FACTS 

My colleagues and I have taken and continue to take all necessary action on safeguarding our residents’ health.  To see a timeline of all action taken and reasons why certain actions could not be taken, please visit cityofirvine.org/AAA.  This page is dedicated to the issue and provides data and resources for your review. 

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The Council asked for thorough air quality testing and reviewed data from SCAQMD, UCI and our independent consultant. The data has concluded that emissions are within state regulations. Then the Council sued AAA and has been working hard on negotiations with AAA in the settlement agreement which includes relocation of the plant. AQMD issued their recent data which again shows that emissions are within required limits. Visit http://www.aqmd.gov/home/news-events/community-investigations/all-american-asphalt.

I’ve been an advocate for our environment long before I was even elected to the City Council. One of my first efforts on the Council was to pass a no-smoking ordinance. We are now working with IPD to enhance enforcement of this ordinance based on community input. I also worked closely with our community, organizations, and businesses to initiate and pass Achieves Resolution to be carbon neutral by 2030 and the Irvine Climate Action & Adaptation Plan, which provides us with the data and guidance to take action on building, transportation, water, emissions, and more for a more sustainable city.  Currently, we are working on several projects simultaneously like One Irvine, Solarize Irvine, Cool Block initiative, Active Transit Vision Study, Recycling & Waste, Electrify Irvine – all which are helping us reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and reach our goal of being carbon neutral by 2030. 

I hope you will learn more about these amazing programs and all the awards we have received for our sustainability work, including being selected as finalists for an upcoming global C40 Cites and Bloomberg Philanthropies award, United in Building a Climate Movement. One of the reasons we have been successful in our efforts is that we engage the community, whether its residents, businesses, developers – we take the time to get everyone on board before we launch an initiative. And that takes a lot of time and coordination, but the end result is a combined effort to reach our goals.

Learn more about all the work being done and proposed on environmental sustainability at cityofirvine.org/environmentalprograms.

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Did you know that our population of over 310,000 people doubles during business hours? That’s how many people are commuting in and out of our city. That’s why we have worked hard to make sure that our major arterials were synchronized, that are roads are maintained, and that options are available for everyone. We have iShuttles that help people get from the train stations to their work. And in 2019, I asked staff to investigate a pilot program to help residents get to shopping centers, schools, and other destinations within the city, which is now being developed in the Transit Vision Study. Plus, we are continuously expanding opportunities for safer pedestrian and bicycle mobility by building bridges and connecting trails.  My next effort will be to investigate creating safer bike lanes by adding separations between bike and vehicle lanes.

https://www.cityofirvine.org/public-works-department/irvine-shuttle

https://www.cityofirvine.org/public-works-transportation-department/transit-vision

https://www.cityofirvine.org/transportation/irvine-shares-way

This is an issue that goes back almost 12 years.  And during my time as Councilmember and Mayor, I have listened to all sides and tried to come up with a solution that works for everyone. I tried to support those that favored having a veteran’s cemetery in Irvine and those who lived across the street from the ARDA site and did not favor a veteran’s cemetery. However, each time I proposed a compromise to building the veteran’s cemetery on the ARDA site which considered ½ of ARDA land and ½ of the proposed Great Park land, it was not supported.  I presented this in 2019 and in 2021, and each time, my motion was not supported. Therefore, I refute any claim that I “failed on my promise” or that I am “anti-veteran”. The fact is no one was willing to compromise to make this a reality.  But now, all 34 cities in OC have come together, including the County and the State to move forward with a veteran’s cemetery at the Gypsum Canyon site in Anaheim. Learn more about cityofirvine.org/veteranscemetery.

 I have supported the creation of a Community Choice Energy entity that provides customers with more choices and provides the community with programs and incentives to help us transition to 100% renewable energy.  I began this journey in 2017 and today, we have the OC Power Authority.  This entity is responsible for procurement of energy just like SCE does, but it is not beholden to shareholders.  Instead, OCPA uses SCEs grid to deliver energy, while purchasing energy according to its customers requirements. 

We currently have 4 cities and the County enrolled in OCPA and look forward to other cities joining in soon. Being an OCPA customer doesn’t change much other than provide you with the options to chose the Basic Tier, to stay at the same rate as SCE, purchase 70% renewable energy, or purchase 100% renewable energy.  It's your choice. Could OCPA have done a better job educating our residents of the change and options, absolutely. There's always room to grow and make the organization better.  

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Note, SCE is no longer offering 100% renewable energy to customers, OCPA is the only one doing so.  Currently, there are 24 CCE programs serving over 11 million customers throughout CA.  I hope you will learn more at ocpower.org, and help us make OC Power a success.

Anyone promising to come in and do things once elected, doesn’t understand that we are a democratic republic form of government with 5 council members. That means, nothing can be done unless there is a majority vote.  No one person can change policies, appointments to regional boards, ordinances, etc.  What is required is that we, as a body, work together for the good of the community. True leadership brings people together to make progress.  Even as Mayor, I have one vote and no veto power.  Our city is run with Council providing policy and the City Manager running the day-to-day operations. This is considered a part-time position, however, I have put in full time and sometimes overtime hours serving the community.

Learn more about our roles at cityofirvine.org/citycouncil.

I have been a leader in Orange County on housing and helped develop a local eviction moratorium during the pandemic, provided rental assistance by reaching out to our state & federal resources, and preserved every affordable housing covenant in the City since my term as Mayor began. We are also one of the few cities in OC to have completed and submitted our Housing Element Update to the State, carefully planning for the 23,000 units required by the Regional Housing Needs Assessment which takes place every 8 years.  Additionally, Irvine will be one of the first cities to clear out its backlog of roads & sidewalks that are in desperate need of repair because I took the initiative to use one-time funding from the federal government through the American Rescue Plan Act.

https://www.cityofirvine.org/housing-element-update

https://www.cityofirvine.org/public-works-department/pavement-maintenance

https://www.cityofirvine.org/city-managers-office/american-rescue-plan-act-funds

Email us at mayorfarrahkhan@gmail.com

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Together we will move this city forward!