Council appeal could be last round-up for dinosaur statue
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO – Zoomars Petting Zoo is saddling up for a final appeal in hopes of persuading the City Council to save its 13-foot-tall dinosaur statue from extinction.
Zoo owner Carolyn Franks is calling on her supporters to attend an April 2 meeting, where the council could decide whether the dinosaur stays or goes. The city Planning Commission has twice rejected the $12,000 apatosaurus replica, which the zoo installed in June without permits.
Zoomars Petting Zoo craftsmen Camilo Hernandez, left, and Walter Jolon show a saddle created for Zoomars' 13-foot-tall, 40-foot-long apatosaurus statue.
JOSH FRANCIS, FOR THE REGISTER
Council meeting
The San Juan Capistrano City Council is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. April 2 at City Hall, 32400 Paseo Adelanto.
Zoomars even had a saddle made for the dinosaur, which it calls Juan. Visitors can't ride the prehistoric creature, but it's part of Franks' effort to round up more community support for her last-ditch attempt to save her investment. The campaign includes T-shirts, bracelets and a petition she plans to present to the council.
The appeal also will include Franks' plans to erect an Old West facade, huts for an Acjachemen-style Native American village and a prehistoric fossil dig area. The Planning Commission in February approved the structures with several conditions, but a revote this month resulted in a tie, which counts as a rejection.
The appeal to the council lumps the dinosaur and the accessory structures into one item, but the council could decide to consider them separately.
Council members have been tight-lipped about the issue, since it has yet to reach them. Councilman Roy Byrnes' wife, Ilse, is a staunch critic of the statue.
The Capistrano Historical Alliance Committee, a group of members of historical Capistrano families, took offense to the statue's installation and demanded that the city force Franks to remove it. The committee says the dinosaur does not fit the character of the Los Rios Historic District, where Zoomars is located.
SUPPORTERS
San Juan Capistrano Chamber of Commerce: Executive Director Mark Bodenhamer says the dinosaur is a benefit to the city.
San Juan Capistrano Cultural Heritage Commission: In November, the panel voted to allow the dinosaur.
Microsemi: Jim Peterson, chief executive of the Aliso Viejo-based company, has donated thousands of dollars to help Zoomars through the permitting and appeals process for the statue.
OPPONENTS
Capistrano Historical Alliance Committee: Members sent the city a letter within 24 hours of the statue's installation demanding that the statue be removed.
City staff: Has stated the statue does not fit into the historic neighborhood; issued an eviction notice in June that set off ongoing reviews and appeals.
CHRONOLOGY
June 13: Zoomars Petting Zoo owner Carolyn Franks buys a replica apatosaurus from an Anaheim auction house and installs it at the zoo at 31791 Los Rios St. in San Juan Capistrano.
June 14: Jerry Nieblas, president of the Capistrano Historical Alliance Committee, demands that the city act to have the statue removed, saying it makes a "mockery of the history of San Juan Capistrano."
June 29: The city issues Franks an eviction notice for the statue. She appeals to the Planning Commission.
Aug. 14: The Planning Commission denies Franks' appeal.
Sept. 17: Instead of appealing the Planning Commission's decision to the City Council, Franks takes a new approach and applies for an amendment to her conditional use permit that would allow the statue and other structures.
Nov. 27: The Cultural Heritage Commission recommends that the Planning Commission find the statue consistent with the Los Rios Specific Plan.
Jan. 7: The Planning Commission denies the dinosaur statue again and delays a decision on the rest of Franks' proposal.
Feb. 12: The Planning Commission approves the proposed accessory structures with several conditions, including review by the city Design Review Committee.
March 12: A Planning Commission re-vote results in a tie, reversing its February decision on the accessory structures.
March 13: Franks decides to appeal the denial of the statue and the accessory structures to the City Council.
No comments:
Post a Comment