Unidentified Costa Mesa resident asks council for five-year moratorium on his property purchases, recounts development disputes

An unidentified in-person commenter told the Costa Mesa City Council on Feb. 17 that he had tried to develop 440 Fair as low-income housing but abandoned the project after neighborhood opposition and legal setbacks. “I spent $200,000, believe it or not,” the speaker said, describing neighbors’ opposition and subsequent legal restrictions that made development “almost impossible.”

The commenter said he sold the building, evicted the tenants and later encountered difficulties related to a second property at 1963 Wallace Avenue, which he described as a former homeless shelter with about 17 units before he bought it. He said a court-appointed receiver later sought to reduce that property to seven units and called the current condition “a disaster.”

Citing the financial and legal toll of those disputes, the speaker asked the council to include a five-year moratorium preventing him from buying property in Costa Mesa, or — if the council prefers — to limit a moratorium to purchases intended for his 19‑year‑old daughter. “I’d be happy to limit it to a residential home for my daughter,” he said, adding that he hoped the council’s decision would end his repeated appearances before the city.

The comment occurred during the public-comment period immediately before the council recessed into closed session. The council did not take any public action on the request during the open portion of the meeting; members then moved to closed session to consider workers’ compensation claims, anticipated and existing litigation, and a real-property negotiation (items read aloud by the city clerk).