Tustin : Commission OKs Plans to Develop 1,740 Acres

The city Planning Commission has approved seven resolutions to implement a $1-billion proposal to develop 1,740 acres in East Tustin over the next 15 to 20 years.

The commission approved the East Tustin Specific Plan almost unanimously, although one commissioner, John McCarthy, did vote against the environmental impact report filed as part of the package.

The proposal will go before the City Council on March 3. The plan, drawn up over the last three years by the city and the Irvine Co., which owns the land, provides for the construction of schools and commercial services for 20,000 new residents in the development.

There has been some opposition to the plan by residents in unincorporated Cowan Heights to the north and east of the plan’s boundaries.

McCarthy, echoing some of the sentiments of the plan’s critics, said that the plan appears to be sound but that the time frame for the environmental impact report is too long.

The cities of Tustin and Irvine are embroiled in a controversy over the location of the proposed Eastern Transportation Corridor, which would provide access to the new development, and Tustin is preparing a lawsuit against Irvine.

Tustin City Manager Bill Huston said that the cities are still negotiating on the corridor’s placement and that they now are within 600 feet of agreement. “But it is a very important 600 feet,” he said.