Category: Retail Shopping

President’s Corner — July, 2019

Posted on by Terry Wall in Candidate Forum, City Council, Civic Activity, Community Action, Community Beautification, Costa Mesa, Costa Mesa Fire Department, Costa Mesa Police Department, Family Fun, Home beautification, Mayor's Race, Mesa Verde, MVCI Board of Directors, MVCI membership, Neighborhood Survey, Newport Mesa Unified School District, NMUSD, Parks & Recreation Commission, Parkway Trees, Retail Shopping, Safety & Security, School Board, School District, Tanager Park

 

Hello Mesa Verde, welcome to the dog days of summer. Every year about this time I wonder why we haven’t installed air conditioning in our home. Then, about the time I get ready to make the call, the beautiful Fall weather arrives, and another year goes by.

On occasion I am asked, “what exactly is Mesa  Verde?”  Our Board of Directors defines Mesa Verde as bounded by the River on the west, the 405 Freeway to the north, Harbor Blvd on the east, and the north edge of Fairview Park and the public golf course on the south, including Mesa Verde Collection, 27 Seventy Five, Longwood Greens, and Azulon. More importantly, it is our home, a wonderful community in which to enjoy our lives in comfort and harmony. A treasure to be protected and cherished. We hope you agree.

As I mentioned last month, Karla Stagman, has joined us as our Beautification Chair. Karla and her husband bought their home on Alabama Circle in 2000, and love life in our beautiful community. “I believe that with neighbors working together, Mesa Verde will continue to be one of the top neighborhoods in our area.”  Karla sees her role as an opportunity to collaborate with all of our members to bring a voice to all of Mesa Verde. As a local realtor, Karla sees the “power of true community to enhance the beauty and value of our properties.“ If we raise consciousness about community appearance, it will keep Mesa Verde economically viable and “Beautification will become a fun project.”

There is a new order of things in Costa Mesa. Last November brought a “sea change” to   how our city is governed. Our City Council increased from five to seven members. We changed from an “at large” to a six-district voting system, with an “at large” Mayor. We are finding that the costs of running a growing city are increasing faster that the revenue to pay for it, exacerbated  by the exploding unfunded pension liability, now close to $300,000,000. To quote from the 2019-2020 budget message, “The past six years have marked unparalleled prosperity for Costa Mesa and the recovery from the Great Recession has continued, becoming the longest period of economic growth in history. During that time, the City has also been faced with challenges such as addressing homeless issues and defending itself in lawsuits filed by sober living facilities.”  What this all means is that we need to be prepared for tougher times ahead and be patient.

5G technology is coming, and with it some new concerns. Our Board member and Treasurer, Carri Lang, has been “Bird dogging” this issue for us…click here to see her update and to see the actual letter sent to the City Council under my signature, click here.

Finally, as my term as President expires soon, this is my final President’s Corner. At our August Board meeting we will elect a new leader. Looking back over the past several years, the first thing that comes to mind is how fast time flies! What has our Board of Directors accomplished and how has our association grown? Let’s take a look:

~ We increased our Board from 9 to 11 members.
~ Established the position of Data Manager
~ Initiated videotaping of our annual meetings, viewable on our website HERE
~ Sponsored our traditional Candidate Forum in 2018
~ Initiated our Annual Neighborhood Picnic in 2018, continued in 2019
~ Held first public information meeting jointly with the Newport Mesa School Board and local school principals.
~ Replaced or reconditioned our Mesa Verde gateway signs
~ Advocated in support of the Tanager Drive neighbors to help arrive at an equitable solution to the proposed bike trail
~ Established a Mesa Verde Bulletin Board on our website for the use of our residents
~ Established a close working relationship with our police department to reduce speeding and traffic violations in Mesa Verde.
~ Completed several neighborhood surveys and reported results
~ Enhanced our website and broadened our social media coverage to include Facebook (check here) and Nextdoor (go here).
~ Published four newsletters, mailed to over 3000 Mesa Verde residents
~ Established our “Lifetime Membership.”
~ Initiated our Mesa Verde Volunteer Group (If you have a little extra time to devote, please consider volunteering)
~ Created our first self-guided “Water Wise Garden Tour”

Alas, my biggest disappointment is that we have not significantly increased our membership. We’ve added several new members, including seven lifetimes, but quite a few old members have not renewed. Why not? That’s a question we need to address. And, we will!

As I trust you can know, most of this costs money, and your membership dues and donations are our only source of revenue. Can you guess what I’m asking you to do? Click here and go directly to the membership app.

My thanks to our Board of Directors for  granting me the honor and privilege of serving as your President these two years, and to all of you for your support and encouraging words. A special “well done” to the tremendous help from our volunteer group.

I know that you will accord our new President your continued support.

Respectfully,
Bob

President’s Corner — June, 2019

Posted on by Terry Wall in Civic Activity, Community Action, Community Beautification, Costa Mesa Police Department, Holiday Wishes, Mesa Verde, MVCI Board of Directors, MVCI membership, Neighborhood Survey, Retail Shopping, Volunteers

Hello Mesa Verde, welcome to the “long hot summer!” Hope you all have great plans for family fun and recreation.

We’re continuing to grow; three new members in the past month, and the addition of a new Beautification Chair. Karla Stagman, a resident of North Mesa Verde, has graciously volunteered to head up our beautification efforts. We’ll be hearing more from Karla a bit later.

Traffic Update. Our vice-president, Terry Wall, visited with Lt. Victor Bakkila to get an update on the traffic issues in and around Mesa Verde. “Lt. B” was gracious and generous with his time and very enthusiastic about what they’re able to do regarding the traffic throughout the city. He shared with Terry an incredible analytical computer program that can help pinpoint areas warranting increased law enforcement attention and encouraged us to give him input on specific areas that members of the community might spot. The department also has acquired two additional mobile traffic monitoring trailers and again, if we see an area needing a closer look, all we have to do is ask.

The “30,000-foot view” report lists the top 10 intersections with traffic incidents (collisions); note that a number of them involve locations that are either in or touch Mesa Verde. In order, they are:

  1. Newport Boulevard at 19th Street – 13
  2. Wilson Street at Harbor Boulevard – 13
  3. Victoria Street at Placentia Avenue – 11
  4. Harbor Boulevard at Gisler Avenue – 10
  5. South Coast Drive at Harbor Boulevard – 10
  6. Bristol Street at Baker Street – 9
  7. Fairview Road at Adams Avenue – 9
  8. Harbor Boulevard at Adams Avenue – 9
  9. Newport Boulevard at Harbor Boulevard – 9
  10. 17th Street at Superior Avenue – 7

Date range of this report: 4/1/18 – 4/20/19

Lt. B pointed out that the enhanced police presence contributed to the reduction in violations in the Mesa Verde community, but that it’s an ongoing activity. We are the eyes into the community and if we see something, we should say something, so let us know and we’ll pass your feedback along to CMPD.

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We recently conducted a survey of Mesa Verde, asking what you would like to see in our newsletter. So far we’ve heard from 52 residents; 50 actually responded. Click here to see the results so far. The survey is now closed, but if you intended to reply, please be on the lookout for our next one.

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Carmen Twork of C.J. Segerstrom and Sons, reports that several new restaurants will be coming to “The Shops at Mesa Verde” in the near future. SHABU SHABU, featuring a hot pot style of cooking at your table, is scheduled to open this fall. Slated for early 2020 is “KENWOOD KITCHEN AND TAP”, a full-service restaurant and bar, offering high quality salads, burgers, sandwiches, steaks, chicken, and sea food. Both will occupy spaces adjacent to DESCANSO. “MEDITERRANEAN”, a family owned, fast, casual cafe, famous for kebabs, falafels, and Mediterranean plates, is in the final stages of negotiation, and will round out the restaurant mix at “The Shops”.

Please forgive my “stuck needle”, but we need your membership. Please join, or renew, while you’re thinking of it. Click here to get to our membership application.

Finally, as we look forward to the Fourth of July and our BBQ ‘s and fireworks, let’s remember what we’re celebrating: Our independence from a tyrannical monarch and government.
Let us fly our flag proudly, and be ever thankful for our many freedoms.

Warmly,
Bob

President’s Corner — June 2018

Posted on by Terry Wall in Civic Activity, Community Action, Costa Mesa, Costa Mesa Fire Department, Family Fun, Mesa Verde, MVCI membership, Retail Shopping, Volunteers

Hello again, time for my June commentary.

First, thank you to our newest Lifetime Members:

                      Chris and Tracy Clevidence and David and Nancy Walden

Our Lifetime Club is growing. Please refer to the MEMBERSHIP LIST posting as of June 1st. There was a considerable drop off from the 2017 membership year, so If you haven’t tendered your dues for this year (Apr 1- Mar 31), now is a good time to do so. We are working on setting up “auto renew” to make it simpler for our members, so bear with us. PayPal sign ups are also being refined and will include the auto-renew feature. Stay tuned for more on this.

For the past few months you have likely noticed new construction in the center at Harbor and Adams. So, what’s going on?  This past Friday, we posted a update, courtesy of the Segerstrom Co.,  owners and operators of the center, with information on the new section of “The Shops at Mesa Verde,” as well as  what’s happening at the old Acapulco.

Bet you’ve seen some coyotes running around the community. The California Fish and Wildlife Department is very concerned that a big part of the problem is us. (We have met the enemy and he is us! – POGO)  If you want to know why and what we can do about it, click here.  Really good stuff!

Looks like the new fire station at Adams and Royal Palm will now open in September, ….. or maybe October? Stay tuned for news on a grand opening and guided tours, courtesy of CMFD and MVCI. Our patience will be rewarded, I’m sure.

Our cadre of MVCI volunteers is growing, now numbering seven. This is a great opportunity for you to serve your community without an obligation to time commitment. We will call on you from time to time for special projects. My goal is to reach 20 by March 31st. Will you help me? Contact me at bob@juneman.com for more info or to enlist.

Stay connected to MVCI via our website. New postings often.

and…..

PLEASE REMEMBER TO RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP!

Thank you,  ‘til July,

Bob

News, regarding “The Shops at Mesa Verde”

Posted on by Terry Wall in Costa Mesa, Mesa Verde, Retail Shopping

Many in our community have wondered about the new construction taking place near the corner of Adams and Harbor. MVCI President Bob Juneman recently spoke with officials from C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, who were kind enough to share an update on these activities:

Broken Yolk Café –  The newest addition to The Shops at Mesa Verde, Broken Yolk Café opens on Monday June 25th next to CVS. Originally started in San Diego in 1979, Broken Yolk has grown to 25 locations across the US.  BYC serves breakfast, brunch and lunch, Open Monday thru Thursday from 6:00 am to 2:30 pm and Friday thru Sunday from 6:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Learn more at www.thebrokenyolkcafe.com

Porcelain Luxury Salon Suites –  Currently under construction, Porcelain Luxury Salon Suites is completely renovating what once was the Acapulco building at The Shops at Mesa Verde.  Porcelain will consist of approximately 32 luxury suites for individual salon owners consolidated in one spot, from hairstylists, estheticians, nail technicians, medical spa technicians, eye lash extension, and more.  We anticipate the opening of Porcelain Luxury Salon Suites around November, 2018.

Descanso – A Modern Tacqueria – Coming in the fall of 2018, Descanso Mexican Restaurant will occupy 3,700 square feet on the east end of the newly developed restaurant building.  Descanso is a full-service Mexican restaurant with full-bar offering lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.

Dylan Blue Nail Spa – Coming this fall, Dylan Blue Nail Spa will replace Happiness Nails with a more modern salon.  Dylan Blue Nail Spa currently has one location in Tustin and will offer manicures, pedicures, facial waxing, eyelash extensions, and eyebrow and eyelash tinting.

Updates were provided by Carmen Twork, from Segerstrom. Further news will include info on any additional tenants in the new structure that replaced Souplantation.

Stay tuned!