Report to the People - May 2016

This report covers the period from April 1 to 30. It represents the views of Councilman Gardner and does not reflect official City policy. These reports are produced monthly. Past copies are available on request.

INVOLVING PEOPLE

One of my main concerns is to involve more people in our local government.

Office hours are every Tuesday from 4 pm to 6 pm. Inquire at the Clerk’s office. Occasionally things change, so be sure to check first.

Town Square – Lake Forest Town Square has over 480 members and growing, providing valuable input on issues facing the council as well as general issues. Please join.

Listen and Learn – To date I’ve met with nearly a dozen groups around the City. Last month I was at Forest Gardens. If you have a group and want to share your concerns, let’s get together.

Mini Town Hall Meetings – Next meeting - Sat. Aug 13, 2 to 4 pm, at Foothill Ranch Library.

SPECIFIC ISSUES

Animal Services – The ”Gang of 3” voted against having our own local animal shelter. Click Here for the sad details. Since that time, two more cities joined RSM and Laguna Hills in exiting from the County. Click Here. That means that our high costs (nearly $600,000 per year) are only going to get even higher, and the share of the construction costs for Lake Forest are going to go up more than $200,000. We could have had better service, better care, less death, no killing of kittens and puppies, for less money and kept the bulk of our expenses in Lake Forest. Instead the Gang of 3 voted to stay with the County. I’m grateful for Councilman Nick’s support in this effort, but in the end, the Gangf of 3 had the votes.

Portola Monolith – The Planning Commission approved a 61 foot high building to go at the intersection of Saddleback Ranch Rd. and Glenn Ranch Rd. Click Here for more information. Councilman Nick and I requested a de novo hearing by the Council, so residents will get the opportunity to present their case.

Village Pond Park – We are still waiting for the evaluation of the effectiveness of the wildlife feeding prohibition ordinance ordered by the Council on March 3, 2015 – over a year ago! Hundreds of thousands of dollars could be saved if we can avoid suggested changes that are no longer needed, but we will know this only if we look at the evaluation. BTW - I did learn that since the ordinance was enacted, only 3 citations have been issued.

Crime –The latest statistics show that major crime in Lake Forest rose 29% in 2015 compared to 2014. The rise continues. In January 2016 the crime rate was up 15% in 2016, compared to 2015, and keep in mind that 2015 was worse than 2014. As of February it is up 13%. With the dramatic and continual increase in crime, my colleagues (Voigts, Robinsoin, Hamilton) continue to say everything is OK. Click Here to view for yourself. Here is another recent article that shows that crime in Lake Forest is getting out of hand. BTW – here we are in May and the City website only has the data for February.

Civic/Senior Center – We had three workshops on the new Senior and Civic Center and work is moving along. There is nothing firm to report yet except to say that we are on track and I will stay on top of this issue. Click on the links for the latest story on the Civic Center and the Senior Center. These new projects are vital to our quality of life. If you haven’t been involved yet, it’s not too late.

RECALL

Recall signature gatherers collected more than 8,100 signatures and turned them in (7,782 were needed). Click Here for the story. We are waiting for certification from the Registrar of Voters, which should happen in the next few weeks. Recall supporters claim that the signatures were “pre-verified” by an independent firm, and that the counts from the Registrar of Voters should match their counts. Prior to submitting the petitions, they eliminated all the invalid signatures.

More people voted to oust Voigts and Hamilton than voted to put them in office in the first place. Keep in mind that the vote to put them in was based on false promises, but after a year and a half of seeing what they did and how they voted, even more people wanted them out. Hamilton and his cronies spent tens of thousands of dollars trying to block the vote and to get people to rescind their vote. In the end, they succeeded with a mere 213, and may have broken the law in the process.

CALL TO RESIGN

I am asking Voigts and Hamilton to do the right thing and resign, thus sparing the City the costs of the special election and the continued turmoil. If Voigts and Hamilton resign, Robinson can finish out his term and the recall people can call off the special election. It’s a generous offer and if Voigts and Hamilton truly “love Lake Forest” as they say they do, they’ll take it.

If you want to encourage Voigts and Hamilton to resign, you can add your vote. Click Here.

NETWORKING

Last month I attended the following meetings/events.

• · Apr 1 – Fiscally Fit for 2016 (8:30 – City Hall)
• · Apr 1 – Ribbon Cutting Pizza Studio (11:30 am)
• · Apr 2 – Open House – ProSmile Dentistry (11am to 2pm, 26720 Town Center Dr, FHR)
• · Apr 4 – 4th July Committee (6 pm – Sports Park)
• · Apr 5 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · Apr 5 - City Council Meeting (7 pm – City Hall)
• · Apr 9 – Special Needs Resource Fair (9 to 12 – Pittsford Park)
• · Apr 9 – Town Hall meeting (2 to 4 pm, Foothill Ranch Library)
• · Apr 12 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · Apr 14 – Planning Commission (7 pm)
• · Apr 16 – Lake 1 Garage Sale (7 am)
• · Apr 19 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · Apr 19 - City Council Meeting (7 pm – City Hall)
• · Apr 26 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)

• · April 28 – Senior Center Workshop (2:30 to 4:30 City Hall)
• · Apr 29 – Ribbon Cutting Shaved Ice Baby (1pm)

UPCOMING EVENTS

• · May 1 – Rancho Fiesta Days (11 am – Heritage Hill)
• · May 2 – 4th July Committee (6 pm – Sports Park)
• · May 3 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · May 3 - City Council Meeting (7 pm – City Hall)
• · May 7 – Lake Forest Garden Sale (8 am to 1 pm – Lake 1)
• · May 7 – Renwes Bake Sale & Raffle (9 am to 12 pm – 25741 Commercecentre Dr)
• · May 7 – Civic Center Workshop #2 (10 am to 12 pm – City Hall)
• · May 10 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · May 10 – City Budget Workshop (6 pm – City Hall)
• · May 11 – Child Safety Academy (6 to 7:30 pm – City Hall)
• · May 12 – Planning Commission (7 pm)
• · May 13 – Secrets & Strategies to Business Success (8:30 to 1 pm – Sports Park)
• · May 14 – Clean Up Aliso Creek (9 am to 11:30 am – Cheery Ac & Fernback St)
• · May 17 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · May 17 - City Council Meeting (7 pm – City Hall)
• · May 18 – Commercial Broker Workshop (11:30 to 1 – Sports Park)
• · May 18 – Child Safety Academy (6 to 7:30 pm – City Hall)
• · May 19 – Parks and Recreation Commission (7 pm)
• · May 21 – Sports Park Open House (2:30 to 5:30 – Sports Park)
• · May 24 – Office Hours (4 to 6 pm – City Hall)
• · May 25 – Child Safety Academy (6 to 7:30 pm – City Hall)
• · June 1 – Child Safety Academy (6 to 7:30 pm – City Hall)

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Most of the events are FREE but some may charge admission. Be sure to check.

CONTACT

You can discuss issues at the Facebook page Lake Forest Town Square.