Water world.

Rancho Palos Verdes officials expect Lowe Enterprises' Destination Resorts and Hotels to begin construction on its $200 million Long Point Resort in the first half of 2004.

After receiving approval from the coastal commission this summer, Brentwood-based Lowe Enterprises only needs Ranchos Palos Verdes planning approval for some routine engineering and landscaping plans, according to Ara Mihranian, the city planner assigned to the project.

"They have accomplished all the major hurdles," he said. "They basically have the approvals they need and now all that remains is to wrap-up some minor details."

Jim York, president of York Associates, which owns the 168-acre ocean bluff parcel where the resort is to be built, declined comment and referred questions to Mike Mohler, senior vice president with Destination Resorts, who did not return calls seeking comment.

The former site of Marineland, an amusement park that closed in 1987, will be home to a 400-room hotel with dozens of villas, a conference center, a three-hole golf course and driving range, and a clubhouse stacked with restaurants and shops. Lowe is also building hiking trails that access the rugged coast and a 2.2-acre public park on the site.

When fully operational, Mihranian said the city expects the resort to generate $4 million annually in transient occupancy and sales taxes.

Still, Mihranian said other developers have failed attempting plans similar to Lowe. More than a decade ago, Monahan Development Corp. received similar approvals, only to lose the deal when financing couldn't be secured.

"The economy took a shift for the worse in the late 1990s so the owner at the time pulled out and sold the property," Mihranian said. "So I guess anything can still happen."