Residents irate over iron fence

County officials bowed to public pressure and dismantled on Thursday the white iron fence in front of the Laguna Beach Library that had been installed Tuesday.

The fence raised a firestorm of outraged objections from all facets of Laguna’s broad political and philosophical spectrum, leaving no doubt how they felt about the fence and its installation without any public notice. The removal of the fence was a collaborative decision made by County Librarian Helen Fried and 5th District Supervisor Pat Bates.

“We owe the county of Orange a big thank you,” Mayor Pro Tem Toni Iseman said. “I’ve never seen everyone in Laguna Beach agree on anything before.”

The fence installation was a county addition to the rehabilitation of the library, which is due to reopen Dec. 14 after being closed for two months.

Bob Genzel, the director of construction and maintenance for the Orange County Public Library system, made the decision to include the fence in project, at the county’s expense. The decision was prompted by the damage done to the landscaping in the front of the building and physical evidence of human habitation. He thought he was doing the city a favor.

“We want to be good neighbors,” Genzel said. “I thought as long as we were working on the inside we might as well do something outside.

“Landscaping which had been installed just a couple of years ago needed to be refreshed so we went ahead with the fence.”

The Friends of the Laguna Beach Library coordinated the landscaping project, which was designed, installed and irrigated by donors of time and talent. The Friends also contributed substantially to the $266,000 remodel.

Fence opponents urged the City Council on Tuesday night to make every effort to get rid of the fence or at the very least get the county to submit to the design review process. They wanted to know how the fence went up without going through the usual city processes.

The county, like the Laguna Beach Unified School District, the South Coast Water District and the Laguna Beach Water District, when it was independent of the city, are sovereign entities that are not required to seek city approval for projects, City Manager Ken Frank told the council and audience. The county doesn’t even have to apply for a coastal development permit, despite the Laguna Beach Library being two blocks away from the ocean.

“Having said that, the county has been great about working with us on the rehabilitation,” Frank said.

He praised Genzel’s cooperation, particularly in reacting to city concerns about the height of new air conditioning units on the library roof. Genzel went out of his way to find different units that aren’t much higher than the antiquated ones being replaced, Frank said.

“Everyone has different tastes, and he thought the fence was OK,” Frank said. “On this, he just made a mistake. He was just trying to deal with people camping and destroying the landscaping. The library has had a serious problem in front and underneath.”

Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Rose Hancock complained months ago to Bates about the camping and offensive conduct of the campers.

Frank had advised Genzel on Tuesday morning, when he first saw the fence, that it was likely to offend Laguna’s sensibilities.

“I almost had an accident when I saw the fence and then I thought about running into it,” said Councilman Kelly Boyd. “It’s just not going to work in Laguna Beach.”

From Boyd on the right end of the dais to Councilwoman Verna Rollinger on the left end, the council was unanimous in denouncing the fence.

Boyd and Councilwoman Jane Egly had contacted Bates’ office before the meeting to register their complaints.

“Carolyn Wood called Pat’s office to let her know this was happening before Pat came to town for the Laguna Canyon Conservancy dinner,” Rollinger said.

Genzel considered the fence acceptable because there is an iron fence across the street.

“I thought it would be a natural fit, but it wasn’t,” Genzel said Wednesday.