Mendocino County Municipal Code Ch. 20.528 Coastal Access Regulations and Open Space Easements

This Chapter shall apply to all projects in the coastal zone which fall within the definition of "development" as set forth in Section 30106 of the Coastal Act and in Section 20.308.035(D) of this Division.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

(A) In specified areas identified in Chapter 4 of the Coastal Element or as indicated on land use maps, prior to the issuance of a coastal development permit, an offer to dedicate an easement for public access shall be recorded unless required public access has otherwise been secured as provided herein.

(B) Visitor accommodations and services on parcels adjoining the shoreline shall provide public access to the blufftop and/or the shoreline. The access, to be required as a condition of permit approval in conjunction with all new or expanded developments on such sites, shall be available to the public at large as well as to guests.

(C) Public fishing access shall be maintained, protected and encouraged at locations specified in the Coastal Element.

(D) Along sections of the highway where development intensity will result in pedestrian use, or where this is the siting of the County designated coastal trail, a fifteen (15) foot accessway along both sides of the highway, measured from the right-of-way of Highway 1 shall be offered as a condition of permit approval, if the topography is suitable.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

(A) Width. Easements for lateral shoreline accessways shall extend landward twenty-five (25) feet from mean high tide or to the toe of the bluff or the first line of terrestrial vegetation if the width of the beach is greater than twenty-five (25) feet. All access easements required to be offered for public use shall be a minimum of twenty-five (25) feet wide with the following exceptions:

(1) Where the passageway would adversely impact identified habitat values;

(2) Where it would encroach within twenty (20) feet or less from an existing residence;

(3) Where there are identified hazardous topographic conditions; or

(4) Along Highway 1 where accessway(s) will be fifteen (15) feet wide pursuant to Section 20.528.010.

(B) Pass and Repass. Public Use may be limited to pass and repass where:

(1) Topographic constraints of the site make use of the beach dangerous;

(2) Where habitat values would be adversely affected;

(3) Where the accessway may encroach closer than twenty (20) feet to an existing residence.

(C) Privacy. All accessways shall be located and designed to minimize the loss of privacy or other impacts on adjacent residences and residential parcels.

(D) Posting. Once the responsibility for maintenance and liability is accepted and management established, designated accessways may be posted by the managing agency. Additional signs shall designate parking areas and restrictions for their use, list off-road vehicle restrictions, as well as regulations for protection of marine life and designation of hazard areas. Handicapped access shall be posted. All signs shall conform to the regulations and standards of Chapter 20.476 of this Division.

(E) Safety. All accessways shall be designed and constructed to safety standards adequate for their intended use. Barriers shall be constructed by the managing agency where necessary. Parking areas to adequately serve public access shall be considered in the permit review process. Bluff retreat/erosion shall be considered and provided for the life of the development when planning lateral accessways.

(F) Handicapped Access. Access to beach and blufftop viewpoints shall be provided and signed for handicapped persons where parking areas can be close enough to beach or viewing level to be reachable by wheelchair ramps. Barriers shall be placed marking wheelchair ramps and the limits to safe approach of a bluff.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

The offer to dedicate and acceptance of a dedication for an accessway is exempt from the necessity of obtaining a Coastal Development Permit except that the construction of a public access trail or a staircase accessway on a bluff face (as determined by the Department of Planning and Building Services) will require a Coastal Development Use Permit.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

(A) Closure of an accessway for a period of not more than twelve months may be requested by the Director for due cause as set forth below:

(1) If coastal resources cannot be protected;

(2) If public use is hazardous to the public, during periods of construction, storm damage to the accessway; or

(3) After finding continued use is not consistent with safety and/or environmental concerns.

(B) If the County finds that continued use is not consistent with public safety and/or continues to result in harm to an identified coastal resource, permanent closure may be sought through an amendment to the Coastal Element (Chapter 20.548).

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

Provisions related to prescriptive rights are as follows:

(A) Existing Public Easement. No development shall be approved on a site which will conflict with easements acquired by the public at large by court decree.

(B) Potential Existence of Prescriptive Right.

(1) Rights Not Yet Established. Where evidence of historic public use indicates the potential for the existence of prescriptive rights, but rights have not been judicially determined, the County Planning and Building Department staff shall apply research methods described in the Attorney General's Manual on Implied Dedication and Prescriptive Rights.

(2) Potential Existence of Rights Established. Where research indicates the potential existence of prescriptive rights, an access easement shall be required as a condition of permit approval.

(C) Development in Area of Historic Public Use.

(1) Development may be sited on the area of historic public use only if:

(a) No development of the parcel would otherwise be possible; or

(b) Proposed development could not otherwise be sited in a manner which minimizes risks to life and property; or

(c) Such siting is necessary for consistency with the policies of the Coastal Element concerning visual resources, special communities, and paleontological and archaeological resources.

(2) When development must be sited on an area of historic public use, an equivalent easement providing access to the same area shall be provided on the site as a condition of permit approval.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

Where acquisition of access delineated in the land use plan has not occurred through preferred methods such as bequests, gifts or purchase, recordation of an offer to dedicate an easement for public access purposes shall be required as a condition of any coastal development permit. Such offer shall be acceptable to the California Coastal Commission in form and content. Visitor accommodations and services on parcels adjoining the shoreline as identified on the public access maps shall provide public access to the blufftop and/or the shoreline. The access, to be required as a condition of permit approval or other methods as described in this Chapter, shall be available to the public at large as well as to guests. In the event that the use is changed to a use other than visitor accommodations or services, an irrevocable offer to dedicate an easement for public access shall be made available to a public entity for acceptance and management. If the accessway is reopened, it shall remain available to the public free of entrance charge.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

(A) Prior to issuance of the coastal development permit, the landowner shall record in the official records of the County Recorder of Mendocino County an offer to dedicate an easement as a condition of project approval as follows:

(1) The offer shall be free of prior liens except for tax liens and free of prior encumbrances which may affect the interest being conveyed.

(2) The offer shall run with the land binding successors and assigns of the landowner and shall be irrevocable for a period of twenty-one (21) years beginning from the date of recording.

(3) The offer shall convey to the people of the State of California an easement for access over and across the offerers' property.

(4) Each offer of dedication will provide that the title for each easement shall be automatically conveyed upon acceptance by a qualified agency as named by the Director after a management plan has been accepted.

(B) Procedures for Access and Open Space Easements and Documents Restricting Use. The purpose of this subsection is to provide procedures pertaining to coastal development permits containing conditions for access, open space or conservation easements or the processing of other legal documents resulting from conditions of a coastal development permit which restricts use where such conditions are required by the Coastal Element of the General Plan.

(1) Upon completion of final action on a coastal development permit requiring the applicant to record an access, open space or conservation easement or other document restricting use, and prior to the issuance of the permit, the Coastal Permit Administrator shall forward a copy of the permit conditions and findings of approval and copies of the legal documents to the Executive Director of the Coastal Commission for review and approval of the legal adequacy and consistency with the requirements of potential accepting agencies. If requested, the Coastal Commission will prepare the documents and forward copies to the County for processing;

(2) The Executive Director of the Coastal Commission shall have fifteen (15) working days from receipt of the documents where review is requested and thirty (30) working days where preparation is requested in which to complete the review or preparation and notify the applicant and Coastal Permit Administrator of recommended revisions if any;

(3) If the Coastal Permit Administrator does not receive notification of inadequacy of documents within the review or preparation period, the permit may be issued upon proof that the documents have been recorded free of prior Hens and encumbrances, except tax Hens, in accordance with the provisions of this Division;

(4) Where revisions are required to meet the standards of this section, the permit shall not be issued until the county has been notified that all issues of adequacy, uniformity and consistency have been resolved and the document has been recorded free of prior liens and encumbrances, except tax liens, in accordance with the provisions of the certified local coastal program;

(5) Copies of the recorded document(s), title report, and permit shall be forwarded to the Coastal Commission within ten (10) days after recordation of the document(s).

(6) Offers to dedicate required public access shall be recorded prior to issuance of a Coastal Development Permit.

(C) Acceptance of Offer. Acceptance of the offer may be affected by the recordation by the named grantee, in the official records of the County Recorder of Mendocino County, of a Resolution of Acceptance of the irrevocable offer substantially in the form of Exhibit A attached hereto.

The Resolution of Acceptance shall be provided to the grantor or the grantor's successors in interest for the purpose of notifying the property owner of record of the intent of the grantee to accept the recorded offer of dedication.

(D) Reversion of Tide. If after twenty-one (21) years from the date of recording of the offer of dedication, no public agency or private entity has accepted said offer, the landowner Will regain full title and unencumbered use of the offered land.

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)

No accessway shall be opened for public use until an Accessway Management Plan has been prepared by the managing agency and accepted by the Director. At a minimum, the Plan shall:

(A) Provide for a design which avoids or mitigates any public safety hazards and any adverse impacts on agricultural operations or identified coastal resources;

(B) Set forth the agency(ies) responsible for operating, maintaining and assuming liability for the accessway;

(C) Set forth any other known provisions such as facilities to be provided, signing, use restrictions and special design and monitoring requirements; and

(D) Set forth provisions for protecting the accessway from vandalism and/or improper use (e.g., guarded gate, security patrol, hours of operation or period/seasons of closure and fees, if any).

(Ord. No. 3785 (part), adopted 1991)