Local Coastal Plan

In 1972 Proposition 20 passed. This is called the Coastal Act and it created the Coastal Commission and laid out guidelines to protect California’s coast and preserve access for the residents. The east coast is almost totally privately owned. The residents of California wanted to prevent this from happening in California. Part of this act required each coastal city to create a Local Coastal Plan, which the California Coastal Commission would have to approve.

In 1974 Chula Vista created the Bayfront Redevelopment Area. In 1975 the city finished a Local Coastal Plan. It went for review to the California Coastal Commission. It was challenged by a number of lawsuits. It was redone in 1984 and was approved in June of 1985. It was again challenged in several lawsuits for not adequately protecting Endangered Species.

In 1988 a settlement was reached with the Sierra Club and other challengers that created the Sweetwater National Wildlife Refuge. This gave Gunpowder Point, the D Street fill, and Paradise Creek area to USFWS to manage in perpetuity for the protection of wildlife.

It was amended again 1993 for another development project proposed for the area adjoining the Refuge. This project proved to be economically infeasible and while the existing plan has stayed in effect nothing has happened in this area.

The plan must be amended or the existing one stays in effect. The existing one has residential and other high intensity development right next to the Sweetwater National Wildlife Refuge. The new plan reflects the land swap that moves all the residential to a small area bordered by J and Bay Blvd and theoretically minimizes development on the land adjacent to the refuge. (This will be a large area of contention.)

The following are excerpts from Appendix 3 of the DEIR for the Bayfront Master Plan. This Appendix deals with privately owned land and land owned by the city of Chula Vista only, not port owned land.

Purpose of the Local Coastal Plan

Land Use Plan (LUP) in new Local Coastal Plan

Conformity of LUP with General Plan and Coastal Act