At last nights City Council meeting Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Claudia Alvarez continued her criticism of Supervisor Janet Nguyen and her allocation of state Prop 1B funds. Alvarez, following up on her comments that appeared in Saturday’s edition of the Orange County Register, called on Supervisor Nguyen to insure that Santa Ana receive “our fair share” of the monies being allocated to the First District from 1B funds. ÂÂ
Proposition 1B was passed by the voters in 2006 as means to garner funding to improve highway safety, reduce traffic and improve air quality. Each year the state allocates the money equally to the counties throughout the state. Orange County officials then divide the monies up between the 5 supervisorial districts. In the First District, which is represented by Janet Nguyen, Santa Ana makes up over 60% of the district. Despite that fact Janet has only allocated 20% of the funds to Santa Ana.
Alvarez told the audience that the city of Santa Ana and Mayor Miguel Pulido have written Supervisor Nguyen a number of times asking for Santa Ana’s share of the funds and spelling out the street improvements the city wants to fund with those monies. For the most part Santa Ana’s plea’s to Nguyen have fallen on deaf ears.
Alvarez joins Assemblyman Jose Solorio amongst public officials in criticizing how Janet has chosen to allocate the Prop 1B funds. “I’m very disappointed that Santa Ana is getting only 20 percent of the Proposition 1-B funding where it should be getting 60 percent of it because of its size,” Solorio told the Register. “It’s the largest city in Supervisor Nguyen’s district and it’s incumbent on her to give the city its fair share”.
Janet claims that she only received $4 million dollars from the state this year to allocate for street repairs and projects. However of that money she has allocated $2.5 million, or more than 62%, for the building of a pedestrian bridge in Little Saigon. The bridge, which I have dubbed “Janet’s bridge to re-election”, is clearly being done to benefit Janet’s political supporter Frank Jao and to pander for votes in the Vietnamese community.
To make matters worse, the majority of Westminster’s City Council have voiced their opposition to the bridge. So Janet is not only ignoring Santa Ana’s plea’s for help, she is ignoring the fact that Westminster officials do not want the $2.5 million spent on the pedestrian bridge. Janet has chosen to do what is best for Janet and to hell with what other electeds and the people want.
Kudos to Claudia and Jose for speaking up and looking out for the best interests of Santa Ana’s residents. Since Janet has chosen to cut Santa Ana out of its fair share of the monies I urge Santa Ana voters to cut her out at the ballot box. Perhaps we shouldn’t allocate her our votes and without Santa Ana she will have a hard time winning re-election.
Maybe the supervisor is dividing the money up by number of voters voting
In the February election only 15 percent of the voters in the Santa Ana precinct I worked in voted. So I guess we are getting a 5 percent bonus in funding.
But there is a chance to vote for another Viet for the 1st district this June, who will allocate future funds to the voting public in the western part of the district too.
Sean,
And why is it that the Santa Ana City Council disproportionately spends money fixing streets in northern Santa Ana, specifically in Mayor Miguel Pulido’s Floral Park neighborhood? Hmmm….you never complain about THAT.
And how much did Pulido and our city manager, Dave Ream, blow on those unnecessary street medians? You probably DID complain about those, but back then you used to stand up to Pulido and company.
BTW, this same City Council gave HUGE raises this year to Ream and to our City Clerk. Why is that Sean? Could this be pension spiking? I don’t recall you complaining about THAT.
It’s not Supervisor Nguyen’s fault that our City Council has screwed up priorities. Until you start holding our City Council and Mayor accountable it is ridiculous for you to go after our County Supervisor.
BTW, obviously the Trannies on the Westminster City Council oppose the bridge. If one of them had come up with the idea they would be praising the project. Their actions rather transparent to those of us who aren’t buying their spin. That you are heeding what the Trannies have to say is simply unsettling.
Seeing as how this post is in regards to the allocation of Prop 1B funds I will stay on topic and ask Art how he can justify Janet spending over 62% of the funds allocated on a bridge in Westminster that not even the Westminster city council wants?
Please stay on the topic of Prop 1B funds.
Thank you for your continued readership of the LiberalOC.
Well since Art brought up Santa Ana…
If the Mayor and Council of Santa Ana wanted to build a bridge like the one Janet wants to build, Art would be screaming foul from the rooftops. The fact that he isn’t simply exposes him as an inconsistent partisan who’s principles vary from moment to moment.
You Go Claudia!
Where do the other candidates stand on this?
Unfortunately, Janet could bankrupt the county by handing the Santa Ana City Council the pin code to the “County ATM” and that city council would still have to raise taxes to pay for all the superflous crap they want to do except the actual, critical things that need to be done in that city.
Santa Ana is a joke and Claudia is partly to blame.