COMMENTARY ON MEASURE B : ...

Whether Irvine’s voters appreciate it or not, next week we will make history with our decision on Measure B.

Shall we vote “No,” turning our back on our city’s highly acclaimed approach to thoughtful, comprehensive planning, and possibly threaten the historic Open Space Agreement ratified by 88% of Irvine’s electorate in 1988?

Or, shall we vote “Yes,” preserving the stability, security, and certainty of Irvine’s stringent growth management that has produced the highly livable community that we enjoy today?

The issue is simple.

Measure B ratifies years of planning work under three different city administrations led by Mayors Dave Baker, Larry Agran and Sally Anne Sheridan. It affirms the City Council’s approval of Village 38, Irvine’s first new village in six years. It also commences the voter-approved program to preserve Irvine’s natural environment through urban limit lines, which will establish more than 8,000 acres of permanent open space.

Don’t be misled by its critics. As an 11-year Irvine homeowner and an Irvine-based specialist in urban planning and design, I believe the plan for Village 38 is a good one.

If you already live in Irvine, look out your window. Village 38 is planned to be much like your neighborhood: green trees, quiet streets, nearby shopping, good schools and safe sites for child care centers. Homes are planned for a diversity of people--in age, income and background.

It’s ironic that Village 38, the most-analyzed village in Irvine history, is controversial to anyone. During the intensive planning process, the plan evolved into a “people’s plan,” changing in form to address issues raised by residents. An examination of the record quickly causes the opposition’s stated objections to fall apart.

The reason we are voting on Measure B is politics.

When the individuals called Irvine Tomorrow became irritated by the City Council’s reduction of the permitted maximum number of homes in Village 38, they mounted the petition drive which led to this election. Their long-advocated agenda calls for a village of higher density and more subsidized housing, out of character with the rest of Irvine.

In approving Village 38, I believe that the City Council kept faith in the city’s tradition of sound planning, with details hammered out between competing interests.

It’s dangerous to vote “No” on Measure B. Voting “No” won’t stop traffic (even more people will be driving into Irvine to work); voting “No” won’t protect open space (all of the hills may now be available for development); voting “No” won’t even stop growth (more families will be forced to double-up in existing homes, disturbing the quality of life in established neighborhoods with more parked cars and traffic).

Planning our future is too important to become a political football to be tossed around (and fumbled) by individuals annoyed with representative government. We residents need to reject emotional grandstanding and support a more sensitive approach to growth management by voting “Yes” on Measure B.