Geological study plaed for San Pedro's Sunken City

A $100,000 geological study is set to begin next week at San Pedro’s popular but fenced-off Sunken City area that some residents want to open up for public access during daylight hours.

The goal? To find ways to lower the risks in the cliff-top area by removing debris, including crumbled roads from the original 1920s landslide.

That could mean some of the area’s apocalyptic charm may be carted away in time. But the issue of some historical preservation will be taken into account if it is decided changes are to be made to the landscape.

When the coastal neighborhood that once stood on top of the cliff began slumping toward the ocean in 1929, there was still time to move many of the bungalow homes. But pieces of streets, sidewalks and old Red Car tracks slipped off the top, tumbling onto the cliffside and becoming Sunken City’s famous ruins in the form of concrete slabs that made an appealing canvas for graffiti over the years.

The area draws young people from all over and was featured in last year’s finale of AMC’s “Fear the Walking Dead.”

Michael Shull, general manager of the Los Angeles city Department of Recreation and Parks, approved the study earlier this month and identified the funding. The study will be launched March 7 and a report on its findings will be given in June. Additional funding would be needed to make any repairs or changes.

June Burlingame Smith of the Point Fermin Residents Association and Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council commended the city for the study, adding that engineering available today to stabilize cliffs — such as the underground anchors and drains put in at the Paseo del Mar landslide just west of Point Fermin — should be on the table for use if the area could benefit.

“Engineering developments have made so much progress with our understanding of landslides” since the 1920s, she said.

Last year, groundwater was seen seeping at the bottom of the Point Fermin cliff near the lighthouse in the park west of Sunken City.

At the time of the 1929 collapse, Smith said there wasn’t a lot of engineering recourse to stabilize the partially collapsed 10-acre bluff, which was finally fenced off after late-night parties drew neighborhood complaints in the 1970s and ’80s.

The fence, however, hasn’t kept revelers out and residents believe the area — which offers some of the most spectacular views of the ocean in San Pedro — should be made available during daytime hours.

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Fencing it off, they said, has only tued the spot into an “attractive nuisance.” The area is dangerous at night and police and rescue crews frequently are called out to respond to problems. Lights and security cameras for the fence area are under discussion.

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