Crystal Cove State Park

1. ALL'S FAIR ALL THE TIME. Mid-July in Orange County means Orange County Fair time, and this year's theme is "Twist & Shout," which will celebrate citrus and sun. The fair runs every day until July 29. Today is one of three Kids Days, which means kids 12 and younger will get in free, and a Kids Soap Sculpture Contest will take place in the Youth Building. The contest is open to kids ages 7 to 18. Fair hours today are 10 a.m. to midnight. (714) 708-FAIRo7 . Http://www.

Two treated at hospital after boat runs aground Two women were treated at a local hospital after their boat ran aground at Crystal Cove State Park on Saturday morning. Lifeguards first reported the boat nearing shore just before 8 a.m. Saturday, said Sgt. David Ginther with the Orange County Sheriff's Department Harbor Patrol in Newport Beach. By the time a patrol boat arrived, the 37-foot Hatteras Sportfisher had run aground, he said. One woman on board suffered a cut to her head and another complained of pain, Ginther said.

Big 'Little' Production "Little Women -- The Broadway Musical" opens at the Orange County Performing Arts Center on Tuesday at 8 p.m. Based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott, the production tells the story of four sisters at the end of the Civil War. The Orange County Performing Arts Center is at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. For more information, call (714) 556-2787. Winged Migration Help our most delicate winged friends by volunteering to renovate the butterfly habitat at the Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve.

The California State Parks department on Thursday began requesting proposals from organizations that want to operate two restaurants and 13 historic cottages at Crystal Cove State Park. The department is offering a 20-year contract for a minimum bid of $30,000 a year or 2% of annual gross receipts from restaurant and cottage operations, whichever is greater. The parks department is in the midst of a project to restore 22 of Crystal Cove's 46 cottages.

The Newport Beach City Council, at an undetermined meeting this month, will consider whether they wants to be involved with three Crystal Cove State Park projects. As beautiful as Crystal Cove is, it's not Newport Beach. In other words, there's no reason for the city to spend any of its residents' taxes on the state park. The state, in as much a woeful state as it is, must still handle its responsibility. Newport needs to focus on its own borders, which now includes the eastern part of Santa Ana Heights, an area that probably could use a few fix-it dollars.

NEWPORT BEACH City officials growing concerned over the cove Crystal Cove State Park is of increasing concern to the city of Newport Beach, even though most of the park is outside the city borders. Council members on Tuesday will hear a presentation on different projects at the park, including a controversial plan to remove mobile home park residents when their lease expires at the end of next year. In the future, council members might consider pass a resolution to take a formal position on Crystal Cove preservation.

BRIEFLY IN THE NEWS Bird causes Crystal Cove brush fire A small brush fire that started after a bird flew into power lines burned through El Moro Canyon in Crystal Cove State Park on Wednesday. It started just after 11 a.m., about two miles northeast of the trailhead parking lot near Pacific Coast Highway, after the power lines fell into dry brush, said Capt. Steve Miller, Orange County Fire Authority spokesman. Units from the Newport Beach and Laguna Beach fire departments also initially responded, but the Orange County Fire Authority took over with a helicopter that dropped water on the flames.

Anywhere from four to six funnel clouds formed about 1 1/2 miles off Crystal Cove State Park on Saturday morning, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service said. Several witnesses reported spotting the funnel clouds from the beach around 10 a.m. on Saturday, said meteorologist Tina Spall, who works for the National Weather Service. A Newport Beach police helicopter that was in the area confirmed the sightings, she said. The unusual rotating cloud formations are created by unstable air, Spall said.

 48, passed away May 2, 2007 when struck by a car near Crystal Cove State Park while power walking, one of her favorite past times. Today we remember her as a woman of immense substance, dignity, grace and love for the Lord. She was an avid athlete, children's advocate, lover of cats. She devoted her time to service through Mariners Church and to her family and friends. A treasured daughter of Myles and Rita Jamieson, and beloved sister to Michelle Lee and brother-in-law Marvin Lee, brother Michael Fitzpatrick and fiance', Joe Klema.

UCI professor gets $100,000 grant Cristina Gibson, a business professor at UC Irvine's graduate school of management, was awarded a $100,000 grant from the National Science Foundation's Innovation and Organization Change Division. The award supports her project, "The Science and Art of Global Collaboration," and will be used toward exploring techniques to collaborate with filmmakers around the world in creating innovative, digitally enhanced productions.