Drilling has started in the parking lot of the historic Casa Romantica in San Clemente to assess movement detected starting a week ago in the bluff beneath the landmark’s ocean-view terrace.

The boring, which began on Tuesday, April 25, will help geological experts determine how much the ground has moved since cracks were first noticed on April 16. The historic home of the city’s founder, which is now used as a cultural and events center, has a 2.5-acre property on the steep bluff overlooking the San Clemente pier and nearby railroad tracks. An apartment building below the property and slightly to the north is also being watched, but at present officials said they don’t believe the building is threatened because it is embedded into the cliffside with caissons.

The city is spending $75,000 for the information-gathering geological study, which is being done by LGC Geotechnical Inc., a San Clemente-based business. The City Council approved the contract during an emergency meeting Monday night; absent from the meeting were Mayor Chris Duncan and Councilmember Gene James.

The study is expected to take about three weeks and will drill three borings 120 feet into the ground to define the geologic conditions and determine if an ancient landslide is there. Two inclinometer pipes, which will give early warnings of potential expansion, will be installed and experts will be able to do daily readings – and more if needed – to determine if there is more earth movement.

“After this work is done, we’ll come back and look at solutions to design and build something that will solve the problem,” Kiel Koger, the city’s Public Works director, said. “We know where the top of the slide is; we don’t know where the bottom is. That’s what we need to determine … and that’ll tell you what you need to do to solve the problem and keep it from moving.”

In the past week, there has been about six inches of horizontal movement in the cracks on the terrace and about a foot or two of vertical displacement. Koger noted that soil near a view deck at the north end of the estate has moved “toward the ocean and about a foot away from the bottom of the deck.”

“The conditions are still moving,” Koger said.

Representatives from Metrolink and the Orange County Transportation Agency have also been out to the site to monitor movement near the railroad tracks below and Koger said both “might be willing to help and partner on solutions.”

Amy Behrens, executive director of Casa Romantica, said on Tuesday that people are being kept away from the terrace, which is cordoned off. Over the weekend, three weddings were celebrated at the famed location, but were not, as is typical, held on the popular terrace with dramatic views of the Pacific Ocean.

“For us, it’s heartbreaking to see the movement that’s happening,” she said, but added, “We have a 2.5-acre estate and have moved planned activities off the ocean terrace and to other parts of the property.”

Coming up this weekend is a popular Celtic Festival, which will utilize spots across the estate, including the open-air courtyard, the amphitheater and the main salon. There are at least nine weddings, birthday celebrations and other private events planned over the next four weeks. In addition to those, the Casa Romantica routinely hosts local third- and fourth-graders on field trips to learn about the area’s history and ocean ecology.

“We’ve been blessed our facility users have been understanding,” Behrens said. “We haven’t had any cancellations. Casa Romantica has been so resilient, we’ve been around for 100 years. I’m pretty confident with the support of the city and the community, we’ll flourish.”

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This is not the first time the 1920s-era Casa Romantica, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has had structural work done, Behrens said.

Twenty years ago, several millions of dollars were spent to prepare the facility for public access. There were some buildings on the property that had been added when the estate was used as a senior retirement home from the 1960s to 1980s – it was then owned privately before being sold in 1987 to the city’s redevelopment agency. Those were demolished and the historic house was renovated.

“Casa Romantica is so important and treasured by everyone in the community,” Behrens said. “It’s priceless. We’ve been really concerned and I’m really pleased with the response from the city to ensure the integrity of the historic site is protected.”

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