CANDIDATES HAVE SAY ON CITY'S ISSUES.

Byline: Judy O'Rourke Staff writer

To offer a view of the 11 candidates in the April 11 Santa Clarita City Council race, Daily News reporter Judy O'Rourke asked each of them about the following city issues:

Eminent domain:

After a similar plan languished for years, the city spent $1 million to create a plan to redevelop Downtown Newhall and has committed $7 million to the renovation.

Owners may improve their sites, but to fully realize the plan, several parcels might need to be combined to create space for larger projects. If the owners' proposals are rejected by the city, Santa Clarita can solicit proposals from developers. Officials say they expect developers to exhaust every option in striking deals with property owners.

In order to develop three sites viewed as key to the plan, the city may resort to invoking eminent domain if the developers cannot reach deals with the owners. Officials say it would be used as a last resort.

The ultimate decision would rest with the City Council, acting as the city's redevelopment agency.

Open Space and Parkland measure:

The city's proposed $25-a-year special assessment to fund park and open space purchases was defeated in November; 40 percent of voters were in favor, 60 percent were opposed.

About two-thirds of eligible property owners did not vote on the measure that could have generated about $1.46 million a year to buy, maintain and develop parkland and open space. The money could have been leveraged to generate millions more.

The annual fee charged to property owners could have been adjusted to keep pace with inflation; any increase above inflation would have required approval from property owners.

Canyon Country:

The city has spent more than $200 million to improve Canyon Country since it formed in 1987, officials said.

The tab includes purchasing open space, building the Golden Valley interchange, extending Golden Valley Road to the Antelope Valley Freeway, building trails and the Sports Complex and Aquatic Center, burying utilities on Soledad Canyon Road and partnering in a joint venture to build the Centre Pointe Business Park.

Some, however, complain that a larger share of amenities are available on the other side of town.

Cemex:

Mexico-based Cemex Inc. seeks to mine 56.1 million tons of sand and gravel from an open-pit mine in Soledad Canyon just northeast of city limits, which Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon has called the largest of its kind in the United States.

The federal Bureau of Land Management granted the company mining rights in 1990.

The city has spent millions of dollars battling the scope of the proposed operation. Lobbyists have been retained in Washington, D.C., and several lawsuits have been filed. Cemex and the federal government have prevailed in recent rulings.

On Feb. 10, an appellate court ruled that a consent decree between Los Angeles County and Cemex allowing for the mine was negotiated in good faith and is "fundamentally fair, adequate and reasonable." City officials say they have not exhausted their legal options.

An attempt to annex city-owned land above the proposed mine is under way. Cemex filed a lawsuit in state court in December, challenging an environmental review in the annexation proposal.

Homeless shelter:

A temporary 40-bed winter shelter operated for the past nine years by the nonprofit Santa Clarita Community Development Corp. will, for the time being, bounce from city to county sites in alternate years.

The temporary facility had taken up residence at various spots in the city since 1997. Families receive vouchers to stay in motels, and Lutheran Social Services provides counseling and referrals.

For the past two years, portable units were set up at a county flood control yard in Centre Pointe.

Efforts to find a permanent site have been met by NIMBY-ism - not in my backyard. Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich has assembled a task force to address the issue long-term.

judy.orourke(at)dailynews.com

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