Meeting Overview
The Coastal Commission held its first public meeting of the year in Half Moon Bay from Wednesday, Feb. 4 through Friday, Feb. 6 The agenda, initially packed with several controversial items, thinned out considerably as applicants withdrew and/or postponed their hearings for another day. Eight items were withdrawn or postponed, including Pacifica’s contentious Short-Term Rental LCP amendment and a Laguna Beach CDP application testing the Commission’s ability to enforce blufftop setbacks.
On Wednesday, the Commission awarded its remaining LCP Grant Program funds to San Francisco. A consent enforcement agreement resolved years of unpermitted development on sensitive Humboldt County wetlands.
Thursday highlights included an informational briefing on the coexistence of California’s fishing communities and offshore wind, as well as a Reconsideration request involving a bluff edge determination on private property in Laguna Beach.
And on Friday, the Commission approved a CDP for a new season of Baywatch (yes, Baywatch) to be filmed at Venice Beach, Los Angeles.
With five Pro-Coast votes and none to decry, ActCoastal chalks up February’s Commission meeting as a great start to the year. With public engagement strong, let’s keep up the positive momentum as the 50th anniversary of the Coastal Act gets into full swing.
Issues voted on at this meeting:
The Commission approved a permit for filming a new Baywatch series at Venice Beach from March through July 2026, with comprehensive conditions for the protection of biological and cultural resources, as well as for minimizing impacts to public coastal access
The Commission approved Oceanside's LCP amendment updating its inclusionary housing provisions, which increase the requirement to reserve housing for low and moderate-income households from 10% to 15% in multi-family residential developments.
The Commission denied a request to reconsider its bluff edge determination for two adjacent properties in Laguna Beach
The Commission approved a consent enforcement agreement resolving years of unpermitted development on biologically and culturally significant wetlands in Humboldt County
The Commission awarded $628,000 to San Francisco to develop a Coastal Adaptation Plan for the city's outer coast. The grant will fund an updated sea level rise vulnerability assessment using the most recent state guidance, a Visitor and Accessibility Study examining how coastal access may be impacted by sea level rise (with focus on environmental justice communities), and a technical analysis of potential habitat areas.
Other Discussions
50th Anniversary Highlights
Executive Director Dr. Kate Huckelbridge announced the Commission will highlight one program and one public access achievement monthly this year as one of their multiple initiatives to celebrate the Coastal Act’s 50th anniversary. She then introduced Javier Reyes-Padilla and Chinonso Uzuwihe from the Commission’s newest program, its Environmental Justice (EJ) Unit. Padilla and Uzuwihe provided an inspiring overview of the EJ Unit’s work since the Commission adopted their Environmental Justice policy in 2019, including achievements and future goals. Their full report can be accessed here, as well as an 11-minute video of their presentation.
ActCoastal members Azul and Surfrider Foundation both provided comments in support of the EJ Unit’s work. Azul played an integral role in developing and sponsoring AB 2616, the 2016 bill which granted the Commission authority to address environmental justice. Staff from Outdoor Outreach, a San Diego-based NGO that connects youth to the outdoors (including the coast), also praised the EJ unit’s support. Outdoor Outreach is part of the Surf Justice Collective, a group of CA-based organizations working to build a more inclusive surf culture by addressing barriers to recreational surfing and ocean access. These public comments, as well as supportive remarks from the Commissioners themselves, can be watched after the public access presentation in the next video below.
The Commission’s Public Access Manager, Linda Locklin, presented on access improvements the agency required as part of their 1992 approval of the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Half Moon Bay. The improvements included a public access stairway to the sandy beach below, the addition of 40 parking spots and restroom facilities, and a 1-mile addition to the California Coastal Trail accessible from the hotel. Watch Locklin’s presentation below, and/or check out the Commission's Instagram post on these amenities.
LCP Grant Program Funding Depleted
The $600K LCP Grant awarded to San Francisco (see Vote Chart item) will be the Commission’s last until they receive more funding for the LCP Grant Program. This round of grants relied on $31m in funding from the Budget Act of 2021, and lasted until this month. Some opportunities for local government funding are still available at the Ocean Protection Council. However, LCP Grant funding remains critical for cities and counties updating their LCPs, especially sea level rise vulnerability and adaptation plans required by 2034 under SB 272. More funding for this program will be critical to ensure coastal cities and counties prepare for sea level rise into the next century.
Short-Term Rental (STR) policies for Encinitas and Del Mar
Coastal Zone short-term rental policies are becoming a lightning rod issue, simultaneously affecting overnight accommodations and permanent housing availability—often in direct conflict. Coastal Zone homeowners weigh in on both sides, alongside STR interest groups and companies like Airbnb. STR operators generally want fewer restrictions while neighboring homeowners favor more, particularly preferring hosted over non-hosted units and opposing corporate-owned properties. Commissioner opinions vary widely, making for unpredictable hearings.
While Pacifica's STR amendment was pulled from the agenda due to ongoing community contention that staff needs more time to address, hearings proceeded for Encinitas and Del Mar in San Diego County. Despite their proximity, the two cities presented starkly different approaches—illustrating that no one-size-fits-all "Goldilocks" standard exists when each coastal city faces unique housing and visitor accommodation contexts.
Encinitas encourages hosted STRs with unlimited permits but caps non-hosted units at 4% of Coastal Zone housing, while Del Mar makes no hosted/non-hosted distinction and sets a hard cap of 129 total STRs. The cities also diverge on multi-family housing: Encinitas bans all STRs in condos except one townhome community with STR history, while Del Mar allows up to 10% of units per complex. To prevent neighborhood overconcentration, Encinitas requires 200 feet between non-hosted STRs; Del Mar has no spacing requirements.
Both cities proposed 3-night minimums for non-hosted STRs. Concerned that not every family can afford three nights or get three consecutive days off work, Commissioner Lopez moved to lower the minimum to 2 nights for both cities. His motion passed for Encinitas but failed for Del Mar—commissioners noting the small coastal city's significantly higher per-capita supply of traditional hotel rooms as a viable alternative for shorter stays.