Vail Ranch proposal good for all

| Monday, October 9, 2000 10:00 PM PDT ∞

Shari Crall
The Californian

Mention "Wal-Mart," "developer" and "reimbursement" in this town and people have flashbacks.

But before you go for some post-traumatic stress syndrome Prozac, take a deep breath. The Vail Ranch Historic District and the whole Wal-Mart/Riverside County deal is nothing like the old Temecula/Wal-Mart deal. Hopefully, the City Council can let go of the baggage of the past, and see this for the win-win situation it is.

Here is the deal: Wolf Store, Temecula's oldest standing historical building, and the adjacent buildings that formed the headquarters for Vail Ranch, sit at the corner of Highway 79 South and Redhawk Parkway. Historic restrictions were placed on the property back in 1988, and enforced by a lawsuit in 1998, when the wall of the caretaker's house was taken down by then-developer Jerry Swanger.

Since then, settlement of the lawsuit strengthened the historic maintenance district and design-review mechanism within the county, controlling the 100 acres of property surrounding the ranch headquarters. Conditions of approval now are court-ordered requirements and Swanger was forced to restore the exterior of the buildings.

What we have right now are fenced-off historic buildings, susceptible to vandalism, and although saved from the elements on the exterior, uninhabitable on the interior because of earthquake requirements. What the county and Vail Ranch Restoration Association have been working on for four years is a way to bring these buildings back to life.

Enter Excel Legacy of San Diego now owns the historic site. Through negotiations with the county, Excel has committed to restore completely the four acres of historic buildings, including rebuilding an implement barn that was torn down.

Excel would put up all the front money, adhere to the strict requirements of historic restoration, lease out the properties to restaurants or stores, and then deed it all back to the county, which would then lease it back to Excel for $1.

The county's contribution, which the city is balking about picking up, is $1.9 million in funds, compared to the $3.1 million the developer is putting in. In the county's plan. This $1.9 million was to come from sales taxes generated by Wal-Mart during four years.

OK, now get this straight, because I just said the "Wal-Mart" word: This is not an incentive to Wal-Mart in any way. Wal-Mart still pays all its fees and all its sales tax. This is simply a funding mechanism, consisting of newly generated funds in the form of the new Wal-Mart, to restore historic properties valuable to every resident of Temecula.

What's to quibble? Hallelujah the county found a developer who sees the potential of the site and is willing to put up the cash to restore it. Remember, the project costs $5 million whether it comes from the county, the city or the developer. To get more than a 50% buy in, was good negotiating.

When county and city officials meet this afternoon to discuss the project, I hope they will see that viable, self-supporting developed buildings, open to the public, is much preferable to the fenced-off, limited, future drain on the taxpayer buildings we have now.

Shari Crall of Temecula is a regular contributor to The Californian. E-mail her through www.temelink.com or call 694-CRAL.

10/10/00

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