Tustin officials say they have already opened about one-third of the closed 1,600-acre base for various public projects, including schools, homeless shelters and parks. The city wants to sell the 100 acres that Santa Ana is seeking to developers in order to raise cash-money that would offset revenue that was lost when the base was closed during the 1990s defense cutbacks.

A bill that would wrest the property away from Tustin died on the floor of the state Senate last week. The measure appeared to have enough support for passage and was being debated when the clock struck midnight, automatically forcing an end to the lawmakers' 2000 session.

State Sen. Joe Dunn, D-Santa Ana, says he'll reintroduce the proposal in the upcoming session, which begins in a few months. Though Tustin has offered a compromise that would give Santa Ana 10 acres for an elementary school, Dunn says much more space is needed to relieve classroom overcrowding.