South Laguna Residents to Protest Attacks on Their 2nd Units Tonight

Laguna Beach’s newest residents will square off before the City Council tonight over the city’s inspection of illegal apartments in some South Laguna homes.

South Laguna was annexed to Laguna Beach on Dec. 31, and the city has had to take over the responsibility of reviewing about 100 complaints of alleged building and zoning code violations.

In 1936, the county designated South Laguna’s zoning as R-1, which limits residential construction to one single-family dwelling per parcel of land. That zoning designation stayed the same after the community was annexed. It is the same designation as that given to much of Laguna Beach.

A group of South Laguna residents, upset about the complaints filed in the past two years by their neighbors, has asked the council to hear the views of those who have been cited. The group says the second units are part of the community’s beach-village identity and should be exempted from the single-dwelling zoning law.

But City Manager Kenneth Frank is recommending that the council direct the city to continue enforcing the code.

Tentants May Be Evicted

When inspectors determine that a residence violates code standards, the city issues a deadline to bring the building back to code. Owners who do not comply face court action, and tenants may be evicted.

“The city’s current procedures are the most equitable and reasonable way to approach code enforcement throughout the city, including South Laguna,” Frank said in his report to the council.

“It’s very straightforward,” he added.

Members of the Assn. for the Preservation of Diversity in South Laguna don’t see it that way.

“We want to keep what we feel is the community complexion right now,” said Doug Turkot, spokesman for the group, which was formed by residents who believe that they are being forced to conform to an urban setting.

But those who filed the complaints say that South Laguna’s complexion is decidedly overcrowded. They contend that the tenants in the second units contribute to a parking problem that has plagued the narrow streets for years.

Unfair to Those Complying

It’s not fair to those homeowners who obey the law, said Rich Jeffries, president of the South Laguna Civic Assn.

“Can you imagine what could happen to South Laguna if we didn’t obey the law?” asked Jeffries, adding that he and others decided to complain when some of their neighbors added on to their homes without obtaining permits from the county.

“People were very hesitant (to complain),” resident Denise Viviani said. “No one wants to turn their neighbor in. . . . We don’t want to start a war between neighbors, but now it’s come to this.”

Explained resident Brian Siedlecki: “Often you don’t know what’s going on until it’s too late. Suddenly, it’s changed from a family home into an apartment building.”

In addition to the complaints about illegal second units, several complaints allege such building code violations as faulty wiring and plumbing.

Turkot said the building code should be enforced, but that his group is concerned about tenants who would be evicted if a homeowner is forced to give up a second unit.

“All the people who live in South Laguna deserve to be treated as valuable residents,” Turkot said.

In his council report, Frank pointed out that housing assistance is available for those who are evicted from their apartments because of code enforcement. Senior citizens would be eligible for federal housing assistance.

“No one wants to see Harriet, who lives in a garage, thrown out in the street,” Viviani said.

She said she is mainly concerned about those second units that continually are being rented to new tenants.

“We have to constantly re-explain the parking situation,” Viviani said, referring to many South Laguna residents who own the easement in front of their houses and must coordinate street parking with their neighbors, especially if they are having a party.

Frank said that in his eight years as city manager, he has never seen an issue generate more letters to City Hall. Several hundred residents have written, most of them asking the city to continue enforcing the code, he said.