07 • 06 • 2017

CA Supreme Court Upholds CA Coastal Commission Seawall Requirements

The California Supreme Court upheld permit conditions for a seawall in Encinitas that helps to set precedent statewide. The Surfrider Foundation weighed in on the side of the CCC as an amicus (“friend of the court”) party.

In the Lynch v. California Coastal Commission case, two private blufftop property owners in Encinitas challenged the permit requirements attached to their new seawall permit. This 2010 permit application was to replace a wooden seawall structure with a new 100-foot long, tied-back seawall across the two private oceanfront properties of Barbara Lynch and Thomas Frick. The blufftop owners argued that the California Coastal Commission (“CCC”) should not be able to impose restrictive permit conditions, including a 20-year permit authorization period. The Surfrider amicus brief explained the importance of natural dynamic coastal erosion processes, how seawalls preclude those natural processes and threaten the existence of sandy beaches, and the related CCC obligations to maximize public beach access and coastal recreation under Chapter 3 of the California Coastal Act.

Click Here for more details from Surfrider's Coastal Blog.