Art Simonian and low-density blocs ruled 1970s
(Part 2 of a five-part series)
Yorba Linda’s direction as a city really took hold after the second municipal election in 1970 brought a new low-density, slow-growth majority to the City Council. That three-vote majority became unanimous with the election of two more adherents in a spirited 1972 contest.
The 1970 charge was led by low-density advocate George Machado, who earlier was dumped from the first Planning Commission for his slow-growth stance. He was joined by colleagues Rudy Castro and Hank Wedaa, and they immediately began to institute changes.
High on the agenda was a new General Plan, opposed by many large landowners because it down-zoned their property, making the land less valuable to developers. The plan squeaked through the council on a 3-2 vote and was affirmed by voters in a ’72 referendum vote, 2,317 to 1,902.
Among the opponents of the low-density drive was Yorba Linda’s first city manager, Darrel Dalton, who resigned after the 1970 election to take a job with a development firm. Dalton helped lead the failed campaign to ax the plan on the ’72 ballot and lost his bid for a council seat.
According to Machado, the low-density plan was essential to Yorba Linda’s survival.
In 1967, incorporation proponents promised no city property taxes. And Machado thought a low-density city would need fewer police, fire and other services, thus staving off the dreaded tax.
But the new zoning rules created practical problems, such as delaying the annexation of additional eastside land into the city. Developers continued to examine Anaheim’s promises of smaller lots, and county officials didn’t think much of Yorba Linda’s low-density desires.
The ’72 election added Dale Chaput and Carolyn Ewing to the Castro-Machado-Wedaa bloc, but new divisions slowly developed between “no-growth” and “slow-growth” advocates. And some residents began questioning the wisdom of heated debates over 2.75 versus 3.25 units per acre.
While some council members wanted to build a figurative fence around the city and maintain the ’72 boundaries, other members worked to preserve the semi-rural lifestyle by adding more eastside land and applying the city’s low-density, General Plan standards to a larger area.
As the decade wore on, “no-growth” individuals either left the council or adopted a more moderate “slow-growth” stance, and land for the future Eastlake Village project was annexed.
An unintended consequence of the delay in adding eastside property was to create more pressure on the city’s west side, with more people moving in to enjoy the semirural environment.
A major influence on most of the council members of the ’70s – and on their attitudes toward growth – was Art Simonian, who began his record 27-year tenure as city manager in January 1972.
Simonian taught the elected representatives that they might have to compromise to get development to occur in the city at a better standard than if it were left under county regulations.
One of Simonian’s key contributions came in the wake of the statewide passage of Proposition 13 in 1978. Yorba Linda never adopted a city property tax, a selling point that many real estate agents touted in their ads during the ’70s, which like today was an era of ever-increasing home values.
The ballot proposition eliminated the City Council’s ability to institute a property tax, and, for a time, some leaders seriously questioned the future financial stability of the rapidly growing city.
Simonian’s solution involved lobbying Sacramento for special state legislation, which rewarded Yorba Linda with a 10 percent share of all property tax revenue collected in the city.
About $1.5 million was added to city coffers the first year the legislation was effective, and currently nearly $5 million of city revenues comes from the annual property tax allocation.
Simonian’s practical policy of compromise also influenced other individuals elected to the city’s governing body in the ’70s, including Rob Cromwell, Irwin Fried and Doug Groot. And while low-density guidelines remained firmly in place, the council undertook more negotiations with developers.
A FINAL NOTE
Today, many residents who remember the low-density debates of the 1970s are dismayed by the current Council’s actions of stuffing more apartments and small-lot homes in the original Old Town area and envisioning more high-density apartments for the Town Center.
With election challengers Ed Rakochy and Mike Burns questioning the Town Center redevelopment and eminent domain decisions of incumbents Allen Castellano, Mike Duvall and Jim Winder – all seeking second terms on the Nov. 2 ballot – debates about density again will be a major campaign issue.
Yorba Linda’s direction as a city really took hold after the second municipal election in 1970 brought a new low-density, slow-growth majority to the City Council. That three-vote majority became unanimous with the election of two more adherents in a spirited 1972 contest.
The 1970 charge was led by low-density advocate George Machado, who earlier was dumped from the first Planning Commission for his slow-growth stance. He was joined by colleagues Rudy Castro and Hank Wedaa, and they immediately began to institute changes.
High on the agenda was a new General Plan, opposed by many large landowners because it down-zoned their property, making the land less valuable to developers. The plan squeaked through the council on a 3-2 vote and was affirmed by voters in a ’72 referendum vote, 2,317 to 1,902.
Among the opponents of the low-density drive was Yorba Linda’s first city manager, Darrel Dalton, who resigned after the 1970 election to take a job with a development firm. Dalton helped lead the failed campaign to ax the plan on the ’72 ballot and lost his bid for a council seat.
According to Machado, the low-density plan was essential to Yorba Linda’s survival.
In 1967, incorporation proponents promised no city property taxes. And Machado thought a low-density city would need fewer police, fire and other services, thus staving off the dreaded tax.
But the new zoning rules created practical problems, such as delaying the annexation of additional eastside land into the city. Developers continued to examine Anaheim’s promises of smaller lots, and county officials didn’t think much of Yorba Linda’s low-density desires.
The ’72 election added Dale Chaput and Carolyn Ewing to the Castro-Machado-Wedaa bloc, but new divisions slowly developed between “no-growth” and “slow-growth” advocates. And some residents began questioning the wisdom of heated debates over 2.75 versus 3.25 units per acre.
While some council members wanted to build a figurative fence around the city and maintain the ’72 boundaries, other members worked to preserve the semi-rural lifestyle by adding more eastside land and applying the city’s low-density, General Plan standards to a larger area.
As the decade wore on, “no-growth” individuals either left the council or adopted a more moderate “slow-growth” stance, and land for the future Eastlake Village project was annexed.
An unintended consequence of the delay in adding eastside property was to create more pressure on the city’s west side, with more people moving in to enjoy the semirural environment.
A major influence on most of the council members of the ’70s – and on their attitudes toward growth – was Art Simonian, who began his record 27-year tenure as city manager in January 1972.
Simonian taught the elected representatives that they might have to compromise to get development to occur in the city at a better standard than if it were left under county regulations.
One of Simonian’s key contributions came in the wake of the statewide passage of Proposition 13 in 1978. Yorba Linda never adopted a city property tax, a selling point that many real estate agents touted in their ads during the ’70s, which like today was an era of ever-increasing home values.
The ballot proposition eliminated the City Council’s ability to institute a property tax, and, for a time, some leaders seriously questioned the future financial stability of the rapidly growing city.
Simonian’s solution involved lobbying Sacramento for special state legislation, which rewarded Yorba Linda with a 10 percent share of all property tax revenue collected in the city.
About $1.5 million was added to city coffers the first year the legislation was effective, and currently nearly $5 million of city revenues comes from the annual property tax allocation.
Simonian’s practical policy of compromise also influenced other individuals elected to the city’s governing body in the ’70s, including Rob Cromwell, Irwin Fried and Doug Groot. And while low-density guidelines remained firmly in place, the council undertook more negotiations with developers.
A FINAL NOTE
Today, many residents who remember the low-density debates of the 1970s are dismayed by the current Council’s actions of stuffing more apartments and small-lot homes in the original Old Town area and envisioning more high-density apartments for the Town Center.
With election challengers Ed Rakochy and Mike Burns questioning the Town Center redevelopment and eminent domain decisions of incumbents Allen Castellano, Mike Duvall and Jim Winder – all seeking second terms on the Nov. 2 ballot – debates about density again will be a major campaign issue.
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 AM
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