El Toro Deal at Risk Over Park Funding

A deal to give Irvine control of the closed El Toro Marine base could unravel because state law prohibits a plan to use tax dollars generated by the base for parks elsewhere.

Orange County Supervisor Cynthia P. Coad, who cast the swing vote last week for Irvine’s bid to annex most of the 4,700-acre base, said if she doesn’t get the promised funds for parks in her district she will oppose Irvine’s annexation application.

The agreement struck by the county and the city calls for Irvine to divert property taxes from future development of the base to pay for new parks in north Orange County--up to $800,000 a year, according to Coad. But state law limits spending taxes from a redevelopment zone--the designation Irvine plans to give the property.

Major changes in redevelopment law passed by the Legislature in 1993 require that most property taxes generated by development at the base go to Irvine’s redevelopment agency. The funds could not be used on outside areas. The law also bars any agreement between Irvine and the county to share the tax money.

State law also establishes a formula for the county’s portion of future tax proceeds from El Toro--an amount that would be only a fraction of what Coad expected for county parks. The land generates no taxes now because it is federal property.

For example, if the base’s value rose $1 billion through redevelopment, the county’s portion of property taxes would be only $150,000, far less than what Coad expected the county would receive.

Parks Revenue Was Crucial for Coad’s Vote

Creating an annual revenue stream for park-poor North County was crucial for her vote, said Coad, who lives in unincorporated West Anaheim, where there is one acre of parkland per 100,000 residents.

She provided the pivotal third vote April 16 that would let Irvine take control of El Toro. She joined Supervisors Todd Spitzer and Tom Wilson. Supervisors Jim Silva and Chuck Smith voted no.

“I expect to see something in writing in two weeks,” Coad said Friday of the $800,000 a year Irvine promised, an amount she hoped would increase later. “It’s up to them to find a way.”

This latest El Toro wrinkle comes at a sensitive time for Irvine, which awaits an announcement Tuesday by the U.S. Navy on whether it will sell the base to private buyers.

Irvine wants the Navy to hand over the property in exchange for a portion of the sale of 440 acres at the base’s southern edge to be rezoned for 1,500 homes.

On a separate track, a Marine commandant said Friday he might recommend that the Navy delay its decision on the property until it can study a proposal to move the Marines’ West Coast boot camp from San Diego to El Toro.

Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James L. Jones has suggested taking 1,300 acres at El Toro to move recruits from San Diego, where they train on 388 acres next to San Diego’s overcrowded international airport. Doing so would require federal legislation, because the base is closed.

County supervisors on April 16 voted unanimously to support a training center at the base. Irvine has not taken a position on the proposal.

The city’s redevelopment plan would be based on zoning approved by county voters last month when they killed the county’s plans to build an airport at El Toro.

However, the city needn’t follow voter-approved zoning if it annexes the base.

Irvine’s bid to take control of the property rests on more than the Navy’s announcement Tuesday. The city must complete an environmental and financial review justifying the annexation and submit plans to the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission, a state-created agency that oversees incorporations and annexations. That would take five months, with the final commission vote expected in January.

Irvine’s quandary over finding money for North County parks comes at a tense time for city finances. Property owners last week approved a parcel tax that will generate $3.2 million a year to cover a projected shortfall in paying for existing parks and street maintenance.

And in November, Irvine residents will probably be asked to approve a bond measure so its schools can reinstate smaller class sizes in primary grades--after being the first district in the state to abandon popular class-size reductions because of money woes.

Irvine officials said Friday they are trying to put together a plan to honor the financial promise to Coad--whether the money comes from taxes or other sources. City Atty. Joel Kuperberg said he is confident there is at least one legal mechanism for Irvine to provide money for North County parks.

“When the county’s and city’s lawyers sit down and know what they want to accomplish, there’s at least one way to accomplish it,” he said.

“It’s unfortunate if this unravels,” said Fred Smoller, who heads the Henley Social Sciences Research Laboratory at Chapman University in Orange. The center’s last poll showed that parks and open space are a major issue for North County residents.

“Cynthia Coad obviously wants to leave a real legacy and to do the right thing.”

Spitzer Wanted State Funds for North County

Spitzer, who brokered the deal for Coad’s vote, said he was focused on his proposal to use part of the county’s state park bond money for North County--a one-time allocation of about $2 million for Coad’s Anaheim- and Fullerton-based district. Supervisors had been leaning toward spending the money in park-rich South County.

Coad suggested using property tax money, he said, which Irvine officials didn’t learn until she announced it at the board meeting. “From my point, I thought the selling point was the [park bond] money,” Spitzer said.

He said he didn’t consider the possibility that Irvine would create a redevelopment agency that would consume the tax money.

Coad said she wanted a way to guarantee annual park funding for North County and settled on property tax growth. Now, Spitzer agreed, the pressure is on Irvine to create a plan for delivering the money: “If it doesn’t happen, it’s a deal-breaker.”

Two other problems exist: If supervisors agreed to earmark the county’s share of tax money--whatever the amount--for North County parks, that agreement could be changed by any cash-strapped future board. Irvine also is limited in the kinds of funds it might promise the county in lieu of the base property tax because that could constitute an illegal gift of public funds.

The city could ask the Legislature to amend state law and allow the tax money to be shared, but that would face opposition, said Peter Detwiler, staff director of the Senate Local Government Committee. “In general, it would be a difficult bill and take a lot of legislative leadership to pull it off,” Detwiler said.