Council holds back on extra dough for Big Corona

June Casagrande

City staff members recommended this week that the city pay an

architectural firm $71,500 more than originally awarded by the city

in order to design improvements at Corona del Mar State Beach. But at

Tuesday’s City Council meeting, officials were at a loss to explain

why.

City Councilman John Heffernan pulled the matter off the consent

calendar to ask why the city was being asked to up Robbins Jorgensen

Christopher Architects’ contract to $214,500 for planning, design and

construction services at the soon-to-be-upgraded Big Corona beach.

“What are we getting for our $70,000?” Heffernan asked.

Staff members couldn’t give a detailed explanation of what the

city would get for its additional expense.

“How is it we’re spending this money if we don’t know what we’re

spending it on?” asked resident Dolores Otting, a council regular.

After the questions, Mayor Tod Ridgeway suggested postponing the

item until Public Works Department staff could give more details.

“Staff was ill-prepared to tell us why we were raising the

contract $73,000,” Ridgeway said Friday. “So I just said let’s just

continue it so we can get an answer.”

Ridgeway’s motion was approved unanimously.

Plans to improve aging beach amenities were approved in the summer

amid considerable controversy. Councilman Dick Nichols, whose

district includes the beach, had objected to a lifeguard station on

top of the new concession stand on the basis that it might obstruct

views. Others said they were concerned that the $2-million-plus

project was overpriced. And others said that it amounted to too much

concrete at a beach that should be as natural as possible.

The city plan includes building two 1,231-square-foot restroom

buildings and a 2,225-square-foot building to house concession

vendors, lifeguard and first aid services, and a marine life

resources facility with a lifeguard observation room on top.