New Study Ordered for Bolsa Chica Plan

Hard-fought plans for a housing development at the Bolsa Chica wetlands must undergo a new round of environmental scrutiny, under a judge’s order issued Thursday in a lawsuit brought by project critics.

Although Orange County government must review the project again, the order appears to be less sweeping than environmentalists had hoped.

During the court-required review, the public will be able to comment on only one piece of the Bolsa Chica proposal: the creation of a tidal inlet connecting the ocean with the environmentally sensitive wetlands next to Huntington Beach.

And, contrary to earlier predictions by project critics, the order does not invalidate the California Coastal Commission’s controversial January vote in favor of constructing 3,300 homes on and around the wetlands, the commission’s chief counsel, Ralph Faust, said Thursday evening.

The order was applauded by representatives of Orange County and landowner Koll Real Estate Group.

“We’re real happy with the results,” said Jack Golden, deputy county counsel.

Debbie Cook, an attorney for project critics, said she is pleased the court has ordered more study by county officials.

“They have to consider it all over again,” Cook said.

The proposed Bolsa Chica project has spawned some of the most virulent environmental debate seen in Orange County in decades. Many conservationists staunchly oppose building homes in the area, which is home to rare birds and ranks as the largest Southern California wetlands ecosystem still in private hands.

The written order from Superior Court Judge William F. McDonald formalized his courtroom ruling Feb. 16 in a lawsuit brought against the county by opponents of Koll’s planned housing development.

It had been eagerly awaited by those involved in the suit, who, as they have many times during the divisive Bolsa Chica debate, had found themselves in disagreement, this time over what the judge had really meant.

The suit claimed the county failed to review the project adequately before the Board of Supervisors approved it in late 1994. Bringing the suit was the Bolsa Chica Land Trust, the city of Seal Beach, the Gabrielino Shoshone Nation, Huntington Beach Tomorrow and the Sierra Club.

In his written order, McDonald agreed that the county “abused its discretion by failing to recirculate” a draft environmental impact report after the tidal inlet was added to the wetlands restoration planned with the housing project. He also concluded the project description was flawed.

McDonald is ordering the county to prepare a revised impact report to be reviewed by the public and acted on again by the county Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors.

But he added that the public should be notified that their comments “must be limited to the environmental effects of the project tidal inlet, its alternatives, and mitigation measures.”

Supporters of the inlet say that it would allow ocean water to flow more efficiently into the Bolsa Chica salt marshes. A dam built long ago blocked the natural tidal entrance, and ocean water now reaches the wetlands via a time-consuming route through Anaheim Bay and Huntington Harbor.

The new environmental review should be completed by late spring, said Lucy Dunn, the Koll group’s senior vice president. She said she does not expect it to delay the project.