From the desk of Former Mayor, Sally Anne Sheridan and Former Mayor, Christina L. Shea:

As two former mayors of the city of Irvine, we feel it is important to voice our concerns

about the new direction the Irvine Company has taken toward the future development

of the city.

In 1988 Irvine voters overwhelmingly approved Initiative Resolution 88-1 that the City

Council at the time, including Mayor Larry Agran and Councilmember Sally Anne

Sheridan, placed on the ballot to seek direction from Irvine residents to make changes

to the city’s General Plan to preserve large areas in open space through a negotiated

agreement with the landowner, Irvine Company. Mayor Agran made it clear that he

wanted to protect open space in the north, south and central part of the city from

future development. The Irvine Company agreed with the plan and entered into an

Open Space Agreement with the city to convey property rights for the open space to

the City in return for development rights on other land designated for development.

Now, the current leadership of the Irvine Company is much different and seems to have

forgotten its commitment to honor the will of the voters expressed in 1988 and again in

1991 when 88-1 was approved a second time. The company is pushing to develop the

center city open space replacing it with 3100 houses and apartments and threatening

to increase the number to 5000 units if it doesn’t get its way.

Rather than the existing 333 acres of open space land the company is proposing, by

comparison, a paltry 50+/- acres as a nature park to be maintained at the expense of

Irvine tax payers.

Unfortunately, it appears that the city is going along with the idea having approved a

memorandum of understanding in 2025 that has the company providing some $95

million if the company receives development approvals. We do not believe the city’s

open space, meant to be preserved in perpetuity, should be sold to developers today

or tomorrow. At a minimum, it is up to the voters to decide if they agree with allowing

open space land to be used for development.

That is why we are supporting the gathering of signatures for the citizens initiative

submitted by the Committee to Protect All Irvine Open Space. It is imperative that this

measure gets to the ballot in November.

Unfortunately, in an apparent effort to thwart this effort the Irvine Company has

decided to use hardball tactics evidently approaching homeowners associations to

dissuade them from supporting this effort and limiting locations and timeframes at local

shopping centers for volunteers collecting signatures.

We hope the citizens of Irvine will start attending City Council meetings and oppose

this proposal and urge the City Council to abide by Resolution 88-1 and respect the will

of the voters.