A development is proposing to transform decades-old oil fields and some farmland in west Brea into homes for thousands of people with new trails and parks.

Brea 265 – named for the 265 acres it includes – is expected to approach the final stages of the city’s approval process in the next few months after years of planning, said Jason Killebrew, the city’s community development director.

If approved by city officials, the “legacy project” would create a new community just west of Carbon Canyon Regional Park in three phases over two decades, Killebrew said. And construction could begin in the next year.

The development would start by extending the city’s network of trails into Chino Hills State Park and Carbon Canyon Regional Park, then expand the Brea Sports Park and build more than 1,000 homes.

​​”This is probably the last major area for potential development in the city,” Killebrew said. “It is something that multiple generations will see different steps of the project …  so great care and understanding is being placed on this project.”

The land, currently owned by Aera Energy, has been used primarily for oil production over the last century, but all oil wells will be shuttered and completely decommissioned in time for development, said Steve Greyshock, a spokesman for Aera Energy.

Currently, he said, there are about 60 active oil wells on the land, but they will soon be closed to begin the decommissioning process.

“This is an opportunity to evolve a 100-year-old industrial oil operation into a multi-generational community centered on public parks, trails, public art and a full-spectrum of housing,” Greyshock said. “We now look forward to working with the city to implement this vision to bring these benefits to Brea as quickly as possible.”

The city this month released its environmental impact report for the development, totaling more than 8,000 pages, which will be part of city officials’ review process over the next few weeks. The public is also welcome to offer comments.

Claire Schlotterbeck, executive director of conservation group Hills for Everyone, said her organization is still reviewing the report, but was glad to find it thorough.

​”We need to look at what endangered species are there and whether the mitigation is adequate,” Schotterbeck said, including the California gnatcatcher in her concern. The small bird has been found on other old oil sites in the region.

“They’ve talked about how they have planned for a lot of trail connections, and that’s great, but that means there may be a lot more impact specifically to the state park,” she added. “We want to make sure the state park is covered with mitigation to account for that increased use.”

Greyshock said he’s “confident” the project “will do its fair share of mitigating environmental impacts.”

Greyshaw pointed to other communities in Southern California that had success building on former oil fields, including Olinda Ranch in Brea and Vista del Verde in Yorba Linda, and said Brea 265 will be able to build on that ​​and be a “reflection of key community priorities, including new parks, trails and housing for Brea’s workforce.”

He said the development would include 13 acres for the expansion of the Brea Sports Park, including new baseball, softball, football and soccer fields, as well as tennis courts and the city’s first public pickleball courts.

The housing mix would include single-family homes, an affordable senior community and smaller housing, including affordable options.

The project would also include millions for school expansions, public safety improvements, roadway widenings and wildfire protection, Greyshaw said. He said it’s difficult to predict a specific completion date, but said some early homes could be finished by 2024.

To make way for the development, Aera Energy did not renew its lease this year with the Peltzer Pines Christmas Tree Farm in Brea.

The majority of the 265 acres that would be developed is part of unincorporated Orange County, but the project includes a plan to annex that land into the city of Brea, Killebrew said.

Brea’s Planning Commission held a public hearing on the development proposal Tuesday, but the city will continue to accept public comments about the project through April 22, and the commission is set to again review it April 26.

More details about the project and how to submit a written comment can be found here.

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