BUSY AS A BEE: The buzz is...
BUSY AS A BEE: The buzz is that killer bees will probably be here by the next winter, and Fred Beams with the county’s Vector Control has been darting from group to group to educate concerned citizenry about them. In one of five talks he delivered Tuesday, Beams said the Africanized honey bees deserve respect, but that fears about the bees are running unnecessarily high. . . . Says Beams: “It’s like a rattlesnake, the more you know about it the better off you are.”
NIGHT MOVES: A couple of years ago, there was no Roxbury, Hard Rock Cafe or Planet Hollywood in Orange County. Now they’ll have to make room for one more club: The Empire Room formally opens tonight on 17th Street in Costa Mesa. It’s a former factory with a $3-million face lift. . . . “Appropriate nightclub attire required,” its managers ask. It will be open Thursdays through Saturdays. But says a concerned manager at Roxbury: “Orange County is getting way overbuilt with nightclubs.”
LIVING LEGEND? Most parks in the city of Cypress are named after trees. But officials break that tradition Friday with dedication of Darrell Essex Park on Ball Road. The city recently bought the land from Texaco, and named it after its veteran city manager. Essex has been in the post since 1962, longer than anyone else in the state. . . . Says Essex of the honor: “Normally, it’s done after you’ve departed or retired. I’m very proud it’s being done while I’m still actively participating in the growth of the city.”
YOU DIDN’T KNOW? U.S. News & World Report this week has a double dose of bad news for the local home market. Orange County ranks 98th out of the top 100 markets in housing growth, with a 3.2% drop in median value of existing homes, and a slightly higher drop for new homes. . . . But it’s the fourth most expensive place to live among those markets, with an existing median house cost of $217,353. Most expensive: Honolulu, with a $377,029 median price tag.
