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Wetlands Approved
17 acres in Costa Mesa’s Fairview Park will be reserved
By David L. M. Preston
OC Staff Writer
(Oct. 2007)
The Costa Mesa City Council voted unanimously in approval to move forward, with help from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (ACE), to finalize the development plans for a 17-acre Wetlands Habitat / Riparian Habitat area rehabilitation and construction in the Fairview Park area of Costa Mesa.
Costa Mesa’s Director of Public Services, Bill Morris, gave a 10 minute presentation to the council providing it with details concerning the work and plans for this new conservation easement to be created in Costa Mesa. The general consensus is that Morris’s work on this project, including his collaborative discussions with the ACE and the Orange County Flood Control District (OCFCD), among numerous other regulatory agencies, has been exceptional.
The wetlands and riparian habitat will continue to be accessible to outdoors enthusiasts, hikers and birders. And the 17-acres, similar to the 11-acres of coastal scrub that was set aside in the past, will be set in reserve for this purpose by Costa Mesa in perpetuity when the final agreement is approved. This is a good environmental win for Orange County ecology, not to mention the residents of Costa Mesa.
The construction of the park habitats will be done in phases, and all the designs and plans are already out there, which Morris said is advantageous for winning the support of the ACE and other regulatory agencies in moving forward with this project.
The ACE will be constructing all the streambeds and the water collection basin of the land in the first phase. The city council, in previous discussions and research, has already budgeted some $900,000 for the first phase the project.
“We would have a very good system in place,” Morris stated, “[And]…it would be very easy…to get other grants to finish off the area.”
The trails will be accessible to the public, according to Morris, and will even be American with Disabilities Act compliant.
Part of the master plan for the land includes constructing a parking area with 30 available spots. Fences will also be installed during construction for habitat establishment protection and removed later.
Councilmember Linda Dixon asked about the timeline of completion and if the land will be federally recognized as a wildlife sanctuary, but Morris did not yet know the answer. That will be a future issue, but could potentially be a tourist draw.
Morris hopes that by the end of 2008 that “we would see the plants and water in place,” and added that ACE would maintain “all they installed” for a minimum of 1 year and up to 5 years, depending on the retention of the plants and irrigation.
Mayor Pro-Tem Eric Bever hoped that other, additional, benefits and commitments could be obtained from the ACE, restrooms and maybe a nature center for example, as the land, right now by current prices, is potentially “worth” between $17 and $51 million dollars, he said. And by putting it as a wetlands reserve in perpetuity that financial worth is locked up from use by the city.
Morris answered that benefits still need to be negotiated, but did explain that the ACE’s liability issues cover more than the $1 million first-time investment. “[O]ur indication from them [ACE] is that they want to build the 17 acres and they will make it work regardless the cost,” Morris said.
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