Westdome’s Developer to Seek Site Deal

Developers who want to build a $40-million Westdome arena in Santa Ana will attempt to negotiate a deal on one of three sites selected by a citizens’ committee.

The 20-member committee began studying seven potential locations for the 20,500-seat arena on March 4 and has since narrowed the choice to three sites.

A 52-acre farm northeast of MacArthur Boulevard and Main Street was the committee’s resounding first choice, followed by a 25.4-acre site at Grand Avenue and St. Gertrude Place and an 18.2-acre tract at Main Street and Owens Drive.

“We will proceed on one site that we perceive as the best of the three,” developer Allan Durkovic said. “We are not going to try to work a deal on all three.”

City Manager Robert C. Bobb stressed that the developer will have to work out a deal before any recommendation can be made to the City Council so that the city will know how much of a subsidy will be required. “They have to have an opportunity to put together the best deal they can work out with the property owners and the city,” he said.

The committee ranked the sites in 13 categories, the two most important being access and the number of nearby residences. Ranked just below those was “compatibility with adjacent uses” and “economic impact.” The MacArthur Boulevard site was given the top score with an average of 43.5 points, followed by the Grand Avenue site with 23.54 and an 11.61 rating for the Main Street property.

Westdome had been proposed for a downtown location southwest of Flower Street and Civic Center Drive, and the City Council had gone as far as approving bond financing for that site last December. However, those plans were dropped in January when area residents said that they found anticipated noise, traffic and parking impacts to be unacceptable.