EDITORIAL

In the dog days of summer, Laguna is the dog park — one of the places folks from the hills head to when the thermometer hits 95 to 100 degrees.

This summer, temperatures have set records, and the ocean has been unusually warm as well, with temperatures rising at times to a tropical 80 degrees or above, making for ultimate swimming conditions.

Beach attendance has been at record numbers, we’re told, and beachgoers are lingering long into the evening to keep their cool.

Last summer, MTV and it’s “Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County” reality show featuring local students and places was blamed for the noticeable increase in fan-based tourist traffic, but this year, Mother Nature may be more responsible.

While some residents may grouse about losing their convenient parking spots and the length of time it takes to get from one end of Laguna to the other, the good news is that summer will eventually end and locals will get their town back.

It’s all shaping up to be another very lucrative summer for Laguna businesses and also for the city, with the recently approved half-cent sales tax increase to help offset costs of last year’s devastating landslide.

We haven’t seen a tally of the sales tax increase — which will go directly into the city’s coffers — but it’s a safe bet that it will likely be more than city officials predicted when they asked voters to approve the tax increase several months ago.

And business owners who worried that the sales tax increase would keep customers away are no doubt relieved that it’s yet another extraordinary summer for Laguna’s visitor-serving entities.

All that foot and vehicular traffic will add up to dollars that the city really needs to ensure the safety of the hillside community for years to come — and the health of the local economy.

It’s a small price to pay.