CPOA urges the Board of Supervisors to direct staff to re-issue RFP, ensure it reaches the appropriate contact people at each of the major Coastal Consulting firms, and to extend the deadline by 30 days.
BOS item 57 (13633) on 12/6/22, to defer and set a Public Hearing for 12/12/2023 on the new proposed amendments to the Amendments to the LCP Safety Element 6.4 (Land Use Plan) for Coastal Beaches and Bluffs, and the Geological Hazards sections (Implementation Plan chapter 16.10). On October 14, 2022 the Coastal Commission denied a portion of the amendments addressing development on coastal bluffs and beaches. The
timeline for these updates is estimated to include most of 2023. Therefore, staff is
recommending this item be deferred to December 12, 2023.
A copy of the Final CCC Staff Report can be downloaded from: https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/reports/2022/10/F10e/F10e-10-2022-report.pdf. CCC Staff have recommended to the California Commissioners that the proposed LCP Amendments be denied. The Board of Supervisors MUST withdraw the proposed LCP Amendments, or the County and property owners may face significant consequences from the CCC as they try to maintain their shoreline protection, or redevelop the property.
Major Differences between CCC’s Position vs. County Proposed LCP:
A. CCC’s definition of “existing structures” being those structures which were present prior to the Coastal Act (January 1, 1977).
B. No new armoring for existing structures or redevelopment in coastal hazard zones.
C. Existing Armoring (Revetment Rocks) along East Cliff Dr. between the Harbor and Soquel Point may need to be removed as the public beaches shrink due to sea level rise.
D. The requirement for all property owners with existing shoreline protection (seawalls or revetment rocks) to file a “Monitoring, Maintenance, and Repair Plan (MMRP)” and to routinely inspect, maintain, and repair the shoreline structures and prevent any seaward migration.
E. When necessary, managed retreat to move structures inland to preserve public access and beaches.
F. Shoreline Protection Exception Area (SPEA). The County had proposed a “Shoreline Protection Exception Area, extending approximately 1.4 miles from Soquel Point (APN # 028-304-72) to the Capitola City border.
CPOA Members are invited to a party and reception on October 12, 2022 from 6 – 8 p.m at the home of Steve Laub, located at 2866 S. Palisades Avenue in Pleasure Point to meet with Supervisor Manu Koenig and will have the opportunity to discuss what Santa Cruz’s potential next steps are given the Coastal Commission’s recent response to Santa Cruz’s LCP.
On September 20, 2022 the County Board of Supervisors voted not to withdraw the proposed LCP Amendments for Coastal Beaches and Bluffs, but to allow it to go to the Coastal Commissioners for Hearing on October 13, 2022. It is anticipated that the Coastal Commissioners will reject (deny) the proposed LCP Amendments, and send it back to the County for revision and resubmittal. The Supervisors directed the Planning staff to begin setting up meetings with CCC staff, CCC Regional Officers and major stake holders beginning in early 2023, with the goal of resubmitting LCP amendments that can be certified by CCC by October 2023. This is also tied to Housing Element which is due by December 2023.
Without a formal written review, Coastal Commission staff has informed County staff they intend to recommend denial of the amendments related to coastal hazards, including LCP Safety Element 6.4 (Land Use Plan) for Coastal Beaches and Bluffs, and the Geological Hazards sections (Implementation Plan chapter 16.10), which were deferred for review by CCC until this summer. Therefore the County Planning Department Staff has recommended to the Board of Supervisors that the entire LCP proposed amendments be withdrawn. CPOA has requested the County share all feedback received from the CCC regarding the LCP Safety Element 6.4 (Land Use Plan) for Coastal Beaches and Bluffs, and the Geological Hazards sections (Implementation Plan chapter 16.10).
Meet Shebreh Kalantari-Johnson, candidate for Country Supervisor – District 3, who supports homeowner rights and is against the County proposed Empty Home Tax. Party on 9/16/22 @ 5:30 p.m., at 276 Beach Drive in Aptos, sponsored by Jim Vaudagna. Please RSVP to jvaudagna@comcast.net
The CCC will review and approve Santa Cruz County’s proposed changes to Public Park Beach fees and access. According to Section 15.05.05, the word “beach” will now be changed to “coastal access” throughout and the minimum public shoreline access easement width is increased from 5 feet to 10 feet. It appears that easements for current beach access paths for Public Parks will be widened from 5 to 10 feet, to access costal beaches. This would impact beaches such as Twin Lakes, Blacks Beach, and Moran Lake. The easement to adjacent property owners may be increased by up to five feet on either side of existing beach trails in State & local parks, without any compensation to the property owners.
On April 13, 2021 the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors voted to dissolve the Live Oak Parking Program, effective May 1, 2021 due to strong opposition from the Coastal Commission and residents regarding the proposed changes. Without a parking program and restrictions, we may see RVs and long term parking along East Cliff Dr from the Harbor to 41st Ave. The County plans to continue to work on a parking program that will be acceptable to the CCC and residents.