O.C. Supervisors OK Plans for Rancho Mission Viejo

Clearing the first major hurdle for building homes and businesses on Orange County’s largest remaining swath of privately owned open space, the Board of Supervisors on Monday unanimously approved development plans for the 23,000-acre Rancho Mission Viejo.

The decision means the land’s owner could eventually build as many as 14,000 homes, commercial and community facilities on 380 acres, and 25 acres of golf courses on the south Orange County property.

Under the plan, nearly two-thirds of the land would remain open space.

Once the development was complete, the majority of Orange County would either be developed or marked for conservation.

The county’s last significant piece of undeveloped land and its sheer size have attracted intense public scrutiny since plans were introduced 12 years ago.

On Monday, more than 300 people attended the standing-room-only meeting in Santa Ana. Many urged supervisors to approve the development, saying it strikes a fair balance between development and conservation.

Others asked the board to postpone the decision until state and federal agencies have completed environmental studies.

The California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are expected to complete those studies next year and have cautioned the county against moving ahead with the zoning changes approved Monday.

“This is the last big development” in Orange County, said Brittany McKee, a conservation organizer for the Sierra Club. The supervisors “have an obligation to the public to do it right. What’s the rush?”

There is no rush, county planning officials said. The land has undergone years of environmental studies, they said, and the zoning changes are compatible with the findings so far.

They also pointed out that the developers must clear several other governmental hurdles, giving ample opportunity to adjust construction plans.

The county must still review specific community plans and grant building permits, and federal and state agencies must issue environmental permits.

Under a development agreement also approved by the board Monday, Rancho Mission Viejo would pay about $144 million to improve traffic flow on roads surrounding the project.

Some project opponents said they would sue to reverse the county’s approval.

“Unfortunately, we are likely to end up in court,” McKee said. “This project is not the best deal for Orange County.”