Day Labor Center

The citizens of Laguna Beach have been had, yet again, by Emperor Frank [City Manager Ken Frank] and his acolytes. During the ?discussion? before voting to spend another $18,000 of our money to buy the land from Caltrans on which the day labor site sits, most council members said the vote is not about the use of the land and refused to discuss it. All members justified the purchase because it is such a deal for the city. They ignored the fact that their emperor has admitted his intention to keep the work site on the land, even though there is a stipulation attached to the sale, that the land be used for recreation and open space.

1 Voters shift political power: Voters shift political power: The winds of change that swept Democrats into office in Washington D.C. also shifted the balance of political power in Laguna. Mayor Jane Egly and former City Clerk Verna Rollinger were elected to the council Nov. 4, joining Councilwoman Toni Iseman to create the first Village Laguna-endorsed majority in power for the since 1994. “There will be a shift in political philosophy,” Egly said. “I haven’t quite figured out how the votes will come out, but it will still be one vote at a time.

The city took action Tuesday to become the landlord instead of the tenant of the Day Labor Center on Laguna Canyon Road. A united City Council approved the purchase of the property from Caltrans for $18,000, subject to the approval of the California Transportation Commission. “Caltrans offered the property to certain agencies about five months ago, and Laguna Beach was the only agency that made an offer,” City Manager Ken Frank said. The city’s offer was put on hold at the request of Sen. Tom Harman, who thought the state should get more money for the property, but no one else made an offer for the 16,810-square-foot site.

A spate of protests over illegal immigration at the Day Labor Center has not made a dramatic impact on the center's operations. Although the facility has been at the center of a firestorm over the issue of illegals crossing the Mexican border, the number of job-seekers and employers at the Laguna Canyon Road center has not been significantly reduced, organizers say. The center was dealt a one-two punch recently with...

Some of your letter writers don't seem to comprehend the issues regarding illegal immigration or just choose to ignore reality. No patriot opposing the Day Labor Center has "asserted" or even implied that Laguna's center is "single handedly responsible for the illegal immigration problems." If that assertion isn't a blatant lie, then it's a total lack of comprehension and logical thought process. Every patriot opposing illegal immigration has merely stated that most day labor centers, including Laguna's, are magnets attracting illegals.

State Sen. Tom Harman told local business leaders Tuesday that he supports sealing the state’s border with Mexico. The comments came during a legislative breakfast meeting sponsored by the Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce. Harman, who recently announced his reelection campaign, spoke of an array of issues ranging from illegal immigration to the water shortage. Answering a question about immigration posed by Laguna Realtor Bobbi Cox, Harman, who claimed to have penned more bills against illegal immigration than any other state senator or assemblyman, said he has visited the border and is very troubled by the situation.

Two men arrested Sept. 17 after an alleged attack on laborers at Laguna's Day Labor Center have been released from jail with no charges filed, District Attorney spokeswoman Susan Schroeder said Thursday. "They had the constitutional right to an arraignment within two days of their arrest, and we had insufficient evidence to proceed with a case, so they have been released," Schroeder said. "This is not unusual. We need to determine if it is a fileable case or not." Dennis Kaptilniy, 18, of Laguna Beach, and Artem Soloviev, 23, of Laguna Niguel, were arrested Sunday on suspicion of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and a hate crime after they allegedly assaulted one man at the center and then allegedly drove a vehicle through the site at high speed, injuring two others and causing property damage.

The City of Laguna Beach has been victorious in a long-running legal action brought by Eileen Garcia charging that the day labor site on Laguna Canyon Road violated federal immigration laws and was a misuse of public funds. The court decision was one of six in which the city was victorious in recent weeks, City Attorney Philip Kohn announced at the Dec. 2 council meeting. “Garcia and others appealed the trial court decision in which the city had prevailed and a judgment had been entered,” Kohn said.