The mood was almost giddy in August 2003 when an the award-winning architectural firm of Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn were tapped to design San Pedro's new waterfront.
"To all of you who doubted, to the critics and the skeptics, this proves our dreams are becoming a reality," Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn confidently declared a year later when the initial plans were approved afrter dozens of community meetings. "People have been wanting this for a very, very long time."
The project, however, unraveled after that, falling victim to bickering community groups, perhaps too many workshops (eventually there were six competing versions going around) and the 2005 city election that swept out all five of the sitting harbor commissioners overseeing the plan.
Now, the port has rolled out yet another draft environmental report, still scaled back from original designs but including a few more items than the last roundly-criticized bare-bones model.
Community members will be invited to speak at an Oct. 27 meeting at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in San Pedro. Written comments also will be taken.
The last draft EIR drew nearly unanimous ridicule so we'll see how this one fares.
But while residents remain hopeful that a project of some kind will eventually be done, the momentum and enthusiasm seem to have waned over the years.
"I think (people) have given up," said James Cross, a community member who was involved in the early efforts to plan the waterfront. "People get so tired. They get burned out."
You can go to the port's Project web page to see the new draft plan and more updates.
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