Corona del Mar Today: Utility box gets British-flavored makeover
Corona del Mar’s English-style telephone booth at Five Crowns Restaurant has a counterpart across town in the form of a painted utility box.
The box, located in the 2700 block of East Coast Highway, was recently transformed from a plain, metal box into a small faux English telephone booth. The property owner arranged for the painting, a retail business owner said.
The Laguna Beach County Water District owns the box, a control structure with an antenna on top.
“It’s supply line connects to the Municipal Water District’s line, which ends at Fernleaf (Avenue) and Coast Highway,” said Mary Locey, a Newport Beach city spokeswoman. “No permit is required for painting the box.”
The newly painted box is located near the newly opened menswear store, Heron Haberdashery.
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Good Morning CdM! launches Sept. 10
A new community discussion group will launch at 7:30 a.m. Sept. 10 at the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, 1601 Bayside Drive, according to a Corona del Mar Chamber of Commerce event flier.
Formerly known as Corona del Mar Government Affairs, the new event series is being called Good Morning CdM!, the flier said.
The series will be the chamber’s monthly platform for “sharing ideas, news and inspiration,” the flier said.
Guests will include representatives of federal, state, county and city elected officials.
The featured speaker for September will be Doug McClain, chief marketing officer for Newport Beach & Co. He will discuss the state of Newport Beach tourism.
Good Morning CdM! events will occur on the second Thursday of each month. Doors will open at 7:15 a.m. for networking and refreshments. Advance registration is not required.
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New business to open in Anrea’s space
A new business will open soon in the space formerly occupied by Andrea’s Couture, according to a sign in the window.
Les Douceurs de Paris will be opening soon at 3034 East Coast Hwy., the sign states. Information about the new business was not immediately available, and no city business license records could be located online.
Andrea’s Couture dress shop closed earlier this year after a December 2011 grand opening. Previously, the Phoenician Stone business occupied that space and adjacent properties.
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‘Endless Summer’ ticket inspires new artwork
A monochromatic contemporary installation inspired by a movie ticket for “Endless Summer” will replace a brightly colored mural on the side of a building at 3420 East Coast Hwy.
The building, which has four apartment units above a gym and a now-vacant salon, has been undergoing renovations since late last year, said the property owner, James “Walkie” Ray.
Renovations include seismic upgrades and a contemporary look for the front, back and side of the building.
“We wanted something to wrap around and be an integral part of the building,” he said.
The building had been covered in beach-themed murals for years, beginning about 10 years ago when the owner of the adjacent 76 service station asked for permission to paint on the side of the building a whale and other sea creatures. When that faded, Ray requested an update, and a Hawaiian artist painted a mural of a tropical sunset.
Architect Gregory Ashton developed the plans for the new artwork first by considering the glass and stainless steel that will be on the front and back of the building.
Ashton said he turned to a folder of clippings and notes that he saved for inspiration.
The folder included a pink movie ticket for the 1966 surf documentary “Endless Summer,” Ashton said.
“We were sort of taking this ‘Endless Summer’ theme and taking it off,” he said, describing how the beach mural was going to be removed. “That’s like a redaction of ‘Endless Summer.’”
Then he took the movie ticket and began to play, redacting all the images and text until he was left with a geometric pattern of black on pink.
“It was just geometric,” he said. “The process eventually ended up with this abstract, geometric pattern that connects with the architecture. It will be visually interesting.”
Corona del Mar Today appears Sundays in the Daily Pilot. Read daily updates at coronadelmartoday.com.