On Tuesday (January 9th), Irvine Mayor Donald Wagner and Councilmembers Christina Shea and Melissa Fox voted against Councilmember Jeff Lalloway’s motion to immediately begin construction of the Veterans Cemetery in the Great Park.
The Council then voted (3-2) for a costly June 5th Special Election, as part of their continuing effort to help mega-developer FivePoint Communities build massive office and commercial space at the Great Park site.
The Council’s vote highlights a disturbing pattern by three Councilmembers who continue to ignore their own constituents in favor of enriching a multi-billion-dollar developer. And they are willing to spend up to $250,000 to put their disastrous rezoning scheme on the ballot.
In response to last night’s vote, the citizen-led effort, known as the committee to Save the Veterans Cemetery in the Great Park, issued the following statement:
“While our campaign is disappointed in the Council’s actions, we are confident that Irvine voters will do what is both in the best interest of our veterans and our City by voting NO to giving a multi-billion-dollar developer prime Great Park property (that was designated for the Veterans Cemetery); we believe Irvine voters will say NO to rezoning our Great Park property for massive commercial development.”
We at ICNV will continue to support the citizen-led effort to honor our veterans by restoring the Veterans Cemetery to its originally approved location in the Great Park. We will keep our readers updated on this important story.
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