What Laguna Hills was about to decide
Laguna Hills held two meetings the same day: a special meeting for a joint study session and public hearing on the Village at Laguna Hills mall redevelopment, followed by the regular City Council/Planning Agency meeting, both at the Council Chamber, 24035 El Toro Road. These are pending decisions from the posted agendas — not confirmed outcomes. The official outcomes for the regular meeting, from the minutes the council has since adopted, are summarized at the top of this page. Every item links to its own official source agenda.
Sources: regular meeting agenda (PDF) · special meeting agenda (PDF) · Full documents: lagunahillsca.portal.civicclerk.com · Next regular meeting: August 25, 2026
✅ What actually passed (per the adopted minutes): The minutes of the July 14 regular meeting, approved at the August 25 meeting, record that the mall redevelopment was approved 3-2. All five members were present. Mayor Caskey reopened the joint public hearing at 6:05 p.m. and closed it at 6:50 p.m.; five people spoke in favor, two in opposition and one in neutrality, and the City Clerk read into the record 35 written comments in favor and 13 in opposition, with the Orange County Transportation Authority and the City of Lake Forest both filing neutral comments. On a motion by Mayor Pro Tem Mathis, seconded by Sweeney, to approve staff’s recommendations, the roll call was AYES: Caskey, Mathis, Sweeney — NOES: Wheeler, Pezold (Item 1.2.1). That single motion carried the CEQA finding, the joint resolution approving the Site Development Permit, Master Sign Program, the conditional use permit for the additional hotel, Amended Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 19123 and Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. USE-0239-2025, and the first readings of both implementing ordinances. The minutes do not separately record an action on converting the Village at Laguna Hills Ad Hoc Committee into a Standing Committee. Both ordinances came back and were adopted on August 25 — the Urban Village Specific Plan amendment 4-1 and the development agreement on a split tally — and those votes are detailed in our August 25 brief.
On the money, everything on consent passed. The council ratified the $781,370.85 warrant register for June 12 to July 2, 2026, ratified the OCTA Environmental Cleanup Tier 1 grant application for the Ridge Route Drive Biofiltration Project and adopted Resolution 2024-07-14-1 authorizing it, closed out the Community Center Electrical Improvements (CIP 520) with final retention of $14,274.11 and the Street Name Signs Project (CIP 113) with final retention of $11,855.00, awarded the on-call maintenance agreement to Jamey Clark, Inc., approved Amendment No. 3 with Charles Abbott Associates, Inc., and — an item not listed on the posted agenda summary above — awarded the Moulton Parkway at Mandeville Drive acceleration-lane project (CIP 303) to the lowest responsive bidder, Hardy & Harper, Inc., in the amount of $149,000.00, rejecting all other construction bids. Four on-call public works and engineering consulting agreements were also approved, with Bucknam Infrastructure Group, GMU Geotechnical, RKA Consulting Group and Transtech Engineers. The consent calendar carried 5-0 (Item 5).
Two items were handled separately. Wheeler pulled approval of the June 23 minutes because he had not attended that meeting and wished to abstain; they were approved 4-0 with Wheeler abstaining (Item 5.2). The 2026 Weed Abatement Cost Report hearing opened at 10:22 p.m. and closed at 10:24 p.m. with no public comment, and the confirming resolution — which puts the assessments on the next regular property tax bill — passed 5-0 (Item 6.1). There was no City Manager report. The meeting adjourned at 10:40 p.m.
On the money, everything on consent passed. The council ratified the $781,370.85 warrant register for June 12 to July 2, 2026, ratified the OCTA Environmental Cleanup Tier 1 grant application for the Ridge Route Drive Biofiltration Project and adopted Resolution 2024-07-14-1 authorizing it, closed out the Community Center Electrical Improvements (CIP 520) with final retention of $14,274.11 and the Street Name Signs Project (CIP 113) with final retention of $11,855.00, awarded the on-call maintenance agreement to Jamey Clark, Inc., approved Amendment No. 3 with Charles Abbott Associates, Inc., and — an item not listed on the posted agenda summary above — awarded the Moulton Parkway at Mandeville Drive acceleration-lane project (CIP 303) to the lowest responsive bidder, Hardy & Harper, Inc., in the amount of $149,000.00, rejecting all other construction bids. Four on-call public works and engineering consulting agreements were also approved, with Bucknam Infrastructure Group, GMU Geotechnical, RKA Consulting Group and Transtech Engineers. The consent calendar carried 5-0 (Item 5).
Two items were handled separately. Wheeler pulled approval of the June 23 minutes because he had not attended that meeting and wished to abstain; they were approved 4-0 with Wheeler abstaining (Item 5.2). The 2026 Weed Abatement Cost Report hearing opened at 10:22 p.m. and closed at 10:24 p.m. with no public comment, and the confirming resolution — which puts the assessments on the next regular property tax bill — passed 5-0 (Item 6.1). There was no City Manager report. The meeting adjourned at 10:40 p.m.
The headline: Both meetings that day were largely about one thing — whether to let MGP Fund X Laguna Hills, LLC substantially rework its already-approved plan to redevelop the former Laguna Hills Mall site. The special meeting was a study session and presentation on the request; the regular meeting was where the joint public hearing was reopened and the City Council/Planning Agency were recommended to adopt the approving resolution and introduce the implementing ordinances. Separately, on the regular meeting's consent calendar, the council was set to ratify a $781,370.85 warrant register and close out two capital projects.
🏗️ The mall redevelopment, in two meetings
- What MGP wants: MGP Fund X Laguna Hills, LLC is seeking to modify the previously approved Village at Laguna Hills project — the redevelopment of the former Laguna Hills Mall site at 24001 Avenida de la Carlota #B; 23451 Calle de la Louisa; 24162 Ronda del Rossmoor; and 24100, 24126, 24155 and 24300 Laguna Hills Mall. The request bundles an amendment to the Urban Village Specific Plan, a Site Development Permit, Conditional Use Permits, a Master Sign Program, a Parking Use Permit, an Amended Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 19123 subdividing 10 existing lots into 27, and an Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. USE-0239-2025. Special 1.2.1 Regular 1.2.1
- The special meeting was a study session: the Ad Hoc Committee and staff were set to present on the MGP request, followed by "a Joint Study Session and Public Hearing of the Planning Agency and City Council" — a briefing ahead of the regular meeting's formal action, not itself a vote on the project. Special Items 1–2
- The regular meeting reopened the joint public hearing and the recommendation was for the Planning Agency and City Council to find the project within the scope of the 2009 General Plan Program EIR (as addended through the Seventh Addendum) and requiring no additional CEQA review, then adopt a joint resolution approving the Site Development Permit, Master Sign Program, Conditional Use Permit for the additional hotel, Amended Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 19123, and the Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. USE-0239-2025. Regular Item 1
- Two ordinances were also up for first reading: one amending and restating the development agreement between the city and MGP Fund X Laguna Hills, LLC, and one amending the Urban Village Specific Plan. The council was also asked to consider converting the Village at Laguna Hills Ad Hoc Committee into a Standing Committee to monitor and advise on the development agreement's implementation going forward. Regular Item 2
💰 Consent calendar money
- $781,370.85 warrant register for the period June 12 to July 2, 2026, up for ratification. Regular Item 5.3
- Grant application to OCTA: ratification of a submitted grant application to the Orange County Transportation Authority's Environmental Cleanup Tier 1 Program for the Ridge Route Drive Biofiltration Project, plus a resolution authorizing the funding application under Orange County Local Transportation Ordinance No. 3. Regular Item 5.4
- Community Center electrical work closed out: notice of completion for the Laguna Hills Community Center Electrical Improvements (CIP 520), with final retention payment of $14,274.11 to be released 35 days after recordation, contingent on no liens being filed. Regular Item 5.5
- Street name signs project closed out: notice of completion for the Street Name Signs Project (CIP 113), with final retention payment of $11,855.00 under the same lien-contingent terms. Regular Item 5.6
📋 Contracts & enforcement
- New on-call maintenance contractor: award of an On-Call General Maintenance, Repair, and Specialty Trade Services Agreement to Jamey Clark, Inc.; the agenda does not list a contract dollar amount. Regular Item 5.7
- Building and safety services amendment: Amendment No. 3 to the Professional Services Agreement with Charles Abbott Associates, Inc. for on-call building and safety services; no dollar figure is stated in the agenda item. Regular Item 5.8
- Weed abatement assessments: a public hearing on the 2025/2026 Weed Abatement Cost Report, followed by a resolution confirming the report and providing for collection of weed abatement assessments on residents' next regular property tax bill. Regular Item 6
Council Brief summaries are produced from official public records by our automated newsroom and reviewed before publication. Items are described as posted on the agenda; the council may have amended, continued, or removed items at the meeting, and no confirmed outcome record was available for either meeting at the time of publication. Spot an error? hello@councilbrief.com — we publish corrections.
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