McKay, Ann Marie CC
Subject: Consent Item #7 - 31131 Monterey Street - Emergency Egress for Coast Royal From: Philip Loberg
Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2026 12:19 PM
To: City Council <[email protected]>; Kiff, Dave CM < [email protected]>; Orgill, Mark <[email protected]>; Rounaghi, Alex <[email protected]>; Kempf, Sue <[email protected]>; Jones, Hallie <[email protected]>; Whalen, Bob <[email protected]>; McKay, Ann Marie CC<[email protected]> Subject: Consent Item #7 - 31131 Monterey Street - Emergency Egress for Coast Royal My name is Philip Loberg and I am a 30+ year member of this neighborhood and I own the land (on Monterey St) immediately upslope from the subject property with my house (on Brooks St) just behind my land. The entire community near the subject property uses this "county road" to access the beach and has always considered it part of our egress from the hillside down to PCH in case of emergency since the cliffs of Aliso Creek are impassable at our backs to the north.
Many of us participated with the city to ensure that this access was retained when the subject property was recently developed to ensure continued use as well vehicle passage in case of such emergency. Allowing cars to park in this area would effectively form a barrier on the west side of the road thereby constricting the ability of cars and pedestrians to merge themselves into the narrowing road below when needing to flee the neighborhood in an extreme emergency (fire, earthquake, etc). Keep in mind that without this "emergency exit" an hourglass like pinch point would be created at the intersections of Ocean View, Monterey and West St as all residents from the hillside would exit en mass to this single point of passage. This is UNACCEPTABLE.
If you have any inkling to approve this request it should NOT be considered until you have conducted a study to determine an adequate hillside evacuation plan for this hillside and the role and configuration of this emergency road in such plan. In no case should any permanent ceding of the property be done without having an approved evacuation plan in place.
Thank you for your consideration of this matter.
Philip W Loberg
Monterey (Land)
Brooks (Home)
McKay, Ann Marie CC
Subject: 31131 Monterey Street -- Request from citizen to use City (our) property for his own personal use
-----Original Message----
Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2026 10:56 AM
To: Greg O'Loughlin City Council <[email protected]>; Kiff, Dave CM <[email protected]>; Orgill, Mark <[email protected]›; Rounaghi, Alex <[email protected]>; Kempf, Sue <[email protected]>; Jones, Hallie <[email protected]>; Whalen, Bob <[email protected]> Cc: McKay, Ann Marie CC <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: 31131 Monterey Street -- Request from citizen to use City (our) property for his own personal use Almost all of the City officials who are pushing the abandonment of "Trail' property were not here 10 years ago when this house was proposed and the "Trail" was threatened with destruction.
These people simply do not understand (care!) that the Trail is necessary for the escape from wild fire for 200 plus homes (800 people) on the hill above Coast Royale. The only way these people can get off the hill (should West Street be blocked) is by taking the Trail down to the ocean.
The construction plans for 31131 Monterey were specifically approved by DRB in such a manner that the Trail could never be interfered with in any manner by anyone! That fact the current owners feel they have a legitimate reason for this proposed land-grab boggles the mind.
It encourages the owners of other Laguna Beach properties to ask for relief of "perceived" restrictions made on their houses' original building permits -- restrictions which were accepted by the builders of these houses.
Sutter Gardanier
Monterey Street
Laguna, CA 92651
10 February 2026
McKay, Ann Marie CC
Subject: 31131 Monterey Street - Emergency Egress from Coast Royal From: Ray Tang
Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2026 9:53 AM
To: Greg O'Loughlin
Cc: City Council <[email protected]>; Kiff, Dave CM < [email protected]›; Orgill, Mark <[email protected]>; Rounaghi, Alex <[email protected]>; Kempf, Sue <[email protected]>; Jones, Hallie <[email protected]>; Whalen, Bob <[email protected]>; McKay, Ann Marie CC <[email protected]> Subject: Re: 31131 Monterey Street - Emergency Egress from Coast Royal Dear City Council Members and Greg,
Thank you, Greg, for your efforts on behalf of Coast Royale residents and South Laguna.
For those of us who experienced the 1993 fire—the red retardant drops, the falling ash, and the uncertainty regarding our children's safety—it is unfathomable to see the current placement of the drainage culvert at the 31131 Monterey Street project. Prior to construction, a neighbor successfully drove an AWD vehicle down the trail to the Aliso Beach parking lot when it was in even worse condition, simply to prove it could be done in an emergency. I have personally navigated much more difficult terrain in AWD pickups as recently as two weeks ago. We must remember that this trail was originally the Old Coast Road.
While I am not advocating for this trail as a general evacuation route for residents—as many do not own AWD vehicles and regular cars would likely obstruct the path-preserving emergency vehicle access is critical. The fire danger presented by Aliso Canyon during Santa Ana wind events remains a constant threat.
Many neighbors still vividly remember rushing home in 1993 before the closure of PCH at Crown Valley, watching retardant drops from the edge of Aliso Canyon and hoping the winds would die down. I wish city staff could have experienced that day to understand the gravity of these decisions.
Please consider these points carefully and maintain the emergency options that all residents deserve when reviewing the 31131 Monterey Street project.
Best regards,
Ray Tang
On Tue, Feb 10, 2026 at 8:06 AM Greg O'Loughlin wrote:
February 10, 2026
1 To the City Council and City Manager,
On behalf of our membership and South Laguna neighborhood residents, the South Laguna Civic Association (SLCA) writes today to strongly urge rejection of the proposed amendment to the easement agreement at 31131 Monterey Street.
SLCA is deeply concerned that the staff recommendation to abandon this fundamental emergency infrastructure approaches this matter through the wrong lens. This issue is not, at its core, about parking convenience or the current condition of a trail. It is about preservation of a critical investment in public safety that serves all of the South Laguna village community.
The right-of-way and trail at issue are not informal or incidental. This alignment is a historic roadway, formerly part of Coast Highway prior to the 1920s realignment, and today it serves two essential public purposes: a designated and posted public beach access route, and the only northbound, non-Coast Highway emergency egress for the South Laguna Village zone. For many years, the City has maintained this route specifically in recognition of its emergency function should Coast Highway become impassable.
It is precisely because of this function that development on the adjacent parcels over a decade ago was so contentious. The community's concerns were addressed through enforceable conditions, including a public easement preserving access and a prohibition on exterior parking, recognizing that obstruction of this corridor could compromise emergency use. Those conditions were not happy accidents; they were fundamental to the approvals granted.
The staff report now acknowledges degradation of the trail and uses that condition to justify weakening the very protections that were put in place to preserve it. This reverses cause and effect. The appropriate response to a degraded emergency route is repair and enforcement, not abandonment. Allowing deferred maintenance or design deficiencies— particularly those related to drainage associated with recent construction—to serve as justification for relinquishing public rights sets a dangerous precedent.
Staff further characterizes the route as unsuitable for vehicular use, a problem brought about by lack of investment by the city in emergency preparedness for South Laguna.
Emergency egress routes are not judged by daily convenience or ideal conditions; they are preserved for redundancy, resilience, and worst-case scenarios. Removing or compromising such a route without providing a replacement raises serious life-safety concerns.
If the City concludes that this corridor is no longer viable for emergency use, then the Council must address the larger question: what is the City's plan to ensure safe evacuation for what would effectively become a landlocked neighborhood in the event Coast Highway is blocked?
2 SLCA respectfully urges the Council to reject any amendment that diminishes public access or emergency functionality of this right-of-way, to preserve the existing easement and parking restrictions, and to direct staff to restore and maintain the trail to a condition suitable for its intended emergency purpose.
Thank you for your consideration.
Greg O Loughlin
President
South Laguna Civic Association
3