Architect hired to draft plans to rebuild CdM library, fire station
Plans for a new library and fire station in Corona del Mar moved forward Tuesday night as the Newport Beach City Council approved a contract with an architect to draft plans to rebuild the two structures.
The council voted 6 to 0, with Councilman Tony Petros absent, to pay WLC Architects of Rancho Cucamonga $457,750. Drafting the plans could take a year, according to a city staff report.
The existing fire station and library were built next to each other on Marigold Avenue about 60 years ago. Since then, services offered there have outgrown the buildings, the staff report said.
“These facilities, especially Fire Station No. 5, do not comply with the current building codes nor meet today’s operational needs,” the report states.
Under the plans, the structures would be demolished and new ones built in their place.
The new fire station is likely to be about twice as large as the current building, city staff said.
The new library is expected to be slightly smaller than the current location, which struck a nerve with one longtime Corona del Mar resident at Tuesday’s meeting.
“The library has a vital purpose in our area,” Elizabeth Star said. “It’s a place where the senior citizens go to read the morning paper. I fear it’s not going to be as big as we have … sometimes we have every seat in that library occupied. “
City staff and architects will hold meetings with the public to discuss features and aesthetics of the library and fire station.
Construction on both is expected to begin in spring 2016.
Lighthouse Cafe
The council also approved a 15-year lease with Ruby’s Diner founder Doug Cavanaugh to operate The Lighthouse Cafe at the new Marina Park on the Balboa Peninsula.
The two-story, 3,069-square-foot restaurant space will be located in the sailing center building adjacent to the marina. The park is expected to open by January.
The restaurant will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
The lunch menu will feature soups, salads, burgers, sandwiches and grilled fish. The dinner menu will feature the same items, plus larger plates such as seafood pot pies, seafood pasta, grilled salmon, swordfish and steak fries.
Prices probably will average $10 at breakfast, $12 at lunch and $18 to $25 at dinner, according to the restaurant’s proposal.