RETURN TO REASONER BYRON DE ARAKAL GETS IT WRONG ABOUT GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT
(Shades of Torquemada)
In today's Daily Pilot, Return to Reason supporter Byron De Arakal writes that City Councilmember Wendy Leece has started...are you ready?-- an INQUISITION against the Costa Mesa Senior Center and is...are you ready again?--asking questions! Oh, no! Not questions! De Arakal doesn't think Leece or the City have any business asking questions. LINK
Baloney!
First, the Center is a non-profit and receives $ 1 dollar a year rent on a City building (that means the citizens own it) whose market rent should be north of $100,000 per year.
Second, the Center also receives HUD CDBG (Community Development Block Grants) funds (read, your tax money) that are funneled to it through the 3R Committee whose members are appointed by the City Council. Hold that thought about the 3R Committee, I'm coming back to it.
For the reasons given above, the City should, in fact, know what's going on at the Costa Mesa Senior Center. Ms. Leece should be asking questions and she does have a right to demand straight answers.
Return to Reasoner De Arakal then writes: "She’s [Leece] peppered the all-volunteer body [the Senior Center Board] — made up of some of this community’s longest-standing, most respected citizens — with a litany of accusatory questions. More than 40 in all."
Who are some of these longest-standing, most respected citizens? Well, according to the Senior Center's Website, members of the board include none other than De Arakal's fellow Return to Reasoners, and failed City Council candidates, Mike Scheafer and Bruce Garlich, as well as many other local libs. LINK
During the last election cycle, and right at a candidates' forum at the Senior Center, the CM PRESS asked Garlich what he'd do about pollution on the Westside Bluffs if he were elected, and he flatly said there was no pollution.
Ah, Mr. Garlich, take a drive over to Monrovia Avenue, not far from the Senior Center, and take a look at the seven acres of dirt that have to be taken away in special trucks, on a special safe route, at a time when there is little traffic on the roads, to a special hazardous dump, where the dirt will be incinerated to get rid of the toxic chemicals.
Mr. Garlich, you do know that Senior Citizens (also young kids) are in more danger from pollution than younger adults, don't you?
Garlich and Scheafer, it should be noted, were supported in the last election by some rich out of town Industrialists, who own industrial buildings on the Westside Bluffs. And, one very major property owner who lives in Newport Beach was also a member of Return to Reason along with De Arakal.
Now, about the HUD CDBG funds that the Senior Center and other non-profits solicit each year.
The 3R Committee interviews all the non-profits that ask for money under the HUD CDBG program and makes recommendations to the City Council about who gets what. This unpaid committee is supposed to make sure that your tax money is spent in the best ways possible and in ways that do not discriminate.
When I was appointed to the 3R Committee, one of the first things I requested was that all non-profits seeking tax payer money be asked to supply their federal form 990's (their tax forms).
These forms are public records, and I was surprised to learn that even though the 3R Committee had been in operation for many years, with supposed citizen oversight, the citizens who had been appointed to the 3R Committee had never thought to ask for the 990's. I also learned that some members of the Committee were also involved with the non-profits that were asking for money.
A review of the 990's showed salaries (some very high) and revealed links between many of the non-profits--some of the same names kept popping up in different non-profits.
The second thing I asked for were the quarterly ethnic breakdown reports filed with HUD by the non-profits. HUD requires these reports to root out racial and ethnic discrimination in the use of federal funds. Seems no one on the Committee had ever thought to ask for these either.
What I discovered, after reviewing these HUD reports, was that some non-profits in Costa Mesa were, and still are, serving people of one ethnicity almost exclusively in a city where that ethnicity only represents about 30-35% of the population. So, how does that work? How can almost 100% of your clients be of this one ethnicity, when they only represent 30-35% of the population?
That raises questions about why the other 70 to 65% of the population, that is not of this favored ethnicity, is not being served. I also discovered that some of these same non-profits didn't care if they served people who are in the country illegally.
As I've previously reported, one non-profit even told a young citizen white girl that she was the wrong color and that they only wanted to serve Latinas (including, presumably, illegal alien Latinas). And, again, as I also reported, that non-profit was investigated and caught by the feds and was forced to sign a consent decree that it would no longer discriminate. It also had to send its staff for training on the subject. I have a copy of that consent decree.
It should be noted that I've long felt that Costa Mesa doesn't do enough for Senior Citizens. During my time on the 3R Committee I tried to have money given to worthy Senior programs, including many at the Senior Center. However, I applaud Ms. Leece for asking questions to make sure that we're getting the most bang for our buck. The public has a right to know that public money is being spent wisely. Full transparency is called for.
Keep asking those questions, Ms. Leece.
And, Ms. Leece, if you really want to do some good, take a look at some of the other non-profits in this city and ask them some questions. A good place to start (because you used to be on the School Board and have some knowledge of this) would be to ask questions of the NMUSD and the non-profits that are clustered at Rea School.
One of the reasons the neighborhood near Rea School can't improve is because of all the charities that are acting as magnets at that school.
I'll even make this easy for you, Ms. Leece. Just go to the fifth floor of City Hall and ask for the material on the non-profits. Make sure you get the 990's and the ethnic breakdown reports.
If you have any questions, you know where to find me: last row, end seat.
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SECRET CITY COUNCIL?
Some activists are saying that the Costa Mesa City Council is holding too many secret meetings. The Council does have the right, at its discretion, to bar the public from some meetings--notably, some legal and personnel matters--but the activists are saying that the Council is abusing this discretionary right and may be discussing business behind closed doors that the public has a right to witness.---DEVELOPING---
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NEW POLITICAL REPORTER AT THE PILOT?
We noted that an Alan Blank is now apparently a reporter at the Return to Reason Daily Pilot. Here's a link to Blank's column today. LINK
Alternate LINK
The buzz is that Blank is related to Chris Blank, Kathy Blank and Paul Blank who are all members of Return to Reason.
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Those are our opinions. Thanks for reading them.
