READERS RESPOND

My 1967 Austin Healey 3000 was one of the first (the only foreign and newest) of eight cars to regularly meet at Crystal Cove before any of the shops were open four years ago. Car guys like John, Pete, Ed, Bob, Marc, Don, Jerry and others didn’t want to arrive at Donut Derelicts at 5:30 a.m. so we met at Crystal Cove before going to breakfast at Coco’s in Newport Center (where we still meet).

For more than a year we pretty much had most of the parking lot to ourselves and rarely arrived before 8:30 a.m. The manager of the Starbucks was smart enough to set up a small coffee stand while his store was being built. Soon bicyclists spotted our 50 cars and the word was out. Museum cars were often brought in by trailer. Unfortunately that is now rare.

We put Crystal Cove Promenade on the map, even having it listed in the AAA as one of the spots to visit this summer. Up to that time the meet was orderly and quiet. Then the “pimp my rides,” the dealers and post ’73 (non-classic) cars prevailed.

I have a crude but accurate saying: If you bought it new and you’re still making payments, it ain’t a classic.

Crystal Cove changed from all classics to “check out the spinning wheels on my new Escalade.” Many of the original cars then moved to the Starbucks at Crown Valley Parkway and Pacific Coast Highway in Dana Point where they remain “classic.”

Then the Irvine Co. imprudently responded to the increase in numbers by micromanaging something that didn’t need management.

Now we couldn’t enter until 7 a.m. and if not in place by 7:15 a.m. the orange cones were up and we were left out. Instead of coming and going from 8 to 9 a.m. for coffee and breakfast, we were predictably forced to stage at 6:30 a.m. to make sure we had a spot. Then we were told to start our engines at the same time and drive in. Of course this increased noise.

Some of the neighbors even complained that, horrors, “we have to wait in line to get coffee now.”

Marc Greeley and Bob Cheatley met with management and tried to reason with them to little effect since all management likes to manage.

Yes, there were a few air heads who raced their engines, but peer pressure stopped that. Those who had to leave with tires burning were greeted to a summons by the Newport Beach courts. It has been a remarkably quiet, peaceful and financial bonanza for the open shops at Crystal Cove Promenade the last two years, and the Irvine Co. wants to kill the goose that laid the golden egg. Amazing.

Perhaps there is still a real capitalist out there willing to sell coffee and breakfast to people at 8 a.m. every Saturday and not cave in to the neighbors who don’t want to wait in line?

RONALD O. DAVIES

Laguna Hills

We hope the Irvine Co. and the city of Newport Beach don’t mind that this group of congenial car buffs, dog walkers and families who show up as early as 6:30 a.m. on Saturdays will be taking their coffee and breakfast business elsewhere. We tend to go a little later in the morning so we can also tie in a trip to Trader Joe’s, Pier I, the Gap and Williams Sonoma. So I guess we’ll start heading to Huntington Beach for cars and then on to South Coast Plaza for the balance of our Saturday shopping.

It’s too bad the Irvine Co. won’t share the same spirit of camaraderie with the patrons who have kept its coffers full.

Councilman Ed Selich’s quote is dead on: “It’s just as much about friendships as it is the cars.”

Looks like the Irvine Co. missed the point of this great Saturday ritual: visiting with old and new friends who share an interest and passion for exotic wheels, fresh air, a fabulous view and a good cup of coffee.

JOHN REILLY

and KAREN TRINGALI

Corona del Mar

I have attended quite a few of the Crystal Cove automobile-enthusiast gatherings, sans collectible car and with my 1965 Mustang Coupe (I am the original owner having purchased said auto in March 1965 and taken delivery in May 1965). Marc Greeley set up the gathering for South Orange County as a counter to going to Huntington Beach, where mostly hot rods and trucks group at Adams Avenue and Magnolia Street.

The local eating establishments get quite a bit of business at Crystal Cove, and with the new starting time of 7 a.m. rather than 5:30 a.m. the area residents would not be bothered.

As for not enough space, the center has allotted limited space in front for the soiree. If the show were relocated to the side, there would be plenty of room for the cars. The center area could then be used for shoppers and those just viewing the enthusiasts and their machines. It is a mistake to discourage a group of high-income, high-net-worth area residents who spend their money at the center every Saturday. By 9 a.m., 99% of the enthusiasts have departed, and the normal trade then begins anyway when the stores open after 9:30 a.m.

My suggestion is that the Irvine Co., Barry Maguire and Marc Greeley work out a suitable solution. The congestion that the Irvine Co. believes exists is not so. My feeling is that they do not want to be bothered by an inconvenience — having security guards patrol the lots to ensure that no one enters prior to the designated time.

Someone should ask management at Starbucks and the cafes whether they want to turn away business.

MARK L. ALCH

Irvine

This car show brings all the businesses at the shopping center much business and exposure, with very little downside. Since when is a lot of traffic at a shopping center a bad thing? Those businesses that are not being patronized are also not open for business at that time of day.

TOM COLITT

Los Angeles