IRVINE : Council Ponders Fate of Charities Center

The City Council tonight may decide what to do with the Multiservices Center, a city-owned building that is home to about two dozen social service groups and charities.

The city loses $65,000 a year operating the center. Some officials have suggested closing it and scattering the tenants to other city offices.

The nonprofit agencies oppose the idea and say the city is best served by clustering its major charities in one location.

The agencies--which provide such services as child care, drug-prevention classes, temporary housing and family counseling--pay rents far below market rates at the center, which is located on Jamboree Road.

Agency officials said that by arranging the groups in one location, the city has created a “synergy” that allows clients to get information about the various services available in the building.

The City Council earlier this month asked city budget officials for more information on where the agencies would be moved if the council decided to close the center. Some city finance commissioners suggested moving the agencies to empty offices in City Hall and offices in the maintenance yard.

But there is not enough city office space for all the charities. Some groups would be forced to rent office space elsewhere.

In addition to the operating losses, the Multiservices Center needs earthquake retrofitting and $400,000 worth of repairs to the air conditioning system.

Also this evening, the council will discuss the fate of the Buffalo Ranch. The Irvine Co. and Orange County Fair Board are now considering a plan to move buildings at the one-time amusement park to the fairgrounds. Some preservationists oppose the move, saying the ranch should stay intact.