Cities Striving to Build a Sense of Community

In an area where the most identifiable buildings are shopping malls, something is missing in south Orange County cities.

Developers filled the Saddleback Valley with bedroom communities and retail centers during the late 1980s and early ‘90s housing boom, but the landmarks that give a city its sense of place--the cultural centers, civic center complexes, meeting halls--were missing.

Cognizant of the need, most of the new cities that incorporated between 1987 and 1991 are planning or building town centers.

“I think our communities are identified by their malls,” said Melody Carruth, a former Laguna Hills council member. “Our citizens gather at the Claim Jumper [restaurant] and pizza places to meet and talk about things. People in Laguna Hills just want a place to connect with each other.”

In Laguna Hills, the City Council recently approved a $20-million recreation/library complex. Consultants are being interviewed to create plans to redevelop El Toro Road, where Lake Forest City Manager Robert Dunek hopes to find room for a city hall.

From her beauty supply shop in Mission Viejo, Brenda Rome has watched the future library--where a city hall is also being planned next door--rise from the ground in recent months.

“That was always the dream for a lot of people who live here, to see that town center come in,” said Rome, a 22-year resident. “Now it’s a dream that’s coming true.”

Between 1987 and 1991, five south county communities--Mission Viejo, Dana Point, Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel and Laguna Hills--broke away from county rule. In separate elections, residents voted overwhelmingly for incorporation.

However, since the spate of incorporation, none of the five cities has built a city hall or library, although Mission Viejo has started work on its library. Some blame the county for allowing developers to build without setting aside land for future civic uses.

“Having acreage set aside for parks, city hall, recreation facilities and parks wasn’t important to the county,” said Carruth, the former Laguna Hills official. “The supervisors responsible for planning never recognized the development of south county as a region [that would someday] form several cities.”

Mission Viejo Co. spokeswoman Wendy Wetzel Harder said her company carried out a planning strategy from the 1960s that intentionally spread out amenities such as central area for shopping, cultural events and city services.

“The thought was to try to put neighborhood shopping centers and parks within a mile or two of every residence,” she said. “In that, we let the town create itself.”

Open space was set aside throughout Mission Viejo for a civic center, including the parcel where city officials now plan to build a city hall complex, she said.

Yet, newly incorporated city governments were not handed vast stretches of land to create town centers. The new cities were already over 90% built when they incorporated and city officials now scramble to find open space to meet the demand for parks and youth sports fields.

Dana Point purchased the office complex where City Hall is located for $4.05 million and interim City Manager Dayle Keller says city offices will remain there.

Although it won’t be a civic center complete with City Hall and library, Dana Point is focusing on an area about a mile east of City Hall as the future focal point of the community.

Known as Town Center, civic leaders are working on a plan that envisions turning a hodgepodge of shops gathered around Pacific Coast Highway and Golden Lantern into a pedestrian promenade that leads to scenic Dana Point Harbor.

Along with a cosmetic redesign of storefronts to make the area attractive, city officials hope that a full-fledged “downtown Dana Point” will emerge to attract locals and tourists.

“We wanted to set it up so people can enjoy walking” through Town Center, said Keller. “It’s designed to be the hub of town.”

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The gathering point for Laguna Hills also will lack a City Hall. But for $20 million, residents will be seeing a lot of amenities at Alicia Parkway and Paseo de Valencia.

There will be several badly needed youth athletic fields. The city will also build a gymnasium that will have community meeting rooms and a new library. Laguna Hills is the only Orange County city without its own library.

Although a civic center complex is further off for Laguna Niguel and Lake Forest, both cities are working on development plans that could include a town center.

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Getting Centered

Mission Viejo and Laguna Hills will spend more than $26 million to give their cities a physical and spiritual “center”: 1. Mission Viejo’s estimated $6.5-million library will be 27,500 square feet, including meeting rooms. A City Hall is also planned for the site.

2. Laguna Hills has approved a $20-million recreation complex to house a gymnasium, library, meeting rooms, athletic fields and park.

Source: Individual cities; Researched by FRANK MESSINA / For The Times