SHORELINE AND COASTAL BLUFF MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS
SAND COMPATIBILITY AND OPPORTUNISTIC USE PROGRAM (SCOUP)
The City of Solana Beach and other cities are working with SANDAG to promote the placement of opportunistically available beach quality sand on our local beaches. The City of Solana Beach was the first City to obtain all of the federal, state and regional regulatory permits necessary to begin implementing this beach restoration program. Permits were obtained from the California State Lands Commission, California Coastal Commission, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. The City has identified several approved development projects in the City that will be generating beach quality sands in the next few years and is actively working with the property owners to encourage and promote the use of the opportunistically available material for placement on the City's beaches. Please click the link below for additional information:
http://www.sandag.org/index.asp?projectid=299&fuseaction=projects.detail
US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS 50-YEAR BEACH RESTORATION PROJECT
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working with the City of Solana Beach and the City of Encinitas to implement a long term sand replenishment and beach restoration program to reduce the effects of storm damage on the City's shoreline and coastal bluffs. The project team has developed and won approval for developing the first methodology and approach to incorporate federal and state sea level rise projections into the project design in compliance with new regulations established by the USACE in July 2009. A revised draft EIR/EIS is currently being prepared and will be circulated for public review in 2011. Additional federal funding in the amount of $305,000 has been approved for the next fiscal year and State funding requests have been made and continue to be actively pursued by the City. Solana Beach and Encinitas Staff continue to directly manage the consultant team including the coastal engineering contractor and environmental contractor. For further details please visit the USACE website at:
http://www.spl.usace.army.mil/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=73&Itemid=71
REGIONAL BEACH SAND PROJECT #2
Solana Beach and other coastal cities are working together with SANDAG to advance a repeat of the successful 2001 project which brought more than 2 million cubic yards of sand to beaches in the region. The Notice of Preparation has been issued and can be viewed at the link below. In June 2010 public scoping meetings will be initiated. The City is working closely with SANDAG and their contractors to ensure a successful RBSP 2 and is exploring the possibility of placing a greater amount of sand in the City than was placed in 2001. SANDAG has completed many of the necessary environmental studies including completion of an offshore borrow site analysis and sediment compatibility testing to locate offshore sand deposits that can be used for the next beach nourishment project to be implemented in 2012. SANDAG has received funding from the State Department of Boating and Waterways to fund 85% of the RBSP 2. These funds come from the Public Beach Restoration Act Fund and require a 15% match from the local cities participating in the RBSP 2 (which include Solana Beach, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside, and Imperial Beach). For further details please visit the SANDAG website at:
http://www.sandag.org/index.asp?projectid=358&fuseaction=projects.detail
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REEF TECHNOLOGY STUDY AT FLETCHER COVE
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Solana Beach are working together to develop the conceptual engineering design for an artificial reef located offshore from Fletcher Cove. The primary goal of the reef would be to retain sand to create a wider beach and reduce direct wave attack on the City’s coastal bluffs. Secondary but important goals of the project are to provide recreational enhancement and biological resource value immediately offshore. The conceptual project is based on the multi-purpose conceptual reef planned for Ventura County (Oil Piers Reef). In April 2010, the USACE and the City completed the conceptual engineering design study for a submerged reef at Fletcher Cove. Federal, State and local funding commitments for future phases of the project are being pursued to support the initiation of necessary environmental review, design and permitting activities. Please check back to this web page fro future updates.
Click here for the completed draft report.
The following is a link to the USACE webpage on the project: http://www.spl.usace.army.mil/fletchercove.htm
LOCAL COASTAL PROGRAM - LAND USE PLAN
The Local Coastal Program (LCP) is a planning document prepared by cities and counties for areas within the coastal zone as required by the California Coastal Act of 1976. The Coastal Act is intended to ensure that coastal areas of California are utilized and/or developed in a manner responsive to State wide public objectives. The City worked with the local citizens group during the first half of 2009 to respond to comments from the Coastal Commission staff on the Local Coastal Plan (LCP) Land Use Plan (LUP) and develop a revised LUP. The revisions were based substantially on the diligent efforts of a citizens group comprised of knowledgeable citizens, including attorneys, beach front home owners and representatives of a major environmental organization, all with extensive expertise and knowledge of coastal issues.
The City submitted a revised LUP in September 2009 to the California Coastal Commission (CCC0. City Staff met with Coastal Staff in December 2009 to discuss the status of the CCC review and processing schedule and to establish a schedule of ongoing coordination meetings to ensure timely review and processing of the LUP. The document is available for review by clicking on the link below.
Click here for the Local Coastal Program - Land Use Plan
IMPACT MITIGATION FEE STUDY FOR SHORELINE PROTECTIVE DEVICES
In anticipation of the implementation of the LCP described above, in 2008 the City of Solana Beach has initiated the process to establish a reliable methodology to accurately, and fairly determine net Mitigation Fees associated with shoreline protective devices to mitigate for the potential impacts on sand supply and public recreation associated with these devices. The City will also evaluate the potential for offsetting factors relating to potential public benefits associated with shoreline protective devices. The City conducted a public information workshop on these fees on September 18, 2008. In the interim, the City is assessing new shoreline protective devices a $1,000 per linear foot fee deposit that will be applied to the actual fees once adopted by the City. At the urging of the CCC, in 2009 the City agreed to rely on the CCC methodology for assessing sand supply impacts associated with seawalls and revised its draft LUP accordingly. As a result, the City redirected the efforts of the mitigation fee study to focus on identifying the public recreation effects of seawalls including identifying the value of the sandy beach. Data collection efforts were completed in July 2009. At the April 14th, 2010 meeting of the Solana Beach City Council, the City Council directed the City Manager to release this draft report to the public for a 60-day review and comment period beginning on April 16th, 2010 and ending on June 14th, 2010.
Comments on the report must be written and should be directed to the attention of:
Ms. Tina Christiansen, Community Development Director
City of Solana Beach
635 South Highway 101
Solana Beach, CA, 92075.
Comments can also be sent by facsimile to 858-720-2448 or by email to: TChristiansen@cosb.org.
SAN ELIJO LAGOON RESTORATION PROJECT
The City of Solana Beach is working with the City of Encinitas as well as other regional, state and federal stakeholders to develop the San Elijo Lagoon Restoration Project (SELRP). The San Elijo Lagoon forms the boundary between Solana Beach and Encinitas and is a coastal wetland with significant biological and ecological resources. Over the past several decades, the ecological system has gradually degraded due to urban development that has altered the hydrology and increased sedimentation within the lagoon. The goal of the SELRP is to enhance and restore the biological functions and values of the San Elijo Lagoon Reserve with a balance of habitat types. A restoration plan will be developed with various project alternatives that would restore habitat functions and values of the lagoon consistent with the strategies identified in the San Elijo Lagoon Enhancement Plan (County of San Diego 1996) and the San Elijo Lagoon Action Plan (San Elijo Conservancy 1998). The Sand Elijo Lagoon Conservancy website can be viewed at:
REGIONAL COASTAL SEDIMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN
Solana Beach is an active participant with SANDAG in developing the Regional Coastal Sediment Management Plan. The SANDAG RSMP is part of a larger statewide effort underway to more effectively manage coastal sediments which began in 2007. The Management Plan builds upon what has been developed for the California Coastal Sediment Management Master Plan, which has a goal of developing a process that facilitates the management of sand on a regional basis. The Regional Management Plan is a guidance and policy document that will discuss how management of sediment targeted at coastal erosion can be implemented in an expeditious, cost-effective, and resource-protective manner throughout the San Diego region. The sediment sources identified as part of the Regional Management Plan can be placed on regional beaches under the SCOUP and regional projects.
On April 2, 2009, the SANDAG Shoreline Working Group recommended approval of the RSMP to the Regional Planning Committee (RPC). On April 3, the RPC approved the RSMP and on April 24, 2009 the RSMP was approved by the SANDAG Board of Directors. A link to SANDAG and Statewide Coastal Sediment Management Plan is provided below:
http://www.dbw.ca.gov/csmw/crsmp.aspx
FINAL MASTER ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT - SOLANA BEACH SHORELINE ORDINANCE
In 1994 the City of Solana Beach adopted a Shoreline and Coastal Bluff Ordinance superseding the previously existing and inherited County standards. Since then, in response to increased rates of bluff erosion and loss of beach sand associated with El Nino, concern has also increased over balancing public safety, property rights and environmental resources. In 2002, the City prepared an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) to revisit the issue as to how, if at all, it may be appropriate to modify the existing Ordinance or seek other policy alternatives for managing the 1.7 mile City coastline. The EIR also addresses geology, soils, land use, biology, recreation, public access, population, housing, aesthetics and utilities. The EIR is also intended to be helpful to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the preparation of their much larger and more encompassing studies of the Solana Beach and Encinitas coastline. In 2007, the City recertified the Master EIR for another five years continuing to make the EIR suitable for tiering certain identified subsequent projects identified in the Master EIR including non-emergency bluff retention device projects. The recertified Final EIR can be downloaded and viewed from this website by selecting the appropriate link below
Appendices that accompany the Final EIR
