2014-069 - Final Environmental Impact Report No. 2014-01

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HARBOR BLVD. MIXED USE TRANSIT CORRIDOR PLAN FINAL FIR CITY OF SANTA ANA 3. Project Description • To enhance the economic viability of the Harbor Boulevard area. • To create a secure atmosphere within which business and residential communities can thrive. The NHSP identified the opportunity to capitalize on its proximity to Disneyland and other major commercial recreation and tourist attractions. As the NHSP was being prepared in the early 1990s, the Walt Disney Company announced plans to develop a new theme park named WestCOT adjacent to Disneyland. WestCOT was officially announced in 1991, and the NHSP identifies focus areas in the specific plan area that could capitalize on what the plan considered to be the largest private development project in the United States. Unfortunately, financial constraints led the Walt Disney Company to cancel the development of WestCOT. In 2001, the site was developed as Disney's California Adventure Park, but the cancellation and delay of the Disney theme park negatively impacted the NHSP's ability to attract and incentivize development. Very few uses along the corridor are currently tied into the region's major commercial recreation and tourist activities. The NHSP also recognized the existing Vietnamese community and proximity to Little Saigon in Garden Grove. When the NHSP was adopted in 1994, the Vietnamese Catholic Church at Harbor Boulevard and 17th Street was already (and remains) a regional destination for Catholics in the Asian Community. The NHSP supported the development of a new ethnic commercial center adjacent to the Catholic church, but it never came to fruition. Although the NHSP envisioned a revitalized corridor with quality commercial uses compatible with neighborhoods, progress has been limited, and land uses did not transition as planned. The dominant use along Harbor Boulevard became auto sales and service. City of Santa Ana Housing Element In its housing element, the City of Santa Ana identifies three key transportation corridors, including Harbor Boulevard, that could support higher density housing. The selected corridors are consistent with the City's "Go Local" vision to promote sustainable multimodal transportation options. The Harbor Corridor Plan supports the City's housing element by creating the zoning framework to allow for new, compact, transit supportive housing combined with nonresidential uses along Harbor Boulevard. Former Redevelopment Project Area The Harbor Corridor Plan area was included in a former City of Santa Ana Redevelopment Project area (adopted in 1982). The North Harbor Boulevard Redevelopment Plan comprised approximately 428 acres, generally located along Harbor Boulevard from Westminster Avenue to Kent Avenue, and along 5th Street, 1st Street, and McFadden Avenue from Harbor Boulevard to the Santa Ana River. The North Harbor Boulevard Redevelopment Project area was substantially developed and included a mix of older residential and strip commercial uses fronting Harbor Boulevard, with newer commercial uses developed near 1st Street and 5th Street. Page 3 -10 PlaceWorkr