YouTube transcript
Video ID: 9B4v48GDudE
Language: en
Captions: auto-generated

[0:16] Hey everyone,
[0:19] in case you didn't know, this is the
[0:22] Laguna Canyon Conseries,
[0:24] our general meeting and our candidates
[0:27] forum for 2026. We appreciate you all
[0:31] coming and hope you'll have a good time
[0:34] this evening. And as most of the people
[0:37] know, Laguna Canyon Conservancy, we were
[0:40] the leaders in 1989 for the walk in the
[0:43] canyon that led to the formation of
[0:45] Laguna Canyon Foundation.
[0:52] That's why when you drive through the
[0:53] canyon, you don't see 3,500 homes and
[0:57] hope we won't see them in the near
[0:58] future either. So I wanted to just
[1:01] tonight we had a random drawing of names
[1:05] for the seating. Instead of the same old
[1:07] same old alphabetical we changed the
[1:11] seating and there will also be some
[1:13] random changes when we have the
[1:15] questions. So we don't want everyone to
[1:18] feel they're, you know, expected to be
[1:21] the same person answering every time
[1:23] there's a new question. So I would like
[1:26] to just say a few things.
[1:32] We want to thank the neighborhood
[1:33] congregational church for allowing us to
[1:35] host this here. Reverend Rod,
[1:38] Pastor Rod, uh Joyce Swaving is here.
[1:42] She is the person who I think who really
[1:44] probably runs the church. She's here to
[1:47] help us. And we have some people um that
[1:52] are helping us with the setup tonight.
[1:55] And that was Scott Thomas from Laguna
[1:57] Canyon Foundation. We have John Levit on
[2:00] the wine. We have You can hold your
[2:02] applause. And we have Jean Felder is
[2:05] doing the timing tonight. I'm going to
[2:07] tell you about our fabulous moderators
[2:09] in a moment. Uh Craig Culie is doing our
[2:13] recording and we'll post it on the
[2:15] website in a few days after we have
[2:18] chance to edit it. So anyone who really
[2:21] wants something taken out, talk to us
[2:22] after the meeting. So, and so I would
[2:27] like to
[2:30] tell you a little bit about your
[2:31] moderators. They are the really the
[2:35] icons of environmentalism in Lagona. We
[2:38] really are so lucky to have Mary Fagris
[2:41] here tonight. She is a Laguna Beach
[2:44] resident since 1973
[2:46] in the upper Bluebird Canyon area and
[2:49] she has been there with her husband
[2:51] Clark and raised two kids. But Mary is
[2:55] the chair and member of the Coastal
[2:56] Green Belt Authority representing the
[2:59] environmental organizations and can do
[3:02] hold on a second.
[3:06] Signers of the Laguna Laurel Purchase
[3:08] agreement. She's been a trustee for the
[3:10] Laguna Beach High School Scholarship
[3:12] Foundation from 1985 till now.
[3:16] Yes, she's founding trustee for Lagona
[3:18] Beach Community Foundation. She was the
[3:20] founding executive director for Laguna
[3:23] Canyon Foundation from 1990 to 2007.
[3:27] She's a past member of the Laguna Beach
[3:29] branch of the American Association of
[3:31] University Women. She's a past Laguna
[3:34] Beach Girl Scout
[3:36] leader, troop leader, life Girl Scout
[3:40] member. She's a former director for
[3:43] Laguna Green Belt, which by the way has
[3:45] a display in the back about the wildlife
[3:47] corridor you should all hopefully take a
[3:48] look at.
[3:50] So, she is also a former director for
[3:53] Laguna Green Belt I told you about in
[3:55] the back. And then she is going to
[3:58] continue on as a Laguna Canyon
[4:00] Conservancy member, Laguna Green Belt,
[4:02] Village Lagona, and she was a former
[4:04] Laguna Beach planning commissioner. So
[4:07] Mary would just like to say those who
[4:09] have inspired her with her Laguna Beach
[4:12] community activities, Jim Dilly, Be
[4:15] Widdlesley, Barbara Stewart, Elizabeth
[4:17] Brown, and Lita Lenny. So So thank you
[4:20] Mary for doing this tonight.
[4:28] Okay, our second moderator is Bob
[4:31] Borthwick. I'm sure many of you know
[4:34] Bob. Bob's been a resident since 1974,
[4:37] has always lived in the village with his
[4:39] wife Vicki, and has raised his two
[4:41] children there. Bob is a landscape
[4:43] architect and a planner with a long
[4:45] history of environmental protection. In
[4:48] 1974,
[4:50] he was appointed to the Eliso Creek
[4:52] Corridor Planning Task Group by the
[4:54] Orange County Board of Supervisors to
[4:57] oversee the Eliso Creek Corridor
[4:59] specific plan. He was later appointed by
[5:01] the Laguna Beach City Council to the
[5:03] Trails and Open Space Committee and then
[5:06] to the Laguna Canyon Flood Control Task
[5:08] Force. In 2016, he prepared a pro bono
[5:13] planning document for beautifification
[5:15] and restoration of Laguna Canyon Creek,
[5:18] which led to a $500,000 grant from the
[5:21] state of California to restore the creek
[5:24] at the Dwit property between Analise
[5:26] School and the Sun Valley neighborhood.
[5:29] He has served on the board of Laguna
[5:31] Green Belt for nearly 30 years and has
[5:34] also served on the board of LCC and is
[5:36] currently an adviser for us. We are
[5:38] grateful to you both and thank you for
[5:40] being here tonight. So,
[5:49] so I will just say that I will maybe let
[5:52] Bob and Mary talk a little bit about the
[5:55] format for the questions tonight. But
[5:57] are you all ready? and willing and able
[5:59] to participate. All right. Thank you
[6:03] very much for being here, candidates.
[6:09] >> Thank you, Gail. Um, so as Gail
[6:12] mentioned, the sequencing of on the
[6:14] seating on the table up front was done
[6:17] by random selection out of our cookie
[6:20] jar here. So, didn't want any alpha
[6:22] alphabetical situations. So, this is
[6:25] random. So also to take that one step
[6:28] further, we have some names in the jar
[6:34] which we'll choose for each question. So
[6:37] we'll start question number one will be
[6:40] somebody in the jar here and you'll
[6:42] start and then you'll pass the
[6:45] microphone to the person next to you
[6:47] down the line. We we we considered
[6:51] picking a name for every single
[6:53] sequence, but that was way too much and
[6:56] we thought that'll drag out the meeting.
[6:58] So anyway, but but the first question
[7:01] will be randomized and then you'll go
[7:03] from there. Um
[7:06] so we're going to have nine questions
[7:09] and then a closing statement uh of two
[7:12] minutes from each candidate. questions
[7:15] for one minute
[7:16] >> and the question responses will be just
[7:18] one minute. We we considered 30 seconds
[7:21] to keep it even more brief, but that
[7:24] seemed like that was unfair to the
[7:25] candidates and and to the audience. So
[7:28] anyway, one minute and Jean Felder will
[7:30] be keeping track of that.
[7:34] >> So,
[7:36] okay, sorry. Uh so, thanks to everybody
[7:39] that submitted questions.
[7:41] uh we had to limit the the the number
[7:44] because uh just because of time but
[7:47] anyway thanks thanks for coming here and
[7:49] thanks for participating. So um before
[7:54] we begin I want to honor our friend and
[7:57] leader and leader Lita Lenny uh who was
[8:01] on the city council and founded the
[8:03] Lagona Canyon Conservancy in 1988.
[8:07] Lita once said to me, "You know, I think
[8:10] the canyon is the soul of our town
[8:13] and the creek is its beating heart.
[8:17] We have to save the creek." And she died
[8:20] a few months after that conversation.
[8:24] Um, so as we start the first question
[8:26] here, um, please keep in mind Lita's,
[8:30] uh, uh, words to us as, as we go through
[8:34] tonight. So the first question and uh
[8:41] the first question is going to be to
[8:43] Karen Martin randomly selected. Uh and
[8:47] so so the question is
[8:50] um
[8:52] drive driving down Laguna Canyon Road
[8:55] from the freeways to downtown.
[8:58] What are your impressions of the canyon?
[9:01] Both positive and negative. So, one one
[9:04] minute impressions.
[9:06] >> One minute. Okay. Thank you.
[9:09] >> Uh,
[9:10] >> it's on. Okay. Thank you.
[9:12] >> Like this. Like this.
[9:14] >> Okay. Thank you. Um, thank you for
[9:17] having all of us here and um,
[9:22] can we start now?
[9:23] >> Yes. Go ahead.
[9:24] >> Okay. Um, what I first notice is the
[9:28] feeling of being embraced by the
[9:30] landscape. The hillsides,
[9:33] the dark sky, the native sycamores, the
[9:35] oaks,
[9:38] uh, make the drive into Lagona feel
[9:40] different from other developed areas
[9:42] around us.
[9:45] When I worked on the Binyan property, I
[9:48] learned that the hillsides can be
[9:50] outside our city boundary and still be a
[9:52] part of the way Laguna looks and feels.
[9:54] that stayed with me. These open areas
[9:57] are not simply leftover land around
[9:59] buildings. They're part of our village
[10:01] itself. I think of them I think of the
[10:05] open space as a big hug. I want future
[10:08] generations to experience that same
[10:10] arrival with the landscape still
[10:12] surrounding our community.
[10:16] >> Thank you.
[10:19] >> Are we going this way?
[10:20] >> Okay.
[10:22] >> Yeah. Thank you. No, I I consider it the
[10:24] the gateway to our town. And you know,
[10:27] if it's not for not it's not traffic
[10:30] snarled, it's um it's a nice smooth
[10:32] ride, but if there's a lot of traffic,
[10:33] you get a chance to kind of look around,
[10:35] look at the beauty of the outcroppings
[10:37] and the trees, the beautiful
[10:38] landscaping. And depends also depends on
[10:41] what time of day. If you're coming in in
[10:42] the morning, it's kind of dewy and it's
[10:44] really pretty. And if you're driving in
[10:45] later in the afternoon, it there's a lot
[10:47] of golden shades. It's really gorgeous.
[10:49] We have a lot of, you know, as you're
[10:50] coming into town, um, there is a lot of,
[10:53] um, commercial on the lefthand side.
[10:55] Some places it can look a little jumbled
[10:57] over there, but in general, if you're
[10:59] driving in and on your right, you get
[11:00] quite a nice view.
[11:05] >> Yeah, I think a lot of folks describe it
[11:08] as the gateway to the community, but I I
[11:10] look at it a bit different. Uh it is a
[11:12] gateway but it it's the first foray
[11:15] right into kind of it sets the tone of
[11:16] of who we are and you know it's we're
[11:20] Lagona is an island and it's just kind
[11:22] of that that journey you know on your
[11:24] way to the island.
[11:26] The and I do enjoy eclectic businesses
[11:29] coming down the canyon and um I think
[11:31] that they all serve the community well.
[11:33] Uh, the thing that bothers me the most
[11:36] would probably be, and I hate to say
[11:38] this, but the, uh, roadkill probably is
[11:41] what bothers me the most. Uh, coming
[11:43] down to Canada,
[11:44] >> right, Mark?
[11:46] Good answer.
[11:47] >> And 30 years, this feels like now 31
[11:49] years ago, but I drove I had a packed
[11:52] car coming from Phoenix, Arizona. The
[11:54] car almost overheated. I was dying. My
[11:56] air condition went out and I hit the
[11:58] canyon and it was a breath of fresh air.
[12:02] my inspiration. It's a breath of fresh
[12:04] air from the concrete jungle. And now 30
[12:08] years later, when I drive down that
[12:10] canyon, I think of home.
[12:16] Um, you know, when you drive away from
[12:18] the from the 405 and you start coming
[12:20] into Lagona, uh, the canyon reminds me
[12:23] of the road to Hana, like in Maui. It's,
[12:26] uh, you know, a long, windy road. you
[12:28] can take your time uh to enjoy the
[12:31] landscape. You have the open space on
[12:33] the right. And you have so much
[12:35] diversity on the left, whether it's
[12:37] having Anelise's school, you have the
[12:39] canyon conservancy, you have the the uh
[12:43] animal shelters, you have the dog park,
[12:45] you have the residential areas, and then
[12:46] of course you have Elcad, and then it
[12:48] gets more industrial. And then you make
[12:49] that turn and uh you immediately see the
[12:52] ocean. And it's so amazing to see that
[12:54] when you come into Lagona. Um, you know,
[12:57] I drive I drive the canyon every day, so
[13:00] I see a lot of the uh the great things
[13:02] about it and also the issues. And so
[13:04] some of the issues being obviously the
[13:06] congestion. I think there's a lot of um
[13:08] the signage, a lot too much signage or
[13:11] not enough depending on what you see and
[13:13] obviously uh the traffic with uh the
[13:16] pedestrians at ECAD. So I think there's
[13:19] some great things about the canyon and
[13:20] then there's some things that we can of
[13:22] course improve upon.
[13:26] Thank you. Um
[13:28] I think of the canyon as kind of the
[13:31] grand entrance to Lagona from the point
[13:33] where you see the sign um over the
[13:35] roadway to driving through the hills. Um
[13:40] I get the feeling of going back in time
[13:42] and I always wonder, gee, what was it
[13:44] like once upon a time? Um, I I enjoy the
[13:49] um feeling of
[13:53] reminiscing and thinking about what it
[13:55] was like for the first people the first
[13:58] time they went down that road. Thank
[14:00] you.
[14:06] The 36 years ago, I arrived here from
[14:10] Connecticut and my first weekend I came
[14:14] down to Lagona and driving down the
[14:16] canyon was for me spectacular. And I
[14:19] said to myself, "Wow, I get to stay in a
[14:21] hotel for a month or two. I need to find
[14:23] a place down here." Went back to my
[14:26] company. They said, "Edward, you have to
[14:27] live in LA. It's too far. You're going
[14:29] to work too too many hours." So, I ended
[14:32] up in 1994
[14:34] getting a place here finally four years
[14:36] later. And every time I drive down the
[14:38] canyon, it's just spectacular. I love
[14:42] the canyon, the views. I don't mind the
[14:45] traffic because it allows me to see the
[14:48] the canyon slowly. So, I enjoy my trips
[14:52] into Lagouna Beach even though it takes
[14:55] time. I appreciate it. Thank you.
[15:00] Um, I drive the canyon every day and I
[15:04] really love and appreciate how it
[15:07] reminds me of that we still live in such
[15:10] a wild part of Lagona and we're very
[15:12] lucky to be able to see that and
[15:14] experience that. Um, I'm sad when I
[15:17] leave it and have to hop on the freeway
[15:19] and see cement everywhere and a lot of
[15:23] uh industry. Um, but coming back at
[15:26] night normally it's always very late at
[15:27] night. Um, I just I love being able to
[15:30] come back and just see nature and beauty
[15:32] again and see all the hard work that it
[15:34] took to preserve it for all of these
[15:36] years. Um, and not to take that for
[15:38] granted. The only con is it's very dark
[15:41] when you're driving back at night. Um,
[15:43] but I'd rather have it be dark than lit
[15:45] up. So,
[15:49] >> yeah. Uh, being born and raised here, I
[15:52] I've uh have an attachment to the canyon
[15:54] in that it reminds me about what makes
[15:56] Lagouna Beach so special. Just in my
[15:57] lifetime, I've noticed how much
[15:59] development has taken place around us,
[16:01] including, you know, all by Irvine
[16:03] essentially right at the the the
[16:05] entrance to the canyon. And so it really
[16:08] makes me contemplate how the canyon that
[16:10] we have in our open space, our green
[16:12] belt, which is really the defining
[16:14] quality of what makes Laguna Beach
[16:16] unique, was not an accident, but rather
[16:17] the act of intentionality. Um, it gives
[16:20] me chills to think about what happened
[16:21] in 1989 when a group of residents
[16:24] basically stood up to the biggest
[16:25] development company in Southern
[16:27] California, the Irvine Company, and not
[16:29] only did they um they win in that
[16:32] protest, but they were able to preserve
[16:33] the open space. When I think about the
[16:36] challenges, I often think about the
[16:38] above ground utility lines which pose
[16:40] such an existential threat to us from an
[16:42] evacuation and fire standpoint. So over
[16:45] my next term, I want to figure out a way
[16:46] to do that in a financially feasible way
[16:48] without having to take over Laguna
[16:50] Canyon Road from Calrans.
[16:53] Questions because you know we're having
[16:55] a demographics change over time in this
[16:56] town and a lot of people don't have any
[16:58] idea except when you bring it up to
[17:00] them, they'll just they don't know about
[17:01] the history. But I think, you know, um,
[17:04] so much work has gone into this. Um, I
[17:06] think we should be looking at the NCCP
[17:08] because, uh, with if we can get good
[17:11] boundaries, I think it' be helpful for
[17:12] us in terms of fighting wildfires and
[17:15] working on invasive species because one
[17:17] of those that's one of the biggest risks
[17:18] for our town for the particularly for
[17:20] the canyon is invasive species and not
[17:22] being able to do proper fuel
[17:23] modification there. Um the open space is
[17:26] very dear to us and when James Dilly did
[17:28] this he did it because he didn't want
[17:30] the you know um development creep to
[17:33] come into Laguna Beach and that had a
[17:35] lot of foresight and I think we just
[17:36] need to be very diligent about keeping
[17:38] that in place.
[17:44] >> Thank you. Um
[17:47] I also support joining the NCCP. Um, and
[17:53] I I think it's also important to
[17:55] understand what NCCP is. Some people in
[17:59] the audience may not understand that.
[18:02] Um,
[18:04] it's the central and uh coastal Orange
[18:07] County plan and it was uh completed in
[18:09] 1996. It combine combines long-term
[18:13] habitat protection with regulatory
[18:16] commitments from participating land
[18:18] owners. The point is is that it's a
[18:21] coordinated
[18:22] conservation across the landscape.
[18:28] It does not own every acre or replace
[18:30] every land manager. I would want Lagona
[18:33] to understand its responsibilities,
[18:35] coordinate with appropriate agencies,
[18:37] and use monitoring to guide the
[18:39] restoration. I think one item that we
[18:41] need to look at is the um undergrounding
[18:45] of some of the
[18:49] Edison lines and we should understand
[18:52] how that's going to affect the habitat
[18:54] out there.
[18:55] >> Nick,
[19:00] >> do we hand it to you then or just Oh, to
[19:03] Nick. Okay.
[19:06] uh like uh the other uh candidates on
[19:08] stage said, I think joining the NCCP
[19:10] makes a lot of sense. I think what we
[19:13] need to be asking is uh from the uh from
[19:16] what I read that that uh started back in
[19:19] 2023, so it's been 3 years. We need I
[19:22] think having an update on that is really
[19:24] important because uh you know we can't
[19:26] get complacent when it comes to uh the
[19:29] canyon and as we've seen with the Irvine
[19:32] company and the development and how
[19:33] they've decided to change the rules when
[19:35] it comes to Oak Creek Golf Course. you
[19:38] know, we can't expect that things won't
[19:40] change in the canyon and if we're not
[19:42] part of these different uh groups where
[19:44] we can work together to raise money,
[19:46] whether it's state or federal dollars,
[19:49] um and you know, have a seat at the
[19:50] table to make sure that, you know, we're
[19:52] not asleep at the wheel.
[19:56] >> Thank you. Um I would also support
[20:00] efforts to uh preserve and protect. Um,
[20:05] I would look for opportunities to expand
[20:08] the protections and um, encourage
[20:12] joining
[20:15] any any group, all of the groups that
[20:17] uh, are like-minded with Lagouna Beach.
[20:20] I think as a group, we have a stronger
[20:23] case.
[20:27] Pro protecting
[20:29] acreage in the canyon is important and
[20:35] part of it is fire mitigation but
[20:38] belonging to the NCCP is important
[20:41] because it manages and monitors does
[20:44] research and joining efforts and then
[20:48] doing presentation at state agencies
[20:52] enables you to
[20:55] the state agencies will listen to you
[20:57] more when there's a stronger larger
[20:59] group. So, um I believe that protecting
[21:05] the canyon is important, belonging to
[21:08] the agency is important and uh
[21:11] supporting the regional plan uh being
[21:14] partners is very very strategic and
[21:16] important. Thank you.
[21:21] Um the great thing is is that this is
[21:24] what the entire uh community of Laguna
[21:27] Beach agrees upon, right? We all want to
[21:28] protect the canyon. Um and so we need to
[21:31] start making this a priority now versus
[21:33] being reactive later. Um because it is a
[21:35] big undertaking, right? And so we need
[21:37] to be able to bring all the relevant
[21:40] organizations and stakeholders um
[21:42] involved whether that's at our own
[21:44] community level, county level, state
[21:46] level, federal level, and put a plan
[21:49] together of how we want to protect it
[21:50] and how we're going to be able to
[21:51] financially be responsible in protecting
[21:53] it. Um we all agree to it. We just need
[21:56] to start putting the plan together to be
[21:57] able to maintain that and do that sooner
[21:59] than later. So
[22:03] >> in in general I'm a proponent of the
[22:05] idea that regional solutions or regional
[22:07] problems require regional solutions. The
[22:09] um the national community the NCCP is is
[22:13] an example of that. I know one of the
[22:14] the challenges has been how do we um
[22:18] work with our our fuel modification
[22:20] policies and that's been one of the
[22:21] barriers for for why we have a joint.
[22:23] I'm I'm sure there there are ways to
[22:25] work that out. And so, um, as long as we
[22:28] can protect, you know, our fire safety,
[22:29] I'm I'm supportive of joining it. As it
[22:32] relates to funding solutions, one of the
[22:33] things that's exciting is Proposition 4,
[22:35] which the voters of California passed in
[22:37] the um 2024
[22:39] uh really supports regional uh
[22:42] solutions, and that's a a funding source
[22:43] for us. And then finally, one of the
[22:45] things the city's done um a good job at
[22:48] historically is when there are EIR
[22:50] documents for neighboring communities
[22:51] doing developments, including the
[22:53] Fivepoint development where we got a
[22:54] little bit of money. It could have been
[22:55] maybe more. Um and then also the mission
[22:58] uh the Laguna Hills Mall. We did
[22:59] challenge that EIR and have a
[23:01] settlement. So I looked into that
[23:03] recently. That's an opportunity for us
[23:04] to get money to protect our open space
[23:06] because of the impacts of the future
[23:08] visitors.
[23:10] I'm going to use that mic. It's safer. I
[23:13] don't put this on. Yeah.
[23:18] >> Thank you.
[23:20] >> We'll be safe and keep going back and
[23:22] forth. Sorry. Um, what methods would you
[23:26] use to support purchasing additional
[23:30] undeveloped open space parcels,
[23:33] especially the inner green belt within
[23:37] city limits? And the first question is
[23:40] to be answered by Nick Arnot.
[23:53] Like some of the candidates have said,
[23:55] we have to use outside funding or we
[23:57] should be looking for outside funding.
[23:58] Like Alex mentioned, you have
[23:59] Proposition 4, which I believe is uh $10
[24:02] billion in bonds and
[24:05] >> louder. Louder.
[24:06] >> Can you hear me now?
[24:08] >> Yeah.
[24:08] >> Better. Okay. So, we need to continue to
[24:10] look at outside funding. I think what's
[24:12] really uh what it highlights here is
[24:14] that when the city doesn't uh handle its
[24:17] budget uh appropriately and we know that
[24:20] we don't have a lot of spending and
[24:21] we're in the a mode of cutting then when
[24:23] an opportunity arises to purchase
[24:26] something that's very important to keep
[24:27] the space open. Now we have to now we're
[24:30] stuck between rock and a hard place and
[24:31] now we're moving money around from
[24:33] different buckets where that can put us
[24:35] in a precarious position. So, we need to
[24:37] continue to always be looking for
[24:39] funding from the state and federal level
[24:40] so we're not putting additional pressure
[24:42] on our own budget
[24:44] >> to go that way. Yep.
[24:46] >> Thank you. Um
[24:50] I would also um seek funding from
[24:53] outside
[24:55] um the city um including investigating
[24:58] like-minded groups. Um I understand
[25:00] there are a number of them throughout
[25:02] the state um partner with them. Um it's
[25:06] a beautiful area and probably a fairly
[25:09] easy sell. Um and I have always liked
[25:13] the idea of public private partnerships
[25:16] um perhaps set up a type of foundation
[25:21] that could receive money through the
[25:23] city um to be used for acquisition of
[25:27] open space.
[25:31] There are many
[25:33] possibilities for the city of Laguna
[25:35] Beach to go to different agencies in the
[25:39] state of California for open to purchase
[25:42] open space, but you have to do a
[25:44] presentation. Obviously, we do a really
[25:47] bad job going to those state agencies.
[25:51] uh one of them in particular uh the
[25:53] California Coastal Conservancy actually
[25:57] uh will give the city money to purchase
[26:01] open space. They it's budgeted. It's
[26:05] there. It's state money and we do a very
[26:08] bad job from what I've seen in the last
[26:10] 10 years. Uh we should have a city
[26:12] council person going to Sacramento at
[26:15] least once a month if not once a week
[26:17] because there's multiple agencies. Um
[26:20] California housing agency does financing
[26:22] for lowincome disabled housing etc. Uh
[26:28] so there are multiple things obviously
[26:30] we have to do really good presentations
[26:32] and my belief you'll get the money.
[26:36] Thank you.
[26:39] Um, I think it's a going to have to be a
[26:41] balanced approach. So, it doesn't just
[26:43] all fall on taxpayer dollars to do it.
[26:46] So, um, as everyone else has said, there
[26:49] are a lot of resources. There's
[26:50] conservation grants. There's working
[26:52] with the county. There's philanthropy.
[26:54] There's different organizations. Um, so
[26:56] there is a lot of ways we can do and
[26:58] purchase. There's land trusts we can do
[26:59] to purchase open space. I would just
[27:01] want to make sure before any decision of
[27:03] spending money of any of our own money
[27:05] is made or taking in any outside money
[27:07] that there's a plan of who's going to
[27:10] manage the entire property, what the
[27:12] maintenance is going to be, etc.
[27:16] >> Yeah. So historically we've we've tried
[27:18] to allocate at least half half a million
[27:20] a year um into our open space fund and I
[27:22] think we need to continue to make
[27:24] investments there and then the idea is
[27:26] how do we have a multiplier effect with
[27:28] that fund and I think that's where a
[27:30] public private partnership comes into
[27:32] place kind of modeled off what we're
[27:33] doing with the artists um the community
[27:36] land trust for artists I'm very open to
[27:38] that idea of for open space right now we
[27:41] what happens at the city council level
[27:42] is there are opportunities where land
[27:44] owners will say oh do you want to buy
[27:46] this open space parcel instead of kind
[27:48] of having a reactive approach to that. I
[27:50] do favor an approach where we go and
[27:52] send a letter to all the properties that
[27:54] we're interested in and then use the
[27:55] leverage of the city to try to get the
[27:57] best possible deal so that we can really
[27:59] get the highest return on investment for
[28:01] each dollar that we spend to maximize
[28:03] the amount of open space we get. And
[28:05] then finally, as I was alluding to
[28:07] before, whenever there's an EIR done in
[28:09] a neighboring city, the city needs to be
[28:11] involved and participate and um use that
[28:14] leverage that we have as part of the
[28:15] environmental impact report process to
[28:17] bring back money for the community.
[28:27] >> How can we help fund open space? One,
[28:30] state and federal grants. The California
[28:32] State Coastal Conservancy and the
[28:34] Wildlife Conservation Board distribute
[28:36] grant funding from source state
[28:38] climates. That's number one. Number two,
[28:40] mitigation funding. The Orange County
[28:42] Transportation Authority is legally
[28:44] required to mitigate environmental
[28:46] impacts when they build new roads or
[28:48] bridges by restoring open space parcels.
[28:51] We need to meet with them for a land
[28:53] swap. Number three, land trust and
[28:55] private philanthropy. I mean, the the
[28:58] Laguna Canyon Foundation can receive
[29:01] land from donors. And number four, these
[29:04] conservation easements that people have
[29:06] even set up. I have a theory that people
[29:08] would rather give their money to an open
[29:10] space or park than the federal
[29:12] government. So, we need to have some
[29:14] classes to help people as they decide to
[29:17] either sell or distribute some of their
[29:20] land or their unused land into a
[29:23] long-term open space or conservation
[29:26] easement. That's how I'd fund it.
[29:30] >> Yeah. So, let's just reflect on what we
[29:32] currently do because our record is not
[29:34] bad at all. In fact, I'm quite proud of
[29:35] it. Uh, the Coastal Conservancy funded
[29:38] the purchase of 26 properties in the
[29:40] Lagona Canyon via Proposition 12. We
[29:43] currently have several properties that
[29:45] we're actually looking at right now uh
[29:47] in to acquire. In 2023 24 budget, we
[29:52] talked about funding $300,000 to the
[29:55] open space fund.
[29:57] We do we currently uh do work with
[30:01] Orange County Transportation Authority.
[30:03] There are examples right now where we
[30:05] have accepted properties as far as for
[30:07] mitigation. We of course have the new
[30:09] land trust that is capable of handing
[30:12] handling a variety of different uh types
[30:15] of real estate and real properties. Then
[30:17] we do and have historically prior to
[30:19] this council um accepted gifts of uh
[30:22] open space. So if somebody has a parcel
[30:24] that they realize is non-developable,
[30:27] they'll takes take the tax credit for it
[30:29] and uh give it to the city. And we do
[30:31] work and we we work with uh folks uh
[30:35] diligently on that as well as grant
[30:37] opportunities.
[30:43] >> Thank you. Um so I think on the back to
[30:47] the question that Mary asked is we need
[30:49] to identify those parcels. We need to
[30:51] get you know identifiable list to work
[30:53] on. Um we have about a million dollars
[30:55] in our open space fund at at at the
[30:58] moment. And hi uh council member or
[31:00] mayor prom Jones has been working with
[31:02] towns and on grant opportunities.
[31:04] There's two state grants we can apply
[31:05] for and one federal although kind of the
[31:08] way things going around with the federal
[31:09] government they don't seem to be too
[31:10] interested in the environment. So that's
[31:12] I think that's some jeopardy there. Um I
[31:15] do agree if we acquire some parcels we
[31:18] should have some conservation elements
[31:20] include or conservation easements
[31:22] included. Uh we did talk about during
[31:24] budget time at midyear moving $300,000
[31:27] into our open space fund. So I hope we
[31:29] can do that. I hope our budget allows
[31:30] for that.
[31:35] >> Thank you. I think we need both a land
[31:37] strategy and a funding strategy. Um, we
[31:41] need to identify properties that are
[31:42] important for habitat connections,
[31:44] watersheds, and open space areas around
[31:48] our neighborhoods. Then pursue donation,
[31:51] state conservation grants, and
[31:52] partnerships.
[31:54] Existing dedicated funds should be used
[31:57] carefully with transparencies. I'm happy
[31:59] to know that we've had these um
[32:02] abilities to receive gifts of open
[32:04] space, but I think we need to make that
[32:06] more transparent and available on our
[32:09] website because I don't think a lot of
[32:12] people understand that. Um
[32:15] outside partnerships belong in the
[32:17] discussion. I think in addition to the
[32:19] ERS, we also need to look at the
[32:21] surrounding comm community communities
[32:23] development agreements and we need to be
[32:26] at the development agreement tables
[32:28] so that we actually get some of that
[32:31] money back into Laguna Beach.
[32:43] >> Thank you.
[32:44] >> Thank you. Um, first off, I just like to
[32:47] thank the candidates for being concise
[32:49] and and following the the time limit,
[32:51] and Jean's doing a great job over there,
[32:53] so we're right on target. And also, I'd
[32:57] like to obviously apologize for this
[32:59] crazy sound situation. It's not
[33:01] something we ever anticipated. And, you
[33:04] know, I guess we all know we're a small
[33:06] town and sometimes we don't have things
[33:09] don't turn out quite right. But anyway,
[33:11] thanks for everybody's patience. So um
[33:15] so the next question is uh about trees.
[33:20] So as an environmental organization LCC
[33:23] is concerned about removal of existing
[33:25] trees including in the downtown area.
[33:29] What is your position on tree
[33:31] preservation
[33:33] in particular the current Ocean Avenue
[33:35] streetscape project?
[33:37] So I'll get the next.
[33:40] So Ashley, will we start this one off?
[33:47] >> Go Ashley.
[33:48] >> Thank you.
[33:50] >> Um yeah, I I mean I support protecting
[33:53] our trees and preserving them as much as
[33:54] possible. Um if any, you know, trees um
[33:59] need to be removed because of public
[34:01] safety or the health of the tree, um it
[34:04] shouldn't just be a city council
[34:06] decision. We need to bring all the right
[34:07] stakeholders to the table, arborists to
[34:09] the table um and be able to have data
[34:13] and science backing that decision and
[34:15] publicly um sharing that decision of any
[34:18] trees that need to be removed and then
[34:20] the plan to be able to you know um
[34:23] restore add any more trees versus just
[34:27] doing it after the fact. So
[34:29] >> Oh, sorry.
[34:31] >> Thank you.
[34:33] Yeah, I I think trees are an really
[34:35] important part of our downtown landscape
[34:38] and just the city as a whole. With that
[34:40] being said, you know, public safety
[34:42] always has to be our top priority. And I
[34:45] never want to be in a situation where
[34:47] because the council knew that where we
[34:49] have one or maybe two or sometimes three
[34:51] arburous reports telling us that a tree
[34:53] is dangerous, um I'm never going to be
[34:55] in a situation where I'm going to vote
[34:57] to not remove that tree for political
[34:59] reasons. I think we always have to have
[35:00] life and safety guide it. With that
[35:02] being said, we we can always do more in
[35:04] terms of maintaining our existing trees
[35:07] to ensure that they don't get in a
[35:09] situation where there's a life and
[35:10] safety threat and the tree needs to be
[35:11] removed. That should be our goal. And
[35:13] I'm always open to how we can do that
[35:15] more. And as Ashley alluded to, I favor
[35:18] an approach of a, you know, at least a
[35:20] 2:1, maybe even 5 to one replacement
[35:22] where for every tree that has to be
[35:24] removed for public safety reasons that
[35:25] we ensure that we are investing to add
[35:28] multiple trees. And so obviously it's a
[35:30] it's a bummer because um it takes a
[35:33] while for a tree to grow, but we we
[35:35] should always be doubling down on
[35:36] investing in trees.
[35:42] I I believe we could do a better job at
[35:45] taking care of our trees in the city,
[35:47] including downtown. I'm happy that the
[35:51] beach and ocean uh taking down 16 trees
[35:55] stopped after the prominade was done
[35:58] because enough is enough. Um if you all
[36:00] go to Borders Books or a bookstore,
[36:03] there's lots of tree books and trees
[36:06] communicate underground. They
[36:08] communicate to one another and you can
[36:10] learn a lot from trees. Trees are a
[36:12] valuable asset, to your house, to the
[36:16] community. And if you have time
[36:19] sometime, drive down to Seal Beach and
[36:22] walk down Main Street. They have their
[36:25] plant plant their trees have planters
[36:28] that are three times bigger than ours
[36:30] and it's flat, no tripping hazard. So, I
[36:33] highly recommend a trip down there to
[36:35] take a look. And that's how we should do
[36:37] our sidewalks and our streets. Thank
[36:40] you.
[36:42] >> The place I grew up in the Midwest had
[36:44] lots of big trees. So, I I support
[36:48] preservation when it's possible. Uh I
[36:51] think we need to follow the rules.
[36:54] um make sure our processes are
[36:57] transparent
[36:59] um and predictable and when possible
[37:02] involve the public in any decision that
[37:06] um might impact the the health or
[37:09] longevity of a tree.
[37:14] >> Yeah, I I agree with uh tree
[37:16] preservation. Trees should not be a
[37:17] political decision. they shouldn't and
[37:19] what we saw with Forest Avenue and
[37:21] trying to make deadlines and make sure
[37:22] that you know the project could you know
[37:24] stay on schedule and get open on time
[37:26] and that's what happens with poor
[37:28] planning and a reactive policy instead
[37:30] of a proactive policy like some people
[37:33] up here said trees take time to grow so
[37:35] we need to be looking ahead planning
[37:37] ahead and we already have some documents
[37:39] that tell us what trees need to be
[37:40] planted in the scenic highways and
[37:42] landscapes plan the it's kind of or like
[37:44] part of the tree bible document where we
[37:46] already know what is allowed to be
[37:48] planted in which areas and we need to be
[37:49] following that. We we don't want to be
[37:51] selective and some rules apply here and
[37:54] some rules don't apply there and we need
[37:56] to be protecting our trees. We need to
[37:57] be thinking of new ways of uh for
[38:00] sidewalks that are more um uh tree
[38:04] preserving types of infrastructure that
[38:06] we can be using if concrete is not the
[38:08] best option. But we need to be looking
[38:10] ahead and planning ahead because the
[38:12] last thing we want is an ocean, you
[38:14] know, another Forest Avenue to happen on
[38:16] Ocean Avenue or Broadway.
[38:22] It's not that hard to preserve a tree.
[38:24] You just don't dig up its root ball. I
[38:27] have a property up in the Carmel and I
[38:29] had 300-year-old Monterey cypus trees
[38:32] and I had to put it I went from a septic
[38:34] system to a sewer system which means
[38:36] digging down 8 feet. And I completely
[38:40] rerouted the sewer connection so that I
[38:43] stayed away from the tree root balls so
[38:45] I could save the trees. It's pretty it's
[38:48] pretty simple to save them if you want
[38:50] to save them. And I've also learned that
[38:52] there are things you can do to make sure
[38:54] that they're not hazardous to keep them
[38:56] wellmaintained and pruned. But if we
[38:58] really want, we can wrap our trees, keep
[39:01] the contractors away. And and I mean,
[39:03] it's it's just not that hard. And I
[39:05] think that um as an environmental
[39:08] person, you can have both and you can
[39:10] protect the trees.
[39:17] I have a lot of firsthand experience in
[39:19] trying to save trees in my personal life
[39:21] and my my career. And my wife is a a big
[39:25] tree advocate and she would always uh
[39:28] ask me to save every tree that I
[39:30] possibly could on some of my projects
[39:32] and we tried hard and we spent a ton of
[39:33] money. It works sometimes and it doesn't
[39:36] work other times. My save rate was
[39:38] probably 30 or 40% is was my success
[39:42] rate on saving those trees. We have a
[39:44] couple of options with trees. The uh
[39:46] forest management uh urban forest
[39:48] management, the biggest problems disease
[39:50] trees and root destruction. The root
[39:52] destruction, there are a lot of um
[39:54] solutions. We had over $2 million a year
[39:57] in uh liability claims that we were
[40:00] paying that, you know, I was trying to
[40:02] get that resolved. The council has been
[40:04] trying to resolve that. I have met with
[40:06] city manager several times. We have
[40:08] discussed options to deal with the
[40:10] destructive root systems, the disease
[40:12] trees. um we just have to keep on
[40:14] working on best practices to make sure
[40:16] that our trees are healthy going
[40:18] forward.
[40:21] Yeah, I think, you know, when we when we
[40:24] talk about planting trees, we need to
[40:26] maybe take a more sophisticated look at
[40:28] how we plant them because I think, you
[40:29] know, when you're particularly when
[40:30] you're planting street trees, and I'm
[40:32] not an expert on trees, but I saw this
[40:34] firsthand with the trees on the
[40:35] prominadas, you have to think about
[40:37] what's underneath what's underneath. And
[40:39] when you plant a tree, what what's it
[40:41] going to do? And is is there concrete
[40:43] under there? How's it going to be
[40:44] watered? What's the soil compaction? So
[40:46] I think maybe we make bigger tree wells
[40:48] and we just do a little bit more
[40:49] sophisticated planting that we didn't
[40:51] know about maybe in the you know 80s and
[40:53] 90s. And um I think also we have to you
[40:57] know we also are a city that has to
[40:58] worry about liability. So we have to be
[41:00] careful about that. I do think my
[41:01] personal opinion about this too is I
[41:03] don't really think that we're doing a
[41:04] very good job managing trees like caring
[41:06] for them, pruning them, you know,
[41:08] getting out in front of we have we had
[41:10] an issue with the the pepper tree on the
[41:12] pepper tree lot and you know it's fenced
[41:14] off. it's got some kind of fungus on it
[41:16] and we're treating it. Somebody pointed
[41:18] that out and we worked on it. But we
[41:19] shouldn't have to have a resident point
[41:20] that out to us. We should be looking at
[41:21] these kind of proactively before it kind
[41:23] of gets to that point.
[41:32] I think the question was about Ocean
[41:33] Avenue and um what what I think about
[41:37] that and um on Ocean Avenue I would say
[41:41] a mature tree holds part of the
[41:43] community's memory. It should be treated
[41:47] it should not be treated as disposable
[41:49] simply because it looks old or does not
[41:51] fit on a drawing. I want tree and root
[41:55] conditions understood before a design is
[41:58] fixed
[42:00] and preservation alternatives evaluated
[42:02] before the removal. If in fact these
[42:05] trees need to be removed, I don't think
[42:07] they need to go into the chipper. We
[42:09] have several artists in town that could
[42:11] be using these trees and they could be
[42:13] part of our our sherie boards.
[42:19] Um the com I believe we need uh to
[42:24] reforest forest. Um there are many
[42:28] people that are interested in
[42:30] contributing through donations and again
[42:32] we need to make those the ability to
[42:34] make those donations transparent through
[42:37] our city website.
[42:43] Thank you.
[42:51] >> Thank you. Uh, next question is a a
[42:54] project that's uh being handled by
[42:56] Laguna Greenbell and that's the uh
[42:59] Irvine Laguna Wildlife Quarter. So the
[43:02] question is, do you support the proposed
[43:05] Irvine Laguna Wildlife Quarter linking
[43:07] the Cleveland National Forest to Laguna
[43:11] Coast Wilderness Park? And if so, what
[43:14] specific steps would you take to support
[43:16] this important project?
[43:19] So first first question is
[43:24] Sue.
[43:30] Thank you. Thank you. Well, I'm super
[43:32] interested in this and I spent some time
[43:34] with Norm Gman um as he's been talking
[43:36] about this quite a bit over the last few
[43:38] years and he showed actually showed me a
[43:40] tunnel where some wildlife is going
[43:41] through now but not going as far as we
[43:43] would like it and I think you know
[43:45] extending the corridor you know to
[43:47] Cleveland inland and NCCP and you know
[43:50] hooking it up with Laguna Coast
[43:51] wilderness is a really good thing and
[43:53] you need it for biodiversity you need it
[43:56] for you because we have limited food
[43:58] sources the smaller the area so if you
[44:00] expand the area you'll get you more
[44:01] opportunity and more um more animals
[44:04] involved um in your in your environment.
[44:08] I think it might be technically
[44:09] complicated as as I read about it and as
[44:11] I talked to Norma about it and probably
[44:13] expensive. Um but we'll just have to
[44:15] figure out as a community how to set
[44:16] that up and how to support it. Um it's
[44:19] an interesting project. It and if I've
[44:21] seen some of these in other areas of
[44:22] California and they're they're very very
[44:24] interesting and very successful.
[44:31] The wildlife corridor links coastal
[44:33] habitat with inland habitat through
[44:35] Irvine rather than following the Laguna
[44:38] Canyon Road all the way. It passes
[44:40] through creek corridors, the I5 I5 area,
[44:43] the eastern side of the great park
[44:45] before continuing towards the footh
[44:47] hills. The difficult question is whether
[44:49] animals can move through every segment.
[44:52] Funding also differs by segment. The
[44:54] Laguna Green Belt reported a historic
[44:56] investment of at least $13 million from
[44:59] the five-point communities in the
[45:01] central reach area. That's not the price
[45:04] of the whole corridor. I would want
[45:06] Laguna working with Irvine, the county,
[45:08] CALR, wildlife agencies on the remaining
[45:11] barriers with a clear account of
[45:14] responsibilities for funding and
[45:15] long-term monitoring. I think it's
[45:18] important to to acknowledge that it was
[45:21] the green belt that actually got that
[45:25] $13 million to make this work. And they
[45:28] did that through through a lot of
[45:31] effort. Thank you,
[45:36] >> Mark. Mark more.
[45:36] >> Yeah, there you go.
[45:38] >> Yes, I'm very interested in this
[45:40] particular topic and I do support the
[45:42] the project and I haven't received an
[45:44] update on it recently. Uh but I I think
[45:48] that our uh looking for funding
[45:51] opportunities in uh partnership with the
[45:53] city. I did work to facilitate the
[45:56] agreement between Elcad and the Laguna
[45:58] Canyon Foundation to protect the
[46:00] wildlife corridor around Big Bend. I
[46:03] spent quite a bit of time on that
[46:04] effort. So um I would of course like to
[46:07] see this project go as well. And as I
[46:09] stated on my uh when we talked about
[46:11] what we think when we come down Lagouna
[46:14] Canyon and what bothers us, one of the
[46:16] statements that I made was roadkill. And
[46:18] so it's these types of projects that
[46:20] that allow animals to navigate the uh
[46:23] open space and prevent that.
[46:30] We have to maintain this corridor
[46:32] otherwise it becomes we become an
[46:35] ecological island and this corridor
[46:37] allows the animals and the birds and the
[46:40] plants to go back and forth into the um
[46:43] Cleveland National Forest. Without this
[46:46] um we have genetic isolation and
[46:48] inbreeding. Without it, the animals have
[46:50] no way to escape wildfire. It helps with
[46:53] the urban obstacles that we keep putting
[46:56] in front of these animals. And it it it
[46:58] needs to be planned and we need this
[47:00] city needs to work with all the
[47:02] communities around us. I mean, I'm such
[47:05] a real animal lover. I actually created
[47:07] a donkey sanctuary at one of my
[47:09] properties when I host um my music
[47:11] symphonies. We during the uh concerts
[47:14] the donkeys he ha so loud you can't hear
[47:17] the music. But come on people, we have
[47:19] to cohabitate together. This planet is
[47:23] not ours. It is the animals, the birds,
[47:26] and the plants. and we all got to get
[47:28] along and we all need to plant uh care
[47:30] for one another and this quarter does
[47:32] just that.
[47:36] Yeah. When it comes to the corridor, I
[47:38] was blown away by this uh image here
[47:40] that's on the back of this brochure and
[47:41] how it shows how much development has
[47:43] really happened in Irvine and how, you
[47:46] know, they haven't been a great partner
[47:47] in making sure that this corridor can
[47:49] stay accessible. So, we need to be
[47:51] continuing to apply pressure as we do
[47:53] our part in preserving open space. the
[47:56] other cities aren't aren't doing their
[47:58] part. And so if that's using cameras uh
[48:01] to make sure that the animals are
[48:02] getting through, I think a lot of people
[48:04] may not even realize what type of
[48:05] animals are passing through this
[48:06] corridor. So being creative and using
[48:08] social media, using those clips of the
[48:11] animals passing through at night to
[48:12] share awareness of what's the animals
[48:15] that are trying to get through because
[48:16] obviously when people are hiking and
[48:18] walking around during the day, all the
[48:19] animals are hidden except for the, you
[48:21] know, the snakes and the occasional
[48:22] rabbits. So, we just need to make sure
[48:24] and remind people visually as everyone
[48:26] is on social media these days of the
[48:28] type of animals that are trying to pass
[48:30] through and doing everything we can to
[48:31] make sure that they uh survive as they
[48:34] uh go between the the coast and uh the
[48:37] Saddleback Mountains.
[48:40] >> Thank you. Um I I would not only support
[48:43] the project, but I I really like it. Um
[48:47] I but in reading about it, it it sounds
[48:50] like similar projects have been
[48:51] successfully
[48:53] put together in other areas. So I would
[48:55] want to study what other people have
[48:57] done, look at their results, my take a
[49:00] look at our results, what what have we
[49:02] done? Um and uh what kind of results do
[49:06] we have and then determine where the
[49:09] needs lie and uh look at the options to
[49:13] meet those needs. Thank you.
[49:18] >> I'm a supporter of the Irvine Laguna
[49:20] Wildlife Corridor and it's critical
[49:23] because it's a sixmile
[49:27] uh space that we need to communicate
[49:30] with our other community cities to we
[49:34] all need to work together so that
[49:36] animals can get around and live with
[49:40] humans and and we all get along. And
[49:43] it's it's important because even in a
[49:46] catastrophe like a wildfire, uh animals
[49:49] want to exit, too, just like the people.
[49:52] So, they're probably going to use that
[49:54] as well. So, I'm a big supporter of it.
[49:57] Um I think technology is going to change
[50:00] dramatically in the next few years where
[50:02] we're going to have other tools to fight
[50:05] uh forest fires and to mitigate and stop
[50:07] them. Um thank you.
[50:12] Um I'm a huge supporter of it and I
[50:14] think that outside of funding or
[50:17] management or um you know the
[50:19] maintenance of it that we can really do
[50:22] our part as a community to help make
[50:23] sure that the wildlife connectivity
[50:27] design is a part of the process in the
[50:29] very beginning. We're very knowledgeable
[50:31] about that and if we're going to partner
[50:32] with um other cities and organizations
[50:35] for this that that is the most important
[50:37] part. It's not something we mitigate
[50:38] after the fact. So that's something I
[50:40] would want to make sure is a priority um
[50:41] to move forward with this.
[50:45] >> I I think my colleagues did a really
[50:47] good job of describing why this is so
[50:49] important. So then the question is how
[50:50] do we go about actually making it a
[50:52] reality and and I see the relationship
[50:54] with Irvine as critical to that. Um,
[50:56] last year when I was mayor, I I met with
[50:58] Mayor Aren, who as you all know was
[51:00] basically along with many people in this
[51:02] room, why we don't have the El Toro
[51:04] airport in Orange County, which played a
[51:06] huge role in terms of protecting our
[51:08] open space and wildlife. And um, and and
[51:11] I I beat him in the bet for water wise.
[51:13] We did a bet about who would win Irvine
[51:15] versus Laguna for the Water Wise
[51:16] challenge. So, we won there, so he owes
[51:18] me. Um, and I would work with him and
[51:21] I'd work with Congressman Daveman um, on
[51:23] how we could leverage funding from the
[51:25] federal government, work with Cotti
[51:27] Petri Norris from the state government
[51:28] and figure out how to make it a reality.
[51:30] I think that regional relationships are
[51:32] really important when it comes to issues
[51:33] like this cuz it's not something that
[51:35] Laguna can do alone. But as everyone in
[51:37] this room has demonstrated in the past,
[51:39] uh, regional progress is possible and it
[51:41] has a huge impact on Laguna Beach.
[51:44] >> Interesting. There you go. Next.
[51:47] >> Thank you. I'll get it for you. You ask
[51:50] the question.
[51:55] >> Next question is about invasive plants.
[51:59] So, uh, so
[52:01] >> I'll pick. Yep.
[52:05] >> He hasn't asked the question yet. Go
[52:06] ahead and ask the question.
[52:08] >> Okay. Okay. Uh the section of newly
[52:12] widened uh Laguna Canyon Road between El
[52:16] Toro Road and the 73
[52:19] is already being infested by um invasive
[52:24] non-native plants in particular a rundo
[52:27] uh giant um giant reed it's called
[52:30] commonly. And every time I drive by that
[52:33] it's like a a needle poking me in the
[52:36] eye because it's it's just starting to
[52:38] get going. And once it gets going,
[52:41] there's no stopping it. So, um, other
[52:45] native other non-native plants in the
[52:47] canyon that endanger the native habitat
[52:51] would be pompus grass, Mexican feather
[52:53] grass and others. So the question is
[52:58] will you be proactive in partnering with
[53:00] other agencies such as CALR and OC parks
[53:05] uh to remove such dangerous uh species
[53:08] that are uh hindering our open space. So
[53:12] first person Mark
[53:26] >> uh yes I would be proactive. In fact I
[53:28] have been proactive. I've already
[53:29] reached out to our district manager for
[53:32] CALR and walked the that part of the
[53:35] canyon with her and uh tal discussed
[53:38] exactly that that issue. Great.
[53:42] Yeah, I um you know, we also have that
[53:44] problem in Aliso Creek with the Arundai.
[53:46] It's very it's very um viralent there.
[53:49] Yeah, I think definitely we have to work
[53:50] with we have to we obviously have to
[53:52] work with the agencies because we don't
[53:53] own the property but it would it would
[53:55] be great if Calrans could work with
[53:56] Lagona Canyon Foundation because they're
[53:58] so good at that and you know they work
[53:59] on that in Eliso Creek as well and they
[54:02] do in addition to that they also do our
[54:04] fuel modification and they do you know a
[54:06] lot of it by hand now um because we
[54:08] don't spray any you know pesticides
[54:10] anymore. So, I think we need to um hook
[54:13] up Laguna Canyon Foundation with CALR
[54:15] and see if we can get some traction
[54:16] there because CALR is extraordinarily
[54:18] slow.
[54:20] >> I'm going to just do this briefly.
[54:24] >> Uh removing an invasive plant is not the
[54:27] same as restoring a creek. Yes, I would
[54:30] be proactive in working with other
[54:32] agencies. I want a program that deals
[54:34] with regrowth, restores appropriate
[54:36] native vegetation, and monitors the
[54:38] result. Laguna and Canyon's Foundation
[54:42] historic Alisa Creek work is a local
[54:44] example of removal tied to restoration.
[54:48] But I would not claim that project was
[54:50] glyophatefree. My own position is no
[54:53] glyophate. That means we need an honest
[54:56] assessment of non-glyophate methods,
[54:58] their effectiveness, repeated treatment
[55:00] needs, cost, and possible disturbance to
[55:04] the banks or the habitat. I support
[55:07] university partnerships and supervised
[55:09] volunteer work alongside train crews. I
[55:13] myself did the habitat restoration over
[55:16] at Crystal Cove Park pulling out all the
[55:19] ice plant. My fingers were bloody
[55:21] working with Dr. Peter Bowler. Thank
[55:23] you.
[55:31] I too would work with um CALR, although
[55:34] they're not always the easiest. Um I'm
[55:37] against using glyphosate. I think we
[55:40] need to make sure there's other ways to
[55:42] go about it. What we did in Northern
[55:43] California is I met with a couple of
[55:45] science uh teachers and they school
[55:48] programs, they have these outings and so
[55:50] we teach them about the plants. So, so
[55:52] we had a contest that the kids would go
[55:54] on the hikes in the area and the the
[55:56] kids that came back with the biggest
[55:58] armfuls of the invasive plant species,
[56:01] especially the am I pronouncing right,
[56:03] the rondo, they won a prize. And by
[56:06] teaching people and letting the families
[56:08] and the hikers and the mountain bikers
[56:11] know about this impl uh invasive
[56:13] species, education's key and and let
[56:17] everybody be part of the solution. And I
[56:20] think we can get a handle of it without
[56:21] using bad chemicals that cause cancers.
[56:27] >> Yeah, I agree with Joy on this. I think
[56:29] I'm a chemical-free, no glyphosate, no
[56:32] spraying person. I want to avoid that at
[56:34] all costs, but also we have to live
[56:36] within the reality. So, if the costs are
[56:38] going to be extremely high for paying
[56:40] for fuel modification, pulling by hand,
[56:41] then like Joyce said, we need to be uh
[56:43] working with all the volunteers and all
[56:46] the people who care about a
[56:47] chemical-free uh hillside and open space
[56:50] to make sure that we're not having to uh
[56:53] use chemicals because of the cost
[56:55] associated with it. So, we need to be
[56:56] making sure that people are aware of the
[56:58] of the balancing act that and the
[57:00] realities that we have to work with. Of
[57:02] course, the first step would always be
[57:03] no chemical spraying. Uh especially not
[57:06] during in any waterways like in Alisa
[57:08] Creek or in Laguni uh Laguni Canyon uh
[57:11] Creek. And um we just need to continue
[57:13] to try to find any other pathway aside
[57:17] from spraying. And if that means getting
[57:19] more volunteers and reaching out to the
[57:21] community, I know there are a lot of
[57:22] people who would be interested in
[57:23] volunteering to make sure that we can
[57:25] stay chemical free.
[57:28] >> Thank you, Nick. Um I definitely um
[57:32] would be proactive um and support
[57:36] partnerships that uh uh have like-minded
[57:41] partnerships. Um education is another
[57:44] great thought. Um definitely chemical
[57:48] free and um
[57:53] outreach to uh to volunteer groups. Um,
[57:57] this seems like a a a good area for
[58:00] volunteers to be of assistance. Thank
[58:04] you.
[58:08] >> I agree. We need to partner with people
[58:10] like Calr, Southern California Edison
[58:13] last Tuesday night at the city hall,
[58:16] city council meeting. Southern
[58:18] California Edison had their key people
[58:20] there uh addressing uh power issues and
[58:24] undergrounding. So, we need to be
[58:27] involved with these people, educate
[58:30] them. There are a lot of really smart
[58:33] people here in Laguna Beach who can help
[58:36] these people. Calrans, Southern
[58:38] California Edison. I had a good
[58:39] conversation with them after that
[58:41] meeting. But we just need to all work
[58:44] together and through that we'll we'll
[58:46] get things done.
[58:51] Yes, I support um working with
[58:53] organizations to control any invasive
[58:56] species um and making sure that how it's
[58:59] done, that's our part um is done in a
[59:01] way that still protects the habitat and
[59:03] the ecosystem.
[59:06] >> I agree with with my colleagues up here
[59:08] on the stage about this issue. I think
[59:11] um starting off it's a really good thing
[59:12] that we were able to underground those
[59:14] utility lines along Laguna Canyon Road
[59:16] and that was a testament to our work
[59:17] with uh with the county with supervisor
[59:19] Foley and before her supervisor Bartlett
[59:21] to make that a reality so I think that's
[59:23] a good thing but we need to be proactive
[59:25] um and I'm glad that the mayor has
[59:27] started those discussions with Calrans I
[59:29] think we should also bring OC Parks into
[59:31] it bring supervisor Foley into it and uh
[59:34] finally I share the the sentiments um
[59:37] and the policy positions against using
[59:38] glyphosate I'm really proud of the fact
[59:40] that we were able to not use glyphosate
[59:42] for our fuel modification program and
[59:44] the costs have actually are not as much
[59:46] as what we thought they would be
[59:47] initially. So that's a really good thing
[59:49] because you can't put a price on the
[59:51] impact of carcinogenic uh chemicals that
[59:54] can cause cancer and have a huge impact
[59:57] on the environment.
[1:00:05] >> Yeah, you're doing good.
[1:00:10] Fire risk is a serious concern. However,
[1:00:14] aggressive vegetation removal and
[1:00:17] clearing can destroy native habitat that
[1:00:20] is replaced by highly flammable flash
[1:00:24] fuel annual grasses that spread fire
[1:00:28] more rapidly than native chaparel. The
[1:00:31] question is, how would you balance fuel
[1:00:36] modification with the protection of
[1:00:38] native plant communities? And it starts
[1:00:42] with
[1:00:43] Edward.
[1:00:46] We give you the mic and our mic man.
[1:00:48] >> Merryill.
[1:00:48] >> Merryill. Thank you.
[1:00:51] >> To who?
[1:00:52] >> Ed. Edward.
[1:00:53] >> Ed. All right.
[1:00:58] I've had a very blessed life because
[1:01:00] I've worked with some amazing smart
[1:01:03] people and I have no idea why those
[1:01:05] people came into my life. About 15 years
[1:01:08] ago, I started a communications company.
[1:01:11] Uh it's uh using HF technology which is
[1:01:14] the low band of the spectrum. During
[1:01:17] that business, I met a lot of people,
[1:01:20] interacted with a lot of first
[1:01:22] responders, uh, government agencies, and
[1:01:25] I ran into a South Korean engineer who
[1:01:28] developed a technology, uh, for forest
[1:01:32] fighting, uh, forest a tool for forest
[1:01:35] fighters. Anyway, long story short, I
[1:01:38] communicated with them. I reached out to
[1:01:39] the OC fire chief twice in 21 and 22.
[1:01:43] And as I mentioned earlier, technology
[1:01:46] is changing. And I'll give you a
[1:01:47] snapshot, a vision into the future. We
[1:01:51] are uh on the cutting edge. We do a
[1:01:54] really good job at defending our
[1:01:56] country, our defense companies do, and
[1:01:58] those are the people I work with. So
[1:02:01] when we bomb people or when we whatever,
[1:02:04] I don't want to be rude, but think of
[1:02:06] this. You have a piece of property
[1:02:08] that's 10,000 square feet and you can
[1:02:11] put
[1:02:14] like a land call it a landmine. So if
[1:02:16] your house gets caught on fire or the or
[1:02:19] the backyard get it it implodes a fire
[1:02:22] fire retardant. My point to you is there
[1:02:26] are ways to mitigate and stop forest
[1:02:29] fires and technology is changing with
[1:02:31] drone technology and all and some of
[1:02:33] these products are going to be out very
[1:02:36] shortly which will affect your insurance
[1:02:38] rates for your houses just like my house
[1:02:41] got cancelled in 2023. Thank you.
[1:02:44] >> Go that way. Yeah.
[1:02:46] >> No, get that way.
[1:02:50] I I think with um any decision when it
[1:02:53] comes to fire mitigation and making sure
[1:02:55] we're still protecting the ecosystem um
[1:02:57] when doing that is that we work with the
[1:02:59] appropriate agencies and organizations
[1:03:02] um to make sure that we're you know m
[1:03:04] we're protecting um you know Laguna from
[1:03:08] a a fire but also protecting our
[1:03:10] environment and the you know the plants
[1:03:12] and um the wildlife and the open space
[1:03:14] as much as possible. So, it's just
[1:03:16] working with the right organizations and
[1:03:17] bringing everyone to the table to make
[1:03:18] those decisions.
[1:03:23] >> Yeah, fire safety has to always be our
[1:03:25] top priority. And Mary, as your question
[1:03:27] pointed out, it's really a false choice
[1:03:28] to have to choose between fire safety
[1:03:30] and proper fuel modification zones and
[1:03:33] protecting the environment because often
[1:03:35] with native species that can be a
[1:03:36] deterrent for wildfire. We saw that with
[1:03:38] the Rancho fire where the fuel
[1:03:40] modification zones had gotten through
[1:03:41] the coastal commission just a couple
[1:03:43] months before that fire took place and
[1:03:45] we're all lucky that it did because that
[1:03:47] that really made it was a game changer
[1:03:49] in terms of ensuring that there was not
[1:03:51] going to be damage to the that that home
[1:03:52] that was right there. So I think we need
[1:03:54] to continue to involve the Lagoon Canyon
[1:03:57] Foundation. And I think it's we're lucky
[1:03:58] to have um our mayor prom Halley Jones
[1:04:00] on the council who's really an expert on
[1:04:02] how we can balance native species with
[1:04:04] fuel modification because again it's a
[1:04:06] false choice. Have to choose between um
[1:04:09] fire safety and protecting our
[1:04:10] environment.
[1:04:15] >> The key word in this is balance and and
[1:04:17] boy it's a it's a tough one. Um
[1:04:21] definitely um start with fire work with
[1:04:24] the experts there. um
[1:04:29] ask them to to look for creative ideas.
[1:04:32] Um emphasize the need for um efficiency
[1:04:37] if if it's at all possible. Include the
[1:04:40] environmental groups. um you know, if if
[1:04:44] they're if they're in a sensitive area
[1:04:46] to perhaps
[1:04:49] use a a more labor intensive but um
[1:04:53] sensitive way to uh make the areas um
[1:04:58] fires safe and always keep a breast of
[1:05:01] any new developments in
[1:05:04] >> uh removal of plants.
[1:05:06] >> I think we're good.
[1:05:09] I think of it sort of like uh when you
[1:05:12] when you're at a beach and you uh talk
[1:05:14] to the local that's been there for for
[1:05:16] decades and they know all the ins and
[1:05:18] outs of the waves and the currents and
[1:05:21] the and the sets. It's the same when it
[1:05:23] comes to our hillsides. We need to make
[1:05:24] sure that we have the local experts that
[1:05:26] have that knowledge and the deep history
[1:05:29] in our canyons and hillsides to have a
[1:05:31] seat at the table to make sure that
[1:05:33] we're continuing to improve our fuel
[1:05:35] modification while also protecting our
[1:05:37] native species. And if that means
[1:05:40] getting more creative with technology,
[1:05:42] you know, utilizing the uh the water the
[1:05:45] the pods that we have to that help us
[1:05:47] with the rancho fire and uh and then
[1:05:49] also the use of goats. And it was
[1:05:51] really, you know, when it comes to like
[1:05:52] that local knowledge, it was really
[1:05:54] disappointing to see that we lost our
[1:05:56] goat herder fur that was with us for
[1:05:58] such a long time. And I think that's
[1:06:00] where local knowledge really uh plays a
[1:06:02] really key part in this whole process.
[1:06:07] >> So homes or buildings are combustible
[1:06:09] dead material. Um plants, trees, and um
[1:06:14] bushes don't all of a sudden explode.
[1:06:16] And I think just um cutting everything
[1:06:18] down is not the solution. What we've
[1:06:20] been doing in other parts of the state
[1:06:22] is we're putting copper uh sprinklers on
[1:06:25] the exterior of the buildings so that
[1:06:27] when a wildfire comes, you have
[1:06:28] sprinklered your house. You can then mix
[1:06:30] it with a a tank nearby that has fire
[1:06:33] retardant. So the sprinkler lines go
[1:06:35] into this fire retardant that sprinkles
[1:06:37] a foam on top of your house just like um
[1:06:41] you see the airplanes dropping. It lasts
[1:06:43] up to 10 days. There's uh a new paint
[1:06:46] that's been uh created working with
[1:06:49] NASA. It's a ceramic paint and it
[1:06:51] doesn't burn. There's things with all
[1:06:53] kinds of new things technology
[1:06:55] laminating windows we can do for our
[1:06:57] buildings. But as far as the grasses in
[1:06:59] my in my camp area, I use goats. Now I
[1:07:02] know they poop, but I think it's still
[1:07:05] the better way to go than to start, you
[1:07:07] know, just tearing everything out. And
[1:07:09] it works. and we've been able to keep
[1:07:12] away from any uh massive fire issues.
[1:07:20] >> Yeah. Well, fortunately, we're a very
[1:07:22] participatory community. We have
[1:07:24] wonderful environmental organizations
[1:07:26] such as the Laguna Canyon Foundation and
[1:07:28] we consult with them when we uh f
[1:07:30] develop our uh fire mitigation plans. I
[1:07:33] think we do a great job. We just uh we
[1:07:36] have a plan right now in front of the
[1:07:37] coastal commission and we're waiting for
[1:07:38] approval uh to create another zone. We
[1:07:41] have some other zones that we uh are
[1:07:43] looking at. I think we can need to
[1:07:45] continue um looking at other other zones
[1:07:48] where there is a risk
[1:07:52] to be had. So I I think we do a good
[1:07:54] job. I think that we you know it's
[1:07:56] proven in the science that the native
[1:07:58] species do play a positive role and I
[1:08:01] you know so I don't think that there's a
[1:08:03] conflict with that. I think we just need
[1:08:05] to concentrate on the evasive species. I
[1:08:07] personally want to uh keep moving toward
[1:08:11] mechanical extraction and uh I do I do
[1:08:14] not support the use of glyophate and I
[1:08:16] know that that's an ongoing conversation
[1:08:18] but it's just my my personal stance.
[1:08:22] >> Yeah, I think this is going to be this
[1:08:23] is an ongoing problem that we're going
[1:08:25] to have and it's probably going to be
[1:08:26] worse with climate change. Um
[1:08:29] we have 27 fuel mods in town here and we
[1:08:33] mitigate those. First of all, we have to
[1:08:34] go through the coastal commission which
[1:08:36] is a very laborious process but we also
[1:08:38] use hand crews. It's very very expensive
[1:08:40] to do our our fuel mod uh uh
[1:08:45] uh modification but I think so I see
[1:08:49] Scott's here from Laguna Canyon
[1:08:50] Foundation. and I know they do all our
[1:08:52] fuel bond and I would use them and get
[1:08:54] their advice and we may have to fly some
[1:08:56] drones over the open space to see kind
[1:08:57] of how things are going over time. Um,
[1:09:00] but I'm very worried about this. I spent
[1:09:01] a lot of time on fire mitigation, fire
[1:09:03] safety um, since I've been on council
[1:09:06] because I see this as the biggest threat
[1:09:08] to our town. If you have a big fire like
[1:09:11] this and we have far more problems than
[1:09:13] talking about invasive species, we got
[1:09:15] we got a really big problem. So, I I
[1:09:17] would look to Laguna Canyon Foundation
[1:09:19] for some help on this.
[1:09:22] Thank you. Uh the canyon is a living
[1:09:25] system kind of like a coral reef. Um and
[1:09:28] we need to balance the habitat
[1:09:29] protection with fire safety. Fire safety
[1:09:32] is more than just clearing vegetation.
[1:09:34] It also includes the vulnerability of
[1:09:36] buildings and defensible st space access
[1:09:39] and evacuation. The ideas that Joy
[1:09:42] mentioned must be included in any fire
[1:09:46] mitigation
[1:09:47] for vegetation work. I want fire
[1:09:49] specialists and biologists working
[1:09:51] together to identify the hazard and
[1:09:52] compare effective treatments. Laguna
[1:09:55] Canyon Foundation describes that kind of
[1:09:58] selective work already, surveying
[1:10:00] sensitive resources and guiding trained
[1:10:02] crews. A treatment should be judged by
[1:10:05] what risk it reduces and what impacts it
[1:10:08] causes, including erosion and invasive
[1:10:11] growth. When the goals generally
[1:10:13] conflict, protect life safety and
[1:10:16] explain the trade-off. Where can they be
[1:10:18] achieved together? Design the work to do
[1:10:20] that.
[1:10:30] Our
[1:10:34] next question is something that most of
[1:10:36] you have really answered, but I think we
[1:10:40] should take the opportunity to educate
[1:10:42] the audience as much as possible about
[1:10:45] this and and think about the answer now
[1:10:49] with some of the other questions. The
[1:10:52] question is, will you support the effort
[1:10:55] to enroll the city's open space? That's
[1:10:59] probably over 2,000 acres within the
[1:11:01] city not managed by OC Parks into the
[1:11:06] nature reserve of Orange County. And you
[1:11:10] got a pick. Yes. And the question first
[1:11:13] goes to Alex.
[1:11:24] >> Yes.
[1:11:25] >> Yeah. So, um, generally I'm supportive
[1:11:28] of this as long as we're able to do it
[1:11:29] in a way where our fuel modification
[1:11:31] policies and our our, um, the zones that
[1:11:33] we have can continue moving forward,
[1:11:35] perhaps with some adjustment. Um, I do
[1:11:37] think that it is a regional problem that
[1:11:40] requires a regional solution. So,
[1:11:42] overall, I'm supportive of of the
[1:11:43] concept of it. The details need to be
[1:11:45] worked out and I'm glad that um, our
[1:11:47] mayor and Mayor Prom are working on this
[1:11:49] issue. As it relates to our own open
[1:11:52] space, I'm also proud of the fact that
[1:11:53] we had um in 2023, I believe 300 acres
[1:11:57] of open space that was zoned owned by
[1:11:59] the city that was owned RHP that we were
[1:12:01] able to reszone and get it through a
[1:12:02] local coastal plan amendment to reszone
[1:12:04] it as permanent open space, meaning that
[1:12:06] that's going to be protected going
[1:12:07] forward, which I think is really
[1:12:08] important um and ties the hands of
[1:12:10] future council members to make sure that
[1:12:12] that open space is protected. So
[1:12:14] overall, I'm supportive of of the
[1:12:16] concept of joining um the coalition as
[1:12:18] long as we can make sure that our fuel
[1:12:20] modification is able to continue.
[1:12:25] >> Yeah, I'm supportive as well. I would
[1:12:27] just want to make sure what the um what
[1:12:29] that would look like, what the plan
[1:12:30] entails, who's responsible for what,
[1:12:32] what we get to um manage and what we
[1:12:35] don't get to manage. And then also
[1:12:36] making sure the public's well aware if
[1:12:38] we do make a change. Um, so then you
[1:12:40] guys can have public input as well
[1:12:42] before we agree to anything.
[1:12:47] >> I agree with joining it, but I also
[1:12:50] understand fuel modifications, but I
[1:12:53] also understand because I'm a blessed
[1:12:56] person. I have no idea why, but
[1:12:59] technology is changing and our insurance
[1:13:02] industry is going to change because of
[1:13:04] it. and we will be able to go back to
[1:13:08] protecting our houses and our properties
[1:13:12] and all the insurance companies that
[1:13:14] exited California in 2023 will come back
[1:13:18] to California because of that technology
[1:13:21] and very shortly you will start to see
[1:13:24] what they're going to do and some of
[1:13:26] those technologies will be used around
[1:13:29] the electrical lines with Southern
[1:13:31] California Edison in the Canyon in uh
[1:13:35] the thousands of acres and it will stop
[1:13:38] and mitigate forest fires. Thank you.
[1:13:43] >> Thank you. Um yes, in in general, I
[1:13:46] would um definitely support the effort
[1:13:49] to enroll the open space. That said, the
[1:13:53] devil's in the details. Um
[1:13:56] I would need to see what it actually
[1:13:58] looked like um and and study the result.
[1:14:02] um especially if there's an issue with
[1:14:04] insurance.
[1:14:10] >> Yeah, I'm definitely supportive. Like uh
[1:14:12] the other uh people on st candidates on
[1:14:14] stage have said, it's all in the
[1:14:15] details. We need to be protecting the
[1:14:17] open space and we need to make sure that
[1:14:18] it stay it stays open. We don't want to
[1:14:20] be uh changing anything around and then
[1:14:23] in 5 10 or 15 years something changes
[1:14:26] like you know when there was discussion
[1:14:28] about the pump track uh at Molten
[1:14:30] Meadows in that open space you know
[1:14:32] there was a talk of keeping it open and
[1:14:34] then oh maybe that could be a pump track
[1:14:36] like we don't want to all of a sudden
[1:14:37] change our minds uh in the future and so
[1:14:40] we need to make sure that things are
[1:14:42] properly uh planned out and thought long
[1:14:45] term so we're not finding ourselves in a
[1:14:47] in a difficult situation down the
[1:14:52] I want permanence for open space. At the
[1:14:56] GOP forum, they asked who your favorite
[1:14:58] president was in history, and I said
[1:15:00] Teddy Roosevelt. He was the
[1:15:02] conservationist president because he's
[1:15:04] the one that gave us all these wonderful
[1:15:06] national parks. I think having open
[1:15:10] space in perpetuity is magical and
[1:15:12] wonderful and it's the best gift we can
[1:15:15] give the next generation. And so if it
[1:15:17] means that we could have permanence by
[1:15:19] form working with the national uh
[1:15:21] natural reserve of Orange County, I'm
[1:15:23] all for it. It's keeping it forever.
[1:15:29] >> Yes, I do support it and I'm I am
[1:15:31] working with uh Mayor Pro Tim Jones
[1:15:34] right now on some of the subtleties and
[1:15:36] the nuances of of the agreement. One of
[1:15:39] the issues Alex brought up was the uh
[1:15:41] fire mitigation issues, but I think that
[1:15:43] there are solutions to that. Uh keep in
[1:15:45] mind that the NCC that uh organization
[1:15:49] was founded or part of the Irvine uh
[1:15:53] company's um ambitions and their open
[1:15:56] space strategies. There is an expiration
[1:15:58] date on that. So it it's not forever. We
[1:16:02] need to continue and always will
[1:16:04] continue need to uh be cognizant of our
[1:16:08] open space and uh you know keep our eye
[1:16:10] on it and make sure that it's protected.
[1:16:13] never take it for granted.
[1:16:16] >> Yeah, I think um we should consider it
[1:16:19] carefully as we we've had we've had an
[1:16:22] episode really with uh lately with um
[1:16:25] the county on fuel mod between Molten
[1:16:28] Meadows Park and Old Top of the World
[1:16:30] where we were doing what we thought we
[1:16:31] could do in terms of fuel mod and the
[1:16:33] county stepped in. And I don't I don't
[1:16:34] really like that because fuel mod is a
[1:16:37] very serious effort that we need to have
[1:16:39] done properly in this town. Um, so if
[1:16:42] you're going to get too bureaucratic
[1:16:44] about it, I'm not a big fan of that. I'm
[1:16:47] a big fan of making sure we don't have a
[1:16:48] fire in this town. Um, but you know, I'd
[1:16:51] like to bring it to council to have
[1:16:52] discussion. You know, on on the council,
[1:16:54] you can only talk to one other two one
[1:16:56] other council member. And so I think
[1:16:58] Mark and Hie have been talking about
[1:16:59] this, but I'd like to bring it to
[1:17:01] council so we could have a full council
[1:17:02] discussion on it.
[1:17:07] I was around when the NCCP was formed
[1:17:11] way back in 1996
[1:17:13] and um although I do support us becoming
[1:17:16] a part of it because it's actually
[1:17:18] really become a preservation um effort
[1:17:23] the at the time Laguna Beach didn't feel
[1:17:25] like the joining because um NCCPS are
[1:17:31] tradeoffs. So what happens is when
[1:17:34] somebody wants to build somewhere else,
[1:17:36] they can buy into the NCCP and it's a
[1:17:38] trade-off. Um and sometimes we don't get
[1:17:43] a say in what that trade-off is. So um
[1:17:47] although I think it's a good uh effort,
[1:17:50] I think we really need to understand
[1:17:52] what the trade-offs are going to be and
[1:17:54] whether we have a say in those
[1:17:55] trade-offs.
[1:17:58] Our
[1:18:01] last question,
[1:18:06] >> you're doing a great job. Thank you so
[1:18:08] much. Protecting open space takes
[1:18:12] coordination with the county, state
[1:18:15] agencies, and nonprofits, plus reliable
[1:18:19] funding.
[1:18:20] How would you build these partnerships?
[1:18:23] and what fundraising sources, grants,
[1:18:26] bonds, dedicated budget lines would you
[1:18:30] pursue? And the question goes to Laura.
[1:18:36] >> How are we going to turn the question?
[1:18:40] >> Well, the easy answer is all of them.
[1:18:44] I you know I I I would I would not want
[1:18:47] to leave any stone unturned and
[1:18:50] personally really enjoy working with the
[1:18:53] different groups. I um currently
[1:18:55] actually um halftime work with the
[1:18:58] county and um
[1:19:01] have specialized in bonds and um
[1:19:04] thoroughly enjoy working with um the
[1:19:07] state and different programs. Now, my
[1:19:09] experience has been on the financial
[1:19:11] side, but I think that those skills are
[1:19:13] easily transferable to an environmental
[1:19:16] realm.
[1:19:20] >> Yeah. Okay.
[1:19:22] >> You know, like we need to continue to
[1:19:23] work with our state uh local leaders,
[1:19:26] the uh whether it's different city
[1:19:28] councils, our state representatives,
[1:19:30] assembly, uh state senate, and our our
[1:19:34] uh representatives at the federal
[1:19:36] government. and we need to make sure
[1:19:37] we're what I would do if I was on
[1:19:39] council, I'd be continuing to have an
[1:19:41] open uh uh communication with them and
[1:19:44] with our staff and making sure their
[1:19:45] staff communicates with us because, you
[1:19:47] know, I'm not going to be on council
[1:19:48] forever. If I'm lucky to be on city
[1:19:49] council, hopefully it'll be for uh for
[1:19:52] eight years for two terms and then I'd
[1:19:54] have to take two years off, right, with
[1:19:55] we have term limits. And so, it's not
[1:19:57] about one individual that's going to
[1:19:58] keep the open line of communication with
[1:20:00] these different partnerships. It's about
[1:20:02] the city council and the city as a whole
[1:20:03] and making sure that that legacy
[1:20:05] continues while we're there and and then
[1:20:08] afterwards once we're gone and just
[1:20:10] constantly working at trying to find
[1:20:13] funding, trying to find sources because
[1:20:15] we just don't want uh situations to come
[1:20:17] up where all of a sudden we're having to
[1:20:19] do another walk to save the canyon or
[1:20:22] another walk to save a hillside.
[1:20:24] >> Go back to Edward, will you? We'll get
[1:20:26] to the center of the table. Take your
[1:20:28] time coming. Don't worry. He already
[1:20:32] >> Sorry.
[1:20:34] >> Um, my mind just went blank.
[1:20:38] >> Do you need the question again?
[1:20:40] >> Yeah. Could you is
[1:20:42] >> how would you build these partnerships
[1:20:45] >> and what funding sources, grants, bonds,
[1:20:48] dedicated budget lines would you
[1:20:52] >> pursue to
[1:20:55] encourage coordination with the county,
[1:20:57] state agencies, and nonprofits plus
[1:20:59] other funding. I I think uh city council
[1:21:02] members, we have the opportunity because
[1:21:05] we're elected officials to interact with
[1:21:08] state agencies and cities and as Mark
[1:21:13] pointed out and other people up here
[1:21:15] tonight. We need to do a better job at
[1:21:18] communicating and meeting with them. And
[1:21:21] I believe that because of a city council
[1:21:24] person, they should go to Sacramento,
[1:21:26] talk to visit with executives of the
[1:21:29] state agencies and um they will they
[1:21:33] will accept you. They will accept an
[1:21:35] appointment so that you can start the
[1:21:38] communications of getting uh things
[1:21:41] going and coordinations. Thank you.
[1:21:46] Um, when it comes to big decisions like
[1:21:49] our open space, um, we need to bring all
[1:21:52] stakeholders involved. And I'm already
[1:21:54] currently doing the work. I'm endorsed
[1:21:56] by Fiona Ma, who's our state treasurer.
[1:21:58] I'm endorsed by Tony Strickland, who's
[1:21:59] our state senator. Um, and I have
[1:22:02] already done the work even prior to
[1:22:04] being on council because decisions like
[1:22:06] this are nonpartisan, right? And we need
[1:22:08] every stakeholder involved um, that can
[1:22:10] help us, right? our senator, our state
[1:22:12] senator can help us, our treasurer can
[1:22:14] help us and start the conversations
[1:22:16] early instead of being um reactive,
[1:22:18] which we tend to have been in the last
[1:22:20] four years on big decisions like this.
[1:22:22] So, it's bringing the right
[1:22:24] organizations together. I've also spent
[1:22:25] my career um getting funding, whether
[1:22:28] it's private funding, public funding, or
[1:22:30] um getting government funding. ODO was
[1:22:32] partially funded by an SBA loan. So I
[1:22:35] know what it takes and I am willing to
[1:22:37] do the work and make the right
[1:22:38] connections with the right people in
[1:22:40] order to make sure that we protect our
[1:22:41] open space.
[1:22:45] >> I I really do believe in regional
[1:22:46] solutions and have a a track record of
[1:22:49] doing that on the council and even prior
[1:22:50] to that right I was looking at my
[1:22:52] calendar on Wednesday. I have a meeting
[1:22:53] with uh city officials from Lagona
[1:22:55] Niguel and data point about the the
[1:22:57] future of our hospital. That's an
[1:22:58] example of a regional impact that
[1:23:00] requires bringing everyone to the table.
[1:23:01] When I worked for Supervisor Foley, what
[1:23:03] we were able to do was probably one of
[1:23:05] the biggest land acquisitions in recent
[1:23:07] history, which is the Banning Ranch
[1:23:09] property, where we worked with
[1:23:10] Assemblywoman Cotti Petri Norris. Um,
[1:23:13] worked with the governor's office and
[1:23:15] were able to make that um permanent open
[1:23:17] space. That's exactly the the type of
[1:23:19] approach that we need to have here. Um,
[1:23:21] also continuing to work with our
[1:23:23] congressman Dave Ben who's been really a
[1:23:25] champion for the city of Laguna Beach.
[1:23:26] We've I was looking at the numbers in
[1:23:28] his time in the state senate and and
[1:23:30] then in Congress um along with Alex
[1:23:32] Padilla we were able to bring back $5
[1:23:33] million. Um I'm open to Ed to getting
[1:23:36] your advice on how we can get more of
[1:23:37] that money. But um but I think that it
[1:23:40] really requires these regional
[1:23:41] relationships and I've built that over
[1:23:43] the last four years and I look forward
[1:23:45] to continuing to relying on them in
[1:23:47] terms of how can we benefit Laguna
[1:23:48] Beach. On
[1:23:50] >> to Joy please. Yeah.
[1:23:54] >> Thank you.
[1:23:57] So, how do we support this open space
[1:23:59] through grants and bonds? Um, I
[1:24:02] understand the green belt was the
[1:24:03] visionary to drew the map. The
[1:24:05] conservy's the one that keeps the public
[1:24:08] engaged and educated and then we've got
[1:24:10] the foundation to do the physical daily
[1:24:12] work. So all three are very very
[1:24:14] important and I think what we need to do
[1:24:16] is there are some huge vehicles
[1:24:18] environmental vehicles out there like
[1:24:19] the National Resource Defense Fund, uh
[1:24:22] the California Conservancy, the National
[1:24:25] Conservancy. Um there's there's these
[1:24:28] nonprofits out there that I think the
[1:24:30] three organizations need to team up with
[1:24:32] to because they're raising billions and
[1:24:34] billions of dollars and there and it's
[1:24:37] these organizations, the conservancy,
[1:24:39] the foundation and the green belt that
[1:24:41] they like to give their money to and
[1:24:43] donate. And so working together I think
[1:24:45] is the best way and get those grants and
[1:24:47] bonds from federal and state and whoever
[1:24:50] the really billionaires are. That's what
[1:24:52] they can do with their money. Thanks.
[1:24:58] >> So, I think you know we have all of our
[1:24:59] partners, our uh environmental partners
[1:25:01] and I served for um on the Coastal Green
[1:25:03] Belt Authority and it was so impressive
[1:25:06] seeing their uh partners and uh members
[1:25:08] showing up to that meeting. I think you
[1:25:10] know so we have the the folks on the
[1:25:13] ground that are doing this work keeping
[1:25:15] their ear to the ground looking for
[1:25:16] opportunities. I think that one of the
[1:25:19] main things that we need to do is make
[1:25:21] sure all of those organizations are
[1:25:23] constantly as healthy as they can be
[1:25:25] because they're, you know, our eyes and
[1:25:28] ears out there in the weeds seeing
[1:25:30] what's going on, looking for
[1:25:31] opportunities, keeping their um, you
[1:25:33] know, fingers on the pulse of what's
[1:25:35] happening. So I, and of course, we want
[1:25:38] to always work with Sacramento, use our
[1:25:40] lobbyist, uh, but, you know, and there
[1:25:42] has to be uh, communication, which there
[1:25:44] is. We I think we do a great job looking
[1:25:46] for opportunities personally and I think
[1:25:48] we do a great job um supporting our
[1:25:51] environmental organizations, but I I
[1:25:53] just don't want to I just my point is we
[1:25:55] want to make sure that we support all
[1:25:57] those environmental organizations and we
[1:25:59] make sure that they're constantly
[1:26:00] healthy and out there being the
[1:26:02] advocates of what they uh support.
[1:26:06] >> So the council every year puts a
[1:26:08] legislative platform together and we put
[1:26:10] our priorities down and so it's been
[1:26:12] effective. So, for example, one year we
[1:26:14] got money from Cotti Petri Norris, um,
[1:26:18] state assembly representative for
[1:26:20] wildfire. Uh, Katrina's been very
[1:26:22] helpful with us on Laguna Canyon Road.
[1:26:25] Dave Mins got money for got some money
[1:26:27] for us for the fire station. So, it's
[1:26:29] because of these relationships that
[1:26:30] we've built with them and they're
[1:26:32] they're quite healthy and effective. So,
[1:26:33] I think we just push through the leg
[1:26:35] legislative platform on open space.
[1:26:37] Whatever we need to whatever we
[1:26:38] prioritize, we just need to put on the
[1:26:40] list. Once we get it on the list, we can
[1:26:42] work quite aggressively on it and we um
[1:26:45] take that list pretty seriously. We work
[1:26:47] with towns in as well and we also ask
[1:26:49] other agencies
[1:26:50] >> about you know how they can contribute.
[1:26:52] So I think um I think just getting the
[1:26:54] legislative platform straight and then
[1:26:56] following through is a good good plan.
[1:27:02] >> Thank you. I think in addition to
[1:27:04] building partnerships, as we've all
[1:27:06] talked about, I think we need to show
[1:27:08] strong commitment here in town. And I
[1:27:10] think that needs to show in our
[1:27:11] regulations and our policies. And that's
[1:27:14] going to show in our open space element.
[1:27:16] And I think that should be one of the
[1:27:17] first elements that we get updated um of
[1:27:20] our general plan. in that open space
[1:27:22] element. I would say to everybody here,
[1:27:25] participate and make sure that these
[1:27:28] suggestions or ideas are actually put
[1:27:30] into that program because that's what
[1:27:32] you can use to hold the feet to the fire
[1:27:35] to any of us who are elected. Um, I'd
[1:27:38] say public, private, and nonprofit
[1:27:40] partnerships are so important. If you
[1:27:43] have a chance, get the book Bridge. It
[1:27:47] talks about working across
[1:27:48] jurisdictions, across agencies, and it
[1:27:52] gives several examples as well. If you
[1:27:54] get the the real book, not the audio
[1:27:56] book, it gives you a program in the back
[1:27:58] of how to work on that.
[1:28:01] >> Good. All right.
[1:28:04] We're all right. Got it.
[1:28:08] Go for it.
[1:28:12] So, that was the last question. So,
[1:28:14] we're uh we're doing great and uh we're
[1:28:17] we have still have our closing
[1:28:20] statements, but I wanted to congratulate
[1:28:23] the all the candidates for being
[1:28:25] respectful of the time and uh nobody
[1:28:28] went wildly over and u so anyway, thanks
[1:28:32] very much. And uh so now we're going to
[1:28:36] start with um closing statements and
[1:28:39] this will be 2 minutes each. And so
[1:28:43] we'll one one last pick from the cookie
[1:28:46] jar here.
[1:28:49] >> All right.
[1:28:50] Okay. There you go.
[1:28:54] >> Okay. Ashley will start off.
[1:29:02] Can we pick again?
[1:29:03] >> Um, I first want to thank everyone for
[1:29:05] coming tonight. Um, and also going
[1:29:07] through the the sound testing that we
[1:29:10] did for quite a bit and Mel for being a
[1:29:12] very wonderful Vanna White for helping
[1:29:15] assist with the speaker. Um, so as
[1:29:18] someone who runs 100% sustainable
[1:29:19] business, I understand the daily
[1:29:21] commitment it takes to protect our
[1:29:22] environment. Laguna's open spaces,
[1:29:24] oceans, and wildlife corridor corridors
[1:29:26] are what make our community unique. But
[1:29:29] preservation also requires planning. It
[1:29:31] means making sure every decision has the
[1:29:33] right experts at the table, the right
[1:29:34] funding behind it, a long-term plan, and
[1:29:37] the real transparency with the community
[1:29:39] before decisions are made. I want us to
[1:29:41] protect what generations before us
[1:29:43] fought so hard to preserve while making
[1:29:44] thoughtful decisions about safety,
[1:29:46] infrastructure, and our future. Because
[1:29:48] once we lose those natural assets, we
[1:29:50] don't get them back. I'd be honored to
[1:29:52] bring the responsibility, discipline,
[1:29:53] and perspective to city hall. Thank you.
[1:29:58] going to ask please.
[1:30:01] >> Yeah, thank you for the great forum and
[1:30:03] the the thoughtprovoking questions.
[1:30:05] That's one of the good things about
[1:30:06] campaigns. It makes you think about
[1:30:08] things that are long-term and um and
[1:30:10] that should always be our goal as
[1:30:11] council members. I also appreciate all
[1:30:13] the people who are running because um
[1:30:15] all the ideas that we're hearing up on
[1:30:16] stage add to the vitality of our town. I
[1:30:20] feel really lucky to have been born and
[1:30:21] raised in Laguna Beach. And as I reflect
[1:30:23] on the past 99 years as we approach our
[1:30:26] centennial next year, I think it really
[1:30:28] demands reflection about why is this
[1:30:30] such a special place? And to me, it's
[1:30:31] because we have a history of tackling
[1:30:33] really complicated problems in creative
[1:30:36] and unconventional ways. You know, you
[1:30:38] think about what happened in 1953 when
[1:30:40] an officer was shot and he bled out
[1:30:42] because he wasn't able to get to a
[1:30:44] hospital in time. what the community did
[1:30:46] was not study the problem but instead
[1:30:48] build raise the money build a hospital
[1:30:50] and that's why we have a hospital in
[1:30:52] front um today public safety and the
[1:30:54] health of our community is always going
[1:30:55] to be my top priority and that's why
[1:30:56] keeping that hospital and keeping the
[1:30:58] emergency room is has been priority one
[1:31:01] and will continue to be priority one
[1:31:02] over my next term and then as I said
[1:31:06] before it gives me chills to think about
[1:31:08] what what happened in 1989 when the
[1:31:10] residents of Lagouna Beach rose up and
[1:31:12] through a grassroots effort were able to
[1:31:14] save the canyon. That type of grassroots
[1:31:18] community centered um creative
[1:31:21] leadership is really what defines Laguna
[1:31:23] Beach is as when we think about how do
[1:31:25] we protect our open space or how do we
[1:31:27] deal with fire mitigation? How do we um
[1:31:31] you know manage our budget in a
[1:31:33] sustainable way? I think that is really
[1:31:35] those are the questions before us. I'd
[1:31:36] be um I'm proud of the record that I've
[1:31:38] had over the past four years and I look
[1:31:40] forward to working with all of you and
[1:31:41] and um and my colleagues if I'm elected
[1:31:44] for another four years to continue to
[1:31:46] work on the really complicated
[1:31:47] challenges that that are in front of us,
[1:31:48] but the ones that really are going to um
[1:31:51] shape our next hundred years. So, thank
[1:31:53] you for your time and I hope to earn
[1:31:54] your support.
[1:32:00] My first trip to Laguna Beach was 1990
[1:32:04] and driving down the canyon. I I fell in
[1:32:08] love with Laguna Beach. As I got to the
[1:32:11] ocean, I fell more in love. I called my
[1:32:14] parents about 3 months later and I said,
[1:32:17] you know, I don't think I'm moving back
[1:32:20] even if the opportunity arises because
[1:32:24] the people in Laguna Beach are so smart,
[1:32:27] so inspiring and passionate. the fact
[1:32:31] that they would march down Laguna Canyon
[1:32:34] and try to save the canyon and that's
[1:32:37] what brings inspiration to all of us
[1:32:40] here and brings us all together because
[1:32:44] for me
[1:32:46] you know businesses I've been in and I
[1:32:48] told you earlier I've been very blessed.
[1:32:50] I have no idea. I am guided by angels
[1:32:53] and angels give me answers and um I
[1:32:58] believe that Lagouna Beach is probably
[1:33:00] one of the best cities in the world and
[1:33:03] we are all very very blessed. So I'm
[1:33:06] running for city council because I care
[1:33:08] about Lagouna Beach. I've seen the
[1:33:10] changes in the last 10 years. Some
[1:33:12] things I visiting city council meetings
[1:33:15] I don't agree with. The one thing is we
[1:33:17] all respect one another and we're all
[1:33:19] kind to one another. And you know what?
[1:33:22] The rest of the United States doesn't
[1:33:24] have that right now. So please remember,
[1:33:28] respect people, correct people. I
[1:33:31] actually thanked Mark Orle tonight for
[1:33:33] something he did in 2023,
[1:33:37] which I'm not here October 6th because
[1:33:41] of that. So anyway, thank you very much.
[1:33:49] >> Well, thank you for this forum. It's
[1:33:51] been really enlightening and and was a
[1:33:54] lot of fun for me to research. Uh I'm
[1:33:57] Laura Paresi, a CPA and certified
[1:33:59] California municipal treasurer, a former
[1:34:03] member of the state treasurers uh
[1:34:05] investment board, former chair of the
[1:34:08] revenue and taxation committee for
[1:34:09] League of California cities and a
[1:34:11] 10-year uh legislative chair for the
[1:34:14] California Treasurers. I've been your
[1:34:17] elected treasurer since 1999.
[1:34:19] been a team player, but try as I might,
[1:34:22] I've watched the office of treasurer be
[1:34:24] more and more degraded, ignored, and
[1:34:27] minimized. I think that at least some of
[1:34:29] the financial problems that we face
[1:34:31] today could have been avoided with good
[1:34:35] financial guidance. Unlike the other
[1:34:37] candidates here, I want to tell you I
[1:34:40] like serving as your treasurer, but feel
[1:34:43] forced to run as a council person.
[1:34:46] I hope that my candidacy puts the need
[1:34:49] for good financial practices at the
[1:34:52] forefront of voters and future council's
[1:34:56] priorities, including restoring the
[1:34:59] check and balance that an elected
[1:35:01] treasurer brings to Laguna Beach. A
[1:35:04] reminder of my promises. If if elected,
[1:35:07] I will listen to residents, bring your
[1:35:09] voices and my vast organizational
[1:35:11] background to the council decisionmaking
[1:35:14] process. be laser focused on city
[1:35:18] finances. You know, just in July of
[1:35:20] 2026,
[1:35:22] we are $19 million lower in cash than we
[1:35:25] were in 25.
[1:35:27] I would insist on following the city
[1:35:30] rules.
[1:35:31] Um, and I encourage forming coalitions
[1:35:35] of like-minded cities to address common
[1:35:37] concerns like tourism, environment,
[1:35:40] affordable housing, and seismic
[1:35:41] retrofitting.
[1:35:43] I'm Laura Paresi and would love your
[1:35:45] vote for city council. Thank you.
[1:35:51] >> Just wanted to thank everybody for being
[1:35:52] here tonight. Um you know I I've been
[1:35:55] very lucky to grow up here. You know
[1:35:57] start going through our school starting
[1:35:58] with analysis in the canyon in uh
[1:36:00] believe it was 1988 or ' 89. And uh you
[1:36:03] know when we talk about protecting
[1:36:04] Lagona, you know, a few things are
[1:36:06] important uh that there are a few things
[1:36:08] are more important to our town uh and
[1:36:09] the identity than the canyon and the
[1:36:11] open space around it. Like I said
[1:36:13] earlier, I think of our canyon road as
[1:36:14] our road to Hana. And protecting it
[1:36:17] requires more than good intentions. It
[1:36:19] requires sound judgment and long-term
[1:36:21] planning and a willingness to ask
[1:36:23] difficult questions before we commit.
[1:36:26] This is why our current council's record
[1:36:28] matters. We took over the South Lagoona
[1:36:30] beaches with a $22 million payment that
[1:36:33] was they said was going to last 20
[1:36:35] years. It'll be gone in roughly seven.
[1:36:39] Why does that why is that important?
[1:36:41] Because this council almost took over
[1:36:43] ownership of Laguna Canyon Road from
[1:36:45] Calrans with a payment of roughly $14
[1:36:47] million where we while undergrounding
[1:36:49] the power lines is important, the
[1:36:52] financials are also extremely important.
[1:36:54] It was going to be hundreds of millions
[1:36:56] of dollars and residents had to keep
[1:36:58] showing up at town halls and pushing for
[1:37:00] clear answers, pushing the council or
[1:37:03] staff to go back to CALR about cost and
[1:37:05] liability and not wanting to um pardon
[1:37:10] me. Um and you know, we've watched even
[1:37:12] the prominade with uh the project
[1:37:14] ballooning to $7.2 million, four months
[1:37:17] of delays and unexpected tree movables.
[1:37:20] You know, that's a lack of planning.
[1:37:23] So these are not isolated examples and
[1:37:25] uh it points to a larger problem. This
[1:37:27] council has been reactive instead of
[1:37:28] proactive. You know, listening to their
[1:37:30] bubble instead of getting outside and
[1:37:32] talking to people with different
[1:37:33] opinions.
[1:37:35] Every time we fix something after the
[1:37:37] fact, we spend more money, more time,
[1:37:39] and we destroy public trust. It could
[1:37:42] have been used protecting things that we
[1:37:44] care about most. So if elected, I would
[1:37:47] take a different approach. I would test
[1:37:49] the assumptions first. Understand the
[1:37:50] full cost and the long-term
[1:37:52] consequences.
[1:37:55] Bring residents early, part of the
[1:37:57] conversation, not after the fact after
[1:38:00] everything's already in motion. And we
[1:38:02] need to to continue to look for outside
[1:38:04] funding.
[1:38:05] Um, you know, we need to establish clear
[1:38:08] benchmarks and KPIs. We need to know
[1:38:10] whether we are delivering what was
[1:38:12] promised. You know, the council uses the
[1:38:14] word stewardship. If stewardship is the
[1:38:17] standard, then it should be measured
[1:38:18] through planning, accountability, and
[1:38:21] results.
[1:38:27] >> Thank you to LCC for hosting us tonight
[1:38:30] and to everyone keeping watch over our
[1:38:32] canyon and hillsides. A special shout
[1:38:34] out to my friend and former mayor and
[1:38:37] councilwoman Tony Eisman, who was
[1:38:39] arrested for chaining herself to a
[1:38:41] bulldozer in the canyon to stop
[1:38:43] development. your activism, your
[1:38:46] endorsement, it means the world to me.
[1:38:50] Lagouna Beach. Yeah. Thank you. Lagouna
[1:38:53] Beach didn't end up um surrounded by
[1:38:56] 22,000 acres of wilderness by accident.
[1:39:00] It happened because of residents
[1:39:01] marched, organized, stood up to
[1:39:04] developers, and stood up to city
[1:39:06] leaders. I don't just talk about
[1:39:08] environmental protection during election
[1:39:10] season. I fight for it all the time.
[1:39:13] That's why I formed the Laguna Beach
[1:39:14] Coalition for Environmental Protection
[1:39:16] to take the city to court when it
[1:39:18] circumvented our general plan and the
[1:39:21] only restriction stopping development on
[1:39:24] privately owned hillsides. Every one of
[1:39:27] these incumbents here tonight voted to
[1:39:29] sidestep those protections, marching us
[1:39:32] toward the loss of our canyon and
[1:39:33] hillsides. The environmental rules
[1:39:36] preventing development on steep
[1:39:37] hillsides have been in place for 40
[1:39:39] years. Never before have city leaders
[1:39:42] questioned the science on how steepness
[1:39:44] is measured. It's a matter of math and
[1:39:46] engineering. A judge agreed on that
[1:39:48] point. Yet, the council voted 5 to
[1:39:51] appeal the ruling using your tax dollars
[1:39:53] so they can greenlight more building on
[1:39:55] steep hillsides. You hear the incumbents
[1:39:58] that unanimous votes are a sign of
[1:39:59] civility. I say it's a sign of group
[1:40:02] think. Civility means open debate,
[1:40:04] public dissent with council members
[1:40:06] agreeing to disagree and feeling free to
[1:40:08] vote their conscience rather than fall
[1:40:10] in line. As a council member, I'll be an
[1:40:12] independent thinker who's not afraid to
[1:40:14] disscent. My vote will take into account
[1:40:17] input from residents, experts, as well
[1:40:19] as my own experience as a small business
[1:40:21] owner, environmental activist, and proud
[1:40:23] Laguna Beach resident. I will stand
[1:40:25] shoulder-to-shoulder with the
[1:40:27] conservancy green belt foundation to
[1:40:29] protect this wildlife corridor and force
[1:40:31] subjective standards. You deserve a
[1:40:33] leader who has proven to fight for the
[1:40:35] Laguna's legacy. I ask for your vote and
[1:40:38] I'd be deeply honored, deeply honored to
[1:40:40] serve this community to save our
[1:40:42] hillsides and canyons.
[1:40:46] >> Thank you. Thank you for being here and
[1:40:48] thank you for hosting this forum. I
[1:40:51] really appreciate it. I know we have a
[1:40:53] focus on environmental issues tonight,
[1:40:56] but I'd like to just touch on a couple
[1:40:58] of things. Of course, safety is always
[1:40:59] number one. Saving the hospital is
[1:41:01] paramount. You know, we've gone through
[1:41:04] a a serious uh uh financial situation
[1:41:07] where unprecedented inflation and we've
[1:41:10] uh been able to balance the budget
[1:41:12] through that. Have we had to move money
[1:41:13] around and put it in different buckets?
[1:41:15] Certainly, we have. That's just a part
[1:41:16] of doing business and and I'm proud of
[1:41:19] our ability to do that. If you look at
[1:41:20] our surrounding cities in Orange County,
[1:41:23] a lot of these cities are in real
[1:41:24] trouble. And I think that we've done an
[1:41:26] outstanding job doing that.
[1:41:29] A lot of the decisions I make, if not
[1:41:31] all, you can find them, my rationale
[1:41:33] behind them in vision 2030. It's a
[1:41:35] document that we created. We finished it
[1:41:38] about 20201. I would encourage us all to
[1:41:40] to kind of review that and look at it.
[1:41:42] Over 2,000 of us participated in that.
[1:41:45] You hear me talk about stewardship a
[1:41:47] lot. It's something that I've worked on
[1:41:49] uh over the years. It's a culture,
[1:41:53] heritage, and environment. You know,
[1:41:55] this city, we're very participatory. We
[1:41:57] have competing goals, friction between
[1:41:59] each one of those elements, right? It
[1:42:01] takes patience, and to to get through
[1:42:04] that. The way I look at it, we're all in
[1:42:07] this together, businesses, residences,
[1:42:10] environmental groups. I have a history
[1:42:12] of bringing those organizations
[1:42:14] together. You can talk to some of my
[1:42:16] fierce critics. Kathy Jüka, I saw Penny
[1:42:19] Milan out there. I've had a great deal
[1:42:20] of success with her negotiating some of
[1:42:23] the terms uh having to do with some
[1:42:24] environmental issues. So, I think what
[1:42:27] we need is leadership and I have
[1:42:30] provided that to work through these
[1:42:32] complex question issues that this city
[1:42:35] has because we have them and we can get
[1:42:37] through them. But it's going to take us
[1:42:39] to your ability to roll up the sleeve.
[1:42:41] I'm not going to make false promises,
[1:42:43] but one thing I can make a promise on is
[1:42:46] I can bring people together to get
[1:42:48] through these issues.
[1:42:52] >> Yeah, I want to thank everybody for
[1:42:54] being here today and being so
[1:42:55] entertaining with the microphone and
[1:42:57] coming up the stairs and handing and I
[1:42:59] also want to thank Merryill for keeping
[1:43:00] us hydrated up here. And I asked him if
[1:43:03] I could have a glass of wine. He said
[1:43:04] that wasn't a good look. So, I didn't do
[1:43:06] that. Yeah. Um, I also want to
[1:43:09] recognize, we haven't talked about can
[1:43:11] do at all, but Penny Mil is here and
[1:43:13] Penny Mil is a stalwart for the canyon.
[1:43:15] She's very smart. She understands how
[1:43:17] things work and shouldn't work. Not shy
[1:43:19] to let us know. And I want to tell you,
[1:43:21] Penny, I personally really appreciate
[1:43:23] you in all your efforts. It's quite
[1:43:24] phenomenal. Um, you know, the challenges
[1:43:28] that we've had. I also want to say one
[1:43:29] other thing. My brother is here. My
[1:43:31] brother I don't see very often and he's
[1:43:33] uh my favorite person in the world. He's
[1:43:35] also a psychologist. So, I'll be
[1:43:38] interested in the debrief after this
[1:43:39] one. He he says, "Can you raise your
[1:43:42] hand?" Yeah. Yeah. That's my brother.
[1:43:45] So, his name's Dr. Kemp. Anyway, I get a
[1:43:50] lot of uh hints from him about things,
[1:43:52] too. So, anyway, the challenges, you
[1:43:54] know, this is a serious job for serious
[1:43:56] people. And the challenges we have are
[1:43:58] much more complicated than when I first
[1:43:59] came on the council. We have, you know,
[1:44:01] of course, we have rising costs due to
[1:44:03] the way the government's being run and
[1:44:04] other things. And we have we're going to
[1:44:05] have climate change. Clearly, we're
[1:44:07] going to have significant impacts. Our
[1:44:09] housing laws and the way the state's
[1:44:11] coming down and telling us what to do is
[1:44:13] another layer of complexity causes
[1:44:16] complexity for the council, for the city
[1:44:18] attorney's office and the staff. And
[1:44:20] it's it's quite challenging to navigate
[1:44:22] this. Um, my favorite thing to do as a
[1:44:25] council member is to walk in the
[1:44:26] community. I spend a lot of time out in
[1:44:28] the community and I find that's the best
[1:44:29] way just to understand what what people
[1:44:31] are thinking. They're not shy about
[1:44:32] talking to me and I like talking to
[1:44:34] them. Um, and you know, council members,
[1:44:37] it's important to present facts. We work
[1:44:39] in the world of facts here. We don't
[1:44:40] really work in the world of social
[1:44:42] media. So, I just want to say that we
[1:44:43] just do our very best to put the facts
[1:44:45] out and keep you in uh keep you apprised
[1:44:48] of what's happening. And, you know, just
[1:44:49] always try to come to the council
[1:44:50] meetings if you can. We don't get a lot
[1:44:52] of participation at the council
[1:44:53] meetings, but I'd like to see more of
[1:44:54] you there. I think I know most of you in
[1:44:56] the room here, but if you want to spend
[1:44:57] some time at the council meeting, you're
[1:44:58] certainly welcome.
[1:45:01] Thank you.
[1:45:04] >> Thank you all for being here tonight. It
[1:45:06] shows how much you care. And I also want
[1:45:09] to say thank you to Ann Kristoff that's
[1:45:12] sitting in the audience because she also
[1:45:14] contributed a lot to this community for
[1:45:18] protection of our village character and
[1:45:20] our open spaces. And I believe Mike Bean
[1:45:24] and Ginger Wallace were here and they
[1:45:27] also helped us create that blue belt
[1:45:29] that I really believe we need to extend.
[1:45:32] Um, Laguna Beach's greatest need is to
[1:45:35] become more proactive and less reactive.
[1:45:38] You've heard that a lot, but I really
[1:45:40] want you to understand what that means
[1:45:43] is that we need the regulations in place
[1:45:46] because we cannot hold any of the
[1:45:50] council members feet to the fire without
[1:45:53] having a comprehensive general plan. And
[1:45:56] I would encourage you to look at u
[1:45:59] unmasked Marcella Dornan's reel on um on
[1:46:04] with me which was a a podcast and I talk
[1:46:08] about the general plan in depth but that
[1:46:10] is where you can hold the feet to the
[1:46:12] fire when we update the open space
[1:46:15] element when we update the land use
[1:46:17] element that's where you guys can
[1:46:20] participate. Too often small decisions
[1:46:22] are made about consistency with the
[1:46:24] general plan, but they only look at the
[1:46:26] land use element. In this context, I'd
[1:46:29] say let's hold council and staff's feet
[1:46:32] to the fire by asking them to also look
[1:46:34] at the open space element. Um,
[1:46:38] we sorry, I have to take off my glasses
[1:46:41] to read, too. Um, we have spent too many
[1:46:44] years solving problems, one project, one
[1:46:46] ordinance, one crisis at a time. Our
[1:46:48] general plan, zoning code, and local
[1:46:51] coastal program and other policies are
[1:46:53] supposed together as one coherent
[1:46:55] framework. Instead, too many provisions
[1:46:57] are outdated, conflicting, or confusing.
[1:47:00] We're just looking at that now. It's
[1:47:03] never been updated. You can hold the
[1:47:05] council's feet to the fire, whomever you
[1:47:08] elect, if those policies and regulations
[1:47:11] are in place. Thank you.
[1:47:18] It's
[1:47:18] >> yours, Gail
[1:47:22] to the ladies.
[1:47:25] >> Thank you, Merrill.
[1:47:26] >> Thank you.
[1:47:33] >> Very sorry about the sound, but you know
[1:47:35] what? It worked out. Thank you, Mary,
[1:47:39] Bob, Jean, everybody who's helped in the
[1:47:41] room. Thank you all. So, you know, it's
[1:47:44] a testament. You know, people come and
[1:47:46] live in Lagona. You know, the lucky ones
[1:47:48] who grew up here are lucky. Most of us
[1:47:50] are transplants because this city is so
[1:47:53] special and our first introduction is
[1:47:55] always Laguna Canyon. So, say 8,000
[1:47:58] people would march to save it. In 1989,
[1:48:01] it was a smaller population. I think
[1:48:04] those people are still out there are
[1:48:06] just busy, quiet, and you know, some of
[1:48:08] the, you know, original people are here
[1:48:11] in the room today and take care of and
[1:48:13] keep watch on. We need more people to
[1:48:16] carry on that message and to be
[1:48:19] involved. But for you, nine people to
[1:48:22] want to serve and give of your personal
[1:48:25] life to do this job. We thank you. It's
[1:48:28] wonderful. Please everybody, maybe stay
[1:48:31] after, talk to them, hear what they have
[1:48:34] to say. Open your mind. Spread the word.
[1:48:37] These are great people. They love
[1:48:39] Lagona. And let's love them back. Thank
[1:48:42] you.
[1:48:52] survive.
[1:48:59] >> Yeah. Yeah.