Anaheim City Council votes 3 to 2 in favor of Zoning change in the Resort Area

[Darkbeer]

The April 24th, 2007 Anaheim City Council meeting started at 5 PM, and lasted until past midnight. 27 speakers from each side of the issue spoke, and Lucille Kring decided to vote with Lorri Galloway and Bob Hernandez to allow the SunCal Companies to continue to approach the council in regards to building housing with a low-cost housing (15%) element. Mayor Curt Pringle and Harry S. Sidhu, P.E. voted to deny the changes.

One main point brought up in the long night, SOAR (Save Our Anaheim Resort) which is mainly businesses in the Resort Area, including Disney, did get the 20,000 signatures needed for an city initative to force a vote on any zoning change.

So the battle in regards to the zoning change is far from over....

More later.... (Yes, I was there for the entire council meeting)

[bloodnswash]

This should be very interesting to watch. And possibly a little scary.

[Promo-Man]

I watched the whole thing on my computer lastnight.

[dsnydon]

When will these idiot people in Anaheim get There would be be no Anaheim without Disneyland Where do they think the tax dollars come from

[VickiC]

So the city should just roll over and do whatever Disney wants?

The city is responsible to their citizens, who all vote on an equal basis. Not to whoever pays the most taxes.

[Darkbeer]

^And the initiative will allow just that, the Citizen to vote on the possible changes.

It basically was the Unions vs Business last night, and many of the "for zoning change" were being paid by their union to attend the meeting and speak at the meeting.

Currently Anaheim has the most Affordable Housing units in Orange County (8,000 compared to 1,500 in Santa Ana (2nd place). They also have a Strategic Plan for more housing.

[PhiSigDuchessCV]

I'd love to know how much these "affordable" housing units are going to be. There has been a battle in the San Pedro area over the surplus Navy housing that a developer bought. He keeps saying he will be including "affordable, low income" housing. However his definition is different then mine. If I recall correctly the lowest price is in the mid $400 thousands. I know the newspaper said that a couple would have to make over $120,000 per year just to barely afford to buy one of these places and have no other expenses.

The Disney employees who spoke out about wanting to have affordable housing I don't think would get paid enough to move in to these new units that may be built buy Disney.

[Park Freak]

I can't fathom why anybody would want to live that close. Even us Disney 's!!
Imagine all the noise and traffic. But I guess....If they build them....they will come.

[Burnt Toast]

The only unfortunate thing is that Anaheim got scammed into the housing developer's idea of "affordable housing". I think it's a shame that even a few Cast Members (ones who spoke in favor at the meeting) were fooled into thinking that the "affordable housing" will cater to them... when anyone with common sense knows that these "affordable housing" units will be priced well out of any Cast Member's price range.

The fact that the unions paid for these Cast Members to speak for them and try to push for this sham puts it in perspective right there.

I would bet that a one-bedroom "affordable housing" unit will cost more per month then my two-bedroom unit in Stanton does.

[simnia]

Imagine all the noise and traffic.

The traffic there on Ball Road at Parc Anaheim / Travelers World isn't too bad, especially if you're off the road a little ways. It *is* bad at the corner of Ball & Harbor though: ambulances, motorcycles, and trucks wailing and rattling all night long. If you want really bad noise, try living on the second floor of housing that puts you above I-5's sound wall.

I agree that "affordable" in this context is ridiculous. There's no house or condo anywhere within a mile of that area that's under $400,000, I don't think, whether old or new, small or large. CMs working at Disneyland are typically young, seasonal employees going to school on the side who are neither working full-time nor making professional salaries. Maybe some professionals at Disneyland--computer programmers, artists, managers, etc.--might be making enough to afford that kind of housing, but I suspect they are a small percentage of the CMs. And Parc Anaheim is going to have only about 20% of "affordable" housing anyway, if I recall correctly. All the terminology being used in this issue is ridiculous.

[Darkbeer]

FYI, the City of Anaheim has plans to build an additional 1,328 Affordable Housing units in the next 4 years that is not related the Mobile Home park.

http://www.anaheim.net/departmentfol...ategicPlan.pdf

I am for building affordable housing, but I don't think the Mobile Home Park property is the right location. It would also have the highest density of any area of Anaheim by far.

Disney now has two options, and more than likely will use both of them.

One is filing legal action on the re-hearing and the environmental planning.

The second is submitting the 20,000+ signature for a referendum, and that should happen in the next couple of weeks.

From the Orange County Register.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister...le_1668443.php

Disney and other business officials vowed to keep fighting. Todd Ament, Anaheim Chamber of Commerce president, announced that the coalition has gathered the 20,000 signatures needed to put the item on the ballot. Coalition members are expected to file signatures within two weeks.

Should be interesting to follow this story...

Just no more 7 hour council meetings......

[jcruise86]

When will these idiot people in Anaheim get There would be be no Anaheim without Disneyland. . .

My mom and her family lived happily in Anaheim before Disneyland.

If Disneyland executives raised their starting salaries to what babysitters in high school charge in Pasadena, they might not seem so evil in their attempt to oppose low-income housing. Let's face it, Paul Pressler and Michael Eisner favored short-term greed more than creativity and the good of their employees. The stench of their influence remains. If any second-rate Milton Friedman argues that I'm overpaying for babysitters, I'd respond the same way I would to Disney executives: I want to attract even better people.

I actually want Disney to expand, but I want the majority of CMs to benefit along with over-rated, top Disney executives.

[Amneris]

I haven't been following this thread, but quickly scanning it just wanted to say that it's *possible* that with the "affordable housing" idea, and toss in some "open space" and the land can be taken by Anaheim via eminent domain and then handed over to a redeveloper. In a redevelopment area, eminent domain functions quite well and is basically impossible to stop. Without the area being declared an area in need of redevelopment first, then the gov. using eminent domain would put it into the battle field that you've read about in the papers if you've heard anything about eminent domain. I just can't hear the words "affordable housing" and "zoning" being tossed around without suspecting some eminent domain (also known as condemnation) is lurking in the background somewhere...

Just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents there.

(I don't know if CA has it, but some states have "affordable housing" programs and definitions of what that means which give developers tax breaks and can require municipalities to meet quotas.)

[jcruise86]

. . . eminent domain functions quite well and is basically impossible to stop. . .

It functions well unless you are unable to retire in the dream home you worked for three decades to purchase.

[Promo-Man]

When will these idiot people in Anaheim get There would be be no Anaheim without Disneyland Where do they think the tax dollars come from

Please do not call me an idiot!
I was not in favor of amending the plan for the resort district.
With the exception of one I know each member of the Anaheim City Counsel personally. I wish three of them had voted differently last night but they are not idiots. I take it as personal offences that you call my friends and the people of Anaheim idiots.

Before anything happens with this property a plan must be submitted and approved, I for one do not think we will ever see this property developed as an housing development as it primary development.

[jcruise86]

Please do not call me an idiot!
I was not in favor of amending the plan for the resort district.
With the exception of one I know each member of the Anaheim City Counsel personally. I wish three of them had voted differently last night but they are not idiots. I take it as personal offences that you call my friends and the people of Anaheim idiots.

Before anything happens with this property a plan must be submitted and approved, I for one do not think we will ever see this property developed as an housing development as it primary development.

You were offended and yet you responded with civility.
Note to self: be more like Promo-Man!

[AVP]

the land can be taken by Anaheim via eminent domain and then handed over to a redeveloper.

Considering how well the Downtown Anaheim Redevelopment Project is going, the City certainly does not need another project to "supervise." How many years elapsed between "groundbreaking" and "vertical?"

AVP

[santoanderson]

I still remember Anaheim in the early 90's as being a nasty place. It seems like all the get rich quick skeemers set up shop just outside of Disneyland only to fool dopish travelers into buying overpriced pop at places where the carpet is rarely washed. How close is this residential area (which sounds like a REALLY bad idea for those of us who travel long distances to see the park) going to be from the park? Maybe I'm just jealous of all those people who'll be able to spit and nail Space Mountain from their balcony.

And aren't there also height restrictions that everyone has to commit to. I seem to remember that there's an aircraft ordinance that keeps the big rides to certain heights.

[tod]

When will these idiot people in Anaheim get There would be be no Anaheim without Disneyland Where do they think the tax dollars come from

Anaheim is now the tenth largest city in California, which began in 1857 as colony of German farmers and vintners. Founding member George Hansen surveyed the original 200 acres, which now comprises the citys downtown area, bounded by North, South, East and West streets. The Citys name is a composition of Ana from the nearby Santa Ana River and heim, German for home. Those early pioneers considered this location their home by the river.

1857.

There would be be no Anaheim without Disneyland

I doubt it.

--t
For further reference: http://www.anaheimchamber.com/history.asp

[The Blue Parrot]

Disney has more money and more lawyers than the City of Anaheim to address this issue. And they are not afraid to make use of them.

[Baloo]

I'd love to know how much these "affordable" housing units are going to be. There has been a battle in the San Pedro area over the surplus Navy housing that a developer bought. He keeps saying he will be including "affordable, low income" housing. However his definition is different then mine. If I recall correctly the lowest price is in the mid $400 thousands. I know the newspaper said that a couple would have to make over $120,000 per year just to barely afford to buy one of these places and have no other expenses.

The Disney employees who spoke out about wanting to have affordable housing I don't think would get paid enough to move in to these new units that may be built buy Disney.

according to estimates and numbers released these so called low income units will be in the 640,000 range.

Those Cm's that went and rallied for the housing did not do their homework.
Also its 200 units, do these Cm's actually think they will be able to get their hands on these units. There are already others with multiple people living under one roof seeing the oppurtunity to move into these units and then divide the payment between eachother.

Its a bad idea.


These houses and others could have eaily be built int he platinum triangle where the zoning allows it and they at least would be away from the major tourist area.

wait till these 1500 units increase traffic and then later the same people that move in to them start protesting because the fireowrks, traffic and other noise is too much and disney should do something about it.

Meanwhile the developers Sun Cal will be far away counting the fast buck they made selling the units and morons like Galloway out of office running charitiies in other areas with the money that Disney has been donating to her for those projects.

[Baloo]

I still remember Anaheim in the early 90's as being a nasty place. It seems like all the get rich quick skeemers set up shop just outside of Disneyland only to fool dopish travelers into buying overpriced pop at places where the carpet is rarely washed. How close is this residential area (which sounds like a REALLY bad idea for those of us who travel long distances to see the park) going to be from the park? Maybe I'm just jealous of all those people who'll be able to spit and nail Space Mountain from their balcony.

And aren't there also height restrictions that everyone has to commit to. I seem to remember that there's an aircraft ordinance that keeps the big rides to certain heights.

The housing area propsoed is about a block or two away and will be across the street from Disney third proposed park.


Talk about a stupid decision. having houses right across the street from a future major Disney development.

not only that it this land is also less than a block from the now under construction Garden walk and also about a block from the convention center

[VickiC]

I just don't see how a housing complex, if well designed and maintained, detracts from the tourist experience at Disneyland?

[santoanderson]

This reminds me of playing Sim City, where if you put a housing development in the middle of a commercial/industrial era, within 5 minutes it became a crack den.

[blondiemouse]

If I was disney I,d call their bluff.Start buying land in another unpopulated area,start planing applications for the use of said land.Start putting things about in the press about the resort not having enough land to fit its modern needs to be a WDW style resort.Lets see how much Anaheim needs Disney and hey it would be fun just to see the DIsney geeks reaction to the mere thought of bulldozing Walts little park