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October 13, 2008 -

Encinitas Limits Surf Camps

Encinitas has joined the list of communities regulating and limiting surf camps and surf schools on city beaches.  The North County Times reported that “[a]t least 14 commercial surf camps operated on Encinitas beaches last summer, leaving residents and visitors complaining that they were being crowded out.”  

The move will limit the days and hours classes could be conducted, limit the number of students at any one location, and impose a per student charge on school operators.

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October 12, 2008 -

Beach Law In Practice

Lack of updates are due in large part to the time involved in planning and organizing our recent wedding reception at Crown Point.  Still not certain why the city felt justified in charging $375 for an event permit fee, considering that in end it didn’t guarantee us use of the shelter or pretty much anything else.  Don’t light the tiki torches.  Don’t run a generator.  Don’t cook using anything other than the provided grills.  Don’t have amplified music.  And don’t ever, ever, have alcohol on the beach.  

The reception went amazingly well despite the city though, and it still was a better deal than several hotels offered.  The weather was beautiful.  Our caterer was flexibile and worked within or around the silly rules.  The San Diego Men’s Chrorus’s voices were beautiful.  The toast with sparkling fruit juice might not have been traditional, but then again little else about our wedding was traditional either.  Want proof?  The official photos are here.  

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August 20, 2008 -

Status Quo at San Onofre

An Orange County judge has ordered that the status quo regarding the clothing optional beach at San Onofre be maintained pending further hearings.  That means the nudity remains legal for now.

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August 1, 2008 -

San Onofre Update

There’s a good update on the status of the state’s efforts to end San Onofre’s clothing optional status and the legal battle to preserve the status quo in an article by Matt Coker at OCWeekly.com. 

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July 4, 2008 -

Being Independent

Off celebrating Independence Day and conducting a little personal research on the impact of the new anti-alcohol regulations on San Diego area beaches.  In the meantime, even though I haven’t seen it yet, Alexander Jackson’s fictionalized but first-hand account of his stint as a beach lifeguard in Stone Harbor (New Jersey) has been getting some good reviews.  The book is called Lost Paradise, A Lifeguard’s Tale.  The account is reportedly based on his experiences lifeguarding for five summers on the New Jersey shore.

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June 30, 2008 -

Trial Regulations for Kite Surfing

A six-month trial of proposed regulations for kite surfing starts July 1 at the Silver Strand State Beach.  According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, the regulations restrict the area where kite surfing can be practiced to avoid conflict with others in the water.

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June 24, 2008 -

Money and Art

The San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that California’s ‘Whale Tale’ license plate is going to be changed due to a dispute over royalties between the Coastal Commission and the original artist, Robert Wyland.  The state has reportedly collected $40 million from the special plate since it was introduced in 1997.

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June 12, 2008 -

Bikinis Are Back

Kanab, Utah, has reportedly decided that a policy at their new city pool prohibiting both bikinis and speedos went too far, and will change the rule.  Giggling though at City Councilwoman Nina Laycock’s statement that “We were so engrossed with safety and health issues we overlooked the wording.”  How on earth is a dress code a health and safety issue?  The comments on the original Salt Lake Tribune article are particularly entertaining. 

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June 6, 2008 -

Wardrobe Changes Announced For San Onofre

The acting superintendent for San Onofre State Beach has announced that effective September 1 nudity will no longer be permitted at the park’s Trail 6 Beach.  This is not a change in law, but in local enforcement.  According to the Union-Tribune, the decision to abandon years of tolerance is due to a new interpretation of a civil rights law from 1991.  The nudity reportedly makes some employees unconfortable, and park management is reportedly acting to avoid sexual harassment claims, though the Union-Tribune article seems to refute the legal basis for that rationale. 

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May 30, 2008 -

Economic Shifts

Good article in the L.A. Times on continuing turmoil in the Southern California surfboard industry since the 2005 shutdown of Clark Foam, attributed at the time by Clark to California’s unfavorable legal environment for the business.  The article discusses the changes in the industry, including the flood of low cost imports into the gap created by Clark’s departure from the market, and discusses to the downstream closure and other problems of a number of other Southern California businesses.

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Interesting Sites

Beachapedia.org Beachapedia
Cal. Coastal Commission Like them or not, they are one of the biggest players around when it comes to coastal access in California.
Howling Point Your moderator’s personal site. He does have a life outside of this, as shown by the occasional gaps in posting.
Surfrider Foundation Activities and campaigns for clean water, beach access, beach preservation and protecting special places.