🌱Affordable Housing Surprise+ Top Rated O.C. Bank + World Oceans Week

Hi, Orange County. It's Wednesday and I'm back in your inbox to catch-up on the most important things happening in our area. Hope you have a great day!

If you have a local business, have an announcement, or an O.C. event to share, don't wait! Our readers want to know what you're doing in the O.C. community. Do you sell real estate? Run a new vegan O.C. ice cream shop? Provide a service? Whatever you do, The Orange County Daily can help you get the word out to readers and the community. Contact me for a shout out!

First, today's weather:

Plenty of sunshine. High: 82 Low: 64.

Shoutout to our premier local sponsor:

Injured in a car accident? Ryan Cooper is a local attorney at Fielding Law, a client-focused law firm that specializes in personal injury cases stemming from car crashes, trip-and-falls, and dog bites. Ryan has been named a Rising Star by Super Lawyers and has a perfect 10/10 rating on Avvo.com. He is easy to talk to, passionate, and ready to fight for you. You deserve Orange County’s best — contact Ryan today.

Click here to get your business featured in this spot.

Here are the top stories today in Orange County:

1. A new study by U.C. Irvine has found that more affordable housing "increases property values" and "lowers crime," said George Tita, UC Irvine professor of criminology, law and society, and director of the UCI Livable Cities Lab. The lab-conducted study looked back three years and "debunked the myth" that more affordable housing increases crime, Tita said. According to Tita, the city of Irvine has more affordable housing units "than any other community" in Orange County. The study found that "robbery and assault went down after the housing units opened," and "property values increased." (KABC-TV)
2. Bank deposits rose 21 percent to $4.3 billion for The Farmers & Merchants Bank of Long Beach, ranking it No. 11 on the Business Journal’s February list of O.C. banks. Farmers & Merchants Bank has 13 branches throughout Orange County, at a time when other banks are "cutting back their branches in favor of fintech," said Bank President Dan Walker. The Walker brothers, whose great-grandfather C.J. Walker opened the bank in 1907, believe that young tech-savvy kids "want to feel safe about their money." Walker said, at the end of the day, they want a relationship, "that they are called by a name and that they can call someone by a name that they’re entrusting their funds to." (Orange County Business Journal)
3. It's World Oceans Week, and The Pretend City Children's Museum in Irvine will be offering ocean-themed activities from June 8-11. There are projects where children can use recycled materials to create sea creatures, from tiny shrimps to massive whales and they can hear a sea lion story by The Pacific Marine Mammal Center about a sea lion "who finds himself in trouble until a friend comes along to help out." You can find out more here: (Pretend City)

Today in Orange County:

• Helping Your Child Reach Their Potential. (All Day)
• Vote Center In-Person — Huntington Beach Public Library. (8 a.m.)
• Main Street Branch Family Storytime In-Person. (10 a.m.)
• Oak View Branch Bilingual English/Spanish Storytime & Playtime at Oak View Branch Library. (10 a.m.)
• World Oceans Week. (10 a.m.)

From my notebook:

• Cops N Kids Picnic: Ready to connect Orange County children and 1st responders. (Orange Leader)
• German Shepherd Rescue of Orange County: "Available for adoption: How can anyone resist this cute little face? Meet Diana Ross of our Soul Sister litter." (German Shepherd Rescue of Orange County via Facebook)
• O.C. Parks: " Escape with us to Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park in Trabuco Canyon/Foothill Ranch on this #MeditationMonday." (OC Parks via Instagram)
• Orange County Pit Bull Rescue: "Woohooo! Our friend Jeffrey, the Positively Peaceful Pit Bull made the Hero Dog Awards Semifinals!" (Orange County Pit Bull Rescue via Facebook)
• O.C. Parks: "At #OCParks Summer Concert Series & Sunset Cinema, everyone is in on the fun!" (OC Parks via Instagram)

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Featured businesses:

• Storage Valet — (Visit website)
• Segerstrom Shelby Event Center — (Visit Website)
• Add your business here

Events:

• Social Security Seminar — a.m. & p.m.! (June 9)
• Key Financial Strategies During Divorce — Vesta Irvine, California Hub. (June 10)
• Best of SoCal, Presented by Porsche Irvine. (June 11)
• Taxes in Retirement Webinar. (June 13)
• Hire A Pro To Clean Up The Yard For Dad. (June 19)
• A Great American Celebration — An Outdoor Evening of Theater, Wine and Song. (June 25)
• Add your event

Love the Orange County Daily? Send a friend or neighbor this link so they can subscribe for free.

That's it for today. I'll see you around!

— Paula Constance

About me: Paula is a freelance writer, author, and award-winning media producer. She is committed to media projects that empower, engage, and help make the world a better place.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Orange County Daily? Contact me at paula.constance.patch@gmail.com.