Man about town retires

Harry Lawrence works hard to surround himself with beauty.

After 60 years of dealing in antiques, he is closing his Warren Imports business this July. But his legacy to the community remains in the scores of beautification projects around town.

As shoppers peruse the “50% off” items that Lawrence hopes will clear out his remaining inventory, he is adjusting to going at a different gear.

Eager to bid on an antique table a woman brought in, Lawrence, 91, is accustomed to opening things, rather than closing them.

A back office cluttered with awards, maps and pictures represents his lifelong dedication to business and civic affairs.

His storeroom contains drawers of historical documents relating to numerous city projects to which he dedicated himself.

“Some people are mad at me for not keeping them better organized,” he said.

Those who know Lawrence describe him as hard-working and passionate, with an eye for detail.

“He loves every item in the store,” Lawrence’s bookkeeper Barbara Painter said.

A self-proclaimed adventurer, Lawrence has made countless international trips in search of antiques to bring home.

As a young boy growing up in Long Beach during the Great Depression, he would watch ships leaving the harbor for the Far East.

“I wanted to be on one of those ships,” Lawrence said.

And it was the Depression that Lawrence believes conditioned him with the principles of working and saving.

Warren Imports began as a one-room shop that transformed into a multimillion-dollar international operation.

“We’ve been recognized by a German authority as one of the top five dealers in ancient antiques,” Lawrence said proudly.

But it’s in Laguna that Lawrence is revered for giving beauty.

With the same “can do” attitude he has applied to business, Lawrence has facilitated beautification projects that continue to thrive today.

It all started in 1950, when Lawrence followed through on a neighbor’s suggestion that a park be put in on Coast Highway near their Rockledge homes.

From there, other people in town showed interest in similar projects.

In 1952, Lawrence, with a group of others, created a formal Beautification Council. The organization has been active ever since, and is credited with more than 100 projects.

Never self-funding, the group was fertile with ideas that were carried out with the aid of sponsors.

The most obvious creations of the group are Main Beach Park and Bluebird Park.

The landscaping and planting of trees along Coast Highway and downtown streets have also resulted from Lawrence’s quest for beauty.

Lawrence was also a driving force in extending Third Street up the hill to Park Avenue.

“Harry insisted it go up the hill,” Barbara Painter said. “People said it was too steep. But can you imagine the traffic we’d have without it?”

The history of Lawrence’s beautification work runs deep.

He is credited for saving pepper and eucalyptus trees at City Hall, planting Jacaranda trees and plant boxes on the Third Street hill, saving trees at Glenneyre Street parking lot, saving and transplanting palms from Broadway to Boat Canyon and Heisler Park, and the landscaping of the Bluebird and Summit Way Reservoir.

“His attitude has always been an inspiration to the group,” Vice President of the Beautification Council Bob Borthwick said. “How many of us would not get burned out after 20 years?”

Lawrence was also a dominating force in the history of the Chamber of Commerce. The organization has created the Harry Lawrence Person of the Year Award in his honor.

“He’s Mr. Laguna,” Sande St. John, a former director of the Chamber, said. “He has a very dynamic and giving personality. There were few involved with the Chamber until he got into it.”

Lawrence’s giving spread to other cultural affairs in town as he served on the boards of the Playhouse, Art Museum and Festival of Arts.

In Costa Mesa, he created the Civic Opera, and in Los Angeles he started the International Trade Club. He has also been a member of the Rotary Club. cpt.30-lawrence-CPhotoInfoLL1SEVC420060630j1lganncDON LEACH / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)Harry Lawrence stands in the Moon Gate door, one of his favorite spots at Warren Imports, which is closing after decades in Laguna.