Surfers' Beach


Surfers' Beach Pilot Restoration Project (Harbor District)

Surfers’ Beach July 2016

In 2015 the Harbor District initiated a Pilot Surfers’ Beach Sand Replenishment Project as a reduced scale of the Army Corps preferred alternative, and began seeking grant funding and stakeholder partners.  The pilot project involves a one-time placement of up to 100,000 cubic yards of east basin dredge material onto Surfers’ Beach between the jetty and Coronado St, using a suction dredge and pumping system to transport a sand slurry via pipeline.

Construction is anticipated in spring/summer 2025, beginning with an eelgrass mitigation project in the west basin required by permitting agencies. If the follow-up 2-year monitoring program finds that the project is effective and does not cause unacceptable environmental impacts, then a larger beach nourishment project would be pursued in the future.

Sept 2024 CA Ocean Protection Council awards $2.9M for project construction
June 2024 project permitting process overview
Sept 2023 Coastal Development Permit: CCC staff report - exhibits
April 2023 update staff report
July 2022 update staff report - slides
Earlier updates: Oct 2020, Aug 2020, Apr 2019, May 2018, Feb 2017, Mar 2016
Oct 2015 consultant Scope of Services
May 2015 Beach Replenishment Committee minutes


Highway & Coastal Trail Armoring (Caltrans)

2016-01-06-SurfersBeach-south-1500px.jpg

Jan 2016 Surfers’ Beach, Caltrans project

UPDATE Sept 2024: Caltrans obtained emergency CDP to repair storm-damaged sections of Coastal Trail and revetment along Surfers’ Beach, and upgrade the beach access stairs to concrete. 

San Mateo County, Caltrans, and Half Moon Bay collaborated on a project constructed in 2016 to protect the highway from erosion at Surfers’ Beach, connect a 400-foot section of the Coastal Trail, and add a stairway down to the beach over the newly installed 175-foot section of rock slope protection.  The Coastal Development Permit for the coastal armoring is temporary, for a 10-year period, to allow time for Caltrans to implement a long-term solution to protect the highway from erosion (such as moving this section of highway).

Sep 2016 ribbon cutting ceremony - flyer
Nov 2015 Caltrans construction begins - press release
Jun 2015 Coastal Commission permit - staff report
Feb 2015 Community meeting- presentation - video
Oct 2014 County presentation to MCC
Jul 2014 BoS approve funding for planning/permitting
Sep 2013 Supervisor Horsley to Caltrans - reply

Harbor Breakwater (US Army Corps of Engineers)

Construction of the Pillar Point Harbor breakwater by the Army Corps 1959-61 dramatically increased the rate of erosion south of the jetty to Medio Creek.  In 2009 the Army Corps, with the Harbor District as local 50% sponsor, initiated the Northern Half Moon Bay Shoreline Improvement Project to determine the feasibility of an Army Corps project to mitigate greatly increased down-coast erosion and harbor sediment buildup.

Seven plus years and over $1 million later, the final report was released in Feb 2017. This table summarizes the design measures analyzed and conclusions. The preferred alternative, estimated to cost $5 million, was to move 150,000 cubic yards of harbor dredged material to Surfers' Beach and southward to the Miramar revetment (figure); however, no Army Corps project was recommended for federal funding due to inadequate cost/benefit ratio.