Latest news with #BuenaParkCityCouncil
Los Angeles Times
29-05-2025
- Automotive
- Los Angeles Times
Buena Park takes aim at air pollution from idling delivery trucks
Prompted by resident complaints, the Buena Park City Council considered drafting an anti-idling law to curb commercial trucks from leaving their engines on while parked for a set period of time. Councilmember Susan Sonne requested the study session at Tuesday's council meeting. 'Pollution is certainly a big concern here, because in my district, there's a number of commercial areas that back up against homes,' she said. 'There's also a noise consideration, and I've had residents who've reported large commercial trucks that have idled, not just for a few minutes, but for hours in the middle of the night.' According to a city staff report, vehicle idling is a major source of local air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. In California, an estimated 2.7 million tons of carbon dioxide is spewed into the atmosphere from idling every year while chugging 270 million gallons of fuel, the report stated. A handful of cities across the state have passed anti-idling laws. Palo Alto defines 'idling' as leaving a vehicle running for three minutes while parked. The Bay Area city has emphasized education over enforcement of its law, but includes penalties for egregious offenders. Santa Cruz limits vehicles to just 90 seconds before they are considered idling. In Cupertino, anti-idling efforts are folded into the city's climate action plan. Cupertino partners with schools and its local chamber of commerce to spread awareness about the environmental impacts of idling to encourage compliance, from parents picking up their children at school to delivery trucks parked outside of businesses or parks where people congregate. With Buena Park developing its own Climate Action and Adaptation Plan, Sonne saw an anti-idling law as compatible with it, but didn't want to fully emulate Cupertino's model. 'I really don't want to go after parents who are sitting and waiting to pick their kids up from school,' she said. 'I don't have any interest in that, at all.' Matt Foulkes, Buena Park's community and economic development director, told the council members that if they wanted to craft their own law, they would have to define 'idling' while also determining exemptions for issues like emergency vehicles or drivers keeping the air conditioning on to prevent a health hazard on a blistering hot day. Foulkes also said that state law already prohibits commercial vehicles weighing more than 10,000 pounds from idling after five minutes. 'Any delivery truck is going to exceed that [weight],' he said. Sonne backtracked on pursuing an anti-idling law after learning about existing state law, as she felt more awareness of it could directly address the complaints of her constituents. Councilmember Connor Traut also highlighted complaints about commercial trucks aired at a recent council meeting and asked what the city would inform residents to do. 'Obviously, it's not [call] 911, but [should they call] non-emergency line to report excessive idling by large trucks?' he asked. Foulkes responded that residents can call the police department's non-emergency line or code enforcement during working hours. 'If there are specific businesses or specific residents that you guys have in mind, we would do a very directed enforcement,' he said to Sonne and Traut. 'And then we can kind of spot check around the city where we have similar situations, where those residents might be having those same frustrations, but just might not have brought it to an elected official's attention.' Buena Park Mayor Joyce Ahn asked that information about the state law prohibiting idling and what numbers to call be placed on the city's website. 'That sounds more targeted and effective,' she said.
Los Angeles Times
27-02-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Buena Park partners with South Korean company to promote taekwondo
Kukkiwon, a South Korean taekwondo company, is partnering with Buena Park for future events and economic growth as it expands its reach into the United States. Branch leaders in seven U.S. states, including California, have recently been appointed by the company. Jinseob Kim, secretary general of the Kukkiwon California branch, attended the Buena Park City Council meeting on Feb. 25 as council members considered a two-year agreement allowing the company to use its public facilities for five days at no cost. 'I hope that the city of Buena Park and Kukkiwon will grow together,' Kim told council members on Tuesday. Buena Park is home to a sizable Asian American population, Orange County's second Koreatown and an outdoor mall that serves as a hub for local Korean Americans. By establishing a presence in Buena Park, Kukkiwon pledged to promote and recommend the city's hotels for international and out-of-town guests at its events. City officials hoped that a boost in tourism would also help surrounding retail and restaurants. But not all were pleased by the proposed partnership. Yong Choi, a former Buena Park planning commissioner, warned of a taekwondo takeover by Kukkiwon while raising questions of fairness regarding the facilities agreement. Choi, who teaches taekwondo and owns a martial arts business himself, claimed that Kukkiwon earns profits from issuing Dan certificates recognizing a person's rank in the martial art. Kukkiwon does have an interest in expanding its Dan certification reach. According to statements made by the organization in the press, only a quarter of California's 1,400 taekwondo schools issue Dan certificates. Choi feared that the company's growing presence in Buena Park would force other local taekwondo small businesses to close. 'They have [the] power to control,' he said. 'I don't think that's right or an equal opportunity for the local business people.' Choi stated that if there's a facilities-use agreement between the Buena Park and Kukkiwon, the same terms should be extended to other smaller businesses. After an initial discussion at the Jan. 28 council meeting, Kukkiwon sought all-day use of the city's Community Center Ballroom for an inaugural event as well as a four-day use of its Veterans Hall for a weekend event starting in late May. Any other events at city facilities would be at the usual rental rate. Councilman Carlos Franco briefly raised the issue of granting a 'potentially unfair advantage' to a private company. He asked what the rental rates were for the city's Veterans Hall and Community Center Ballroom. According to city documents, the Veterans Hall rents for $89 an hour, including staff. The Community Center Ballroom rents for $167 an hour, with staffing included. 'This is strictly a business agreement in terms of bringing more economic benefits to the city by accommodating all the international and possibly out-of-town visitors,' said Mayor Joyce Ahn, in support of the arrangement with Kukkiwon. Kukkiwon is expected to draw up to 4,000 people to the area by hosting the World Taekwondo Hanmadang at the Anaheim Convention Center in July. Ahn commented that no small business can match that. Choi objected that Anaheim's resort hotels would be in a better position to benefit. Councilwoman Lamiya Hoque recommended that there be a one-year evaluation of the agreement and its economic impact on Buena Park with the second-year of the contract being contingent on demonstrated success. 'I think it would be for council's benefit to see what would come from that within the year,' she said. The proposed amendment to the agreement found favor with the rest of the council, which unanimously approved the partnership. Ahn noted that Kukkiwon isn't a nonprofit and that bigger international events will be hosted outside of Buena Park. 'That said, the visitors will be encouraged to use the hotels in Buena Park,' she said. 'We're not expecting 3,000 or 4,000 hotel stays.' The agreement also calls on Kukkiwon to strengthen collaboration and outreach with local taekwondo schools in the city.
Los Angeles Times
05-02-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
2 O.C. cities expand efforts to curb street vendors operating outside the law
Good morning. It's Wednesday, Feb. 5, and rain is in the forecast for the next couple of days. So, if you still own an umbrella it might actually be of use to you this week. I'm Carol Cormaci, bringing you this week's TimesOC newsletter with a look at some of the latest local news and events. Anaheim and Buena Park, both homes to renowned attractions that bring in a whole lot of visitors, also draw in a host of street vendors, some permitted, others not. Up and down California, including other O.C. cities where such vendors set up shop, officials have wrestled with how best to deal with them since the California Street Vending Act (Senate Bill 946) decriminalizing the practice was signed into law by then-Gov. Jerry Brown in 2018. To gain more control over the fruit carts and taco stands that appear on its sidewalks, the Buena Park City Council last week voted to give code enforcement officers the ability to seize illicit street food vending equipment 'if a vendor appears to have abandoned it or if it poses an imminent safety or environmental hazard,' according to this TimesOC story. Further, the city can impose a $265 impound fee to the operators involved. The change in city law will give Buena Park code enforcement 'the power to confiscate tents, tables and grilling equipment for 90 days, while also dumping food,' the article states. 'We've kind of hit our limits,' Councilman Connor Traut, a proponent of the measure, said during last week's meeting. 'We need this extra stick. It's a necessary step and I think we should still work towards encouraging legal street vending and amending rules, because the demand is there for folks in our community.' In what may have been sheer coincidence, the Anaheim City Council at the same time approved two $250,000 contracts for consultants to assist its code officers with cracking down on the vendors that set up their small enterprises on sidewalks without required permits. 'Neither [consulting firm] is being hired just for street vending,' Mike Lyster, a city spokesman, told TimesOC. 'We've actually had tremendous success with street vending enforcement on our own. We still have issues at the stadium, at Honda Center and along Harbor Boulevard. These contracts will give us more flexibility.' • Students for Justice in Palestine, the group that organized a pro-Gaza encampment at Chapman University, was recognized Jan. 21 during the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Awards hosted by the university's Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The very next day, the recognition was strongly criticized in an email sent out by the president of Chapman, Daniele Struppa, with an apology to Jewish students and others who might have been offended by it. The award was subsequently rescinded. • An experimental amateur-built small plane that crashed into a warehouse near Fullerton Airport Jan. 2 had defects in a door that appears to have contributed to the collision, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report. The accident took the lives of the pilot, Pascal Reid of Huntington Beach, and his 16-year-old daughter, Kelly, sparked a fire and led to eight serious and 11 minor injuries. • After a portion of the private walkway that snakes along a cliff in Laguna Beach collapsed in a landslide Friday morning, sending about 500 cubic yards of earth down on 1,000 Steps Beach and damaging a path there, city officials reported. No injuries occurred during the 7:15 a.m. 'significant bluff collapse,' they said. • Officials with South Coast Repertory are assessing damages and any losses to its production building in Santa Ana caused by a partial roof collapse during a period of high winds and rain on Jan. 26. The roughly 4,500-square-foot area that comprised the paint shop has been red-tagged by building inspectors. • A man suspected of killing a woman in Menifee Saturday morning was shot to death about three hours later at the Newport Beach Pier fallowing a pursuit by Santa Ana police officers. • A Los Angeles police sergeant was arrested Saturday night after authorities say he hit and killed a pedestrian in Tustin while driving intoxicated and fled the scene. Tustin police identified the driver as Carlos Coronel. • Jurors began hearing opening statements last week in the case against Antonio Padilla, who faces one count of murder in connection with the death of 60-year-old Gina Marie Lockhart, whose body was unearthed by detectives in the yard of his parents' mobile home in Huntington Beach on July 17, 2022. • Investigation into a citizen's complaint culminated last week when Laguna Beach police seized several illegal substances and made multiple arrests of people alleged to have been involved in the sale of illegal drugs at Cinder Box Smoke Shop on South Coast Highway. • Newport Beach police announced this week the arrest Friday night of a 30-year-old Chilean national in connection with a residential burglary near East Coast Highway and Pelican Point. • Twice-convicted drunk driver Serene Francie Rosenberg, 48, has been charged with the murder of 88-year-old Melvin Joseph Weibel after allegedly plowing her Land Rover SUV into the transit van he was a passenger in. The crash took place at around 6:15 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Stonehill Drive and Golden Lantern in Dana Point, according to the reporting of City News Service. • Angels outfielder Mickey Moniak was awarded a raise to $2 million Friday instead of the team's offer of $1.5 million in salary arbitration. Moniak hit .219 with 14 homers and a career-high 49 RBIs last year. • The new Huntington Beach Sports Hall of Fame inducted its first class on Sunday. It included, among other honorees, members of the 2011 Ocean View Little League team that won the Little League World Series back in 2011. You can find the complete list of the inaugural class here. • The Newport Harbor High surf team captured the Sunset League All-Star Championships last Wednesday. The Sailors finished with 192 points, edging powerhouse Huntington Beach, which scored 185 points. • Laguna Beach High School's girls' basketball team won the Pacific Hills League crown by beating Irvine, 53-31. The CIF Southern Section will release its playoff pairings on Feb. 8. • More than 18,000 entrants turned out Sunday for the Surf City Marathon in Huntington Beach. Antoine Puglisi of Los Angeles was the men's champion and Temucula's Stephanie Cullingford was the women's champion. Registration is already open for the 30th annual Surf City Marathon, set for Feb. 1, 2026, at Beach. • There's a new art exhibit at the Great Park Gallery in Irvine, themed 'More Than You Can Chew.' One of the 17 artist installations featured is from Seattle-based artist Eriko Kobayashi and is called 'Sunny Side Up.' The gallery's address is 270 Corsair. The exhibit runs through April 20. • Peter Quilter's play 'End of the Rainbow' will be on stage at the Gem Theatre, 12852 Main St., Garden Grove beginning Friday night and running through Sunday, Feb. 23. Curtain time on Fridays and Saturdays is 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. The play with music delves into the final chapter of Judy Garland's life. • 'Echoes of Conflict: Remembering Vietnam,' a comprehensive exhibit of items related to the Vietnam War, opens Saturday, Feb. 15, in Heroes Hall Museum at the O.C. Fair & Event Center, 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa. The exhibit features items such as uniforms, weaponry, photographs and letters. On display through Dec. 21; admission and parking are free. Until next Wednesday,Carol I appreciate your help in making this the best newsletter it can be. Please send news tips, your memory of life in O.C. (photos welcome!) or comments to
Los Angeles Times
29-01-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
2 Orange County cities beef up street food enforcement
Two Orange County cities took additional measures to strengthen enforcement efforts against street food vendors. On Tuesday, the Buena Park City Council voted to give code enforcement officers the ability to impound street food vending equipment. The vote came at the same time that the Anaheim City Council approved two $250,000 contracts for third-party consultants that will, in a small part, assist its code officers with cracking down on taco stands, fruit carts and other vendors that set up on sidewalks without required permits. Buena Park originally took limited measures in 2021 to ban street food vending in areas around Knott's Berry Farm and the city's auto center, two years after the California Safe Sidewalk Vending Act became state law. But a pair of study sessions last year claimed that street food vendors continued to set up on sidewalks throughout the city — and that flies and maggots were even found in the meat of one street taco stand. Former City Councilman Jose Trinidad Castañeda balked at the notion while wanting to keep the 2021 laws in place. 'You're not seeing maggots on all the tacos from every street vendor in the city,' he said during the Feb. 27 meeting. 'Let's be a little bit real here.' A majority of council members, though, directed city staff to explore granting code enforcement with impounding authority, which came back on Tuesday for discussion. Matt Foulkes, the city's community and economic development director, noted that one part-time code officer is currently tasked with street vending enforcement. Orange County Health Care Agency officers, who have impound authorities, have teamed with Buena Park for enforcement efforts but have been limited to one to three actions per month, according to the city. A change in city law will give code enforcement the power to confiscate tents, tables and grilling equipment for 90 days, while also dumping food. The approach takes a page out of Anaheim's playbook. 'What Anaheim was experiencing was very similar to us, but of course, on a larger scale,' Foulkes said. 'This is a tool in our toolbox,' he later added. 'But in cases where we have repeated offenders … this impoundment would allow us to, ultimately, take their equipment, which we have found to be the most effective method.' City staff estimated that up to as many as a dozen street vendors operate in Buena Park on any given weekday. During Halloween Haunt season at Knott's Berry Farm, that number balloons up to 40. 'I would like to see somewhat of a pathway for these people to conduct business legally,' Councilman Carlos Franco said. 'In addition, if there was no demand for it, then they wouldn't be here.' Council members approved the changes to the law in a 4-1 vote, with Franco being the lone vote against it. A second, unanimous vote set the impound fees at $265. Under the amended law, code enforcement can directly impound equipment if a street vendor appears to have abandoned it or if it poses an imminent safety or environmental hazard. In most cases, a code officer will approach vendors and allow them to pack up their equipment within 30 minutes or risk impoundment. Code officers will begin notifying street food vendors of the changes 30 days before they take effect. Councilman Connor Traut voted in favor of the beefed up measures. 'We've kind of hit our limits,' he said. 'We need this extra stick. It's a necessary step and I think we should still work towards encouraging legal street vending and amending rules, because the demand is there for folks in our community.' It's a strategy that Anaheim added to on Tuesday when it contracted with two private companies for supplemental staff to help with an array of code enforcement tasks. Before Anaheim, 4Leaf Inc. gained a $600,000 contract with Fontana to assist code officers with street vendor crackdowns. Where it concerns street food vending, 4Leaf's contract in Anaheim allows it to provide up to 15 staffers for enforcement efforts at large sporting events at Angel Stadium, Honda Center and the Anaheim Resort around Disneyland. More staffers could be made available if multiple events occur on the same day. The hiring of support staff comes after Angels Baseball President John Carpino railed against hot dog vendors setting up outside of Angel Stadium last season. Carpino sounded the alarm about a guest getting 'severely sick or even dying due to food poisoning' in an April email to city officials. By June, Anaheim solicited bids for code enforcement support staff. As an independent contractor, 4Leaf workers will have the same ability to 'seize, transport and book' vendor equipment as city code officers. The terms and services offered by the Willdan Engineering contract are the same. 'Neither is being hired just for street vending,' Mike Lyster, a city spokesman, added. 'We've actually had tremendous success with street vending enforcement on our own. We still have issues at the stadium, at Honda Center and along Harbor Boulevard. These contracts will give us more flexibility.' Former Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle lobbied city officials in December 2023 on Willdan's behalf, according to Anaheim's lobbyist registry.
