Comparing councils--and densities--of early years, today
When the next history of Yorba Linda is written, two City Councils will receive prominent attention because of actions they took to shape the community for many years into the future.
The city’s two key governing bodies will include the second council, which was elected in 1970, and the current council, whose members were first selected in the 2000 and 2002 elections.
A three-man majority elected to the second council is largely responsible for establishing the city’s low-density environment. People who moved to Yorba Linda within the last 30 years to enjoy the city’s semi-rural lifestyle can thank Rudy Castro, George Machado and Hank Wedaa.
The trio worked to develop the city’s low-density General Plan, approved by voters in 1972. That balloting also added Dale Chaput and Carolyn Ewing to form a unanimous low-density council.
A plaque recognizing the late Machado as "the driving force behind our city’s General Plan, designed for the citizens, so Yorba Linda would always be a good place to live" was placed at a trail rest stop near the southeast corner of Imperial Highway and Casa Loma Avenue in 1976.
As councils added more land to the once-tiny city, they made some compromises regarding density. But most of the annexed areas to the east and north maintained low-density levels.
A larger city drew more developer interest, and municipal elections increasingly were dominated by candidates whose growth policies brought in big donations from builders and their many allies.
Today’s council members include Allen Castellano, Mike Duvall, Ken Ryan and Jim Winder, first elected in 2000, and Keri Wilson, elected as Ryan’s running-mate in 2002. They’re altering the city’s long-standing, low-density zoning – especially in the town’s western and central regions.
With little new land to develop, the council’s attention has turned to urbanizing the downtown area and adding high-density projects to many west-end parcels.
The Town Center plan now involves high-density housing, huge new commercial developments and "repositioning" current businesses, as well as proposals to needlessly relocate the Fire Station, City Hall and maybe even the Yorba Linda Library.
Council members promise to preserve historic structures.
Yet they don’t realize Yorba Linda’s true heritage isn’t only the old buildings but also the low-density lifestyle long enjoyed by residents. The council visualizes a more urban environment as economically beneficial for the long-term.
Council members would better serve Yorba Linda’s heritage by abandoning their eminent-domain authority and limiting downtown density levels to the city’s high-end range of 15 units per acre. Such actions would build genuine, wide-spread community support for their Town Center plans.
A FINAL NOTE
Are you wondering if you'll like the new look of Yorba Linda's new urban environment?
Drive by the new food court at Yorba Linda Boulevard and Lakeview Avenue and visit the 41 Presidential Walk homes built on less than five acres of land just south of the post office.
You'll see north Orange County's last low-density downtown area rapidly receding into history.
The city’s two key governing bodies will include the second council, which was elected in 1970, and the current council, whose members were first selected in the 2000 and 2002 elections.
A three-man majority elected to the second council is largely responsible for establishing the city’s low-density environment. People who moved to Yorba Linda within the last 30 years to enjoy the city’s semi-rural lifestyle can thank Rudy Castro, George Machado and Hank Wedaa.
The trio worked to develop the city’s low-density General Plan, approved by voters in 1972. That balloting also added Dale Chaput and Carolyn Ewing to form a unanimous low-density council.
A plaque recognizing the late Machado as "the driving force behind our city’s General Plan, designed for the citizens, so Yorba Linda would always be a good place to live" was placed at a trail rest stop near the southeast corner of Imperial Highway and Casa Loma Avenue in 1976.
As councils added more land to the once-tiny city, they made some compromises regarding density. But most of the annexed areas to the east and north maintained low-density levels.
A larger city drew more developer interest, and municipal elections increasingly were dominated by candidates whose growth policies brought in big donations from builders and their many allies.
Today’s council members include Allen Castellano, Mike Duvall, Ken Ryan and Jim Winder, first elected in 2000, and Keri Wilson, elected as Ryan’s running-mate in 2002. They’re altering the city’s long-standing, low-density zoning – especially in the town’s western and central regions.
With little new land to develop, the council’s attention has turned to urbanizing the downtown area and adding high-density projects to many west-end parcels.
The Town Center plan now involves high-density housing, huge new commercial developments and "repositioning" current businesses, as well as proposals to needlessly relocate the Fire Station, City Hall and maybe even the Yorba Linda Library.
Council members promise to preserve historic structures.
Yet they don’t realize Yorba Linda’s true heritage isn’t only the old buildings but also the low-density lifestyle long enjoyed by residents. The council visualizes a more urban environment as economically beneficial for the long-term.
Council members would better serve Yorba Linda’s heritage by abandoning their eminent-domain authority and limiting downtown density levels to the city’s high-end range of 15 units per acre. Such actions would build genuine, wide-spread community support for their Town Center plans.
A FINAL NOTE
Are you wondering if you'll like the new look of Yorba Linda's new urban environment?
Drive by the new food court at Yorba Linda Boulevard and Lakeview Avenue and visit the 41 Presidential Walk homes built on less than five acres of land just south of the post office.
You'll see north Orange County's last low-density downtown area rapidly receding into history.
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 PM
