WHAT ARE WE FIGHTING FOR?

Working class families deserve access to our state’s most precious natural resource, the California coast. Every day, hotel workers welcome visitors to some of our State’s most renown coastal luxury resorts and yet, the very people who make visitors’ stays so enjoyable find themselves priced out of staying the night with their families. A lack of affordable housing near seaside resorts leaves workers unable to afford living close to these coastal jobs leaving them with long, expensive commutes that pollute the environment.  

We seek to uphold the fundamental values embodied in the Coastal Act of protecting our coast and the ability of all Californians to access it. In 1972, California voters created the California Coastal Commission by a passing proposition 20, a statewide voter initiative. After four years, the legislature made it permanent by passing the California Coastal Act. The Coastal Act declares that “the basic goals of the state for the coastal zone” include that we “protect, maintain, and where feasible, enhance and restore the overall quality of the coastal zone environment and its natural and artificial resources” and that we “maximize public access to and along the coast and maximize public recreational opportunities in the coastal zone[.]” Unfortunately, these goals of protection of natural resources and coastal access are not a given; we must fight to protect them.

One threat to coastal access is the loss of affordable overnight accommodations so that working Californians can actually experience the beauty the Coastal Act protects. The Coastal Act’s public access policies encourage “maximum access” to be provided for the public (Pub. Res. Code § 30210), which shall not be interfered with by private development (id., § 30211), and in § 30213, that  “[l]ower cost visitor and recreational facilities shall be protected, encouraged, and, where feasible, provided.” Unfortunately, since 1989, California has lost almost 25,000 low-cost overnight accommodations such as motels and affordable hotels.  Without affordable overnight accommodations, coastal access will only be for those wealthy enough to live or visit the coast.

At the same time, we have fought efforts to promote the conversion of homes into luxury vacation rentals. Short term rentals (STRs) do not promote coastal access. To the contrary, the proliferation of unhosted STRs simply creates more luxury options for the richest travelers. Instead, STRs cannibalize existing motels and other lower-cost options, in addition to our state’s decreasing supply of housing. 

Finally, we must protect the natural beauty that attracts visitors to California and supports the fragile ecosystems that line that California coast. Whether it is coastal sage scrub or natural bluffs, our natural resources are under threat. We must diligently fight to advance the Coastal Act’s mandate of protection of the coast’s natural resources.