IRVINE – On Saturday, September 10, Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris along with the Orange County Fire Authority hosted a Community Coffee at Fire Station 36 in Irvine. The Assemblywoman presented to the constituents about her priorities which include making neighborhoods safer, improving schools, protecting the environment and helping local veterans and small businesses.
She announced key budget wins for the City of Irvine including the renovation of Sweet Shade Park to make it inclusive for all abilities with a focus on STEM inspired play. In addition, she secured $2 million for a regional fire & rescue training facility, as well as funding for wildfire prevention in Bommer Canyon.
The Assemblywoman has also championed mental health care by securing millions for Be Well Orange County to provide mental health services to children and adults, and expand mobile crisis services in Irvine. Moreover, on homelessness, the Assemblywoman secured $2 million for United Way Orange County to help house 100 veterans.
The Assemblywoman’s legislative priorities continue to focus on climate resilience and wildfire preparedness. On combatting wildfires, the Assemblywoman in her first term, had secured $4.5 million in state funding for an innovative Fire Integrated Real-Time Intelligence System (FIRIS). This system deploys military grade equipment and technology to respond to and fight wildfires. The system has been successfully deployed in Orange County by OCFA, and will be expanded statewide.
The FIRIS program is part of a $54 billion Climate Action budget package aimed at building climate resilience to better prepare for drought, extreme heat, wildfires and sea level rise. It also ensures grid reliability and accelerates the transition to clean energy.