LAGUNA LAUREL : Q&A; : It has been called the diamond in an emerald necklace extending along the South County coast. And now, after long and intense negotiations with the Irvine Co., it looks like the canyon may be saved.

Q: What is the city of Laguna Beach buying?

A: The Laguna Beach City Council has agreed to purchase from the Irvine Co. 2,150 acres of Laguna Canyon land for $78 million, effectively halting the company’s plans to build a 3,200-unit development on the untouched countryside. The land is located between the city of Irvine, the residential community of Leisure World and the city of Laguna Beach.

Q: Why do Laguna Beach officials and some environmentalists feel it is important to buy the land?

A: It is considered one of the last undeveloped coastal canyons between Malibu and the Mexican border. Environmentalists battled for more than 10 years to keep the land in its natural state and protect it from suburban sprawl. Supporters argue that as Orange County becomes increasingly urban, it is important preserve what little land is left in its natural state.

Local artists held “paint-ins” to protest the destruction of the natural scenery, picketers stood outside the Newport Beach home of Irvine Co. Chairman Donald Bren, and almost 8,000 people marched through the canyon last year as a show of support to keep the canyon as a wilderness area.

Q: How will the city pay for the land?

A: The $78 million purchase price will be paid out in annual installments over a five-year period, with the first payment--$33 million--due June 30 of next year. A $20 million bond measure on the Laguna Beach ballot Nov. 6, Measure H, is expected to anchor the first payment. A two-thirds vote is needed for passage of the bond issue, which would raise property taxes by 6 1/2 cents per $100 assessed valuation.

The city is also planning to raise $2 million from the sale of bonds that would be backed by parking meter revenues, spend $4 million of state open space land acquisition funds already appropriated to the city, and use the first $2 million of $10 million Orange County has pledged.

Funding sources have not been identified for the final $2 million due the first year, although city officials said they would seek private donations and additional state park grants.

Q: How will the land be used?

A: Members of the Laguna Laurel Advisory Group, which negotiated the land purchase, plan to reconvene after the bond election to decide how the land will be used and which governmental agency will manage it. Members say the county and state may share responsibility for managing the property as a regional park that would be kept in its natural state.

The committee is expected to consider options such as whether to construct overnight campgrounds, picnic areas or public restrooms. Michael Phillips, executive director of the Laguna Greenbelt Inc. and the Laguna Canyon Conservancy, said a hike-and-bike trail probably will be included in the plans, but motorcycles will not be allowed.

“It was not purchased to be the kind of park like Disneyland or Knotts Berry Farm,” Laguna Beach City Councilman Robert F. Gentry said. “It was purchased as a park that has tremendous importance as open space, for wilderness and natural habitat.”

Q: How quickly will the city receive the land?

A: Under the 5-year buy-out plan, the city can acquire 85% of the property in the first year. That includes most of the environmentally sensitive land on the west side of Laguna Canyon Road. At the end of the third year, when the payments reach $40 million, the city will have possession of all the property on the west side of Laguna Canyon Road. The city has the option of paying $40 million the first year.

The primary lake on the property--located on the eastern side of Laguna Canyon Road--will be turned over to the city in the fourth year, with the balance of the land to be released by the developer when the final payment is made. Under the agreement, if the city defaults on its payments, it keeps land purchased to that point but the company has the right to proceed with development on the remaining property.

Q: When will the park open?

A: “If we can make some arrangements with the county to manage it, it’s probable that by the fall of 1991 there could be some use of the property,” said City Manager Kenneth Frank. He added that among the issues still to be decided is whether to construct parking spaces to facilitate public access into the canyon.

Q: What kind of wildlife and vegetation is now on the land?

A: In addition to the cattle that have grazed on the land for nearly a century, the canyon’s rolling hills are home to a number of rare and endangered plants, animals and birds.

“One of the reasons that it (the canyon) is so valuable is that it has a mixture of a large number of habitats,” said Elisabeth Brown, a biologist and president of Laguna Greenbelt, Inc.

Mountain lions have been spotted in the canyon, which is also home to coyotes, bobcats, skunks, the California black-tailed gnat catcher, the San Diego coast horned lizard and other species.

Coastal sage scrub found on the land is becoming endangered due to the large amount of development in Southern California, she added, and oak and sycamore trees are almost non-existent on the flat lands where grazing cattle have devoured the seedlings. “We have a lot of nice old trees, but not a lot of new ones,” Brown said.

The Laguna Laurel property also includes the only three natural lakes in Orange County, although two of them have been dry in recent years.

Q: Will the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor tollway still be built, cutting through the property?

A: “Absolutely,” said Donna Stubbs, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Transportation Corridor Agencies, who added that groundbreaking is planned for late next year. But city officials are on record as opposing the six-lane tollway scheduled for construction along the southern edge of the Laguna Laurel property.

The tollway was excluded from negotiations to purchase the land with the intention of dealing with it separately after the bond election. Laguna Councilman Bob Gentry said the city is expected to re-evaluate its position to determine whether or how to continue its opposition.

Laguna Laurel Advisory Group consultant Paul Freeman also suggested that the successful negotiating process that was employed to save Laguna Canyon may be used to resolve the tollway issue. “If it’s ever built, it’s not going to be the concrete monstrosity that was first proposed,” Freeman said.

Q: What does he mean it won’t be a “concrete monstrosity?” Won’t the transportation corridor adversely affect the environmentally sensitive land?

A: Stubbs said the corridor is expected to curve around hills rather than go through them, and a bridge will probably cross over Laguna Canyon Road to minimize the impact on the road. Deer will also be tagged in order to monitor their movement so that wildlife crossings can be provided at points where they will be used. And if fossils are found, Stubbs said work would be halted until paleontologists can study the area.

Plant and Wildlife Treasures Found in the Canyon

Elderberry, live oak and sycamore trees are found on the hillsides. In the flatlands, new shoots have been devoured by cattle or have been unable to survive because of the drought.

Orange County’s only natural lakes are also on the property although two of the three are dry. The smaller one has been overtaken by eucalyptus. The largest, once stocked with catfish and carp, has been polluted by water runoff from Leisure World and from manure.

Coastal sage, which is becoming endangered because of all the development in Southern California, covers the land and provides shelter for birds and two species of rare lizard including the San Diego coast horned lizard. Also found in the sage scrub are wood rats and the California black-tailed gnat catcher.

Coyotes and bobcats have made the canyon their home. Historically, mountain lions have been sighted in the canyon, although only a couple have been seen in recent years.