SANTA ANA : City Council Rejects Zoning Ordinance

The City Council has rejected a controversial zoning ordinance that would have forced two indoor swap meets in the city to either expand their parking facilities within 18 months or close down.

The swap meets, at 1204 S. Bristol St. and 3412 W. 17th St., have parking areas that do not meet current city requirements and have been the source of complaints because of overflow parking, said Robyn Uptegraff, city planning director.

If approved, the ordinance would have allowed the city to use the process of amortization on the swap meets, a tool frequently used by cities to get rid of undesirable businesses, Uptegraff said.

Under amortization, the businesses would have been given 18 months to comply with current city codes which require that indoor swap meets provide 10 parking spaces for every 1,000 square feet of business area.

The swap meets do not meet these standards but remain legal because they were given permits before the code was adopted in 1987.

But the idea of amortization drew fire from a majority of the council before the proposal went down on a 4-3 vote.

“Basically, we’re going to give these people 18 months to get out of town,” said Councilman Richards L. Norton. “I’m just curious why we’re not giving everyone 18 months to become legal and conforming.”

Mayor Daniel H. Young, Councilman Daniel E. Griset and Councilwoman Patricia A. McGuigan voted in favor of the proposal.

“By giving them the opportunity to improve their parking, we’re giving them the opportunity to improve the community,” McGuigan said.