Home Care In Laguna Niguel, CA

LAGUNA NIGUEL, CA — Rain from Tropical Storm Hilary was tapering off Monday as the unsettled weather system moved to the north, but sporadic showers continued to fall and cleanup operations were underway as mudflows and flooding impacted some roads and highways. Laguna Niguel saw roughly 2.20 inches from the storm, according to the National Weather Service.

In Orange County, there were no significant issues along flood control channels and roads, according to Shannon Widor of the Orang County Public Works Department. Overnight, voluntary evacuations were in place at the Silverado Canyon and Williams Canyon areas of the Bond Fire burn scar, and those were lifted as of 5 a.m. Monday.

Meanwhile, work both county and city work crews cleared mud and rocks to keep the roadways open.

Most rainfall records were shattered on Sunday thanks to the almost daylong downpours. The highest rainfall total recorded over a two-day period ending at 7 a.m. Monday was at Mount Wilson, where the NWS reported 8.56 inches of rain. Lewis Ranch saw 7.04 inches, while nearly seven inches fell in Crystal Lake and 6.5 inches came down at Santa Anita Dam. Saugus also saw nearly 6.5 inches of rain.

Most other areas saw between 2 and 4 inches, with Beverly Hills receiving nearly 5 inches. About 3.5 inches fell in Santa Monica, and roughly 3 inches in downtown Los Angeles. Nearly 6 inches fell in East Pasadena, while Pasadena itself saw 2.4 inches.

According to the Weather Service, the 2.48 inches that fell in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday alone made it the wettest August day ever downtown, breaking the record of 2.06 inches set on Aug. 17, 1977.

"Hilary made Sunday a record-breaking day for rainfall with almost -- if not all -- stations receiving record amounts of rainfall," according to the NWS.

Many Southland areas were also battered with strong winds overnight. A gust of 87 mph was recorded around 3 a.m. at the Magic Mountain Truck Trail, while the Newhall Pass saw gusts of about 50 mph. The Santa Clarita and San Gabriel valleys saw gusts in the 40 to 50 mph range overnight, according to the NWS.

The storm known as Hilary resulted in the first tropical storm warning ever issued for Southern California. Before Sunday, a tropical storm had not made landfall in California since 1939. With the storm dissipating, the NWS announced Monday that the tropical storm warnings had been lifted.

Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a State of Emergency for the area, and Bass did likewise and activated the city's Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 -- one level short of the most critical status.

Hilary weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm off the coast of Baja California early Sunday, but it still brought heavy rain, strong winds and fears of dangerous flooding to some areas, particularly the mountains and the Antelope Valley.

The storm made landfall near San Diego Sunday afternoon, prompting the National Weather Service to warn of "potentially historic amounts of rainfall" that was "expected to cause life-threatening to locally catastrophic flash, urban and arroyo flooding including landslides, mudslides, and debris flows through early Monday morning."

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it was coordinating with California officials to provide support as needed. FEMA pre-positioned supplies at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, and a FEMA Incident Management Assistance Team deployed to the California Office of Emergency Services and is prepared to assist with any requests for federal assistance. Additional teams were on standby for deployment if necessary, officials said.

California's National Guard contingent has also "strategically pre-positioned resources throughout Southern California" as part of the statewide effort to prepare for the storm, officials said Saturday.

Cal OES, through the California Fire and Rescue Mutual Aid System, deployed a total of more than 700 local government firefighters and support staff, as well as 15 Swift Water Rescue teams, two Urban Search and Rescue companies and three Regional Urban Search and Rescue task forces.

Orange County also closed all recreational facilities, trails, campgrounds, beaches and libraries. The county activated and staffed its Emergency Operations Center at 8 a.m. Sunday. Officials said "all resources and support personnel have been identified and are on standby ready to mobilize when needed."

Officials at Orange County's John Wayne Airport advised travelers to check with their airlines for possible flight delays or cancellations after 20% of departures and 21% of arrivals were canceled Sunday.

Adding to the mix, a strong earthquake centered in Ventura County shook most of Southern California on Sunday.

The magnitude-5.1 temblor struck at 2:41 p.m., about 4 miles southeast of Ojai, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was quickly followed by a series of aftershocks, the largest of them measuring a magnitude of 3.6.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

As a reminder, all Orange County residents should sign up for AlertOC at http://AlertOC.org for future incidents.

Registered voters in Laguna Niguel could elect their council members by geographic districts starting with the general election in November 2024.

After receiving a letter threatening litigation over the voting model council elections have used for 34 years, the City Council recently decided to change how representatives are chosen in town. The challenge argues the city’s at-large election process violates the state’s Voting Rights Act.

Laguna Niguel is intending to transition to a by-district system, which is becoming more common in California after cities, school districts and special districts up and down the state started receiving similar letters arguing at-large elections dilute the voting power of minority groups.

“A review of Laguna Niguel’s voting results appears to illustrate that they are racially polarized resulting in minority dilution,” says a letter sent in May by Michelle Jackson, an attorney with offices in Dana Point, on behalf of her clients. Jackson adds that in 20 years, not a “single Latino has been elected to the City Council” though Latinos makes up about 17% of the city’s population.

In the latest U.S. Census report, in a population of nearly 65,000, the city includes 65.2% White residents, 15.5% Hispanic residents and 11.3% Asian residents, the third largest group demographic group, and various other groups.

Presently, registered voters in Laguna Niguel vote for all council seats on a ballot and the top votegetters win the election. In by-district elections, a voter may only vote for a representative from their district when that district is up for election.

Though the council unanimously approved declaring its intention to start the process to change to district elections, there were reservations.

“These at-large elections have resulted in a diverse group of City Council members through the years who have worked together to make Laguna Niguel one of the safest cities in the nation, a financially strong city with zero debt and balanced budgets, a city with one of the highest qualities of life anywhere, and a diverse city that has used its diversity to set one of the highest bars anywhere for excellence in city government,” Mayor Kelly Jennings said in a statement, adding that she is disappointed the council was forced into the situation by “a bad state law being exploited by plaintiffs lawyers outside our city.”

Before the council voted, City Attorney Scott Smith gave councilmembers details on the letter sent on behalf of an “unnamed minority group of voters,” which argued the dilution of minority representation.

Smith said in most cases, the letter is sent “before they sue the city over their election system.”

He also told the council that Laguna Hills, Rancho Santa Margarita and San Clemente also received similar letters recently.

In every case that has been tried, Smith said, the city ended up having to convert its system and pay the opposing party for their attorney fees. “With all this in mind, our recommendation is you do things to avoid exposure to the community,” he said. “Put in place a process toward conversion to by-district elections.”

Transition to a by-district process would not affect current council members’ terms and would maintain having seats staggered so not all appear on the ballot each election year.

If the district process moves forward and the geographical areas are selected, Laguna Niguel will have voting districts in place beginning in 2024. At that point, registered voters will vote for the one seat representing their district.

But the plan isn’t a done deal until the input from residents is gathered. Jennings encouraged residents to get involved.

To help residents understand the process and give more background, the city has create a webpage, cityoflagunaniguel.org/districting.

Four public hearings will be held – Sept. 5 and 19, Nov. 7 and Dec. 5 – so the public can address the council on how the district boundaries should be drawn, including which neighborhoods should be kept together.

The webpage includes background information about district formation, a schedule outlining the public hearings and deadlines, frequently asked questions, and details on how to get directly involved in the district formation process.

As the process progresses in the coming months, the city will update the page to include additional information on upcoming meetings, hearings and outcomes.

LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (KABC) -- One year after the devasting Coastal Fire ripped through the Coronado Pointe community of Laguna Niguel, owners of the 20 homes destroyed by the flames are still displaced.

Ramin Yazdi walked ABC7 through his property on Thursday. The home where he and his wife raised their children is now a vacant lot.

"I was sort of in retirement mode and was planning on retiring here and not moving anywhere else and the last thing I wanted to do is become a home builder," Yazdi said.

Thursday marked one year after the 200-acre Coastal Fire ripped through the neighborhood, destroying 20 homes and damaging another 11.

Yazdi, the president of the local homeowners association, said of about a dozen homeowners in various stages of the rebuilding process, he knew of at least two with building permits in hand.

Though the cause remained under investigation by the Orange County Fire Authority, the Laguna Beach Department and CAL FIRE, nearly 200 plaintiffs in a mass-action lawsuit accused Southern California Edison.

Richard Bridgford was the attorney representing the homeowners who were displaced or evacuated.

"The lawsuit alleges that the failure of Southern California Edison to maintain its lines and to properly implement vegetation mitigation measures led to the disaster," Bridgford said.

The weather was not unusual for the area on that humid spring afternoon, but the daily, cool ocean breeze carried the flames up the canyon creating spot fires and taking over homes built before the early 2000s.

OCFA Fire Chief explained though the residents did an excellent job of keeping a defensible space around their homes, the older construction of the houses which was not up to current residential building code stood no chance against the hot embers.

"The embers intruded at the attic space between the attic and the you could see light smoke. You'd go into those homes through the front door and fire was already running the attic so they burnt from the top down," Fennessy said.

In a phone interview, Jeff Monford of Southern California Edison told Eyewitness News:

"Our thoughts remain with the two firefighters who were injured and the residents whose homes were destroyed or damaged by the Coastal Fire. With safety as our number one priority, we continue to make progress our wildfire mitigation efforts through grid hardening, situational awareness and enhanced operational practices."

According OCFA Communications Director Matt Olson, the injuries to the two firefighters were minor.

Yazdi said that along with compensation for their loss, homeowners wanted changes made to the SoCal Edison power lines standing at the bottom of the canyon.

"We want to make sure that these wires get buried," Yazdi said, "because even if we are whole -- even if get everything back, even if we get over the fact that we don't have any of our memories and all those other things -- and we build another home, we're still going to have to live with that potential fire again if that thing is still dangling out there."

According to Yazdi, of the 20 homeowners with destroyed homes, only one has sold their property.

Yazdi said they all looked forward to completion of the last home to celebrate with a block party and make the neighborhood what it was before the Coastal Fire.

The distinctive, pyramid-esque Chet Holifield Federal Building in Laguna Niguel, nicknamed the Ziggurat, has been on the auction block for the last month, but it failed to draw a single bid by Wednesday’s 9 a.m. deadline, April 12.

U.S. General Services Administration officials will now try to determine why the building, which the federal government has decided is surplus property, didn’t sell and what the next steps are, a spokesman said, adding the starting bid of $70 million was suggested because “that was what the market dictated.”

The Chet Holifield Federal Building, also known as the Ziggurat building, on Avila Road in Laguna Niguel, CA is seen on Wednesday, August 19, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Though there were no actual bids, GSA officials did take several registered bidders on tours of the property, said spokesperson Christi Chidester Votisek. Now, GSA will re-evaluate its sales strategy and determine how and when the property will be offered for competitive public sale.

Updates for future reoffering will be posted.

The building near Alicia Parkway has been a landmark in South Orange County for half a century. It was designed by William Pereira, who is known for the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco and the Los Angeles International Airport.

For decades, the building — named in 1978 after the longtime congressman from California — housed thousands of federal employees from up to 12 agencies, including about 2,000 from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. For the past several years, it has only been about half full.

Local realtor Antho Zueck, who sells homes in two neighborhoods surrounding the building — and grew up a mile from it himself — made a video of the Ziggurat after the public auction was announced.

“It’s always been a subject of interest for me,” said Zueck. “The more research I did, the more I loved the building. I like how it has a connection through the architect to so many other iconic buildings throughout California.”

Zueck, a former Montessori teacher, said he got some interest from his video with prospects actually calling about it, but nobody put down a deposit, he said.

On Wednesday, he was “moderately surprised” to hear there were no bids on it.

“It’s such an attractive property, and the pricing was pretty good,” Zueck said. “But there are upkeep costs to renovate the building and bring it up to municipal code. And, because it’s a historic property, they’ll have to preserve it.”

He’ll watch to see what happens and if the federal government changes the price or terms of the property sale — such as if the government still partially remains in the property.

“Price isn’t everything; sometimes it comes down to the terms,” he said. That’s likely what happened here.”

As a resident of Laguna Niguel, Zueck said he shares the sentiment that the building should become something useful for residents of South Orange County, noting discussions about converting the parking lot into a community garden.

In 2016, Ryan Harman, senior vice president at Lee & Associates, sold the nearby Laguna Design Center. At the time, he said, his client had a lot of interest from developers who wanted to put up mid-rise residential dwellings. But, given today’s commercial real estate climate, he said he wasn’t too surprised that the public auction didn’t get any bids.

“The auction platform is a problem,” Harman said. “The rise in interest rates has affected the developer’s ability to get financing, now double of what it was. It makes underwriting more challenging. If there is a historical designation and the federal government wants to do a lease-back, the deal is not clean; you don’t just pay $70 million and do what you want.”

“There’s a lot of risks associated with that deal,” he said.

The site in general has been on people’s radars for years, Harman said, well before the public auction. But if someone did buy the property, it could take years to get entitlements done and get through city regulations, Harman said. Meanwhile, it would be difficult for an investor to make money on the empty property and surrounding land, he said.

“For me to lease that as regular office space, I don’t know that there is a lot of demand for that old-school building,” Harman said. “I would reassess the property as a seller.”

Laguna Niguel City Manager Tammy Letourneau said she has not heard from the GSA about what its plans may be for the building or if it will put it back on the market.

But city zoning, she said, can change depending on the project. As an example, she pointed to the council’s approval of a mixed-use and residential project that includes a state-of-the-art library planned near the Civic Center.

“We are excited to work with any future developer,” she said, adding that the entire property is very important to the city. “Nothing is set in stone.”

The Ziggurat building was among a dozen buildings identified in 2021 by federal officials for sale under the Federal Asset Sale and Transfer Act. Under the FASTA legislation, proceeds from property sales will be used to consolidate further and sell off excess federal properties, officials said.

Another federal building on about 17 acres in Silicon Valley’s Menlo Park with a suggested price tag of $120 million also went without any bids.

The Ziggurat is near several strip shopping malls as well as the Aliso & Wood Canyons Wilderness Park.

With the property’s size and location, it was advertised by the GSA as offering “a unique development opportunity as one of the largest land parcels available in the market within highly desired South Orange County” and officials highlighted its “unparalleled flexibility and growth potential with a unique location, size, view amenities, and re-zoning potential.”

This story has been updated.

Gene Johns, a 31-year law enforcement veteran, is the latest appointment to fill a vacant seat on the Laguna Niguel City Council.

Johns, 63, who said he is focused on preserving public safety, fiscal health and a pro-local business climate, replaces former Councilmember Sandy Rains, who resigned on May 10.

The City Council received applications from 20 interested residents for serving out the remainder of Rains’ term, choosing Johns during a special meeting on June 14. He will be sworn in on June 20.

Mayor Kelly Jennings said Johns’ “extensive law enforcement background and dedication to protecting communities is both admirable andinvaluable, aligning perfectly with our city’s core value of prioritizing public safety.

“As we move forward, the entire City Council is committed to working together in a positive, respectful, and constructive manner that focuses on the well-being and high quality of life that our residents expect and deserve,” Jennings said in a statement.

In her resignation letter, Rains said she could not longer serve in the current environment and it had “become clear that I am the right person at the wrong time in our community.” She had resigned earlier in the year as mayor, a role chosen among the council members.

In May, Councilmember Stephanie Winstead was appointed by the council to fill another vacancy left open when former Councilman Rischi Paul Sharma resigned in April.

Winstead previously served on several city committees and is a real estate attorney. She also spoke about the importance of preserving the community’s quality of life.

Winstead had come in third behind councilmembers Stephanie Oddo and Ray Gennawey in November’s election.

Winstead and Johns will serve the remainder of the terms that end with the November 2024 election.

Johns served as a deputy sheriff with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for 31 years – 24 of those years as a task force officer assigned to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. He commanded a task force nationally recognized for disrupting and dismantling drug cartel operations, according to the city’s announcement.

Johns moved to Laguna Niguel when he retired seven years ago. He and his wife, also a law enforcement veteran, discovered the area after attending conferences in Dana Point. Johns, who then lived in Redondo Beach after growing up in Torrance, said he liked the spaciousness of the area and its proximity to wilderness parks.

The minute he moved to town, he said, he wanted to be involved with the city. After looking around, he decided the Traffic and Transportation Commission would be best.

“Everything in the city revolves around traffic and transportation,” Johns said. “Residents, businesses and people coming into town are all affected.”

Johns said he was “totally” shocked when the council majority – Councilmember Stephanie Oddo opposed – chose him from a field of “amazing people who applied.”

He decided to put his name in, he said, because he has plans for running for council in 2024.

He said he’s very interested in what happens with the Chet Holifield Federal Building, more commonly referred to as the Ziggurat. The building near Alicia Parkway has been a landmark in south Orange County for half a century, but is being sold by the government.

Like the new development proposed for Town Center at City Hall, Johns said he’d like to be involved with what happens when a developer buys the Ziggurat property and moves forward with it.

When he takes the dais, Johns said, he will “listen and learn.”

“I want to make sure I’ve done my homework,” he said, “and am ready to go.”