Hansen: Speak softly and design a good plan

One way of winning an argument is to plant a seed, let it grow and then concede the inevitable outcome to your opponent.

In this game, Susan Whitin is a master gardener.

The newly named Laguna Beach city planner is a behind-the-scenes professional. She quietly plans a strategy, crafts a message, gains consensus and then executes for success.

She is careful, disciplined and calm, and it’s hard to imagine her ever getting mad.

“I am an open-minded person, so my point of view is balanced,” she said. “And I have a lot of experience building projects, so I’m aware of the kind of issues that come up. Things change and there are points of view that may not be apparent at the outset.”

Whitin joins Roger McErlane as a newcomer on the city Planning Commission, but she is not a rookie when it comes to planning and design issues. The 31-year Laguna resident is a landscape architect and urban designer who started her own local firm in 1996. She recently served on the city’s View Equity Committee and has extensive experience in other cities, including working on a major design effort in Anaheim.

She cited Anaheim’s redevelopment of its historic downtown as a good case study for Laguna. The urban design guidelines covered many important components, such as balanced land use, pedestrian considerations, transportation, street improvements, parks and public art.

“All of those components are a part of what I expect will be in the [Laguna] downtown specific plan,” she said. “I think it’s an example that’s pretty close. Most people don’t know the historic district of Anaheim, but it’s a lot older than Laguna and has a pretty rich history of settlement in the downtown area. And there are a lot of similar issues and a lot of historic buildings.”

So in many ways, Whitin feels that if Anaheim can do it, Laguna can too.

She believes the time is right for Laguna to embrace its downtown and create something truly remarkable.

“The downtown has a lot of potential. It’s just not there yet,” she said. “I think now is the time. Everyone is supporting it and it’s exciting.”

Whitin points to international examples when talking about bringing a world-class environment to Laguna.

“That’s hopefully what will come out of the specific plan is we can keep this village character but make it a much more lovely place to be in — more things to do, more places to sit outside,” she said. “All of the things people here in Laguna travel elsewhere to find.”

Whitin says there is no reason locals should have to leave the city to find a distinctive quality of life.

“The population of Laguna is sophisticated, and a lot of people who live here do a lot of traveling, and they look for these environments that are mixed use, are outdoor oriented, have great food and people-watching and all the things that you can find in a Mediterranean town like Portofino or places like that,” she said.

“I think the residents here would like something that would use the downtown more if we had more of those places, and the tourists would love it too. Fortunately, we have a good foundation.”

Whitin is humble enough to know she doesn’t have all the answers. She knows Laguna is complicated by sometimes competing forces. There are many constraints: geographic, historical, cultural and political. But she also feels a sense of urgency.

“We’re coming to a point where we’re starting to max out our buildable lots,” she said. “We’re at a strategic crossroads. It’s a really important time, which is the reason I was interested in applying to be a commissioner.

“The demographic is shifting in the city, and the turnover of real estate has been really, really substantial in the last 10 years. The population is aging. Everybody wants to come here. How do you balance the resident needs with the tourists? That’s one of the big focus areas.”

Whitin wants to be the voice of reason that helps drive positive, creative change.

She believes in the raw power and meaning behind Laguna — from its crystalline coves to its rich artistic history — so she doesn’t want to lose it to overcrowding or poor planning.

“The basis of what we do is to try to find meaning and beauty in the project. With the public process, I don’t think it’s a foregone conclusion that you’ll end up with milquetoast.”

On the other hand, she said, “There’s nothing worse than death by a thousand cuts, and you end up with nothing.”

Fortunately for Laguna, there is plenty of opportunity for something more than nothing.

And like that seed of change, Whitin is ready to watch it grow.

DAVID HANSEN is a writer and Laguna Beach resident. He can be reached at hansen.dave@gmail.com.