Raking In The Green : Fund raising: South Coast Botanic Garden has raised $400,000 and is ahead of schedule in digging up $5 million for improvements.

Volunteers at the South Coast Botanic Garden say they are off to a fast start in their drive to raise more than $5 million to improve the 87-acre park and boost public interest and attendance.

During the past seven months, the garden’s trustees and volunteers have raised about $400,000, mostly from individuals and foundations, according to Jane Au, president of the garden’s foundation.

“We’re still on cloud nine,” Au said.

The trustees’ original goal was to raise $400,000 by year’s end to improve the garden, one of the first in the country to be built on top of a former dump. Because of their early success, however, the trustees are now aiming for $600,000, according to Jim White, vice president in charge of development for the garden.

The money will be used for a variety of projects, including buying a new tram and redesigning the park’s entrance. The projects have been outlined in a comprehensive master plan, completed a year ago, that calls for improvements to take place over 15 years and cost an estimated $5.5 million.

The County Board of Supervisors had been expected to approve the plan last year, but it is still being reviewed to ensure that it complies with environmental laws. The plan is now expected to go before the supervisors this summer.

Au said a recent proposal to merge the South Coast garden and the county’s three other botanical gardens with the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History did not hamper fund-raising efforts. Last month, supervisors unanimously voted against proceeding with a feasibility study of the proposal.

Au said garden officials opposed the plan because they did not want to lose their autonomy. But instead of trying to mobilize public support to defeat the proposal, garden officials decided not to publicize it, she said. The officials did appeal to Supervisor Deane Dana, whose district includes the garden, to vote against the proposal, she said.

The South Coast garden, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula off Crenshaw Boulevard, attracted about 100,000 people last year, according to Tak Niiya, acting superintendent of the facility.

In comparison, 300,000 people visited the Los Angeles County Arboretum in Arcadia and 225,000 visited Descanso Gardens in La Canada Flintridge. The much smaller Robinson Gardens in Beverly Hills, a six-acre garden with limited operating hours, welcomed about 5,000 visitors.

The South Coast garden has faced unique challenges because its five miles of trails and roads are located on a former dump. As the trash has settled, depressions of up to 10 feet have occurred in some places, Niiya said. As a result of the continual settling, broken irrigation pipes have been a constant problem.

Projects scheduled to be completed under the master plan include the construction of a Japanese garden and teahouse, a food service area, more paths and a cascading stream for a central garden area. A garden especially for blind and handicapped people will feature signs in Braille and raised flower beds so wheelchair users will be able to touch and smell the plants. Work is already under way to improve the garden’s entrance with new landscaping, lighting and signs.

Of all the projects outlined in the plan, some trustees said a new tram system is considered one of the most important, if the garden is to boost attendance and attract seniors, handicapped people and children. The tram that once operated at the garden was discontinued about three years ago because the vehicles were too narrow and officials worried that they might tip over on bumpy roads.

“We have to keep turning (visitors) away because we don’t have any way to assist them around the garden,” White said.

Garden officials said a new tram, paid for with money raised in recent months, should be in operation by the end of the year. The 12-foot-wide tram will consist of one powered vehicle and a trailer capable of carrying 72 people.

Trustees had planned to hire a professional fund-raiser. However, they eventually decided to save money by doing the job themselves.

Part of their strategy has been to hold luncheons twice a month for officials from four different foundations or corporations. The representatives are told about the garden’s history and master plan, given a tour and asked to help support one particular project as opposed to donating a large sum of money for non-specific purposes.

“We wanted to go small,” White said. “We didn’t want to overwhelm anybody.”

Trustees said they try to determine what type of project a particular foundation or company might be interested in supporting before the meeting occurs.

“We do some brainstorming,” Au said. “We go after the companies and tell them we are after some funds and ask what their priorities would be.”

Another strategy that trustees have employed has been to strengthen the garden’s ties among local social and business groups. The trustees have made it a point to join all the area’s chambers of commerce. They have also joined the Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Southern California in an effort to find Asian corporate sponsors.

Thus far, the lion’s share of the money raised--$275,000--has come from the garden’s membership and other individuals. Membership now stands at 3,600 a year but is growing by about 600 members annually, trustees said. Occasional membership drives are held, but most new members come from the ranks of those who attend various events at the garden, they said.

Money from other sources has included a $50,000 matching grant from Los Angeles County to improve the garden’s entrance and $50,000 in matching funds from the Norris Foundation for the new tram. The Ahmanson Foundation has pledged $25,000 for work on the garden’s library and gift shop.

The largest donation from the corporate world has not been money, but, rather, computers valued at $10,000 from Torrance-based Epson America. Trustees believe that their efforts in recent months have heightened corporate awareness about the center and its activities.

Gary Greene, a trustee since last year, said the garden now has funding proposals before at least a dozen different companies. After larger companies in California and other states have been approached, trustees will target smaller ones.

“There are a lot of people who didn’t know we existed and now know we exist,” Greene said. “By the end of this program, everybody will know who we are.”