4 Tips For Successful Design Review In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH, CA -- If you're designing, or considering designing, a change or addition to a property you own in Laguna Beach, city officials have some tips for you to consider to ensure that the project is approved.

Important to the process is the city's Design Review Board, which evaluates project design and integrity, ensures neighborhood compatibility and protects view equity, privacy and the environment.

If a project is subject to approval from the Design Review Board, there are four tips that the city says may help you get through the process more smoothly. They are:

1. Hire an architect or builder familiar with Laguna Beach's process. Why? Because, according to city officials, Laguna Beach's unique topography, picturesque neighborhoods and quaint downtown make the city's building standards more complex.
2. Discuss your proposed project with a city planner before submitting plans, because a city planner can help you assess the feasibility of the project. It will also help your architect determine what must be submitted for review.
3. "Stake' your preliminary design early in the process, because doing so provides a chance for neighbors to get a feel for your project and provide feedback or concerns before the design is finalized.
4. Hold an early neighborhood meeting with your architect and neighbors, because it may result in useful insights to consider before submitting a final project design to the Design Review Board.

"The design review process seeks to balance property rights while preserving the character of of the neighborhood and your neighbors' properties," the city states. "Sometimes the maximum development allowed by code is not always approved."

Read the city's design guidelines before you begin designing your project, the city advises.