Laguna Greenbelt (Organization)

Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. (LGI) is a nonprofit environmental organization founded in 1968 and incorporated in 1970.

LGI's projects and strategic goals revolve around the environs of Laguna Beach, California. The organization seeks to preserve 10,000 acres of land for a greenbelt (land set aside for agriculture or recreational parks) around the city. LGI defines Laguna Greenbelt as Sycamore Hills and five canyons: Aliso, El Toro, Laguna, Morro, and Wood. LGI has initiated and participated in local, regional and state-wide preservation efforts. Working both with and against municipal governments and commercial enterprises, it has promoted and opposed numerous projects affecting the Orange County environment.

From the description of Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. records, 1956-1990 (bulk 1968-1988). (University of California, Irvine). WorldCat record id: 46542580

Organizational History

The biographical/historical note is a brief introduction to the organization and its early years. It is based on information in the records and an unpublished description written by Joanna Brand.

Laguna Greenbelt, Incorporated (LGI) is a nonprofit environmental organization, founded in 1968 and incorporated in 1970. LGI's projects and strategic goals revolve around the environs of Laguna Beach, California. The organization seeks to preserve 10,000 acres of land for a greenbelt around the city. A greenbelt entails land set aside for agriculture, recreational parks or reserved open space and specifically excludes commercial development. LGI defines Laguna Greenbelt as Sycamore Hills, a land parcel vegetated with mature sycamore trees, and five canyons: Aliso, El Toro, Laguna, Morro and Wood. LGI has initiated and participated in local, regional and state-wide preservation efforts. Working both with and against municipal governments and commercial enterprises, it has promoted and opposed myriad projects affecting the environment.

This grassroots, citizens' group evolved from an ad hoc committee, the Citizens Town Planning Association (CTPA), formed in 1968 to advise Laguna Beach City Council on the city's General Plan (Municipal general plans govern land use and physical development of land within a political unit's sphere of influence.). Laguna Beach, a coastal city in Southern California, hired private consultants to amend Laguna Beach's General Plan in 1967. Daniel, Mann, Johnson and Mendenhall, consultants (DMJM), presented the city with a plan which included resort development and a freeway bisecting the city. At a public hearing, residents rejected Laguna Beach's transformation into a major coastal resort city with a population growth projected to triple from its size in 1967. In response, the City Council dismissed DMJM, and CTPA assumed the role of advisory committee on land use. The committee rejected the proposed freeway and supported projects for a Festival Arts Plaza, a shoreline park and a greenbelt buffering the city from urban development.

James W. Dilley, proprietor of a paperback bookstore and resident of Laguna Beach, sat on CTPA and initiated the subsidiary committee, Citizens for the Greenbelt. Dilley had traveled in Europe where he learned about greenbelts and open space principles, and he became Laguna Beach's primary activist for land preservation and Greenbelt's leader. In 1968, Citizens for the Greenbelt circulated a petition titled "A Matter of Urgency" which opined the need for open space and immediate popular support for the Laguna Greenbelt due to impending threats of urban commercial development.

Citizens for the Greenbelt gained nonprofit corporation status becoming Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. in 1970 . As a nonprofit corporation, LGI could accept donations for land acquisition and act as a trust. The organization elected a Board of Trustees and established annual meetings for general membership. At annual meetings, Dilley introduced the tradition of reading victory statements which outlined LGI's progress towards open space goals.

The membership consisted primarily of Laguna Beach residents, but surrounding communities including Irvine, Laguna Hills and Leisure World contributed members as LGI activities expanded and land development boomed in Orange County. LGI's budget relied on donations, bequests and membership dues. The organization held several fund-raising events in its early years to build land acquisition funds and public support, including art auctions in cooperation with local artists, open houses, Greenbelt Week, Dilley Dinners, picnics and other events. In 1970, Beatrice Whittlesy, former Orange County Supervisor, bequeathed two acres of land to LGI. Several members including Dilley and Elisabeth Heckel added LGI to their wills.

From its inception, LGI has attempted to abate land development in the defined greenbelt and thus participated in numerous law suits as both a petitioner and as a respondent. The group appealed to municipal governments to recognize Laguna Greenbelt within General Plans and to purchase land dedicated to open space. Both Orange County and Laguna Beach recognized the greenbelt concept in 1971, but neither municipal government has provided unilateral support to all LGI projects. LGI did influence the shape of Orange County's General Plan, participating in public hearings and studies for the Plan's Open Space and Conservation Elements. LGI also initiated academic studies on the greenbelt and open space conducted at the University of California, Irvine, and encouraged compilation of environmental impact reports prior to development.

The scope of the organization's interests extended beyond Laguna Greenbelt to include regional and state issues, including flood control, transportation, waste disposal and coastal preservation. Regardless, LGI's focus remained in Laguna Beach and the surrounding open space. One of LGI's first extensive projects involved 522 acres of Sycamore Hills. In 1968, the owner of the land parcel, Great Lakes Carbon Company, proposed a housing development. Laguna Beach City Council and LGI opposed development and a protracted battle ensued to dedicate Sycamore Hills as open space. Palos Verdes Corporation, a subsidiary of Newport Investments, purchased the land and also proposed housing development. The City Council responded by placing a moratorium on construction in the area. Palos Verdes Corporation filed suit against Laguna Beach, LGI et al. in 1974. In a 1978 settlement, Laguna Beach purchased Sycamore Hills, but in order to fund the acquisition the City Council sold parcels to private developers and to the county for the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor. James Dilley, long-time opponent of automobiles, express highways and subsequent urban sprawl, and LGI contested the proposed Corridor from the project's inception in 1976.

Throughout the seventies and eighties, LGI unsuccessfully fought construction of the Corridor, but it did meet many goals to thwart development in the Greenbelt and to protect land as open space. LGI collaborated with various environmental groups and joined coalitions such as the California Planning and Conservation League in 1985. In 1978, LGI and Friends of the Irvine Coast worked together lobbying for an Orange County national urban park in a bill before Congress. Later national involvement in Orange County land use brought proposals for a national athletic fitness center to Laguna Niguel in 1985. Neither project came to fruition.

In 1985, LGI elected Elisabeth Brown, a Laguna Beach resident who holds a doctorate in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine, to LGI president, a position she continues to hold as of 1997. In the mid and late eighties under Brown's leadership, LGI continued to combat land developments within Laguna Greenbelt and other projects and proposals seen as posing a threat to the environment. Among numerous activities, it opposed an Aliso Water Management Agency proposal to receive a waiver on EPA regulations for waste water treatment, offshore oil drilling on California coast, and a sales tax hike for transportation improvement, and it fought various elements in San Joaquin Hills Corridor plan. LGI submitted recommendations for a park in Sycamore Hills and continued to hold fund raisers, with its primary mission still defined as the preservation of open space.

Chronology

This chronology of events relating to LGI and its activities is based on local and regional newspaper clippings within the collection and is not intended to be either definitive or comprehensive.

• 1959: General Plan, City of Laguna Beach.
• 1964: General Plan, City of Irvine.
• 1966: California State Constitution amended giving legislature power to enact laws pertaining to open space.
• 1967: City of Laguna Beach hired Daniel, Mann, Johnson and Mendenhall to update city's General Plan. Saddleback College proposed site for campus.
• 1968: City of Laguna Beach dismissed DMJM consultants. Citizens Town Planning Association (CTPA) organized to combat proposed freeway bisecting city. James W. Dilley forms offshoot CTPA committee, Citizen's Committee for the Greenbelt. Resolution for preservation of greenbelt around Laguna Beach before Orange County (O.C.) Board of Supervisors. First meeting of Citizens Committee for the Greenbelt. "Matter of Urgency" proclamation concerning open space in Laguna Beach.
• 1968 - 77 : James W. Dilley served as Greenbelt president.
• 1969: First LGI brochure published. O.C. Board of Supervisors granted agricultural preserve status to Irvine Ranch and Rancho Mission Viejo. Sycamore Hills put up for sale. O.C. Planning Commission recommended open space park in Laguna Canyon.
• 1970: Citizen's Committee for the Greenbelt incorporated as a nonprofit organization. Organization renamed Laguna Greenbelt, Incorporated (LGI). LGI Board of Trustees established. UCI Project 21 to study Open Space in Orange County. Laguna Beach City Council planned to apply for HUD open space funds to purchase Sycamore Hills. City Manager Joseph Sweany advised LGI to match funds for city purchase of Sycamore Hills. Beatrice Whittlesy donated 2 acres of land to LGI. Orange County sought federal aid for facility along Aliso Creek for flood control and recreation.
• 1971: City of Laguna Beach City Council recognized greenbelt concept in principle. O.C. Board of Supervisors recognized greenbelt in concept. Greenbelt Open House. Greenbelt Week. Governor Ronald Reagan recommended two-year moratorium on coastline construction. Commercial residential zone hearings in Laguna Beach. O.C. Board of Supervisor heard plans for Aliso Creek to remain undeveloped. Laguna Canyon Dam hearing. Irvine Company coastal plan. Aliso Creek Parkway proposal. Newport Investments, Incorporated negotiated purchase of Sycamore Hills and planned housing development.
• 1972: California Coastal Zone Conservation Act. Aliso Water Management Agency (AWMA) water reclamations plan approved by O.C. Planning Commission. Newport Investments scrapped housing development proposal. City Council of Laguna Beach placed ninety-day building moratorium in Sycamore Hills. LGI urged redefinition of Greenbelt to include land owned by Rossmoor Corporation that was scheduled to become Rossmoor Leisure World. LGI and Laguna Beach City Council filed lawsuit against Rossmoor Corporation. O.C. Board of Supervisors adopted interim open space and conservation plan. O.C. Planning Commission approved Rossmoor Leisure World.
• 1973: California legislature mandated open space and conservation elements in local general plans. Park and Open Space Acquisition Act. Settlement agreement between petitioners, LGI and Laguna Beach and respondents, Rossmoor Corporation and Oaklawn Homes. Proposal for condominiums in Sycamore Hills by Newport Investments. Moratorium on building in Greenbelt extended. Flood plain zoning required of future developers in Santa Ana River area. O.C. Planning Commission proposed five greenbelts. Laguna Beach Planning Commission denied Machu Picchu Laguna Hillside project. O.C. Planning Commission recommended multi-million dollar budget for greenbelt in Laguna foothills. California legislation granted cities and counties additional six months to adopt general plan elements. Coastal Commission approved land and sewage outfall for AWMA. Laguna Beach Planning Commission opposed sale of Laguna Canyon City Dump. Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce refused to support Greenbelt. Sycamore Hills Specific Plan proposals made. South Coast Regional Coastline Commission approved Laguna Niguel project for Avco Community Developers. California Supreme Court ruling: local governments not required to pay land owners for property designated in general plan for public use.
• 1974: Rancho Palos Verdes Corporation filed suit against City of Laguna Beach, city council, planning commission, et al. Resolutions made in City of Orange, City of Laguna Beach and in O.C. for tax relief to support open space. O.C. Board of Supervisors applied flood plain zoning to Aliso Creek. Cooperative Desalting Studies Conference in Anaheim. Irvine Ranch Water District received $4.8 million grant from EPA to recycle sewage for irrigation. Moulton Ranch proposal before O.C. Board of Supervisors. Laguna Greenbelt Task Force to prepare open space priority study recommended.
• 1975: Open Space Element of O.C. General Plan. Aliso Ridge Zone Change. Marcroft Company development in Laguna Canyon Ridge. Aliso Golf Course proposed by Public Golf Committee. O.C. Board of Supervisors rejected Rancho Buena Vista development proposal. Moulton Ranch endorsed by O.C. Planning Commission. Irvine, Laguna Beach and Orange County fund study of greenbelt. Williamson Act report concerning agricultural preserves from O.C. grand jury. Steering Committee created by O.C. Board of Supervisors to study highway system in southern Orange County. Rothschild Industries' Woods Canyon development rejected by O.C. Board of Supervisors. LGI filed appeal contesting Orange County approval of Rossmoor Leisure World. O.C. Board of Supervisors rejected LGI appeal. Coastal Zone Conservation Commission recommended ban on beach parking north of Newport Beach. Coastal Commission submitted plan for preservation of coast.
• 1976: Southeast Orange County Circulation Study (SEOCCS). Review of Transportation Element of O.C. General Plan. Laguna Greenbelt Study Team Report. Irvine Company presented coastal development plan before Laguna Beach Board of Realtors. Aliso Creek Corridor Plan studied by United South Orange Coast Communities (USOCC) and Saddleback Area Coordinating Council (SACC). Mission Viejo municipal Advisory Council endorsed traffic circulation alternative corresponding with extensive development. Irvine City Council called for mass transit as alternative to more roads. Orange County Senior Citizens Council endorsed Howard Miller's development plans for low-cost senior housing in Laguna Canyon. LGI placed environmental attorney John McCarthy on retainer. Palos Verdes Corporation suit against Laguna Beach dismissed by O.C. Superior Court. San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor proposed. Aliso Ridge development approved by O.C. Board of Supervisors with 145 acres dedicated to open space. Saddleback College Trustees approved campus site in Irvine Ranch. LGI charged O.C. Senior Citizens Council with public funds misuse in its support of Marcroft senior housing development.
• 1977: Thomas Alexander elected LGI president. Southern California Golf Association proposed public golf course in Sycamore Hills. Newport Investments proposed out-of-court settlement with Laguna Beach for land use in Sycamore Hills. Six lawsuits pending on Sycamore Hills land parcel. Sycamore Hills zoning ordinance passed by Laguna Beach City Council allowing some development. Newport Investments dropped $37 million suit against Laguna Beach.
• 1978: LGI hired Michael Scott to serve as executive director. City of Laguna Beach purchased Sycamore Hills from Palos Verdes Corporation. Congressmen Jerry Patterson and Robert Badham introduced bill for national urban park in Orange County. Sycamore Hills Specific Plan. Aliso Viejo General Plan Amendment. Laguna Beach City Council returned disputed road arteries to Laguna Beach's master street plan. Bluebird Canyon landslide. Laguna Beach City Council declared Jim Dilley Day.
• 1979: State of California gained jurisdiction over Crystal Cove State Park. LGI opposition to Aliso Company development. Orange Coast National Park proposed. Laguna Canyon Flood Control. Coast Alliance, a national coalition, formed. Irvine Company announced development plans for Laguna Canyon.
• 1980: James W. Dilley died. LGI ad campaign in City of Irvine "The Public Should Know."
• 1980 - 81 : Carl Johnson served as LGI president.
• 1981: Former mayor of Laguna Beach, Jon Brand elected LGI president. Friends of the Irvine Coast opposed Irvine Company Irvine Coast development proposals.
• 1982: MacArthur Foundation Grant Proposal for LGI. Carma Sandling Coastal development proposal.
• 1984: LGI opposes Proposition A for one-cent sales tax in Orange County for transportation improvement. Laguna Laurel Development Project. Crystal Cove State Park established. Senior Housing Project, Eucalyptus Grove. O.C. Board of Supervisors approved Laguna Heights zone change for Carma Sandling development. O.C. Board of Supervisors approved Aliso Viejo development. O.C. Board of Supervisors approved Laguna Canyon development by Irvine Company. AWMA applied for waiver to EPA mandated regulations on sewage treatment. Orange County purchased Sycamore Hills from Laguna Beach. Laguna Beach sold 62 acres in Sycamore Hills to Canyon Hills developers. Terry Timmins elected LGI president.
• 1985: Elisabeth Brown elected LGI president. LGI joined California's Planning and Conservation League. Save Our Sea coalition founded. Laguna Beach City Council et al opposed AWMA proposal for sewage treatment waiver. South Coast Water District rejected waiver proposal for AWMA. National Fitness Foundation proposed athletic training academy in Laguna Niguel. Irvine City Council rejected San Joaquin Corridor proposal approved by county. AWMA withdrew waiver proposal. Laguna Planning Commission approved Hon Development's Niguel Summit project. O.C. Board rejected Sycamore Hills project proposal from Kaufman and Broad Developers. Laguna Beach Taxpayers' Association filed suit against AWMA. Laguna Beach refused to support funding proposal for San Joaquin Corridor. Carma Sandling filed suit against Laguna Beach concerning Laguna Heights. Save Our Shores organization formed. Denny Friedrich hired by the cities of Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Laguna Beach and San Clemente to fight offshore oil and gas exploration. O.C. Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Aliso Viejo planned community. O.C. Board of Supervisors approved fees on developers for highway funds. California Coastal Commission delayed Carma Sandling project in Laguna Heights.
• 1986: LGI's Sycamore Hills Park Recommendations. California Agricultural, Natural and Park Lands Conservation Act. Greenbelt Picnic and Open House at Sycamore Hills. Moulton Meadows development proposal. Country Village development proposal. Aliso Viejo LCP Amendment 87-1 Fitness Academy. Coastal Commission approved local Coastal Plan concerning land use. San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency formed. O.C. Transportation Committee opposed Orange County toll roads bill in California legislature. O. C. Board of Supervisors filed suit against Laguna Beach over Laguna Heights. Mission Viejo Company transferred 760 acres in Aliso Creek and Laguna Niguel to Orange County. Laguna Beach purchased 59 acres of land between Old Top of the World and Arch Beach Heights.
• 1987: Friends of the Irvine Coast support revised Irvine Company development plan for Irvine Coast. O.C. Board of Supervisors and Coastal Commission approved Irvine Co. development for Irvine Coast. Carma Sandling development proposal for Laguna Heights withdrawn. Laguna Beach purchased approximately 236 acres in Laguna Heights from WBM Incorporated. Laguna Beach City Council opposed regional park development approved by Orange County. California Transportation Commission and Laguna Beach unsuccessfully negotiated expansion of Laguna Canyon Road.
• 1988: Proposition 70: Greenbelt Acquisition Priorities.
• 1990: General Plan, City of Laguna Beach.

From the guide to the Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. records, 1956-1990, (bulk 1968-1988), (University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.)