SANTA ANA : College Bows Out of Swap-Meet Plan
Rancho Santiago College will not be involved in the operation of a swap meet in Centennial Park, trustees decided this week.
El Mercado, a privately run swap meet held in the college parking lot, was closed in March. Shortly after that, trustees told El Mercado vendors that they would apply for a permit to have the college operate the weekly event.
But trustees reversed their decision this week, indicating that the application procedure would be too expensive.
“At this time, it’s just too much money for us to expend,” said Board President Shirley Ralston. “We’re cutting $2.1 million from our budget, are in the process of hiring a new chancellor and are going to have to select a new trustee in the fall. We have a lot of things to do and the Mercado is just not up there right now.”
A staff report to trustees said the district would probably have to pay about $15,000 to draw up an environmental report detailing how such an event would affect the area. There would also be additional costs related to meetings between district staff and city officials, and developing a plan for the proposed swap meet.
The report also cited a 1979 license agreement that allows the district to use Centennial Park, at 2900 W. Edinger Ave., for leisure and recreation programs.
“It is doubtful that a commercial swap meet, even one conducted by the district on a nonprofit basis, meets this deed restriction,” the report states.
El Mercado, Santa Ana’s last outdoor swap meet, closed after a judge ruled that the event violated city zoning laws.
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