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FEATURED STORIES
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Chairman’s Breakfast Series Hosts
LA Times President David Hiller
The Orange County Business Council welcomed Los Angeles Times publisher, President and Chief Executive Officer, David Hiller, to its 2007 Chairman's Leadership Breakfast series last Thursday at the Center Club in Costa Mesa. Hiller was interviewed by OCBC board member Larry Buster of First American Title, and provided unique, firsthand insights into the daily workings of the LA Times, what the future holds for print media, and what's in store for the Orange County market—and the Times' plan for a greater presence. Hiller also shared his remarkable career experiences, including as a member of President Reagan’s team, as well as his love of Cubs baseball and knack for singing the National Anthem before 40,000 fans at Wrigley Field!
Nearly 50 business leaders attended this event, the fourth in the current series. The next event will be September 18 at the Center Club and will feature Dr. James Doti, President of Chapman University.
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OCBC Urges Passage of a State Budget that Meets Projected Revenue
Budget negotiations broke down in the State Senate over the weekend as Democrats and Republicans worked to reach agreement on a spending plan. OCBC urges the State Legislature to adopt a budget that addresses the $5 billion structural deficit identified by the Legislative Analysts Office. Last Friday the Assembly approved a $145 billion budget that was later rejected in the Senate, as the Republican caucus, led by Senator Dick Ackerman (R-Tustin), held that the proposal was at least $700 million over an acceptable figure. The Senate is set to convene on the budget issue Wednesday.
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Anaheim Council Postpones Decision on Proposed SunCal Development
The Anaheim City Council decided during its July 17 meeting to give Disney and developer SunCal two weeks to try to continue discussions towards a settlement over SunCal's proposed housing development within the Anaheim Resort Area (ARA). This development proposal remains a highly contentious issue, drawing national media attention and heated debate across all fronts.
Over 14,000 signatures have been certified by the Anaheim City Clerk for a referendum opposing the council’s prior decision to approve the SunCal proposal. Negotiations between Disney and SunCal are expected to continue in the next week. Barring a settlement, the council will have to decide between reversing its prior decision or going forward with a special election – the cost of which can range near half a million dollars, according to the city’s own reports.
Anaheim rated at the top of OCBC’s recently released Workforce Housing Scorecard, which examined cities across the county and rated their success in planning for the present and future housing needs of the region’s workforce compared with the city's jobs creation.
To put the value of the Resort Area in perspective, the SOAR (Save Our Anaheim Resort) Coalition and the Disneyland Resort have released an Economic Impact Report on the Anaheim Resort Area. This report found that in 2006, the Resort Area generated the equivalent of more than $1,000 in tax revenue for every household in the City of Anaheim, totaling approximately $107 million in general fund revenue, plus $30 million in utility revenues.
The council's decision to postpone a vote on the issue was reached after nearly three hours of commentary by over sixty Anaheim residents representing broad interests within and around the city, including OCBC's Vice President of Government Affairs, Kris Murray, who shared OCBC’s research results with the council and OCBC’s position in support of good planning and preservation of the resort district as part of that plan. The issue is slated to be taken up again by the council at its regularly scheduled July 31 meeting.
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OCTA Bus Strike Resolved
Bus drivers voted yes last week to approve the proposed contract with the Orange County Transportation Authority, which together with OCTA's approval brought the weeklong strike to an end. The vote by union members was an overwhelming 696 - 35 in favor of ending the strike.
The contract provides an increase in benefits and a raise for all drivers. The settlement also allowed for a key union demand for slightly higher salary increases for drivers with seniority. Orange County employers managed the inconvenience of the strike by a variety of creative solutions, including an extensive carpool program by Disney and the St. Regis Resort and a website advisory to students and faculty by UCI.
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Executive Invitational Golf Tournament: Register Today!
Join Elected Officials and Orange County's Top Business Leaders for a Day of Golf, Prizes and More!
OCBC and UC Irvine's Paul Merage School of Business will host the annual Executive Invitational Golf Tournament on Monday, August 13, 2007, at the Tustin Ranch Golf Club. Proceeds benefit UCI scholars and OCBC’s remarkable workforce development programs—very worthy causes! Sponsorship opportunities available.
Please contact Michelle Hart at 949.794.7219 for more information. Register at www.ocbc.org/golf.
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OCBC Welcomes New Members
The Orange County Business Council proudly recognizes the public and private sector firms who have joined the ranks of business leaders involved with OCBC as it advances a high profile, proactive advocacy program for business interests throughout the region and across California.
Bordwell & Associates
Carter & Burgess, Inc.
City of Westminster
Coneybeare, Inc.
Graziadio School of Business & Management of Pepperdine
Kaiser Permanente of Orange County
MWW Group
Orange County Housing Trust
Sapetto Group, Inc.
The Monaco Group
Vulcan Materials Company, Western Division
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OCBC Congratulates Two Members
on Recent Appointments
Two Business Council members received appointments to Anaheim city commissions last week:
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Peter Agarwal of Citizens Business Bank was appointed to the Anaheim Planning Commission
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Jordan Brandman of Michael Brandman & Associates (formerly of OCBC) was appointed to the Anaheim Public Utilities Commission.
OCBC praises its members’ commitment to their community and offers itself a resource to all business leaders engaged in public service. The Business Council also wishes to recognize the recent gubernatorial appointments of two individuals whose nominations were supported by OCBC:
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Carl Guardino, chief executive of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group to the California Transportation Commission.
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Christopher Westlake, appointed chief of the division of financial assistance for the Department of Housing and Community Development, where he has served in an acting capacity for that role.
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Infrastructure
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Governor Directs Immediate Actions
to Preserve the Delta
Governor Schwarzenegger announced last week that he is directing the state to take immediate actions to preserve the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta – a critical source of drinking water and backbone of the agricultural community in California. The Delta's ecosystem is endangered, and the governor’s office has described it as at “an environmental tipping point.”
Two thirds of Californians depend on the Delta for drinking water. Geographically, it covers approximately 738,000 acres and contains over 1,000 miles of rivers and sloughs flowing through the central valley and into San Francisco Bay. It receives water runoff from over 40% of the State’s land area, irrigating three million agriculture acres supporting approximately $400 billion of the California economy.
Governor Schwarzenegger has directed the state to take immediate actions to protect the Delta, using existing resources. The Governor has also identified more than $120 million in specific Delta restoration projects to include in his comprehensive water plan. He is calling on the Legislature to pass this plan by the end of the year.
For more information on the Governor's water plan visit www.gov.ca.gov/issue/water. You may also view a webcast of Governor Schwwarzenegger’s remarks on the Delta here.
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OCBC Launches Transportation Advisory Council -
OC MOVES!
As a leader in the campaign to renew Measure M, Orange County’s half-cent transportation sales tax, the Orange County Business Council established a transportation advisory council in partnership with the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) and the Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA), the Building Industry of Orange County (BIA/OC) and other business leaders to advocate for Orange County’s transportation priorities at the federal, state and local levels, as well as to provide oversight on behalf of the business community for renewed Measure M implementation.
The first meeting of countywide transportation stakeholders was held on Monday, July 16. The agenda included a discussion on the Measure M implementation, carryover items from the current Measure M identified by the Business Council, as well as an advocacy program to mobilize support around common priorities for transportation. In addition, the transportation advisory council will host a leadership program to educate state and national leaders about Orange County’s transportation priorities.
The Orange County Business Council is working with county leaders to make sure that Measure M projects are built on-time and on-budget, maximizing every dollar spent.
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OCTA Keeps the County Moving Forward
The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) is investing in the county’s transportation infrastructure and assessing opportunities to engage private investment. In December, OCTA invested $32.5 million to purchase the 13.5 acre site to house the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC).
ARTIC will be a public-private, multi-modal transportation center connecting transit services within Orange County and the entire Southern California Region. In addition, ARTIC will support OCTA’s investment of nearly $400 million to provide 30-minute Metrolink commuter service by 2010. ARTIC is the only designated Orange County station on the California High Speed Rail system and the California-Nevada Interstate Maglev system, connecting Las Vegas to Anaheim.
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Upcoming Events
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2008 Economic Forecast Conference: Save the Date!
The housing market? Employment trends? Inflation? Oil prices? Global warming and economics? We’re all wondering, what does 2008 have in store for Orange County? In response, OCBC and Cal State Fullerton’s College of Business and Economics will host the 2008 Economic Forecast Conference, presenting a multi-perspective view of the latest economic issues and trends. Save the date -- Monday, October 22, 2007!
Special thanks to our title sponsor, US Bank, as well as our forecast sponsors, Chevron and the Client Advocate Network. Click the EFC banner captioned below for more details, including sponsorship opportunities.
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State Legislators to Host Orange County
Community Housing Conference
Senator Tom Harman and Assemblyman Van Tran will host a “Community Housing Conference” at the Westminster Rose Center on August 17, 2007, the purpose of which will be to discuss the cost of housing, and how to increase homeownership in Orange County.
Special Guests of this conference will include OCBC President and CEO Lucy Dunn, and Rosario Marin, Secretary of State and Consumer Services. For more information and to RSVP please call Emanuel Patrascu at 714-957-4555.
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Delta Issues Take Center Stage
at September WACO Meeting
The new Executive Director of the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA), Tim Quinn, will be in town to discuss the growing crisis in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta at the September 7th meeting of the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County (WACO). The meeting will be held at the Irvine Ranch Water District offices at 7:30 in the morning. The meeting is open to the public and we encourage OCBC members to attend and learn how recent cutbacks in Delta water pumping and the further degradation of the ecosystem have further underscored the increasing severity of the crisis and the immediate need for a comprehensive Delta solution.
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Committee Meetings
August 2007
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Friday, August 3 |
Latino Educational Attainment Working Group, 9a |
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Wednesday, August 8 |
Golf Tournament Committee, 7:30a |
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Wednesday, August 8 |
Workforce Housing Committee, 9:00a |
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Tuesday, August 14 |
Infrastructure Committee Mtg., 7:30a |
Click "DETAILS" below for more information. You may also view OCBC's Master Calendar on the web.
[DETAILS]
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Community Events
Black Chamber of Commerce
Saturday, August 25 - Reading, Writing and Recording ...Of Our History
Don’t miss out on the Black Chamber of Orange County’s 16th Annual Awards Banquet at the Anaheim Convention Center. For more information, go to www.banquet-ocblackchamber.com.
Cowabunga! OC Fair Continues through August 5
The 2007 Orange County Fair hosted OCBC’s Board of Directors just before its July 13 opening, allowing business leaders a unique opportunity to see behind-the-scenes as the Orange County Fair Board prepares for its largest Fair ever. The last three years have had the three highest attendance figures in fair history, including a record of more than 1 million visitors in 2005.
This year’s fair, the county’s 115th, is themed “Cowabunga! -- The Year of Herefords, Surfers & Sand,” and includes a packed concert calendar, as well as food, rides and a cattle drive that will take 300 Corriente steers through the streets of Costa Mesa on July 27.
The Fair is open Tuesday through Friday from noon to midnight and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to midnight. The Fairgrounds are closed on Mondays. Admission is $8 for adults and children 5 and under admitted free every day.
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