Rocky Road Ahead

Isamu Noguchi wanted his California Scenario sculpture garden to inspire thought.

It has.

The award-winning artist’s garden of stones, trees and waterfalls, tucked behind an El Torito Grill on Anton Boulevard in Costa Mesa, is at the center of a running debate between city officials and a developer of a proposed cultural arts district that would include a symphony hall, restaurants and office buildings next to the 19-year-old garden.

City officials and art experts say California Scenario is a masterpiece and want to protect it for eternity. CommonWealth Partners, LLC has a shorter time frame in mind: 25 years. CommonWealth officials say they have no desire to destroy or alter it, but they do not wish to be left with the responsibility of tending the sculpture garden, which draws art aficionados from around the world. At least not forever.

Fans of the sculpture garden and the late artist who created it say even the slightest change to the outdoor environment--buildings, walls and other structures--would take away from the haunting and surreal mood it creates. But developers wince at the notion of having to go through public hearings for even modest repair work near the garden.

The sweeping theater district project would be bounded by Bristol Street, Sunflower Avenue, Avenue of the Arts and the San Diego Freeway. Three developers are involved in the endeavor to create a pedestrian-oriented art district, but CommonWealth’s portion would include the area of the sculpture garden.

Initially, the city asked CommonWealth to protect the garden for 25 years and the developer agreed. Later, though, the City Council asked that the gardens be protected in perpetuity.

Costa Mesa Mayor Libby Cowan said city officials were worried about the developer’s commitment and added the perpetuity clause as insurance.

That clause has given CommonWealth pause.

“Perpetuity does not translate into investor language,” said James R. Anderson, a partner in CommonWealth. “It’s astounding to us that someone could take our pursuit of this project and turn that into a scenario that we plan to destroy the garden.”

Shoji Sadao, executive director of the Isamu Noguchi Foundation in New York, said he has been consulted throughout and originally saw the developer’s project “in very favorable light.” Still, he said, the sculpture garden would be very easy to disturb because of its delicate setting.

When Noguchi began building the garden in 1980 at the request of Henry Segerstrom of C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, the property’s original owner and owners of nearby South Coast Plaza, the artist wanted a stage-like, surreal setting that he hoped would reflect California’s diverse environments.

Although pedestrians can walk through the work, passing cactus and stepping over a tiny running river, each element of the courtyard-sized sculpture depends on another. Moving just one would upset the balance, say Sadao and other art experts.

“This isn’t an object, it’s an entire environment. . . . If you shift something just two feet or move one of the buildings, you’re essentially destroying it,” said Bert Winther-Tamaki, an assistant professor of art history at UC Irvine.

Although the Segerstroms sold the property to CommonWealth almost two years ago and are not familiar with CommonWealth’s plans, the family regards the garden as a “magnificent public space” that is worth preserving, company spokesman Paul Freeman said.

CommonWealth officials say the company has no intention of altering the artwork, but guaranteeing to protect the garden for “perpetuity” could pose financial risks, and might even dash its portion of the theater district project. Further, Anderson said, having to seek city permission to repair utility lines that run under the garden--including a 4,000-volt line that powers several nearby businesses--would be time-consuming.

“That’s not acceptable,” Anderson said.

Regardless, most council members want the garden protected and seem unwilling to bend, even if it kills a chunk of the theater district plan.

Although Anderson said he would continue to negotiate with the city, the company said it cannot complete the project with a perpetuity clause.

“If we can’t come to an agreement, the project won’t go forward,” he said.

But Councilman Gary Monahan worries the city may be pushing the developer too far.

“I see a lot of heels being dug in here,” he said. “We could blow the deal at this rate.”

Other elected leaders, however, are coming down on the side of the garden.

“Who’s going to tell me that they’re going to keep this protected or that the next owner is going to love art as much as we do?” Councilwoman Linda Dixon asked at a recent hearing. “I need to worry about protecting something that may have the same importance as a Picasso.”