Local News in Brief : Fountain Valley : Council to Reconsider Southpark Mall Plan

The fate of a proposal for a 140-acre commercial center known as Southpark, which was expected to generate millions of dollars for city coffers, may be decided tonight by the City Council.

The development was dealt a severe blow on Oct. 30 when the San Diego-based Price Co. balked in reaction to mounting community opposition and announced that it was withdrawing from the project and keeping open its discount Price Club store in Santa Ana.

A group calling itself Citizens for Maintaining the Quality of Life in Fountain Valley’s Environment, which opposed the Southpark plan because it maintained that city officials had not listened to members’ concerns about traffic, pollution and noise, succeeded in qualifying a referendum for the ballot.

So council members tonight will consider whether to rescind a law allowing for development of Southpark by changing the land’s zoning. If the council decides not to rescind the ordinance, the issue must go before the voters. Council members said a special election could cost up to $32,000.

As originally approved in September, Southpark would be the city’s largest retail center. The plan called for a Price Club store to anchor a 2-million-square-foot retail center along the Santa Ana River north of Interstate 405. The center was expected to generate about $51 million for the city in developers’ fees and taxes during the next 21 years.