A Pottery Shack by another name?

Owner launches a contest to find new moniker for complex after failing to secure rights to old name.When the redeveloped Pottery Shack property opens early next year, it will no longer be known as the Pottery Shack.

Apparently, when the property was purchased, the seller declined to grant future use of the Pottery Shack name. Although the new owner, Brooks Street LLC, hoped that subsequently the name could be secured, that has not come to pass. Although a number of new names have been considered, the owner has decided to engage the community in the hope that the ideal name will be discovered.

Entrants are invited to submit names that reflect the character and nature of the establishment and give a nod to its history.

Familiar elements such as the statue of Eiler Larsen on the corner of Brooks Street and Coast Highway, the tile mural and the large animals on the roof are being restored and retained.

Structural elements have been salvaged wherever possible. For example, the roof of the first building to be erected on the site (circa 1935) -- known in its day as “The Yum Yum Tea Room” -- was lifted off with a forklift so a new and stable infrastructure could be put in place. The roof was then returned to its original position.

Many of the board-and-batten exterior walls of the buildings were not standing on footings; they were sitting atop beach sand and held in place by interior bookshelves. Construction crews have had to dig down as much as five feet to shore up the walls.

The site will have 22,000 square feet of mixed-use retail, office space and a restaurant. An open and accessible courtyard utilizing the original brick pavers will serve as a gathering place and an art display area.

Another aspect of the site will be a visual display reflecting the history of Laguna Beach -- specifically as an art colony and nucleus of the creation of California pottery and ceramics. Details of how the collection will be exhibited are still being considered.

Name submissions should be mailed to: Name Contest, 1278 Glenneyre, Suite 134, Laguna Beach, CA 92651. Letters must be postmarked by Thursday, Dec. 1.