The Orange County Register

FULLERTON Gigi Blanche remembers the mustard plants she passed while driving along Bastanchury Road. They grew wildly and waved in the wind.

Last spring that land was bulldozed for development.

``I was so moved and touched by the golden flowers,'' said Blanche, a resident and sociology instructor at Fullerton College. ``My heart just sunk when it was all mowed down.''

Concerned about the dwindling open space, Blanche joined an environmental group Sunday on a three-mile hike to protest development on about 500 acres of wilderness in Coyote Hills in north Orange County. About two dozen hikers, some who drove out from Diamond Bar and Mission Viejo, met at Laguna Lake Park equipped with backpacks, binoculars and water bottles.

The group, called Friends of Coyote Hills, hopes to save the natural habitat and wildlife there from being uprooted by developers.

Mayor Richard Jones said the city is committed to preserving a significant chunk of that land for open space.

``Some say they would like to have high risers (in Coyote Hills). Some say they want nothing there,'' Jones said. ``We try to have a happy balance. I don't believe in extremism for anything.''

In March, the City Council approved Hawks Point housing development on 86 acres in West Coyote Hills, despite criticisms from the environmental group. The plan, developed by Centex Homes, includes 203 houses, a natural habitat and recreational trails on 86 acres.

``Right now it's a distressed oil field,'' said Susan Lindquist, a Centex Homes planning manager. ``When we finish our development, we will have an enhanced, thriving habitat area. I think (Friends of Coyote Hills) need to be more educated as to the community benefit.''

The property, an abandoned oil field owned primarily by Chevron, lies north of Rosecrans Avenue and east of Euclid Street. Within the past decade, city officials have been working on housing plans with Chevron on 240 of the 500 acres, said Joel Rosen, the city's chief planner. But nothing has gotten off the ground yet.

Connie Spenger, who helped form Friends of Coyote Hills, said she is not convinced the city will recognize their concerns for protecting plants and animals, such as the endangered gnatcatcher bird.

``It's one of the last few significant open space areas in Orange County,'' the longtime resident said. Spenger and others from the environmental group hike in West Coyote Hills the first Saturday and Sunday of each month.

On Sunday, some of the hikers carried signs saying ``Save Coyote Hills,'' to protest future development. They also handed out postcards for people to mail to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of a campaign aimed at preserving all of the Coyote Hills for a park.

``Every place I have that I dearly love is disappearing,'' said Kathleen Stockwell, a bird-watcher from Mission Viejo. ``What's going to be left in the future for us to learn from and appreciate?''

Register staff writer Eric Carpenter contributed to this report.
Contact Valencia at (714) 796-3679 or mvalencia@ocregister.com.

Caption:
A cyclist rides by a member of `Friends of Coyote Hills' on Sunday as the group hikes and protests development in the Fullerton hills. A housing plan has some residents concerned for wild habitats
Memo:hike.0806Copyright 2001 The Orange County Register
Record Number: 50050644