Meeting Overview
The Coastal Commission met in Redondo Beach from October 8-10. Wednesday marked Commissioner Turnbull-Sanders' last day after 10 years as the Commission's first environmental justice appointment. Replacing her is Jaime Lee, an LA-based real estate developer selected by Governor Newsom as the new EJ Commissioner, who began her tenure Thursday.
Notable Wednesday items included amendments to a previously approved beachfront aquatics center in Long Beach, approval to replace the iconic Gladstone's with a new restaurant in Pacific Palisades, and an informational presentation on the Commission's 2025-2030 Strategic Plan (returning for approval in December).
A Carlsbad enforcement action took center stage Thursday, resulting in a pro-coast vote chart addition. Meanwhile, five seawall items for mostly pre-Coastal Act homes were approved on consent—one Thursday (Carlsbad) and four Friday (Pismo Beach, Cayucos, Aptos, and Santa Cruz). These decisions are detailed below.
Issues voted on at this meeting:
After nearly a decade of failed attempts to amicably resolve alleged Coastal Act violations at a unique beach and lagoon-adjacent property in North Carlsbad, the Commission unanimously approved a significant enforcement action against the property owner. The alleged violations included blocking coastal access and unpermitted development within a conditioned wetland habitat buffer zone.
Other Discussions
Gladstone’s redevelopment in Pacific Palisades
The Commission approved a multifaceted project to replace the longstanding beachfront Gladstone's at Pacific Coast Highway and Sunset Boulevard in Pacific Palisades. The new multistory development will include an upscale restaurant with indoor and outdoor dining, a snack bar/cafe, a public deck with seating for at least 100 people, two restrooms, and an extension of the Coastal Trail seaward of the development. The public deck will be smaller than the existing one, but staff favored it to resolve persistent confusion over the current deck, which is open to the public but also used for restaurant service.
Existing rock revetment will be removed as a condition of approval, and the Commission required the development be built such that no future armoring can be approved. Instead, the applicant agreed to remove any or all parts of the development that become unsafe due to coastal hazards and sea level rise. These are strong beach protection conditions, though we question the wisdom of dedicating public space to such a large, mostly private development on a narrow beach during accelerating sea level rise.
The project also reconfigures the public parking lot on the same property. The City of Los Angeles will add a bus turnaround to extend Big Blue Bus service to this location, reducing parking by 64 spots. Commission staff and Commissioners embraced this tradeoff to increase public transit while decreasing car dependency. However, bus service is incompatible with surfing and other gear-intensive coastal recreation, and this lot serves popular surf spot Sunset Point. Surfrider questioned whether a more balanced approach could maintain bus service without such stark parking loss. Many local residents opposed the project due to the bus terminal and concerns about increased density in the Palisades, while Surfrider pushed for balance rather than outright opposition. The Commission approved the project unanimously, though a conditioned parking management plan allows the Commission to require changes if the new configuration proves unsuccessful.
Armoring permits and amendments
The following coastal armoring permits and amendments were moved to consent and unanimously approved. Each includes important conditions:
- Carlsbad: Approval to reconfigure an existing rock revetment back into its originally permitted footprint. The permit requires removal of unpermitted portions that were out of conformance with the 1993 original permit. The applicant agreed to pay $203,000 in mitigation fees to resolve this Coastal Act violation. Special conditions include an agreement that this work represents 42% redevelopment toward the 50% threshold, a lateral access easement seaward of the revetment, and regular Mean High Tide Line (MHTL) surveys to ensure the rocks don't encroach on public tidelands.
- Pismo Beach: Approval to fill four seacaves and seawall portions of the bluff face below a pre-Coastal Act home at Memory Park. As mitigation, the applicant agreed to work with the City and County on a public access improvement project, most likely repairs to a nearby beach access staircase needing maintenance.
- Cayucos: Approval of a large seawall to protect a blufftop home. Similar to Pismo Beach, mitigation will finance repairs for a nearby public access staircase needing maintenance. After receiving a letter from the local Audubon group about the importance of bird habitat and birding in the area, the Commission adjusted the permit to require ledges for birds to perch and nest integrated into the seawall design.
- Aptos: Approval to restack dislodged rock back into an approved revetment protecting an entire row of beachfront homes along Potbelly Beach Road. This amendment included stacking additional rocks but also required removal of 14 unpermitted private beach access staircases previously built over the revetments. The applicants must also cover the repaired revetment with sand and vegetate it with native plants—a condition from their original permit that was never implemented. Special conditions include agreement on 10.2% redevelopment status and regular MHTL monitoring.
- Santa Cruz: Approval near the 26th Street beach access stairway to retrieve and restack dislodged rock back into an approved revetment protecting a blufftop home. This amendment requires the applicant to resolve several unpermitted developments, including removal of a stucco wall blocking public views from the adjacent beach access staircase. Several wooden retaining walls above the revetment but seaward of the home will also be removed, to be replaced with native bluff vegetation. Regular MHTL monitoring is also required.