GARDEN GROVE : City Landscaping, Lighting Fees to Change Little From Last Year

After weeks of debate over plans to alter the city’s landscaping and lighting assessment rates, the council this week approved a fee structure that is nearly the same as last year’s.

Last month, the council rejected a plan that would have raised landscaping and lighting fees for business, industry and multifamily dwellings, while lowering fees for single-family homes. The proposal had raised the ire of business owners and landlords, who said their payments would rise exorbitantly.

Residents who supported the change, however, protested Tuesday that the council adopted an assessment that is even more unfair than the one it rejected.

“I think it comes from a very rushed and un-thought-out arrangement,” said Ray Littrell, who served on a citizens committee that helped develop the rejected plan. Mayor Bruce A. Broadwater, who favored the original proposal, voted to pass the the assessment last night, saying the fight had gone on long enough. “As much as I dislike this assessment,” he said, “I think there’s a time to stop beating a dead horse.”

The assessment will preserve most rates at the same level as last year but will reduce the amount the city collects by about $1,500, said City Manager George Tindall.