ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley commented on today’s Board of Supervisors meeting where the Board voted to approve an agreement with the City of Dana Point to join the Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project, various grant funding awards, policy changes to the 2023 Supportive Housing Notice of Funding Availability, and additional funding the Dana Point Library Renovation Project.
Supervisor Foley released the following statements highlighting the votes by the Board of Supervisors from the February 27, 2024 meeting:
Dana Point Sand Replenishment Agreement (Supplemental 46E): Spearheaded an agreement with the City of Dana Point for the County’s participation in SANDAG’s Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project III. Previous versions of this program in 2001 and 2012 successfully brought in millions of cubic yards of sand to eroded beaches in San Diego, but Orange County failed to join at that time. This agreement represents the first opportunity for Orange County beaches within the Oceanside Littoral Cell to participate in the Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project.
“Coastal erosion threatens our Orange County way of life and critical coastal infrastructure. More than a decade has passed since the County’s Sediment Management Plan recommended the County join in a regional study on the Oceanside Littoral Cell,” said Supervisor Foley. “Our action this afternoon finally makes up for lost time, and kickstarts the County’s involvement in a science and nature based solution to the coastal erosion threatening our Orange County way of life and critical coastal rail infrastructure. I look forward to working with the Cities of Dana Point, San Clemente and SANDAG on this effort to restore our beaches.”
Grant Funding for County of Orange
Competitive Funding for Homelessness Programs: Secured nearly $3 million in competitive grant funding to continue development and implementation of a Coordinated Entry System and a comprehensive strategy to address homelessness in Orange County. This funding will support the County’s the Point in Time sheltered and unsheltered count, implementation of Coordinated Entry System, enhanced utilization of the Homeless Management Information System, and development of performance measures and monitoring of Continuum of Care funded agencies.
“Addressing homelessness requires the County to prioritize a comprehensive system of care and clear performance measures to ensure we are successfully meeting the needs of our unhoused neighbors,” said Supervisor Foley. “The County’s award of this competitive grant opportunity further proves that our system is strategically and effectively ending the homelessness crisis in Orange County.”
Dog Training Services for OC Animal Care: Secured $75,000 to fund a virtual training service for dogs adopted through OC Animal Care. This program helps keep pets in loving homes by offering over 3,000 sessions of dog training to new dog parents with fur babies weighing over 25 pounds.
“Big dogs are a big responsibility,” said Supervisor Foley. “This innovative funding provides over 3,000 sessions of virtual trainings for new adopters to have the tools to support their new fur babies transition into new homes.”
Lunch at the Library Summer Program: Secured more than $135,000 for a program that offers free meals and programming at specified county libraries. The Lunch at the Library Summer Program will offer connect children, teens and families with meals and provide hands-on food education activities at libraries in the Fifth District, including the Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library and libraries in San Juan Capistrano.
“Our county libraries provide a new healthy hang out for summer break,” said Supervisor Foley. “The Lunch at the Library Summer Program will offer Fifth District families locally sourced, sustainable food and the tools to lead a healthier lifestyle.”
Supportive Housing Notice of Funding Availability: Approved a Supportive Housing Notice of Funding Availability, which will make available up to $32.7 million in federal funding and authorize the use of up to 218 project-based housing vouchers. This Notice of Funding Availability continues Orange County’s emphasis on developing extremely low-income supportive housing.
“This notice sends a clear signal to affordable housing developers about the county’s readiness to build supportive housing for extremely low-income residents,” said Supervisor Foley. “As the Chair of the Orange County Housing Finance Trust, I look forward to working with County staff and affordable housing developers on building out and diversifying our housing stock.”
Improving Access to CalAIM for Housing Voucher Recipients: Approved agreements with various local housing authorities and CalOptima to establish a referral framework and facilitate access to CalAIM’s program resources for individuals receiving housing choice vouchers. CalAIM is an initiative that offers Medi-Cal members coordinated and equitable access to services that address their physical, behavioral, developmental, dental and long-term care needs.
“These agreements make our system of care more comprehensive and better able to meet the needs of our most vulnerable residents,” said Supervisor Foley. “Building off the success of our CalAIM program for our Project Based Vouchers, this agreement ensures every housing choice voucher participant has improved access to the physical and behavioral healthcare they need.”
Dana Point Library Renovation Project: Approved additional funding for the Dana Point Library renovation project, including providing better Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) access, audio-visual and other technology upgrades, and aesthetic renovations. This contract amendment provides more than $1.8 million for necessary upgrades to heating, ventilation and air conditioning, electrical systems, the parking lot, and landscaping.
“The Dana Point Library continues to receive long-overdue upgrades to fit the needs of our community,” said Supervisor Foley. “With this additional funding, the County still has work to do to provide modern and necessary facility upgrades to our library system. We must prepare our county libraries for this century by modernizing them with proper audio-visual technology, solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, and accessibility access for all.”
Prosecution Services for Laguna Hills: Approved a five-year agreement with the City of Laguna Hills for prosecutorial services related to violations of city ordinances. Under this agreement, the city will pay the county to make use of services by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
“Creating safer communities requires all levels of governments to work together towards a common purpose,” said Supervisor Foley. “I thank the hardworking attorneys in the Orange County District Attorney’s Office for continuing to advocate on behalf of residents in the City of Laguna Hills.”
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Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022 to represent the newly established District 5, which includes the cities of Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Dana Point, a large portion of Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, as well as the unincorporated areas of Coto de Caza, Emerald Bay, Ladera Ranch, Las Flores, Rancho Mission Viejo, Stonecliffe and Wagon Wheel. This is her second term on the Board of Supervisors, where she previously served District 2.
Supervisor Foley’s Board appointments include the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA), OCFA Legislation & Public Affairs Committee Chair, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), OCTA Legislative and Communications Committee Vice Chair, Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency, Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA), TCA Joint Environmental Committee, Coastal Greenbelt Authority, Newport Bay and South Orange County Watershed Executive Committees, Ocean Institute, San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Community Engagement Panel, Spent Fuel Solutions Coalition Co-Chair, Orange County Housing Finance Trust Chair, and the Orange County Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council.
