Museum shelves move to village entry

Laguna Art Museum Director Bolton Colburn effectively shelved an ambitious proposed building plan at the Village Entrance site near City Hall during the museum’s annual membership meeting Tuesday.

He and other officials also spoke of the museum’s various ups and downs over the past several years.

After sharing the museum’s goal to establish itself as the premier American museum with a focus on California art, Colburn said that the primary requirement for that goal was “building.”

He said that the museum had “entertained” a building concept that was put forward to the City Council in April, where it received mixed reviews. It has since been tabled as the city moves forward with its original plan for the site.

Museum officials want to relocate the facility from Coast Highway to the city’s Arts District, located along Laguna Canyon Road, where the Sawdust Art Festival, Art-A-Fair, Festival of Arts and Laguna College of Art & Design are situated.

The Village Entrance is envisioned as a “gateway” to Laguna Beach and includes a 650-space public parking structure.

The museum’s proposal would have piggy-backed on the city parking structure, and would have involved locating 34 luxury town homes at the Village Entrance site above the parking structure.

Sales of the townhomes would pay for the structure, a public park and a privately financed but publicly owned and managed amphitheater, in addition to a new museum.

“We’re continuing to explore” options, Colburn said; he referred to possibilities both onsite and offsite at the proposed Village Entrance, some of which were proposed by then-Mayor Elizabeth Pearson-Schneider.

“Whether it’s that location or another, or staying here and refurbishing what we’ve got, the museum lacks exhibition space, education space and parking, which is most important,” new board President Louis Rohl said.

“We will continue to study various different venues. But near-term, this building serves us well. We will pursue the opportunities as they arise,” said Rohl, whose company markets high-end kitchen and bath products.

Rohl has been a museum member since his move to Laguna Beach three years ago from the Bay Area; he also lived in the area prior to moving north eight years ago.

Before discussing building plans, Colburn harkened back to the museum’s beginnings, saying that the democratic process that was a mark of the institution then is still prevalent today, through the board and membership.

“It’s a great volunteer activity, but it does come with its little onerous proclivities as well,” he said.

He cited the fact that the museum’s members can vote on bylaw changes as they come up, which he said not many museums offer.

New board members were also announced at the meeting, as all election results had been tallied. All runners but one were approved; Lita Albuquerque withdrew from consideration after the ballots were mailed.

Outgoing board President Dr. Igal Silber also spoke on changes enacted during his three years as head of the board.

“Each new president comes in with goals, and I am no exception,” Silber said.

Silber described the refurbishment of the main museum space, a staff reorganization and the return of the museum’s collection from shared ownership with the Orange County Museum of Arts (OCMA).

OCMA came into existence after a fractious, highly contested merger between LAM and the Newport Harbor Art Museum in July 1996. LAM regained its independence in April 1997, after OCMA’s creation, but half of its endowment was lost and the majority of its collection went under joint ownership.

“The museum has dedicated permanent space to show parts of our permanent collection on a rotating basis,” Silber said.

Colburn also noted that the museum’s administrative infrastructure has grown dramatically since the merger, from two to 11 full-time staff.

The museum lost its education curator recently and is still searching for a new one, Colburn said.