Dueling Petitions Square Off in Escondido : One Opposes, Other Backs 3-Way Deal for Houses, Golf Course

Two petition campaigns have swung into action in Escondido--one to rescind a three-way land sale and cancel a planned golf course and housing development near Lake Hodges, one to attempt to thwart that measure.

At issue is an $11.3-million purchase of land by the city of Escondido that is owned by the city of San Diego near North County Fair shopping center. Escondido immediately transferred the land, for the same price, to developer Jack Raymond, who plans to build a 580-home subdivision on the property off Interstate 15 just north of Lake Hodges.

The incentive for the three-way sale is Raymond’s offer to deed 120 acres of the property back to Escondido and San Diego for use as a municipal golf course to be shared by the two municipalities.

Residents of nearby Sonata and Lomas Serenas subdivisions, backed by Escondido City Council candidate Kris Murphy, are circulating the petition for a vote of the citizens on the land sale.

Protesting Density

The residents are protesting the density of the Raymond development, which contains clusters of housing with lot sizes of 4,000 and 4,500 square feet. Nearby development is mainly on half-acre--21,780 square feet--lots.

Brian Bateman, a Poway teacher and a resident of Sonata, is leading the referendum effort to gather at least 4,000 signatures opposing the land sale and requesting the Escondido City Council to rescind its action or put the issue to a citywide vote.

Forming to oppose the referendum petition is a group created Thursday night called Save Our Golf Course Committee, which has begun circulating a petition affirming support of the land deal The group is also requesting signatures of people who have signed the referendum petition be stricken if they also sign the opposition petition.

Raymond said that Save Our Golf Course has already collected several hundred signatures on its anti-referendum petition and has gained the support of the Escondido Chamber of Commerce board of directors.

Questioned Ethics

The land sale was opposed by San Diego City Councilwoman Abbe Wolfsheimer and Escondido Councilman Jerry Harmon, who questioned its ethics.

Harmon said Friday that he remains opposed to the method as a “sweetheart deal” for developer Raymond. The land should have been offered for bid to all developers with the proviso that the golf course property be deeded back, he said.

“I am sure that, in an open competition, we could have found a developer who was willing to build at a density more compatible with surrounding development,” Harmon said.

The San Diego-owned land--a 159-acre parcel east of North County Fair and a 117-acre parcel west of the shopping center and the I-15 freeway--was owned by the San Diego city Water Utilities Department and restricted from sale to a private developer directly. So, the City of Escondido stepped in and, after more than two years of negotiations, the three-way land sale was accomplished.

Unhappy at Deal

Bob Herring, owner of a Sorrento Valley electronics company and a resident of the area, says he plans to participate in the referendum campaign because of the type of development and density planned for an area which now is developed mainly in estates.

“There is something illegal in this somewhere,” Herring said, saying that San Diego is prohibited by its laws from selling the land to Raymond and Escondido is required to submit expenditures of $5 million or more to a citywide vote.

Raymond said there was nothing illegal or secret in the land deal because no Escondido city funds were involved.

“They (residents of San Diego and Escondido) are getting $5.4 million worth of land and $300,000 to develop it,” without any city funds being committed to the golf course, Raymond said. Opponents of the land deal “make this a political issue,” he said.

Blamed Developer, City

Murphy agreed that the land deal had become a political issue but blamed the developer and Escondido city officials for trying to rush the issue to a close before the June 7 election when “possibly a new majority on the City Council may be elected” and might rescind the agreement.

Murphy said the referendum circulators have until May 27 to gather a minimum of 4,000 signatures calling for rescission of the land sale and development agreement. Escrow on the three-way sale is scheduled to close May 31, he said, but if the petitions are successful, the Escondido City Council will be forced to hold off on the closure and either vote to rescind the sale or put the issue to Escondido voters.