Irvine Co., Laguna Strike Tentative Deal for Canyon : Environment: The city would get 2,150 acres for $78 million that would be paid over five years.

After days of intense negotiations, the Irvine Co. informally agreed Tuesday to sell 2,150 acres of Laguna Canyon land to the city for $78 million over a five-year period.

However, the “agreement in principle” reached between the developer, environmentalists and city negotiators needs to be studied by City Council members before they give their final approval, officials said. The boards of other organizations involved in the negotiations must also approve the agreement before it is finalized.

But the tentative agreement signals an end to a long period of discord between the company and Laguna Beach residents who were opposed to the 3,200-unit Laguna Laurel development project. Environmentalists had vowed to stand in front of bulldozers before abandoning their hopes of keeping the pristine land as open space.

“I think the company has been very generous in basically gifting $80 million to realize a $78-million purchase price,” Irvine Co. Senior Vice President Gary Hunt said after the tentative agreement was reached.

Although the land was independently appraised at $105 million, the Irvine Co. added to the valuation $30.5 million that it said would be needed to meet the terms of a development agreement with the county.

According to the terms of the agreement, the company will drop the price from $105 million to $78 million, assume the $30.5 million in required infrastructure improvements and agree to forgo $22.8 million in interest payments that would normally be assessed over the five-year period.

Following the council’s closed-door session to consider the latest offer, Councilman Robert F. Gentry stopped short of saying they had an agreement but said they were very close. He thanked the Irvine Co. for making concessions on the proposed purchase price.

“We are encouraged by the movement of the Irvine Co. The council is seriously considering this plan, and we hope to have a final approved plan put together this week,” Gentry said.

Tuesday’s negotiating session was hurriedly called after informal proposals were exchanged in recent days between the Irvine Co. and Paul Freeman, the go-between who was hired by both sides to help negotiate the land purchase agreement.

The proposed purchase price was also a compromise for the city, which last offered $75 million.

Although Gentry hedged on whether an agreement had been reached, Freeman said he was optimistic the council would give its approval because it has scheduled a special session to discuss the latest offer for later this week.

“It certainly represents a fair and balanced plan,” he said.

The proposal calls for the city to pay $33 million by June 30 of next year. That payment would buy 90% of the land, including most of the environmentally sensitive property on the west side of Laguna Canyon Road.

The next three years include payments of $3 million, $4 million, and $5 million, respectively, with $33 million due the final year.

Also in the agreement is an option for the city to purchase other parcels not included in the Laguna Laurel development plan. The city would be required to exercise that option within five years.

“We got a lot for a little in the first year, and we have five years to pursue other funding sources,” Freeman said.

Part of the city’s first-year payment would come from a $20-million bond issue that Laguna Beach voters will be asked to approve on the Nov. 6 ballot. The county has also promised $10 million over five years, and the city is looking to state grants and private fund raising to help meet the payments.

Officials are under pressure to wrap up the land negotiations this week in order to give city residents enough time to study the proposed agreement before voting on the bond issue.

LAGUNA LAUREL: A TENTATIVE DEAL

The Irvine Co.’s proposal calls for the Laguna Beach to pay $33 million by June 30, 1991. That payment would buy 90% of the land, including most of the environmentally sensitive property on the west side of Laguna Canyon Road.

The next three years include payments of $3 million, $4 million, and $5 million, respectively, with $33 million due the final year.

Also in the agreement is an option for the city to buy other parcels not included in the Laguna Laurel development plan.

Part of the city’s first-year payment would come from a $20-million bond issue that Laguna Beach voters will be asked to approve Nov. 6. The county has also promised $10 million over five years, and the city is looking to state grants and private fund raising to help meet the payments.