Tony Dodero -- From the Newsroom

Dire headlines speak of an ominous future for the Crystal Cove beach

shack residents. Life as they know it will soon change forever.

The land, left to the care of state officials, will soon deteriorate

and this sparkling, little-known jewel on the Orange Coast will fade into

oblivion.

“It would be like having our hearts cut out . . . It would destroy the

cove,” says one incredulous resident of the state’s pressure to kick them

out.

Think I’m talking about the recent news that this week, the residents

in the picturesque beach bungalows are facing eviction from the state?

Guess again. Those foreboding headlines and quotes come from 1992 news

stories about the cove.

At that time, state officials told those living at the cove that an

earlier agreement that allowed them to stay for more than 10 years was

about to expire. They hemmed and hawed and played the public for

sympathy. And now, nearly a decade later, they are doing it again, this

time saying they are concerned for preserving the beauty of the cove, not

just about losing their breezy ocean vistas.

But that’s just part of this long-running drama. Formerly owned by

the Irvine Co., the state bought the chunk of beachfront land for $32

million in 1979.

The state issued 90-day eviction notices then, but the residents went

to court and now more than 20 years later, the battle drags on.

That the cove dwellers have clung to their piece of paradise for so

many years is not surprising. Anyone who has visited there knows the

beauty and serenity of Crystal Cove is worth preserving.

You can’t blame them for not wanting to leave.

But the part of the debate that seems to get lost in the message of

preserving the cove is that the land doesn’t belong to those who inhabit

the 46 ramshackle cottages.

It belongs to you and me. And we paid $32 million in 1979 --dollars

for something that we can barely enjoy today.

Whether the resort the state plans for the cove is the best idea is

certainly debatable. In fact, recent reports indicate those plans may

indeed be crumbling under public pressure.

But the next time someone living in this prime piece of the California

coast bemoans the fact that they are being displaced, just remember

they’ve had more than 20 years to pack their bags.

And I’d be surprised if any have done so yet. And I’ll be even more

surprised if this latest eviction move by the state forces any to do so

in the future.

***

Last week, I had barely got done recalling a couple homonym problems

being experienced on our copy desk when another glaring one appeared on

our front page of Monday Feb. 5.

Of course, several of our faithful readers lined up immediately to

point out our grammatical faux pas. This note sent to me by Harbor Island

resident Martin Litke says it all:

“ You must be joking, You can’t be serious. You must know the

difference between ‘sorted’ and ‘sordid.’ You were really pulling our

collective legs. Right? Or were you just trying to ‘Sord’ things out?”

Very funny, but no comment.

On the brighter side, we received several nice responses from our

readers on the launch of our new Sunday edition on Feb. 4.

Here is one of my favorites from Newport resident Meggen Stockstill:

“I just wanted to let you know that your decision to add a Sunday

edition was long-awaited and much-applauded.

Having lived in five different cities/states, my husband and I both

are continually impressed by the quality of this local paper. As a mother

of three children from Corona del Mar High School, we really enjoy

following the stories of their classmates, families, coaches and

teachers.

Your reporters/editors understand that your readers look forward to

all news, no matter how small, when it relates to the community and

people they know, and we thank you for adding one more day of enjoyment

to our week!”

Thanks Meggen.

***

Finally, was I the only one who thought it was funny that Newport

Mayor Gary Adams was too sick to issue his message that bacteria in the

ocean is nothing to worry about?

Hope Mayor Gary didn’t catch the bug after a dip in the ocean.

* TONY DODERO is the editor. His FROM THE NEWSROOM column appears on

Mondays. If you have story ideas or concerns about news coverage please

send messages either via e-mail to o7 tony.dodero@latimes.comf7 or by

phone at (949) 574-4258.