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Date:2/1/2026 2:57:57 PM
From:"Sherry Wakely"
To:
"Public Comment" publiccomment@anaheim.net, "Ashleigh Aitken" AAitken@anahe im.ne t, "Carlos A. Leon"
CLeon@anaheim.net, "Ryan Balius" RBalius@anaheim.net, "Norma C. Kurtz" NKurtz@anahe im.ne t, "Kristen Maahs"
KMaahs@anaheim.net, "Natalie Meeks" NMeeks@anaheim.net, "Natalie Rubalcava" NRubalcava@anaheim.net
Subject:[EXTERNAL] Festival redevelopment
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Subject: Please vote NO on the Shea/Festival Center apartments – It’s a safety issue
Dear Council Member,
I am writing to you as a resident of Anaheim Hills to ask you to please vote "No" on the proposed apartments at the Anahei m
Hills Festival Center. I lived here during the Canyon Fire 2 in 2017, and I will never forget the feeli ng of bei ng stuck in my car,
watching the smoke get closer, and literally not moving for over an hour. It wasn't just "traffic"—it was a total standstill. The
thought of adding hundreds of new apartments and about 1000+ more people to that exact same escape route is terri fying to
those of us who have actually been in that situation.
The reports for this project say that adding these cars will "only" add about 7 minutes to the evacuati on time. But when you’re
already stuck for three hours and the fire is moving toward you, 7 minutes is a lifetime. We don’t have extra roads or "secret"
ways out of the Hills; we all end up on the same few lanes. Adding more people to a nei ghborhood that i s already a bottleneck
during a fire just creates a tragedy waiting to happen.
ANTICIPATING THAT AMBULANCES WILL BE USED TO EVACUATE THE ELDERLY IN THE ASSISTED LIVING
FACILITIES AND APARTMENTS HERE IS INSANE!
I understand that the city needs housing, but it shouldn't be built in a place where people are already struggli ng to get out safely.
Please don't make an existing danger even worse just for a new development. We are aski ng you to pri ori ti ze the li ves and
safety of the people who already live here and pay taxes here.
ROADS BEFORE ROOFS
Sincerely,
Sherry Wakely
Division 6