Village Entrance Plans to Be Unveiled

Tonight the City Council will hear a long-awaited report on potential redevelopment plans of its well-known Village Entrance, a study that highlights a restaurant and parking structure.

A 22-member task force will recommend that those two projects be built on a 2.5-acre parcel at Laguna Canyon Road and Forest Avenue and that the area be landscaped with pathways, sculptures, lighting and outdoor seating.

The goal is to turn the lot between City Hall and the art festivals’ grounds into a pedestrian pathway that would make a “welcome statement” to visitors, the report says.

“The landscaped public area should be a beautiful, high-quality area that serves as a focal point for the art festival activity area and as a pedestrian anchor linking the Village Entrance site to the downtown and Main Beach,” the report states.

The overall renovation of Village Entrance could cost as much as $6 million, officials said.

The corner is now a parking lot and storage yard for city vehicles. Before the area can be redeveloped, the city must resolve how and where to relocate the vehicle lot, which City Manager Kenneth C. Frank said would cost $1.5 million to $2.5 million.

The task force recommends that the city maintain and possibly renovate the old sewage treatment building at the site because of its “historic architectural character.” The building could be used as an art exhibition area, a visitor information center or for other purposes, the report says.

The task force also recommends leaving a working sewage pump station on the parcel because it would be “prohibitively expensive” to relocate it.

Once the vehicle yard is relocated, the report says, a four-level parking building could go up next to City Hall along with a bistro-type restaurant with outdoor seating that would accommodate people attending nearby plays or festivals.

The city has long debated how to make better use of the wedge of land, the gateway to the downtown business district for people traveling on Laguna Canyon Road.

Among the challenges for developing the property is a drainage ditch that runs through it. One suggestion--to turn it into a natural-looking creek bed--could cost more than $250,000, officials estimate. And covering it, they say, could create flooding problems.--LESLIE EARNEST