14 (93)
Susana Barrios
From:Fred Sigala Jr <fredsigalajr@yahoo.com>
Sent:Monday, April
To:Public Comment
Subject:\[EXTERNAL\] Council Meeting 4-16-24 Public Comment (Item#14)
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4/16/24 Item 14
*Disclaimer – My opinions are my own and not in any way influenced by those of anyone else including any other
resident, advocacy, poli?cal or lobbying group. Thank you.
Fred Sigala Jr. District 2,
Gree?ngs council, thank you for considering my experience during this Disney Forward process. I have a?ended
community pop-ups and informa?on presenta?ons for the project and would like to share that I met Disney’s Karalee
Darnell, Senior Manager of Government Rela?ons at my district Neighborhood Services Mee?ng and found her to be
very professional and approachable. She saw that I had a lot of ques?ons about the project so she gave me her card and
encouraged me to reach out as well as to share her contact informa?on with any neighbors who desired more
informa?on on the project. I did both and she was very helpful to both myself and my neighbors while naviga?ng the
EIR. She went above and beyond sending actual pages that answered our specific ques?ons. She helped us see for
ourselves and not feel like we needed to take other’s word for anything if we didn’t have ?me to read the en?re report.
She was forthcoming and honest when I asked about things that didn’t pertain to this project such as fireworks, but she
was recep?ve when I expressed opinions and hopes this is something that could be addressed in the near future. I also
expressed concerns over the rumors regarding Disney trying to get the city to abandon Disneyland Dr. which turned out
to be an exaggera?on by residents gathering signatures on a pe??on to influence your decision on the project. I’m
grateful to the Disney representa?ve for helping us quickly sort truth from fic?on. I must also men?on that I am
disappointed with the Voice of OC for con?nuing to report this pe??on as legi?mate despite my informing them how
signatures were gathered using misinforma?on. Despite my effort to distance myself from residents who irresponsibly
damage their own credibility, and despite my effort to expose organiza?ons who rather than help to educate the public,
would rather hold private mee?ngs then amplify voices of residents who believe their misinforma?on, I can’t say that I
disagree with other, actually credible residents who’ve taken the ?me to do an immense amount of work to
appropriately and professionally balance narra?ves with the Walt Disney Company.
I give thanks and praise to the Disney Representa?ve for their help to our neighborhoods as well as to residents such as
Cynthia Ward, Duane Roberts and Marc Herbert who have shown diligence in coming to a few of the same conclusions
as myself in reviewing the reports and following along at mee?ngs including Planning Commission. These are among the
residents who volunteered their ?me to review this project objec?vely and without agendas or personal vende?as. I’m
also grateful to Karalee for respec?ng my desire to remain impar?al on the project, to think for myself un?l I was able to
draw my own conclusions which follow:
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I’d like to say that I do support approval of the project, but only if certain changes can be made. First is not including the
Magic Way sale. It was made clear to me by city staff when watching Planning Commission that they were confident the
project could proceed without that component. If not essen?al to the project, based on public desire to keep the street,
I urge you to respect the public’s wishes.
I also urge you to require a significant increase in the provision of affordable workforce housing, considering Mr. Robert’s
findings about all that Disney is doing in Florida to house their growing workforce there. I made the sugges?on to Ms.
Darnell that maybe Disney could also consider the possibility of a Rental Assistance Program for those employees who
meet low income requirements and she let me know that she would communicate my feedback to the appropriate
people. I happen to know this type of program wouldn't be unprecedented as I myself received significant rental
assistance in Costa Mesa from my employer who partnered with my apartment complex when I worked there. Without
it, we could not have saved enough to purchase our home in Anaheim.
Lastly, the verbiage in the proposal Ms. Ward pointed out pertaining to any poten?al future Entertainment taxes not
being specific only to Disney; I’d like to hear assurances that the Angels being exempt from entertainment taxes as part
of their lease agreement would have no bearing on whether Disney could poten?ally have any “gate tax” imposed in the
future.
Thanks again to all for your service to our city and in advance for making these difficult decisions on behalf of the
residents of Anaheim.
Gratefully,
Fred Sigala Jr. District 2
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