Dear Governor Newsom, Senator Blakespear, Assembly Member Davies, and DMV Director Gordon,
As a South Orange County resident, it’s important to me and my family that we have a local DMV where we can go to take drivers’ tests, register our vehicles and most importantly, obtain our Real ID, which will be required to board a domestic flight starting next year.
Forcing 855,000-plus South County residents to utilize the tiny San Clemente DMV satellite office, which is only 8,400 square feet and difficult to get to, is a recipe for disaster. The Santa Ana and Costa Mesa field offices are already overwhelmed by the more than two million residents in North and Central Orange County and are more than an hour away with traffic.
The DMV seems to have readily acknowledged they need a main office in South Orange County. They attempted to re-locate in the Kaleidoscope shopping center in Mission Viejo but were denied by the City Council due to concerns about traffic on an already congested Crown Valley Parkway and its proximity to an elementary school where children often walk to and from school.
The DMV’s decision to simply close up shop at their Laguna Hills field office seems to be a capricious decision designed to punish the nearly one million South County residents because a local zoning decision did not go their way.
While we appreciate that the DMV is moving many of its services online, there are many services that require an in-person visit.
The Laguna Hills office is located in a business plaza with plenty of parking. It’s a large facility and it is freeway convenient. There is no reason why the DMV cannot extend their lease and remain there, but our state legislators need to make their voice heard.
Please tell the DMV to keep the Laguna Hills Field Office OPEN!
Sincerely,