Ballot Box Zoning and Other Bogeymen
by Dale Tyler

You can always tell when an idea comes along that threatens a bureaucracy because those bureaucrats and politicians start decrying how bad the idea is. The more power they stand to lose, the more they will lie. The “Mission Viejo Right to Vote” initiative, on the June 8 ballot as Measure D, is one such idea. It provides a way for every voter to have the final say on major changes in our city's land-use policies.

Members of the opposition, led by Frank Ury, a city councilman, are doing their very best to mislead voters by using a series of falsehoods to describe Measure D. They use terms like “ballot box zoning” and “job killer” to describe Measure D.

Measure D is not ballot box zoning. Let's look at what “ballot box zoning” actually is. This term is correctly applied when the voters directly determine what zoning will apply to a specific property or class of properties without any recourse to the usual planning process. For example, if voters passed a law that said “The land at Main and Fifth Street shall be used to build a Costco,” that would be “ballot box zoning,” as there is no way for the city's planning department to enforce compliance with city standards because the right to build had already been conferred. In addition, if the Costco was not built, the land would be vacant.

Measure D takes the opposite approach. When a property owner wants to change the zoning of a parcel, they would first go to the Mission Viejo Planning Department and determine the city's limitations on that type of zoning, such as street setback, height limits or parking ratios. If the city's rules will meet the property owner's needs for the new use, the matter would be brought before the Planning Commission. A series of meetings would be held, including at least one Public Hearing, where members of the public could express their concerns and ask questions about the project. A series of Conditions would be placed on the development so that the new project would meet all of the City's standards. If the Planning Commission voted to approve the zoning change with all of the Conditions, then the matter would be considered by the City Council. Only if the Planning Department, Planning Commission and City Council all approved the zoning change, then the voters of Mission Viejo would vote on the zoning change at the next election, with all costs of the election paid by the property owner.

Measure D gives the voters the final say on zoning changes for projects that meet all of Mission Viejo's high standards for development. This means that we are deciding on changing zoning only, and we don't have to be experts on the details of how well the project will be built. We get to say if the property that was a golf course should be converted to high-density housing. We don't have to worry that the housing would be poorly constructed, if approved, because the project already passed through all of the usual steps that ensure anything built in Mission Viejo will meet or exceed our standards.

Another phrase that is used to obscure the reality of Measure D is the term “job killer.” In this case, nothing could be further from the truth. During the past 15 years, every major zoning change was in the direction of rezoning commercial property to high-density residential. As everyone knows, commercial property is used for businesses, which provide jobs and, in some cases, sales taxes to the city. When these properties were converted from commercial to residential, those conversions were “job killers.” Ury and his cronies, Kelley and MacLean, voted for two of these conversions, and so they are responsible for directly killing jobs.

Measure D would likely have stopped or significantly modified the job-killing conversions of commercial properties to residential approved by the last few city councils. In every case, the neighbors opposed the conversion on grounds of traffic, effects on schools and crime resulting from high-density development. So, Measure D will likely save jobs in Mission Viejo, based on the past 15 years of development in our city.

The opponents of Measure D also say that “businesses won't be able to expand” if Measure D is passed. In fact, there is no barrier to expansion of businesses in Mission Viejo as long as they don't need to tear down houses to build office buildings or other commercial space. When Mission Viejo was Master Planned, the planners in the Mission Viejo Company provided plenty of space for commercial uses. This has been sufficient to date, as there have been no conversions of residential property to commercial uses that I am aware of. This proves that there is no truth to labeling Measure D as a “job killer.”

In summary, Measure D is not “ballot box zoning” and is, in fact, a “job saver” for Mission Viejo. Please vote “Yes” on Measure D on June 8, 2010.

Project Grows Beyond Need
Letter to the Editor

Are Mission Viejo residents aware of the city’s tennis center project at Marguerite Parkway and Casta Drive? Those who live near the tennis center should be the first to ask if the project has grown beyond what is reasonable and responsible.

The tennis center serves 100-plus Mission Viejo members who pay to use this city-owned facility. Members asked for one additional tennis court, which was not an unreasonable request. However, the council majority and city staff turned it into a $4-million project: basketball courts near the creek, razing and reconstructing the building, adding parking lots, etc.

Plans include hauling in 4,000 truckloads of dirt to fill a ravine that’s part of the Or. Co. Flood Control System. The basketball courts are being built on private property owned by American Golf, in violation of CC&Rs limiting the property to golf use for 60 years. Why all this for one tennis court?

The council majority members already approved the $4 million cost, and they tried to avoid an Environmental Impact Report (EIR). The scope of the project alone calls for an EIR, particularly 4,000 truckloads of dirt impacting a flood control system.

Blog readers, please email the council (one email to reach all five) at khamman@cityofmissionviejo.org and ask for an EIR as due diligence to evaluate if this is a responsible plan.

Elizabeth Mimm
Mission Viejo

City Parallels Capo School District

Mission Viejo’s council majority members are ready to take on a new capital improvement project. During the May 3 meeting, they could give final approval to a $4-million renovation of the city-owned tennis club located near the southwest corner of Marguerite Parkway and Casta Drive.

Beginning with a modest request from tennis club members for one new court, the project has expanded considerably in scope and cost. Given the city’s history of project management, the cost of $4 million could double or triple by the time it’s finished. The council majority says the city has a record of keeping costs within budget. They keep this record intact by increasing the budget to whatever amount they end up spending,

The city’s first priorities should be taking care of essential public services and maintaining what it has, especially during uncertain economic times. Residents have repeatedly asked for focus on streets, slopes and safety. The city’s schedule of resurfacing streets on a seven-year cycle has proven seriously inadequate, and some city-owned slopes have been neglected for years.

To take on new projects while ignoring basics parallels the attitude of the Fleming-era Capistrano school board. The district overspent during good times and continued overspending as revenues fell. The former board forged ahead with a $50-million administration center and a $150-million high school, both in San Juan Capistrano, at the expense of maintaining existing facilities. After the old board members were either recalled or voted out, the new board had new buildings the district couldn’t afford, aging facilities in need of repair and a budget deficit of $7 million before the statewide financial crisis hit.

Particularly troubling with the city’s tennis center project is the city staff’s rush to get started when there’s no urgent need. Members of the tennis club asked for an additional court so they could hold tournaments. The city staff came up with an ambitious plan that includes demolition and reconstruction of an existing building, moving a parking lot, creating a new lot and adding an outdoor basketball court. Even the tennis club members objected to some of the plans, including the basketball court.

The list of objections from neighbors and other residents has grown with the scope of the project. The city also understated environmental issues, and members of the public now say they didn’t have ample opportunity to ask questions or challenge the plan. The starting date for the project is in September. Perhaps residents who live near the project will make their opinion known in the next election when three council seats will be up for grabs. Councilman John Paul Ledesma is termed out, and Council Members Trish Kelley and Dave Leckness are both likely contenders in the November 8 election.

KFI Radio Hosts Say Union Capitulated
Press Release from the Committee to Reform CUSD, WWW.CUSDrecall.com

With the nation watching, KFI radio hosts John & Ken confirmed that the teachers union capitulated: the strike in the Capistrano Unified School District is over. The reform board scored a victory for the students and taxpayers.

Click here to listen:
http://cusdrecall.com/page26/files/c2ac9332bc049d79300312c2a2585c17-243.html

Union leaders finally gave up their unreasonable demand that the contract cuts imposed by the Reform Board would expire automatically on a date certain. Unfortunately, they only did so after 2,200 teachers union members had abandoned their students and walked out on strike for three school days.

From John & Ken, KFI AM-640, April 27, 2010: "So the 10-percent decrease sticks for the next three years, and it's unlikely they're going to get any of the money back, which means the class sizes will remain the same, no teachers will be laid off ... But what really matters is that logic won, mathematics won ... what we kept saying all last week or two, 'When you're out of money, you're out of money,' and finally the union had to accept that."

"It did show you what the teachers are about, though. You've got to keep repeating this to the end of time. Teachers, when they're in their union, when they're in their union context, are not nice. They don't love kids, they don't care about the kids. They love themselves, they love their money and they love their benefits. They love their union group think. There are very few rebels in the union ... very few. Eighty-seven percent of the teachers voted to strike. Eighty-seven percent gave the middle finger to the students for three days. And so, eventually they settled for what? For exactly the deal they had ... a 10-percent cut."

CUSD Trustee Ken Lopez-Maddox spoke during John & Ken’s exclusive interview, saying, "We believe it's a victory for the kids in this district. We restored fiscal stability to the district, we held the lid on class-size increases and we charted out a new course for the district that, again, provides fiscal stability ... We're doing our level best to keep the doors open, provide a quality education and help them keep their jobs ... clearly, the fact finder agreed with that assessment..."

Listen by following the link:
http://cusdrecall.com/page26/files/c2ac9332bc049d79300312c2a2585c17-243.html

Congratulations to the Reform Board for standing firm for the good of the students, parents and taxpayers of CUSD.

The Buzz

The Mission Viejo Chapter of ACT for America will hold its monthly meeting on Mon., May 10. Doors open at 6:45 p.m., and the meeting starts at 7:30. Guest speaker will be Mano Bakh, who will speak for approximately 50 minutes, followed by Q & A. The meeting location is the Norm Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. Chapter leader Bruce Mayall sent the announcement, adding that the meeting is free and open to the public, but a $5 donation will be appreciated to help cover costs.

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Those who attended the 12th annual Fun With Chalk street painting event last weekend said the artwork on the pavement was fabulous and the weather was perfect. On other blogs, the artwork received great reviews, but the city’s three-ring circus activities were panned. Here’s a sample response to Larry Gilbert’s article on a county blog, Orange Juice, http://orangejuiceblog.com/2010/04/12th-annual-fun-with-chalk-street-painting-festival/#comments : “When driving by the chalk festival on Sunday, I saw a Pied Piper with followers trailing behind. It was Trish Kelley, Queen of Character, carrying paper chains and leading her “chain gang.” Ms. Character voted (along with Ury and MacLean) to give city manager Dennis Wilberg an amended contract that stated he cannot be fired if he is guilty of a felony. What felony did he commit that triggered this vote? The vote was so outrageous it should have been replayed on national TV.”

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How did so many other activities become attached to Fun With Chalk? An attendee emailed an opinion: “The commotion surrounding Fun With Chalk detracted from the artists and the street paintings. It looked to me like trying to combine all the old events of the past, plus some new unrelated things were added, which were distracting.”

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From a press release issued by the teachers union (CUEA) after ending the strike in the Capistrano Unified School District: “Victorious in their struggle to achieve a negotiated settlement, Capistrano teachers and their students will return to their classrooms Tuesday, April 27, ending CUEA’s five-day strike, the first such action by teachers in southern California in almost ten years” Just what did the union think it won? The major change in the negotiated settlement was an agreement to restore teachers’ pay cuts if the state gives the district an unexpected sum of money.

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Still needing help: Buzz readers are invited to support the wives of deployed Marines by contributing to gift baskets for the May 29 Camp Pendleton Appreciation Luncheon. Anyone wanting to help can donate items for a basket, money to support the effort or creating a gift basket. Suggested items include bath and hair products, gift certificates, jewelry, movie tickets and gift cards that can be redeemed at restaurants on the base. Please email cam.fam@cox.net for additional information. Please respond this week.

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What happened to the recall of two Capo school district trustees, Ken Lopez-Maddox and Mike Winsten? Those who were promoting the union-fueled recall said they would either succeed at gathering the required number of signatures by May 1 or stop the recall effort. No information has been released about the number of signatures gathered by May 1.

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From a Buzz reader: The ant and the grasshopper, new (and shortened) version. The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving. CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food. America is stunned by the sharp contrast. The EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer. The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, the ant’s home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper. The grasshopper and his free-loading friends finish up the last bits of the ant’s food while the government house he’s in, which happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it. The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again. The grasshopper dies in a drug-related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the once prosperous and once peaceful neighborhood. Moral of the story: be careful how you vote in 2010