Campbell still searching for cove money

James Meier

CRYSTAL COVE -- Assemblyman John Campbell (R-Irvine) said Monday that

until funding can be found elsewhere, he will continue pushing his

proposal to extend the leases for residents at El Morro Beach to pay for

the restoration of cove cottages.

Though State Parks officials have vocally rejected the proposal,

Campbell said he still plans to introduce the plan to the State

Legislature in late February. The earliest it would be discussed in

committee would be early April, he said.

Under the proposal, the current El Morro lease set to expire in

December 2004 would be extended about five years, though the residents

would be asked to pay about twice their current rent -- between about

$300 and $700 monthly. When Campbell first presented his proposal in

September, he suggested the lease be extended 10 years, but he has since

reduced it to five, he said.

“Ten years has met some substantial opposition,” explained Campbell,

who represents Newport Beach. The extension “would raise rents to market

[value], which would be more than double. Five years may be more

pliable.”

The restoration of the Crystal Cove cottages will cost between $12

million and $20 million, Stearns said.

The State Parks Department plans to evict the residents living in 294

mobile homes along El Morro Beach in December 2004 to make way for

campgrounds, State Parks spokesman Roy Stearns said on Monday.

“We have a project to go through with El Morro,” Stearns said,

pointing out that the $13-million project’s funding is already set.

“There doesn’t seem to be a reason to delay one for another.”

The El Morro project, set for a late 2005 completion, will restore the

adjacent creek to its natural state and replace the mobile homes with 60

campsites, Stearns said. The project also has already earned the

California Coastal Commission’s approval, he said.

“People have lived in that public park for 20 years,” he said, noting

that another 10 years there would be unacceptable.

Campbell said the cove cottages need the money now while the El Morro

project won’t begin for at least another three years.

“These [cottages] are ready right now for public use,” he said. “Let’s

worry about El Morro later. Let’s take care of Crystal Cove right now.”

While Campbell will continue supporting his proposal, he also said he

will continue exploring other ways to find Crystal Cove funding.

“I’m not fast-tracking this proposal,” he said. “I’m trying to shake

some trees and hoping some money drops out.”

Stearns said several possibilities can raise the needed funding for

the cove’s historic district. While a small amount will come from

donations, the California Coastal Conservancy, a sister agency of the

California Coastal Commission, may provide a much larger chunk, he said.

The conservancy set aside about $1 million in the early ‘80s to create

hostels at the cove. That funding has since grown to about $2.8 million,

he said. The hostels are no longer part of the plan, he said.

The conservancy in November announced they were looking into securing

about $10 million from Proposition 13 money. The agency’s board should

know in February whether that is possible.

Stearns said Monday that Proposition 40, a $2.1-billion park bond to

improve water and air quality and the environment, may also provide the

solution. If approved in March, the bond will hand about $200 million to

the coastal conservancy and about $112.5 million to State Parks for work

on existing state parks.

Historically, California voters approve such bonds, Stearns said.

The state evicted residents living at Crystal Cove in July. Since

then, officials have been installing Lexan coatings on the cottage

windows and removing toxic lead paint. A final plan has not been

approved.

* James Meier is the assistant city editor. He can be reached at (949)

764-4324 or by e-mail at o7 james.meier@latimes.comf7 .