Air Force keeps public off beach

Citing hazards to hikers, the Air Force has permanently restricted access to Point Sal, a move implemented in January to the surprise of state and county officials.

Vandenberg Air Force Base officials said the closure - announced just Wednesday - comes because of “extreme safety concerns in the area.”

“These concerns include steep cliffs and potential landslides due to coastal erosion,” the military said in a written statement.

However, both county and state officials say they'll fight the decision.

The California Coastal Commission has expressed concern about cutting off access to Point Sal State Beach, an extremely remote segment of pristine coastline.

As recently as the 1990s, people could drive vehicles most of the way to the coast, taking Highway 1 to Brown Road, then to Point Sal Road, which traveled over Point Sal Ridge to a dirt parking area - a distance of about 7 miles. Point Sal Road passed through Vandenberg AFB, with barbed wire fences and signs banning people from entering the military installation.

But in 1998, El Niņo rains washed away huge chunks of road, prompting county officials to close the road to automobiles. In 2001, county officials said fixing the road wouldn't be easy or inexpensive.

Hikers, bikers, horse riders and others still traveled on the sometimes paved, mostly hard-packed county road, with nature lovers thrilling at the peaceful path that led to the picturesque Point Sal beach.

“We are aware that there has been a change in access out there and people have been cited for trespassing,” said Larry Simon, federal consistency coordinator with the Coastal Commission. “The commission takes it very seriously. It's clear to us the public has enjoyed access to Point Sal for quite some time, and this is a change.”

Coastal Commission staff members learned of the restrictions weeks after the Air Force implemented them Jan. 1, Simon said.

Santa Barbara County officials also are questioning the Air Force's authority to take the measures.

“We're not real sure that's going to be the way it is, because from our research it looks as if that roadway has never been abandoned,” said 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray, adding that the county holds the easement that gives the public the right to pass except during launches from North Base.

“The county is going to work diligently with the Air Force to get that restriction lifted,” Gray said.

The new restrictions aren't obvious at the typical parking area near Brown and Point Sal roads. Instead, hikers won't see the newest closure - with barbed wire fence and sign in place - until the road crosses the Vandenberg property line, Air Force officials said.

Also complicating the issue is that Point Sal is a state beach. The county-owned road goes through Air Force property. However, the county and Bureau of Land Management own some chunks of land in the area, and local people or family trusts also own some parcels.

Some county and state officials said the military also cited security concerns for the closure.

The northern segment of Vandenberg is dotted with underground silos used for unarmed missile tests. More recently, the area has gained two interceptors for the controversial Ground-based Midcourse Defense system, designed to shoot down a limited, long-range attack.

In a response to a query about injuries and incursions, Vandenberg officials said one security forces airman suffered a broken ankle while responding to a trespassing call in mid-July, while a second nearly fell off the cliff near the beach while going to a call in the dark during the early morning hours.

Additionally, security forces airmen removed four people from the beach area during June 2006 and March 2007 Minuteman test launches. Those people were within a launch hazard zone designated to be free of people in case the weapon had to be destroyed.

The Air Force posted signs in the restricted area in January but didn't announce the new policy until Wednesday.

“We have put the release out due to a recent increase in trespassing violations as well as injuries sustained by base security personnel while responding to trespassing calls,” said Staff Sgt. Raymond Hoy, a base spokesman.

So far, 10 citations have been issued this year, he added.

After receiving complaints, Simon said, Coastal Commission staff visited the site with Air Force members and have urged the military to outline its reason for the new rules and submit a “consistency determination” request.

Once the military submits the request - expected in early May - Coastal Commission staff would review the package and submit it to the panel to issue a ruling that the restrictions are, or aren't, consistent with the state coastal plan. That process includes public hearings before the full commission.

“Public access is the foundation of the Coastal Act. Any time there's a change in public access pattern across property, whether it's public land or private land, we're very concerned about that,” Simon said.

The Coastal Commission staff believes a compromise can be developed, he added.

If the commission rules against the access restrictions, both sides would wind up in mediation. Very rarely, the disputes end up in a lawsuit, he said.

Meanwhile, Nipomo resident Bill Deneen is scheduled to lead one of his monthly hikes to Point Sal on Sunday. He said he has a letter from a base commander - who held that title more than 30 years ago - granting him access, as long as he contacts the law enforcement desk and follows other rules.

Point Sal's biggest fan - who's been going there since the 1960s - doesn't necessarily oppose restrictions as he seeks to keep the area untouched.

“It is my cathedral. It's just so special there. I never tire of going there. Every time I go I just feel better inside,” Deneen said.

Janene Scully can be reached at 739-2214 or janenescully@santamariatimes.com.

April 12, 2007