Developer gets OK to continue Bolsa Chica construction

Eron Ben-Yehuda

A court cleared the way last week for a developer to move forward with

construction along the border of the Bolsa Chica mesa, despite the

discovery of ancient human remains and artifacts.

Orange County Superior Court Judge William McDonald saw no need for a

new environmental study of the site at the southwest corner of Bolsa

Chica Street and Los Patos Avenue, where Hearthside Homes plans to build

an upscale residential community.

“I felt that the judge made a good call, based on the law and facts,”

said Lucy Dunn, the company’s executive vice president.

Hearthside, formerly the Koll Real Estate Group Inc., had argued that

previous studies unearthed remains similar to those found last month when

grading work uncovered what are believed to be an American Indian’s

cheekbone fragment, a tooth, a cog stone and a grinding stone.

The Bolsa Chica Land Trust alleged in its lawsuit that development on

the six-acre property may destroy “rare” pieces of American Indian

history. The group may appeal the judge’s ruling but that offered little

solace to Eileen Murphy, a member of the land trust.

“How do you say devastated,” she said.

American Indian tribes are expected to rebury the remains at the site

this month, Dunn said. The first of 16 homes planned for the prime

coastal property may be completed within the next couple of months, she

said.