Beautify Lunada Bay (BLB) Expo

On Saturday April 22, Earth Day, the Lunada Bay Homeowners Association (LBHOA) will host an event highlighting the organization’s plan to upgrade the community’s bluff–top areas overlooking the Pacific Ocean with walking paths and native vegetation. The event will be from 10:00 AM to noon on Paseo Lunado across from Lunada Bay Elementary School, the site where its Beautify Lunada Bay project will begin.

“This project has been in the works for several years,” said Peter Bena, president of the LBHOA. “A group of resident volunteers are leading the effort, which has received strong support from the City of Palos Verdes Estates. The plan is to beautify bluff top open space in the Lunada Bay community. The beautification project will create stone-lined walking paths, install native, drought-tolerant plants, and add a few boulders for seating.”

“Bluff tops in Lunada Bay are currently barren, dirt, and weed covered and not attractive,” said Bill Ailor, LBHOA Board member and leader of the Beautify Lunada Bay project. “With the help of the City, volunteers, donations from the community, and possibly some grant funding, we’ll gradually enhance the beauty of these special areas.”

The resident-led effort will begin with a 1-acre pilot effort across from Lunada Bay Elementary School. “This site has high visibility, and the pilot project will show the community what we have planned,” said Ailor. “The site also offers educational opportunities for children at the school as the plants grow and butterflies and birds
return.”

The Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy will provide technical advice and assistance to the project. The Conservancy, which has restored many acres of open space on the peninsula, has had an active role in selecting plants for the project that will be attractive year-round and will not block views when mature. The Conservancy will grow the plants and help with the planting.

“We’ve been careful to minimize costs while focusing on long term benefits,” said
Bena. “The City will provide stones and boulders from its existing stock, will supply
surplus wood chips and mulch to cover the planting areas, and will provide water until the plants mature. Plus, we’ll make maximum use of volunteers as we move forward. Within several years, the project will require almost no maintenance and will be a reminder of how native plants can be both beautiful and a nice addition to our gardens and bluff-top areas.”

More information on the project and how people can be involved and donate is available at LBHOA’s Beautify Lunada Bay web page, http://www.lbhoa.org/BeautifyLunadaBay.

For more information, contact:
Bill Ailor— (310) 336-1135 (work) or (310) 200-5482 (cell)
Peter Bena— (310) 753-1253 (cell)