Alex Rounaghi
Legislative Policy Advisor
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On Tuesday, I joined Supervisor Foley, Airport Commissioner Sue Dvorak, and our Chief of Staff Nick Anas to tour Airport Concessions. We learned about the products that were sold, how the concessions operate, and spoke to many of the passionate employees. At the end of our tour, it was fun to run into our new Airport Director, Charlene Reynolds.
On Wednesday, I virtually attended a special meeting of the Behavioral Health Advisory Board (BHAB) to discuss the Mental Health System of Care (MHSOC) and Substance Use Disorder System of Care (SUDSOC). The Board—and members of the public—discussed Important topics, including the fentanyl crisis, Naloxone availability, conservatorships, and other critical issues. The Board also reviewed several important county documents, including the 2019 recommendations to address the Opioid Crisis.
It’s inspiring to see the passion of the Board Members for finding solutions to these complex—but critical—crises facing our community, and I want to give particular thanks to Chair Matt Holzmann and Co-Vice Chair Stephen McNally for their leadership. The issues they are working on remain at the top of Supervisor Foley’s priority list and we look forward to future collaboration to find solutions that save lives.
To learn more about the Behavioral Health Advisory Board and to review their agendas, visit this website.
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Constituent Services Manager – Representing Garden Grove and Santa Ana
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This week I meet with Alexander Rossel, CEO of Families Together of OC where we discussed collaborating together to ensure families in the second district are receiving quality health services. Families Together talked about their three mobile clinics, their rapid growth to serving 138,000 Orange County Residents and their desire to continue expanding their continuum of care. Our office is looking forward to partnering with them further.
Thursday, I joined Supervisor Foley at The Bungalows groundbreaking. The housing project was created by a partnership with the City of Costa Mesa, Families Forward and Homeaid OC that is creating 8 affordable housing units for homeless individuals in the middle of Westside Costa Mesa. This project will help fill the crucial need for more affordable housing. We are excited to see this project come into fruition.
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Constituent Services Manager – Representing Anaheim, Orange, Tustin, and Animal Services.
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This week marked the official start of summer in Orange County, with the opening of the 2022 OC Fair! Our office was overjoyed to attend the flag-raising ceremony and present a certificate of recognition to commemorate the occasion. Since the first County Fair in 1890, the Orange County Fair has grown from a small community event with a horse show and small exhibits to a 23-day festival with carnival games, rides, exhibits, food, and live entertainment enjoyed by families, celebrities, and everyone in between. If you want to buy a ticket or learn more about the festivities, go to https://ocfair.com!
I also attended Rodrigo's Mexican Grill's 50th anniversary ribbon cutting celebration in Orange! The exciting event was hosted by the amazing Orange Chamber of Commerce, where Mayor Mark Murphy, Chamber President Al Ricci, and I gave congratulatory remarks thanking the family-owned restaurant for all they do to give back to the Orange community. The original restaurant is located in Orange, but they have locations throughout Orange County. To find a restaurant near you, go to https://www.rodrigos.com!
Finally, we have begun planning our Labor Day Appreciation event in Santa Ana, next to the County Courthouse. To show our appreciation for the hard work of our county employees, we'll be handing out free food, drinks, and other treats. If you'd like to participate in our appreciation event, please contact me at Kalvin.Alvarez@ocgov.com and we'll put you in our boothing area.
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Stephanie Wade
Veterans Policy Advisor
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When I first started working on veterans’ issues in OC five years ago, the OC Veterans Service Office was struggling with low staff morale and high turnover. But that all turned around when Elena Kim came on board in March 2021. She is a native Californian who enlisted in the US Army and served in the Iraq War as a translator during the height of the surge. Luckily for us, she gave up a promising career in uniform to become a civil servant working first as a congressional aide before becoming a veterans service officer. She brought the energy, confidence and knowledge the office needed and within six months she had the office fully staffed for the first time in more than three years. Where the VSO had routinely been filing claims that brought in paltry sums of up to $300-400 K per month, the office now routinely brings in more than $600 K per month and, in June of this year, her employees filled claims that brought in $1.3 million dollars of state and federal aid to Orange County veterans and military connected families. So you can understand that we were all very sad when, at our Orange County Veterans Advisory Council meeting this week, Elena announced that she is leaving us at the end of next week to take a job running the much larger Veterans Service Office for the County of San Francisco. You will be greatly missed here in Orange County Elena but you fixed so much and have left such a positive legacy that we cannot help but wish you well in your new position.
Please reach out to me at Stephanie.Wade@ocgov.com
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Airport Commissioner Update
Welcome New Airport Director, Charlene Reynolds!
I hope you’ll join me in welcoming our new Airport Director, Charlene Reynolds, to Orange County! Ms. Reynolds has direct responsibilities for six airport divisions, including: Business Development, Facilities Development, Finance Administration, Maintenance, Operations and Public Affairs. She also oversees the airport staff and budget.
Previously, she was the Chief Commercial Officer for the Houston Airport System, and prior to that she worked for the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, serving as the Assistant Aviation Director and as the Interim Aviation Services Director.
Agenda Item #2: Renew Amendment for Airport Facilities Support Services
In a split vote, the Airport Commission voted to authorize Amendments to renew on-call support services contracts. AECOM will manage the airport’s concessions projects, and Butier will manage the construction projects involved with the General Aviation Improvement Project. It is important for the airport to utilize the expertise of outside firms for certain projects that require airport-specific expertise and familiarity with state and federal regulations.
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Senior Citizen Advisory Council Update
At the July 8 meeting, the Senior Citizen Advisory Council welcomed two new members: Mary Perdue to the Executive Committee, and Mayor Paulo Morales to the City Selection Committee.
Joanna Jacobsen, Community Transportation Coordinator, gave a presentation on numerous transportation options for older adults, including: SNMET, OC FLEXOC Flex, ACCESS, SMP and GoGo Grandparent. Learn more here (LINK TO OCTA SITE)
Additionally, the Senior Technology Program has been fully executed. With that being said, the staff is ready to apply for additional funding to expand and enhance this successful program.
SCAC is working to meet in person for the November meeting. Stay tuned for more information.
Community Action Partnership of Orange County Update
Rev. Rayna Hamre, as a County Commissioner and CAP OC Board Member, was invited to attend the CAPLAW Conference in Chicago as a District 2 representative. She attended the conference alongside CEO Gregory Scott and fellow Board Member David Drakeford, as well as local staff. CAP OC is home to the Orange County Food Bank, diaper distribution center, and more.
Alongside Community Action Partnerships CEOs, staff, and Board members from all regions of the country, the CAPLAW Training Conference helped teach experts to navigate the everyday challenges faced by Community Action Agencies, other federally funded organizations, and nonprofits. Some of the workshops included training in addressing current governance, financial programs, human resources, and other specialized topics.
We were very lucky to have Rev. Rayna Hamre represent District 2 at the conference and are excited to integrate the resources gained from the training workshops.
Learn more about CAP OC and the important work that they do at capoc.org.
OC Parks Commission Update
The OC Parks Commission met on Thursday, July 7 at OC Parks headquarters.
The Commission voted unanimously to approve the new guidelines for the Trails Subcommittee. Additionally, the Commission voted to extend Virginia Webber’s membership for another two years, while also adding two appointments to the Subcommittee: Deborah Ball and Suzanne Martin.
Additionally, the Commission approved the proposed schedule for meetings through the rest of 2022. The next meeting, on August 4, is an evening field trip to Mile Square Park to observe the progress of the 93-acre conversion of golf course to park facilities.
After attending the July 7 meeting, I feel that productive ideas will come forward in upcoming meetings and look forward to taking part in future discussions.
Health News
OC Health Update
The OC Health Care Agency (HCA) is finalizing preparations to offer the Moderna and Pfizer BioNTech vaccines for young children ages 6 months and older.
“Starting [in June], limited shipments of COVID-19 vaccines for young children will begin shipping to providers who have ordered the vaccine through the CDPH, including the HCA,” says Dr. Clayton Chau, HCA Director. “The HCA’s Public Health Services Division will partner with Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to make the vaccines for young children available at select locations as soon as shipments arrive, and sites are operationalized.”
Some vaccine locations which are currently in receipt of the initial vaccine shipments and offering appointments, can be found by visiting www.vaccines.gov and searching locations by ZIP Code. Parents and legal guardians seeking a vaccine for their eligible children can also check with their primary care providers and/or pharmacy for expedited availability. Vaccination appointments for the HCA/CHOC sites will be made available on http://www.Othena.com over the next week as plans are finalized
According to the Food and Drug Administration, clinical trials involving thousands of infants and toddlers 6 months and older firmly show that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and provide protection against infection. Children get a smaller dose of COVID-19 vaccine than teens and adults that is the right amount for their age group. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends everyone ages 6 months and older get vaccinated against COVID-19.
Experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or any variants? Review the Quarantine Calculator: Here
As you celebrate summer activities and plan vacations, protect yourself and loved ones from COVID-19 by following safe travel guidelines issued by the CDPH.
See the latest guidance: Here
COVID-19 Data
As of July 12, 2022, 2,330,214 Orange County residents are fully vaccinated. The 7-day average positivity rate (7/15/22) in our County is 18%. This equals out to 34 daily positive COVID cases per 100k residents.
OC Animal Care:
Orange County Fair
Second Harvest Food Bank
Second Harvest Food Bank is hosting their first-ever Walk to Feed OC on September 11th at Tanaka Farms in Irvine. This event is presented by Albertsons and will help raise awareness about food insecurity in Orange County. To join in the fundraising and walking efforts, sign up here: feedoc.org/walk
OC Workforce Solutions
Ready Set OC offers no-cost employment training for Orange County youth ages 14-24, including those with disabilities or IEP plans, former or current foster children, pregnant or parenting, offender/ex-offender, and those experiencing homelessness, including couch-surfing or at risk of homelessness.
To find out more information, call the OC Business and Economic Recovery Call Center at (714) 480-6500 or text (657) 210-1295. Email info@readysetoc.com
Orange County Public Library
Equity in OC
Are you in charge of a grassroots organization? the Equity in OC initiative is releasing a POWER BUILDING FUND toprovide smaller, grassroots organizations with the opportunity to build their infrastructure and/or capacity
Learn More: Here
Sunset Cinema Series & Concerts in the Park
Committee Appointments
If you have questions or comments that you'd like to share, in relation to the committees below, please email me at Katrina.Foley@ocgov.com
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