River conservancy proposal undergoes more changes

Paul Clinton

Hoping to find consensus on what was thought to be a slam-dunk bill,

Assemblyman Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana) has amended a proposal to create

a Santa Ana River conservancy.

The agency would be enlisted to protect and restore the 96-mile

waterway that runs from its lip at the border of Newport Beach and

Huntington Beach through three counties. It also runs along Costa

Mesa’s border at Fairview Park.

Correa, on March 28, added a new wrinkle to his Assembly Bill 496

that delineates the governing body. It names the 13 agencies whose

representatives would have voting powers and the nine nonvoting

members.

“We know we had to get a governance structure in,” said Bill

Orton, a Correa aide. “We’d like everybody to continue commenting.

Hopefully, we’ll get it right.”

In February, Correa proposed the legislation, which garnered

broad-based support. But by mid-March, three county supervisors,

including Newport-Mesa representative Jim Silva, said they didn’t

support the bill because it adds unneeded bureaucracy and could

imperil plans to extend the Orange Freeway.

“I believe we should avoid creating additional layers of

government,” Silva said at the time.

The bill has collected endorsements from assembly members Ken

Maddox, who represents Costa Mesa, and Tom Harman (R-Huntington

Beach). Both are listed as co-authors.

Correa, who is considering running for a supervisor’s seat, has

disagreed with the critique that the bill creates more red tape. He

said the bill would, in actuality, connect a variety of agencies, so

they could pin down more bond funding for river projects.

Correa has also pulled his request for a Monday hearing on the

bill in the Assembly’s natural resources committee. The hearing is

now set for April 21, Orton said.

In the amendment, Correa listed 13 agencies whose representatives

would sit on the conservancy, including a supervisor from the river’s

three counties and three members of city councils in the stream’s

path.