Remove Fencing from Pacific City Beach

VICTORY! The last remaining property has taken down their fencing.

Update: May 6, 2020: After realizing it was not permitted, four of the five property owners have removed their fencing! At the heart of this issue is an imperfect Foredune Management Plan for Pacific City. We hope to work with homeowners and managing agencies to address this issue.

Background: Surfrider received complaints from beachgoers and our local membership in Pacific City about “fencing” along the ocean shore. We were able to determine that there had recently been an Oregon Parks and Recreation Dept. (OPRD) permit issued for some sand management activities, but there was nothing in there about fencing off portions of the ocean shore, nor was it a permitted action of County’s beach and dune overlay zone ordinance. Upon inquiring with OPRD about contact with the homeowners, we learned that they had reached out to the homeowner in charge of the project for the continuous lots and were immediately deferred to their lawyer. All things pointed to a property rights challenge of the public easement that is the Beach Bill. Read the full account here.