Recommendations

Alicia Robinson Costa Mesa city officials have given the green light to a slate of new initiatives they expect will change the look of the Westside. But some of the Westsiders who are supposed to benefit from the revitalization efforts feel snubbed by what they see as the City Council's rushed approval of a shortsighted plan. It took three decades for the city to get a diverse group of business owners and residents with sometimes clashing interests to work together.

Lolita Harper Members of an embattled and seasoned committee designed to forge a future for the Westside of the city, presented a list of formal recommendations Monday but reserved the right to build on those suggestions. Members of the Community Redevelopment Action Committee unveiled its long-awaited report for the Westside, portions of which are marked for redevelopment. The action plan highlighted 28 goals; at the top of the list was attracting a national-chain supermarket so it could be surrounded with a commercial center.

At a short meeting Tuesday night, the Costa Mesa City Council saw what acting mayor Wendy Leece called "a defining moment" in the city's history, by taking another step forward in its development of permanent supportive housing for the city's homeless population. "We are following the recommendations of the [city's] Homeless Task Force, which labored many hours to come up with a plan," she said. "If we're really going to help Costa Mesa homeless, then supportive housing really has to be a piece of the puzzle.

Irvine Councilwoman Christina Shea's proposal to investigate and improve the housing situation for developmentally disabled residents drew applause - and unanimous approval - at Tuesday's meeting. This "vulnerable group" does not receive adequate aid, and this was confirmed at a recent Community Land Trust meeting, Shea said. "A group of residents did let us know that within Irvine, housing for the developmentally disabled is in short supply," she said. "And that affordable housing designed for those residents to use, in their words, is 'non-existent.'" Toward this end, she suggested creating a task force, but first city staff must: •Identify the scope of the current and future housing needs of the city's developmentally disabled population; •Summarize current housing policies; •Describe housing services others provide to serve the needs of these residents; •Provide the council with a list of possible solutions, if inadequacies are found; •Structure a task force that would convene and provide recommendations to the council for consideration.

Lolita Harper Pat Huak is putting a little leisure back in her life. After vowing to work until her 80th birthday, the former toy store employee has surpassed her goal and now spends her time walking her scenic Corona del Mar neighborhood and attending as many sporting events as possible. With six grandsons in the area, all involved in various sporting events, that task in itself is a full time job, she joked. "I felt pretty good staying at Toy Boat until I was 80," Huak said.

Tuesday's Irvine City Council meeting was marked with an introductory moment of silence in memory of Keith Lawrence and Monica Quan, as well as two law enforcement officials who allegedly fell prey to former cop Christopher Dorner. Mayor Steven S. Choi also commended Roger Steeber, a U.S. Postal Service letter carrier for saving the life of an elderly Irvine resident on Sept. 17. Steeber was on his route when billowing smoke snagged his attention, leading him to the mobile home of Karen Petersen, 79. According to Orange County Fire Authority division Chief Michael Moore, the fire in question was moving fast on one of the windiest days of the year, and it was only Steeber's quick thinking that saved Petersen before she was overcome by smoke.

The North American Numbering Plan Administration will file its formal recommendation to the California Public Utilities Commission next month advising the agency to adopt an overlay option for the 714 area code, administration senior planner Joe Cocke said Thursday. The administration is filing the recommendation on behalf of the telecommunications industry, which had already reached consensus to recommend the overlay before three public comment meetings around Orange County, including one in Huntington Beach.

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District may tighten its operations in the near future, as administrators have recommended streamlining programs and freeing money to pay for salaries and other costs. On Tuesday, administrators released a report on 36 Newport-Mesa district programs — including after-school tutoring, preschool, counseling and intervention for troubled students — that analyzed whether they were cost-effective and provided enough benefits for students. The review team, led by assistant superintendents and other district leaders, suggested cutting or trimming some programs and obtaining state funding to pay for others.

Advance registration is recommended for Costa Mesa’s next summer skateboarding camp, which begins Aug. 25. Kids will have an option of either a half day or a full day of skating at the Volcom Skatepark in Costa Mesa. The program lasts a week and costs $75 for the half day, which runs from 9 a.m. to noon, and an extra $55 for the full day, which ends at 5 p.m. Participants in the full-day program are responsible for bringing their own lunches, and all participants should bring appropriate gear.

Picnic tables, restrooms, and more benches — but no city hall — were among the amenities Newport Beach parks commissioners want to see added at the planned Newport Center Park. The 12-acre parcel by the city's central library has been at the center of a debate over where a new city hall should go, but the City Council has decided several times to go ahead with park plans. The commission revisited park plans Tuesday at the City Council's behest after the council learned in March that parks commissioner Debra Allen might have a conflict of interest.