Residents question Home Ranch proposal

Lolita Harper

COSTA MESA -- The Home Ranch project is a high wire balancing act,

some residents said Monday, and one misstep could cause the city a great

fall.

The project proposed for the 93 acres of former lima bean fields just

north of the San Diego Freeway is top heavy -- with large retail,

industrial and office use -- and only a small portion focused for

residential use, said Robin Leffler, vice president for the Costa Mesa

Citizens for Responsible Growth.

Her comments came during a special City Council meeting scheduled to

discuss the controversial Home Ranch project.

Recognizing that the special meeting was designed to hear opposition

to the project, developers did not give a presentation.

But Leffler and a handful of her colleagues took full advantage of the

allotted time and addressed the council during a two-hour presentation,

outlining the problems they believe the project would create for Costa

Mesa residents.

“Some people have favorite parts of the Bible or the Torah or Koran. I

have my favorite part of the [city’s] general plan,” Leffler said,

smiling.

That part outlines a need for balance in the city, she said.

A balance between jobs and housing.

A balance between residential and business land use.

A balance between revenue for the city and residents’ quality of life,

Leffler said.

The Segerstrom’s Home Ranch project -- which proposes a 17-acre Ikea

retail site, 791,050 square feet of office space, 252,648 square feet of

industrial space and up to 192 residential units -- strays too far from

the general plan, opponents said.

“The proportion of residential is shrinking while business and

commercial use are growing exponentially,” Leffler said.

Costa Mesa’s 1990 general plan calls for about 20 acres of residential

zoning north of South Coast Drive and about 63 acres of industrial below.

C.J. Segerstrom & Sons has consistently pointed out the general plan

calls for houses to be built next to the rail spurs and printing presses

of the Los Angeles Times building -- an inappropriate designation, which

in itself mandates an amendment to the general plan.

While the citizen group conceded the 11-year-old plan could use a

change, the spirit of the plan should be respected, they said.

Potential traffic and pollution problems were also addressed by former

council members Jay Humphrey and Sandra Genis. The citizen group

questioned why the environmental report for the project included the

Gisler Street bridge when it is well-accepted that the city is trying to

make sure the bridge is never built.

Councilwoman Karen Robinson, who was heavily supported by members of

the citizen group during her campaign, asked staff to explain why the

traffic analysis included the bridges.

“The studies are wrong and based on fiction, and I’m struggling with

that,” Robinson said.

Carol Hoffman, a consultant hired by the Segerstroms, defended the

process.

“It’s in the general plan, so we have to acknowledge it but then you

prove you can work without it,” Hoffman said.

-- Lolita Harper covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at o7 lolita.harper@latimes.comf7 .