Capitola council funds next-step study for Grand Avenue bluff pathway after residents press to preserve public access

Capitola City Council members on Oct. 23 directed staff to return with a budget amendment to fund about $20,000 for a topographic survey and concept design for relocating the Grand Avenue bluff‑top pathway on Depot Hill.

The action followed a staff and consultant briefing and a presentation from a citizen ad hoc committee that recommended an inland alignment as the only practical near‑term option to preserve public access. Public Works staff and Pacific Crest Engineering told the council that repeated bluff retreat and wave action have caused recurring failures and that an alignment at the property line could be expected to remain usable for about 10 years.

“Relocation is the only practical near term option to preserve the pathway,” Public Works staff said during the presentation. Staff reported recent project expenditures including an approximately $18,000 geological evaluation and about $40,000 spent on a drainage outfall repair near Saxon Avenue. Staff estimated design and permitting for a relocated pathway at $40,000–$50,000 and construction costs in a wide range, roughly $400,000–$700,000 depending on scope, grading and permitting needs.

Eric Zinn of Pacific Crest Engineering described the bluff geology and erosion drivers: “The erosion really never stops because once the wave action ... the bedrock collapses, and then the soft part on the top of the marine terrace deposit falls.” He emphasized that wintertime rainfall and lateral groundwater flow at the soil/bedrock interface are important contributors to retreat and that drainage control is more critical to reducing short‑term failures than changing planting materials.

An ad hoc committee of residents that studied options for six months recommended moving the pathway inland about 10 feet to the public right‑of‑way at the property line and using volunteer labor where feasible to reduce costs. The committee said that approach is the least expensive feasible option short of doing nothing and estimated community usage at “2 to 300 pedestrians per day.”

Council members questioned grant competitiveness for a project with a short expected lifespan, how encroachments on the public right‑of‑way would be treated and whether drought‑tolerant landscaping could reduce bluff saturation. Staff said many encroachments are revocable but that longstanding front‑yard plantings and hardscapes often lack permits and would need to be removed to establish a new alignment.

Council discussion focused on the project’s public‑access value and fiscal constraints. Councilor Westman moved and the council directed staff to identify funding and return with a budget amendment to cover approximately $20,000 to complete the topographic survey and a concept plan, with staff to examine contingency, CIP reassignments and other available sources.

Staff estimated that completing the topographic survey and moving toward a shovel‑ready set of documents could take six to 12 months depending on permitting needs, and that the city would later need to resolve encroachments, CEQA requirements and coastal permitting if erosion control measures are proposed.

The council’s direction was limited to the next‑step study; no final decision was made on construction funding or on long‑term erosion control measures such as hard armoring.

Next steps: staff will bring back a budget amendment authorizing the topographic survey and concept design, identify funding sources and report back with a schedule and refined cost estimates.