Irvine Council Votes for Curtailed Version of Freeway Proposal

The City of Irvine, whose support is regarded as essential if the San Joaquin Hills Freeway is ever to be built through Orange County’s coastal foothills, called Tuesday for a far more modest version of the road than the one endorsed by the county Transportation Commission.

In a 4-1 vote, the City Council rejected the county plan for the 14-mile freeway, which calls for a maximum of eight lanes until the year 2000, but eventually as many as 17 lanes in some areas. The council instead recommended that the freeway be a “well-landscaped . . . scenic” road of no more than six lanes until the year 2000 and a maximum of eight lanes after that.

While rejecting the San Joaquin plan, the council nonetheless accepted in principle a general agreement with the county for financing construction of the San Joaquin, Eastern and Foothill transportation corridors. The county’s plan would require developers of new housing and commercial property to pay for about 60% of the freeways’ construction. The developer-fees program, if implemented, would be the largest in California.

Support Crucial

Although other cities are considering the county’s plan for the San Joaquin Hills Freeway, Irvine’s support is considered crucial because Irvine developers would contribute more in fees than developers in any other city.

Despite the vote in favor of the financing agreement, Irvine Councilman Dave Baker noted that the city is not yet legally bound by it. The city will be committed, he said, once it joins a proposed joint-powers authority--made up of representatives of the county and various cities along the freeway routes--that would design, construct and finance the freeways.

Baker, who proposed the scaled-down San Joaquin Hills route, said he believes the new plan will still be palatable to the county Board of Supervisors. With county offices closed Tuesday in observance of Lincoln’s birthday, county officials were unavailable for comment.

“We have the opportunity to take a lot of leadership here,” Baker said. “If we are not involved at all, it’s either not going to be built or built to such a large scope that it can be detrimental to the city of Irvine.”

14-Mile Project

With Irvine’s stance, Baker said, “I think other cities will follow our leadership and I trust that the county will, as well.”

The 14-mile freeway is planned to run through the coastal foothills from the Corona del Mar Freeway in Newport Beach to Interstate 5 near Avery Parkway, just north of the San Juan Capistrano city line.

For the freeway traffic their projects would generate, builders would be required to pay up to $1,493 for each new dwelling and additional fees for commercial and industrial buildings, according to the county financing plan.

Irvine land developers would contribute up to $150 million--far more than developers in any other city along the routes of the three proposed county freeways. The other affected cities are San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Tustin, Orange, Santa Ana, Yorba Linda and Anaheim.

Councilman Larry Agran, a longtime opponent of the freeways, once again asked the council to let residents vote on whether development fees should be assessed.

At a previous council meeting, he proposed an ordinance that would have required an election before any new fees or taxes could be imposed for the three proposed freeways or any new roads. Although his motion was supported by hundreds of residents who attended earlier council meetings, it died for lack of a second.

The fee program has been endorsed by the Orange County Building Industry Assn. and other developers, who regard the proposed freeways as essential for continued development in south county and in the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains. Recently, however, opposition has been growing from small builders.

Agran Dissents

Prior to the council vote, Agran acknowledged that he was the lone dissenter on the council. Late Tuesday night, however, supporters of his position already were poised to begin the initiative process to bring his so-called “right-to-vote” ordinance before the electorate.

If his supporters get 15% or more of the 46,000 registered voters to sign a petition, the City Council either must adopt Agran’s plan or order a special election, according to City Clerk Nancy Lacey. If they get less than 15% but more than 10%, however, the council has the option of ordering the election or putting it on the next municipal election, scheduled for June, 1986.

“One way or another, the proposed plan, including three massive new freeways and at least $150 million in new taxes in the city of Irvine, requires citizen approval,” Agran said. “If there isn’t council support, then it’s up to the citizens themselves.”

Mayor Cites Survey

A clause in Agran’s proposed ordinance also would make any pertinent council action before the election subject to voter approval. Then council members “couldn’t sneak a lot of things under the wire by the time we got this thing into place,” Agran said.

Other members of the council disagree that voters need to decide the issue. Mayor David Sills, for one, said his own survey shows a 20-1 margin of support for transportation solutions and the corridor program.

Agran said, however, that his supporters “are simply determined to have some say with respect to these freeways that would so adversely affect their environment.”