SAN DIEGO – The San Diego City Council voted Tuesday to pass a Coastal Resiliency Master Plan to help save Sunset Cliffs and the coastline north through La Jolla from sea-level rise and erosion.
Six priority sites had been identified for pilot projects – La Jolla Shores, Pacific Beach-Tourmaline Surf Park, and Mission Beach, along with Ocean Beach-Dog Beach, Ocean Beach-beachfront (OB Pier) and Sunset Cliffs.
Following the council’s 8-0 vote, the following sites, including two at Ocean Beach, will advance into the city’s Capital Improvement Program for initial engineering over the next year:
- Tourmaline Surf Park: Convert the existing shoreline protection feature into a hybrid nature-based solution. The existing rip rap would be buried to provide a core layer and topped with sand and native plants.
- Ocean Beach – Dog Beach and Beachfront (Pier): Restore dune habitat near Smiley Lagoon and build a new multi-use path for pedestrians and cyclists fronted by elevated, vegetated dunes. The multi-use path would connect the San Diego River bikeway to the Ocean Beach Pier.
- Sunset Cliffs: The major focus is to enhance the existing resources and protect public safety without compromising the structural integrity of the cliff or current infrastructure. The project concept includes trail enhancements, adding native plants to the linear park, drainage improvements and removal of paved parking lots from the cliff. Road reconfiguration will be considered for a section of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard.
The Sunset Cliffs options include re-configuring the boulevard from a two-lane, north-south major collector road to a single southbound lane and creating a protected walkway for pedestrians and cyclists.
Next steps include technical and feasibility studies, additional environmental analysis and continued community engagement. Workshops are planned for each community where projects are proposed.
Proposed projects include constructing elevated sand dunes, restoring coastal habitats and realigning parks and infrastructure. To advance these projects, the city secured more than $1.3 million in National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and State Coastal Conservancy grant funding, which will support completion of the plan, concept-level designs, environmental analysis, technical studies, community engagement, Tribal coordination and partnership and preliminary engineering design.
The City Council in its 8-0 vote – Councilwoman Marni Von Wilpert was absent on Tuesday – followed the staff recommendation, based on need, feasibility and community input, to select the OB and Tourmaline projects, which will continue to initial engineering.
The following is a breakdown of project sites, some with alternative concepts, providing options to address site-specific constraints and opportunities:
La Jolla Shores
The “Amphitheater Design” concept maintains the existing alignment for La Jolla Shores and includes two different flood protection strategies.
Along the western borders of La Jolla Shores Park and Kellogg Park, an elevated linear earthen dike would be constructed between the grassy area and the La Vereda pedestrian path. Along the seaward border of the parking lot (between the parking lot and the La Vereda pedestrian path), a terraced seatwall would be constructed to provide a viewing and seating area with flood protection benefits.
The reconfigured park concept would realign the parking lot and grassy recreational areas. A grassy recreational area would be added along the entire western edge of the site (formerly parking lot) creating a large linear and continuous grassy park.
Tourmaline State Park
The proposed sand-and-cobble dune would be vegetated with native plantings to provide ecological benefits through introduction of rare plant species and potential habitat for various avian species.
Additional seating and enhanced viewing areas would be integrated into the top of the vegetated dune. Optional components include covering or undergrounding the existing drainage culvert along the north edge of the project site to create additional green space and a pedestrian pathway and/or stormwater improvements through the addition of an underground vault beneath the parking lot to capture runoff and provide water quality treatment.
Mission Beach
The “Sand Dune” concept for Mission Beach would construct an elevated sand dune seaward (west) of the seawall and Ocean Front Walk. The proposed sand dunes would be planted with native flora to provide ecological benefits.
The proposed sand dunes would be permanent fixtures at the project site, and would be designed to provide protection from existing and projected flooding impacts associated with sea-level rise.
The “Perched Beach” concept for Mission Beach considers swapping out a portion of grass recreational space at Mission Beach Park for a perched sand beach.
A perched beach is an elevated beach area that would provide increased usable beach space when water levels are higher and offers a reservoir of sand for the adjacent beach area. This would be achieved by realigning the seawall and Ocean Front Walk inland. This concept could be implemented in conjunction with a dune feature stretching north along the project site.
Community input
Reacting to recent statements made regarding an alleged lack of community stakeholder meetings and engagement on the plan, the city Planning Department noted that “community engagement is a key component of the CRMP.”
As a citywide planning initiative, community engagement included opportunities for the broader San Diego community as well as opportunities for the immediate communities to provide feedback. This occurred through pop-up events, an online survey, community workshops, community webinars and the Community Planner’s Committee.
Information was shared through the Coastal Resilience Master Plan website and through email notifications to anyone who requested it.
“The input received directly influenced the CRMP,” said Peter Kelly, a city spokesperson. “The Report to council summarizes the input received and how the plan has been shaped and refined based upon that input.
“As the projects shift into the implementation phase, the city will continue to engage with community members at the project level to develop more detailed designs that are informed by technical studies, implementation trials and community input.”
City News Service contributed to this report.
Updated 6:45 p.m. Sept. 9, 2025
