Why Has Tustin Called the Squeeze Play?

The city of Tustin says it sympathizes with next-door neighbor Santa Ana’s overcrowded school district.

Almost gives you a catch in the throat, doesn’t it?

But as with people, even a city has a limit to its sympathy.

In Tustin’s case, it came when Santa Ana said it wanted to build a kindergarten-through-junior college complex on part of the former Tustin Marine Corps Air Station. Upon hearing that, what was Tustin’s new reaction to Santa Ana’s overcrowding? Sorry, not our problem.

Instead, Tustin envisions a large anchor store--along the lines of a Target or Home Depot or Wal-Mart--sitting where Santa Ana would like to see its school complex. Not far away from the big store would be homes and an 18-hole golf course, according to plans now on the drawing board.

And that’s the way it’s shaping up, because Tustin has the authority to figure out what to do with the choice 1,600 acres nestled against Tustin, Irvine and Santa Ana and not far from the 5 and 55 freeways.

Why in the world, you ask, should anyone expect Tustin to let Santa Ana build schools in its domain when it could add a large retailer and a golf course?

How about because the property Santa Ana wants to build on lies within the Santa Ana school district?

How about because the federal government told Santa Ana school officials in the early 1990s they could claim at least 75 acres when the base closed?

How about because, under the current reuse plan, Tustin has designated other parts of the former base for Tustin and Irvine school districts to build new schools?

Those sound like pretty good reasons to me.

We’re all grown-ups here, so we can handle the question of whether Tustin’s stiffing of Santa Ana has something to do with that district’s overwhelming Latino population.

In Denial

Tustin officials have bridled at any suggestion they considered the ethnicity of Santa Ana schools when making their decisions. Irvine state Sen. Ross Johnson, who supports the reuse plan without the Santa Ana project, has said this is a jurisdictional dispute and that the racial element “has no place at all in the argument.”

I don’t have any proof to the contrary, but neither is it out of line to ask the question.

Nor is it to Joe Dunn, a Santa Ana state senator who has gone to bat for the school district.

Everyone agrees that Santa Ana has one of the worst overcrowding situations in the state, Dunn says. Everyone agrees that the property is within the school district.

However, Dunn notes, everyone also agrees that Tustin isn’t bound by that original promise from the federal government. Nor does anyone dispute that Tustin has the authority--given it by the Department of the Navy--to make the final decisions on redevelopment.

For Dunn, it’s a matter of why Tustin won’t budge much in the face of a pressing need. Through negotiations, Tustin has offered Santa Ana 10 acres--a pittance of what it needs--and $3.5 million, Dunn says.

“I can’t make any logical sense out of Tustin’s refusal to give more than 10 acres,” Dunn says. “What motivates them? Since I can’t make any logical defense of them, that question you’ll have to pose to them.”

I didn’t receive a return call from a Tustin official, but the city has explained its position at some length in previous press accounts.

In those statements, Tustin officials have said the primary purpose of the plan--put together a few years ago with public involvement--is for commercial redevelopment. The new homes proposed would feed Tustin and Irvine schools, thereby requiring new construction. None of the proposed housing would feed students to Santa Ana schools, they say.

The commitment to Tustin and Irvine districts meets its educational obligations and giving more space for additional schools--meaning Santa Ana--would undercut the commercial plan, Tustin officials have said.

For me, it isn’t necessary or even fair to ascribe ulterior motives to Tustin’s actions. People can make up their own minds.

But how does Tustin define fair play? What does it mean to be sympathetic to a sister city’s plight?

As Dunn says, Santa Ana isn’t making a land grab here. It’s a city with little undeveloped space for new schools and a perfectly legitimate claim to land on the former base.

Yes, Tustin can choose to squeeze Santa Ana out of the picture.

And only Tustin decision-makers, in their heart of hearts, can tell us why they want to.

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Dana Parsons’ column appears Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Readers may reach Parsons by calling (714) 966-7821 or by e-mail to dana.parsons@latimes.com