Commissioners discussed complaints that some condominium buildings are using low‑cost annual permits to reserve large swaths of beach through presetting of chairs and storage boxes. Several commissioners asked staff to publish permit maps and report on regulatory options.

Commissioner Stevenson said the city’s existing annual permit fee for presetting is $150 and described the result as a de facto private appropriation of public beach. “It is a $150 a year,” she said, summarizing what she learned after asking staff about permitting. Stevenson urged reconsideration of a permit regime that allows large blocks of public beach to be effectively reserved by private entities.

The city attorney and code staff explained the legal framework: the permit is a regulatory fee tied to administrative processing and cannot exceed the city’s cost of administering the permit; the underlying beach up to the mean high‑water line is the state’s or county’s authority in many respects, and the city has limited ability to treat the beach as its own property. Code staff said permits are assigned on a first‑come, first‑serve basis for presetting adjacent to each building and that presetting does not prevent an individual beachgoer from placing a chair in the same area.

Commissioners asked for more transparency and enforcement. Requests included publishing an interactive map or list on the city website showing which properties hold current presetting permits, clarifying rules on storage boxes and dune placement, and reviewing whether the permitted perimeter for presets should be reduced or whether presetting should be discontinued in favor of on‑demand setup. Staff said they will prepare a report and consider enforcement steps and website publication of permit maps.

Next steps: staff will prepare a written report with existing ordinance language, a map of current permits, enforcement recommendations, an explanation of storage-box policy, and possible changes to permit terms for commission consideration.