Rigonomics:

In June, I wrote in my column that we should call the state’s bluff and buy the Orange County Fairgrounds.

At the time, the state argued that if the citizens didn’t vote to raise taxes, it would be forced to sell state property that included the Orange County Fairgrounds.

Well, the voters voted down the taxes and, lo and behold, the state put the “For Sale” sign up this week. Offers are due in January with the sale to the highest bidder next October.

The good news is that a nonprofit foundation was created by members of the fair’s board to buy the property and keep it a fairground. The concern that everyone has is making sure the property remains as the Orange County Fairgrounds.

The state said the property could be sold for between $96 and $180 million. My column argued that because the property has a General Plan designation as “Fairgrounds” and is zoned for “recreational-institutional,” the actual price someone would be willing to pay would be about $28 million. That is all that could be debt-serviced if the property were restricted for use as a fairground.

Bottom line: The property’s value is much lower as long as it is used as a fairground.

At first I had no concerns about the zoning ever being changed. The citizens of Costa Mesa have made it clear that they want the property to remain a fairground. It would be political suicide for a council member to vote to change that. To keep it functioning as a fairground the state even added a stipulation to retain the right to profit participation in the event that all or a portion of the property is no longer used for county fairs and other events.

But the more I thought about it the more concerned I have become. Why would the state want the right to profit participation unless it was also concerned that the zoning might someday in the future be changed?

How difficult would it be to change the zoning? When you think about it, not that difficult. All it takes is three votes on the City Council.

When the value of 150 acres of prime Orange County land swings in value from $28 million to $180 million on three votes, well, let’s just say it would be too tempting for the landowner, over time, to stack the City Council their way.

I’m not trying to sound too cynical, but public employee labor unions have gotten their candidates elected in a lot of Orange County cities for less than $100,000 each.

I could also see a scenario sometime in the future when the city might be in a financial mess. Imagine that. The new property owner shows the city official how he or she can solve their fiscal issues by rezoning just a portion of the fairgrounds — part of the property for a shopping center and bingo — the city budget is balanced.

Needless to say, it became very clear to me that if the citizens of Costa Mesa want to absolutely make sure the property is kept as a fairground, they need to do it themselves. That is why I am proposing that we put an initiative on the ballot to lock in the zoning at the fairgrounds. The nice thing about an initiative is that once the voters pass it, the City Council cannot change it without a vote of the people.

There are two ways of getting an initiative on the ballot. One way is to collect thousands of signatures. The other is to get just three votes on the City Council to put it on the ballot. I like that way better. In fact I would be surprised if the vote were not 5 to 0.

I bounced this around a number of people, and they all like the idea. The problem I am finding is no one wants to take the lead. So here is my request: If you want the fairgrounds to stay the way they are, contact me at the e-mail below. I will put all the parties together, and we can start moving this process along. You do not have to be a citizen of Costa Mesa to help the cause. Once we get the council to put it on the ballot, we would need a grass-roots campaign to get out the votes.

Now is the time to save the fairgrounds. Once the sale is complete, it will be too late.

JIM RIGHEIMER is a Costa Mesa Planning Commissioner, local business owner and a father of four. He can be reached at jim@rigonomics.com.