The move surrounding one of central county’s last large open green spaces has sparked surprise and disappointment among stakeholders and nearby city officials.
Tag: Rise Up Willowick
Posted inOutdoors
Will Locals Lose A “Now or Never” Chance to Create A Rare Central Orange County Park?
Garden Grove officials appear to have rejected an offer from a community group that wants to turn the Willowick Golf Course into a park-centric development.
Posted inNEWS
Willowick: Unease Abounds as Talks Begin with Developers on Precious Central OC Open Space
The Garden Grove City Council voted 5-2 Tuesday to start negotiating with three groups proposing to build on the Willowick Golf Course, legally owned by the city yet located in Santa Ana.
Posted inCommunity Opinion
Rodriguez: An Open Letter to the City of Garden Grove and Developers Trying to Monetize Willowick-Residents of Color will not be Tokenized
In her piece, Karen Rodriguez, born and raised in Santa Ana, CA and an organizer for the Rise Up Willowick coalition, responds to Kelsey Brewer’s, of Jamboree Housing, Op-Ed piece. Rodriguez dispels Brewers’ claims that Jamboree’s proposal responds to the needs of residents. Rodriguez portrays residents’ needs and vision for the Willowick Golf course based on ongoing community outreach and organizing that began nearly two years ago. For decades, residents of the neighborhoods surrounding the Willowick Golf Course, Buena Clinton in Garden Grove and Santa Anita in Santa Ana, have experienced disinvestment; however their vision is clear. The community will not be tokenized by the City or developers; they have the right to self-determine the future of their neighborhood.
Posted inCommunity Opinion
Brewer: It’s Time to Listen to Local Communities When it Comes to Surplus Land Resources
Affordable housing on surplus land can be a win for city budgets and for communities facing rising housing costs
Posted inNEWS
Willowick: One Neighborhood At Center of Reshaping Battle for Area’s Last Open Space
The fate of the land, and the historic Santa Anita neighborhood around it, now hinges on a potential three-way battle between activists and two government bodies.
Posted inCommunity Opinion
Barajas-Tena: The Intersection Between Covid-19, Racism and Willowick
The continuous disinvestment in parks and open space in Central and North Orange County by the City of Garden Grove, the City of Santa Ana councilmembers and the OC Board of Supervisors is not accidental. It relies on council members’ complicity in this system where developers and corporations rule.
Posted inCommunity Opinion
Zuniga: How COVID-19 Confirms the Need for Housing Security in Orange County
This Op-Ed sheds light on important lessons that the novel Coronavirus is teaching us — as the Coronavirus spreads, homelessness and housing instability are major concerns for many people living in Orange County, especially communities such as the ones living near the Willowick Golf Course. It is in times of increased anxiety, as we take precaution of the Coronavirus, that one finally recognizes how important it is to have a home to go to and stay safe when the media and local officials repeatedly state ‘stay home’. Yet, not everyone has the privilege to stay home. And, for many working class families, the Coronavirus is threatening to exacerbate the economic struggle and it places the most vulnerable at risk.
Posted inEconomy, Garden Grove, Government, Housing & Homelessness, NEWS, News Briefs, Outdoors, REGIONS, Santa Ana, State, Top Stories
Judge Rules Garden Grove Can’t Finalize Willowick Deal with Developer Before Tighter State Land Use Laws Take Effect
The ruling possibly ties Garden Grove’s hands on the golf course, with city officials now prohibited from finalizing any development agreement for the golf course likely until after an expansion of the Surplus Land Act — which goes further in restricting the ways cities can’t find exemptions to the law and circumvent it — takes effect next year.
Posted inEconomy, Garden Grove, Government, Housing & Homelessness, NEWS, News Briefs, Outdoors, REGIONS, Santa Ana, Top Stories
Garden Grove City Council Pushes Vote on Willowick Golf Course Land Sale to Next Week
At their next meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 17, Garden Grove council members will decide whether to lease the 100-acre Willowick Golf Course to hotel development company McWhinney over the next five decades, with currently no information from city staff on exactly how much in dollars the developer would be paying annually for the property.
