Council to Consider 2 Rail Station Sites

Two possible sites for a $5.5-million Metrolink rail station will be considered by the City Council tonight.

The city had worked on plans to build the station off Camino Capistrano near Avery Parkway when city officials were approached in October by the owner of another potential site, at the end of Forbes Road at Crown Valley Parkway.

All parking on the Forbes Road location would be on the street, meaning that an expensive, three-story garage required at the Camino Capistrano site wouldn’t be necessary.

However, council members expressed reservations in November regarding safety and traffic-congestion problems that could be generated by on-street parking.

In the last two months, the city staff has cleared up some questions about acquiring extra land for the proposed Camino Capistrano station from an adjacent building-materials store.

John Connors, owner of Sepulveda Building Materials, has capped the cost of damages for losing about 45,000 square feet of his property at $500,000, said City Manager Tim Casey.

In addition, Connors has offered to waive compensation for the property in exchange for future building concessions.

Casey said the Camino Capistrano site “now looks like the most affordable alternative with the most direct and conventional parking lot layout.”

Laguna Niguel has been working with Mission Viejo since 1992 to build a regional rail station. The two cities have received about $5.5 million in state and federal grants for the project.

Saddleback Valley residents now must travel to Irvine or San Juan Capistrano to use the popular commuter line.