LAGUNA BEACH : Cox Asked to Help Protect Parklands

Local environmentalists who fear that a sweeping federal transportation bill will be approved, leaving Orange County parklands unprotected, are appealing to Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach) for help.

The environmentalists, representing 18 organizations, sent Cox a letter last week asking him to actively oppose legislation that would expose parkland to possible highway development.

The groups are trying to counter a House subcommittee’s July action that would have exempted Orange County toll roads from a ban on use of federal funds for highways running through or near parklands. The prohibition would stand unless a local government could show there is no feasible alternative.

The exemption was inserted into a technical amendment of the $153.5-billion transportation bill under consideration by the House at the time.

The exemption was orchestrated largely by Rep. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad), who represents parts of South Orange County. Both Packard and Cox are members of the surface transportation subcommittee of the House Committee on Public Works and Transportation. Cox said he was unaware the exemption was included in the bill.

At the time, the committee’s action was seen as a major victory for proponents of three controversial Orange County toll roads, all of which would run through or alongside land that is already designated as parkland or would become parkland.

Environmentalists are lobbying Cox because the land in question is largely in his congressional district.

“He needs to know we’re out there,” said Michael Phillips, executive director of Laguna Canyon Conservancy, one of the groups appealing to Cox. “We believe if he’ll do nothing else but circulate a ‘Dear Colleague’ letter stating his opposition to this amendment that it’ll be removed.”

In response to the environmentalists plea, Cox prepared a letter Monday to subcommittee Chairman Norman Mineta (D-San Jose) asking that he be kept informed of Mineta’s intentions regarding any new language in the bill.

“Although I did not participate in drafting this provision, I have had the opportunity to review it since it was reported from the surface transportation subcommittee,” Cox said in the letter. “I am concerned that this proposed legislative language unnecessarily weakens current regulations. . . .

Making it clear that he will not side with those who would attempt to use the current law to block the toll roads, Cox said in his letter to Mineta, “Construction of new surface transportation in Orange County is absolutely vital.”

“Some who are opposed to this legislative language are also opposed to the construction of new transportation corridors in Orange County,” Cox says in the letter. “I am not among this group.”

Orange County landowners who favor the toll roads have hesitated to dedicate parkland, fearing such action would trigger the current federal law and become an obstacle for the corridors.