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Was Sunken City supposed to be opened to the public years ago, back when that 8-foot-tall iron fence went up?
A Daily Breeze article from 1989 reported that a plan to open up the area for "controlled access" with a developed nature trail was included as part of the California Coastal Commission's approval for the wrought-iron fence that now separates the area bordered on the east by Point Fermin Park and on the west by Pacific Avenue.
The fence was constructed under then-City Councilwoman Joan Milke Flores after nighttime nuisances had driven residents to complain.
According to the story, however, planners were required to "pencil in gates on both ends of the fence that someday will be used for 'controlled access' to the site."
But those original plans to open the space up for nature walks as part of the fence approval had seemingly been lost and forgotten over the decades.
The 1989 article stated that there was no indication at the time of "when a proposed Sunken City nature trail will be developed."
Due to its age, the original fence permit agreement was not immediately available this week from the Coastal Commission but officials have begun a search to find the document under a Daily Breeze request.
Information that public access was initially planned for Sunken City could...