Santa Ana Council Discusses Lawsuit Over Design of the Eastern Tollway
Division among the Orange County tollway agency members sharpened Monday when the Santa Ana City Council took the first step toward filing a lawsuit over approval of a highway through the county’s eastern foothills.
Spearheaded by Councilman Robert L. Richardson, the City Council in closed session discussed pursuing a legal battle after the agency board approved the $630-million Eastern tollway without guaranteeing that the leg closest to Santa Ana would be built first.
Richardson, a tollway agency board member, and representatives of the cities of Orange and Anaheim were outvoted by nine other agency board members when the tollway route was approved last week.
During a brief public discussion of the rift that has developed, Richardson told the council, “The only thing we had ever asked (the tollway agency) in seven years in participating in that project was making sure that the segment that benefits Santa Ana gets done first.”
Officials in the three dissenting cities are concerned that funding problems might prompt the agency to initially build the eastern leg.
Santa Ana officials also worry that if that occurs, it would spur business development at the Irvine Spectrum complex instead of in Santa Ana.
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