Recreation District Could Be Fined Tens Of Thousands For Privates Beach Gate

SANTA CRUZ (CBS SF) -- A meeting already Thursday evening will decide the fate of a gate that blocks access to a beach near Santa Cruz from all but a select few.

The gate has been there since the 1940's. The fight to take it down is reaching its tipping point.

Seven days after a deadline to remove the gate and fence at Privates Beach in Santa Cruz has come and gone, the meter is running.

Coastal Commission Enforcement Supervisor Pat Veesart said the Opal Cliffs Recreation District might have to pay as much as $11,250 a day in fines for defying an order to take down the barriers to the public beach.

Opal Cliffs officials and their attorney came to coastal commission offices for their first face to face meeting on the matter Thursday afternoon, but did not want to give an interview.

"We set a deadline for the removal of the fence and gate, and the district missed that deadline," explained Veesart. "We hope this public agency will do the right thing and remove this gate for public access to the public.  Beach access is a high priority for the Coastal Commission."

Opal Cliffs has been operating a gate to Privates Beach since 1941.

To enter you must have an electronic key, which anyone can buy but costs $100 a year and is only available at a Santa Cruz surf shop.

Opal Cliffs uses the money to pay gate keepers who monitor the entrance and pay for maintenance of a small park and stairway to the beach.

The Coastal Commission says it's only a matter of time before "Privates" becomes public.

So far there has been no word about any results to Thursday's meeting, though some announcement is expected when the discussion between the Coastal Commission and the Opal Cliffs representatives comes to an end.