Mission Viejo : Talks Continue on Plan for Psychiatric Hospital

Discussion about a proposed psychiatric hospital continued into the night Monday as members of the Mission Viejo Municipal Advisory Council debated whether to recommend the controversial development to the county Planning Commission.

A three-story, 80-bed acute psychiatric care facility is being proposed by the Charter Medical Corp. of Georgia for the HighPark business center at Los Alisos Boulevard and Madero in unincorporated Mission Viejo.

Residents of neighborhoods near HighPark packed a small meeting room Monday night hoping to persuade the council not to support the $10.5-million facility, which would treat patients who voluntarily admit themselves for psychiatric problems such as eating and mood disorders.

On Sept. 2, the Municipal Advisory Council’s planning committee voted 3 to 1 to recommend that the council reject the hospital proposal, citing incompatibility of the building design with existing architecture in HighPark and Mission Viejo. During that meeting, residents presented a 371-signature petition opposing the project.

Residents said they are concerned that the value of their homes would decrease and that their neighborhoods would become unsafe because patients would be allowed to leave hospital grounds on supervised walks through residential areas.