The headlines you can expect in 2005

Main Street gets closed off, by trial

The City Council is slated to revisit the idea of closing off Main

Street on a temporary basis to create a pedestrian walkway.

The idea was approved and then canceled in 2004, with plans to

revisit it in the new year.

Downtown business owners fear the plan could hurt their businesses

rather than create a better atmosphere and invite foot traffic as

proponents hope.

The council will likely research the idea thoroughly, and no

closure is likely to take place in 2005.

Pacific City moves despite opposition

After years of planning and public hearings, the Pacific City

development faces at least one more hurdle -- a lawsuit from

environmentalists Mark Bixby and Jan Vandersloot.

The pair allege the 31-acre development, which will include 500

condominiums, an eight-story hotel and retail village, could infringe

on environmentally sensitive habitat. They also allege that the

Coastal Commission violated the California Coastal Act when it

refused to grant an appeal hearing of the City Council’s June

approval of the project.

Bixby said he might file an injunction to stop the Pacific Coast

Highway project, which he argues is within a protected coastal zone.

Developers Makar Properties said they plan to continue with

construction and begin signing lease agreements through out the year

and finish the project by early 2007.

Bolsa Chica battle finally at an end

A deal between landowner Hearthside Homes’ owner Ray Pacini and

the Wildlife Conservation Board has to be approved by June for the

$65-million sale of the property to go through.

Pacini said he won’t sell the lower portion of the Bolsa Chica

until he gets the greenlight from the Coastal Commission to begin

developing the upper portion of the Bolsa Chica mesa. Pacini

originally wanted to put a gated community with 379 luxury homes on

the land, but the Coastal Commission nixed the plan and encouraged

him to create something with a higher density and greater public

access.

It’s hard to tell if the two will be able to reach a compromise.

In the past Pacini said his project must be accepted in its entirety,

but recently agreed to make some revisions after the Coastal

Commission said he needed to make certain specific changes. If Pacini

gets his new application in by mid-January, he could participate in a

March hearing.

Rangel trial gets

into nitty-gritty

The pre-trial hearing for Michael Rangel, the former PTA treasurer

and parent at Kettler Elementary School who was accused of stealing

$40,000 from the Kettler PTA treasury, is set for Jan. 27 at West

Justice Center in Westminster.

Rangel, who pleaded not guilty to counts of forgery and burglary

at his Nov. 16 arraignment, could face more than 10 years in jail if

the case goes to trial and he is convicted, said Deputy Dist. Atty.

Nancy Lewis.

At the hearing the defense and prosecution will discuss the case

and the possibility of a settle- ment. The preliminary hearing, set

for Feb. 3, will decide whether the case goes to trial.

Lewis said that the case could be settled at anytime or Rangel

could plead guilty, but she does not expect either to happen, as she

has not spoken with Rangel’s lawyer.

Kettler Elementary PTA first reported missing funds in June 2004.

When police investigated Rangel, they found that deposits made to his

bank account matched the amounts of the missing money. Police believe

that Rangel stole the money between March 2003 and May 2004. Rangel

cooperated with investigators and was not arrested.