Headlands: Using Our Heads

A mountain lion kills one bicyclist and mauls another in a rural part of Orange County that is gradually giving way to suburbia. And, after 30 years, the state Coastal Commission approves a controversial oceanfront development in Dana Point.

The two stories are part of Orange County’s continuing, bumpy journey from rural/suburban county to suburban/urban center.

Together, the incidents frame key questions that must be answered as the dwindling number of big parcels of open land are graded for development:

How much sprawl is too much? And how does an increasingly urban county coexist with the very wilderness and natural beauty that drew people here in the first place?

Orange County’s recent history has been defined by large-scale development. Between 36,000 and 42,000 homes and condominiums are proposed for about 54 square miles of open land in the county, according to a Los Angeles Times estimate completed last summer.

But the last big land parcels already are targeted for development, so future housing growth must come from strategies that rely upon “infill development” -- in essence, squeezing new homes, apartments and condominiums into existing neighborhoods.

Orange County already is one of the state’s most crowded counties, with 980,000 homes and 3 million residents.

That’s more than 3,600 residents per square mile, well above Los Angeles County, which has some 2,300 residents per square mile.

Those numbers also are the strongest argument for land use planning that protects environmentally sensitive land that serves as home to mountain lions and other wildlife.

In addition, the statistics support the need to ensure that residents have access to the geography that makes Orange County an attractive place to live.

Which leads to the controversial Jan. 15 state Coastal Commission vote to allow construction of 125 homes, a 65- to 90-room hotel and 40,000 square feet of commercial development at Dana Point Headlands, one of Southern California’s last undeveloped promontories.

A generation of county residents was born, grew up and started careers during the decades it took developers and regulators to reach agreement. The Headlands, though, benefited from the drawn-out decision; the initial plan called for 800 homes, two 400-room hotels and 27 acres of commercial development.

The agreement reached this month showed that developers, environmentalists, planners and the public can reach mutually acceptable land-use decisions.

In the end, an environmentally sensitive tract gained some protections and the public was guaranteed partial access to a magnificent ocean vista.

What’s frustrating is that it took the various parties so long to cut to the bottom line.