Anaheim’s Sportstown: More Jobs, More Trash

The proposed Sportstown Anaheim project would worsen already bad air quality, add more garbage to rapidly growing landfills and could be a financial burden on local school districts because of new students, according to a report released Wednesday.

But the ambitious sports, entertainment, retail and office complex proposed earlier this month for land around Anaheim Stadium could also bring 3,879 new jobs to the city and an estimated 1,530 new residents, the report said. It would also improve landscaping and the general appearance of the area.

The predictions are included in a draft environmental impact report released Wednesday, as required by state law for major projects. It was prepared by Michael Brandman Associates in Irvine, a firm working under the supervision of Spectrum Group, which designed Sportstown.

The public will have 45 days to review the report and comment on it before the City Council considers it, a key step before the plans can move ahead. Officials expect to hear concerns from an array of regulatory agencies--and residents--and may adjust their plans for the project accordingly.

City officials said Sportstown would have less effect on the environment of the area than a previously approved office complex project on the same site that was never built because the market for office space turned sour.

“We are very confident that what we are proposing would not have a negative effect on the area,” City Manager James D. Ruth said. “We think it’s a great plan, very flexible. We will continue to look at it and address the issues.”

Sportstown Anaheim would occupy 159 acres of Anaheim Stadium property and eight acres at the southeast corner of State College Boulevard and Katella Avenue. The development would be divided into five districts, one of which would be anchored by a new football stadium.

Plans also call for the renovation of Anaheim Stadium, which would be turned back into a baseball-only facility; construction of a youth sports center called the “Little a,” as well as restaurants and hotels.

The project was conceived as a way to take full advantage of the stadium property, which has easy access to freeways and an Amtrak station.

Anaheim leaders have not disclosed the projected cost of Sportstown Anaheim, which would be built in stages over an unspecified amount of time. They have said they are counting on a partnership with private developers.

The report said increased traffic would be mitigated by adjusting traffic signals on nearby streets and providing shuttle bus service between Sportstown and the Disneyland area. Some intersections near the proposed complex would be widened.

But some negative effects would be difficult to resolve, the report said.

Among them is the impact on air quality in the area because of an anticipated increase in smog generated by additional cars.

The existing air quality already exceeds state and federal standards for smog because of traffic on the Pomona and Santa Ana freeways and local streets, including Katella, State College and Orangewood Avenue.

The project would also generate an estimated 1,949 tons of solid waste each year, an increase of 5.3 tons per day, which would stress landfills already nearing capacity. The report said developers would employ aggressive recycling programs to reduce the garbage flow.

The report also predicts a burden on local school districts even though the development doesn’t call for any additional housing.

Additional students may result because many hotel or restaurant employees could choose to move to the city to be closer to their jobs. Their children would attend the Anaheim Union High School District or Anaheim City School District, which might have to add classrooms to schools.

“Generally, people in those income brackets live closer to the site than if they were in upper management,” Anaheim Union High School District Supt. Cynthia F. Grennan said. “We will be looking at the [report] very, very carefully.”

The district’s current enrollment is 28,000 and would be able to add 3,600 students, Grennan said.

Officials at the rapidly growing Anaheim City School District, which has 18,311 students and is already experiencing overcrowding, declined to comment on the report Wednesday.

Both school districts sued Walt Disney Co. when a proposed development next to Disneyland, which is in the process of being downsized, threatened to overburden their schools.

Ruth said the city “will address any issues the schools raise. It isn’t like we’re creating a lot of houses.”

The report can be viewed at Anaheim City Hall and the following libraries: Canyon Hills Branch, Euclid Branch, Haskett Reading Center and Sunkist Branch.

Times correspondent Alan Eyerly contributed to this report.