LAGUNA NIGUEL : City Sues Developer Over Land Deal

The city has filed a lawsuit against a Newport Beach developer for allegedly misleading city officials during a land transaction that resulted in about 100 homes being built on 96 acres of parkland.

The lawsuit, filed in Superior Court on Friday against Taylor Woodrow Homes California Ltd., seeks to overturn that 1988 transaction and asks that the developer repay the public for the loss of open space. The amount of the monetary compensation was not designated.

The value of the land, which borders the Salt Creek Corridor Regional Park and is part of the Marina Hills residential community, has been estimated at between $40 million and $70 million.

A spokeswoman for the developer said Tuesday that the charges “are completely untrue” and show the city does not understand the land transaction.

“The allegations of the complaint are contrary to documents which are public record and are also contrary to the law, in our opinion,” said Michelle Sweet, a Taylor Woodrow spokeswoman.

City Councilman Thomas W. Wilson said the lawsuit was filed to keep the city’s options open and might later be withdrawn, depending upon the outcome of investigations by the Orange County Grand Jury and district attorney.

“We weren’t doing this with any air of being vindictive or adversarial, but rather we’re trying to comply with the statute of limitations so we didn’t lose an opportunity should it be required at a future date,” Wilson said.

The council, which imposed a building moratorium on the partially developed community in July, is also asking the courts to “restore control of any undeveloped land to the city.”

In October, Taylor Woodrow filed legal action against the city in an effort to void the moratorium. The developer also filed a $25-million claim against the city for damages the company feels that it incurred as a result of the council’s action.

The moratorium did not apply to lots for which building permits had already been pulled or foundations had been poured, Sweet said. Therefore, some homes are under construction, she said.

Wilson said the legal action will have no effect on residents now living in those homes. The 96 acres in question were originally set aside as open space by another developer, Avco-Bredero Niguel, in a deed given to the county in 1985.

Two years later, the county passed its rights to the property to the Laguna Niguel Community Services District, which administered parks and public lands for the area before Laguna Niguel incorporated. Councilman James F. Krembas, then a member of the district, signed the property deed over to Taylor Woodrow in February, 1988. Krembas has said he thought he was signing another transaction approved earlier by the district.

Taylor Woodrow President Gordon Tippell has maintained that the district board was aware of the land transfer and voted to approve it Jan. 20, 1988. He said his firm’s plans to build on the land, which had been dedicated as open space, were approved by the county in 1985 in exchange for public benefits, including a park and ball fields.

“The main point is that everybody keeps going back to these 96 acres,” Sweet said. “That offer of dedication was never accepted by the county and the issue was moot when the new plan was approved.”