Sewer Work Leaves Laguna Beach High and Dry

Next week, the concept of Neighborhood Watch will take on a whole new meaning here.

In an upscale neighborhood that includes the homes of actress Bette Midler and football great O.J. Simpson, the city will begin sewer repairs and is asking residents to avoid taking showers, flushing toilets or using water from about 9 a.m. to midnight. For their convenience, the city will provide his-and-hers portable toilets--in the street.

“I don’t know,” said Allen Magers, a resident of Victoria Beach, the community where sewer work will begin Wednesday. “I’d like to share a shower with a couple of them, but I don’t know about a potty.”

Over the next month, up to 20 homes at a time will be disconnected from city sewer lines for stretches of about 15 hours while repair crews renovate a 50-year-old pipe. If all goes as planned, each home should be left high and dry only once.

The sewer line runs roughly parallel to Pacific Coast Highway.

Although water service will not be shut off while repairs are under way, residents will be asked not to take showers, use washing machines or flush toilets while their homes are disconnected from sewer lines. Otherwise, water could back up into the homes, Municipal Services Director Terry Brandt said.

To ease the frustration for residents, the city will install the portable toilets on each block where work is under way.

“Won’t that be fun in the middle of the night,” said Alice Jarman, a resident of Victoria Drive.

Mary Ann Jones, a Sunset Terrace resident, said she doesn’t much mind falling into line, but thinks some of her neighbors will be miffed at the prospect of a community outhouse.

“They’d blow their stacks,” she said, “because they hardly ever even look at each other.”

Some residents were downright cheerful at the prospect. “That sounds like a real good way to get acquainted with the neighbors,” said Anne McDonald, adding that it will be “a wonderful thing” to have the sewer line repaired.

The repair technique involves inserting a flexible plastic tube in the line, which eliminates the need for excavation. Brandt noted that because the pipe is 40 feet deep in places, excavation would be expensive and, in some areas, virtually impossible.

Overall, most residents seemed determined to take the inconvenience in stride.

“I suppose it will make for interesting conversation,” Crow said. “(But) under better circumstances would be preferable.”