A deal reached Friday appears to herald the end of the Bay Boys' six-decade reign over the coveted waves of Lunada Bay, known for developing into a dreamlike, unbroken right-hand line.
The City of Palos Verdes Estates has agreed to a series of measures to improve public access to the bay and “vigorously enforce” coastal access laws to ensure all surfers can surf in peace.
The settlement was reached between the city and two surfers, Cory Spencer and Diana Miernik, who filed a lawsuit in 2016 accusing the city of turning a blind eye to intimidation tactics employed by the surfing gang to prevent non-members from accessing the waves.
The alleged tactics included slashing car tyres, throwing clods of dirt at surfers riding down cliffs and fistfights in the water. Spencer claimed that while surfing in 2016, a member deliberately ran him over with a surfboard, slashing his wrist.
The suit also named 12 alleged members of the surfing gang as defendants. Most of them have already reached separate settlements with the plaintiffs, agreeing to stay off the beach for a year or pay between $35,000 and $90,000 in fines, or a combination of both, according to court documents.
The city agreed to make improvements to the path along the bluffs, add signs indicating that beach access is available to everyone and install stone benches along the bluffs, according to the consent decree.
The ordinance also requires the city to conduct regular inspections of the area to ensure there are no unauthorized developments, such as the famous rock fort that the gang previously used as a base to dominate the waves. The city dismantled the fort in 2016 after significant pressure from the California Coastal Commission.
Additionally, city staff must receive regular training on coastal access laws, and all allegations of harassment must be reported to the city's police chief, the city manager, the head of the Coastal Commission and their Southern California compliance supervisor/manager, according to the consent decree.
Violations of the agreement could result in fines of up to $15,000 per day.
Friday's agreement was applauded by the California Coastal Commission, which has been urging the city to stand up to the Bay Boys for more than a decade.
“We welcome and support any steps taken to ensure that the public beach is clearly available to the public and to ensure that Lunada Bay, like the rest of California’s coast and ocean, is safe and welcoming to visitors regardless of their ZIP codes,” said Kate Huckelbridge, executive director of the California Coastal Commission.
Palos Verdes Estates Mayor Dawn Murdock had a more measured response, noting that some residents will be relieved and others frustrated by the deal.
“The city has been through a roller coaster of decisions regarding this lawsuit and as we look ahead, we simply see nothing but more legal fees and uncertainty,” Murdock said in a statement. “Our focus must be on residents’ priorities and it’s good that this matter is no longer consuming valuable resources.”
The city has agreed to pay between $1 million and $4 million in legal fees to the plaintiffs. The exact amount will be determined at a later date.
City officials cited the potential cost of losing the lawsuit as a primary motivation for settling. Palos Verdes Estates is a small municipality with about 13,000 residents and an annual budget of less than $40 million.
In signing the agreement, the city did not admit the plaintiffs' claims.
Attorney Christopher Pisano, who represented the city in the case, said Palos Verdes Estates faced “existential financial risk” if it lost. “This settlement achieves certainty, eliminating the risk of tens of millions of dollars in liability and avoiding the high costs of continued litigation,” Pisano said.
