Crews work to stabilize hillside at historic Casa Romantica in San Clemente after landslide

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. (KABC) -- Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens in San Clemente is a focal point in the city.

The property is listed as a historic landmark and is the backdrop of many special events, but was recently closed after a landslide took part of the facility's ocean terrace and bluff.

"We have thousands and thousands of people of all ages who come here every year to learn about the history of San Clemente and Southern California and to enjoy the beauty of our gardens," said Executive Director Amy Behrens. "We're looking at just in this first month alone a $250,000 loss, which is significant for a smaller nonprofit organization like ours."

San Clemente Mayor Chris Duncan said work to fix the problem has already begun.

"The structure itself seems to be in solid footing right now," he said. "The only danger is that the landslide continues to creep up closer and closer to the building."

Duncan said crews are trying to stop the slope from sliding.

"We're going to press a lot of this dirt back up into the hillside to stabilize this terrace area that has fallen down the hill of course," he said.

In order for the heavy machinery to access the affected area, Duncan said Casa Romantica's amphitheater had to be demolished and a road had to be carved through its garden.

The mayor said they're sacrifices that need to be made to get the property back to what it was.

"It's going to look different back here but I want to see a terrace back here again," said Duncan. "I want to be able to have functions in the rear of the building where we see our historic municipal pier and we get to gather and celebrate San Clemente."

Casa Romantica plans to have a partial reopening this Memorial Day weekend but officials said it may take well over a year for this space to fully reopen.

In the meantime, they're asking for donations to keep the place afloat.