On August 2, 2022, the Costa Mesa City Council, by a vote of 6-1, chose to place a measure on the 2022 ballot.  Measure K came about in a rushed manner.  After only one City Council study session, City Staff was directed to draft the measure.  Subsequently, there was a City Council meeting where Staff’s proposed ballot measure was disclosed to the public (but only four days prior to the meeting).  Finally, there was a confusion-filled Council meeting where the Housing Ad Hoc Committee (which only held one open public meeting) foisted extensive last-minute changes to the ballot measure on the public and unsuspecting Council members, who had only minutes to review it before considering it for a vote. The public was largely cut out of the process and ignored.
 

The real purpose of Measure K is to remove your right to vote on certain large projects that may impact your neighborhood.  The City Council members who placed this deceptive measure on the ballot say they are doing so because the State is requiring the City to plan for housing, but if you read the proposed ballot measure and look at the map, you will see:
 

     •  Expands the Scope.  The areas covered by the measure are almost all the major corridors of Costa Mesa, versus the few parcels identified on the Housing Element’s proposed map.
 

     •  No Requirement to Build Housing.  This measure only has a vague promise for an affordable housing ordinance. There is no requirement to build housing (affordable or not) for seniors, disabled persons, veterans, or our workforce. Any new development could be high-density, high-cost housing, but it also may be large commercial, office or industrial buildings.
 

    •  Impacts!  There is no provision that protects residential neighborhoods from traffic, noise or pollution generated by development.
 

    •  Does Not Protect the Environment.  There is no requirement that new development include building new parks, bike lanes or walking paths.
 

The politicians who drafted the measure say it will revitalize Costa Mesa’s commercial and industrial areas, but it could result in replacing successful businesses and upsetting the balance of jobs and housing. It opens the doors to developers and speculators to, once again, build large projects without voter approval.

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While we worked hard to defeat Measure K, the supporters had more than $150,000 from developer interests with which to work.  They paid campaign walkers and a consultant to help them.  Despite the "No" votes being ahead by 609 votes six days after the election, one of the supporters, the local Democratic Club, paid for a list of defective ballots and “cured” them, enabling the Measure to pass by only 22 votes.

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IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS TO REVIEW:

 

Ballot Measure:

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Map of Ballot Measure Affected Areas:

 

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Map of Housing Element Sites:

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