Residents uniting against City Hall

Lolita Harper

Residents who began unrelated battles with City Hall because of

new laws they felt threatened their personal lives are becoming

philosophical allies in their fight to keep local government from

becoming too intrusive.

Most notably, members of the Costa Mesa RV Owners Assn. -- the

group that crusaded against more stringent parking regulations for

motor homes -- have voiced support for the Costa Mesa Cruisers, who

will face the council next month to ask that inoperable cars be

allowed in their own backyards.

Dave Goss, president of Costa Mesa RV Owners Assn., said he is

planning to support the Cruisers at the Aug. 5 City Council meeting,

not only because he champions the hobby of fixing up classic cars but

because he is concerned about general civil liberties and property

rights.

Costa Mesa Cruiser President Mitch Barrie said he, Goss and

numerous other residents have come together informally to rally

against what he calls the “Irvine-ization” of Costa Mesa.

“This is about much more than the car thing or an RV thing. Those

are just indicators,” Barrie said. “It is not so much a movement to

defend our hobbies but saying to the city, ‘Hey, what goes on in my

backyard is my business.’”

Before the summer of 2000, city codes allowed residents to store

cars that didn’t run on a driveway leading to a garage -- provided it

was covered with an acceptable cover -- or in a yard area that was

screened by a 6-foot-high wall or fence, a staff report states.

New codes passed in 2000 banned those options and made it legal to

store an inoperable vehicle only in a garage or another enclosed

building. City code enforcement officials have said the law also

applies to backyards, if the car can be seen from a second-story

window and is the subject of a complaint.

Councilman Gary Monahan, who has a paved section of his side yard

shielded by a fence where he used to house a couple of race cars, has

asked that the rules be reconsidered.

Monahan said the city is headed down a slippery slope and decided

to continue his political career to help stop the descent.

“It seems like the regulations have really kind of accelerated

faster than we would expect,” Monahan said. “I think we need to take

a break and see where we are. The personality of Costa Mesa is in

danger of falling apart if too many restrictions are put in place.”

Barrie agreed with the councilman, saying most Costa Mesa

residents are here because of the diversity, the variety and the

city’s “live and let live” attitude. For the same price, people could

buy much larger houses in South County but they don’t because the

city has its own spirit that makes it a great place to live, Barrie

said.

“Costa Mesa is traditionally a hands-off type of place,” Barrie

said. “It is a wonderful little California town surrounded on all

sides by Orange County. This city traditionally allows people to live

their life the way they want, and with that you run the risk that

your neighbor might paint his house purple.”