Action Alert!!
The HOLLISTER RANCH COASTAL ACCESS PROGRAM (HRCAP)
will be reviewed by the CALIFORNIA COASTAL COMMISSION
on THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14th.
Please write the Commission or offer a personal comment at the online meeting about the importance of this issue to you and the public. Your voice is needed and you can make a difference!!
The DRAFT Hollister Ranch Coastal Access Program is now available. We are grateful to Senator Monique Limón for her courageous, strong leadership to bring us to this important moment. The California Coastal Commission needs to hear your voice on October 14, 2021, as it reviews the HRCAP. Your participation is urgently requested. The Commissioners need to hear from the public who have fought for fair and equitable coastal access at Hollister Ranch for 40 years!
Discussion Points
- The Commission should expeditiously approve and implement the HRCAP. The DRAFT HRCAP phases in and limits access to prevent damage to natural and cultural resources, and provides details on how to manage equitable access and protect private property rights. The DRAFT HRCAP provides for a reasonable managed access pilot program, allowing up to 100 people a day to access up to six Ranch beaches by land and could be expanded subject to the protection of natural and cultural resources.
- The Commission and State Agencies should open responsible access to Hollister Ranch promptly. Hollister Ranch owners have benefitted by developing their parcels over many decades with the condition that the Hollister Ranch Owners’ Association (HROA) provides public access through the Ranch to the public beach areas. However, the public has been prevented from safely exercising, without undue burdens, their constitutional right to access the public beach areas at Hollister Ranch for over 40 years.
- The coastal trail is an important element of the HRCAP. Currently, the California Coastal Trail (CCT) is limited to only 5 miles on the beach between Gaviota State Park and Point Sal Beach State Park. A trail through Hollister Ranch would further the Statewide vision of a continuous interconnected public trail system along the California Coast.
You can either speak at the hearing or submit written comments.
To speak during the Public Comment Period of the California Coastal Commission:
Speaker Instructions:
If you wish to speak to the Coastal Commission, you must fill out a speaker slip no later than 8:30 AM on Thursday, October 14 (speaker slips may be submitted the day before, which will streamline this process). We recommend signing up now for your opportunity to speak.
Please keep in mind that your time to speak will be limited, generally from 2 to 3 minutes, as determined by the Chair of the Coastal Commission. If you wish to show a 2-to-3 minute visual presentation that does not exceed 25 MB in size, it must be submitted by 5 PM Wednesday, October 13. Detailed instructions are located here:
https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/assets/virtual-hearing/FINAL_VIRTUAL%20_HEARING_PROCEDURES.pdf
Submit Written Comments:
To submit written materials, please email Hollister@coastal.ca.gov.
You can also submit materials by regular mail to the Coastal Commission at 725 Front Street, Suite 300, Santa Cruz, CA 95060. All mail received by 5 pm on Friday, October 8 will be distributed to the Commission. Any materials received after this time will be placed in the file but will not be distributed to the Commission.
Thank you for signing up to speak and or write at this critical moment in the HRCAP process. Let your voice be heard regarding public access at Hollister Ranch.
Thank you for your support!
With best regards,
Gaviota Coast Conservancy, Executive Director