Protect Laguna Canyon’s creek and do more research on development, planners suggest

The Laguna Beach Planning Commission on Wednesday favored increased protection for a creek that runs through Laguna Canyon and agreed additional research on the number of buildings occupying space is necessary.

Commissioners reviewed a study from the urban planning firm MIG that included a host of recommendations pertaining to development for an area that includes a mixture of houses and businesses.

Some residents are concerned the area could be overrun with structures crammed into lots.

The meeting was the third time since May that commissioners publicly discussed the study, which will be forwarded to the City Council for its consideration.

Commissioners spent considerable time Wednesday discussing Laguna Canyon Creek and ultimately suggested the creek eventually be included on the state’s major watershed drainage course map.

A location designated as being on the map generally means that construction be at least 25 feet from a creek’s banks instead of a measurement from the center of the stream, the Daily Pilot reported last year.

Interpretations have varied over whether the creek, which has a history of flooding during major rainstorms, is on the map.

Laguna’s Community Development Director Greg Pfost said Wednesday that the creek is not on the map.

But Julie Hamilton, an attorney representing a group of Laguna Canyon residents who sued the California Coastal Commission over its approval of Louis Longi’s 30-unit artist work/live project at 20412 and 20432 Laguna Canyon Road, said last year during a court hearing the creek is on the map.

Coastal commissioners declared the creek is “not identifiable” on the map, according to court records.

Pfost said a revision to the map would require an amendment to the city’s general plan. In that case, another round of hearings would be necessary.

Multiple neighborhoods comprise the canyon, including Sun Valley, Castle Rock and Sarah Thurston Park.

Commissioner Anne Johnson said each neighborhood has distinctive features, thus development standards could differ depending on the location.

“Density should be determined by the neighborhoods and their recommendations,” Johnson said. Density refers to the number of residential units per acre of land, Pfost wrote in an email Thursday.

Johnson said in a phone interview that she was reluctant to suggest a maximum density before knowing results of other planning studies underway in the city.

Commissioner Roger McErlane said that he was not opposed to residents providing input on their neighborhoods, but questioned how such a process would be organized.

“I’m concerned with how it would be set up and that it becomes another planning process that everyone has to go through that is not very efficient,” McErlane said.

The study began in February 2015 with MIG and the city gathering feedback from the public on how it wants the canyon to look and function in the years ahead.

The council will review the commission’s recommendations and decide whether to begin the process of updating Laguna’s general plan and municipal code to incorporate changes.

bryce.alderton@latimes.com

Twitter: @AldertonBryce