TRABUCO CANYON : Water District Plan Challenged in Court

A homeowners group filed a lawsuit Thursday in an effort to block construction of a government complex at the northern end of Dove Canyon, claiming the project was improperly approved and doesn’t belong in a rural area.

The litigation by the Trabuco Highlands Community Assn., filed in Orange County Superior Court, names the county and the Trabuco Canyon Water District as defendants.

It seeks to stop development of an 8,000-square-foot administration building and a 5,500-square-foot maintenance facility for the water district in two areas. The project would cost $1.2 million.

“This is just a bad idea,” said Don Chadd, president of the association. He said the buildings, parking lot and widened road would be a poor use for the land, encroaching on wildlife and increasing the risk of fire.

Chadd said the water district did not give sufficient public notice of the project, which was approved last year.

He said he only found out about it in March, when he spoke to a water district board member about increased security for the existing fire road that would be widened for the project.

Clayton Parker, attorney for the association, said that the buildings aren’t appropriate in an area zoned for open space and that an environmental impact report didn’t reflect the project’s negative effect on the area.

But Fred Sims, general manager for the district, said officials did “everything legally required and more to notify everyone” as the project was reviewed by the county.

He said a public notice had appeared in community newspapers and clubhouses when the district first chose the site last year.

“We weren’t in the closet,” he said. “We wanted to be in the open.”

The cost of purchasing the land and constructing the facilities is $1.2 million, Sims said. The district is currently leasing office space for $60,000 a year.

A hearing on the suit has been set for June 17 in county Superior Court.