Coastal Commission Arguments

Author:  Paul Beard

Last week, the California Court of Appeal in Orange County heard argument in McNamee v. California Coastal Commission, with a decision expected in the next 90 days or so. 

The appeal challenges the California Coastal Commission’s denial of a permit allowing the McNamees to keep tables, benches and other beach amenities in their private backyard, which abuts a public beach.  The Commission denied the permit primarily on the grounds that the amenities were too bulky and out-of-character with the surrounding areas, and that the amenities hindered the public’s use of the public beach–grounds that constitute a misapplication of the relevant law and fly in the face of the facts in the record. 

Here’s a short summary of the case and argument:

The argument garnered substantial media attention in the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Times, and even on Fox News’s Fox & Friends:

Finally, today, PLF attorney Dave Breemer had a hearing before the San Mateo County Superior Court in the closely watched case of Sterling v. California Coastal Commission.  The issue there is whether a family can be forced to farm as a condition of obtaining a permit to build a home on their land!  Watch our video summary of the case: