Resort or refuge? Coastal Commission to consider Pebble Beach project

From March 8-10, the California Coastal Commission will be meeting in Monterey at the Hyatt Hotel, and it is likely the Pebble Beach Company plan and Measure A will be on the agenda. The Pebble Beach Company's proposed project area is almost 200 acres and includes a new golf course, 33 luxury homes, 160 new hotel rooms, a driving range and a new equestrian center-all in the Coastal zone. This massive project is proposed for an area thickly forested with native Monterey pines and which also has multiple wetland habitats with healthy populations of wetland vegetation, defined under the Coastal Act as Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area.

The plan would require cutting down 17,000 trees. The plan also threatens coastal dune habitat and rare maritime chaparral. Nineteen species of plants in the project area are considered to be rare or endangered, seven of which are State and/or Federally-listed.

When the project sailed through the approval process at the Board of Supervisors last March, for weeks domestic and international papers from as far away as London and Australia wrote scathing reports, especially concerning the chopping down of so many native trees.

The Coastal Commission has the power to modify or deny the project. Over 20 private persons and organizations including the Ventana Chapter have filed appeals with the Commission requesting that they deny the project.

How to help

Please plan to attend these hearings. Help save these trees and the habitat for all the plants, animals and birds that will be adversely affected by this massive project. For more information on times, dates and location, go to: www.coastal.ca.gov.

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