MISSION VIEJO : City Declines to Buy Plot From Developer

The City Council this week declined to buy a two-acre plot of land, disappointing local environmentalists who had hoped the purchase would protect sensitive plant and animal species that they say live there.

The council decided in a closed-door meeting Tuesday not to buy the $1.5-million parcel, located off El Toro Road near Marguerite Parkway. The property owner required the council to decide on the purchase by today, and council members said they couldn’t make such a major financial decision in haste.

“It’s too difficult in these hard financial times to commit $1.5 million just like that,” said Councilman William S. Craycraft. “I would support putting this before the voters.”

Other council members agreed it might be best for city residents to decide on the purchase themselves by way of a ballot measure. The city may also obtain an appraisal on the property.

The Mission Viejo Co., which owns the land, imposed the deadline because it plans to grade another parcel across the street and needs a place to dump the earth.

The area has been the scene of environmental controversy in the past. Some residents objected strongly when the development company cut down vegetation nearby, saying the land was home to the California gnatcatcher, a songbird whose habitat is disappearing.

Last year, the Mission Viejo Co. gave the city 48 acres of property previously approved for a business park in the area. In exchange, the city rezoned nine acres of land on the south side of El Toro Road for commercial use.