Local Coastal Program (LCP) Update

The City is comprehensively updating its Local Coastal Program (LCP). The LCP regulates all development within the City’s Coastal Zone. The LCP is comprised of (1) the Coastal Land Use Plan (LUP), which is a component of the City’s General Plan, and (2) the Coastal Zoning Code, a component of the Eureka Municipal Code.

A review draft of the updated Coastal Land Use Plan is available here.

How do I provide input on the draft document or sign up for the mailing list?

To provide input on the draft Land Use Plan or sign up for the mailing list, please fill out a comment form here, or, if you prefer, email Planning Staff directly at ckenyon@eurekaca.gov or call (707) 441-4160.

Why is the City updating their Local Coastal Program?

The City of Eureka’s Local Coastal Program (LCP) was originally certified by the Coastal Commission in 1984. A comprehensive update to the Land Use Plan portion of the LCP was adopted by the City in 1997, and certified by the Coastal Commission in 1999. The current document is outdated, inflexible, difficult to navigate, and intended to stimulate low-density suburban development patterns, inconsistent with the City’s distinct historic urban character. Several amendments to the LCP have been certified by the Commission since 1999, but this is the first comprehensive update in the last 20+ years. 

Where is the City in the update process?

A first draft of the Land Use Plan (LUP) was presented chapter-by-chapter at City of Eureka Planning Commission and City Council meetings over the course of six months, starting in September 2022. The current draft LUP reflects input received to date from Planning Commissioners, Council Members, Coastal Commission staff, local tribes, and other stakeholders and members of the public.

City Staff is currently working on a first draft of the Coastal Zoning Code, and is planning on bringing draft chapters to Planning Commission and City Council for initial review and comment beginning in August. The City has a goal of taking both the LUP and Coastal Zoning Code updates to the Council for adoption by the end of the year.

Where is Eureka’s Coastal Zone?

The Coastal Zone boundary in Eureka is shown below, and is generally described as including everything west of Broadway, north of 3rd Street, and east of Myrtle Avenue.

What is a Local Coastal Program?

In 1976, the California legislature passed the California Coastal Act, creating a unique partnership between the state (acting through the California Coastal Commission) and local governments (61 cities and 15 counties in the Coastal Zone) to protect coastal resources and regulate the use of land and water in the Coastal Zone.

The Coastal Act calls for local governments with jurisdiction within the Coastal Zone to prepare a Local Coastal Program (LCP) to implement the Coastal Act at the local level. An LCP consists of two parts: a Coastal Land Use Plan (LUP), which is a component of the City’s General Plan and details the kinds, locations, and intensity of land uses, and resource protection and development policies in the Coastal Zone; and an Implementation Plan (Coastal Zoning Code), which includes zoning and other implementing ordinances that conform with and carry out LUP policies. 

With certain exceptions, development in the Coastal Zone requires a Coastal Development Permit. After Coastal Commission certification of an LCP, responsibility for issuing Coastal Development Permits is delegated to the local government (except in certain special circumstances). When approving a Coastal Development Permit, the City must find the development conforms to the certified LCP.

What is the relationship of the LUP to the Waterfront Eureka Plan?

The City is in the process of developing a specific plan for a portion of the Coastal Zone, called the Waterfront Eureka Plan. While the Land Use Plan (LUP) addresses issues relevant to the entire Coastal Zone, the Waterfront Eureka Plan focuses specifically on the revisioning and buildout of the City’s Coastal Core Area which includes Old Town, the Commercial Bayfront, and the Library District. 

The Waterfront Eureka Plan is a “specific plan,” defined by California Government Code Section 65450 as a plan “for the systematic implementation of the general plan for all or part of the area covered by the general plan.” The LUP (as an element of the 2040 General Plan) will include land use designations and broad vision statements and policies for the Coastal Core Area, while the Waterfront Eureka Plan will include more detailed policies and implementation strategies.

City staff is using the information collected during the Waterfront Eureka Plan process to help inform the draft LUP, to ensure the Waterfront Eureka Plan and the LUP are consistent. The Waterfront Eureka Plan may be certified by the Coastal Commission prior to, concurrently with, or after adoption of the LUP and will become part of the City’s Local Coastal Program. 

June 2023 Draft Land Use Plan