Commissioners and Appointees
As your Councilmember, I have the honor of serving and representing you and our neighbors, working to make our community better.
As hard as I try, I can't do it alone. Irvine continues to be an incredible community not just because of our parks, our safety, and our schools, but because of our people. I am proud to be surrounded by service-minded individuals who help keep Irvine such a special place.
Please let me introduce some fantastic individuals whom I have asked to continue their service to our community in a role at your City Hall.
Carlos Carney, CPA, has been re-appointed to Irvine's Investment Advisory Committee. Mr. Carney previously served in this capacity as Councilmember Lynn Schott's representative. In addition to being active at St. John Neumann Catholic Church and the Exchange Club of Irvine, Mr. Carney is an accounting professional with Big Four CPA, corporate, and business consulting experience. He and his wife Kathleen raised their children in Woodbridge where they continue to live.
Michael Carroll has been appointed to the Planning Commission. A business owner and attorney, Commissioner Carroll previously served on the city's Community Services Commission, including a term as its chairman. He earned his Juris Doctor from St. John's University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from American University. He and his wife, Irvine Unified School District Board of Education Member Betty Carroll, and their children live in Turtle Rock.
Brooke Cazier has been appointed to serve on the city's Children, Youth & Families Advisory Committee. She and her husband Nate live in Woodbridge with their four children. Mrs. Cazier has held various leadership positions with youth and children's programs with the Irvine Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Jerry Chang has been appointed to serve on Irvine's Senior Citizens Council. He is currently co-President of the +200 member Irvine Chinese Evergreen Senior Association and is an active member of Irvine Canaan Christian Community Church.
Janet Colclaser is Senior Council Executive Assistant and will serve in a "Chief of Staff" capacity. She previously served in this role for Mayors Steven Choi, Mike Ward, Bill Vardoulis, and Councilmember Jeffrey Lalloway. She also served as a member and Chairman of the Irvine Planning Commission as Councilmember Barbara Wiener's appointee. Janet is a long time member and past president of the Junior League of Orange County and has been involved with the Orange County Community Foundation and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).
Tanja Fournier has been appointed to Irvine's Finance Commission. She has experience in public finance, financial analysis, and governmental financial reporting as Treasury Manager and Assistant Treasurer for the Irvine Ranch Water District. She is a member of the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from the University of Phoenix. She and her husband Kevin live in Northwood and raised their children in Irvine.
Chris Knowland has been named to the Transportation Commission. Mrs. Knowland was previously a Principal Planner for Community Development at the City of Irvine. She has volunteered on the Irvine Junior Games Steering Committee, as well as being an active member of the National Charity League. She and her husband Rich have three children who attended Irvine public schools. The Knowlands have lived in Woodbridge for 27 years.
Dick Owens has been re-appointed to the Community Services Commission, where he has served the past two years as the Mayor's appointee. Mr. Owens has a long history in the Irvine sports community, most notably as Executive Director of the Ryan Lemmon Foundation. He and his wife, Irvine Senior Citizens Councilmember Rachel Owens, have lived in Northwood for 33 years, where they also helped start their own Neighborhood Watch program.
William Von Blasingame of Northwood has been appointed to Irvine's Green Ribbon Environmental Committee. Additionally, he has served since 2013 as Governor Jerry Brown's appointee to the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board. Mr. Von Blasingame has served on the OneOC Board of Directors since 2011. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree in finance and real estate from the University of California at Berkeley.
Michelle Ashby Yost has been appointed to serve on the Irvine Child Care Committee. Michelle has been a resident of Irvine for 13 years. She founded Irvine's first girls' high school Lacrosse club program; under her leadership, the girls' lacrosse program grew to include elementary and middle school teams, train coaches, and develop players to support girls' high school varsity teams at four of Irvine's high schools, as approved by the IUSD Board of Education in 2006. Michelle is married to Christopher J. Yost, Managing Director of Litigation for FedEx Express, located in Irvine. They raised their four children in Irvine, and have all graduated from Woodbridge High school and gone on to Brigham Young University, Michelle and Christopher's Alma Mater.
I appreciate the chance I have to work for you, and hope that you'll thank these community leaders who have accepted the call to join me in working to protect and improve the quality of life we all enjoy here in Irvine.
Anthony Kuo
Irvine City Councilmember
