Orange County, poster child of irresponsible government investing? That’s so 1994. With the 15th anniversary of Bob Citron’s portfolio meltdown approaching, the county’s top fiduciaries have become industry leaders calling for investment restraint. Supe John Moorlach, the OC bankruptcy’s Cassandra who replaced Citron as county treasurer, is an oft-quoted authority on municipal finance and a crusader for fiscal prudence. Current Treasurer Chriss Street recently lectured Congress against bailing out local governments from, er, bad investments (in Lehman Brothers.) And this July OC Auditor David Sundstrom joins the seven-member Governmental Accounting Stand-ards Board (GASB), the independent overseer of accounting and finance for states and municipalities. “Gaz-bee” is the governmental counterpart of the public companies’ FASB (Financial Accounting Standards Board.) Sundstrom has important work ahead: With governments running out of money, he says GASB will be setting rules for a potential rash of Chapter 9 bankruptcy filings. Sundstrom says a silver lining of OC’s own Chapter 9 experience was that it forced the county to change its practices and its financial leadership. “That’s why I got in,” says the former internal auditor of the California State University system. “My wife (Cristina) told me I should” …
An Irvine Company spokesman assures that the turquoise-colored Shell Beach home high above Crystal Cove and visible from Newport Coast has “a temporary coating on the wood prior to stucco.” Presumably beige …
UCI’s new Medalists: Technologist/philanthropist Fariborz Maseeh, Planetary Society director and former UCI Chancellor Laurel Wilkening, biologist/Prof Anthony James and physics and astronomy Chair William Parker. They’ll be honored at an Oct. 3 gala, chaired by O’Melveny & Myers partner and UCI grad Gary Singer and his wife Melanie …
Another biz pickup for Democratic Irvine Council-woman Beth Krom: Thompson National Properties boss Tony Thompson and wife Sharon will host a fundraiser for the Congressional hopeful at their Ritz Cove home June 28 …
Gov. Arnold has appointed Newport Beach Chamber Prez Richard Luehrs to the California Commission on Disability Access …
Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey addresses the OC Forum luncheon on June 9 (www.ocforum.org) …
Glenn Close and Ted Danson headline the Oceana gala Aug. 22 at the Cahill Estate in Laguna Beach …
Theater at its best: Kandis Chappell and Melanie Lora in a reprise of Donald Margulies’ “Collected Stories,” through June 14 at South Coast Rep …
The OCBJ’s loss is the country’s gain: Crack editorial intern Kelly Ryan is reporting to Maxwell AFB in Alabama for Air Force officer training school …
Reporter Michael Volpe couldn’t escape from the OCBJ even while honeymooning on the island of Crete. He and bride Alexandra Winnick, an Irvine Co. apartment leasing consultant, were watching an English-language news broadcast on a Greek station when a report about Igor Olenicoff referenced the OCBJ; Volpe recognized the information as coming from Mark Mueller’s story on the Newport Beach billionaire’s battle with Swiss banking giant UBS.
