Study pitches changes along PCH

The mile-long stretch of businesses along Pacific Coast Highway in Corona del Mar is in need of more restaurants and available parking to make it a true destination, a corridor study has found.

- BY GABRIEL SAN ROMÁN

NEWPORT BEACH'S business corridor in Corona del Mar attracts some 3 million people a year, according to a study presented recently.

Photographs by DON LEACH Times Community News

The Newport Beach City Council listened to a slew of policy recommendations from city staff as part of a presentation on its findings this month.

"This is a true planners' case study," Mayor Pro Tem Lauren Kleiman said during the Nov. 4 meeting. "How do you revitalize a main street that doubles as a highway and is nestled between a residential area and a public beach?"

The study, which got underway about a year ago when the city hired consultants to help staff, first painted a data-driven portrait of the corridor as it stands today.

According to the study, the strip attracts roughly 3 million people a year. About 40% of the strip's visitors live within 5 miles of it. On average, visitors are younger than 40 and wealthy.

The corridor is mostly populated by businesses offering neighborhood goods and services, like barbershops, nail salons and real estate offices.

Food and beverage establishments total just 20% of the strips offerings.

"That's pretty low," Liz Westmoreland, the city's principal planner, told councilmembers. "When we look at other successful main streets, we typically see the food and beverage [businesses] have closer to a third or even half."

Such businesses encourage more frequent and longer stays, a key aim for the corridor's future.