For those disappointed in the decision by the Irvine City Council to swap Veteran’s Cemetery sites, two pieces of news. The state legislature amended previous legislation authorizing the new site in record time. And CalVet throws some water on those thinking development of the new site will begin almost immediately.
First:
Two budget trailer bills related to the Southern California Veterans Cemetery (SB 96 and AB 97) are awaiting Jerry Brown’s signature. Both include the same budget allocations, provisions and direction to CalVet for $500,000 for CalVet study (site studies, concept plan and Phase I cost estimates). The bills authorize CalVet to acquire, study, design, develop, construct, and equip a state-owned and state-operated Southern California Veterans Cemetery at the Bake Parkway (Strawberry Field) site. The bills authorize CalVet to submit a pre-application for Federal Cemetery grants and secure a transfer of $5 million to the Southern California Veterans Cemetery Master Development Fund. If all goes according to Plan, this is effective July 1, 2017.
I contact CalVet last week to get a sense of just how long this would take. It took three years since legislation for the ARDA site was approved and the swap has already resulted in wasted taxpayer spending of $500,000 on the original site. Here’s the statement from CalVet to my query:
The authority and appropriation necessary for CalVet to pursue a feasibility study at the Bake Parkway location is expected to be in the State Budget for FY17/18. Once the budget is signed, CalVet will begin to pursue a feasibility study at this location. There are no plans for a ground-breaking at this time, and a construction date will be established once the feasibility study concludes.
My understanding is this is one to two years away at best, compared with the ARDA site where clean up and development could begin immediately (Ironic that the ARDA site is loaded with toxins and requires extensive cleanup which the nearby Portola High School only had trace amounts of harmful contaminants).
So where I am going with this?
I went to Congressman Lou Correa’s open house Monday night at his Santa Ana office but couldn’t stay very long because of the DPOC Meeting at 7PM. There were 15-20 people when I walked in the function room and I recognized Bill Cook, an advocate for the Veteran’s Cemetery who no longer returns my phone calls. Now is a good time to remind readers this blog (and me) have long supported a Veteran’s Cemetery at the Great Park (especially when Christina Shea and Steve Choi spoke out against it from the dais in support of FivePoint). I walked up and said “Excuse me, are you Bill Cook?” He said “I am Bill Cook.” I introduced myself and told him I had contacted CalVet and they said nothing would happen with the new site until the state budget is passed and the new site was evaluated, adding “if the plan was to build the cemetery fast, this wasn’t it.”
Bill became agitated and walked away saying I called him a liar. I reminded him of his statement, months ago, that CalVet “found favor” with the Strawberry Fields site when CalVet told me that had not weigh in on it. “You did lie Bill,” I said. Now Bill strode towards me quite angry. I stood my ground and was calm. “You said I was bought off. That I got a house!” he shouted at me. I said, “I only asked you if you were bought off.” Bill then bumped me, nose to nose, tummy to tummy, to which I said “you can’t be serious?” All this in front of 8-10 witnesses, some friends of his, and others, young staffers in Lou’s office or friends of Lou. I was going to ask him what “Phase One” means in detail ($10 million isn’t much), but Cook was done talking with me.
Cook left in a huff.
A police officer, affiliated with Rancho Santiago College District then approached me and asked me to step into the hall. I followed and said (laughing), “if this is about Mr. Cook, I have no intention of filing any assault charges.” I told the officer who I was, who Cook was, what I said to Cook and his reaction. I referenced the witnesses inside who saw what happened and invited him to ask those people what they saw.
Claudio Gallegos, a district officer for Correa’s office, came down and spoke with me and I told him exactly what happened. I also promised him I had no intention of disrupting Lou’s event and had to leave shortly for the Party meeting anyway.
I grew up in an Air Force town and will always respect the service to our country that Vets like Cook have provided. But when it comes to his flip flops on the cemetery site, I’m not as respectful for how he turned his back on those who worked so hard on his behalf in 2014. I don’t know if Cook was bought off in some manner to support the land swap, but after his outburst, I’m almost certain he was. And that’s only my opinion. How, exactly, would be difficult to expose or reveal.
It’s important to note that the only people against the cemetery in 2014 were Christina Shea, Steven Choi and Emile Haddad at FivePoint when the memorial was first proposed. They came on board after the land swap proposal was floated in late 2015. Bill aligned himself with these people. By agreeing to an acre for acre swap instead of a dollar for dollar swap, the Vets and the city have surrendered millions of dollars that could fully construct and manage the new cemetery for years. Even Mayor Don Wagner thinks its OK for FivePoint to make money on this deal as he said so in published reports. Way to surrender public land to a private developer for profit Don. I think we’re all going to be stunned with how much we gave up to FivePoint.
I’d also like to note that lead story in the Orange County Business Journal Monday was all about a FivePoint update where the land swap was covered. No reference to the deal being a win-win for the city and its taxpayers. The Veterans are barely referenced. But the story was quite bullish on what the swap will do for FivePoint’s bottom line. It will take a lot of convincing for me to believe the land swap was a win-win-win. It was a big win for FivePoint and the OCBJ was spot on in reporting it.
So if there is a groundbreaking for the Strawberry Field site this summer, it’s because FivePoint still owns the land and they are good at breaking ground on stuff. But the site still lacks CalVet’s blessing so its just FivePoint giving certificates to city council members and Vets to pat themselves on the backs for the financial windfall FivePoint is about to realize.
Just what Agran was saying–they have to start the process all over again. Great job Fox, Shea and Wagner.
The three stooges–Fox, Shea and Wagner could care less about how the cemetery will impact residents in Irvine. The traffic is getting worse and letting Five Points build inside of the Great Park is a travesty. They will make billions not millions. Wagner cheers their gross profit. Disgusting.
Bill Cook is unhinged. He sold the vets down the river.
Bill’s a sell out. Shea’s a fraud. Haddad laughs his way to the bank. Call the city Haddad, California from now on
FivePoint, CA. UC-FivePoints, The FivePointsCompany
Melissa Fox is the sell out. What did FivePoint promise her or what do they have on her ?
Melissa wants me to out my sources. Not happening as no one should ever speak to me again if I break confidence (ask Vern Nelson why so few politicos talk to him these days). I don’t think she needs to worry about being recalled. She needs to worry about being re-elected. I don’t see that happening.
Crazy Greg and Drunk Vern (who I did not even know was a Democrat) should go to Monday’s OC Register article about FIVE POINTS.
So big bad, evil corporations are only in Anaheim and only watchdog groups like CATER get involved if the people getting hosed can direct billable hours to Greg’s kitchen table law practice, his daughters pitical practice or Mrs. Nelsons rediculous terror group that wants us to F -The Police.
Katy Brown and five points ate set to make BILLIONS on the graves of Veterans. But these two NEVER served unluss you count Verns Felony and Drunk Driving stuff.
It should be noted. That the apple doesn’t fall far the tree. Maybe 5 points will contribute to Gabe’s FELONY assault on a police officer GO FUND ME. God knows “Crazy Greg” won’t.
Hey, post the link for the GoFundMe defense
Not GoFundMe but another charity site. $205 in 4 days. Not looking good
$205 for punching a cop, beats the sh!t out of getting a job!
Consider this:
DEL TACO STARTING WAGE: $13.50 Per Hour
SEARS APPLIANCE SALESMAN AVERAGE COMMISSION: $2,500 + $8.00 HR. BASE PAY.
EXTRA WORK……$100 per week.
That’s what my 22 year old daughter is doing to pay for Chapman! We could afford and pay for a CSU tuition. She chose Chapman. SO She works NIGHT and DAY.
Vern’s kids, throw punches (and in the case of Donna, SHOOT) at cops, and then want other people to pay. And while as it’s not as lucrative as “Crazy Greg” Diamonds kitchen table law scam ripping off cities with frivolous lawsuits, scamming other losers like Greg, Miravette, Mark Daniels, Cynthia Ward, Paul “Henry Lipton” Lucas, Ryan Catnor, Dave ” Roddy” Zenger, Brian Chachua (is he dead yet) or any of the countless phonies the prop up.
WAIT… NONE OF THEM STEPPED UP FOR GABE…….
As a public service, here’s the link: https://www.generosity.com/community-fundraising/support-gabriel-nelson
Please watch the entire video first and make a determination if you’d like to contribute. I’ll note there’s no nominal contribution from Greg Diamond, Tom Tait, Jose Moreno, Mark Daniels, Cynthia Ward, Paul Lucas, Ryan Cantor or Dave Zenger. $205 raised in 5 days…what’s that, about 37 minutes of a lawyer’s time?
Vern hasn’t give a dime to his own kid’s defense. Happy Father’s Day!
Thank goodness for Tony Bushala; a $500 donation from Fullerton’s Futury Fiend has brought the total to $705 in just 9 days….not quite at 20% of goal
https://www.generosity.com/community-fundraising/support-gabriel-nelson
$205 from you *generous* and *caring* Democrats?
Oh my. That makes you look like a bunch of liars when you’re always proclaiming your morality and generosity and goodness, particularly in comparison to those *greedy* Republicans.
The Democratic Party has reduced itself to rioting, throwing feces and urine at police, attacking Trump supporters, mayhem and insanity. Wonderful examples you are providing for America’s youth.
Aren’t you proud, Dan?
John — just because someone puts up a GoFundMe page doesn’t mean its going to get funded and I’ll point to charities in OC like the Eli Home — run by a progressive Democrat who George H.W, Bush called a “Point of Light” — protects battered families and relies on donations to survive. Perhaps you’d like to write them a check?
The Democratic Party is not rioting. No one is throwing feces and urine (how do you throw a liquid anyway).
And yes, I am proud of the activism from my Party and fellow liberals. Read this: http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-spontaneous-protest-2017-story.html
Changing political parties might be a good idea for her.
For Melissa? No, she’s a Democrat. Her vote, in my opinion, was incorrect
Time will tell Dan. I know she is a Democrat but my gut tells me she will be voting this way a lot. I hope I am wrong. Her husband threw away a stack of ICNV newspapers at the meeting taking place at the Duck Club. Maybe the papers should not have been there I don’t really know. However, who the hell does he think he is ? He needs to exercise some control over his emotions.
The Democratic Party and all of its various clubs should be free speech organizations. I do not blame Michael for defending his wife. I did speak against the Party resolution defending Melissa’s integrity and character because I don’t think the criticism of her vote for the land swap was an attack on either. It was a vote that not all Democrats, all Vets and all Irvine Taxpayers supported. Time will tell how many millions FivePoint will benefit from this vote.
My wife and I had lunch today at the senior center in Woodbridge. On the way out I was verbally attacked by a veteran who was screaming at me that I was against the veterans cemetery. For the record I am for the cemetery and I support the ARDA site for its location. If it turns out it is at the strawberry fields site then so be it. This guy was literally screaming at me. He said I was against the developer making millions of dollars and I told him that is correct. This developer is absolutely ruining the city I live and pay taxes in. I did not deserve to be attacked in this manner. Kind of scary. A city employee stepped in and escorted the guy out of the building.
No one was against the cemetery — except for Shea, Choi, Wagner and Haddad. Then came a choice for Haddad to profit. Then they were for it.
As posted by Greg Diamond on OJ today in a comment, this: “If you were Lou Correa, you would have already had your “security detail” escort one Democratic political blogger from your office, while the person whom he verbally (at a minimum) assaulted was taken upstairs by staff for a “tour” to get him out of that *actually* threatening blogger’s way; after which the person in question came downstairs and stayed at the event in question for hours. So, anonymous canker sore, go complain to THAT blogger about violence.”
Greg wasn’t there. I introduced myself to Bill Cook with a handshake and communicated to him what CalVet told me that afternoon. Cook bumped me and got in my face. If anyone committed violence it was Cook. This is another example of Diamond talking shit and knowing nothing.
I have grave concerns about the safety of our elected representitives (from both sides of the aisle) as long as unhinged activists/agitators like Greg Diamond, Paul Lucas, Vern Nelson (and his Son) and Donna Acevedo-Nelson are out there.
Donna and Vern have proved willing and capable to gather angry crowds of anarchists to the streets and DESTROY private businesses and community property (while wearing masks. Hows that for anonymous cowardice Greg?).
Paul Lucas has threatend one commenter to come to his place of business (Paul is a convicted Felon who was in possession of Meth and FIREARMS). Meanwhile, Vern’s son is awaiting charges of assaulting police officer.
Earlier, Congressman Correa attended an event on Anna drive. An event for an official of a Mexican State. A state that is on the US STATE DEPARTMENTS watch list. A state known for NARCO TERRORISM. Anna drive home to felons, child molesters, unidentifiable aliens and anti police terrorists.
This is dangerous.
Lou and others should steer clear of the likes of Paul Lucas, Greg Diamond and Vern Nelson. For was it not Greg Diamond who angrily accussed then Senator Correa of intentionally causing the deaths of people. Wasn’t Greg the one who called Correa ” A Bastard”?
These inflamatory actions and words point to not just a deep divide but a warning sign.
Time for the DPOC leadership to take stock, time for our elected leaders both Dem and Rep to stand up and stop pandering to these maniacs.
It’s NOT FUNNY to joke about lighting people on fire, killing cops, eating dogs and whatever other hypocritical bullshit they peddle over there.