Dear ,
As we advised previously, the Dana Point City Council met on February 8th and approved the revised LCPA language drafted by the Coastal Commission Staff with almost no negative feedback from the public. DPBA was there of course and we spoke in general support of the agreement, but with one proviso: We expect the loss of some 14 percent of existing dry storage and boat launch surface area will be addressed to boaters' satisfaction during the more detailed design level discussions to come. If this is not successfully resolved, we advised City Council to expect that DPBA would appeal the Harbor Revitalization CDP(s) on the land side directly to the Coastal Commission
DPBA also expressed strong reservations regarding the overall size of the landside redevelopment project, as well as its escalating cost. Some knowledgeable OC government officials we have talked with during the past 30 days have already stated the cost must be reduced by at least 90 million dollars in order to secure necessary financing during these troubled economic times, what they referred to as "the new normal".
For some government officials, this may mean that further delay is the best course. We share common ground with many others would do not want that, especially because the project costs meter is still running. (Over 15 million dollars is on the meter already.) Commercial core revitalization needs to happen without even more delay and besides, the "old normal", aka "business as usual", won't be returning anytime soon. Some say never.
Meanwhile others within government may be thinking that boat slip and dry storage rents can just pick up the slack. Obviously that would be totally unacceptable, and is probably illegal as well. More about that in a future communication.
Regards,
Your Board of Directors |
