Mayor Steps in It

During the Aug. 15 council meeting, Mayor Dave Leckness may have thought he was helping the developer, UDR, Inc., get the council’s support to build 320 apartments. A previous council majority approved 250 townhomes in 2005. Last month, the Planning and Transportation Commission approved the change to apartments with a 3-2 vote. Council Members Cathy Schlicht and Rhonda Reardon responded to residents’ objections to the new plan by appealing the commission’s decision.

At the beginning of the UDR item on Aug. 15, the city attorney advised council members it is their duty to come with an open mind and listen to both sides. He said any council member with a bias shouldn’t vote. The two sides were the developers’ team supporting the apartments and residents opposing the change.

Prior to hearing the developer or residents, Leckness spoke out by describing the deteriorating condition of the property. While he may have intended to condemn the property’s current condition, his comments were instead a condemnation of UDR, Inc. The developer has failed to maintain the building, landscaping and overall aesthetics of the site. Leckness described the graffiti on the building. The city pays for a graffiti hotline, which Leckness should have called.

UDR’s presenters complimented themselves on the way they manage their properties. However, UDR’s uncaring attitude is clear to the neighbors, the community and anyone else who has driven by their deteriorating property on Los Alisos during the past several years.

Thanks, Dave, for mentioning it.

The council majority rejected the residents’ pleas by voting 3-2 to reject the appeal. Additional articles about the project can be found here, here and here and at http://missionviejodispatch.com