Costly Refurbishing Job Planned at Laguna Beach High School

A multimillion-dollar refurbishing of Laguna Beach High School, where many students now dash across a busy street between classes, may begin in January if the California Coastal Commission approves it next week.

The school, parts of which are half a century old, “needs at least $5 million, probably a little more, in renovation work,” said Dennis Smith, superintendent of the Laguna Beach Unified School District.

If the Coastal Commission approves the plan Sept. 16, the district will sell 20.9 acres of hillside property it owns in the Top of the World area of the community for $3.5 million. That money will be used, among other things, to refurbish and consolidate classrooms on one side of Park Avenue, Smith said.

That busy street splits the 13-acre campus, so many of the 700 students in grades nine through 12 dodge traffic to get to and from classes. There is a traffic light with crosswalk across Park, and an old tunnel under the avenue, but most students choose to jaywalk.

Tentative plans call for demolishing the classroom building on the north side of Park Avenue. A new swimming pool would be built in its place, replacing the old one used for years by the public and students, on the south side of the street. Two new classroom buildings would be put up on the south side.

The city and other groups will help pay for the new swimming pool and improvements to the auditorium, tennis courts and other athletic facilities, Smith said.

City Manager Kenneth C. Frank said the city has already budgeted $200,000, or about one-third of the cost of the new pool. The city has also set aside $500,000, again about one-third the estimated cost, for work on the old auditorium, which is frequently used for public affairs.

Smith said more money for the auditorium, which he described as “a grand old hall of sound construction but rather dilapidated in appearance,” is being raised by a committee headed by Bobby Minkin, former City Council member and mayor.

If the Coastal Commission approves the land sale, Smith said, the acreage will be divided into 36 single-family lots and a 13.8-acre park.