City to Address Controversial Plans to Build Homes on Remaining Coastal Open Space

A group of residents are leading a charge to tonight’s Seal Beach City Council meeting in search of answers from city leaders about the future of nearly 11-acres of coastal land known as the DWP property.

This weekend, residents and community leaders distributed fliers encouraging people to attend tonight’s meeting and question the wisdom of a March lawsuit settlement between the city and the property’s owners. After a year of opposing lawsuits between the city and Bay City Properties, the two brokered a deal in which the city would consider the developers’ proposal to build 48 homes on the land. In exchange, the city would pay Bay City Partners nearly $2 million and receive sewer, trail and beach access and 6.5 acres of open space. The exchange of open space and access to the first street beach parking lot is dependent on the developer’s housing project getting final approval from the California Coastal Commission.

It’s an agreement that doesn’t sit well with many residents, several of whom accused the council and the developers of betraying the community at a recent council meeting.

“There are a lot of people who feel that the council didn’t act in the best interest of the community,” said Seal Beach residents Mike Buhbe. “I’d like to see how Bay City Partners has gotten 48 lots instead of the (originally proposed) 39 lots.”

Should the project come to pass, Bay City Partners would get to build more houses then it originally set out to, and the city would pay $2 million to potentially end up with open space that could be contaminated from when it was used by the Department of Water and Power, said Buhbe.

“I would like to see documentation of remediation being done,” added Buhbe.

Known as the DWP property because it has been vacant for decades since it was last owned and used by the Department of Water and Power, development of the land has been one of the most divisive issues in Seal Beach in years. Zoned for a hotel, the Bay City Partners purchased the land in 2003 and determined that a small hotel would not be profitable. The developers sought to build 39 homes upon the land sandwiched between First Street and the San Gabriel River, incurring the ire of many in the community who wanted the land largely preserved as open space.

Seal Beach initiated proceedings to take land from Bay City using eminent domain, and the real estate group sued the city over its plans for a trails project along portions of the land. That’s when a judge ordered the city and Bay City Partners to enter into arbitration.

After facing a crowd of residents upset about the settlement at a recent council meeting, Councilwoman Ellery Deaton stated that her intention in agreeing to the deal was simply to bring the matter out from behind the closed doors of legal maneuverings and into the public light. The project will have to go through several public phases such as Planning Commission and City Council meetings before it will be approved. She encouraged residents to voice their concerns about the project at a June 20 scoping meeting with the consultants who will complete the project’s environmental impact report.

At tonight’s City Council meeting, Planning Director Mark Persico will give a presentation outlining the specifics of the settlement agreement.

“It should be noted that a settlement agreement is different than a development agreement,” Persico wrote in his staff report for the meeting. “A settlement agreement typically settles a dispute, where a development agreement authorizes development of a project. In this case, the settlement agreement resolved litigation and does not commit the City to any action except a “good faith” review of BCP’s proposed project.”

Tonight’s City Council meeting is 7 p.m. at City Hall, 211 8^th Street.