About a quarter mile from one of Southern California’s popular surf spots – “T-Street” in San Clemente - sits one of the last undeveloped areas in this part of the coast. It’s known as “Boca Bluffs”. In the 1960s, two homes on the property were destroyed in a landslide, and haven’t been rebuilt since. Instead, the bluffs have provided ocean views and a popular access to the beach and a coastal pedestrian trail below.
However, a developer has sought approval to construct seven blufftop homes overlooking the ocean in this active landslide area. In November, the City of San Clemente issued a notice of preparation of an Environmental Impact Report under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”). On December 15, Surfrider Foundation, on behalf of its O.C. Chapter, submitted scoping comments, raising concerns and issues to be considered and analyzed in the environmental review process. Concerns include siting new development on an already unstable blufftop, in an area that’s already threatened by sea level rise and coastal erosion. The California Coastal Act prohibits new development that will result in geologic instability or rely on shoreline armoring that substantially alters natural landforms along bluffs and cliffs. It also requires that projects minimize risk to life and property in areas of high geologic and flood hazard. The proposed project is particularly concerning given it would sit directly adjacent to a coastal railroad already threatened by sea level rise and erosion, raising transportation and passenger safety concerns. Surfrider also voiced concerns over the proposed development’s potential impacts on beach access, as the property has been subject to substantial use for the past several decades as a means of reaching the coast, and the developer has requested the city vacate an existing public driveway at the property. In 2006, the California Coastal Commission recommended the denial of a similar proposed development at this location, in part due to adverse public access impacts and visual impacts; however, in that case, it was just one – not seven – homes proposed.
Surfrider’s comments to the city of San Clemente underscored that the permitting decisions we make today will impact the coast for generations to come; and considering sea level rise, increasing pressures on coastal access, and how few remaining open spaces and ocean vistas there are in San Clemente, this development would come at a great detriment to the City and coastline.
Under the California Environmental Quality Act, the City is now required to prepare an Environmental Impact Report identifying all of the project’s significant impacts on the environment, mitigation measures to minimize impacts, and reasonable alternatives to the project. Public agencies should not approve projects if there are feasible alternatives or feasible mitigation measures available which would substantially lessen the significant environmental effects of such projects. Surfrider will continue to engage in the public review process and advocate for sound coastal management at this location.
Staley Prom is an in-house attorney for the Surfrider Foundation, providing legal guidance to the organization and its 80 grassroots chapters across the U.S., on clean water, public beach access, coastal preservation, ocean protection, and plastic pollution related matters. Staley also performs general counsel duties related to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and advocacy related compliance, and manages Surfrider’s legal internship program. Prior to joining Surfrider full time in 2015, Staley practiced municipal law at Green, De Bortnowsky & Quintanilla, where she served as a Deputy City Attorney for the cities of Rancho Mirage, Cathedral City, and Victorville, California. She has held internships at the Natural Resources Defense Council, the California Attorney General’s Land Law Section, and Surfrider. Staley is an advisor to the Executive Committee of the Environmental Law Section of the California Lawyers Association, having served on the Executive Committee between 2018 and 2022. In this role, Staley provided leadership on the Section’s sustainability efforts, and contributed to the Student Environmental Law Negotiations Competition and Environmental Law Writing Competition. Staley holds a J.D. from UCLA School of Law, and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Florida with degrees in business administration and communications. She is originally from Jacksonville, Florida, and now resides in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains where she enjoys spending time with her family in nature and at the beach.