COUNTYWIDE : Cities Weigh Joint Coastal Marketing

If a coastal city can be a magnet for advertisers--companies selling sunscreen, bottled water or pickup trucks--then the attraction would increase dramatically if several towns could package themselves as a single marketplace.

That is the theory of the Orange Coast Marketing Coalition, which hopes to unite the county, state and five coastal cities as a marketing block to increase the local benefits when advertising space is sold on the beaches.

“The problem you have marketing when you’re broken into small entities is you don’t have enough volume to really interest the big players,” said Dusty Brogan, who runs a similar program for Los Angeles County and is offering to extend the service.

The proposal, already endorsed by Laguna Beach, is expected to come before city councils in Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach and San Clemente this month. Those cities’ beaches, plus those under state and county jurisdiction, stretch 32 miles and draw 50 million beach-goers each year.

“When you put them together,” Brogan said, “then they have some power.”

The program would likely result in more company logos and other advertisements on lifeguard vehicles and towers, trash cans and benches. In exchange, a company might offer a fleet of vehicles, cash payments or a service for the city.

Promoters insist that the advertisements would not be a visual blight and, with local governments’ revenue shrinking, could give some financial relief.

Brogan said the Los Angeles County program yields about $1.4 million annually in cash, goods and services, and Orange County could reap as much, returning 10% to 15% of its proceeds to Los Angeles County as payment for administering the program.

Larry Paul, coastal facilities manager for Orange County’s Environmental Management Agency, said, “It’s an opportunity that helps us keep the beaches clean, safe and operational.”

With diminishing budgets, he said, “there will be a lessening of maintenance, which would show up visually and fairly quick.”

Representatives for the various agencies have discussed the plan for more than a year and drafted an agreement last summer that led to the formation of the coalition.

The proposal, which would need approval by the state and Los Angeles County, will likely be considered by the Orange County Board of Supervisors next month. Promotions could be underway by May or June, Paul said.

Participating cities would not be required to take part in each marketing plan offered.

Laguna Beach has a law against advertising on city property and that would have to be revised, City Manager Kenneth C. Frank said. When the council endorsed the countywide plan, he said, it was simply keeping its options open.

“Maybe there will be some deal that comes up that will be too good to pass up,” he said.