The Coast News, Aug. 17, 2012

AUG. 17, 2012
LAGOON
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the end of the year. Once
selected, the “scramble
began” to come up with the
funds, Gibson said.
“We started calling supporters;
anyone we thought
would help with the purchase,”
Gibson said. The
lenders formed an LLC
which in turn loaned the
funds to the conservancy to
purchase the gateway property.
“It protected the
lenders and the organization,”
Gibson said. The
organization is also a member
of the LLC, as it was a
lender. There are 14 other
members.
The Gateway Park LLC
RULES
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the City of Carlsbad regulates
and maintains the 295-acre
inner lagoon for visitors.
“For example, the City of
Carlsbad places and maintains
regulatory buoys to separate
use areas for boaters, while also
providing the rules and regulations
information to the public,”
Ray said.
“The lagoon is not only a
popular recreational area, but
also a sensitive and vital ecosystem,”
she said.“Visitors are surrounded
by its natural beauty,
which includes hundreds of
species of marine life and
water fowl.”
Ray wants visitors to know
that the rules around the
lagoon’s use are in place to protect
public safety and the
lagoon environment.
Lisa Rodman, executive
director at the Discovery
Center at the Agua Hedionda
Lagoon, said the top complaints
they hear are about offleash
dog situations and the
high numbers of stand-up paddle
board users and paddle
board businesses sprouting up.
The surge in paddle boarders
has many concerned about
lagoon pollution in terms of
excess lagoon usage, parking
issues and people not respecting
the property.
Rodman said her job is to
educate the lagoon users,
including the out of town visitors
who are unaware of the
rules and regulations.
“We keep working with
the populace up here and educating
them on what the expectations
are,” Rodman said. “We
are actually working on new
signage around the lagoon to
paid $3.75 million for the
property. Now, the race is on
to repay the lenders Gibson
said. “Donors from as far
away as Paris, came through
for the organization,”
Gibson said.
The organization pays
3.2 percent interest on the
note but several lenders
have donated that amount
back. “These people have
faith in us, in the ability of
the organization,” Gibson
said. “The land is secure,
but not yet saved,” said
Gerri Retman-Opper, a
Solana Beach resident. “If
we don’t raise the money to
repay the lenders the property
will go back on the market.
We’ve worked too hard
for too long to let that hap-
help with that educational
process.”
Rodman said she is hopeful
that the ongoing education
can provide harmony between
the visitors and the lagoon.
For more information
about the Agua Hedionda
Lagoon please call the
Discovery Center at
(760) 804-1969 or the
Parks & Recreation
Department at (760) 602-4685.
The public is also encouraged
to report lagoon violations to
the Carlsbad Police
Department's non-emergency
number at (760) 931-2197.
pen.”
The capital campaign
to pay back the lenders has
taken on many iterations.
“We’ve already secured $1.5
million in promises and
donations,” Gibson said.
“We’re very confident this
will come to fruition. Phase
II is what do we do with it
now.”
“This is just a great
example of how individuals
coming together in a community
can make a real difference
in the enjoyment of
life for generations to
come,” Janie DeCelles, a
Cardiff resident said. “I’m
thrilled to be part of this.”
The conservancy has
big plans for the property.
“The highest value asset a
THE COAST NEWS
community can have is open
space,” Gibson said. “This
has community value and a
lot of ecological value.”
Viewing decks are the only
planned construction on the
buffer. “The site will
become important for education
programs, it offers a
view we haven’t had
before.”
“The buffer land acts as
a refuge for species during
high tides and storms,”
Gibson said. “The wetland
it’s protecting becomes
more valuable. There is a
higher diversity of species
as a result.”
“I consider the opportunity
to preserve this site as a
major quality of life opportunity,”
DeCelles said. “I
treasure the experience of
the majestic views from the
Gateway site up the coast to
be a huge part of the pure
joy of being a San Diegan.”
For more information
visit sanelijo.org.
A19
996. N. Coast Hwy. Ste. C, Leucadia
CA 92024
(behind Leucadia Sushi Bar)