As part of the Costa Mesa Police Department’s (CMPD) continued commitment to reducing injury and fatalities caused by impaired drivers, the Department will be on alert and patrolling the City of Costa Mesa on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 5, 2017.

Super Bowl Sunday tends to be a day of festivities across the country that is often accompanied by alcohol consumption.

National Highway Traffic Safety Association research has shown that high-visibility enforcement can reduce drunken driving fatalities by as much as 20 percent.

CMPD will be highly visible and patrolling areas of Costa Mesa in an effort to reduce and stop drunken and impaired driving.

Impaired driving is illegal and can be deadly. CMPD encourages everyone to drink responsibly and before the Super Bowl game begins, assign a designated driver, and/or make sure to have access to a mobile app designed to arrange a ride provided by a sober driver.

Costa Mesa Finance Department staffers are celebrating the news that they have won two awards for their work on the Fiscal Year 2016-17 Operating Budget.

The Government Finance Officer’s Associations recently announced that the City of Costa Mesa has received the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the second year in a row.

In a statement from the GFOA, the award represents a significant achievement for the City of Costa Mesa’s Finance Department and is the greatest form of recognition in governmental budgeting an organization can earn.

In addition to this prestigious honor, the Operating Budget for Fiscal Year 2016-17 earned the California Society of Municipal Finance Officers Certificate of Excellence Award.

The award is recognition of meeting the program’s required criteria and established professional standards in financial reporting and is a true testament to the hard work being applied.

A big congratulations to the Finance Department staff for their continued dedication and ability to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation and their excellence in financial reporting.

The Police Department rolled out Part One in a series of three short videos titled “Why Do you Serve?” that chronicles the perspectives of CMPD officers and why they chose to serve.

Part One profiled Chief Sharpnack and his professional story.

This is in furtherance of the Police Department’s multi-faceted recruitment initiative.

The video can be viewed below. Stay tuned for future episodes.

KASA Construction, Inc. has been contracted by the City of Costa Mesa to perform the construction of the Median Landscape and Irrigation Improvements Project on Mesa Verde Drive north of Adams Avenue.

The project entails the removal of grass from the existing medians and replacement with drought tolerant landscaping coupled with a new, efficient irrigation system.

Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin Monday, Feb. 6, 2017 and is anticipated to be completed in May of 2017.

Working hours will be from 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Lane closures may be in place within the limits of work between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. on an as needed basis.

Please exercise caution at all times on or around the construction job site to ensure the safety of staff, other drivers and yourself.

Your cooperation in observing all traffic control requirements and traffic regulations will be greatly appreciated and will assist in ensuring the safe and expeditious completion of construction.

The construction work will be subject to weather and may be delayed accordingly.

We thank you for your continued cooperation and assistance in making this much-needed project a success.

If you would like to discuss this project with the Contractor’s staff, please contact their office at (909) 457-8260.

If you would like to discuss this project with City staff, please contact our office at (714) 754-5029.

The Commission Appointments have now been rescheduled to take place during the Feb. 7, 2017 regular City Council meeting.

Interviews of the Planning Commission applicants will still take place at 5:30 p.m. today, Jan. 31, in City Hall Conference Room 1A.

The Fire & Rescue staff has happily reported that 16 community members recently graduated from the CERT training hosted by Greenleaf Mobile Home Park.

Participants learned skills in preparedness, fire safety and utility control, disaster medical operations, light search and rescue techniques, homeland security awareness and disaster emotional first aid.

Members of the instructional team included Fire Capt. Fred McDowell and Costa Mesa Police Lt. Vic Bakkila as well as volunteer instructors, Georgette Quinn, Cindy Brenneman, Dee Chester and program manager Brenda Emrick.

The next CERT class will be offered in March.

When Mariners Christian School student’s came back from Christmas break, they were welcomed by a New Year’s surprise: a brand new, state-of-the-art 57,000-square-foot AstroTurf athletic field.

To help celebrate this new addition, on Wednesday, Jan. 25 over 150 students, parents and teachers gathered for a special after school event to dedicate the new athletic facilities. The ceremony included remarks by the Head of School, Troy Moore, a prayer dedication by an 8th grader, Levi Darrow, a ribbon cutting ceremony and finally, fun field games that included the participation of students, teachers, and parents.

In April 2016, MCS launched a fundraising campaign to replace the natural grass field, which was 30 years old and significantly impacted by the extended drought conditions, with professional-grade AstroTurf.  The total project cost was $440,000.

By October 2016, the fundraising goal was reached, and construction commenced in November.  The new field, now featuring AstroTurf with a 2-star FIFA rating, includes permanent zoning stripes for flag football, soccer (small and full sided), and PE/recess lines.

City Manager Tom Hatch named Itzia Carvajal as the latest to receive the City Manager Leadership Award during the monthly employee Meet and Greet on Thursday Jan. 26.

A Principal Human Resources Analyst, Carvajal joined the City of Costa Mesa as an HR Analyst in 2014 after working in Santa Ana in Parks & Recreation, Community Development, Planning & Building and Personnel Services.

Carvajal oversees the daily functions of the Risk Management Section, which includes administering the City’s Workers’ Compensation Program as well as Benefits Administration Program, where she has worked to streamline and improve the administrative process.

Carvajal, who was promoted to Principal Analyst nearly a year ago, is recognized by her colleagues as a consummate professional and credible resource who possesses a strong work ethic, a high level of customer service and enhanced organizational skills. She has a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Sociology from the University of Riverside and in her spare time enjoys camping with her husband.

In addition to Carvajal, Hatch welcomed two new buyers to the Finance Department, Therese Combs and Nina Naranjo as well as Marianna Pena as a new Recreation Coordinator and Maria Urquiza Sanchez as a new Recreation Leader III for Parks and Community Services.

He also congratulated several employees for being promoted, including Lauren Clark, who was promoted from Recreation Leader to Office Specialist in the Finance Department as well as Matthew Schmelzel, who was promoted to Treasury Specialist.

Also honored were Ashley Ocasio who was promoted to Recreation Supervisor as well as Raja Sethuraman, who was promoted to Public Services Director.

On Tuesday Jan. 18, City Manager Tom Hatch gave a presentation to the Mesa Verde Community Inc. to update the group on several city initiatives.

Hatch brought them up to speed on the Fire Station No. 1 replacement efforts and noted that the groundbreaking for the new station will take place on March 11, 2017 with completion scheduled for the following spring of 2018.

He also told the group what was going on with the Lions Park improvements which includes a new library and community center. Hatch also gave updates on the new City Council, the Mesa Verde medians, city staffing, the homeless and the news that the Chargers are moving the team headquarters here.

Because of scheduling and time constraints, the City Council will now only interview the candidates for Parks and Recreation and Senior commissions during a Special Council Meeting on Tuesday Jan. 24, 2017 in Conference Room 1A at City Hall beginning at 4:15 p.m.

Interviews of candidates for Planning Commission will now take place at a Special Council Meeting on Tuesday Jan. 31, 2017, also in Conference Room 1A.

The City Council will also make the appointments for all three commissions at that time.

A powerful winter storm that whipped through Costa Mesa on Friday knocked down at least two large trees and one tree took out some power lines.  

Crews from Southern California Edison responded and assisted with the power lines.

There were more than 30 calls for service related to issues with smaller trees and two metal plates in the road near Sunflower and Main fell into the hole they were covering as part of some road construction work, forcing the city to close two lanes of traffic.

Who to call?

With another storm coming possibly on Sunday and Monday, residents in need of assistance are encouraged to call the city’s non-emergency line at 714-754-5252.

As always, in the case of emergencies, downed power lines or other life threatening issues, please dial 9-1-1.

Click here to see how to contact Southern California Edison or call 1-800-611-1911 to report power outages.

Sandbags available

Residents are also encouraged to obtain sandbags to deal with potential or real flooding problems.

The city offers a self serve process at the Southeast corner of the parking lot at City Hall located at 77 Fair Drive where residents can get up to 15 sandbags.

There are signs on Fair Drive that will direct you to the location.

Please visit City Hall as our primary location for sandbags, or if we are out of sand, you can obtain sandbags at Fire Station No. 4 located at 2300 Placentia Ave.

Click here for information on how to prepare sand bags.

211 OC

Furthermore, the agency “211 OC” is also poised to help coordinate assistance. 211 OC has an around the clock phone line to help with all types of emergencies and provides regional connection to resources for disasters victims, the homeless, and others needing health and human services.

Information about 211 OC can be found at www.211OC.org or by simply calling 2-1-1.

Residents interested in potential changes in flight paths involving John Wayne and Long Beach airports are encouraged to attend a Southern California Metroplex meeting on Wednesday Feb. 1 at the Oasis Senior Center in Corona del Mar.

The meeting, one of several taking place throughout the Southern California region, will be held from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the center’s Evelyn Hart Event Center at 801 Narcissus Ave.

The Metroplex Project would improve the efficiency of airspace in the Southern California Metroplex by optimizing aircraft arrival and departure procedures at multiple airports and military stations,according to Federal Aviation Commission website.

While the Project may involve changes in aircraft flight paths and altitudes in certain areas, it would not result in any ground disturbance or increase the number of aircraft operations within the Southern California airspace, the FAA website states.

Click here for more information.