City won’t temporarily shut Forest Avenue after all

Forest Avenue will not be temporarily closed to cars, the Laguna Beach council decided Tuesday night, heeding business owners’ concerns about the loss of 48 parking spaces.

However, the move, which reverses a council decision last month to close a portion of the downtown street from Coast Highway to Glenneyre Street to create a pedestrian-friendly area for a trial period in August and September, does not eliminate the plan to create parklets.

A few parkets, outdoor seating and dining areas extending into the street, would be created on Forest and Ocean Avenue for 60 days, taking away four parking spaces on Forest and two on Ocean, according to a city staff report.

The moves toward a more walkable downtown come as the city and urban planning firm MIG are working to update Laguna’s Downtown Specific Plan, a key planning document that focuses on development standards, including the aesthetics of buildings.

Parklets received mixed reviews from the audience at the council meeting Tuesday.

Supporters liked the idea of people mingling, but opponents said only restaurateurs would benefit because they could extend their seating outdoors, attracting more customers, while coveted parking spaces would be lost.

Parklets will be installed in front of restaurants including Alessa Laguna and 230 Forest Avenue. The restaurants would have to obtain the necessary California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control licenses, according to the staff report.

The city and affected business owners would split the cost of creating the parklets, the staff report said. The owners would be responsible for building the parklets and would lease space from the city for a fee yet to be determined.

Mayor Bob Whalen said closing Forest is not completely off the table. He said a variety of scenarios could be considered.

Meanwhile, in another matter, council members said they were willing to allow a temporary move of the Saturday farmers market from its current location near City Hall to Second Street or the top level of the Glenneyre parking structure. The market needs to relocate from September through May so the city can realign a sewer line.

City staff recommended a temporary location on Ocean, but the council nixed that idea.

Councilman Kelly Boyd suggested moving the market to the Glenneyre parking structure, which he said would help traffic movement through the city.

“I owned a business in downtown for 25 years, so I know what circulation is,” said Boyd, former owner of the Marine Room tavern. “Believe it or not, Ocean Avenue gets backed up with traffic like you wouldn’t believe.

“I don’t want to take away a lot for retail stores’ parking down there. They are the ones who need to be protected.”

Regarding the closing of streets, some residents said Laguna is fine as is.

Local architect John Filkins, who helped design a mall in Boulder, Colo., said pedestrian-friendly areas are used to boost failing retail areas. Laguna doesn’t fall into this category, he said.

“Santa Monica’s [Third Street Promenade] was started because it was failing,” Filkins said. “It struggled until they got parking and circulation around it. If you don’t have those two things in place, and we don’t have a street configuration that allows it, then a pedestrian mall will fail.

“The gold standard is what you have in your town. It’s one-way, slow-moving parking, diagonals on both sides, tight sidewalks keeping people up against a continuous retail edge. You risk losing the best thing in town.”

Whalen said he was frustrated with the amount of opposition to the proposed Forest and Ocean closures.

“It’s discouraging to go through the process and hear people say, ‘No, no, no,’” Whalen said. “We’re talking about experimentation and short-term trials.... Maybe there are some unexpected consequences. It’s not going to kill anybody to have [the farmers market] on Ocean for a month.”

City staff anticipates opening the parklets in August or September.