Crystal Cove Restoration Project May Start Soon

State park officials are in final negotiations with a Santa Barbara-based company to undertake an estimated $23-million plan to rehabilitate an enclave of funky beach bungalows built in the 1920s and ‘30s at the historic oceanfront colony here.

Discussions are reaching a conclusion more than 17 years after the state bought the 2,800-acre stretch between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach. When the long-anticipated project is done, about 40 old bungalows are expected to be available for public lodging.

After years of talking and legal wrangling over the future of the cottages at one of Orange County’s most scenic spots, the Department of Parks and Recreation last year selected Investec, operating as Crystal Cove Preservation Partners, during a bidding process to build and operate a public resort here.

Once the firm has signed a contract with the state, including financial terms and conceptual plans, state and company officials will prepare a detailed proposal for Crystal Cove, state parks spokesman Ken Colombini said. The plan could be ready for public review within a year.

“We’re still working on the details,” Colombini said. “This is going to be a fantastic resource for the public. It’s going to maintain the historic and cultural beauty of the site.”

Ultimately, the plan will go before the state Parks and Recreation Commission and the California Coastal Commission, with hearings tentatively set to begin next spring. Construction could start as early as December 1999.

Both state parks officials and legislative sources say the negotiations with Investec are in final stages.

Under an agreement reached after years of controversy, the state is allowing residents--some of whom have lived here for decades in leased cottages--to remain until conversion work begins.

The weather-beaten, ramshackle cottages have earned a place in the National Register of Historic Places as the last intact example of “vernacular beach architecture.”

The public “will benefit by having the capability to enjoy the unique experience of staying overnight at a reasonable cost in a rustic beachfront accommodation not found elsewhere in the state,” state officials said in bidding documents.

The 12.3-acre historic district is at the midpoint of the park’s 3.25-mile coastline.

A survey of the district found 40 cottages fit for rehabilitation, two requiring reconstruction and four beyond repair, according to state documents. The project would include retaining walls and shoreline protection, as well as replacement of most public utilities.

The work would also include buildings for food service, beach rentals, restrooms, and storage and maintenance, as well as access for divers to waters off the colony, already designated as an underwater park.

Rental rates could range from $100 to $400 per night, which would generate about $1.3 million per year, according to past state market surveys. Extra overnight accommodations, perhaps on the inland side of the district, are a possibility.

A two-story limit would apply to all resort construction.

“It is the desire of [the parks department] to maintain a building mass and density similar to the existing cottage development,” state documents say.

The cove was part of the vast Irvine Ranch until 1979, when the state bought the park property for $32.6 million. Before the state took over, the cottages were granted federal historic protection.

The settlement sprung up around the park’s old surfer campground after the state built the highway between Newport Beach and Laguna Beach in 1926.

The state tried to evict the more than 100 Crystal Cove residents shortly after buying the land. But the residents managed to stay through legal wrangling and lease extensions. The state collected about $500,000 a year from the leases.

As part of the original 1979 park sale, the grant deed between the state and the Irvine Company gives the company a right of first refusal on any concession proposal within the park that would last longer than 10 years. The company will review the contract once it has been finalized, Colombini said.

Investec representatives could not be reached for comment.