Another Roadside Distraction for Corona del Mar Merchants

Being a cobbler isn’t what it used to be, says Kirk Sermabeikian, manager of Anthony’s Shoe Repair in Corona del Mar.

Besides a dwindling customer base because fewer people these days replace battered soles and worn-down heels, Sermabeikian’s business lost 40% of its annual sales a few years back when construction on East Coast Highway drove his patrons to more accessible shoe shops.

So his reaction was not positive when he learned last week that Caltrans has begun four months of road construction that will run right past his door.

“It’s bad news,” Sermabeikian said Thursday. “I don’t know how we’re going to survive.”

Other merchants along this neighborhood’s upscale main street say they are certain to lose customers as the traffic-choked artery is narrowed further by lane closures and orange cones. And some are disgruntled because the area was just repaved two years ago.

“We can’t figure out what is wrong with it, but it is always under construction,” said Royal Radkee, executive director of the Corona del Mar Chamber of Commerce. “If you can explain to me why they are doing this, I would really love to know.”

The reason, Caltrans officials say, is that an average of 46,000 cars travel that portion of the highway every day, requiring maintenance at least every two years.

This time around, Caltrans will rip out nearly 2 miles of road, from MacArthur Boulevard to Cameo Shores Road, and repave it. The state also will upgrade storm drains and install 14 additional drains, said Pam Gorniak, a spokeswoman for the agency. Completion of the $1.1-million road improvement project, which began Feb. 9, is set for late May. Much of the work will be done at night.

That is little consolation to many merchants and commuters.

“If they’re digging holes right in front of our door, it’s going to be a big problem,” said Danielle Tarango, the manager at Holly Sharp, a boutique for custom-made bridal and evening attire.

Customers of La Cantina convenience store have been griping about having to navigate the construction zone, manager Tina Hoang said. “They say they cannot get through.”

Gina Ramos said her 1 1/2-hour commute from Downey will only get worse if traffic backs up near Zachariah, the pricey home furnishings store she runs.

“I’m not from this area,” Ramos said. “I don’t know any short cuts, I don’t know the detours.”

Others, though, have found one. Some motorists traveling north on Coast Highway are skirting the congestion by taking 3rd, 4th or 5th avenues, or even driving to San Joaquin Hills Road. But that is upsetting homeowners in the area.

“This is a major, major project that will tear up the downtown very, very badly and [Caltrans] has no traffic alternatives,” said Dick Nichols, president of the Corona del Mar Community Assn., a homeowners group.

Newport Beach Councilman Dennis D. O’Neil promised that the current construction job on East Coast Highway will be the last for a while, and he said the work is necessary.

“Even though this is going to be an inconvenience for the businesses and the residents,” he said, “it’s designed as a way to be constructed as fast as possible and with as little impact as possible.”

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Liz Seymour can be reached at (714) 966-7700. Hope Hamashige can be reached at (714) 564-1050. Their e-mail address is ocfocus@latimes.com

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New-Look Lanes

Construction on Coast Highway through Corona del Mar will include a package of changes:

* Resurfacing travel lanes in both directions.

* Restriping.

* Adding wheelchair ramps in various locations.

* Upgrading drainage system.

Source: Caltrans; Researched by HOPE HAMASHIGE/For The Times