Will O’Neill | |
---|---|
Mayor of Newport Beach | |
In office 2019–2020 | |
Newport Beach City Council,District 7 | |
Assumed office 2020 | |
Personal details | |
Born | October 21,1983 |
Will O'Neill (born October 21,1983) is the former Mayor of the City of Newport Beach [1] and former Chair of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency. [2]
O’Neill grew up in the Central Valley community of Fresno. [3] At Stanford University he read for a bachelor's degree in history,and competed with the track and field team. [4] O'Neill later studied for a law degree at the U.C. Hastings College of the Law. He has served on the U.C. Hastings Board of Governors,most recently as President during 2016-2017. [5]
O'Neill is a partner with the law firm of Ross,Wersching &Wolcott,LLP. He previously worked for California Supreme Court Justice Marvin Baxter (Ret.),the California Court of Appeal (Fifth Appellate District),and Dallas-based firm Haynes &Boone,LLP.[ citation needed ] As chair of the Newport Beach Finance Committee, [6] O'Neill has helped lead efforts to restructure Newport Beach's unfunded pension liability payments. [7] [8] O'Neill has also helped reform Newport Beach's civil asset forfeiture policy, [9] [10] [11] and led efforts in Newport Beach to prohibit using public money to advocate for tax increases. [12] As Mayor,O'Neill declared 2020 "The Year Of The Volunteer", [13] to celebrate the volunteers and community members that give their time and talents for the betterment of the city. [14]
On January 26,2020,nine people (mostly from Newport Beach) died in a helicopter crash,including Kobe Bryant. [15] O'Neill visited an impromptu candlelight vigil where he said:“There were seven lights that were burning bright this morning in Newport Beach and they got snuffed out. When we lose fathers and mothers and daughters and sons and those lights go out,we come together as a community. That’s who we are.” [16] O'Neill was mayor during the COVID-19 pandemic,when Governor Gavin Newsom shut down Orange County's beaches. [17] Mayor O'Neill appeared on The Tucker Carlson Show to denounce the closures as politically motivated rather than science-based. [18] He also appeared on a Fox11 special report with Elex Michaelson and Dr. Drew Pinsky. [19] Newport Beach's beaches were reopened shortly after. [20] Mayor O'Neill was re-elected to Newport Beach City Council on November 3,2020,after running unopposed. [21] [22]
In 2022,O'Neill was elected as chair of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency (SJHTCA). [23] The SJHTCA oversees the 73 Toll Road and includes member agencies Aliso Viejo,Costa Mesa,Dana Point,Irvine,Laguna Hills,Laguna Niguel,Laguna Woods,Mission Viejo,Newport Beach,San Juan Capistrano,Santa Ana and the County of Orange. [24] When the SJHTCA approved an approximate $134 million budget for 2022-2023,O'Neill was quoted saying:“The agencies have a proven record of creating reliable infrastructure and ensuring our roads support the movement of people and goods through strong fiscal stewardship. The adoption of the budgets continues that stewardship and will allow us to continue providing transportation solutions in our region.” [25]
Orange County is a county located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California,United States. As of the 2020 census,the population was 3,186,989,making it the third-most-populous county in California,the sixth-most-populous in the United States,and more populous than 19 American states and Washington,D.C. Although largely suburban,it is the second-most-densely-populated county in the state behind San Francisco County. The county's three most-populous cities are Anaheim,Santa Ana,and Irvine,each of which has a population exceeding 300,000. Santa Ana is also the county seat. Six cities in Orange County are on the Pacific coast:Seal Beach,Huntington Beach,Newport Beach,Laguna Beach,Dana Point,and San Clemente.
Laguna Niguel is a city in Orange County,California,United States. The name Laguna Niguel is derived from the words "Laguna" and "Niguili". As of the 2020 census,the population was 64,355. Laguna Niguel is located in the San Joaquin Hills in the southeastern corner of Orange County,close to the Pacific Ocean,and borders the cities of Aliso Viejo,Dana Point,Laguna Beach,Laguna Hills,Mission Viejo,and San Juan Capistrano.
Newport Beach is a coastal city of about 85,000 in southern Orange County,California,United States. Located about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of downtown Los Angeles,Newport Beach is known for its sandy beaches. The city's harbor once supported maritime industries. Today it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island draws visitors with a waterfront path and easy access from the ferry to the shops and restaurants.
The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) is the transportation planning commission for Orange County,California,in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. OCTA is responsible for funding and implementing transit and capital projects for the transportation system in the county,including freeway expansions,express lane management,bus and rail transit operation,and commuter rail funding and oversight.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA),branded as Metro,is the county agency that plans,operates,and coordinates funding for most of the public transportation system in Los Angeles County,California,the most populated county in the United States.
State Route 91 (SR 91) is a major east–west state highway in the U.S. state of California that serves several regions of the Greater Los Angeles urban area. A freeway throughout its entire length,it officially runs from Vermont Avenue in Gardena,just west of the junction with the Harbor Freeway,east to Riverside at the junction with the Pomona and Moreno Valley freeways.
State Route 55 (SR 55) is an 18-mile (30-km) long north–south state highway that passes through suburban Orange County in the U.S. state of California. The portion of the route built to freeway standards is known as the Costa Mesa Freeway. SR 55 runs between Via Lido south of Pacific Coast Highway in Newport Beach and the Riverside Freeway in Anaheim to the north,intersecting other major Orange County freeways such as SR 22,SR 73,and Interstate 405 (I-405).
State Route 133 (SR 133) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California,serving as an urban route in Orange County. It connects SR 1 in Laguna Beach through the San Joaquin Hills with several freeways in Irvine,ending at the SR 241,a toll road in the latter city. It is built as an expressway from SR 73 to Laguna Canyon Road,and past this,SR 133 is a freeway to I-5,and a tollway to SR 241 near the Santa Ana Mountains.
Interstate 405 is a major north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway in Southern California. The entire route is known as the northern segment of the San Diego Freeway. I-405 is a bypass auxiliary route of I-5,running along the southern and western parts of the Greater Los Angeles urban area from Irvine in the south to Sylmar in the north.
FasTrak is the electronic toll collection (ETC) system used in the state of California in the United States. The system is used statewide on all of the toll roads,toll bridges,and high-occupancy toll lanes along the California Freeway and Expressway System.
Laguna Beach:The Real Orange County is an American reality television series that originally aired on MTV from September 28,2004,until November 15,2006. The series aired for three seasons and was primarily focused on the personal lives of several students attending Laguna Beach High School. Its premise was originated with Liz Gateley,while Tony DiSanto served as the executive producer.
State Route 73 (SR 73) is an approximately 17.76-mile (28.58 km) state highway in Orange County,California. The southernmost 12 miles (19.31 km) of the highway is a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor,which opened in November 1996. The northernmost 5.76 miles (9.27 km) of the highway,which opened in 1978,is part of the Corona del Mar Freeway. SR 73's southern terminus is at Interstate 5 (I-5) near the San Juan Capistrano–Mission Viejo–Laguna Niguel tripoint. Its northern terminus is at Interstate 405 (I-405) in Costa Mesa. The highway's alignment through the San Joaquin Hills follows an approximately parallel path between the Pacific Coast Highway and I-405. Currently,there are no HOV lanes for the three-mile freeway segment,but the medians have been designed with sufficient clearance for their construction should the need arise in the future.
State Route 241 (SR 241) is one of the two state highways in California that are controlled-access toll roads for their entire lengths. SR 241's southern half from near Las Flores to near Irvine is the Foothill Transportation Corridor,while its northern half to SR 91 on the Anaheim–Yorba Linda border forms part of the Eastern Transportation Corridor system with SR 133 and SR 261.
Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA) are two joint powers authorities formed by the California State Legislature in 1986 to plan,finance,construct,and operate Orange County's toll roads. TCA consists of two local government agencies:
California's 47th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California.
Jamboree Road is a 15.8-mile (25.4 km) long major arterial road through Orange County,California,running through the cities of Newport Beach,Irvine,Tustin,and Orange.
The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) of six of the ten counties in Southern California,serving Imperial County,Los Angeles County,Orange County,Riverside County,San Bernardino County,and Ventura County. San Diego County's MPO is the San Diego Association of Governments,which is an unrelated agency.
Matthew Harper served as the 59th Mayor of Huntington Beach,California (2013-2014). Harper was elected to three terms to the Huntington Beach Union High School District Board of Trustees (1998-2010),one term to the Huntington Beach City Council (2010-2014) and two terms to the California State Assembly (2014-2018).
The 2022 Orange County Board of Supervisors elections were held on June 7 and November 8,2022. Three of the five seats of the Orange County,California Board of Supervisors were up for election. This was the first set of elections held after the 2020 redistricting cycle. County elections in California are officially nonpartisan. A two-round system was used for the election,starting with the first round in June. Runoffs were held in all three districts,as no candidate managed to reach the 50% + 1 threshold.
Diane Brooks Dixon is an American politician serving in the California State Assembly. A Republican,she represents the 72nd State Assembly District,which includes Huntington Beach,Newport Beach,Seal Beach,Laguna Hills,Laguna Woods,Lake Forest,Aliso Viejo,and Laguna Beach. She was a former mayor and city councilwoman of Newport Beach.