LAGUNA HILLS : City Backs Plan for Nearby Rail Station

The City Council voted this week to support plans for a commuter rail station in neighboring Laguna Niguel, although council members said that it does not necessarily extend to lending financial help.

With a 4-0 vote, the council joined its counterparts in Laguna Niguel and Mission Viejo in endorsing the county-owned land on Forbes Road just south of Crown Valley Parkway as the best location for the station.

Council members said that while providing funds for the station was not out of the question, they agreed that a financial commitment would have to wait until there is more information about the project’s construction and maintenance costs.

Councilman R. Craig Scott abstained from the vote because his home is near the proposed site.

The Mission Viejo City Council also voted this week to support the station and suggested that all three cities share the costs. Early estimates by officials put construction costs at $3.2 million. Annual maintenance costs were estimated at $100,000.

The Laguna Niguel location was given the nod by the three cities because it would be far less expensive to develop there than the other leading site, which is near the intersection of Cabot Road and Paseo De Valencia in Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills City Manager Bruce Channing said.

The three cities, which met in January to examine the project, had been considering four sites for the station--three in Mission Viejo and the one in Laguna Niguel. Laguna Hills was invited to participate in the discussions because of the proximity of the proposed station to the city and the likely benefit to Saddleback Valley residents.

Officials with the Orange County Transportation Authority, which has earmarked $1.3 million for the station and has final say on where it is located, said they would allow the three cities to work out the location.