After months of work and planning with the Laguna Beach City Council, Laguna Canyon Foundation is excited to announce that our lease of the DeWitt House on Laguna Canyon Road has been approved!
The City acquired the DeWitt property in 1990 through the California Wildlife, Coastal, and Park Land Conservation Act, and LCF has been doing restoration work there since 2014. Heavy rainfall in 2010 exposed a debris field on the property, uphill of the house. The debris was the result of 20 years of garbage burning by residents back in the 1950s and 1960s. After the waste was removed, the City hired LCF to restore the property to its previous state. While the remediation is complete, LCF continues to work on restoration and monitoring at the site.
The house on the property is unoccupied and in need of repairs, but now that the lease has been signed, we’ll be starting the planning process for the restoration and renovation of the house. The renovated house will serve as LCF’s offices – actually located in the canyons for the first time in its history. Other plans for the property include a new native plant nursery, landscaping using native plants, and an outdoor area for public programs. It’ll take a lot of time and work to get there, but we’re very excited to be moving closer to the canyons and the open space we’re committed to protecting!