City’s Self-Image Is Developing

When Dave Donaldson floated the idea of opening a restaurant in San Clemente’s downtown, many tried to dissuade him. Why would he want to, some asked. Others told him a new eatery would not survive long -- the town closed down at sunset.

But Donaldson didn’t listen and now city leaders and downtown merchants credit him for helping trigger the transformation of the quaint seaside village into an upbeat attraction.

“People were dying for something to open up downtown. It was an easy bet on success,” said Donaldson, who opened the BeachFire Bar and Grill in 2002 in the former home of the Coronet, a popular five-and-dime store.

As business picked up and more people moved into nearby developments, he acquired neighbors -- seven other restaurants have opened since. In hopes of making the most of the growth spurt, city leaders are hammering out a long-term development plan.

“BeachFire started it all,” said Councilwoman Stephanie Dorey. “... Now you can’t find any place to park.”

Over the years, San Clemente settled into a three-pronged identity as a quiet military town, affordable retirement community and popular surfing spot.

Its enduring image of the “Spanish Village by the Sea” was cemented by town founder Ole Hanson’s insistence that buildings be constructed with whitewashed stucco walls and handmade red-tile roofs. For the most part, the town’s rhythm stayed at a slow pace.

Today, downtown streets are lined with boutiques, antique stores and restaurants. Parking lots are jammed. Sales tax revenue from downtown, a one-half square-mile area, has increased from $350,000 in 1996 to nearly $500,000 in 2003.

By contrast, Huntington Beach, which has had an economic development plan in place since the mid-1980s, brought in $946,000 in sales tax revenue in 2003 in its similarly sized downtown area.

Huntington Beach’s population is about three times larger than San Clemente’s.

To grapple with the growth, San Clemente has hired a consultant, gathered public input and formed a citizen’s task force to help retool land use and urban design policies.

The guidelines are to shape development over the next decade in five city districts. A final plan is a ways off, but later this month the task force will make its final recommendations, which will work their way through the planning commission and City Council.

Michael Kaupp, a planning commissioner and member of the Downtown Visioning Task Force, said their goal is to build on the vibrancy of Avenida del Mar, the town’s main street and where BeachFire is. They also want to bring back the founder’s beloved Spanish Colonial Revival style, which went by the wayside over the years.

Some areas such as the El Camino Real, a two-mile corridor, are studded with convenience stores and auto repair shops.

“This whole area is a hodgepodge, and we haven’t really had a vision of what we want it to look like here,” Kaupp said of the strip.

While many boast of improvements and renewed energy, others nostalgically remember when Avenida del Mar was lined with traditional main street fare: a butcher shop, pharmacy and hardware store.

Jeff Zoerner, 46, an exporter of golf course construction equipment who moved to San Clemente from Long Island, N.Y., in 1985, disapprovingly gestures toward Plaza del Mar, the outsized Mediterranean-style building that houses BeachFire Bar and Grill and retailers.

And although he confesses that it was formerly a “square boring building,” he said the mammoth structure anchored by a towering cylindrical corner room is a poor architectural fit with the rest of downtown.

“I didn’t like it when it was going in,” Zoerner said. “It was a catalyst for the face-lift of San Clemente. I moved here because it used to be a sleepy little beach town.”

But San Clemente’s time had come, Donaldson said. “I just happened to be the first guy who took a bet on it,” said the 41-year-old entrepreneur. “From the moment we opened our doors, we were packed.”

The business boom, combined with the success of large inland developments, has made San Clemente “increasingly active and successful,” said Mayor Joe Anderson.

The 3,500-acre Talega community, with its 2,600 newly occupied homes and 1,200 soon to come, has introduced a demographic shift, bringing in young families with more disposable income.

More people and families are looking for things to do. The city’s population has jumped since the 2000 U.S. Census from nearly 50,000 to 63,000.

“If I had opened my restaurant five years before, I am certain it would’ve failed,” Donaldson said. “There’s 10 times more people on the streets now.”

Construction of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor in the mid-1990s has made southern Orange County more accessible, and as the county grows, more people are heading south to explore, Anderson said.

“[San Clemente] has been discovered not only by the residents that live here,” he said. “But in recent years a lot of Orange County residents have visited San Clemente and begun to visit us on a regular basis. We’ve kind of had a convergence of recognition.”

Despite the renewed and revitalized energy, some downtown merchants are still looking for their niche.

Carmen Matta moved to San Clemente from the San Gabriel Valley and opened a garden store, Dream Gardens, two years ago. She’s still trying to identify a steady customer base.

“Two years is a long time not quite making it,” she said. “It’s hard to get [customers] to buy. We need community support. It’s not just the tourists.”

Meanwhile, as the city cultivates itself as an attractive destination spot, some challenges are expected to surface.

“So far, we’ve been able to manage the success we’re having,” Kaupp said. “We’ve been able to retain the charm without losing the soul of the community. Many communities lose it ... and I think that’s probably true of most Southern California towns.”

San Clemente is just one of many California cities over the last decade to nurture a downtown renaissance.

But unlike Brea, Old Town Pasadena and Huntington Beach, which identified a need and set out to revive their pasts, San Clemente’s revitalization, up to now, has largely been a subtle, natural occurrence.

“The [new] restaurants came and took hold,” Kaupp said. “Coupled with the new housing and more connectivity, it all just came together.”