Environmental group files restraining order against development project

By: BARBARA HENRY - Staff Writer | Tuesday, November 23, 2004 10:25 PM PST ∞

CARLSBAD ----- In a new effort to halt construction of business park in a creekside area near Palomar Airport Road, an environmental group filed a request Monday for a court injunction.

'="It's very clear (that) ... after an extended delay, the project was moving very fast," said Diane Nygaard of Preserve Calavera, the group seeking the injunction from a federal judge.

The 414-acre project at the end of Faraday Avenue received its wetlands permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in early November. After the Corps issued the permit, the Carlsbad City Council approved the final design and construction was slated to begin in December.

The site, which is next to the Carlsbad Raceway and Palomar Forum business park projects, would include 22 pads for industrial users. It is owned and being developed by Techbilt Construction Co.

In its injunction request filed with the U.S. District Court in San Diego, Preserve Calavera argues that the Corps should not have issued the wetlands permit, saying the federal agency "failed to take a hard look at the project and its impacts." A court date has not been set, the group's attorney, Everett DeLano, said Tuesday.

Nygaard said the project's roadways will treat La Mirada Creek "like a dump," explaining that the planned extensions of Faraday Avenue and El Fuerte Street cross the creek but that there aren't any bridges planned. Instead, the creek will be funneled into a culvert and a detention basin will be built as a flood-control measure, she said. City officials confirmed Nygaard's explanation.

Ted Tchang, vice president for Techbilt Construction, said Tuesday that the city's flood-control proposal for the creek has been in place for years, and he argued that Preserve Calavera is trying any means to stop the project.

"Preserve Calavera right from the very start has been unmitigatingly hostile to the development of ... property that's been in my family for years," he said.

Preserve Calavera members have repeatedly testified at city hearings and submitted written comments to state and federal wildlife officials about the project. In an effort to win support for preserving the land, Nygaard also led unauthorized weekend walks through the area for several years. After learning about them, the company officials ordered her to stop going through the property.

"I think that pretty much shows they have a complete lack of respect for private property rights," Tchang said.

Nygaard said there are many reasons to preserve the property, which acts as a wildlife corridor between the Agua Hedionda Lagoon and lands to the east. In addition to several endangered animal species, the place is home to a grove of 19 old oak trees, she said.

"In the past we've found the area has one of the best wildflower displays in North County," she said.

Her organization wants the developer to build bridges across the creek, rather than putting the creek in a culvert.

"Of course, a bridge costs money, but we certainly think the trade-offs are worth it," she said.

Contact staff writer Barbara Henry at (760) 901-4072 or bhenry@nctimes.com.

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