Est. 1927

Project

Coast Inn Historical Restoration and Renovation:  In with the old and with the new

The Coast Inn, Coast Liquor Store and Olympic Cottage are a trifecta of historically significant landmarks at the Corner of South Coast Highway and Mountain.  Although stylistically unrelated the three structures represent a convergence of economic, social and cultural development that shaped the landscape of the neighborhood and have left an indelible mark on greater Laguna Beach area.

Local real estate investment company Dornin Investment Group has worked tirelessly to craft a development project that will breathe new life into these beloved institutions while restoring their glory and historical charm for generations to come. 

Coast Inn – 1401 Coast Highway Laguna Beach, California 92651

Currently the Coast Inn has three prevalent styles, at the rear bluff the building is International style.  This portion of the hotel with the rooms and expansive decks will be renovated with comfortable amenities and adjoining decks overlooking the ocean.  The lowest deck from Mountain will be remodeled into the hotels flagship casual fining dining restaurant and deck, The Seven Seas.  The center core of the building is Spanish Colonial Revival and the rooms along this stretch of the building will be remodeled maintaining the scalloped stucco and wood corbel under support of the deck structure, bullnose stucco surrounds at the windows and doors with divided light glass as well as red barrel tile trim at the top of the parapet along the roof.  The arch at the cul-de-sac on Mountain will be maintained and the small tower at the end of the Spanish Colonial Revival portion of the building will be added back to the structure.

As Coast Highway a more contemporary Spanish style design will replace the Minimal Traditional Style wood structure built after fire ravaged this portion of the building.   This area will feature the reconstructed tower built with the scalloped deck at the mid-level, and an awning canopy over the clock above the hotel entry door on Mountain.

Across the top of the building a roof deck, with food and drink service will afford guests and patrons a panoramic view of Laguna Beach’s signature vistas.  Additionally, the building will be crowned with a replica of the original sign on the roof and flags flying high above the street.  The proposed renovations will be coordinated with a Historical Consultant to ensure the project has the appropriate details to match or improve the existing styles and make this cherished icon relevant and useful for years to come.

Coast Liquor – 1391 Coast Highway Laguna Beach, California 92651

                The Coast Liquor store is an excellent example of a surviving commercial/retail Mid-Century Modern building in Laguna Beach.  This was one of the first projects designed by prominent local architect Chris Abel whose cutting edge style has left its mark on Laguna Beach.  The building will be renovated to add a pool deck for Coast Inn guests at the rear of the building as the same floor elevation of the existing liquor store.  Parking will be tucked in below the pool and accessed from the rear alley. 

Olympic Cottage – 168 Mountain Road Laguna Beach, California 9251

                The Olympic Cottage is one of the better surviving examples of athlete cottages constructed for the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.  The modest structure has a rectangular plan and is caped with an off-set, side-facing gable roof.  The cottage will be renovated to reflect its original style when constructed for the Olympic Village.  It will be maintained and operated as a beach rental building in conjunction with the hotel.  The work on both the Olympic Cottage and Coast Liquor will be coordinated with a Historical Consultant to ensure the restoration of these historic structures has the appropriate attention to detail to match or improve the existing styles.

Project: The Coast Inn

January 22,2020

Dear Neighbor,  

Per the request of the City Council, the Coast Inn project has been significantly reduced to include only two simple elements that require approval:

  A.    The addition of a rooftop deck with a swimming pool for hotel guests only.  

B.     Exterior renovations to match the historic design approved and recommended by the Heritage Committee including variances for the required historical features.   

The existing hotel and restaurant space will remain mostly in its current form and layout that exists today.  The following is a list of the revisions made to the Coast Inn project:  

1.      The public serving rooftop bar and restaurant has been eliminated from the project and the new rooftop deck will only be available to hotel guests.  Therefore, no parking or traffic intensification will be created.   

2.      The previously proposed restaurant and deck directly above the beach has been eliminated from the project and this area will remain hotel rooms and a guest only hotel deck.   

3.      The Coast Liquor retail store has been removed from the project and will be heard separately.  

4.      Variances-The majority of the proposed variances have been eliminated, except for the variances that are primarily required for the replacement of the historical façade features:

a.       Exceed the maximum height above the curb [LBMC 25.20.008(D)(1)].  This includes the reinstallation of the historical turrets, sign and flag poles with flags.  

b.      Exceed the maximum height above the lowest floor [LBMC 25.20.008(B)].  The ADA elevator which will serve the hotel lobby, rooms and rooftop deck will be under and inside the replaced historical roof turret. The variance is for the height from the lower floor level of the elevator to the top of the roof of the replaced historical turret.   

c.       To not provide the required open space [LBMC 25.20.008©(5)/25.50.10(B)].  There has never been the required open space at the Coast Inn site.  

5.      The Coast Inn hotel will remain with its existing 24 hotel rooms, along with the hotel lobby on the second floor, accessed from a stairway and elevator from Mountain Road.  This hotel use has been in existence for over 80 years and has no Conditional Use Permit. The hotel is currently operating averaging over 85% occupancy and paying the required hotel sales tax.  

6.      The existing 6,203 square foot restaurant and bar will remain in its existing location which is currently fully permitted to open and operate per its grandfathered uses without any Conditional Use Permit, having already received its business license, occupancy permit, ABC liquor license, live music and dancing permits with up 640 occupants.   

7.      All proposed grading at Coast Inn is under the existing building foundations.  

8.      The Noise impact study has been revised to address the pool on the roof of the Coast Inn.  The roof deck will have no live music and will have background music controlled by the hotel manager.  This is the same as La Casa Del Camino hotel and Mozambique Restaurant.  The acoustical study is available at the City of Laguna Beach.  The noise impact of a new roof deck will be below the maximum Decibels allowed per the Laguna Beach Noise Ordinance.  The noise impact will be substantially reduced now that the rooftop deck is for hotel guest only.    

9.      The overall building elevation demolition has been reduced to 38.34.  The floor and roof demolition has been reduced to 31.20 %.    Bob Lawson of Lawson Structural Engineers will provide structural information and analysis of the project confirming the demolition will not exceed 50%.  The structural renovation of the building can be accomplished without a significant amount of demolition especially since the project has been substantially reduced and the majority of the floorplans will remain as it exists today.  

10.  There is no proposed new blufftop deck development.  There will be deck repair replacement ‘in-kind’ of the decking material, deck joists, beams and railings.  The land surveyor has mapped the blufftop location at the rear of the property.  The soils geologist has confirmed the stability and composition of the blufftop edge materials as non-eroding.  Blufftop encroachment has not changed and is the same for the last 60 years.  The Geologist letter is available at the City of Laguna Beach.  

11.  Heritage Committee awarded the Coast Inn an E-rating (excellent) for the proposed project including the roof deck.  The E-rating can obtain up to a 75% parking reduction however no parking reductions are being requested.  The Historical Consultant, Jan Ostashay, wrote that the umbrellas were temporary and will not impact historicity of the building.  Coast Inn will seek to enter a Mills Act Contract with the City of Laguna Beach.  

12.  Coast Inn would like to provide “Art in Public Places” at the Garden of Peace and Love memorial garden adjacent to the hotel deck at the Mountain Road beach access.      

13.  The following required reports have all been updated:

a.       The SOILS REPORT.

b.      The COASTAL HAZARDS AND WAVE RUNUP.

c.       The NOISE ANALYSIS study.

d.      The HISTORIC ASSESSMENT memo.

e.       The ASSESSMENT OF BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES report.  

14.  Parking Impacts The parking demand has been significantly reduced from the previously submitted projects since there is now no intensification of the existing building or uses.  

15.    The restaurant/bar will maintain 121 seats and maintain the existing occupancy at 640 occupants maximum.

16.    The trash dumpsters storage is behind Coast Liquor as it has been for the last 50 years.  The restaurants and hotel will use a commercial glass grinder and small trash compactor.  Trash storage will be clarified when tenant improvement plans are submitted to the building department.  The trash can be incorporated into a reciprocal easement for the mutual benefit of both the Coast Inn and Coast Liquor sites without merging the two sites together.  The trash dumpsters will be moved to Mountain Road by a stinger truck where they will be dumped into a trash truck.  The Conditional Use Permit will regulate the 9 am until 5 pm trash truck pickup of the dumpsters.  Trash will be moved between buildings 8 am to 9 pm daily.  

17.  Deliveries-Larger delivery trucks will park at the existing yellow loading zone on Mountain Road.  The hours for yellow loading zone are the same as the rest of the city..   These loading practices have been the same for the last 45 years or more. A sign will be posted on the yellow zone,  

20 MINUTE LOADING ZONE, 7 A.M. -6 P.M. MON -SAT, COMMERCIAL DELIVERY VEHICLES ONLY

METERED PARKING, 6 P.M.- 7 P.M. MON -SAT, 8 A.M.- 7 P.M. SUN & HOLIDAYS

3 HOUR PARKING LIMIT, SUNDAYS & HOLIDAYS.   

If you have any questions, please call at your earliest convenience.  Thank you.  

Respectfully,    

Marshall Ininns Architect

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