LAGUNA BEACH : Date Shake Stand Gets New Operator

A Corona del Mar merchant has won the bidding for the Sunshine Cove date shake stand, a landmark along Coast Highway between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach.

Arden Flamson will take over the reins from Virginia McKinney, a Laguna Beach woman who has managed the business for the past 16 years, said Roberto Vellanoweth, chief of the Concession Programs Division for state parks, on Wednesday.

Flamson is co-owner of The Place, a Corona del Mar tavern, and Beach Access Inc., a South Coast Plaza beachwear store. Long active in the arts and with local charities, Flamson is currently board president of South Coast Repertory.

Flamson’s husband, Richard, is board chairman of Security Pacific Corp., the nation’s fifth-largest bank. Until January, he was also the bank’s chief executive officer.

The date shake stand will be operated by Flamson’s son and daughter-in-law, Mike and Katie Flamson of Laguna Niguel.

Flamson edged out six competitors, Vellanoweth said, noting that officials considered factors such as previous business experience and how much rent the bidders were willing to pay the state.

Flamson offered the state 18% of the first $10,000 gross per month and 18% of the gross over $10,000. McKinney offered a package of 10% and 12%, according to state concessions official Carlos Toirac.

The business averaged $126,000 a year in gross income over the past five years, Toirac said. “We believe it could do a lot better and so, obviously, did the bidders who bid so high,” he said.

Vellanoweth said state officials expect Flamson to run a “top-notch” operation.

“I think you’ll see a tremendous change in the way we’re requesting this concessionaire to operate now,” he said. “And I think it’s going to be a tremendous benefit for the community.”

Flamson received extra points for being a woman and a small-business owner, state officials said. Since she applied for the business independently, her husband’s position was not a factor, they said.

McKinney, who had applied to keep the stand but later wearied of competing, said this week that she is ready to close up shop at the end of the month, as requested by the state. Her daughter, Teri Pollard, however, cried when she heard the news.

“I can’t believe it. I’m in tears,” she said. “They’re sitting up there in Sacramento dictating what’s going to be done down here.”

Flamson is expected to reopen the stand in mid-June after it has been renovated and other necessary changes are made to bring the business into conformance with state guidelines for such concessions, including offering beachside service. The new operation will be required to sell or rent items such as umbrellas, suntan lotion and Frisbees, Toirac said.

Some things, however, will not change. Date shakes, for example, will still be on the menu, Flamson said.

It’s understandable, she said, that people will be sad to see McKinney leave after all these years. However, she added, “I hope they will be just as pleased with the service that we will give.”