When will the flooding end?

Lauren Vane

When the rains fall on Laguna Beach, locals have learned that it’s a

sure bet Laguna Canyon Road will be closed. The canyon was closed for

nearly a week during the most recent rainstorms, due to flooding on

several sections of the road.

The end of roadway flooding is one objective of the $32.2-million

project to realign Laguna Canyon Road. Although the project is far

from completion, flooding continues to be a problem, even on newly

constructed sections of the roadway.

With the recent rains, the road was flooded significantly in

several areas, one being the newly built section between the Foothill

(73) Corridor and the San Diego (405) Freeway.

The flooding on this section of road is due to the fact that

construction is not complete and drainage systems are not yet in

place, said Sandy Friedman, public information officer for Caltrans.

“Let’s say a set of steps is broken and you fix one piece; you

still can’t walk up the steps because it’s not completed,” Friedman

said.

The county water district is responsible for the drainage system

on that section of the roadway and it is not finished with

improvements designed to address the flooding problem, Friedman said.

“That flooding is a result of the drainage system not being

completed,” Friedman said.

Flooding on the new road is not the only problem area. Near the

intersection of El Toro Road and Laguna Canyon Road, the natural path

of two creeks is obstructed by the road. When it rains, the creeks

flood the roadway, said Wayne Baglin, a former member of the Laguna

Canyon Road Oversight Committee.

Though this section is not part of the Laguna Canyon Road

realignment project, Baglin said he wonders why so much money is

being spent on the realignment project when other areas of flooding

are being ignored.

“I think that the county and Caltrans have to work out a solution

to keep that portion of the road from flooding, otherwise we would be

wasting the [millions] we’ve spent on the realignment,” Baglin said.

The two creeks flow out of Laurel and Willow Canyon and fill with

water when the area endures a heavy rainfall, said Mary Fegraus, of

the Laguna Canyon Foundation.

“The geological formations hold the water for a long time,”

Fegraus said. “It doesn’t go away a day after the storm.”

The creeks carry water and sand from the canyon down to the beach,

a necessary and natural cycle that cannot be disturbed, Fegraus said.

It is a difficult balance between flood control and disrupting the

environment, Fegraus said.

There are no plans for any work to take place on that section of

the roadway because environmental protections that stand in the way ,

Friedman said.

The realignment project will mean significant environmental

benefits for the canyon, Fegraus said. The project allows for

Barbara’s Lake and Bubbles’ Pond -- the only two natural lakes in

Orange County -- to be rejoined and returned to their natural state.

“It’s a great improvement on what we had,” Fegraus said.

Friedman said the environmental benefits accounted for the strong

support the project received.

“Everybody wanted the project,” Friedman said.

Construction on the realignment project began in January 2003 and

is expected to finish by the end of 2006, if the weather cooperates,

Friedman said. The project has four main goals: to widen the road to

four lanes, create standard shoulders, provide a median to separate

traffic and realign the highway to connect the lakes.

“In addition to improving roadway safety these things will improve

traffic flow and reduce the frequency of roadway flooding,” Friedman

said.

For now, the National Weather Service said it is not predicting

heavy rain this weekend, but showers are likely and any rain at all

could mean more road closures on Laguna Canyon Road.