The City Council of the City of Mission Viejo has been carefully monitoring the impacts on the City that may arise from the actions of other entities such as school districts, other cities and the County. The City Council has been especially concerned about the impacts upon the quality of life, real estate values, perception about the City and traffic impacts that arise, directly and indirectly, from the policies, actions and funding decisions made by Capistrano Unified School District (“CUSD”). CUSD, by what it does and what it doesn’t do, can project serious impacts into this community.
The City Council directed that the City Attorney’s office commence litigation against CUSD, as appropriate, to protect the City. While the CUSD Board may believe their decision to be a prudent one from the sole perspective of fund allocation, we believe they do not have competent or adequate information against which they can test and judge this decision. The City, by its letter, which will likely be the first of several on this and other legal issues, is requesting that CUSD fulfill its responsibility to act reasonably and responsibly under the law and not take an action on the busing reductions until they have conducted the thorough environmental review required by both law and responsible governances.
A full copy of the letter is available here. The letter undertakes a systemic review of weaknesses and omissions that are believed to render any decision made on the basis of the current analysis defective and subject to judicial challenge. The circumstances relating to this undertaking will continue to be monitored to ensure that any changes to the CUSD program are analyzed and addressed as appropriate.
The City’s Planning staff and Public Work’s staff contributed significant and valuable analysis in this review, which is gratefully acknowledged and reflected in the letter to CUSD. Under the City Council’s guidance, the City’s combined resources will help ensure the best interests of the residents of the City of Mission Viejo are protected and enhanced.
