Mission Viejo

Lance MacLean and the Slums of Mission Viejo

Mission Viejo Recall Target Fires Back

Lance MacLeanMission Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Lance MacLean sent out a press release a little more than an hour ago responding to the recall petition presented to him two Mondays ago. Here is the 200-word statement to voters that he's legally asked to issue:"I have been honored to represent you since 200 ... More >>

Lance MacLean Has Learned That Mission Viejo's Political Players Always Go for the Throat

Lance MacLeanMission Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Lance MacLean sent out a press release a little more than an hour ago responding to the recall petition presented to him two Mondays ago. Here is the 200-word statement to voters that he's legally asked to issue:"I have been honored to represent you since 200 ... More >>

Do Tell

William Tell

Phil Shane Slept Here

Patsys Mission Viejo pub gives you crabs

TOMORROW: Local Natives and The Union Line at The Gypsy Lounge

Okay, I guess we all saw this coming. Local Natives have officially changed their origin to Silver Lake on their Myspace page....sigh, okay guys. Well, hopefully you and the OC can still be friends. For those of you who have followed the harmaonizing echoes, rumbling rhythms and spangly guitar chord ... More >>

Not So Boring

A brief history of crime in Orange Countys safest city

Mission Viejo

A brief history of crime in Orange Countys safest city

We Are Blessed By God

On National Day of Prayer, Mission Viejo goes biblical

We Respond to Register Letters

On National Day of Prayer, Mission Viejo goes biblical

Mission Viejo

The Paris of South Orange County

How to Score With Women

A computer geeks guide to launching a new soccer league

Aww, There's a Tea-Bagging Reunion Today

Spencer Kornhaber / OCWApril 15, 2009. Remember that? Best day of your life, right? Not just because you got to pay taxes, but rather because you got a chance to complain about paying those taxes. The Weekly, at least, had a pretty good time at last month's tax-hating/liberals-bashing Tea Party in S ... More >>

The MacLean Recall: It's On

Ed Piskor / OC WeeklyMore than a month after Mission Viejo Mayor Pro Tem was presented a letter stating the intention of 51 citizens to have him recalled from office, MacLean's opponents have gotten the go-ahead to begin gathering signatures from the general populace to get the recall on the ballot. ... More >>

Creek Trail Boondoggle Demonstrates The Mission Viejo Difference

Ed Piskor / OC WeeklyAs I just posted: In Dana Point, when you use state and federal grants to fund a $7 million beautification project disguised as congestion relief, you don't have to worry a whole lot about public scrutiny and can expect a crowd of impressed citizens when you complete the project ... More >>

Rev. Wiley Drake Leads List of OC's July 4 Teabaggers

Just call him Rev. TeabaggerThe Rev. Wiley Drake, last heard from praying for President Barack Obama's death, leads the list of Orange Countains who have stepped up to lead the "Official Tax Day TEA Party" in their communities on July 4.TEA stands for Taxed Enough Already, by the way. Besides the co ... More >>

Teabagging or Partisan Hackery?

Hey, hey, hey, the beauty of all these anti- (take your pick) -tax, -deficit, -progress tea parties was that they were truly grass-roots, free from the partisan political hackery that many believe in responsible for the country's fiscal woes in the first place. Then what to make of the Saddleback Re ... More >>

Crime Time: Hey, Mister in the Miniskirt Looking at Porn!

Very early Tuesday in Tustin. Not the real crime but an amazing facsimile. Once again, it's the Weekly's weekly round-up of Orange County police calls...MONDAY, JUNE 22Breaking Up the Boredom of a Bank Line: Shortly after noon, a man clutching a backpack threatened to blow up the Bank of America bra ... More >>

"Puppy Store-Free Orange County" Campaign Expands to Brea

Activists from Best Friends, Orange County People for Animals and Last Chance for Animals have stood outside pet stores in Los Angeles, Thousands Oaks and Mission Viejo "educating: shoppers and convincing them to adopt and not buy puppies. Now, the so-called "Puppy Store-Free Orange County" campaign ... More >>

[Hole in the Wall] Chilly Salvation at Sno On the Go in Mission Viejo

Activists from Best Friends, Orange County People for Animals and Last Chance for Animals have stood outside pet stores in Los Angeles, Thousands Oaks and Mission Viejo "educating: shoppers and convincing them to adopt and not buy puppies. Now, the so-called "Puppy Store-Free Orange County" campaign ... More >>

Club Pick: Tuesdays at The Derby

​Hey! I'm OC Weekly's new clubs editor! You may remember me as the guy who hung out with that one birther lady, but forget about that. I'm here for the drinks now.Thus far, this job has pretty much consisted of me revisiting the places I went during childhood, but getting drunk at them. Yeah, I gr ... More >>

Sleepy South-County Towns Make US News's List Of Political Junky Zones

Ed Piskor / OC Weekly​A proponent of the Lance MacLean recall (blogged about earlier today) just tipped me off to a list in published in US News and World Report last week: "10 Cities for Political Junkies." Orange County towns comprise one-fifth of the cities on the list, which seeks to document ... More >>

Recall Of Mission Viejo's MacLean Heads To Ballot

​Late Friday afternoon, the Orange County Registrar of Voters announced it had certified the signatures gathered by Mission Viejo city activists seeking to recall Mayor Pro Tem Lance MacLean. It's a big step for the recall movement, which gathered nearly 14,000 signatures -- though they only ... More >>

Expect a Big Crowd at Thursday's OC Microsoft Store Opening

​The Microsoft mall gods have blessed the Shops at Mission Viejo with the honor of being home to the second ever Microsoft retail story in the world. Why Mission Viejo? We're betting they want to staff the store with Nadadores, but who really knows.The store opens Thursday. The Mission Viejo Dispa ... More >>

Mission Viejo Recall Proponent Becomes Candidate

​Dale Tyler, the man who was signatory number one of 52 on the initial letter announcing the recall of Mission Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Lance MacLean, has moved to be the first candidate in the race to potentially replace embattled councilman.No other candidates have yet pulled papers with the City of ... More >>

Finky Gets to the Bottom of the Stinky in Mission Viejo

​"I can't believe there hasn't been any stories in regards to the foul odor that is covering Mission Viejo, CA like an airborne bacteria," writes a reader named Cori. "(Well . . . actually, in this Prozac laden city of Stepford, I'm surprised when anyone notices anything outside the 'norm.') The o ... More >>

Is There an App For Stopping the Baddies Following You From the Apple Store?

Courtesy of Orange County Sheriff's DepartmentArrested were (clockwise from top right): Garzon Omar David Diaz; Louis Carlos Lopez and John Marlon Rodriguez.​The three Los Angeles men above have been arrested in connection with more than 80 burglaries and car break-ins targeting customers they'd a ... More >>

Why Is Mission Viejo Mayor Lance MacLean Feeling Better About Election Day?

Courtesy of Orange County Sheriff's DepartmentArrested were (clockwise from top right): Garzon Omar David Diaz; Louis Carlos Lopez and John Marlon Rodriguez.​The three Los Angeles men above have been arrested in connection with more than 80 burglaries and car break-ins targeting customers they'd a ... More >>

Mission Viejo's MacLean Rescinds Recount Request

John Gilhooley / OC WeeklyLance MacLean: at peace?​Orange Juice! and the Mission Viejo Dispatch are reporting that Mission Viejo ex-Mayor Lance MacLean has canceled his request for a recount of the ballot's in last week's election, which saw him recalled from office by a margin of 19 votes.Speakin ... More >>

Brad Gates, Space Cowboy

The ex-sheriff's open-space dealmaking has some in San Juan Capistrano crying foul

Jason Alan Marian Convicted of Having Sex With 16-Year-Old Dance Student, Secretly Taping Girls Undressing at Pool Party

​Jason Alan Marian, the 31-year-old Mission Viejo dance instructor previously blogged about here, faces up to nine years in state prison following his conviction for having an unlawful sexual relationship with a 16-year-old dance student and secretly videotaping several other teen girls after a ... More >>

Cook! COOK! Where's my Hasenpfeffer?

Flickr user janelleSadly, I don't have any rabbits to cook, so you get a stock photo. I have made this dish many, many times.​It's wabbit season in Mission Viejo, where the City Council last week allowed the hunting of rabbits with air-powered pellet guns. Should you hear the pop-pop-pop of a gun, ... More >>

Fundraiser for Amber Pangan

OC Chili's Restaurants

[UPDATED:] Another OC Jail Inmate Apparently Hangs Self

​UPDATE: The man who is said to have hanged himself at Orange County Jail has been identified as Stephen Clevenger.Does it seem as if there have been more in-custody deaths at Orange County Jail lately?The latest is a 29-year-old Mission Viejo man who apparently hung himself in his Santa Ana jail ... More >>

Rossmoor War on Coyotes Ugly

​So, the residents of Rossmoor, Seal Beach, Los Alamitos and East Long Beach are perturbed because coyotes are apparently attacking defenseless Fidos and Garfields with ever more frequency, and the response from officialdom is to leave the American jackals be. But close readers of this space shoul ... More >>

Mission Viejo Grow Houses a Growing Concern?

​In less than an hour, the Mission Viejo City Council will be called to order.Among the items on this evening's docket: a proposed ordinance that would prohibit marijuana grow houses.Leaving some residents to wonder, "You mean it was OK to grow my own indoors before?"

South County Cities Go to Pot

​Pot filled two South County city council chambers Tuesday night.That is, separate issues from modern life in the cannabis age were taken up by the city leaders in Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo.

Mission Viejo Planner Applies Tea Party Principles to Naming Streets: No More Español!

Why no Frito Bandito Lane?​The passive-aggressive-but-informative Mission Viejo Dispatch blog has been both reporting on and creating a racially tinged mini-scuffle in Mission Viejo. As you might expect from the master-planned South County burg where residents revolted over a city manage ... More >>

Taco Bell Del Taco Crime of the Week: Drive-Thru Pants-less!

​There were a lot of great crimes committed in Taco Bells this week, like the employee who fought off a would-be robber with a mop--but NOTHING beats what happened at a Mission Viejo Del Taco this week.

Kyle McCann and Jason Mathewes Arrested for Being Spectrum's Alleged Water-Bottle Bombers

​If you happened to be at the Irvine Spectrum Monday night, you might have heard some loud pops.No, this was not misdirected Dolby blasts from the shopping and entertainment center's cine-megalopolis.Just ask the two Mission Viejo teens arrested for making the racket.

Mission Viejo Shelter Dogged by Controversy

​A former Mission Viejo Animal Services Center volunteer dropped a bombshell this week."We are instructed to lie . . .," Dianne Doyle wrote in letters to the media and the city councils of Mission Viejo, Laguna Niguel and Aliso Viejo, which contract the center for shelter services.After three year ... More >>

Orange County Interwebs Horror Show Surfs Cities

​This week's Orange County Interwebs Horror Show goes from city to city to see what is being said about them on the Interwebs. Mayors, chambers of commerce officials and visitors and convention bureaucrats may want to skip this one. (Especially in Fullerton, Santa Ana, Mission Viejo, Huntington Be ... More >>

Meat House Opening Second OC Location in Mission Viejo

​The Meat House opened in Costa Mesa earlier this year, a franchise of "neighborhood" butcher shops that nevertheless offer quality meats and cuts. Business has been good enough to the point where the company is opening another OC location, this one in that culinary wasteland called Mission Viejo. ... More >>

William Lobdell, Greatest Religion Reporter Ever, to Speak at Tapestry UU Congregation in Mission Viejo this Sunday

​Next to non-pedophile apologist Catholics, my favorite group of religious-minded folks are Universalist Unitarians, who ground their radical politics on Jesus and a hella other traditions. I've spoken at four separate congregations in the area, and spoke for the second time at Tapestry in Mission ... More >>

Bundt Cake Bakery Chain Opens First OC Store Today

​Nothing Bundt Cake has one of those clever monikers that wraps a pun inside a title that's slightly more creative than Absolutely Phobolous and What the Pho. The franchise comes out of Sin City. The first of three Orange County branches opens today in Costa Mesa at 270 E. 17th Street, #4.

[UPDATED with Judge's Reasoning:] Jason Alan Marian Had Sex With 16-Year-Old Dance Student, Secretly Taped Girls Undressing in His Home

​UPDATE, JULY 19, 2:49 P.M.: Orange County Superior Court Judge David Thompson revealed why Mission Viejo dance instructor Jason Alan Marian should be retried on some counts related to his case involving unlawful sex with a 16-year-old dance student and secret videotaping several other teen girls ... More >>

Mission Viejo Readers Festival

Norman P. Murray Community Center

On the Line: Lindsay Smith-Rosales of Nirvana Grille, Part Two

Photo by Meranda Carter​This week's On The Line singles out Chef Lindsay of Nirvana Grill for guidance on running your own business. Her kitchen experience with Pascal Ohlats and zpizza help build the foundation for her inevitable culinary venture. She also discusses how Oprah inspires her. Want m ... More >>

Mission Viejo Gets Its Own Farmers Market

​Hey, you Mission Viejans reading (all two of you), how you doin' down there? And what are you doing today between 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.? Did you know that your city, Mission Viejo, now hosts its own Farmers Market every Friday?No longer should you look with envy at the three (count 'em again...THREE!) ... More >>