Will fixing Laguna’s beach stairs ruin the views? City Council takes up the issue Tuesday
Laguna Beach officials say the stairs leading from Agate Street to the sand need to be replaced to provide safe access to one of the city’s prime surfing spots. In fact, a section fell into the ocean during the high surf of October 2015.
In September, the city Design Review Board voted 3 to 0, with two members absent, to approve the new concrete stairs, a larger landing area at one section and a new lookout space at street level.
But resident Peter Mann argues that the plan would compromise coveted views of the ocean and rock outcroppings by lowering certain portions of the access area, including a platform with a wooden bench, below the roof of a nearby home.
Next week the City Council will consider Mann’s appeal of the decision by the Design Review Board, whose mission is to ensure that plans conform to the Laguna general plan and zoning and coastal standards.
Currently, the stairs crisscross the bluff as they descend to the shoreline, with four landing areas interspersed.
Two asphalt paths lead from the street to the lookout area where the wooden bench offers views of the crashing waves and, if one glances toward the south, a rock outcropping with a hollowed-out arch.
In the redesign, crews would create a viewing area at the street level, remove the paths, and in their place insert a set of stairs leading to the bench area.
City staff wanted the bench removed and replaced with a concrete seating area, but the Design Review Board said the bench was a key feature that should stay.
Board members also directed staff to expand the street-level viewing area to accommodate wheelchairs.
The city held two neighborhood meetings, in May and June, to gather input following Design Review Board hearings in November 2014 and January 2015.
The neighborhood meetings were “fairly productive but not in the sense of any reflection of the design of what you have before you,” Mann said at the Design Review Board meeting Sept. 29.
Consultants hired by the city said during that meeting that they did their best to preserve views while creating a project that would comply with California building codes and Americans With Disabilities Act requirements. No one else from the public but Mann commented at that meeting.
A civil engineer, Mann submitted his own design to the city that he says would preserve views and keep a path leading to the bench area.
“In my design, you lift the bench 1 foot, get [a path] back and everyone can enjoy the platform,” he said in an interview Monday at the site, noting that the paths allowed wheelchair users to access the area and that at least one should be retained.
“Enhance what we’ve got, versus reducing and restricting access,” Mann added.
Mann said the purpose of raising the bench area is to ensure views of the arch above the roofline.
According to a city staff report, the pavement in front of the bench would be 6 inches lower than the existing elevation.
A design consultant hired by the city told the Design Review Board that the current paths are too steep and do not comply with ADA standards.
“What is there now is a considerably sloped walkway,” consultant Mike Green said. “Unfortunately, we have to meet code, and code is very unforgiving when it comes to those kinds of things.”
To create ADA-compliant paths, the city would need permission from adjacent homeowners to venture onto their land, Green said.
Mann also said two stairs could be removed from a landing area farther down the bluff, creating enough space for spectators admiring the views and surfers coming and going.
“[The staircase] can be easily shifted if you move it 4 to 5 feet down toward the beach and take stairs out of that landing to preserve views of Pearl Rock and the arch,” Mann said during the meeting.
“Moving stuff 3 feet may not sound like a big deal, but it can incorporate a much larger and expensive retaining wall,” consultant Rick Kreuzer said.
This is one of four proposed beach stair projects in the city. The others are at Mountain Road, Oak and Thalia streets.
Tuesday’s City Council meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 505 Forest Ave.
Twitter: @AldertonBryce
