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 City of Solana Beach
Section 2
Shoreline and Coastal Bluff Management Strategies Draft MEIR
Project Description
by construction of the revetment. (Id. at p. 261.) The fact that there is no "fundamental vested
right" to develop property without a permit does not mean that the Commission can refuse to
give effect to a statutory command that, on its face, requires the issuance of a permit when
adequate mitigation can be formulated.
Another question regarding how to interpret 30235 goes to the meaning of the words "existing
structures" as they are used in the phrase in which the statute provides that various kinds of
structures "shall be permitted when required to . . . protect existing structures[.]"
Third-year law student Todd Cardiff of California Western School of Law argues for a narrow
reading of the term in a "comment" entitled, "Conflict in the California Coastal Act: Sand and
Seawalls." He argues that "existing structures" refers only to structures that were in place in
1976, when the Coastal Act was enacted, and that the term does not embrace post-1976
structures that may exist at the time an applicant seeks approval of a shoreline protection
structure. Mr. Cardiff bases his conclusion on his reading of the legislative history of the
Coastal Act, the general policies underlying the Act, and what he considers to be a conflict
between 30235 and 30253 of the Coastal Act.
Section 30253 states that "new development" shall "neither create nor contribute significantly to
erosion, geologic instability, or destruction of the site or surrounding area or in any way require
the construction of protective devices that would substantially alter natural landforms along
To date, Mr. Cardiff's reading of the term "existing structures" has not been accepted either by
any appellate court in a reported case or by the California Coastal Commission itself. Rather,
the Commission has traditionally understood "existing structures" to be those in place when an
applicant files a permit application for a shoreline protective structure. Such structures can
6
Public Resources Code 30253 provides in full as follows:
New development shall:
(1) Minimize risks to life and property in areas of high geologic, flood, and fire hazard.
(2) Assure stability and structural integrity, and neither create nor contribute significantly to erosion,
geologic instability, or destruction of the site or surrounding area or in any way require the
construction of protective devices that would substantially alter natural landforms along bluffs and
cliffs.
(3) Be consistent with requirements imposed by an air pollution control district or the State Air
Resources Control Board as to each particular development.
(4) Minimize energy consumption and vehicle miles traveled.
(5) Where appropriate, protect special communities and neighborhoods which, because of their
unique characteristics, are popular visitor destination points for recreational uses.
Project No. 323530000
Page 2-33
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