C Douglas Leavenworth

The Orange County Planning Commission on Tuesday narrowly rejected a developer's request to more than double the number of new houses already approved for construction in a remote Trabuco Canyon area. The commissioners voted 3 to 2 against letting the William Lyon Co. increase the number of homes planned for its Robinson Ranch development from the presently authorized 882 to 1,850 on its 822-acre property adjacent to the Cleveland National Forest.

JoAnn Burrows, assistant manager of the Lake Forest Community Assn., saw it as a simple issue. Bus shelters with advertising are "a blight on our community," she said at a recent hearing. But Orange County Planning Commissioner C. Douglas Leavenworth viewed it far differently. Allowing ads is "the practical American way" to provide benches and shelters for bus riders at no cost to the government.

A $300-million luxury resort in Laguna Niguel was unanimously approved by the county Planning Commission Tuesday in a decision the developers say will bring Orange County a worldwide reputation as a vacation spot. The project is a joint venture between Orange County's Stein-Brief Inc. and the Hemmeter Corp., a Hawaiian-based company that has built several opulent island resorts that are known for their exotic flower gardens, rock waterfalls and luxurious recreational facilities.

In a major victory for environmentalists, the Orange County Planning Commission on Tuesday recommended scuttling a proposed two-lane road that critics warned would have opened hundreds of acres of rugged backcountry in southern Orange County to intense development and traffic. On a 2-1 vote, the commission recommended that Rose Canyon Road--a three-mile-long proposed road through Trabuco Canyon on the edge of the Cleveland National Forest--be eliminated from the county's master plan of highways.

Plans for a national physical fitness academy in Aliso Viejo cleared a major hurdle Monday when the Orange County Planning Commission voted for the idea, 3 to 2. The narrow approval allows backers of the academy to present detailed plans for the 200-acre site to the commission and to apply to the state Coastal Commission and the county Board of Supervisors for approval, a process that could take four to six months. The nonprofit academy straddling Aliso Creek on county property 2.

The district attorney declined Wednesday to file conflict-of-interest charges against two Orange County planning commissioners for their involvement in a political dinner attended by representatives of developers with projects pending before the commission. Deputy Dist. Atty. Wallace J. Wade said his decision to drop the case was based on a "lack of evidence indicating criminal wrongdoing" on the part of Commission Chairman Stephen A. Nordeck, 46, and Commissioner Roger D. Slates, 61. "Great!"

When Orange County planning commissioners voted last fall to scuttle a proposed road that would have cut through Trabuco Canyon and exposed hundreds of pristine acres to development, environmentalists hailed it as the dawn of a new sensitivity. Commissioner Stephen A. Nordeck led the fight to block construction of Rose Canyon Road, and he won that battle with the aid of a swing vote from Commissioner Roger D. Slates, once characterized as "a well-known anti-environmentalist."

Although their own consultants warn that one of Southern California's richest natural habitats could be destroyed if a 2,500-home community is built on the edge of O'Neill Regional Park, county planning staffers Tuesday recommended approval of the project. Officials with the Environmental Management Agency told the County Planning Commission that the Santa Margarita Co.'

The debate over development in and around Trabuco Canyon gained momentum and urgency during the summer months as the plan sped toward a fall hearing before the Orange County Board of Supervisors.

Fifteen aides to county supervisors got tickets to the ballet. Two planning commissioners played complimentary golf. And veteran Supervisor Thomas F. Riley was presented with a $150 cowboy belt buckle. In recent years, the Mission Viejo Co. and its affiliates have given those and other gifts to elected and appointed officials throughout Orange County and beyond. They have also been significant campaign contributors. Lately, some of that generosity has stirred controversy.