According to our sources, it looks like the Santa Ana City Council is going to pay Councilwoman Michele Martinez a stipend of $18,000 a year to sit on the Board of the Metropolitan Water District.
In years past this role was filled by a Santa Ana Public Works employee – who was not paid anything extra to attend the meetings. It was part of his job.
Even the previous MWD Commissioner, former Santa Ana Mayor Dan Griset, served on the MWD Board without asking to be paid.
Martinez will become the first beneficiary of this stipend. This is not exactly the sort of history we ought to be making!
The City of Santa Ana was one of the original 13 founding cities of the MWD. Never in the City’s history has a stipend been paid to the board member representing Santa Ana.
Griset by the way was dumped after eight years of service to the city via a letter that the City Clerk sent to the wrong mailing address! We weren’t big fans of Griset but that was no way to say goodbye to him.
You can bet that Martinez will also be expensing expensive meals and stays at five star hotels as part of her work on the MWD Board.
This is what happens when under-employed politicians get elected to our part-time City Council!
At least it’s out in the open, transparent should we say!
Let the Sunshine in!
Yes, she should get paid. She is the only one who reads anything and we are in a Water Crisis, we need people who know how to read so that we don’t sell off our water rights to the rest of the OC Region. That is since Water is one of Santa Ana’s biggest Assets, in case you didn’t know. 70% comes from our own spring unlike the rest of the OC. Water is the new GOLD folks and for a measly $18,000.00 a year in Grants I am glad Michelle, who will be transparent as we see regularly, has taken on the job. When y’all are thirsty. Then ask that question. We need people who know how to read, and have Townhall meetings with the community to protect our water supply. Cause the rest of em will sell it out from under us and then charge us higher taxes on the water we don’t have in a second.
I agree. Michele has learned how to serve her constituents. She is inclusive of community stakeholders and is building a strong coalition of people who love Santa Ana.
Past “civic leaders” allowed our water to become contaminated by aerospace companies who then split without even cleaning up their own waste. Now all us Santaneros are getting taxed to clean up after for-profit businesses. Who’s the jerk who set up that deal?
Chale with those movidas!
I’m glad we have someone who cares enough to read through contracts and agreements instead of blindly signing away our future.
Dale Shine Santaneros. Sunshine for all.
Lindora