Cove home given OK

Owners of an Irvine Cove property will be able to proceed with a

long-delayed development project, after a Superior Court judge’s

ruling upheld approvals issued by the City Council and the Coastal

Commission.

In September 2002, the Ronald and Yolanda Loder Living Trust

proposed a 13,278-square-foot single-family home, with a basement and

garage, at 2585 Riviera Drive, a bluff-top site in the Abalone Point

area.

The project drew fire from a neighborhood group, Citizens for

Responsible Coastal Development, who’s members claimed the project

and its landscaping would harm local views, among other objections.

The Design Review Board rejected the project in 2003, but the

denial was overturned by the City Council after modifications were

made to the project.

The council determined that the proposed project “achieved view

equity” and would be lower in height than other structures in the

neighborhood.

Project opponents then sued the city, claiming officials had

erroneously exempted the project from requirements of the California

Environmental Quality Act. The court ruling rejected that claim.

The modified project was approved April 13 by the Coastal

Commission.