A California beach road repair project has erupted into a bitter local fight after state regulators approved the long-awaited fix only if the county permanently bans vehicles from the beach to protect a federally threatened shorebird.
The California Coastal Commission voted unanimously earlier this month to grant Humboldt County a coastal development permit to reconstruct a 900-foot stretch of Centerville Road in Eureka.
The low-lying coastal route frequently floods with ocean water and sand during high surf, threatening to leave eight nearby homes completely cut-off.
The county’s proposed solution would raise the roadbed and add a designated parking lot.
But the commission attached a major condition that Centerville Beach must be permanently closed to public vehicle traffic.
Coastal Commission staff argued the driving ban is necessary to protect the western snowy plover — a federally threatened shorebird that nests in the area’s coastal dunes — and to curb reports of off-roaders trespassing onto adjacent private property. Centerville Beach is one of the only places in the state where vehicles were allowed to access the beach
The conditional approval immediately ignited outrage among local officials and residents who view the requirement as an overreach that penalizes recreational beachgoers.
First District Supervisor Rex Bohn voiced his frustration on social media after the Wednesday meeting last week. “They did do an Amendment saying the County can come back with a plan to address their perceived issues and they will reconsider. No one spoke for the ban but it was pretty obvious what commission and staff had already decided,” he said.
Humboldt County Planning Commissioner Iver Skavdal, who represents the district encompassing Centerville Beach, accused the state regulators of using the road project as leverage to force a closure without local input.
“The Coastal Commission has attached a totally unrelated condition shutting down beach vehicular access to the project,” Skavdal said during the meeting’s public comment period, reported SF Gate.
“There has been no community discussion as to why this is necessary. … This just appears to be a backroom deal stuck into the project, holding the project, the residents and the county hostage simply because you can,” he added.
Centerville Beach has long been a popular destination for driving on the sand, surf fishing, and coastal recreation. While environmental advocates argue that vehicle tires destroy sensitive plover nesting habitat and disturb wildlife, local opponents maintain that cutting off vehicular entry severely restricts public access, particularly for anglers and visitors with mobility limitations.
“I view this condition on the county to repair a county road as an act of extortion,” said longtime fisherman, Dave Sirkovic, adding that banning vehicles from the beach would limit access for older and disabled people and fishers.
“To staff, I have this to say: The California Constitution and California Coastal Act both prioritize the protection and survival of the commercial and recreational fishing and provides the absolute right of the people to fish,” Sirkovic said, reported the news outlet.
