Lake Forest advances plan to abandon part of Whispering Hills park designation to pursue affordable senior housing

The Lake Forest City Council voted June 16 to advance a final resolution to abandon the park designation on the roughly 6.5‑acre Whispering Hills parcel and begin the state Surplus Land Act process to solicit affordable housing developers.

Adrien Grahalva, the city—conomic development and housing manager, told the council the site would be split and that a deed restriction would preserve about 2.5 acres for park development while the remainder could be dispositioned through the SLA. Grahalva described a multi‑step SLA timeline: the city would declare the property surplus, issue a notice of availability to the California Department of Housing and Community Development and other eligible entities (60‑day response period), engage in at least 90 days of good‑faith negotiations if interest is received, and allow a 30‑day HCD review to confirm compliance with the SLA.

Residents who spoke at the public hearing urged different outcomes. Brooke Maynard, a Whispering Hills homeowner, asked whether the site would be sold or leased, whether parking would be included and how many housing units might be built. Amanda Sheik, also a Whispering Hills homeowner, criticized the process and urged clearer answers on whether the city intended to sell or lease the land and who would control future land management.

Tom Emik urged a no vote to preserve what he described as a 1999 promise that the land remain parkland. Jennifer Guy said she supports senior affordable housing if the deed restriction meaningfully preserves and requires construction and maintenance of park space. Kenton Bcher, who recalled the parcel—eing graded in 1985, said he would support a compromise that produced both a park and senior housing but urged city guarantees that park protections be enforced.

In response, the city attorney explained that the developer—iled an Irrevocable Offer of Dedication (IOD) decades ago and the city accepted it as open space; that acceptance does not, by itself, guarantee funding or construction. The attorney said state law allows a city to abandon a park designation after following the required hearing process when land dedicated for park purposes has not been funded or developed. Grahalva and the city attorney said the 2.5‑acre deed restriction proposed in staff materials would remain deed restricted in perpetuity and that any purchaser selected through the SLA would be required by negotiations and recorded covenants to build and maintain the park component.

Councilmembers said subsequent steps — including negotiation with interested affordable housing developers, entitlement review, environmental review and any traffic modeling — would return to planning commission and council and be subject to public hearings. Grahalva said typical affordable housing covenants in Lake Forest (for other projects) have been 55 years; she described those terms as funding‑dependent.

After public comment and discussion, the council closed the hearing and adopted the final resolution to proceed with the SLA steps for the Whispering Hills parcel. The clerk recorded the motion as passing "4‑0 with Council Member Voits absent." The city will next issue the notice of availability and follow the statutorily required timelines and negotiations for affordable housing developers.

What happens next: Staff will prepare the notice of availability under the Surplus Land Act, solicit interested affordable housing entities, and return to the council with any offers and recommended terms. Residents will have additional opportunities to comment during entitlement and environmental review processes.