.

The nerve of these politicians spending this kind of money on sidewalks and painted streets while doing their photo op in the face of the suffering of the poor is despicable.

Wayne Lamarre
Huntington Beach

Support, concern in L.B. school board race

The six of us proudly share our endorsement of Jan Vickers and Lauren Boeck for the Laguna Beach Unified school board. As former elected officials, we know the work requires collaboration, coalition building, advocating for public education, thoughtful leadership, strong governance, continuous learning, a respect for the needs of all students, setting executive-level goals and supporting the superintendent in implementing them throughout the schools and district. Jan Vickers and Lauren Boeck are highly qualified and will continue the exceptional education that our strong community ties and shared values have created.

Vickers has served on our school board for many years and has valuable institutional knowledge that consistently leads our district into the future. She has served as president of the school board and supported the strengthening of our district with expanded pathways for students in college/career courses, adding preschool and transitional kindergarten, strengthening course offerings, continued focus on student supports, expanding mental health services and prioritizing students’ needs. During her tenure, Vickers saw the district recognized as a California Green Ribbon School District. She is a longtime public servant and past teacher who knows the importance of collaboration as a board member.

Lauren Boeck has the experience needed to serve effectively on the LBUSD school board. She is also a parent in the district, which provides a perspective needed on the board. Boeck has her master’s in education, has served as a middle school principal and presently serves on the PTA and SchoolPower. She also serves on the Laguna Beach Recreation Committee. She works with our school leaders to positively impact the student experience in Laguna schools and is well respected by staff and parents.

We are concerned about two of the other candidates, as they are running on grievances and have a history of browbeating staff and students. They do not reflect the community ties or values that we want to be shared with LBUSD students. As former Laguna Beach school board members, we have over a half a century of experience and understand better than anyone that time and commitment are the most valuable assets the district has. No time or energy should be wasted on grievance candidates.

We urge you to vote for the two most qualified candidates running this election for the Laguna Beach school board: Jan Vickers and Lauren Boeck. They will continue the excellence in Laguna schools, support goals and improvements and put students’ needs first. Laguna schools will continue to thrive under their leadership.

Former LBUSD trustees
Ketta Brown (2006-18)
Timothy D. Carlyle (1992-96)
Betsy Jenkins (2002-14)
Carol Normandin (2014-22)
Therese O’Hare (2006-14)
Peggy Wolff (2016-20)

As our community navigates the upcoming school board elections, it’s crucial to look beyond the noise of criticism and consider the broader picture of our school district’s success and ongoing improvement. Laguna Beach Unified School District represents a complex system of educators, librarians, counselors, social workers, coaches, staff, students, and families — a system that works tirelessly to create an environment where every child’s educational experience is valued and individualized. It’s no coincidence that LBUSD is the highest-achieving district in Orange County, with a growing number of students transferring from private schools to culminate their educational journey at Laguna Beach High School each year.

This level of achievement has been intentional. It requires navigating a wide range of needs and perspectives, and it takes the dedication of an entire team. To lead a district that provides such an experience requires a steady vision and a focus on relationships that are built, maintained, and strengthened over time. The district’s facilities master plan has been a topic of debate, particularly among members of Sensible Laguna. However, their arguments are inconsistent, most recently among themselves. At the most recent board meeting on Sept. 26, where the Laguna Beach High School Modernization project was discussed, the group’s so-called “2,000 strong members” were conspicuously absent.

Steve McIntosh’s public comments focused on the community’s use of the pool, while his co-founder, Gary Kasik, suggested that the pool be limited to competitive swimming. Their comments can be viewed in the meeting, which has been posted on the school district’s YouTube page.

These mixed messages make it hard to understand Sensible Laguna’s real concern. Furthermore, Kasik’s claim during his comments that the city has voted to build another pool was misleading. While the City Council voted unanimously to end the joint-use agreement with LBUSD, they have not committed to constructing a second pool. In fact, the city has openly acknowledged that they currently have neither a location nor the necessary funds to build a new pool. While it is easy to criticize and perhaps easier still to propose solutions, real progress requires working together, understanding the nuances of our district and finding a shared path forward.

We live in a community that demands accountability, and LBUSD has consistently met that demand, continuously striving to support every student, every day. As we consider who will guide our schools in the future, it is important to reflect on the kind of leadership that will genuinely serve our students, families, and community. As a resident, I will be voting for Jan Vickers and Lauren Boeck — leaders who understand the complexities of our district and are committed to fostering its continued growth and success. We should not waste taxpayer dollars on petty arguments that consume staff time and divert focus from what truly matters — providing the best possible education for all.

James Kelly,
LBUSD school board trustee
Laguna Beach

Surf City election makes waves

A pertinent question for Huntington Beach voters and perhaps many voters for local elections: Do large and plentiful campaign posters and a free, slick lawn sign like “Navy Seal Chad Williams” influence your vote more than vetting candidates? If they do, by all the signs, a MAGA Republican will be elected to many offices. One example of the big money is City Atty. Michael Gates, himself with a right-wing agenda, on Facebook congratulating Don Kennedy, Chad Williams and Butch Twining for raising nearly half a million dollars. If elected the three will represent a super-MAGA majority on the City Council. Big-money MAGA donors from all locations are financing radical right-wing candidates at all levels of government, locally and nationally. Natalie Moser, Rhonda Bolton, and Dan Kalmick have been vetted and put Huntington Beach’s interests above MAGA interests.

Jim Hoover
Huntington Beach

Recently, I received my O.C. Voter Information Guide in the mail. While informative, it is important to note that the candidate statements do not tell the whole story. There is much between the lines.

In Huntington Beach, for example, the so-called HB3 slate (Chad Williams, Butch Twining, Don Kennedy), if elected, would create a MAGAtocracy of all seven City Council members and all institutional knowledge and experience prior to 2022 would be wiped out. If the MAGA candidate for city clerk (Lisa Lane Barnes), with no prior municipal government experience is elected, all institutional knowledge and experience with this elected office would be wiped out as well. The current long-serving city clerk (Robin Estanislau), who is retiring, has endorsed candidate Regina Blankenhorn, who has decades of experience in working with local governments and is a current municipal executive coordinator for another O.C. city. She knows the ropes.

Voters must understand the value of institutional knowledge and experience in providing leadership and operational competency to our local government. The same is true for other coastal communities in our area. The previous time Surf City voters elected a “celebrity citizen” MAGA candidate with no experience to a council seat, Tito Ortiz, it did not go well. Imagine three new MAGAs and a brand-new and inexperienced city clerk added to a City Council with no guard rails and a rogue city attorney (Michael Gates) with a penchant for taking on state and county authorities. What could go wrong? Plenty.

Added to the mix is the tendency of the current City Council majority to propose charter amendments that are not only poorly drafted, insultingly overbroad and unconstitutional but threaten to get the city in financial and legal hot water. Proponents won’t tell you the risk that we will not only suffer lawsuits, penalties and restrictions but also the loss of local control if Sacramento has its way with us. In H.B., the deceptive Measure U is environmental posturing at its most egregious and will surely draw challenges if implementation is attempted. It flies in the face of competent decision-making. And speaking of “flies,” the propensity of the MAGA majority to reward partisan cronies like Code Four with the Pacific Airshow settlement terms is fiscal malfeasance at its most outrageous and the root cause of our current financial and budget crisis.

Regardless if you are a conservative or a liberal, it is important to have a civic framework which serves and protects the citizenry. It is also important not to gratuitously invite municipal mayhem and resulting legal and financial punishments. Institutional knowledge and experience should be valued not denigrated, especially if it is replaced by grievance-driven direction which, we have learned in courtroom dramas, is “incompetent, irrelevant, and immaterial.”

Tim Geddes
Huntington Beach

My recommendation to the Huntington Beach council majority is to check your fanaticism at the door before entering any meetings involving settlements.

We deserve better than your reckless spending under the guise of an airshow settlement. While I support the concept of an airshow, the meager funds allocated to Code Four must be audited by accounting professionals, state auditors or criminal attorneys. These are taxpayer dollars, and we still lack a clear explanation of the damages incurred or why the oil company responsible wasn’t held accountable initially.

Huntington Beach taxpayers are now footing the bill for air show permits, while Code Four gets the revenue on parking and camper fees. Fire and police services will also be provided at taxpayers’ expense, and the environmental impact statement? Once again, H.B. residents are left holding the bag while Code Four profits. And to top it off, the airshow company retains the right to sell the event for further profit.

Was the council majority mentally present when this disastrous deal was struck? How could anyone with even basic negotiation skills allow such a blatant giveaway?

Do you think we are fools? Stop hiding behind the term “charter city” as an excuse for your pathetic leadership. This is nothing short of a betrayal of public trust.

Andrew Einhorn
Huntington Beach

Ken Inouye’s recent letter to the editor offers the best recommendation yet for combating the chaos created by our Huntington Beach City Council majority. Simple: Any member of the City Council must obtain a written yes-no opinion from the city attorney as to whether an action they intend to propose violates any federal, state and local laws. If the proposal is contrary to existing laws, then the city attorney would have to sign and report back estimates of the cost of litigation and possible fines. This proposal is a reasonable and transparent way to do business. It would help preempt the city from expensive lawsuits with state or federal governments. The Inouye idea would let the public know when a council member’s proposal is likely to lead to lawsuits. Lastly, it will help restore some of the integrity lost since Tony Strickland, Gracey Van der Mark, Casey McKeon and Pat Burns came into office. Huntington Beach is hemorrhaging money and faces a deepening budget shortfall. The nefarious debacle of the multimillion-dollar air show settlement coupled with the ever-growing list of unwinnable lawsuits with the state is moving our city into bankruptcy.

Nora Pedersen
Huntington Beach

Praise for pastor’s reminder

Kudos to Rev. Paul E. Capetz (Pastor’s Perspective: Religious diversity is a foundation of the nation, Daily Pilot & TimesOC, Sept. 29). The bedrock of this nation’s founding is “freedom.” Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, etc. etc. If you look at other nations around the world, you would be hard pressed to find one with the amount of religious diversity and freedom that the USA has. So-called Christian nationalists and the religious right want a nation where everyone adheres to their unique beliefs. That is not freedom. This nation needs more Christian leaders like Rev. Paul E. Capetz who understands that this nation was founded on the principle of religious freedom, not religious conformity.

James Dowling
Huntington Beach

E-bikers should be insured, licensed

One evening two weeks ago my wife and I were taking a stroll along the Newport Beach Back Bay when a 20-plus-year-old male on an e-bike was heading toward us. There was nobody around and he was speeding at full throttle with plenty of margin in both lanes. The e-biker moved toward the center of the road and seemed like he was trying to maneuver his left handle bar to whack my arm. I felt a gush of air as he passed by missing me by an inch. Had he hit me, I would have been in the hospital or morgue. He then sped off.

On a more recent Friday morning, I was pedaling my bicycle down the Santa Ana River bike path toward the beach minding my own business when a couple of teenage e-bikers driving in the opposite direction headed toward me. As they passed, one of them decided to cough up a large spit wad and aim it at my face, missing me by a few inches. They both sped off.

Both of these attempted attacks were completely unprovoked and unexpected. Had either of them been successful, it would be considered assault and battery.

Could these types of e-bike incidents be a new variation of the “knockout game,” where instead of a sucker punch to the face, it’s a hit-and-run or germ-infested salvo of saliva?

How many of us have witnessed the reckless driving behaviors of e-bikers ignoring the traffic laws and almost causing an accident? If you hit one, then you have to defend yourself. How long before someone with road rage takes matters into their own hands?

It’s time to speak out and demand that the same regulations applied to motorcyclists be applied to e-bikers. I fully support any law requiring a minimum age, a driver’s license, liability insurance, and proper training before anyone is permitted to ride an e-bike on public roads.

B. Friedland
Costa Mesa

Unhappy encounter at the door

My College Park home has enough left-leaning decorations on it that I don’t get many Republican canvassers on my doorstep. And I really don’t get many who ask me if I’m a Satanist, so imagine my surprise when a campaign volunteer for Costa Mesa mayoral hopeful James Peters did exactly that this weekend!

My dogs alerted me to the man in the campaign T-shirt standing at my open French door. He recited Peters’ “Faith, Family, Freedom” slogan to me, and I told him through the barking that candidates with mottos like that weren’t generally my speed.

“Oh, so you don’t believe in God?” he asked.

“I think I probably believe in a very different kind of god from your candidate,” I said.

“So you don’t believe in Jesus Christ?” he demanded.

I told him we were done talking and began to shut the door, which is when he said “So — Satan, then?”

“What I believe is that it’s time for you to get off my porch,” I replied.

I phoned the Peters campaign, and to his credit, James Peters himself returned my call and apologized for the interaction. “I think I know who that is,” he said when I described my location and the volunteer’s appearance. “I’ll talk to him.”

Respectfully, Mr. Peters, you need to do a lot more than “talk to him.” You need to dismiss him from your volunteer efforts, have a training session with your entire team to discuss why it’s poor policy to go to people’s homes to berate them, and do some serious introspection to figure out why your campaign would attract or tolerate someone so appalling.

You brought your hatred to the wrong house, my dear. We won’t allow Costa Mesa to turn into Huntington Beach. If you don’t want the bigots on your doorstep, John Stephens is the only acceptable choice in this race.

Eliza Rubenstein
Costa Mesa

Thoughts on the NMUSD election

In a recent letter to the editor, Margaret Mooney of Costa Mesa wrote that the challenger to incumbent NMUSD trustee Leah Ersoylu, “newbie” Robin Mensinger, has no applicable experience for the position, will not denounce the far-right group Moms for Liberty or answer whether she supports them or not.

Moms for Liberty also ran candidates that had no experience for the school board seats they ultimately won, and this should be a bright, flashing red light for Area 1 voters. Their candidates crashed several school districts around the country and won elections with their obnoxious and radical right-wing platform. Fortunately they have since been defeated or recalled in many of those same districts.

Robin Mensinger also happens to be the wife of Steve Mensinger, a former hard-liner Costa Mesa councilman. His extreme conservative views along with the conservative majority at the time brought chaos and a high degree of tension to the city before voters saw through their agenda, and they were either booted or term-limited out. Does she hold views similar to her husband? Let’s not find out! I too encourage all NMUSD Area 1 voters to reelect Leah Ersoylu as MNUSD trustee.

Mike Aguilar
Costa Mesa

I have been actively involved as a parent in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District since 2010. This year, as our youngest child graduates in June, I reflect on the opportunities our public schools have provided for all three of my children.

I support my friend and current board trustee Krista Weigand because I am passionate about our public schools. I feel deeply saddened by the toxic environment surrounding this election cycle.

When my husband and I moved to this area in 2008, we quickly decided to enroll all three of our children in NMUSD schools. Over the years, I’ve witnessed significant changes — curricula, administration, superintendents and a pandemic. Throughout this time, I have actively voiced my concerns at board meetings on various topics that impact all students in our district. I’ve engaged with board trustees, superintendents and administration to discuss ways to enhance both the academic and social environments of our schools.

I’ve been fortunate to educate myself on several issues and to persistently reach out through emails and by attending school events where board members or the superintendent speak. I have taken the initiative to connect with those in leadership, regardless of our differing views. I have always felt there is accessibility to our elected school board members.

Now, regarding the upcoming election and my friend Krista Weigand, I am appalled by the misinformation and negativity surrounding her record and character. I can state with full conviction that Weigand is a dedicated mother with children in our schools, who has shown remarkable strength and resilience on the board over the past four years. She fights for all our children and is an incredibly kind and knowledgeable parent and friend. This is precisely why she deserves reelection.

In contrast, Weigand’s opponents are out of touch and running negative campaigns against her based on falsehoods. Yet she remains a class act, standing firmly by her record without resorting to retaliation. She embodies integrity by taking the high road.

Before election day, I urge you to ignore the “white noise” and hateful rhetoric. Vote for someone who prioritizes kindness, involvement and truth in our schools. I personally do not support candidates who lack deep ties to our school community or whose children no longer attend our schools.

I am voting for Krista Weigand — an educated, fair, transparent, and kind candidate who embodies conservative values and genuinely cares about the well-being of every student in the Newport Mesa School District.

Kate Malouf
Newport Beach