Just six weeks after its formation, the newly established View Equity Committee seems determined to deliver on putting teeth in a new city ordinance. But first they want a test drive, to understand how a potential view equity claim would play out under the model adopted by Rancho Palos Verdes, which passed one of the [...]
“Stonehenge,” one of the first houses built in south Laguna, was spared from possibly being bulldozed in a 10-2 vote by the California Coastal Commission on Wednesday, Feb. 6, which reversed the recommendations of its staff and an earlier decision by the Laguna Beach City Council to demolish the bluff-top cottage. South Laguna Civic Assn. [...]
Editor, This is an open letter, or more of a note, to the Design Review Board, and the city in general. As many of my friends and acquaintances know, my legal practice is restricted to Laguna Beach and I make my living mostly in connection with Design Review projects. As a result I receive seasons’ greeting [...]
By Robin Zur Schmiede Recently, Laguna Beach locals have been reminiscing in print about infamous Design Review Board experiences. Residents and visitors alike might wonder if these stories are the norm for a Design Review decision today. They are not. In the past few years, the Design Review process has greatly improved as a result [...]
Editor, In Laguna Beach there is a project approved by the city’s Design Review Board in my neighborhood, and I am looking again at how this project got the okay. Is everyone turning his or her head away? Once upon a time known for its charm, quaintness, and exceptional neighborhoods, the character of our [...]
“Lagunatics” turns a cheerful spotlight on Laguna Beach’s foibles, some old, some new, but none borrowed when the annual roast resumes this Friday at the Festival of Arts’ Forum Theater. Once again, the locals who perform for the next three weekends will ask themselves and their audience “is nothing sacred?” This year, for the 19th [...]
The City Council is seeking citizen volunteers for the Emergency Disaster Preparedness Committee as well as the Design Review Board. The disaster committee makes recommendations about preparing for the next emergency or disaster, researches grant funding to support disaster preparedness, helps in developing a post-disaster needs assessment process, helps to refine a clearinghouse [...]
Metal sculptor Larry Gill and glassblower Gavin Heath teamed up to design what may become Laguna Beach’s newest addition to its public art collection. The team, along with competing artist Michael Graham, presented their concepts to Arts Commission at its meeting Monday, Sept. 12. After careful deliberations involving structural soundness and public safety, the commission [...]
Monday, Sept. 19 Heritage Committee, 6 p.m., Council Chambers Tuesday, Sept. 20 City Council, 6 p.m., Council Chambers Thursday, Sept. 22 Parking, Traffic and Circulation Committee, 6 p.m., Community Center, 380 Third St. Board of Adjustment, Design Review Board, 6 p.m., Council Chambers
Design Review Heroes Do you remember the “white house” controversy? The city debate on off-white vs. white paint for a design-reviewed house became fodder for talk radio. Or when the county newspapers published photos of Design Review Board members’ homes and compared them to the houses they were critiquing. How about when a board [...]
The “oldest house in Laguna” will undergo modernization following a controversial 3-2 vote of the City Council on Tuesday despite an hour of passionate discourse mostly opposing the remodeling of the historic $3.2 million beachfront cottage. The major changes in contention at 154 Pearl Street are the addition of a 1,500-square-foot house to the cottage’s [...]
Editor, I read with interest Mr. Navarro’s very strong and almost nasty letter in your fine paper of Nov. 12. In it, he appears to respond to a letter in the previous week’s edition from Mrs. Penney-Hall, which I did not read, since I was out of the country that week (I try to keep up [...]
Police Use Taser to Subdue Assault Suspect
An assault involving three men escalated into a struggle with Laguna Beach police, who ultimately deployed a taser twice to subdue the younger combative suspect in the 300 block of Cozumel around 1:15 a.m. Friday, May 10, police said. Police ultimately arrested Laguna Beach resident Sergio Gabriel Borgognone, 51, for allegedly resisting arrest and his [...]
