SOUTH COUNTY : Cities Seek Site for Metrolink Station

The city councils of Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills and Laguna Niguel met for three hours last week to discuss proposed construction of a commuter rail station.

Council members quizzed a representative of Boyle Engineering, a firm hired to evaluate several site options, on parking, access and the economic impact of a future Metrolink station.

The site of the proposed $2.5-million rail stop would be in Mission Viejo or Laguna Niguel, between existing rail stations in San Juan Capistrano and Irvine.

The councils formed a delegation of the three mayors and three mayors pro tem to try to acquire county-owned land in Laguna Niguel at the end of Forbes Road, south of Crown Valley Parkway.

As an alternative, the Mission Viejo council will pursue possible sites in that city.

A preliminary estimate suggested that one parcel of land in Mission Viejo, located between Oso Parkway and La Paz Road, may be three times as expensive as the Laguna Niguel site.

“Laguna Niguel is a doable site,” said Mark Goodman, councilman from that city. “Let’s start today and go for it.”

The group reserved a final decision on the site.

The new station is designed for rail commuters in the Saddleback Valley who currently drive to the stations in San Juan Capistrano or Irvine. Officials hope to open the station by the end of 1993.

There is a daily Metrolink train operating between San Clemente and Union Station in Los Angeles.

Under current plans, Amtrak trains would not stop at the proposed rail station, officials said.

The estimated cost of building the station and a parking lot is $2.5 million plus at least $100,000 in annual maintenance.

Officials said some of the costs could be paid with $2.7 million in two state and county transportation grants.

The cities plan to choose a site by the end of the month and then meet again in February, said Patricia C. Bates, Laguna Niguel councilwoman.