Coronado Municipal Code Ch. 48.04 Beaches

Sections:

It is the duty of the City Manager, and such employees of the City as he may from time to time designate, to enforce the provisions of this chapter and in that behalf all and any employees charged with the duty of maintaining peace, order and safety in the beach areas shall be and hereby are empowered to assist the police oOcers of the City in the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter including the power to make arrests for the violation hereof when appointed by the Director of Police Services as deputy police oOcers¹ . (Ord. 1795)

A. It is the intent and purpose of the City Council in enacting this chapter to regulate and control such recreational water activities as bathing and swimming and board surMng in and upon the waters of all beach areas.

B. There are hereby established, in and upon the water under the jurisdiction and control of the City, the following Mve water activity zones:

1. Bathing and swimming zone;

2. Board surMng zone;

3. Control zone;

4. No board surMng zone;

5. Closed zone.

The boundaries of each zone shall be designated by the Director of Recreation Services and/or the head lifeguard on duty on the beaches, depending on the number of swimmers, the surf, wave, and tide conditions, and in protection of public health and safety. The areas shall be designated by portable signs indicating on the face thereof the type of zone to which it applies.

A. “Bathing” and “swimming” mean all bathing and swimming activities conducted in water except those activities which involve board surMng or those which involve the possession, control or use of a surfboard.

B. “Board surMng” shall mean any activity which involves riding waves with the use or aid of a surfboard, or being carried along or being propelled by the action of the waves with the use or aid of a surfboard. To “board surf” means to do or engage in board surMng.

C. “Surfboard” means any rigid, inNexible device upon which or with the use or aid of which a person can ride waves or be carried along or propelled by the action of the waves.

Only bathing and swimming are permitted in a bathing and swimming zone, and it is unlawful for any person to board surf in, or to possess, control, or use a surfboard in, or to release or place a surfboard in, or to carry, throw or discharge a surfboard into, or to permit a surfboard to Noat, drift or be carried into, a bathing and swimming zone.

Only board surMng shall be permitted in a board surMng zone, and it is unlawful for any person to engage in bathing and swimming activities, except such as may be incidental to board surMng, in a board surMng zone.

Board surMng shall be permitted in a control zone except during the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. daily. It is unlawful for any person to board surf in, or to possess, control or use a surfboard in, or to release or place a surfboard in, or to carry, throw or discharge a surfboard into, or to permit a surfboard to Noat, drift or be carried into, a control zone during the hours between 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. daily.

It is unlawful for any person to board surf in a no board surMng zone.

It is unlawful for any person to board surf in, or to possess, control or use a surfboard in, or to release or place a surfboard in, or to carry, throw or discharge a surfboard into, or to permit a surfboard to Noat, drift or be carried into, or to engage in bathing and swimming activities in, a closed zone.

Portable signs giving notice of the applicable water activity zone, if any, shall be placed in appropriate places upon the beach or lands abutting or adjacent thereto. For each water activity zone, there shall be displayed upon the signs therefor notice as follows:

• A. For a bathing and swimming zone: “BATHING AND SWIMMING ONLY – SURFBOARDS UNLAWFUL;”

• B. For a board surMng zone: “BOARD SURFING ONLY – BATHING AND SWIMMING UNLAWFUL;”

• C. For a control zone: “BOARD SURFING UNLAWFUL BETWEEN ELEVEN A.M. AND SIX P.M.;”

• D. For a closed zone: “SURFBOARDS, SWIMMING AND BATHING UNLAWFUL.”

It is unlawful for any person to bathe, swim, surfboard ride, row, canoe and/or operate a sailboat or powerboat or other device on or upon water where warning signals have been placed except for the purpose of making a rescue.

It is unlawful for any person to refuse to follow or comply with any lawful order, signal or other lawful direction of a lifeguard, or for any person without lawful authority to deface, injure, knock down or remove any sign or warning placed for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this chapter or for any person to deface, injure, knock down, break into or destroy or molest any lifeguard structure placed in the beach area by the Director of Fire Services or designee.

A. It is unlawful for any person to leave, discard, deposit, or throw away any glass container, tin or aluminum can, waste food, papers, or any other refuse or rubbish upon any beach area in the City. All waste materials shall be deposited in trash cans or receptacles provided for that purpose.

B. It is unlawful for any person to move, molest, turn over, remove, deface, or knock down any trash can or receptacle placed in any beach area by the City.

C. For purposes of this section, “South Beach” is deMned as the beach area between the rock jetty in front of the Hotel Del Coronado Shore House and Gator Beach (Avenida Lunar).

D. It shall be unlawful for any person to build, maintain, or kindle a Mre on any public beach, except in a Cityprovided Mre circle, or except as otherwise provided herein. It shall also be permissible to build a Mre in a portable Mre circle, portable barbecue, or portable propane-fueled device, except on the beach area commonly known as South Beach. The coals from said device shall be deposited in an oOcial Mre circle or hot coal container. A Mre in a Mre circle or portable device shall be used only to build beach Mres for cooking or warmth, and it shall be unlawful to use the same as incinerators to burn rubbish and waste materials.

E. On South Beach, it is unlawful to build, maintain or kindle Mre unless using liqueMed-petroleum LP (including propane) gas fueled devices having LP gas containers. Other fuel materials are not permitted in portable devices.

F. The materials used for Mres on the public beach shall not exceed a height of 12 inches above the upper edge of the Mre circle or portable device and shall be contained within the inside edge of the Mre circle or portable device.

G. It shall be unlawful for any person to burn in any such Mre circle, barbecue, or device landscape debris, paint, stain, sealer, wood preservative, cloth, rubber, metal (including nails and other hardware), asphalt, foam rubber, plastic, or any similar matter or material inconsistent with San Diego County Air Pollution Control District restrictions and leaving any type of solid residue other than ash.

H. It is unlawful for any person to abandon any lawful Mre upon any beach area without Mrst having extinguished the Mre. The ashes thereof, however, shall not be covered. All unburned wood shall be removed or placed in trash cans or receptacles provided therefor, so that the beach is left in a clean, sanitary, and presentable condition.

I. It shall be unlawful for any person to have, possess, or use any cup, tumbler, jar, bottle or container whose exterior surface is, in any degree, made of glass upon any beach in the City. (Ord. 2025-06 § 2, 2025; Ord. 2024-07R § 2, 2024; Ord. 2041 § 2, 2014; Ord. 1435)

The City Council hereby Mnds and determines that the following property owned and/or controlled by the City is unsafe and it is hereby withdrawn from personal access and use by members of the public. The property is more particularly described as follows:

A. A point on the embankment at the intersection with the bulkhead line extended northerly from Station 512 and a point on the bulkhead line 630 feet easterly of Station 514;

B. A point on the embankment lying on a line perpendicular to the bulkhead line at Station 518, and a point on the embankment lying on a line perpendicular to the bulkhead line at a point 1,025 feet northerly of Station 518;

C. A point on the embankment lying on a line perpendicular to the bulkhead line at a point 1,520 feet northerly of Station 518, and a point on the embankment lying on a line perpendicular to the bulkhead line at a point 400 feet southerly of Station 520.

It is unlawful for any person to launch or operate a motorboat within that area of the City commonly known as Central Beach and which is bounded by the North Island Naval Air Station Base fence and the Hotel del Coronado sea wall, and the water area of which is marked by at least three buoys located parallel to the beach and 500 feet distant therefrom, which area is hereby removed from use by the general public and is reserved to the people as a swimming area.

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent any employee of the City from doing anything that in the opinion of the City Manager or designee may be thought necessary and proper for the maintenance, improvement or betterment of the beach area, and further that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent any employee or agent of the City from doing anything that in the opinion of the City Council may be thought necessary or proper for the best interests of the City.

Any operator or owner of a vehicle to whom a citation has been issued in violation of CMC 48.04.160 may, within 10 days of the time of the issuance of the citation, pay to the Parking Citation Processing OOcer, 706 Orange Avenue, Coronado, CA 92118, as a penalty for, and in full satisfaction of, such violation, the sum of $25.00. The failure of such owner or operator to make such payment within said 10 days shall render such owner or operator subject to the penalties provided for violation of the provisions of this code. (Ord. 1498)

Any person who violates any provision of this chapter or fails to comply with any of the regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter shall be guilty of an infraction. (Ord. 1400)

1 For statutory provisions regarding free access to beaches, see Gov. Code Section 54090 et seq. For provisions concerning the development by cities of beaches, see Gov. Code Section 54093.