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For immediate release:
Contact: Rick Raives (805) 701-2482
Andy Viets (805) 340-8394
Kelly Flanders (805) 677-3993
 

Pierpont Beach Agreement to Abate Sand “Nuisance” and Enhance Public Access
 

The City of Ventura, a group of Pierpont residents and Ventura Citizens for a Safer Beach have reached an agreement that will abate a nuisance created by sand build-up on Pierpont Beach, provide safer beach access for the public, supply sand for other beaches in Ventura and resolve legal actions associated with sand management in the Pierpont area. The agreement requires removing sand along Shore Drive with the initial work to begin March 1 and be completed by May 30, 2012.
 

An order issued by the Ventura County Superior Court found that the sand accumulation along Shore Drive constitutes a “nuisance” requiring the City to eliminate the sand build up indefinitely. Initially, sand will be removed 15-feet from the ocean side of the plaintiffs’ properties, approximately from the base of the residents’ walls or foundations; some sloping of the sand will be required. In addition, sand must be removed at each of the 27 lane ends between Greenock Lane and San Pedro Street to maintain access to Pierpont Beach.
 

As part of the City’s commitment to environmental stewardship important natural dune habitat for plants and animals will be addressed. The City will be relocating a significant portion of native dune plants and coastal species. Sand dunes are a natural barrier to high tides and destructive waves and an efficient defense against beach erosion.
 

"While disappointed by the court ruling imposing responsibility on the City for a sand issue on a beach owned by the State of California and tightly regulated by the State Coastal Commission, the City Council is pleased by the settlement agreement.  It solves a long-standing problem,” said Mayor Mike Tracy. “It will be initially costly to abate the sand build-up, but in the long run, the cost-sharing will be beneficial to our residents, visitors and to Ventura's appeal as a scenic beach community."
 

More than 30,000 cubic yards of sand will be removed and used to nourish beaches at Surfers’ Point and the beach front on the east and west side of the Pier. When the nuisance abatement begins some sand will be hauled away to a location where it can be stockpiled for future beach replenishment.
 

The agreement also requires on-going sand removal. The need for subsequent work will be determined through a twice-yearly sand inspection program to ensure preservation of the area. The Pierpont residents involved in the litigation will have the option to participate in this maintenance work. Additional work will be permitted by these residents on an as needed basis at their cost.
 

City staff will make a presentation on this project at the Pierpont Community Council meeting on Tuesday, January 17, at 7 p.m. The meeting will be held at the Ventura Beach Marriott Hotel, 2055 E. Harbor Boulevard.
 

The City routinely removed sand in the Pierpont area until the 1990’s when the Coastal Commission denied the use of heavy machinery on the beach. In 2007, some of the residents who live along the stretch of the beachfront and Ventura Citizens for a Safer Beach sued the City. In 2009, a jury declared the sand to be a nuisance, a finding which the court concurred with in its May, 2011 order and October, 2011 judgment; the settlement agreement was reached in December 2011.
 

This release is available on the City of Ventura website at www.cityofventura.net. -###--