2017 was a year full of divided – and deeply personal – actions on the Santa Ana City Council, affecting everything from police officer discipline to who runs the city on a day to day basis.
Author Archives: Nick Gerda
Nick covers the city of Santa Ana, as well as the County of Orange, often reporting on issues like homelessness, public safety, mental health, and the role of money in politics.
Since joining Voice of OC in 2011, Nick has regularly shed light on topics that are often kept in the shadows. He’s reported on systemic problems in the county’s mental health system. He also led a reporting team that produced sophisticated looks at how the Disney corporation campaign contributions influenced recent elections in Anaheim.
Nick also revealed evidence of elected leaders using their official powers to apparently pressure government contractors into donating to their election campaigns, in an article that was awarded best news story of the year by the Orange County Press Club. He firmly believes journalism should inform the public and help hold the powerful accountable.
An Orange County native, Nick first started covering local government in his mid-teens, before attending Santa Ana College, the American University in Cairo, and UC Irvine, where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science.
Languages spoken: English, elementary Spanish, minimal Arabic and minimal Japanese
Areas of expertise: Local government, local politics, homelessness, mental health policy, campaign finance, California Public Records Act, Ralph M. Brown Act, County of Orange government, Santa Ana city government and municipal finance.
Posted inGovernment, Top Stories
County Government in 2017: Public Records Destruction, Contractors and Public Speaking Limits
Orange County’s five elected supervisors preside over $6 billion in public spending and pressing issues like homelessness, mental health and drug treatment, and how to balance spending between those programs and county jails, the Sheriff’s Department, and District Attorney’s Office.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Housing & Homelessness, Top Stories
Homelessness in the OC: 2017 Year in Review
Homelessness is growing to record levels in Orange County and elsewhere in the country, with more and more county residents struggling to afford rising housing costs and ending up on the streets.
Posted inInvestigative, Santa Ana, Water, Power & Waste
Santa Ana’s Lucrative Trash Contract Has Been Extended For 22 Years Without Competition
The city is also charging residents millions of dollars in fees on trash bills and transferring it to the city general fund, which pays for police and other services. Councilwoman Michele Martinez said that violates state law.
Posted inGovernment, Housing & Homelessness, Santa Ana, Top Stories
United Nations Homeless Monitor Hears From OC Advocates
United Nations monitor Philip Alston said many American communities are criminalizing homelessness – and thus making it more difficult for people to find jobs and housing – after a nationwide tour in which he heard from Orange County homeless advocates and civil rights lawyers, among others across the country.
Posted inCountywide, Government, Health & Wellness, Housing & Homelessness, Safety, Security & Justice, Top Stories
Mental Health Reform Suggestions Get Muted Reception From OC Supervisors
The recommendations are aimed at diverting mentally ill people from jails into treatment, which county officials say would improve public safety by reducing crime, while also saving taxpayer dollars.
Posted inSanta Ana
Santa Ana, Facing Budget Deficit, Approves Another $1.5 Million in Pay Raises
The city is facing a projected $600,000 budget shortfall, without taking into account the new pay raises. City Council members didn’t say how they planned to pay for the additional cost, but previously talked about a sales tax increase.
Posted inAnaheim, Government, Health & Wellness, Housing & Homelessness, Orange, Safety, Security & Justice, Top Stories
County Buying Building for Mental Health Services Along Santa Ana River
The proposed center – next to a freeway, office buildings, and the Santa Ana River – is seen by advocates and officials as a major step toward addressing a severe shortage of mental health services.
Posted inCountywide, Economy, Investigative, Safety, Security & Justice, Santa Ana, Top Stories
Santa Ana Will Allow Up to 30 Recreational Marijuana Shops
Santa Ana is the only known jurisdiction, out of Orange County’s 34 cities, to authorize the sale of recreational marijuana when that option opens up to California communities starting January 1.
Posted inAnaheim, Government, Housing & Homelessness, Orange, Santa Ana, Top Stories
Housing Shortage Sent Homeless at Transitional Shelter Back to Streets
The shortage of affordable housing in Orange County sent eight homeless people back to the streets last week, because homes weren’t available before they hit the 180-day limit for them to stay at the county’s “Bridges at Kraemer Place” shelter that prepares people to move into housing.
