Fairgrounds sale won’t be cakewalk

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger can expect to confront coastal regulators, complex zoning laws and every cook with a blue-ribbon recipe for freezer jam if he presses to sell off three of Southern California’s most popular fairgrounds.

The parks in San Diego, Orange and Ventura counties are laden with restrictions that could make development problematic, even if the state overcomes strong local opposition to selling the properties.

The governor said the sale could raise between $483 million and $900 million for the cash-strapped state.

But Del Mar Fairgrounds north of San Diego and Seaside Park in Ventura have deed provisions that require the grounds be used only for parks or county fairs. If private developers overcame those restrictions, any changes to the properties would trigger lengthy reviews by the California Coastal Commission.

The Orange County Fairgrounds, meanwhile, is zoned for institutional uses such as a fairgrounds, a library or a park.

The Costa Mesa City Council, which governs the land, would probably oppose any change to the designation, Mayor Allan Mansoor said. “We’re not about to change the zoning to commercial or residential,” he said. “The people of Orange County love the fairgrounds, and they love its location. It’s part of our city’s identity.”

The idea of liquidating the three fairgrounds was unveiled earlier this month as part of Schwarzenegger’s proposal to sell off or lease hundreds of state-owned properties. Sales of the state’s highest-value properties, including the fairgrounds, could generate more than $1 billion for the general fund in the next two to five years, according to the governor.

California’s fairgrounds are typically state-owned and run by agricultural associations with authority to sell the property. The three in Southern California are among five the governor put on his for-sale list.

Raising cash took on more urgency after voters rejected several budget-related propositions, increasing the shortfall for the coming fiscal year to as much as $24 billion.

Though any money from sale of the fairgrounds is years away, it represents “very real money” to help deal with the state’s funding crisis, said Amanda Fulkerson, a Schwarzenegger spokeswoman.

“No one thinks this is something that will just sail through,” said Fulkerson of the State and Consumer Services Agency, which oversees management of state properties. “We acknowledge that each one comes with its own challenges and opportunities.”

Del Mar Fairgrounds is 20 miles north of San Diego, between Interstate 5 and the ocean. Its 22-day fair attracts 1.2 million visitors each year, and its Del Mar Thoroughbred Club is popular with racing enthusiasts.

In its analysis, the state cited Del Mar as having the greatest commercial potential of the high-value lands, estimating its value between $350 million and $650 million.

Tim Fennell, Del Mar’s chief executive, said he spoke to the governor’s staff before Tuesday’s election to explain the difficulty of selling the 340-acre fairgrounds property for private development.

Beyond the deed restriction, the property is an environmentally sensitive flood plain and a state-designated disaster evacuation site. During last year’s wildfires, 2,000 people, horses and other animals fled to the fairgrounds for safety.

Fennell, appointed by Schwarzenegger, said he appreciates that the state must look at all options to balance the budget. But he said that selling the land would take away a widely used community asset to pay off short-term debt.

“I think that after further study they’ll agree that the Del Mar Fairgrounds is already being put to its highest and best use,” Fennell said.

Orange County Fairgrounds is cited for its access to freeways, along with its equestrian facilities, exposition center and amphitheater. The governor estimates the value of the 190 acres at between $96 million and $180 million.

In addition to the fair, it holds about 150 events a year, including multicultural festivals, swap meets, gun shows and pet expos. Steve Beazley, its chief executive, said that an earlier proposal to sell the land and move the fair to the former El Toro Marine base got no traction.

“Even though it’s a state property, it’s a big part of Costa Mesa,” Beazley said. “We just hope it’s a thoughtful process and all information is taken into account.”

Because it fronts the ocean, Ventura County Fairgrounds is another premier site. The 63-acre property could bring in as much as $70 million if it is authorized for mixed-use development, including a hotel or convention center and housing, the governor’s report says.

But Mike Bradbury, president of the fair board, said any private users would first have to overcome a reversion clause in the deed. Ventura pioneer E.P. Foster donated the grounds in 1909, and it must be returned at no cost to his descendants if it is no longer used as fairgrounds, Bradbury said.

It also would face review by the Ventura City Council and the California Coastal Commission, which places a priority on preserving open space and public access to beaches.

The Ventura fair board, which runs the fairgrounds, will put up a fight if the state moves forward, he said. “There’s certainly substantial interest by developers,” Bradbury said. “But we will not sell the fairgrounds, period. It’s a public treasure and a public trust as far as we’re concerned.”

Another challenge is the public sentiment attached to county fairgrounds, Bradbury and others said.

These are places where, for decades, families have gathered to show a prized heifer, display their best homegrown tomato or take a spin on the Ferris wheel.

If the state follows through, “there would be a line of tractors heading for Sacramento that would make the best trucker’s convoys envious,” Bradbury said.

Taylor Meier, 16, has shown pigs at the Ventura County Fair since she was 12. She has not won a blue ribbon, but Bubblegum, her 275-pound swine, was awarded third in class one year.

“I love it,” she said of the annual event. “Every year we camp right at the beach for a week. You get to show your pig, make a bunch of money, and you meet a lot of neat people.”

Darylene Williams thinks the educational component shouldn’t be discounted. Her two daughters have been showing goats and rabbits and entering competitions for nearly two decades.

“Every year the just-born piggies in Uncle Leo’s Barn are a big draw,” she said. “Where else would kids see that?”

Schwarzenegger knows it could be a tough sell, Fulkerson said, but added that he’s looking at it from a business standpoint.

Fulkerson also raised the possibility that the grounds could be sold to private operators who would run the fairgrounds.

“We are using some of the best practices of the best companies in the world,” she said. “And when businesses hit a hard time, they liquidate assets.”

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catherine.saillant@latimes.com

Times staff writers Tony Barboza and Tony Perry contributed to this report.