Santa Ana Protesters File Lawsuit to Block Luxury Condo Project
A group of Santa Ana businessmen aligned with residents seeking more housing for the city’s low-income population Wednesday filed a lawsuit in Superior Court trying to block construction of 194 luxury condominiums downtown.
Bob Lopez, an accountant and spokesman for the group--the Alliance for Fair Redevelopment in Santa Ana--said that the suit contends that the city has not done enough to provide housing for its low-income residents.
The suit, filed against the city, the Community Redevelopment Agency and developer Urban Ventures Inc., seeks to halt the luxury development and asks that Santa Ana rewrite its General Plan, a blueprint for future housing development.
Plaintiffs are also asking that a new environmental impact report on the project be drafted. Santa Ana conducted such a study of the entire downtown redevelopment area in 1975, but later determined that a separate report on the Urban Ventures project--on a site bounded by 3rd, 4th, French and Minter streets--was unnecessary.
City Manager Robert C. Bobb strongly criticized the litigation, saying the group’s goals would ensure that downtown Santa Ana remains a low-income area. He said the city does more for low-income groups than any other Orange County community.
‘Limits of My Patience’
“Quite frankly,” he said, “I’ve reached the limits of my patience with groups who are not interested in working with us but rather in fighting everything we do.”
Bobb said there have been numerous discussions with members of Lopez’s group, and he criticized what he described as their desire to have the city forgo any upscale projects while devoting time and money to low-income groups.
“Santa Ana is not and will not be the low-income capital of Orange County,” he said.
Bobb also stressed that a major report will be released next Tuesday unveiling a four-point plan to provide affordable housing in other sections of the city.
Although he declined to reveal details, Bobb said the report would focus on financial assistance for low- and moderate-income residents, housing for “very low” income residents, tax exemptions for low-income residents and rehabilitation of apartments in the blighted Minnie-Standard street area, where the city’s code-enforcement efforts have been concentrated.
Lopez, however, said that he and his colleagues had no choice but to file the lawsuit before the housing report is released. They expected the study to be released two weeks ago, he said, but in the meantime Santa Ana officials approved Centerpointe, an $85-million office-hotel project that the group also opposes.
Some Actions Praised
“We hold back and wait for the housing plan, and then the city pushes through Centerpointe,” Lopez said.
Although he said no meetings are planned with city staff members, Lopez said he wants to maintain communication with them. He added that some recent city actions, especially the approval of a $10-million Latino-oriented downtown shopping center, indicate that there is some agreement between the two sides.
“The Fiesta Marketplace shows that somebody is listening,” he said.
Alliance attorney Salvador Sarmiento said the Urban Ventures project, approved by the city several weeks ago, was singled out because they believe it is the epitome of what he called the city’s lack of commitment to provide low-income housing. Asked whether it is unfair to focus on just one project, he answered, “That’s correct, in a sense, but we have to start somewhere.”
Sarmiento said the suit seeks an injunction to prevent further development. However, Urban Ventures president Michael Reyes said his firm has secured financing for the project and that the suit will not affect progress toward a ground breaking tentatively scheduled for February.
“I haven’t seen the suit yet, but I’m sure it’s going to be without merit,” he said. “It seems to me they’re just trying to get the city’s attention.”
Lopez said the Alliance began forming about two months ago and consists of 14 businessmen and two groups that are proponents of low-income housing--the David Coalition for Housing and Hermandad Mexicana National, which represents about 300 families participating in rent strikes in Santa Ana and Anaheim.
He said group members will be visiting neighborhoods, church and business groups to attempt to enlist more members. Lopez added that the group has planned a rally for Sept. 7 from 3 to 8 p.m. at Madison Park.
