Council will go ahead with annexation attempt

Newport leaders will apply to annex West Santa Ana Heights, an area Costa Mesa officials say should be part of their city.NEWPORT BEACH -- The City Council voted Tuesday to proceed with an application to annex West Santa Ana Heights, despite opposition from Costa Mesa and pleas that two other areas be included in the annexation.

The council also initiated the process of taking over the Santa Ana Heights redevelopment agency, which diverts property taxes into a fund that covers improvements in the community.

West Santa Ana Heights is a 64-acre area immediately north of Mesa Drive and between Santa Ana Avenue and the Newport Beach Golf Course.

It’s now unincorporated county land, but it’s part of Costa Mesa’s sphere of influence. In other words, county officials have expected it would someday be annexed to Costa Mesa.

The application will go to the Local Agency Formation Commission, a county agency that decides on annexations. It could take four to six months for the request to be considered.

To Newport officials, adding West Santa Ana Heights makes sense, because they annexed East Santa Ana Heights in 2003, and they’re managing several projects paid for by the area’s redevelopment agency.

Costa Mesa officials did not attend the meeting but have said the loss of West Santa Ana Heights would be unfair to them. After proposing several options for land swaps that apparently weren’t to Newport’s liking, Costa Mesa council members Eric Bever and Katrina Foley on Friday sent a letter asking Newport to pause and look for a solution that “is equitable to both cities.”

Members of the Santa Ana Country Club and residents of an area south of Mesa Drive -- both unincorporated areas in Costa Mesa’s sphere of influence -- asked Newport on Tuesday to include them in the annexation. Council members wouldn’t go that far but agreed to send a letter to the Local Agency Formation Commission supporting annexation requests if they are made by the country club and residents south of Mesa Drive.

To file an application, at least 5% of registered voters living in an area must sign a petition for annexation.

“We just think that it’s going to be a lot cleaner and can happen quicker if we focus on Santa Ana Heights as a separate application,” City Manager Homer Bludau said.

Paul Watkins, who chairs the country club’s annexation committee, has said more than half of the club’s members live in Newport Beach; fewer than 20 are Costa Mesa residents.

Residents south of Mesa Drive expect higher property values and better services if they are annexed into Newport Beach, according to Cal McLaughlin, who lives on Redlands Drive. His neighborhood held a 2002 protest vote that blocked an annexation attempt by Costa Mesa.

After the council’s vote, McLaughlin said residents will work with the Santa Ana Country Club on an application to be annexed to Newport Beach.

“Costa Mesa has behaved like a bully on this,” McLaughlin said. “We’ll find no problem getting 5% of the people” to support the application.

The council voted unanimously on both proposals, but Councilman Tod Ridgeway recused himself from the annexation vote because he owns property in the annexation area.