Laguna Niguel : Hearing on Services District to Continue

The county Local Agency Formation Commission voted Wednesday to continue until next month a public hearing on the formation of a Laguna Niguel community services district after several residents voiced opposition to the plan.

The county Board of Supervisors, acting on a request by the Laguna Niguel Community Council, initiated proceedings last year to transfer the responsibility for a number of services--including street and slope maintenance, parks and recreation and street lighting--from the county to a community services district.

The proposal, if approved by the commission and by the supervisors, would put the issue before area voters, possibly as soon as June.

The district--sometimes called a “junior city” because it is an intermediate step toward incorporation--would encompass all of Laguna Niguel, an area ranging from the coast to the San Diego Freeway and from South Laguna to Dana Point. A locally elected board of directors would administer maintenance services but could not take on additional responsibilities without voter approval.

The community stands to receive about $1 million in property tax funds that would be diverted to other uses by the county if the area does not form the district by a June deadline.

On Wednesday, residents asked for more time to consider all options.

Some in the coastal Laguna Niguel neighborhoods said they want to study the possibility of forming two districts--one inland and one coastal--while others said they want to refrain from forming anything “that would introduce a new layer of government bureaucracy,” as community council member Paul Christiansen said after the meeting.

The proposed district’s inability to obtain even a quote for liability insurance is also a primary concern of many residents, Christiansen said.