SAN CLEMENTE : Historical Society Blasts Proposed Hotel

Directors of the San Clemente Historical Society, calling a controversial 130-room resort hotel proposed for a hillside area south of the city pier “massive,” have recommended that the City Council not approve the project.

In a letter to the city Planning Department, society President Dorothy Fuller said the proposed Beachcomber Resort Hotel in San Clemente’s Pier Bowl area would be “a tragic mistake” for the city. The hotel would be built above the beach where the 11-unit Beachcomber Apartments Motel and the historic Robison home are located.

Bruce Jordan, the hotel’s architect, said the project strictly adheres to the requirements outlined in a preliminary plan approved by the City Council in October, 1993.

The society’s letter was written as a response to a preliminary report on the environmental impacts of the project. A consultant is now preparing the final environmental report, and public hearings for final action on the hotel could start by January, said Jim Pechous, an associate planner for the city.