State officials vote against sale of fair

State Assembly Bill 1590, which seeks to rescind an earlier bill that authorized the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds, passed the Assembly’s Business and Professions committee with an 8-0 vote Tuesday morning.

Three of the committee’s members were absent during Tuesday’s committee hearing on the bill, but they were allowed to vote for the bill after it passed, bringing the final tally to an 11-0 vote against the fairgrounds sale.

The live auction to sell the fairgrounds is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at the Costa Mesa property, 88 Fair Drive.

Seven parties — including the city of Costa Mesa and Orange County, which put in a joint bid — have submitted their bids to the Department of General Services, the state agency in charge of selling the fairgrounds. The state is hoping to make $90 million to $180 million from the sale of the property.

Even if AB1590 passes, it likely won’t stop Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger from going through with the sale.

“The governor does not support the policies of the bill,” said Mike Naple, a spokesman for the governor’s office. “He supports selling the fairgrounds. His position has been consistent.”

However, even if Schwarzenegger doesn’t support AB1590, it does not mean that he will end up selling the fairgrounds, said Assemblyman Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana), who co-wrote the bill with Assemblyman Van Tran (R-Costa Mesa).

“He might not stop the sale today, but that’s not to say he may not be open to stopping it later, if the amount isn’t high enough for the administration,” Solorio said. “They are not obligated to sell the property if the price isn’t a reasonable amount.”

Solorio said that once the highest bidder is announced Thursday, he will reassess the bill and whether he should move it forward as is, or amend it to reflect something else — like helping with the transition, if the buyer’s intentions are to keep the fairgrounds as is.

But Solorio said his preference is for the governor to stop the sale.

The fairgrounds was put up for sale in October after the Assembly voted for it in July as part of a plan to sell high-valued properties in a last-ditch effort to close the state’s budget deficit.

Solorio voted for the sale, but changed his mind later amid massive community opposition to the sale.