City of Garden Grove v. City of Santa Ana

COUGHLIN, J. These are appeals from judgments denying petitions for writs of mandate. Involved is a determination of the validity of an annexation proceeding by the respondent city of Santa Ana; instituted under the Annexation Act of 1913 (Gov. Code, §§ 35100-35158), governing the annexation of inhabited territory; identified as the “West Santa Ana Annex”; and covering 2,308.1 acres of land. Following the requisite preliminary proceedings, which included filing a map and description of the territory to be annexed with the boundary commission, the City Council of the City of Santa Ana, on October 17, 1958, adopted a resolution approving the circulation of a petition requesting such annexation. Shortly before the adoption of this resolution the boundary commission made its report which revealed that the proposed territory included a small parcel of property, 10 acres in size, which was a part of the territory sought to be annexed to the city of Garden Grove under the Annexation of Uninhabited Territory Act of 1939 (Gov. Code, §§ 35300-35321), under a proceeding designated “Annexation No. 63,” and covering 116.5 acres of land. For reasons not disclosed by the record, the information contained in the boundary commission ’s report had not come to the attention of the City Council of Santa Ana when the foregoing resolution was adopted. For priority purposes the “West Santa Ana Annex” was initiated on October 17, 1958 (Gov. Code, §35113) and “Annexation No. 63” was initiated on October 7, 1958 (Gov. Code, § 35308). Under settled rules, the city of Garden Grove’s proceeding, being first initiated, had priority. (City of Burlingame v. County of San Mateo, 90 Cal.App.2d 705, 706-707 [203 P.2d 807] ; People v. Town of Corte Madera, 115 Cal.App.2d 32, 38 [251 P.2d 988] ; Borghi v. Board of Supervisors, 133 Cal.App.2d 463, 465 [284 P.2d 537] ; City of Costa Mesa v. City of Newport Beach, 165 Cal.App.2d 553, 556 [332 P.2d 392].) In due course this proceeding became final and the property described therein, including the 10-aere parcel, became annexed to the city of Garden Grove.

In the meantime, the aforenoted report of the boundary commission had come to the attention of the council of the city of Santa Ana, which awaited expiration of the time for the filing of protests under the annexation proceeding there[535]tofore initiated by it; in due course determined that the protests filed were not sufficient to terminate that proceeding; thereupon, viz., on January 9, 1959, caused a new map and description of the property to be included within the “West Santa Ana Annex,” excluding the 10-acre parcel which was a part of the city of Garden Grove’s “Annexation No. 63,” to be filed with the boundary commission; and, upon receipt of approval by that commission of the new map and description, adopted an ordinance calling for an election with respect to the proposed annexation. In this ordinance, which was adopted February 2, 1959, and in all subsequent proceedings, the description of the territory which it was proposed should be annexed excluded the 10-acre parcel which was part of the city of Garden Grove’s “Annexation No. 63.”