Although best known for opposing excessive special interest spending, Mission Viejo activists have a consistent record of positive recommendations for community improvement.
This was reiterated at a meeting on October 26 among myself, fellow activist Neil Lonsinger, City Manager Dennis Wilberg and Public Works Director Keith Rattay. The meeting was proposed by Wilberg in a Dispatch posting to hear our suggestions and concerns. It was a cordial exchange with several concurrences:
1. The city was receptive to incorporating our suggestion for some type of brief promotional message onto a city name monument to be built on the median on Crown Valley Parkway at the I-5 freeway. The monument base is in place.
We activists have focused on Crown Valley as the commercial center of South Orange County on our volunteer-produced website, missionviejobusiness.com, designed to educate prospective new businesses about the city. It also familiarizes visitors and citizens with local commercial centers and their businesses. The website is being updated. The revised main article, All roads lead to Mission Viejo, is awaiting formatting onto the website and provides the rationale for our suggestion for the city monument: Mission Viejo: The Crown Jewel of South Orange County
2. At our suggestion the city seems amenable to installing small informational signs on Crown Valley at Puerta Real, the intersection at the mall entrance. Informational signs facing westbound Crown Valley traffic will advise cars in the left lanes: Civic Center Ahead: Left On Marguerite. Cars in the right lanes would see: Saddleback College Ahead: Import Auto Mall Ahead: Right on Marguerite. Mission Hospital is already visible to the right from this intersection. Money is budgeted for directional signage, which is routine in many cities.
3. At Lonsinger’s suggestion the city may improve the entrances into several key shopping center driveways on busy parkways, allowing drivers to enter the parking lots without virtually stopping on the parkways. Narrow “dustpan’ driveways requiring perpendicular turns would be rounded into “radius” driveway designs. The change will offer overall convenience, plus safety on driveways close to intersections. The city can make the changes when the parkways are due for resurfacing, but Lonsinger plans to suggest several potentially hazardous locations that should be improved now. We have suggested signage promotion and radius driveway designs at public meetings in the past.
4. City Council member Lance MacLean declared at the October 5 council meeting something to the effect that an individual would not find grass growing between cracks in the streets of Mission Viejo. We showed Wilberg and Rattay a mass spider web of wide cracks on a half-circle cul-de-sac only two blocks from my home. The drought has choked off the grass between the cracks, but they are as wide as 4 inches across and as deep at two inches. Rattay said the cul-de-sac cracks will be repaired.
The cracks have long escaped the attention of code enforcement officers, police and volunteer vacation-home patrols and street sweepers, among others. Wilberg said all would be reminded to report such problems.
Several activists have told me about cracks with growing or dead grass at other street locations in the city. Wilberg urges residents report problems by using “The public works online service request form” that can be accessed under City Services on the city website, cityofmissionviejo.org.
Positive results aside, the meeting produced clear distinctions in attitudes between activists and city hall on infrastructure, services and amenities. There are well documented disagreements between activists and the city council majority, for sure. But disagreements between Lonsinger and myself with Wilberg and Rattay emerged as well, including median design on Crown Valley. I will soon spell those out separately, in Part Two.
Allan Pilger
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From a citizens standpoint I congratulate Allan Pilger for his continuing efforts to point out the real needs of Mission Viejo. The lack of code enforcement, and preventative maintenance by the city administration points to several very big issues. None of the key city administrators live in the city – thus they do not have the real pulse of the community. What monies are available should be spent on infrastructure needs and not fluff like Rose Bowl Parade floats, useless easels, median kiosks, and obelisks on a nature trail.
The city should focus on street repairs, street slurrying, and certainly our aged and shabby looking slopes that I have already identified–example Alicia Parkway. The lack of code enforcement in deference to some of the chosen fluff/feel good programs must be also focused on by the city administration. Mission Viejo “The California Promise ” needs reinvigoration – not fluffy surveys and Iron Tree logos.
I agree that much of the above is wasteful spending by the City. But it is equally wasteful to keep roads near 100% quality. A few cracks in concrete and totally resurfacing the road is a waste of money and instead the City should spend the money on other things. And considering most of you drive on these cracks and I ride a bike, if I’m not complaining with my smaller tires, I don’t see how you should be.