Corona del Mar Today: AERIE project back on Coastal Commission's agenda

The proposed AERIE condominium development is back on the Coastal Commission's agenda — this time with letters of support from city officials but opposition from one resident who thinks the building will be too big for the neighborhood.

An opposition letter-writing campaign also has been launched.

Coastal Commission staff is recommending approval of the plans for the condos at Ocean Boulevard and Carnation Avenue, citing changes that reduced coastal bluff excavation and changes that moved the pool to a higher elevation and moved decks from a public view corridor.

The project also has reduced the number of units from eight to seven since it was denied permission by the commission in April 2010, and it has lowered its square footage 17% from 61,709 last year to 51,124.

The changes were enough to change the opinion of Michael Toerge, the lone Newport Beach planning commissioner who voted against the project in July 2009.

"I have consistently and publicly opposed the project for very specific reasons," Toerge wrote in a May 20 letter, explaining that he was concerned about the "extreme excavation" and "excessive square footage" and other elements of the earlier plans.

However, the new plans, he wrote, meet local codes and should be approved.

CIty Councilman Keith Curry also wrote a letter of support for the new plans, saying AERIE would be a "tremendous asset to our community."

One longtime opponent of the project, Marilyn Beck, wrote that while she appreciated changes that owner Rick Julian had made, she continues to see the project as too big for the neighborhood.

"We strongly urged Mr. Julian to consider our request to reduce the overall size by 10,000 square feet," she wrote. "We gave him our assurance that we would cease our opposition to the project if it were closer to 40,000 square feet rather than over 51,000."

Beck's letter states that such a large project could set a "dangerous" precedent for future developments that combine lots to make mega condo complexes.

"It is all out of scale and out of character with Corona del Mar," she said.

A letter-writing campaign, which urges residents to write to the Coastal Commission to protest the development's size, is underway. An email blast was sent this week to an undisclosed number of recipients, giving a sample protest letter and asking concerned residents to attend the June meeting. The email blast also offered carpools for those headed to the meeting in Marina del Rey.