City continues strides to purchase the mesa

Tariq Malik

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- City officials are seeking advice regarding

funding sources that could ultimately pave the way to a purchase of the

Bolsa Chica mesa from its landowner Signal Landmark.

“We’re looking to our lobbyists, both on the state and federal levels,

to learn all possible funding sources,” said Councilwoman Shirley

Dettloff, who also chairs the city’s Intergovernmental Relations

Committee.

That group discussed the purchase potential of the mesa during an

afternoon session Monday, meeting with representatives from the Bolsa

Chica Land Trust and the Amigos de Bolsa Chica, two groups that have

worked for years to protect the mesa and wetlands from developers.

“The educational value of Bolsa Chica is huge,” said Flossie Horgan,

the land trust’s capital campaign director, adding the area is routinely

visited by school children. “The mesa just adds to this nature resource

nestled in an urban setting, offering many benefits for people in this

region.”

The Bolsa Chica mesa consists of about 200 acres along Warner Avenue,

near Pacific Coast Highway and state-protected wetlands. Bolsa Chica,

itself, which lies between Warner and Seapoint avenues, is on the Pacific

Flyway, offering a pit-stop to migrating birds.

Developer Hearthside Homes planned to build homes on 183 acres of the mesa and was limited to 65 by the California Coastal Commission in

November. A lawsuit is pending on the issue.

In an April 26 letter to Mayor Pam Julien Houchen, who first brought

up the mesa’s potential purchase in March, Signal Landmark President

Raymond Pacini stated that as of now, no city, state or federal funds

have been committed toward buying the mesa.

If the city or other government agency has the financial resources

ready for a “bona fide purchase proposal,” he went on, it would be

evaluated at that time.

Some city officials have estimated the mesa’s worth at $200 million,

while other have said it could be closer to $50 million.

“The land has to be appraised, that is always the first step in any

negotiations,” Horgan said.

Signal Landmark officials declined to estimate the land’s value or

comment on the city’s hopes for its purchase Tuesday because of the

ongoing litigation.