Anaheim OKs Housing Near Disneyland
By GILLIAN FLACCUS 04.25.07, 10:06 AM ET, ASSOCIATED PRESS

(AP)Disneyland was not The Happiest Place on Earth after local officials paved the way to place low-income housing at its gates.

The City Council voted 3-2 late Tuesday night for a zoning change that would permit construction of condominiums inside a 2.2-square-mile area that was set aside more than a dozen years ago as a resort district.

The housing proposal includes a 26-acre parcel just a few blocks from Disneyland and across the street from Disney-owned land that could someday be the site of another theme park.

The vote came despite a Disneyland lawsuit and a possible election fight. Supporters said affordable housing was desperately needed for workers in the city's massive tourism industry who share cramped quarters or commute hours because they cannot afford Orange County housing prices.

"We work for Disneyland and we deserve this housing," said Susana Hernandez, a Disneyland Hotel employee who shares a one-bedroom apartment with six people in Anaheim. "They just want to make money. They don't care how we work or in what conditions."

Developer SunCal Cos. has said it would like to build 1,500 housing units at the site, including 225 affordable apartments. It has also agreed to shoulder Anaheim's legal expenses as the city fights the lawsuit, the first ever filed by Disneyland against Anaheim.

Opponents said it would be a bad precedent to allow non-tourist uses in a district that brings in about $70 million in hotel bed taxes each year.

"Allowing residential development in the resort area will stunt future growth of the local economy and significantly reduce future tax revenues," Disneyland spokesman Rob Doughty said in a statement after the vote. Disneyland is a division of Walt Disney Co.

The issue was debated in a six-hour hearing featuring dozens of speakers and attended by a crowd that overflowed into the lobby and watched the proceedings on monitors.

Supporters wore glittery top hats with Mickey Mouse ears that said "Yes to housing."

Craig Farrow, a retired Anaheim police officer, said he was wary of tampering with the resort district zoning because it has been so beneficial to the city. And he said he was suspicious of the developer's motives.

"I just don't think you should mess with the cash cow," said Farrow. "As far as I'm concerned, the developer is just here to put money in their carpetbag and look at Anaheim through their rearview mirror."

Councilwoman Lorri Galloway voted for the zoning change.

"Two hundred families will be able to have something that they wouldn't otherwise have. To have a quality of life and decent housing for someone ... that means everything to me," she said.

In February, the council deadlocked on whether to approve the zoning change. A councilwoman who would have provided the tie-breaking vote was asked to abstain because of a potential conflict of interest.

Since then, the state Fair Political Practices Commission has ruled Councilwoman Lucille Kring can vote on the issue and she provided the deciding vote Tuesday.

"I have prayed over this issue, I have agonized over this issue," she said.

The zoning change still faces several hurdles. Disneyland is suing the city related to environmental documents tied to the change.

The group Save Our Anaheim Resort Area, which includes Disneyland and owners of nearby hotels and businesses, wants the issue to be decided by voters. Members announced Tuesday that they have gathered the 20,000 signatures needed to place the measure on a February 2008 ballot.