SANTA ANA : Bristol Face Lift Gets the Green Light

The City Council this week gave the go-ahead for a $335-million plan to revitalize a 3.9-mile stretch of Bristol Street, the city’s main north-south thoroughfare.

City officials hope the Bristol Corridor Redevelopment Project will transform what is one of the county’s most congested streets into a parkway that includes landscaped buffers and rehabilitated businesses. The plan targets about 783 acres along Bristol Street between Warner Avenue and just north of Santa Clara Avenue, and includes widening of the street from four lanes to six.

In a 6-1 vote, the council approved a series of actions that will enable the city to begin the project. The actions included certification of an environmental report that details the project’s projected impact on the area, and a specific plan setting up the framework for redevelopment.

“I see a lot of support in the community for us to clean up Bristol,” said Councilman Miguel A. Pulido Jr. “Believe me, the street needs improvement.”

But about a dozen property owners spoke against the plan, saying it leaves their futures uncertain. More than 100 business and 236 housing units will be relocated under the plan, but the city’s purchase of individual properties hinges on funding.

Councilman Richards L. Norton, who voted against final approval, sided with the property owners, saying he didn’t think they had been sufficiently informed of the project’s implications.

“I don’t think these people are really going to understand what’s happening to them until it hits them,” he said.

The plan could take from five to 20 years to complete, with the first stages beginning as early as next year, said Jeff Rice, senior planner. Rice said the city is “aggressively seeking funding resources” to begin buying properties.