His "No. 1 priority," Superintendent Brian Ketterer said, would be beautifying the eroded stretch of coastal bluffs between Pine and Tamarack avenues.

The bluffs, between the Carlsbad Boulevard sidewalk and the beach-level seawalk, have been long considered an eyesore. There are dead plants, squirrel holes and large patches of bare earth. Clumps of non-native, "invasive" species such as the ice plant -- a mat-forming succulent -- and pampas and Arundo grasses compete for space with struggling native plants such as San Diego sunflower.

"It looks like a goat pasture," committee member Dick Erhardt said. "We've got to get that straightened out."

Ed Carrigan, a Chinquapin Avenue resident who has led the push for improvement, said Friday that he was pleased to hear that change was coming. He just wants the city of Carlsbad to assume responsibility for the long-term maintenance, he said.

"The city's making a fortune off the beaches," Carrigan said. "And they could make more if they cleaned this up."

The condition of Carlsbad's beachfront has long been a source of conflict between city officials and the State Parks department, which controls much of the city's seven miles of coastline. In recent years, residents have lobbied City Council for services such as beach lifeguards and better trash collection. City officials have said it's not their job -- beach property south of the downtown Village area is under the state's control, and the land to the north is privately owned.

City Council members repeated that message when Carrigan made his pitch in early December.

Ketterer, who assumed the State Parks superintendent job in September, said Thursday that he realized the relationship between the city and state hadn't been great.

"I think part of my job is to mend those fences," he said.

As a peace offering, he has obtained two grants to get the beautification effort started. In October, he got $2,500 for a landscape architect and in early December he received $5,000 for plants and tools. That's just a small part of the estimated $500,000 that's needed overhaul all of the region -- but it's a start, he said.

The $5,000 grant, plus any other money he can collect in the weeks to come, will be used to fund the Earth Day planting.

Angela O'Hara, the committee's recently appointed chairwoman, said Friday that Ketterer was going about things in the right manner. He has regularly attending her committee meetings -- something that State Parks representatives haven't done in the past, she said.

"I think that symbolically it's really important," she said.

The next challenge will be getting people to understand that the replacement plantings won't look like an "English garden" with a multitude of flowers, she said.

Ketterer said the state will be putting in native plants, which will look better in the spring than at the end of a long dry spell. They won't flower year-round, he stressed.

The people putting the plants in the ground won't be digging too deeply -- the area is an old dump site, and if the planters disturb the stuff lurking underground, "we could run into some big issues," he said.

Contact staff writer Barbara Henry at (760) 901-4072 or bhenry@nctimes.com