SANTA ANA : Settlement Appears Near for Dispute

Although the Rancho Santiago College District has filed a lawsuit challenging Santa Ana’s redevelopment plan for the southwestern part of the city, officials from both sides said Friday that they hope to settle the dispute amicably within the next week.

The suit, filed Aug. 20 in Orange County Superior Court, challenges the validity of the so-called South Harbor plan, contending that the city redevelopment agency should have prepared an environmental impact report and should have examined the effects on area schools, including those in the community college district.

The suit must be resolved before the project, covering about 1,000 acres near Harbor Boulevard, can proceed.

City and college officials said the suit improves the college district’s bargaining position in negotiating for money generated by the redevelopment project.

The suit “was a formality to protect the district’s interests,” Rancho Santiago Chancellor Vivian Blevins said Friday. “We’re working to settle the issue.”

The city and district are now negotiating how much the district should receive of the $2.5 billion the project is expected to generate over 40 years. Bob Hoffman, city redevelopment and real estate manager, said that Santa Ana has offered the district between 3% and 4% of the revenue, which would total about $100 million.

So far, the city has reached preliminary agreements with other agencies, including the county and Santa Ana Unified School District, over the plan. Rancho Santiago is the sole holdout, Hoffman said.

He said that the suit surprised and disappointed city officials, adding: “We didn’t think it would have been necessary for them to sue us to get our attention. We thought we were negotiating in good faith. The lawsuit sends a contradictory message to us and the community in general.”

Hoffman said he hopes the two agencies settle the suit amicably, but he added that the city would scrap the redevelopment plan rather than fight in court.

“We honestly believe we have a real fair and reasonable offer on the table to them,” Hoffman said. “I think neither of us want to see it turn into a Hatfields and McCoys situation--litigated in the courts or negotiated in the newspapers. Ultimately, we’re both here to serve the same community, and we’re hopeful we can reach an agreement.”

Rancho Santiago board members said they are optimistic that the the matter can be resolved without pursuing the suit further.

“The bottom line is that we have an outstanding relationship with the city,” said board member Charles W. (Pete) Maddox. City Manager “Dave Ream and Vivian Blevins are working on some joint projects between the city and the district that we won’t jeopardize.”

Board member John Raya said the negotiations were “very close” to being settled, adding, “You can see the sun coming up over the horizon.”