A “second year in a row with record-setting revenues” and outstanding debt “still on tract to be completely paid off” by June 2030 are two key elements of the annual financial report for Yorba Linda’s city-owned Black Gold Golf Club viewed by the City Council earlier this month. The report from club General Manager Rich Cessna noted the facility was voted best in the county by The Orange County Register readers for the first time in the club’s 23-year history, “a significant accomplishment,” he said, considering the competition from south county clubs. Numbers from the most recently completed ..read more

An Orange County school district is set to launch a new program next year aimed at providing student-athletes with an alternative approach to training and education. Starting next school year, Placentia Yorba Linda School District will offer what it’s calling the Universal Sports Institute. The tuition-free sports-focused program will let students from third to 12th grade extensively train at an elite level in their sport of choice while also allowing for flexibility with their school work, such as remote learning or personalized schedules. Despite being called an “institute,” Universal Sports ..read more

Projected numbers in a state-required financial report reviewed at a March meeting of the trustees of the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District indicate a decline in average daily attendance will continue to impact local campuses for at least two more years. To comply with state law, Superintendent Alex Cherniss submitted the second of two interim reports mandated by the state’s education code that states the district can meet its financial obligations for the current and two subsequent school years despite the lower enrollment. A key portion of the report contains an estimate that ave ..read more

“Never in a million years did I think I would be in the cookie business,” said Amy Spillane, baker and founder of the Cookie Element in Yorba Linda, which celebrated eight years in the game. “I did not go to culinary school and I had never worked in a bakery prior.” Before entering the cookie business, Spillane, who holds a biology degree from UC Irvine and an MBA from Pepperdine, toiled away for two decades in the decidedly less delectable world of corporate America. But baking, a skillset she honed by watching her grandmother in the kitchen and her days of baking treats for the high school f ..read more

Yorba Linda again easily outdistanced the six other North Orange County cities served by this newspaper in voter turnout for the March 5 primary election. Yorba Linda has topped the local turnout in the past two decades in both primary and general elections. Yorba Linda’s turnout was 45% of 48,076 registered voters. Other cities: 40% of 31,592 Placentia voters; 39% of 29,499 Brea voters, 38% of 9,741 La Palma voters; 34% of 77,903 Fullerton voters; 31% of 33,927 La Habra voters; and 28% of 44,481 Buena Park voters (all percentages are rounded). Donald Trump won the Republican vote and Joe Bide ..read more

Tamara Martin, director of the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum addresses new citizens during a naturalization ceremony in Yorba Linda, CA on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. One hundred kids ages 10-18, and a few adults, became U.S. citizens at the event. Kids gain automatic citizenship after their parents become citizens. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG) New U.S. citizens wave the American flag during a citizenship ceremony at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, CA on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. One hundred kids ages 10-18, an ..read more

The annual interfaith iftar and dinner was an opportunity to celebrate the diversity among different religious communities while recognizing the unifying virtues present in many faiths. With more than 150 in attendance at the Islamic Center of Yorba Linda on Wednesday, March 20, a gathering that included city officials, business leaders, law enforcement officials and members of the center’s congregation, the turnout was among the largest in the 17-year history of the annual interfaith iftar. “As our event continues to grow and become more popular every year, it’s really wonderful to see the su ..read more

RIVERSIDE — Two men who used high-powered rifles to kill three wild burros in Southern California’s Mojave Desert more than two years ago pleaded guilty on Monday to federal charges related to the shootings, prosecutors said. The men wore tactical gear including night vision goggles as they targeted the burros in a remote area northeast of Barstow on Nov. 6, 2021, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement. John Feikema of Yorba Linda, California, and Christopher James Arnet of Loveland, Colorado, each pleaded guilty to one felony count of possessing an unregistered short-barreled rifle an ..read more

They came decked out in fiery red wigs with tight curls, oversize glasses and, of course, the colorful caftans that were iconic to the look of the beloved Mrs. Roper. Younger generations may be confused at the reference, but anyone with a television in the late ’70s and ’80s will remember Mrs. Roper, the wise-cracking-yet-lovable neighbor from the hit sitcom “Three’s Company.” The television show told the story of a bachelor who lived with two female roommates and interacted neighbors, a hilarious cast of characters that included the landlady Helen Roper, played by the late Audra Lindley ..read more

Though Mahboob Akhter’s grandchildren are not of the age of people who traditionally fast during Ramadan, they’ve decided to try it as a way to sense what other Muslim children who live in Gaza are feeling, their grandfather said. Ramadan is a monthlong holy period about to start during which Muslims around the world reflect on God’s blessings through intense prayer and dawn-to-dusk fasting. Typically, the night meal after sunset is a time for families and friends to gather, but in light of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas and the resulting humanitarian crisis Palestinians in the besie ..read more