Demolition to Begin

Demolition of the main building at the defunct Marineland in Rancho Palos Verdes will begin Tuesday at 9 a.m. as part of a six-month project to clear the 108-acre site for development as a resort hotel and conference center, according to developer James G. Monaghan. The work is being done by Cleveland Wrecking Co. of Los Angeles under a contract in excess of $1 million.

Monaghan spokesman John E. Corcoran, a former Marineland general manager, said plans for the new development will be presented to the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council on March 15 at 7:30 p.m.

“We will have renderings and perhaps a model of the entire development,” Corcoran said. He said a completion date for the project, which may include a golf course, has not been determined.

Orange County developer Barry G. Hon has announced plans to build a Ritz-Carlton hotel, golf course and residential development on the Rancho Palos Verdes coastline less than 4 miles from Marineland. The city has begun a zone change procedure on the proposed Hon site in order to consider plans for the development, which Hon wants to open in 1991.

Corcoran said the demolition will begin on the main structure that housed the major aquarium and the killer whale show that was the park’s main attraction. Large coral and palm trees on the site will be stored and maintained for use in the new project. “We want to preserve as much of the natural vegetation as we can,” Corcoran said.