2018/April
From ActCoastal
| Year | 2018 |
|---|---|
| Month | April |
| Location | Redondo Beach |
| Description | The Coastal Commission met Wednesday, April 11 through Friday, April 13 at the Redondo Beach Public Library in Redondo Beach, CA. ActCoastal tracked several items this month, including a coastal armoring permit at San Onofre Surf Beach, the reconsideration of a permit for erodible concrete seawall in Solana Beach and a public access violation in Pacifica by Oceanaire Apartments. |
Issues voted on at this Meeting
Click on an issue to read full description
| Issue | Summary | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Cease and Desist Order OceanAire Apartments Pacifica | On Thursday, the Commission heard a cease and desist order involving the collapse and closure, since December 2016, of a public access stairway and trail system that provides public access down a steep coastal bluff in Pacifica. The violations also include unpermitted development activities including unauthorized grading, trenching, and the placement of large boulders, which occurred on the beach and coastal bluff. These actions have violated an existing public access easement required by a CDP for construction of adjacent residential properties.
The Commission reached a settlement with the properties at issue using their administrative penalties authority under Section 30821, requiring the violators to pay $1,450,000 into the Commission’s Violation Remediation Account as well as to restore public access and remove unpermitted development - including the large boulders on the beach. The Surfrider Foundation and the California Coastal Protection Network both spoke in support of this order and the use of administrative penalties as measures to protect public access and restore the beach. As Susan Jordan of CCPN pointed out, this is a reminder that you have to be vigilant with coastal access. Coastal Commission staff worked with the property owners to come to an agreement and therefore the cease and desist orders were consent-based. Commissioners unanimously approved the orders. |
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| Solana Beach Defacto Seawall Reconsideration | In December 2017, the Commission denied an application to install a 90-foot long, preemptive “erodible” concrete seawall. The applicant then filed for reconsideration, the subject of this item. Coastal Commission staff recommended denial of reconsideration since no new relevant evidence was presented and there has been no error of fact or law which has the potential for altering the Commission’s decision.
Revised findings in support of the Commission’s denial were already approved at the March hearing. The Commission found that the proposed infill would adversely impact beach access, recreation and visual quality, all of which are inconsistent with Chapter 3 of the Coastal Act. The agent, Walter Crampton, maintained the portion of the bluff proposed for armoring is indeed in danger of collapse in Solana Beach. Commissioners unanimously denied the request for reconsideration. |
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