Come to Laguna to Shop, Not Gawk, Officials Urge

Laguna Beach officials are hoping that the throngs of visitors expected this weekend will come to visit its quaint shops and not its fire-devastated areas.

Major roads into the ravaged town have all reopened; 23 streets in the hardest-hit neighborhoods will be closed to all except residents. Police will deny entry into the restricted areas except to motorists who display special city-issued permits.

“If their intended purpose in coming to Laguna is to look at areas affected by the fire, we’d ask them not to,” said Laguna Beach Police Sgt. Ray Lardie. “We have sheriff’s deputies stationed at posts who will block off those areas and monitor the people who come and go.”

Officials want to keep roads as clear as possible to permit repair crews access to destroyed neighborhoods.

The Police Department began issuing special permits Friday morning. By evening, they had issued 300.