When Austin Lumbard and Barry Cooper take their oaths in December as new members of the Tustin City Council, they will start their tenure butting heads with the three incumbents – Allan Bernstein, Letitia Clark and Chuck Puckett.

Both newcomers, who filled a pair of seats left vacant due to term limits, have adamantly expressed their dismay over putting a temporary homeless shelter next to a school.

On Tuesday, Nov. 6, which happened to be Election Night, the current city council unanimously approved the shelter announced just two weeks prior. Located at the corner of Red Hill and Valencia avenues, in the Tustin Legacy, it is scheduled to open early next year.

Lumbard, whose daughter attends Heritage Elementary, watched the meeting on a laptop during his election party.

“In 12 square miles, the only location they could find is next to an elementary school?” Lumbard later said in an interview. “I am disappointed in the vote, but I still think there’s time to reconsider. We should leave no stone unturned looking for options.”

Cooper said the vote should have waited until he and Lumbard took their seats. “That way, everyone making the decision would have to deal with it for the next two years,” he said. “Why did they have to rush it through so fast?”