NEWS
By Beau Nicolette | January 31, 2014
The Berns Environmental Study Loop at Crystal Cove State Park opens to the public Saturday with festivities that also kick off a yearlong celebration of the 150th anniversary of California State Parks. The free event, from 1 to 6 p.m. in Moro Canyon, will give visitors a chance to explore the science stations and participate in hands-on projects. Music, a bonfire and s'mores will also be featured. The newly constructed half-mile loop, part of a 35-acre restoration project, sits on a site that was once home to a trailer park.
NEWS
By Jeremiah Dobruck | December 31, 2013
A Newport Beach teenager died over the weekend, hours after being injured in an off-roading motorcycle crash in Riverside County. Alex Chisholm, 17, was riding alone about 4 p.m. Sunday at the Ocotillo Wells State Vehicle Recreation Area near Borrego Springs when he lost control, according to a California State Parks spokeswoman. Chisholm was going about 25 miles an hour when he hit an obstacle similar to a sand dune, spokeswoman Vicky Waters said. The crash ejected Chisholm, and the bike's handlebars hit him in the abdomen as he flew off, according to Waters.
FEATURES
April 19, 2006
No hotel on peninsula, but drug rehab center OK? Newport Beach City Councilman Dick Nichols is right to strongly oppose the proposed 15th Street drug rehab center ("Peninsula residents decry drug rehabilitation center," April 12). The Balboa Peninsula is already Newport Beach's dumping ground, with run-down weekly rentals near expensive oceanfront homes, empty storefronts and restaurants and occasional vagrants roaming about. We cannot have Stephen Sutherland's beautiful new hotel on 15th Street, but we can have a drug rehab center instead?
NEWS
By: Andrew Edwards | August 9, 2005
An attorney representing the management company of El Morro Village mobile home park said Monday he plans to appeal a judge's ruling against his client last week. Orange County Superior Court Judge Kim Dunning issued an oral summary judgment Thursday in favor of the California State Parks Department. The department is trying to evict residents and management company El Morro Village Inc. so it can replace the mobile home park with a public campground.
NEWS
January 1, 2004
Marisa O'Neil A day at the beach will cost more next summer, at least for visitors to Crystal Cove State Beach and maybe Corona del Mar. State budget cuts have forced the California State Parks to at least double the day-use fees for the beach starting July 1, spokesman Roy Stearns said. The fee hikes could either control crowds at local beaches or send them searching for a cheaper alternative. "From the city's perspective, increased parking and day-use fees cause people to park more on public roads and other areas to avoid fees and hoof it into the parks, which can be somewhat of a problem," Newport Beach Assistant City Manager Dave Kiff said.
NEWS
June 12, 2003
Paul Clinton The California Coastal Commission unanimously approved a plan on Wednesday to restore the historic, but crumbling, cottages at the state park for public overnight rentals. The 11-member panel, at a Long Beach meeting, validated a plan that was arguably two decades in the making. California State Parks drafted its first restoration plan for the cottages in 1982. The approval sets up a dual significance for next year as the 25th anniversary of the state's purchase of Crystal Cove from the Irvine Co. in 1979 and the year the bulk of the 46 cottages will open for public use. "This is a very significant milestone in getting that section of the park open to the public," said Mike Tope, superintendent of the State Parks' local district.
NEWS
June 11, 2003
Paul Clinton A state coastal panel is poised to approve the restoration of historic cottages at the state park for use by the general public. At a meeting today in Long Beach, the California Coastal Commission will consider a plan from California State Parks to restore the 46 cottages and offer them to the public as affordable overnight rentals. Laguna Beach Mayor Toni Iseman, who is also a commissioner, said she has long been a supporter of the plan that has winded its way through months of public input and discussion.
NEWS
July 4, 2002
Paul Clinton CRYSTAL COVE -- State parks officials managing the vacant, historic cottages at the state park have extended a contract with a security firm to continue a 24-hour watch. California State Parks extended a one-year deal with B.R. South Coast Private Security Services Inc. for two more months, until a new contract can be worked out with a new firm. The company has been supplying security personnel with badges and guns to monitor the 46 cottages for potential vandals, curious teenagers and anyone with bad intentions toward the historic landmark.
NEWS
July 4, 2002
Paul Clinton CRYSTAL COVE -- Money to restore the 46 cottages at the state park is fairly secure, even with the $24-billion state budget shortfall and a stalemate on the new year's budget, officials said. The $9.2 million in bond funds, $2.8-million gift from the California Coastal Commission and $1.1 million for short-term repairs should be protected as Republicans call for spending cuts. That would allow at least $13.1 million to restore the rustic but deteriorating cabins sitting on the beach.
NEWS
May 23, 2002
When the residents at Crystal Cove were removed from the 46 cottages there in July, the future of the pristine beach was only somewhat clear. Certainly the beach would be completely opened to the public. However, the majority of the cottages' destinies were still up in the air. Some would be preserved while the others awaited funding and project proposals. Fast forward about 10 months. In Gov. Gray Davis' state budget revision released last week, about $9.2 million in Proposition 40 funding has been set aside for the cove.