Dana Point residents are pushing to save nearly 70 mature pine trees from removal after the Marriott hotel directly behind the park offered up plans and money to renovate Lantern Bay Park to improve sightlines to the harbor.
Gwendolyn Oxenham and Alex Katona, Dana Point residents, have spearheaded community efforts to save the trees from removal.
“Our issue is this is a public park for its residents,” Katona said in an interview.
Oxenham first took the issue to Nextdoor, an app where neighbors can discuss community topics, to let residents know about the proposed removal just a few days before city officials were set to discuss it.
“Every neighbor loves these trees and has memories, and I can’t tell you how many messages we’ve gotten of ‘oh my gosh, I proposed to my wife under those trees’ or ‘I had my high school graduation (here),” Oxenham said.
While the shade and aesthetic benefits of the pines have been driving the argument, Katona mentioned that the trees also help keep soil in place during periods of rain.
“They also help with rainwater and runoff and stormwater issues and like when we’re getting flooding. If you don’t have enough trees to anchor all this stuff in place, it’s gone.”
Southern California is slated to be hit by an historic El Niño season this year, with storms off the coast already leading to flooding, loss of beaches and waterfront properties.
“The tree roots are anchors and they keep the soil in place and they keep the bluff safe, so to remove all of these as we’re losing the coast, it’s wild,” Oxenham said in an interview.
The park overhaul plan was suggested by the nearby Marriott Hotel to improve sight lines to the harbor, as currently the canopies of the pines block the view from the rooms.
The hotel is currently undergoing a $60 million renovation and had to replace a water line on city property. Because the city allowed them to use Lantern Bay Park to replace the line, they have agreed to pay for renovations to the park.
“As part of that work, South Coast Water District installed new water lines serving the resort within a portion of Lantern Bay Park,” a staff report reads. “Through coordination with City staff, Ocean Cliffs agreed to fund and construct improvements to Lantern Bay Park.”
There are currently two groves of Torrey pines at the Lantern Bay Park, one following a walkway up to the amphitheater and another surrounding a playground. There is also a grove of Stone pines nearby the walkway, shading several picnic tables and barbecues.
The issue first came up at the Oct. 6 city council meeting, where the plans regarding the removal and upgrades were detailed, but talks of renovation first began in November 2025.
Both the grove of Stone Pines and the Torreys lining the walkway were slated to be removed under the original park overhaul plan submitted by the Marriott.
While two of the Torrey pines along the walkway are facing “declining health” due to extensive damage from bark beetles, the remaining Torreys and Italian Stone pines are seemingly healthy.
“The Torrey pines proposed for removal are in declining health, and the arborist has recommended removing the two in the poorest condition,” reads the staff report.
“The stone pine grove is healthy and currently provides shade, so its removal is a tradeoff between the existing canopy and the views and open space the design creates.”
Marriott’s proposed improvements will look to add a botanical garden with native plants, updates to the Smyth Brothers Amphitheater, including lighting and regrading, replacement of pines lining the amphitheater walkway with roses and crape myrtles, and new walkways.
Marriott officials didn’t return calls for comment.
Meanwhile, residents have rallied to keep the trees, with over 150 public comments about the proposed project, and a change.org petition that has over 4,000 signatures to keep the trees.
A survey conducted by the city between Aug. 28 and Sept. 21 asked park-goers what improvements they would like to see.
Of the 75 people surveyed, 61 respondents reported that they visit the park daily or weekly, and 45 were Dana Point residents.
More than half of respondents said that they would want to keep landscaping the same and add more amenities, like shade and seating. Just three would prefer fewer or smaller trees to keep the views of the harbor open.
When council members discussed the topic of the tree removal, they couldn’t come to a consensus.
Councilmember Jamey Federico and Mayor John Gabbard supported the project as proposed, while Councilmembers Mike Frost, Matthew Pagano and Michael Villar expressed support to work to keep the trees if possible, and change Marriott’s park overhaul proposal.
“It’s not going to be a popular opinion out there, but I think the pine grove is a mess underneath it,” said Federico at the Oct. 6 council meeting.
“Overgrown with roots and the pine needles keep grass from growing, and I think there are ways to get shade trees back, redesign this park, and make it better for everyone.”
The first vote to move forward with the plan, including removal of the trees and later forming a subcommittee, failed as three out of five of the council members voted against it.
“I am not swayed by the fact that these trees were here and you can never cut a tree down. I am swayed, though, by the fact that it does appear as though the shade is very helpful and very wanted,” said Frost at the Oct. 6 meeting.
Eventually, council members voted to create a subcommittee to work with Marriott to overhaul the park plans and keep the trees.
On Nov. 1, the subcommittee will meet with the public at the park to hear concerns and share updates on meetings with Marriott planners.
“The City Council Subcommittee appointed to review details of the Lantern Bay Park Renovation Project has engaged in meaningful discussions with Marriott leadership and will recommend preserving all existing trees,” reads the flyer for the meeting.
The council will bring the issue back to the agenda on Nov. 17, just a few weeks after election season, though it is currently unclear what changes might be seen.
Oxenham said the issue has united local residents.
“It’s been beautiful to watch our community come together and be like, ‘we just can’t stomach losing them, we cannot lose these trees.’”
