Heisler Park plan almost complete

Andrew Edwards

A conceptual Master Plan to keep Heisler Park in top shape could be

ready for the city in a little over a month.

“It will be late May or early June,” Asst. City Manager John

Pietig said.

City planners and consultants are still hammering out the details

of the plan, which would address ongoing concerns such as erosion of

the park’s coastal bluffs and access to the beach.

The plan is intended to chart a course for park improvements over

the next 50 years, Pietig said.

The park, which is just north of Main Beach, is home to Picnic

Beach, the Heisler Park Lawn Bowling Club and the tide pools of

Rockpile Beach.

At a workshop on Tuesday, Larry Steinle, a consultant with L.A.

Studios, led a presentation on options available to preserve the

long-life of the park.

The total cost of park improvements over time could range from

$3.5 to $4.5 million, Steinle said.

The city will seek grants to fund the improvements, Pietig said,

noting half of the $450,000 cost of the Master Plan itself is being

paid for by a grant from the Coastal Commission.

Steinle and other consultants outlined an array of ideas to

protect the park, such as halting erosion that threatens the stairs

and walkway by Rockpile Beach.

“Natural erosion created those bluffs, we just don’t want to

increase it by letting water and people and plants pull it down. We

want it to be there as long as it can,” Steinle said after his

presentation.

In general, various ideas to preserve Rockpile Beach involve the

construction of some form of seawall, which Steinle referred to as a

bulkhead.

The idea of a bulkhead, Steinle said is to prevent soil from

slipping into the ocean.

However, the idea to build a wall was met with skepticism by Rick

Wilson, chairman of the Laguna Beach chapter of the Surfrider

Foundation. Though the foundation has not taken a formal position on

any proposals, Wilson said installing a wall could result in the

unwelcome consequence of losing the beach.

Wilson said the foundation generally opposes plans for what he

called “armoring the coast,” saying that as the ocean rises toward

the coast, natural erosion preserves the beach as the water advances

inland.

If a wall prevents natural erosion, Wilson said, existing beaches

can end up submerged below the surface.

“This is probably going to end up being debated a lot,” Wilson

said.

Among ideas to enhance access, Steinle discussed options to

improve ramps leading to Picnic Beach by making them less steep.

Of two proposals to lessen the steepness of the ramp, Steinle said

the city would probably not accept an idea that would make the ramp

fully usable for the disabled since a significant amount of grass

would have to be paved over.

“I don’t think anyone’s going to take away half the park to get

[Americans with Disabilities Act] access to the beach,” he said after

the presentation.

Recommendations for a Heisler Park master plan could be discussed

by the City Council as early as May 18.