The Santa Ana City Council is at it again. In a city rife with gang violence, graffiti, bad roads, not nearly enough parks or libraries, and excessive water rates, we have a City Council and a Mayor whose priorities this year have included:
- Stopping massage parlors
- Stopping human signs
- Stopping handbills
- Blowing Measure M money on a Maglev train that will never be built
- Blowing a million dollars on repainting a water tower with a new slogan
- Voting themselves longer term limits – and wasting $150K to put the measure on the ballot
- Raising our already too high water rates
- Voting against the OCTA Quiet Zones
Good grief! But wait, there’s more. The O.C. Register reported that the Santa Ana City Council is now thinking of “moving toward a permanent ban on medical-marijuana dispensaries.” I guess that sick people dying of cancer are a real threat to our city officials.
Apparently, “In Santa Ana, city planners and attorneys say they’re not willing to sign off on businesses that break federal law, even if state law says it’s OK.”
God forbid that the Council would heed the will of the voters.
What bothers me the most about this is not the issue itself, but rather the fact that the City Council, and the Mayor, continue to focus on red herrings while ignoring the REAL problems in our city. They have had “a temporary ban on marijuana dispensaries in place for nearly two years.” Why not just leave the temporary ban in place?
Why? Because they want us to focus on this measure while ignoring the fact that tomorrow they are going raise our water rates – and they will be MUCH higher than rates elsewhere in the county.
The Santa Ana City Council and especially our Mayor are the laughingstock of Orange County. And they think we are too stupid to notice. Remember this when Councilwoman Claudia Alvarez starts roaring about the dangers of marijuana while openly campaigning for the O.C. Board of Supervisors during tomorrow’s City Council meeting. Then be sure to rip her and the rest of them when it is time to talk about the water rates.
What the heck? Don’t give sick people relief from pain? What’s wrong with this City Council? They just don’t get it! I’m living in a war zone here in Santa Ana and all they can find to do is outlay pot for medical uses? This city council is a complete joke.
Ask Claudia how she can accept $185/per meeting (up to 10 meetings per month and full medical insurance) on the Orange County Water Board that she is on and then ask US to pay higher water rates. I wish Michele Martinez would get the 4 votes to put herself on the Water Board. I wouldn’t mind paying Michele the $2,000 per month or so and full medical if she would vote down higher rates.
OMG, Art! Our mayor and council majority have become SUCH A F***ING JOKE! While many of our neighborhoods are suffering from gang violence, a lack of open space, a lack of educational resources, and third-world-style infrastrcture, these clowns are doing such (un)”important” things as banning street corner signs and banning massage parlors and banning medical marijuana dispensaries. Now what the h*** is wrong with them?! Can’t they wake up and smell the despair in much of this city?!
I’d laugh at the joke that Santa Ana city government has become… Except that my neighbors and I must live the reality of it.
Your girl Janet voted against marijuana and you have mane no comments.
Does crack give sick people relief from pain? Should we allow that too?
“Does crack give sick people relief from pain? Should we allow that too?”
My pain and my sickens is my business.
For that reason I should be able to use any remedy including a gun.
The USA is currently the most primitive society on the planet Earth and I am glad that it is on its way out same like the communist block in 1990.
http://www.ocwd.com/_assets/_pdfs/ocwd-district_act.PDF
page 14 has director compensation.
(a) 100 dollars per meeting., (b) 100 dollars per day or 50 dollars per haft day, (c) not more than 600 dollars per month for any director.
But under deeper digging there is OCWD Ord# 99-4-1 that amends the above pay sch.
This Ord needs to be requested in person to see what it says.
So I was going to say Anon #2 was full of crap, but I guess not.
The budget show directors fees of over 250 thousand dollars this year for 10 directors. That is over 2000 per month per director. (Not counting health of 120 thousand per year)
No wonder govenment cost of much.
At least if Crack was made legal it would cut down on crime by taking the profit out of the sales by criminals. Did you know that there are other useful products that can be made from Crack? You laugh now but some day you will be able to buy Crack with a Doctor’s perscription.
Dear Mr. Cook,
Looks like you cracked the code! You will find they also get tasty little stipends for the Toll Road Board of Directors (two boards) and the Sanitation District and several others in addition to the council pay. Next time you hear some councilmember say “woe is me, I only get a little over $1,000 a month($500 is an auto allowance with no taxes”) remember that some are getting a lot more. In the case of Miss Alvarez over $3,000 a month plus full medical ( Most get two medicial plans if they serve on a board) free tickets to Santa Ana events, fancy dinners for Bowers, The Zoo Black Tie event, Art openings, S.A. Performing Arts Center, etc) Use of the Police Department Gym, retirement vesting, and more. So next time someone says, “I wonder why they fight so hard to stay on the city council and change term limits to do it… well…now you know why:):):)
Mr. Cook or others could make a Public Information request at the Orange County Water Board and Sanitation District for total stipends paid out during 2006-07 (take a look at two years to get a good picture) as well as travel and medical and any other compensation including retirement. It would be interesting to see written up on O.J. if someone had the time.
Arturo,
I am waiting for your report re Janet
Nguyen lonely vote against the marijuana in OC.
Poster 11,
You must not read this blog very often. I wrote about that vote before. Supervisor Ngueyn had her reasons for doing it. There is a lawsuit that has not been settled yet, in San Diego, that has bearing on this issue.
Did I like her vote? No.
But keep your eye on the ball. The deal in Santa Ana is engineered to allow Claudia to screech about pot so she can say that she is as against pot as Nguyen is. This is just a campaign stunt.
And it is meant to distract us from the far more important vote on water rates.