Bring Peace to Land Battle

Environmentalists consider Saddleback Meadows as the Freddie Krueger of development projects--the mean-spirited bad guy who won’t die.

A development plan that surfaced 20 years ago fizzled after the landowner went bankrupt. A subsequent plan floated by a new owner sparked angry lawsuits that delayed development. A $12.2-million plan to buy and preserve the 230-acre tract unexpectedly collapsed amid angry finger-pointing by environmentalists and the developer.

Now, Orange County planners are reviewing a development plan that would allow 299 homes to be built in the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains.

The unique Southern California property sets developers to drooling and makes environmentalists see red when development is proposed.

The tract is the only link between two conservation districts encompassing tens of thousands of acres of open land dotted with vernal pools, coastal sage-scrub and oak trees. Such rare and endangered species as gnatcatchers, fairy shrimp and the cactus wren call it home, as does wildlife using it as a backwoods highway.

Twenty years of constant bickering and lawsuits is enough. Orange County should serve as an effective broker between developers and environmentalists. This is an important wildlife corridor in the Trabuco Canyon area. But it’s also land that, the county acknowledges, probably will see some form of development.

Exactly what level of development is the question that the county hasn’t responsibly answered. Two decades ago, the county approved plans for a mind-boggling 705 mobile homes. Three years ago, the county approved a plan for 299 homes--only to have a court toss out its environmental studies.

The developer now threatens to build the 705 mobile homes if its latest plan isn’t approved. Environmentalists huff that the developer is bluffing. The burden now shifts to the county, which must fashion a plan that protects the land and, absent a buyout by preservationists, lets the developer move forward on a reasonable project.

Orange County has an environmentally sophisticated populace that views overdevelopment as a threat. Too often, environmentalists embrace an all-or-nothing stance and developers forget that good land-use planning includes impacts on neighboring land.

It’s high time the county looked at the big picture and used its considerable power to craft a sensible solution. This isn’t an issue that should, once again, land in the courts.