County Gets $1 Million to Help Buy Parkland

While approving several Orange County highway projects on Wednesday, the California Transportation Commission allocated $1 million to help purchase parkland in Laguna Canyon.

Laguna Beach, which earlier this year agreed to buy the 2,150-acre Laguna Laurel parcel from the Irvine Co. for $78 million, applied for the money but then refused to accept the conditions. The funds are contingent on construction of the San Joaquin Hills tollway, which the city opposes because it will span the canyon and dump thousands of cars each day onto Laguna Canyon Road.

So the state commission, meeting at Newport Beach City Hall on Wednesday, voted to send the money to Orange County instead. The county, which will use the funds to acquire the same open space, has agreed to repay the state if tollway construction does not begin within five years.

The $1 million will come from the state gas tax increase approved by voters last year. Companion legislation adopted in Sacramento set aside $10 million a year for 10 years for acquisition of open space or other environmental projects to soften the impact of new highways.

The commission’s allocation is in addition to the $10 million the county already has pledged to help Laguna Beach acquire Laguna Laurel land from the Irvine Co., said Rob Clark, Laguna Beach deputy city manager.

County harbors, beaches and parks director Robert G. Fisher said the state commission will consider additional open space funding requests, as long as the county ties them to progress on specific road projects.

Meanwhile, state transportation commissioners agreed to write checks for several previously approved Orange County projects, including $21.1 million for the Santa Ana Freeway widening project between 4th and 17th streets in Santa Ana, and $407,879 for park-related enhancements to the Victoria Street widening project in Costa Mesa.

Important to Orange County commuters was another commission decision to spend nearly $5 million to extend the car-pool lanes on the San Diego Freeway from Seal Beach into Long Beach.

The commission approved plans--but not actual disbursement of funds--for three new connector roads or ramps along the Santa Ana Freeway as part of the freeway-widening project. The improvements would be built at The City Drive, Orangewood Avenue and at Pacifico Avenue-Lewis Street. The panel also approved the final environmental-impact statement for the Anaheim segment of the Santa Ana Freeway widening project.