Under threat of a lawsuit from Latino advocacy groups, Garden Grove will hire a consultant to study the city’s demographics and determine whether racially polarized voting exists.
Author Archives: Thy Vo
Thy is a reporter covering the cities of Anaheim, Garden Grove, and Westminster as well as transportation issues and the courts. She’s the daughter of two Vietnamese refugees and grew up in Anaheim and Orange County’s Little Saigon community. She speaks Vietnamese and conversational Mandarin Chinese.
During her time at Voice of OC, Thy has investigated nepotism and illegal contracts in the city of Garden Grove, an illegal pension arrangement by the Westminster city attorney and controversy over the use of publicly-funded mass mailers by county supervisors.
Thy has received accolades from the Orange County and Southern California Press Clubs, including a second place Best Public Affairs Story award from the OC Press Club for her story “Dick Jones’ Sweet Deal in Westminster,” and a third place Best Feature Story award from the SoCal Press Club for “Struggles of Second Generation Reveal Long Shadow of War.”
Before working for Voice of OC, Thy interned at the Santa Barbara Independent; China Economic Review in Shanghai, China; and Orange County Register. She graduated from Haverford College with a degree in political science.
Languages spoken: English, Vietnamese and Mandarin
Areas of expertise: Anaheim, Garden Grove, Westminster, immigration, pension issues, court coverage and transportation.
Posted inGarden Grove
Proposed Vietnam War Museum Struggles For Community Buy-In
As Garden Grove city council members decide whether to continue subsidizing the Vietnam War Museum of America Foundation, board members say there has been little community support for the project, especially from Vietnamese Americans.
Posted inNews Briefs, Westminster
Budget Season: Westminster Projects $5.39 Million Deficit
City staff project a $5.39 million general fund deficit for the 2015-16 fiscal year.
Posted inHealth & Wellness, Inside the Newsroom, News Briefs
Voice of OC Podcast: Orange County’s Homeless
Voice of OC reporters sit down with Tim Houchen, a member of the Civic Center Roundtable, to talk about new developments in Orange County’s longstanding efforts to build a year-round homeless shelter.
Posted inTop Stories, Westminster
Westminster Police Seek Vietnamese Officers
Known as the center of Vietnamese America, the city of Westminster has just seven Vietnamese police officers.
Posted inGarden Grove, Health & Wellness, News Briefs
Latino Advocacy Groups Threaten Garden Grove With Lawsuit Over District Elections
MALDEF and the state League of United Latin American Citizens is demanding the city implement by-district elections or the groups will seek a court order compelling the city to do it.
Posted inGarden Grove
Garden Grove Could Abandon Vietnam War Museum
Begun as the brainchild of former Mayor Bruce Broadwater, plans for a Vietnam War Museum in Garden Grove could be abandoned after city council members last week questioned weak fundraising for the city-subsidized project.
Posted inAnaheim, Countywide, Fullerton, Health & Wellness, Investigative, Top Stories, Transportation
Website Blurs Line Between Journalism and PR
“Behind the Badge OC,” a site dedicated to the good deeds of police officers and firefighters, and paid for by local police agencies, is both winning local journalism awards and raising eyebrows.
Posted inGarden Grove, News Briefs
Stalled Garden Grove Galleria Project Now Has Likely Developers
Two Orange County developers, Brooks Street and LAB Holdings LLC, are likely to take over a stalled mixed-use project on Garden Grove Boulevard, a nine-story rusted steel structure that is wearing the city’s patience thin.
Posted inCountywide, Garden Grove, News Briefs, Top Stories
Garden Grove Council Voices Support For Vietnam Human Rights Bill
Councilman Phat Bui applauded Mayor Bao Nguyen for proposing a letter of support for a Congressional bill for the Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2015 — although not without reminding Nguyen of a letter he had refused to sign months earlier.
