Pact Opens Door for Federal Court : Lease Approval Paves Way for Judicial Branch in Santa Ana

After more than a year of negotiations between the federal and county governments, the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a lease agreement that is expected to bring a branch of the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles to Santa Ana sometime next spring.

“This is just great,” shouted Garvin Shallenberger, a spokesman for the Orange County Bar Assn., when he heard the news. “We’ve been trying to get a federal court here since 1975. I can’t believe it’s finally going to happen.”

Temporary Structure

The federal court--which could be staffed by as many as three judges--will be in a temporary, modular unit constructed on a two-acre, county-owned lot at Flower Street and Santa Ana Boulevard. The land, now a parking lot, is on the southwest corner of the Civic Center.

The federal government’s lease will be for 10 years. By that time, federal officials hope to have found a permanent home for the court in Orange County.

Supervisor Roger Stanton at Tuesday’s board meeting credited Rep. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton) with bringing an end to the stalled negotiations over the lease.

The federal government’s General Services Administration is still looking for a company to install the modular units and handle the landscaping. But U.S. District Judge Laughlin Waters, head of the Los Angeles district’s internal space committee, said last week that if the lease is approved by the supervisors soon, the court could probably be in operation by June.

The Orange County Bar Assn. has contended for years that Orange County is large enough and generates more than enough court business to warrant a local branch.

“It is an unbelievable hassle for attorneys to drive to Los Angeles every time they need something,” Shallenberger said. “And the expense for that travel went to the clients here in Orange County.”

But also, he said, bringing the court to Orange County shows that the county is its own community, not just an extension of Los Angeles.

There is a federal commissioner who operates out of Orange County part time. And some federal judges in Los Angeles have borrowed local courtrooms for an occasional hearing.

But it wasn’t until 1980, after years of lobbying by Orange County lawmakers, that Congress approved legislation permitting the Los Angeles District Court to set up an Orange County branch.

The federal government has agreed to pay rent of $115,000 a year for 10 years--which, according to Thomas Galvan, the county’s chief of property management, was $115,000 a year more than the GSA wanted to pay.

Temporary Facilities

In August, 1984, he said, officials from the GSA’s regional office in San Francisco first approached county officials about some property for temporary court facilities.

“They wanted us to just give them a place for nothing,” Galvan said. “They assumed we ought to be glad to give away our property. When they found out we don’t do things that way, they came back with an offer, but it was ridiculously low. Then another offer, also ridiculous. Things sort of stalled after that.”

In March, 1985, Dannemeyer, who was upset about the breakdown in negotiations, sat down with officials from the GSA and the county. When things got bogged down again, Dannemeyer again stepped in, with the most recent meeting taking place last week.

Dannemeyer spokeswoman Darlene Knoop said Supervisor Stanton was a major factor in getting the federal government to agree on a lease price.

GSA officials in San Francisco refused to comment on the negotiations and refused to discuss how soon the court could be put into operation.

Judges in Los Angeles are still meeting to determine how many judges will be sent to Orange County, and who they will be. U.S. District Judge Alicemarie Stotler, a former Superior Court judge in Orange County, is a popular choice among Orange County attorneys.

Seniority to Count

Stotler said Tuesday that judges with the most seniority will have the first option on going to the Orange County branch but added that she is interested in one of the positions.

U.S. District Presiding Judge Manuel Real said in a recent interview: “By the time there’s a place for us to move to, we will have our end ready.”

The local bar association is planning both a ground-breaking and dedication ceremony for the new court, according to spokesman Maurice Mandel.

“This court is going to be no minor event in Orange County,” Mandel said. “We plan to bring it in with appropriate ceremony.”

Times staff writer John Needham contributed to this story.