MAGICAL FOOTBALL STADIUM EMERGES FROM NOWHERE!
The trustees over at the North Orange County Community College District have seemingly done the impossible, conjuring up a new football stadium at the FJC campus out of thin air. Apparently the neighbors aren’t too crazy about this sleight-of-hand since it means noise, lights, traffic, etc. They decided to raise their own ruckus, and in a democracy that’s a damn fine thing.
What happened was that the locals discovered the District had been guilty of “mission creep” or bureaucratic metastasis, or whatever you want to call it. But rather than our going on, let’s let neighbor Ken Bane speak for himself (courtesy of another FFFF thread):
“the EIR only contemplated a “renovation” of the track field. but when no one was looking, they added lighing, a PA system, and seating 2000+. When we caught their hand in the cookie jar they agreed to be a “good neighbor” and do the required supplemental CEQA review, like someone following the law makes them worthy, when in fact they wouldn’t have unless we busted them. And frankly, we’re skeptical they’ll do it right from here anyway.”
We recall a Ken Bane who used to work for the Fullerton Planning Department many years ago and wonder if this is the same fellow. If it is, we have confidence that his narration of the environmental deficiencies of the project is pretty accurate.
Now it may come as a shock to some of you Loyal Friends, but it is the government itself that is often the biggest scofflaw when it comes to abiding by CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act). Even when they don’t get a categorical exemption public agencies often find ways of dodging the intent of CEQA that could land you or me in the slammer.
As our own Fullerton Harpoon pointed out in response to Mr. Bane, this enhanced plan will require an amendment to an approved EIR including new facts not previously in evidence. Traffic, Noise and Aesthetic EIR categories will have to be addressed, and the new document should also include alternatives to the project – in this case one alternative could be to rent somebody else’s facility as a congenial part of a “no build” alternative; maybe it could be the Fullerton High School stadium a mere quarter of a mile away.
CEQA also requires that if there are unmitigated impacts (such as in this case lighting and noise will undoubdtedly be) a statement of overidding considerations be made identifying some objective public need for building the project. In this case it’s pretty hard to see how anybody could justify the necessity of a game-day stadium, especially for the few hundred spectators that show up for a typical Hornet game.
This may be one of the rare cases where a citizen/neighborhood group can take on a government agency – and win. We will try to keep our devoted readers up to date on this issue.
This needs to be reviewed. Somebody really screwed up here. If a football stadium was contemplated during the bond election then why was it excluded from the EIR? And if it was not adverised as a project during the election, how did it come to be prioritized?
It looks like the bond revenue really is burning a hole in the District’s pocket.
I would hardly call an athletic field with bleachers a “stadium”. Come on now, get real, the real issue I see is the NOCCCD likes to waste money on foolish things, like fake old buildings for one. When are the tax payers going to wake up when it comes to “school bonds”. Gooo…..Hor…Net…s
I dunno 2000+ seats? Lights PA, address sytem? Sounds like a stadium to me – if only a small one. Anyhoo, that’s not the point Buzzy.
Coach, I understand your point. Bzzzzzzzzzzz
Who’s “sleight-of-hand” made this “mini me stadium” issue get to this point? Who (a name please) was “responsible” for “working with the community” on the 100+ MILLION dollar bond issuance.
Who was the liaison between the NOCCCD and the “community”?
It will be interesting to see how the usual knee-jerk educrat supporters will deal with this issue. Clearly the District has tried to pull and end run. But they’ve come up against a neighborhood that has some real old timey lefties in it. Putting Molly McClanahan on the category list for this is appropriate. It will be hard for her to blither her way out of this.
Fun!
I went to a playoff game for the Hornets last year and they may have had 1000 people there. They must really feel coach Burns is going to engage in a huge tickets sales campaign or something to pay for 2000 permanent seats.
Maybe they think track and field will become real popular again at the JC level?
Molly McClanahan is the person responsible for representing our district and we would get as much benefit from a baboon. Both with this project and the parking structure fiasco she has been absent from the discussion entirely. Molly, could you please do something for that meeting stipend and health insurance plan? Please!
“Molly McClanahan is the person responsible for representing our district and we would get as much benefit from a baboon”
Unfortunately #6 you are correct. Molly is the ultimate “staff” stooge.” Heads should roll for this f-up but I assure you they won’t. In fact those fine administrators will get raises and praises and little gold stars.
Molly will cluck cluck cluck, and then maybe harrumph once or twice and all will be forgotten.
But why pick on baboons?
Oh, why pick on poor Molly? If she had any talent or independence she never would have been appointed trustee in the first place. She is the perfect seat warmer for an organization that values activity over accomplishment.
I live above the “stadium” and I hold McClanahan responsible for at least failing to communicate with us. We are the people that elected her and she never took the time to even share with us what was going to be built let alone seek our input. She has got to go.
When is the next election for the college district?
Molly has an excuse (lame). But of all the members of the North Orange County Community College District Citizens Bond Oversight Committe (that’s a mouth full): Lynn Abouchar, Kay Bruce, Theresa Harvey, Julie Law, Keith Nelson, Philip Wendel and Nicole Wells, Theresa Harvey, who is the President of the Fullerton Chamber of Commerce doesn’t.
What does the Citizens Bond Oversight Committee do?
My wife and I live 1 block from the JC, we voted for the bond and now feel like we got duped.
#12, everybody who voted for the bond got duped. Millions wasted on crappy architecture – and now an unnecessary football facility.
Who is Theresa Harvey, who put her in charge of communicating with the Community, and who does she report to?
#9, welcome to our board, care to start a recall?