LAGUNA BEACH : Kenney Prepares to Retire From Council

More than anything else during his eight years on the City Council, it was the sight of a glowing sign that would get Dan Kenney riled up, colleagues say.

It was his affection for Laguna Beach’s village charm, not a grudge against neon, that led Kenney to wage war against internally lit signs until the last one was finally unplugged. Now, as he prepares to relinquish his council seat after deciding not to seek reelection, Kenney, 49, points with pride to two ordinances he introduced to help preserve the city’s ambience.

Together, the laws ban neon signs, pole signs more than 6 feet tall and signs lit from the inside to illuminate a message printed on translucent glass or plastic. In addition, Kenney spearheaded a drive that resulted in the approval last year of a detailed plan to guide the future development of the city’s downtown area.

“At the time, it seemed pretty radical,” Kenney said of the sign ordinances he first introduced in 1983. “Today it doesn’t seem quite so. There’s quite a few cities that are thinking about the way signs look in their towns.”

During Kenney’s eight years on the Laguna Beach City Council, council members have squared off against county officials on some highly divisive issues, including funding for the city’s transportation system and construction of a toll road through Laguna Canyon. While the council has generally enjoyed popularity within city boundaries, there has not always been harmony on the home front.

In 1988, a group of citizens mounted a recall campaign against council members Kenney, Robert F. Gentry and Lida Lenney. Recall proponents accused council members of being anti-business after the council decided that merchants should not display their wares on sidewalks or other areas outside their businesses. The recall effort ended when proponents failed to gather enough valid signatures to force a recall election.

Among Kenney’s more pleasant memories is the Laguna Canyon march last November in which some 7,500 people turned out to protest the proposed development of the area. Recently, the council voted to pay $78 million to purchase the proposed Laguna Laurel development site and preserve it as open space.

Council members say it will be tough to lose Kenney, whom they describe as a quick study who regularly lightens the mood in council chambers with his dry wit.