Laguna Beach Homeowner Must Tear Down Seawall
- William Fulton
- Dec 22, 2020
- 3 min read
A Laguna Beach property owner must remove an existing seawall along the beach because the remodel of the property owner’s beachfront house violated the terms of the relevant coastal development permit – and the property owner didn’t stop the remodel even when the Coastal Commission undertook an enforcement action.
The case could be a harbinger of things to come, as the Coastal Commission seems to crack down on other old seawalls along the beach. “This ruling sends a couple messages, including that people can’t play games behind our backs to avoid working with us,” Coastal Commission attorney Alex Helperin told the Orange County Register. “If you’re going to play games, you’re just going to make more trouble for yourself.”
The case involves a blufftop home on Victoria Beach built in 1952. In 2014, the city issued a coastal development permit until its local coastal plan that permitted a renovation of the building – and allow the previously unpermitted seawall to remain – so long as the renovation did not constitute “new development”. The permit was appealed to the Coastal Commission. In the course of negotiating with the Coastal Commission, the property owner gave up on plans to expand the house and agreed to focus instead on “some cosmetic remodeling”.
In 2015, Jeffrey and Tracy Katz, who live next door, purchased the property and undertook the construction project. They returned to the city to receive permits to reinforce the seawall and engage in additional renovation work, which the city did not classify as a “major remodel” because it did not involve demolition of 50% of the footprint or the roof. However, the Katzes did not inform the Coastal Commission of these additional steps.