Costa Mesa approves Fairview plan with fewer units, more open space and sparing golf course, for now
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After bringing the public into the process for envisioning housing at Fairview Developmental Center — and wrestling with the many concerns and objections that inclusion presented — Costa Mesa leaders have finally approved a plan to guide development of the site.
And it’s not the concept most people heading into Tuesday’s city council meeting had assumed was a fait accompli, but rather a directive that reduces the size and scope of building, increases open space and potentially spares a public golf course while preserving the city’s recently approved housing element.
That last point is important, as Costa Mesa attempts to extricate itself from a lawsuit filed by the state against the city in July for not having certified a housing plan, a significant aspect of which was adoption of a Fairview Developmental Center Specific Plan.
Councilmembers ostensibly cleared that hurdle Tuesday, unanimously approving a plan that allows up to 2,300 units of housing, 920 of which are to be designated for low- and very low-income occupants, a range of 10,000 to 35,000 square feet of commercial development and 25 units of open space.
It may sound like a big footprint for an 80-acre portion of the site, but it’s a far cry from the staff recommendation of 4,000 units and 14 acres of open space — a figure determined to be financially feasible for a developer, while still delivering enough affordability to conform with the housing element.
The adopted plan also spares, for now, the Mesa Linda golf course at the city-owned Costa Mesa Country Club, a community asset that would have been segmented by a secondary access road, required should the unit count at Fairview exceed 2,300.
And that could happen, thanks to a mechanism put in place by the state that allows developers who exceed certain affordability thresholds to exercise density bonuses to build beyond municipal maximums.
A plan guiding the construction of up to 4,000 residential units on an 80-acre portion of the state-owned site is dividing Costa Mesa residents, officials.
Mayor John Stephens, who made Tuesday’s motion after the council had logged two more hours of public comment, explained his desire to keep the golf course whole by not only by sticking to the 2,300 units described in the housing element, but by directing city staff to continue to explore the option of making tiny Merrimac Road at the north end of the property a potential candidate for secondary access.
The state — which owns the entire 115-acre Fairview property and established a 15-acre carve-out by Merrimac to run housing for developmentally disabled adults — has insisted the thoroughfare remain private. But, offering his own comments Tuesday, Stephens was hopeful.
“It’s just too important to the community,” the mayor said of the facility, which generated $4.2 million in revenue last year. “There are 90,000 rounds of golf played there every year. I just think it would be extremely irresponsible to vote for a cut-through of our golf course when we don’t have any information about the cost of the impact.”
The motion included other provisions, such as suggesting a potential $30-million cleanup of asbestos and lead contamination observed on the property, leftover from decades of use as a state-owned hospital, be potentially borne by the state and the formation of a citizens group and council ad-hoc committee to oversee site-specific issues over what could be a 20-year buildout period.
Tuesday’s vote, and its deviation from the staff recommendation, seems to reflect an effort to address resident concerns delivered at multiple outreach meetings, most notably a townhall forum in July and an informal Sept. 3 discussion convened by Stephens at the Norma Hertzog Community Center.
The mayor apologized for not doing more to bring residents into the fold of the plans sooner.
“To the extent my leadership has failed us in terms of getting community information [out] earlier in the process, I’m sorry about that,” he said.
Mayor Pro Tem Manual Chavez, who seconded Stephens’ motion ahead of a vote, supported lowering the total unit count while preserving affordability levels.
“I know we need more housing,” he said. “[But] it’s not my duty to make this profitable for a developer. It is my duty to hear the residents, address those concerns and to advocate for as much housing as we possibly can within the site.”
Councilmember Mike Buley, who’s criticized the state mandate for Costa Mesa to plan for 11,760 residential units by 2029, said hashing out the details of a Fairview housing plan has raised significant quality-of-life issues, both for existing homeowners concerned about maintaining the city’s character and those needing affordable options.
“I think [this plan] is creative,” Buley said of lowering the overall number of units to give the city options in the event a developer seeks a density bonus. “When you trigger beyond 2,300 (units) that’s going to [require] secondary access, and that’s when negotiations and things are going to begin.”
Councilmember Arlis Reynolds agreed the process has been a bit of a balancing act and a timely one, considering an estimated one-half of Costa Mesans are paying more than 30% of their income on housing.
“There are a lot of tradeoffs in this project, but a driving force from the beginning is looking for opportunities for affordable housing,” Reynolds said. “Having stable, affordable housing is foundational to having a better life in Costa Mesa — [and] 50% of our population needs that.”
