Coast Inn project returns to Laguna Beach council for vote

The Laguna Beach City Council will review a proposal Tuesday to renovate the Coast Inn area with new offerings that include two new restaurants.

Plans for the historic hotel at 1401 S. Coast Hwy. and an adjacent liquor store at 1391 S. Coast Hwy. call for various remodeling projects.

For the Coast Inn, owner Chris Dornin and architect Marshall Ininns want to renovate the existing hotel rooms and relocate some of them. He also is requesting to add a second restaurant inside the building and a rooftop deck and bar.

The Coast Inn dates to 1927 and once housed the Boom Boom Room nightclub. It currently contains 24 hotel rooms, a restaurant, two bar areas and office space.

For the adjacent Coast Liquor, Dornin is requesting to have a convenience store, a deli with takeout and outdoor seating, and three new retail spaces. It currently has a market area and storage space.

Dornin also wants to renovate a nearby building at 168 Mountain Road known as the Olympic Cottage. It was built for the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles and is being used as retail space.

In October, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended the council deny the project. Commissioners and speakers during the meeting expressed concerns about the plans straying from the property’s history. They were also concerned about traffic and parking.

City officials noted that the plans call for parking exemptions even though the building will be used more extensively under.

The Coast Inn proposal has been in the works for more than a year. The Planning Commission first heard it in December 2016 and again in March.

Tuesday’s meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 505 Forest Ave.

bradley.zint@latimes.com

Twitter: @BradleyZint