In
the meantime, the focus of efforts to save Perfect Park has
turned to the Isla Vista Park District. The Park Board, also
as of this writing, is considering using their powers of eminent
domain to condemn the property in favor of building a park there.
A court will then decide a fair price that the District must
pay the church for the property.
This would be the first time in its 18-year history that the
Park District will have used its power to condemn property,
having bought 23 properties to date without it. A rough estimate
for the cost of the property, which now has a water permit and
(mostly) approved building plans, is $1,000,000. This would
translate into a $20-per-year per-household tax in Isla Vista.
One of the Park Board members who is leaning in favor of condemnation
feels that the church and the District will finally wind up
in a lengthy law suit and perhaps even a. recall campaign--also
the first in Isla Vista's history of self-government.
Not
Insidious
In summary, the church is not insidious, but it is organized.
Their influence in Isla Vista (and Goleta!) is both large and
growing. Their penchant to run for public office and to speak
at public hearings has made them much different than other churches
in the area. In fact, in many ways they are a political action
committee.
Yet, it is difficult to talk about this side of their activities
because, as one of their political opponents said in the 1987
water board race, "You can't talk about the church connection
between Lewis and McFarland in the campaign because people will
call you religious bigots."
In this regard, the EOC may have the best of both worlds.
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