DEL MAR -- As the region's big utilities enter the home stretch of a $90 million restoration of the San Dieguito Lagoon, fish and birds are flocking to the coastal wetlands jewel in large numbers -- and so are people.

The surge in popularity of the scenic lagoon next to the Del Mar Fairgrounds has prompted Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric Co. to limit public recreation in the restoration project area. They have hired two park rangers to remind people that fishing and boating aren't allowed, and to keep people out of sensitive habitat where rare, shy birds build their nests.

"I'm a huge fan. Love it," said Rancho Santa Fe resident Cutter Clotfelter of the ranger program that debuted last month.

Clotfelter, who grew up near the lagoon, said his only objection was the number of rangers: two.

"There aren't enough of them," he said.

Kelly Sarber, a spokeswoman for the San Dieguito project, said the utilities paid for two rangers to roam the 460 acres during daylight hours, at an annual cost of $300,000. Sarber said the uniformed officers armed with maps of the reserve are trying to keep people on the three miles of trails.

"It's so exciting to have people coming there," Sarber said. "And we want to encourage them to come."

But she said it is important for visitors to avoid disturbing the fish and birds that are reclaiming the area and to stay out of the way of humans working to finish restoring the lagoon by winter 2010.

The utilities have been working on the restoration since October 2006. It is a project the California Coastal Commission ordered the power companies to tackle to make up for environmental damage caused when their San Onofre nuclear power plant pumps in ocean water to cool its turbines. According to a state study, billions of baby fish and eggs are destroyed in the process each year.

At the same time, lagoon restorers and the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy are gearing up for a series of workshops over the weekend aimed at reaching a community consensus on a design for a lagoon visitor center.

The lagoon's main trail is part of the Coast to Crest Trail that one day will stretch east along the San Dieguito River to Volcan Mountain near Julian.

And the visitor center is intended to become a gateway to the coastal section of the river park.

"We're really encouraging people to stop by and see what's going on, so that everybody has a chance to have a voice in this," said Susan Carter, deputy director for the San Dieguito River Park.

The workshops are scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the visitor-center site along San Andres Drive south of Via de la Valle.

The south end of San Andres is where the reserve's portion of the Coast to Crest Trail begins. From there it heads south to the river, then follows it under I-5 to the Jimmy Durante Boulevard bridge south of the fairgrounds.

After the restoration is done, Sarber said, the utilities plan to extend the trail west to the ocean and east to Del Mar Horse Park.

There is also the Mesa Loop, an interpretive trail in the upland portion of the restoration area, and the Interpretive Trail Over Look by the lagoon.

Sarber said several more miles of trails are planned.

The 2-mile section of Coast to Crest Trail is isolated, for now, from the rest of the San Dieguito River Park. There is a large gap between the completed portion of the trail in the vicinity of Lake Hodges and through San Pasqual Valley and it may be many years before the two ends connect.

Carter said 34 miles of trail are in place. When completed, she said, the mileage is expected to approach 70.

With the home stretch of the restoration approaching, the San Dieguito Lagoon is becoming a magnet for wildlife.

In the first seven months after restorers opened the lagoon to ocean tides in January 2008, the fish population soared from effectively zero to 12 million fish.

And biologists have documented a near-tripling of the bird species present in the project area over the last four years, from 59 to 158 this year.

Biologists have counted four dozen pairs of Belding's savannah sparrows, a half-dozen pairs of coastal California gnatcatchers and a small number of least Bell's vireo birds, Sarber said.

"Some of these birds are really quite shy and do better when there are not people right up against them," she said.

And there have been some surprises.

"We saw an American bald eagle at the site (in March)," Sarber said. "It was about 4 feet tall. It was gigantic." The bird fished the river and lagoon, then moved on.

If people can exercise a little patience through the last construction phase, there will be a whole lot more to see, Sarber said.

"This is just the beginning of what is going to be just an unbelievable regional asset," she said.

Staff photographer Hayne Palmour IV contributed to this report.

Call staff writer Dave Downey at 760-745-6611, ext. 2623.

San Dieguito Lagoon Visitor Center

The San Dieguito River Park Joint Powers Authority and the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy are holding a series of workshops this weekend to gather public input and develop a community consensus on the design of a visitor center for the San Dieguito Lagoon and Coast to Crest Trail. All meetings are scheduled to be held at the proposed site for the visitor center, along the east side of San Andres Drive south of Via de la Valle, near Del Mar.

- 1 to 3 p.m. Friday. Open house and site tour.

- 3 to 4 p.m. Friday. Site opportunities presentation.

- 9 to 10 a.m. Saturday. Site opportunities presentation.

- 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Design development open house with public interaction, part one.

- 9 to 10 a.m. Sunday. Design recap presentation.

- 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Design development open house with public interaction, part two.

- 3 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Design update presentation.

For more information, contact Susan Carter at 858-674-2270 or susan@sdrp.org.