Opinion

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Press release

This story is part of the Voice of OC Collegiate News Service, a partnership with Chapman University that trains student journalists to cover public policy across Orange County. Have a student project or a response to this work? Email admin@voiceofoc.org.

As contract negotiations between the Teamsters union and the county stall, over 400 workers are on strike in OC, impacting public services like landfills and the animal shelter.

Union and state labor officials say the county failed to negotiate a new contract in good faith while the county seemingly minimized the impact of the strike – like not publicly disclosing that landfills are closed to residents, but not waste haulers. 

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer dropped charges against a man violently arrested in Santa Ana, instead pursuing a probation violation after a viral video of the arrest spurred growing questions and calls for accountability. 

The Santa Ana police union criticized some city council members for their public remarks on the arrest while also raising concerns about an “unprecedented” independent investigation into a violent arrest. 

While facing a budget deficit that’s expected to eat up half of the incoming $120 million in freed-up bond repayment money, Anaheim City Council members voted – without any public discussion – to give police officers nearly a 17% raise over the next three years that will cost the city $45 million. 

A large crack underneath Pacific Coast Highway in between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach pushed Caltrans to indefinitely shut down a southbound lane on the scenic coastal road.

OC Transportation Authority officials are moving to get sand to South Orange County’s disappearing coast – but it’s not happening until after the incoming super El Niño, which could hasten sand loss and coastal erosion. 

Coastal Orange County has already seen flooding in Newport Beach and Laguna Beach ahead of El Niño after a tropical storm caused tides to swell over the weekend. 

The OC Water District is drawing criticism for bulldozing bird habitats in the Santa Ana River as activists say it’s a violation of an agreement with state officials, but water district officials say it’s in line with the agreement to maintain the river and capture stormwater. 

Candidates for the Orange County Board of Supervisors continue answering Voice of OC questionnaires about critical areas like corruption investigations, public safety, a rocky budget, discretionary spending and transparency reforms.

GKN Aerospace, the company that owns the chemical tank in Garden Grove that nearly exploded in May, is expected to pay out $125 million in claims for the roughly 50,000 people who had to evacuate and to reimburse local agencies for emergency responses – including a $15 million penalty. 

A controversial battery storage site in South OC won’t get built after the company behind it withdrew its application for the facility following scores of local residents raising concerns about wildfire risks.

Amid accusations of hurling racist and homophobic slurs at her chief of staff, Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken refused to meet with a host of community groups about the allegations after she said she’s not safe if former City Councilman and longtime community activist Jose Moreno is there – a claim that’s perplexing other local Latino activists, including Moreno.  

The Huntington Beach police union political action committee is spending against two city council incumbents – including a former police officer – in the upcoming election after they voted against police raises.

Over $2 million has already been spent in the Newport Beach City Council elections – more than half of that coming from a local developer who’s spearheading four different ballot initiatives, including one that would severely limit new housing construction in the city. 

While public concerns are growing over increasing surveillance employed by police departments, like Flock cameras, the Tustin Police Department will soon have access to local public school camera feeds, with officials saying officers will only use them in emergencies. 

Editor’s note: Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken’s father, Wylie Aitken, chairs Voice of OC’s board of directors.