After years of controversy, the sliver of Laguna Canyon where dozens of men gather most mornings in search of work will become Laguna Beach property in a deal finalized Wednesday.
Laguna Beach's day laborer hiring site on Laguna Canyon Road has been partially funded by the city for nearly a decade, drawing illegal-immigration protesters and sparking lawsuits.
But until this week, the rugged property, now outfitted with portable toilets and a paid monitor, belonged to the California Department of Transportation.
The California Transportation Commission approved the $18,000 sale of the parcel, which has been a flash point in the region's illegal immigration debate.
The deal closes a chapter for the center, where Wednesday morning, a couple of dozen men lounged on benches, read religious texts, threw dice and ate rice from a food truck as commuters whizzed by.
"Everyone needs to work," said Jesus Luna, 58, of San Juan Capistrano, who was seeking a carpentry job with his son, Juan, 27. Dayworkers can make $120 on a good day, but many say business has slowed lately.
"There's a lot of desperation among us," said Eduardo Gonzalez, 38, of Santa Ana, who has been coming to the site for eight years.
Caltrans originally appraised the parcel last year for commercial use at $1.2 million, said Pam Gorniak, a spokeswoman for Caltrans District 12, which covers Orange County.
With no prospective buyers and the city rejecting potential commercial uses, Caltrans dropped its asking price to $18,000, said Ricky Rodriguez, a Caltrans official. The city made the only bid for the property, designating it for open space, Rodriguez said.
Laguna Beach residents Eileen Garcia and her husband, George Rivere, ardently oppose the center and are suing the city. They contend that Laguna Beach is spending taxpayer money for illegal purposes, said Paul Orfanedes, director of litigation for Judicial Watch, a conservative legal organization that represents Garcia. The suit, which is slated to be argued before a state appeals court this year, alleges that the use of city funds for the dayworker site violates federal law.
"What the city is doing is facilitating illegal employment, and on both sides," Orfanedes said. "A lot of municipalities say, 'We're just trying to deal with a bad situation.' Through their choice of policies, they're actually adding to the problem."
