City to Sublease Part of Former Marine Base

After two years of waiting, the city has received clearance from the U.S. Navy to sublease 250 acres on the former Marine Corps Air Station to a handful of public agencies.

The Navy will allow the city to lease the parcel by June 12, but the agencies, including the South Orange County Community College District, the County of Orange and Tustin Unified School District, will be able to access only the current buildings and begin maintaining the facilities. Construction cannot occur until negotiations between the city and Navy are finalized.

“The agencies would like to get out there and start taking control of those assets,” said Dana Ogdon, city senior project manager. “There has been some significant deterioration of the sites and buildings because of deferred maintenance.”

The city has been working toward acquiring the 1,585-acre property since helicopters were removed from the base in 1997. The city continues to wait for final Navy approval of an environmental impact report, which is the next step toward assuming control of the land.

Close to 100 acres of the subleased land will be used as a college campus, 84 acres will be leased to the county for a regional park, and 23 acres will be used by the city as a community park. A community center, shelter, sheriff’s training academy, elementary school and two day care facilities will also be included.

Private development of the remaining acreage would include 9.2 million square feet of commercial and industrial space, 4,600 homes, and a public golf course.

“We believe that once we have the sublease we can begin some serious planning and refurbishing,” said Cedric Sampson, chancellor of the South Orange County Community College District. “We are very pleased that this is moving forward.”

The future community college will occupy or reconstruct many of the base’s main buildings, including some barracks, shops, a mid-size helicopter hangar and administration buildings.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on the lease in July.

Councilman Thomas R. Saltarelli said he is pleased substantial movement is finally being taken and called the delayed conversion process “bureaucracy at its best.”

“Reason is starting to prevail with the Navy,” he said. “Some of those entities involved in the lease have grants they otherwise might have lost.

“We are trying to get the property back in the taxpayers’ hands so we can provide jobs while we still have a robust economy.”

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Marissa Espino can be reached at (714) 966-5879.