The City of Pacifica is proud to announce that on May 8, 2025, the California Coastal Commission voted 8-1 to certify Pacifica’s updated Local Coastal Land Use Plan (LCLUP). This momentous milestone marks the culmination of more than a decade of dedicated planning and extensive community engagement, with 11 public meetings last year, and close collaboration with Coastal Commission staff. Pacifica residents, coastal advocates, property rights groups and other stakeholders provided valuable input and the final plan reflects a careful balance of coastal protection, infrastructure resilience and community priorities.

“Achieving this milestone is a huge step forward for Pacifica. With strong support from the California Coastal Commission, certification of this plan will guide our actions to preserve our beautiful coastline and protect our community long into the future,” said Mayor Sue Beckmeyer. “With this framework, we will embark on a community wide public process to look at adaptations options and our collective vision for Pacifica’s future. As with the Local Coastal Land Use Plan, compromise will be expected of all of us. We will move forward together, step-by-step, to create proactive plans rather than reactive responses to our changing coastal conditions.”

Pacifica’s LCLUP process represents a first-of-its-kind approach in California to addressing sea level rise within a Local Coastal Program. The extensive coordination between City staff and Coastal Commission staff established a precedent-setting model for how local jurisdictions can work collaboratively with the Commission to develop practical, localized and adaptive solutions to the complex challenges facing California’s coastline. Commissioners commended Pacifica for its leadership and innovative, forward-looking strategy, noting that the plan not only benefits Pacifica, but lays a path for other coastal communities navigating similar issues.

The LCLUP serves as a blueprint for how Pacifica will manage and protect its coastal resources, address coastal hazards and guide responsible development along its shoreline. Originally adopted in 1980, the City’s coastal plan had remained largely unchanged for 45 years. The updated plan incorporates contemporary best-available science, addresses sea level rise and lays out a phased approach for implementing shoreline adaptation strategies over the next 20 years.

“Coastal Commission approval of Pacifica’s Local Coastal Land Use Plan, after more than a decade of work on developing the plan, allows the application of modernized and prudent coastal zone policies consistent with the Coastal Act to begin in the present, while enabling the City and community to prepare for the future of Pacifica’s coastline with forward- thinking policies and actions into the future,” said City Manager Kevin Woodhouse.

With certification complete, the City is poised to begin implementation efforts in Fiscal Year 2025-26. Planned next steps include:

  • Launching a Coastal Access and Resiliency Program and Shoreline Adaptation Program, with additional public engagement opportunities to help shape long-term coastal strategies.
  • Advancing updates to coastal hazard maps and related development regulations.

For more information about the Local Coastal Land Use Plan and next steps, visit www.planpacifica.org.