Huntington Beach, OCBC join Costa Mesa coronavirus lawsuit

The city of Huntington Beach and the Orange County Business Council are the latest supporters to join Costa Mesa's lawsuit over the possible placement of coronavirus patients in a state-owned facility.

Huntington Beach's city council decided to support Costa Mesa's federal court challenge in a unanimous vote Thursday. City attorney Michael E. Gates said the amicus brief, which he plans to file Friday morning, will outline what the city sees as a possible threat to the safety of its citizens.

"The federal and state governments didn't properly analyze the site at Costa Mesa and didn't put in proper plans and coordination with local authorities to effectuate a safe transfer," Gates said of what he intends to state in the brief. "Placing the individuals or the patients or the exposed, whoever they ended up being, at the [Fairview Developmental Center] puts not only Costa Mesa at risk, but the region at risk, including the city of Huntington Beach."

Dorsey & Whitney LLP attorneys Juan C. Basombrio and Siena M. Caruso filed the brief on behalf of the OCBC Thursday.

"OCBC expresses concern about the potential and substantial negative impacts that making Fairview a treatment location could have on Orange County, unless an informed decision is made after a thorough study of alternative locations, consultation with local community and business leaders, consideration of the overall effects on Orange County, rehabilitation of the location, and the development of an adequate health, treatment and management plan for the location and patients," Basombrio and Caruso wrote.

The briefs are in response to a lawsuit brought by Costa Mesa a week ago seeking to bar the state and federal government from placing coronavirus patients in the state-owned Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa. Judge Josephine L. Staton granted a temporary restraining order and urged the parties in a hearing Monday to improve communication. City of Costa Mesa v. United States of America, 8:20-cv-00368 (C.D. Cal., filed Feb. 21, 2020).

Laguna Beach and the Orange County Board of Supervisors have also pledged to file amicus briefs though those were not on file with the court as of press time Thursday. Another hearing before Staton is scheduled for Monday.

-- Nicole Tyau