Shuffling of players in redevelopment game

Several surprising aspects of the skirmish over Old Towne redevelopment plans have emerged in recent days:

--A small band of citizens have organized to oppose the Town Center project as currently envisioned by the City Council. Their efforts might turn a supposed “done deal” into a classic David vs. Goliath confrontation, although Goliath still holds a clear advantage.

Opponents are heartened by a recent city survey showing slim public awareness of the Town Center plan. According to the survey, 51 percent of respondents had “not heard” of the plan, 33 percent knew “a little,” 10 percent “almost nothing” and 6 percent “a lot.”

Historical Conservancy President Ed Rakochy hopes to develop an informational and marketing strategy to inform, educate and engage the community. “Like Yogi Berra said, ‘It ain’t over ‘til it’s over,’” Rakochy writes on opponents’ http://www.ylforum.org/ Web site.

The city plans its own public relations push, including a colorful newsletter extolling the economic revitalization of the Main Street area as a gathering place for the community.

--Some business owners are worried about suggestions to “reposition” them to make way for more trendy shops. While the 1927 building housing Yorba Linda Hardware certainly will survive, its patrons might be ordering dinner rather than buying tools and toilet parts.

Other owners think the promise of more customers and greater visibility will result in higher rents; some longtime residents just don’t want to be forced out of the sleepy area; and others object to higher densities, low-income housing and ever-increasing traffic.

--The city’s role in using the threat of eminent domain to acquire property to sell to private developers doesn’t seem to faze the elected representatives of the county’s second-most Republican city (only slightly behind tiny Villa Park’s GOP majority).

In fact, usually conservative Councilman Jim Winder advocated a “loose construction” interpretation of the Constitution at the council’s Jan. 18 meeting. His suggestion that the definition of “public use” should change with the times is a standard liberal position.

A FINAL NOTE—Many Yorba Lindans express concerns about the campaign donations developers pass on to selected contenders for council and water board positions.

Usually, these donations flow to incumbents and candidates supported by incumbents and play a key role in helping recipients pay for expensive election-year mailings to voters.

Now, a major developer is honoring elected officials by donating money to charity.

Directors of the Yorba Linda Water District recently received a letter from the Make A Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles acknowledging a donation made in each of their names, sponsored by S and S Construction and Shapell Industries, Inc.