WEEK IN REVIEW

PUBLIC SAFETY

Woman hears groan before shower; police find DNA

Police are analyzing DNA evidence found near a bathroom window where a Costa Mesa woman heard groaning before her shower.

Police arrived and found her back gate open, a footprint and the DNA.

Frosted windows prevented her from getting a good look at the suspect. No similar incidents have been reported, police said.

 An elderly woman mistook the gas pedal for the brakes Wednesday and drove through a rental car business in Costa Mesa, police said.

Julia Hall, 86, drove her Cadillac Catera over a disabled parking spot and into an EZ-Rent-A-Car. She was planning to visit a nail salon next door to the business.

Natasha Salah, the business’ owner, said she avoided being run over by seconds. A man who was fixing the business’ sign fell from a ladder and suffered minor injuries.

Police did not cite Hall but did give the DMV a recommendation to retest her, Sgt. Vic Bakkila said.

NEWPORT BEACH

$3 million payment ends suit with Defend the Bay

The Irvine Co. will give Newport Beach $3 million to end a local environmental group’s lawsuit over a city agreement allowing the company to create a planned community in Newport Center.

Irvine Co. officials agreed to the deal after lengthy negotiations with Defend the Bay.

Half of the money will help restore Big Canyon Nature Park. The park, which sits between Jamboree Road and Upper Newport Bay, will undergo a $5-million restoration project that will include clearing non-native plants and improving the water quality of Big Canyon Creek.

The other half of the money will go toward cleaning up Santa Ana Delhi Channel, which is clogged with trash.

Crystal Cove, upper bay first landmark of its kind

Gov. Schwarzenegger dedicated Upper Newport Bay and Crystal Cove State Park as part of a state natural landmark in honor of Earth Day.

Crystal Cove and the upper bay comprise about 40,000 acres of the roughly 50,000-acre Irvine Ranch Land Reserve. They are the first area statewide designated as a California Natural Landmark.

The distinction does not offer extra protections or state funding for the Irvine Ranch area, but recognizes areas of special ecological or historical interest to the state.

The program was created in 2006 to help preserve California’s ecological and geographical characteristics.

BUSINESS

Construction companies hit dry spell amid recession

Home building companies in Newport-Mesa said they were going through tough times due to the fewer homes being sold and the recession forcing many to watch their finances.

Chuck Villa, the owner of the RCI Roofing Co. in Costa Mesa, said he was hoping for a steady rainfall this year, since precipitation always brought him more business.

Ivan Paz, an independent tiling contractor who lives on the Westside, said he had recently taken a second job as a waiter and was doing side construction jobs until the economy picked up again.

“Construction, it’s like a passion,” Paz said. “And tile is even better. There’s a lot of money in it, too.”

EDUCATION

ESL students improve on standardized tests

Newport-Mesa Unified students learning English as a second language did well in standardized tests this year.

The school district’s scores increased 4% for students testing at “advanced” or “early advanced” levels — a total of 38% of students who took the test.

Those increases matched the state’s improvements with 36% statewide achieving “advanced” or “early advanced” levels.

ENTERTAINMENT

Film Festival celebrates ninth year with debuts

The ninth annual Newport Beach Film Festival kicked off with red-carpet premieres. The festival has debuted such box-office hits as “The Illusionist,” “Waitress” and Academy-Award winner “Crash.”

Highlights this year included a salute to Daily Variety columnist Army Archard and the debut of a what will become annual screenings of a John Wayne movie.

POLITICS

Rohrabacher calls Dem. opponent Cook a ‘rich kid’

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher broke his silence on the candidacy of Democratic rival Debbie Cook after information surfaced this week that the Huntington Beach mayor and staunch environmentalist holds stock in oil corporations.

“It’s clear that Debbie Cook is a rich kid, and I’m not,” he said. “Even if she’s raising nothing, rich kids can pump their own money into an election.

“I don’t fret about [her fundraising] because even if she didn’t raise it, she’s such a rich person she could pump it in herself.”

Rohrabacher made the remarks during an interview about the campaign’s first quarter fundraising figures, where Debbie Cook’s $47,208.01 beat Rohrabacher’s $39,078.