Balboa Inn expansion plans come into view

Noaki Schwartz

BALBOA PENINSULA -- A request to expand the Balboa Inn has city planning

commissioners using caution. While the plan might threaten views for some

neighboring residents, it also hints at just the type of revitalization

business owners have been hoping for.

“Certainly any investment in the area is a good indication,” said

commissioner Larry Tucker. “It’s just whether or not that investment is

going to fly with the locals. We’re going to see.”

The proposal calls for a two- and three-story building with 11 new guest

rooms. Rod Harter, manager of the Balboa Inn, also plans to include some

space for retail shops and a partially covered garage with 20 parking

spaces. Because the design exceeds the allowable floor area and building

height, the project requires permission from the commission to move

forward.

The business community has been clamoring for additional visitors, but

some residents near the inn are protesting that the height of the project

would block their views of the ocean and the harbor. The site, south of

Ocean Front, is owned by the inn and currently occupied by a cafe and

bike rental shop.

“It will take away the Dana Point view for people on the second floor of

my condominium,” said resident Diane Williams. “The property values are

going to suffer. I thought I was buying a pretty secure investment.”

Williams added that if commissioners allow this business owner to build

up, others might follow.

But Tucker said the commissioners are still in a fact-finding mode and

“are a long way from making a decision.”

Last week, commissioners instructed Harter to come back with more

complete site plans and drawings to provide a more accurate picture of

the project.

Harter could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Balboa Peninsula business owners for years have said the area needs to be

revitalized. Many said they have watched for more than a decade as the

once-prosperous community darkened into an area with few residents

strolling the streets at night.

At the end of February, the City Council endorsed the “Village Plan” and

Balboa Pier parking lot improvements -- the first in a series of moves to

revive the community.

The $7.5-million plan is an effort to make the peninsula more

pedestrian-friendly and attract more visitors. Local business owners at

the time were pleased by the news, but said the changes were slow in

coming.