Two men recently were sentenced for their roles in a 2021 shooting outside a Pasadena taco restaurant that left an Azusa man dead and his girlfriend injured. The victim, 23-year-old Bernardo Cortez Velasco, left behind a son, Deputy District Attorney Ryan Erlich said, adding that his girlfriend was five months pregnant at the time of the shooting. “It was a tragic and senseless death,” he said. Dante Dejuan Ward of Irvine received 22 years in prison and Evan Roland Bynum of Los Angeles got 12 years in prison during their April 24 sentencing at Burbank Superior Court. Ward pleaded no contest to ..read more

A few dozen students at UC Irvine stayed overnight at a tent encampment that formed Monday, April 29, on campus, hoping to get the university to cut financial ties with Israel and raise awareness over the death of Palestinian people in the Israel-Hamas war. The protest is part of a nationwide movement across college campuses where pro-Palestinian demonstrators are erecting tent encampments. The UCI students say their encampment will last until the university meets their demands. Chalk art outside the pro-Palestine encampment shows support for the protesters in Irvine on Tuesday, April ..read more

Irvine dedicated land in its Great Park over the weekend for an Armenian genocide memorial that was added to plans last year. City officials, along with the Orange County Armenian Genocide Memorial Committee, held a dedication ceremony on Sunday, April 28, in the Great Park for the future memorial. It will be located on the edge of a forested part of the park being called the “Heart of the Park,” with a clearing in front of the memorial. City of Irvine transportation commissioner Mari Fujii takes pictures on Sunday, April 28 during a site dedication for an Armenian genocide memorial at the ..read more

A group of students at UC Irvine stepped up their efforts to support the Palestinian people on Monday, setting up a small tent encampment that they hope to keep in place until the school severs any financial ties with Israel. In all, students were planning to sleep in about 20 tents as of deadline Monday evening, saying they hoped a visible encampment would add more pressure on school officials than what they’ve been able to generate during several days of traditional protests. Protesters have said they believe financial pressure on Israel might hasten an end the Israel-Hamas War. “We are goin ..read more

A 30-unit apartment complex in Westminster recently sold for $10,025,000. CBRE represented both sides of the deal but did not identify the buyer or seller. La Pat Courtyard Apartments at 13812 La Pat Place includes a 21,416-square-foot, two-story, two-building complex built in 1961. CBRE notes the property underwent $1.4 million in improvements, both inside and out. The buildings include one studio, 17 one-bedroom units and 12 two-bedroom units. The remodeled units include washers and dryers, stainless-steel appliances, a wall air conditioner and plank vinyl flooring throughout the apartments ..read more

During the two hours protesters at UC Irvine chanted and marched on campus calling for the university to divest financial ties from Israel on Thursday, there was zero visible presence of officers in uniform. That’s a far cry from the mass pro-Palestinian protest at USC yesterday, where over 200 people showed up and ultimately resulted in nearly 100 arrests Wednesday evening. The protest at UCI on April 25 comes amid a growing number of demonstrations that have recently swept across U.S. college campuses calling for universities to cut their financial ties to Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war. W ..read more

The Chili’s Grill and Bar restaurant at 3745 Alton Parkway in Irvine closed its doors for good on Tuesday, April 16. “Chili’s lease at Westpark Plaza expired at the end of 2020,” read a sign posted outside the shuttered restaurant. “After several temporary extensions, Brinker International, the owner of Chili’s, will now permanently close this location in April. We are please to announced a family-owned dining restaurant will open in this location early next year.” The future restaurant will not be affiliated with any Brinker International brands, a spokesperson for Brinker International confi ..read more

Friends Jillian Pluemer of Placentia, Micaela Balcaza of Lake Forest and Rebecca Sewell of Irvine, from left, stand together, covered in colorful chalk dust, after participating in a 3K Color Fun Run, as part of Irvine Tech Week, on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Mike Ward Community Park in Irvine. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Contributing Photographer) Jayro Sandoval, right, of Irvine, the organizer of the Irvine Tech Week 3K Color Fun Run, participates in the event with his wife, Ashleigh Stone, and daughter, Ella Stone-Sandoval, 3, at Mike Ward Community Park in Irvine on Saturday, April ..read more

Carolyn McCuan, a 39-year-old marathon runner, had been feeling unusually tired for months when she decided on the afternoon of June 28, 2023, to take a rejuvenating walk along Aliso Viejo’s tree-lined, picturesque Wood Canyon Trail encircling Canyon View Park. As McCuan approached the entrance of the 12-acre park bordering her home, she spotted a white pickup truck belonging to Irvine-based Mission Landscape Cos. parked along Canyon Vistas. An ominous red decal with a skull and crossbones that read “DANGER” was plastered to a brown metal box, and a large tank connected to a long orange hose s ..read more

Google, Microsoft, Meta, BlackBerry, Vizio and Oracle are just a handful of the many technology giants with a known presence in Irvine. But do the city’s startups have that same visibility? That’s the question Councilmember Tammy Kim had when she proposed Irvine Tech Week to her colleagues last year. While a startup scene does exist in Irvine, it’s nowhere near the startup hotbed that is Silicon Beach or the Bay Area, she said, because the city is largely made up of big companies. That’s pushed away some local entrepreneurs to San Jose, Silicon Valley or Austin to get the support they need, sa ..read more