Battle for the Bluffs : Development: Prudent land use is the issue in the fight between builders and environmentalists. The prize is the spectacular coastline on the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

An epic battle is being waged on the picturesque Palos Verdes Peninsula over how best to use some of the last undeveloped coastal headlands in Los Angeles County.

Since 1988, developers have been trying to build golf courses, hotels and upscale subdivisions on several hundred acres along the spectacular coastal bluffs in Rancho Palos Verdes.

They want to improve the land, make it useful--and profitable--and the city has agreed, granting the necessary permits for five projects. But so far only one has been built, at Lunada Point, while the others remain either bogged down in controversy or stalled because of funding problems.

Despite the city approvals, conservationists are continuing to fight the developments each step of the way, arguing that the city routinely approves plans that violate state and local coastal protection laws. Moreover, they contend that several of the projects threaten the coastal sage scrub habitat of the California gnatcatcher and cactus wren, birds that may soon be put on the threatened or endangered species lists.

At the forefront of the opposition is the Coastal Conservation Coalition, a group that includes the local chapters of the Audubon Society, the Sierra Club and other environmental groups. As fast as the city approves a project, the coalition appeals that decision to the California Coastal Commission, the final arbiter for coastal development.

“We’re going to keep appealing these cases because (city officials) just are not following the law,” said coalition president Andrew H. Sargent. The primary issues raised by the group are preservation of open space, public access to the beaches and the protection of wildlife habitat.

Sargent said that so far, all five projects have failed to pass muster on at least one of these questions.

City officials argue they have always followed the Local Coast Plan (LCP) that has been approved by the Coastal Commission. That plan allows for the development of golf courses and, in specific areas, for hotels and other recreational uses, they contend.

“The city believes it is following the approved LCP, and we are requiring all of the appropriate coastal permits,” said Dudley Onderdonk, director of the city’s environmental services.

A civic group called PV-2000 supports the city position, contending the opponents want to block all development and keep these lands vacant and useless.

“These developments make sense, they’re a good use of the land, good for the people who live here,” said Ronald Stankey, a PV-2000 spokesman. He added that the city is financially strapped and needs the tax money these projects would generate.

Developers see the empty lands as wasted opportunities--weed-choked fields and eroding canyons dotted by old gun emplacements, harking back to the time when the area was home to a coast artillery battery during World War II.

“There is no environment there to protect,” said developer Ken Zuckerman of Palos Verdes Estates.

Zuckerman and his partner, Orange County developer Barry Hon, want to build an 18-hole golf course and 83 expensive, bluff-top homes. The $125-million project will improve not only the scenery but also the wildlife habitat, he contends.

For years, the open coastal lands sat empty. Even developers weren’t paying much attention to the bluffs until the mid-1980s, when prime view lots on the peninsula began selling for $1 million or more. Attracted by these land values, developers moved in and applied for development permits.

“There was a big rush . . . all of the developers wanted to get their projects going,” said City Planner Carolynn Petru.

First came Lunada Point, with 25 homes on 36 acres, then a proposal to build a 450-room hotel at the old Marineland site. These were followed by a project called HMDI, for 79 lots on 132 acres at the end of Hawthorne Boulevard, and a plan by Transamerica Realty Services for 10 lots on 18 acres in Portuguese Bend.

Hon and Zuckerman were proposing separate projects. One called for a hotel and 18-hole golf course, the other a residential subdivision. They joined forces, dropped the hotel from the plans and sponsored a 260-acre project called Ocean Trails. Their golf course, laid out along the bluff tops, aspires to rival famed Pebble Beach in Monterey County, Zuckerman said.

The golf course has become the lightning rod for the opposition, making the Hon-Zuckerman development the most controversial of the peninsula projects. And it is this controversy that seems to spotlight the ongoing struggle for this last stretch of undeveloped coastal lands.

For four years the developers and the city have been locked in a running battle with coalition opponents. After repeated hearings and plan modifications, the project was approved by the City Council in May, 1992. Appeals were filed and three months later the city permit was overturned by the Coastal Commission, and the project was rejected.

“We think Rancho (Palos Verdes) hasn’t been conforming to its LCP,” explained Chuck Damm, commission staff regional director.

To win approval, the developers were told they had to dedicate more open space to public use, provide added public access to the beach and do more to protect the California gnatcatcher and cactus wren.

Project managers eliminated two of the three bluff-top golf holes and made other modifications, again winning city approval but again triggering an appeal.

The fight now focuses on the bluff tops and the amount of open space to be left for the public. The conservationists want a wide strip of land along the bluffs left open.

“What they’re demanding this time would eliminate six holes of golf,” project manager Michael Mohler said. It would also eliminate the one bluff-top green left in the project plans.

“We were willing to give up two of those greens on the bluffs, but not this one. We need that hole to help sell the project,” he said.

For the latest appeal, opponents have enlisted the aid of an internationally recognized bird expert to bolster their case.

There is “no doubt” these headlands contain a “very unique . . . ecosystem,” said Harmut S. Walter, UCLA ornithologist. After hiking the area, he said the proposed developments “pose a grave threat to this coastal bluff ecosystem.”

The Coastal Commission will rehear the case in mid-February, officials said.

The first full-blown controversy on the peninsula centered on the Long Point hotel and golf course, proposed by Phoenix developer James A. Monaghan for the 102-acre Marineland site in 1987. Plans for the big recreational development surfaced in 1990, triggering the formation of a group of opponents calling themselves Save Our Coast-2000. Led by writer and local resident Gar Goodson, Save Our Coast-2000 tried to block the project before the city approved it.

“We were shocked by what was going on,” Goodson said. Big projects like this one “were sliding right through the Planning Commission and the City Council without restrictions. They weren’t looking at the destruction of open space . . . and habitat,” Goodson said.

Goodson’s organization ultimately lost the appeal, but the group’s protest did result in changes. The Coastal Commission approved the project, but only if the developer agreed to provide more public access and a small park. Monaghan also agreed to pay a $540,000 fee to fund a low-cost youth hostel nearby.

Yet the hotel was never built. Monaghan went broke, blaming a poor economy and delays caused by the long appeal process.

When Monaghan defaulted on a $26-million loan made by a now-defunct savings and loan, a government agency stepped in and tried to seize the property. To block the Resolution Trust Corp. takeover, Monaghan filed for bankruptcy protection and is now looking for an investor to bail him out.

The next project that came under the scrutiny of conservationists was a 132-acre residential development by HMDI, a Japanese firm based in Los Angeles. The project was to be on the headlands near Hawthorne Boulevard and Palos Verdes Drive West.

The city approved the plan in 1992. It was appealed by a member of Save Our Coast-2000, claiming that not enough open space was dedicated to public use.

Meeting with conservationists and city officials, the developers modified their plans, reducing the number of lots to 79 and dedicating more than 70 acres to public open space. Trail access to the beach was also provided. The Coastal Commission agreed to let the permit go ahead, as modified, but construction has not yet started.

The Transamerica project appeal deals primarily with public access to the beach and is one of the most controversial cases. The developer is proposing a 10-lot subdivision of luxury homes that would be located on 18 acres of the private Portuguese Bend Club. The club, founded before the city was incorporated, does not allow public access to its private beaches.

The city said it was forced to recognize this pre-existing condition when it approved the subdivision. The approved plan, therefore, provides no access to the beach. The coalition appealed.

Opponents and the Coastal Commission insist beach access must be provided. The commission postponed a vote on the project earlier this month, pending the outcome of negotiations with the developer.

Lunada Point was the first of the pricey subdivisions to be approved by the City Council in 1983. The 36 acre, 25-lot project just south of Lunada Bay sailed through the approval process without appeal. The trouble didn’t start until last year, when the city let the homeowners lock a gate to a trail, blocking public access to the beach below.

Homeowners had complained about beach-goers parking on neighborhood streets, leading to vandalism and litter. The city agreed. Conservationists appealed, and the Coastal Commission voted 12 to 0 to order the city to open the gate earlier this month.

The seemingly continuous appeals have proven costly to a city that is already strapped for money.

“We spent an extra $15,000 on the HMDI appeal,” said City Manager Paul Bussey. Legal costs on the Transamerica appeals total more than $4,000 and the clock is still running, he said.

And the developers complain the delays are costing them more too. Hon-Zuckerman officials reported the company has spent $500,000 redesigning the project since August.

As costly as the process may be, there is no sign that the conflicts will end soon. In addition to filing the second appeal, opponents of the Hon-Zuckerman project have filed a lawsuit to block the development.

Drawing Battle Lines in Rancho Palos Verdes

These five developments on the Palos Verdes Peninsula have triggered strong opposition from local conservation and environmental groups: * Lunada Point--Twenty-five residential lots on 36 acres on Marguerite Drive were developed. The city allowed homeowners to close off beach access, and conservationists appealed. The state coastal commission ordered the gates unlocked to give the public access. * HMDI--This 132-acre project, which envisions 79 residential lots, would be located at the end of Hawthorne Boulevard just off Palos Verdes Drive North. It was approved by the city but appealed by conservationists, and a negotiated settlement eventually approved. No development has started yet. * Long Point--This ambitious project calls for a 480-bed hotel, and a nine-hole golf course on the 102-acre site of the old Marineland park. It was approved by the city but appealed by conservationists. A negotiated settlement was reached, but the developer is now bankrupt. * Transamerica--This is a 10-lot subdivision on 18 acres in Portuguese Bend Club. The city approved development, conservationists appealed, and a decision is pending. * Hon-Zuckerman--The Ocean Trails development on 260 acres would include 80 houses and an 18-hole golf on the seaward side of Palos Verdes Drive South. It was twice approved by city and twice appealed to coastal commission. The second appeal is pending, to be heard in February.