Will Politics Trump Property Rights For Anaheim Stadium Project?
Archstone-Smith owns certain development rights to property adjacent to Anaheim Stadium owned by the City of Anaheim. Archstone-Smith wants to develop retail and commercial property on the site, which makes the most sense for the location. The lease between the Anaheim Angels (also known as the Los Angeles Angels) specifies that no residential project will be built on the site. Looks like we have the makings of an agreement. Not so fast. Enter the community activists who apparently have other plans for the property. The Orange County Register reports a group of about "150 community activists and residents" braved the rain to call for a "community benefit agreement" which provides for "child care facilities, park space, adequate wages and low-cost housing." I credit City Council Member Sidhu for some straight talk on the issue.
The Register reports that Sidhu explained the city was better off selling the site for between $150 million to and $200 million and then using a portion of these funds to build affordable housing and park space elsewhere in Anaheim – in large part because the Angels' lease on the stadium forbids the construction of any residences on the property. Sidhu explained "You cannot force us to do certain things right on this piece of property because we have no control." "We have a certain lease and we will honor that." With all due respect to protestors like Jaime Ramirez, "an unemployed auto parts distributor from Anaheim," public agencies should be lauded for respecting contractual rights and avoiding the trap of making planning decisions based on the political agenda of a highly vocal small group of activists.
The Platinum Triangle NEEDS a "STADIUM of Dreams" Action Sports and Learning Center for youth, SENIOR Citizens, teens, young adults and adults.
The "Stadium of Dreams" concept is an unbelievable step into the future for all of mankind! We can build more condos ANYWHERE! email stadiumofdreams on a ol dot kom for more info.
Will Archstone consider a major portion of the project to be sports, entertainment and recreation with appropriate retail/commercial based on supporting the same sports, entertainment and recreation chosen for the project?