The iconic dolphin topiaries that stand in the center of Corona del Mar’s main intersection may need to be replaced, according to experts working with members of the Corona del Mar Business Improvement District.
“Everyone has a different opinion,” said Scott Laidlaw, a B.I.D. board meeting, at the group’s September meeting. “I think the question is that, because they are overgrown, whether they need to be replaced.”
At a July meeting, members of the B.I.D. board discussed the shaggy, overgrown topiaries and decided to consult experts to see the best way to trim them.
“They need a diet,” said Mayor Pro Tem Nancy Gardner at the recent meeting. “They look like manatees.”
B.I.D. member C. Scott Palmer said he thought the dolphins looked like “anchors or bombs.”
Laidlaw said he’s discussed the topiaries with experts from Sherman Library & Gardens as well as from Roger’s Gardens, and he’s been working with three members of Newport Beach City staff.
“This is a very complicated thing,” he said. The problems include whether the city is in charge of what gets planted in the median at Marguerite Avenue and East Coast Highway, whether the existing topiaries can be pruned to be slimmer and more dolphin-shaped, and whether the current versions were created from the correct kind of ficus tree, he said.
Corona del Mar Chamber of Commerce President Linda Leonhard asked about one dolphin, which was damaged years ago when a car hit it and still has a wooden post propping it up.
“It’s not very attractive,” she said.
“When the car hit it, people said, ‘Fix it,’” Leonhard said. “We could have a dolphin relief fund.”
The 12 dolphin topiaries were planted in 1993; click here to read a story about their history. A group of volunteers decorate the dolphins for most holidays, and flags representing the branches of the military are added on patriotic holidays.
Over the years, landscaping crews regularly have trimmed the dolphin-shaped bushes, but in July B.I.D. board members suggested that the landscapers may be too cautious and have let them grow too large because they didn’t want to harm them; read our story here.
“We’ll get to the bottom of this,” Laidlaw said. The group likely will discuss updates on the dolphins at its next meeting, which is scheduled for Oct. 27.
