Column: CCC and the Big Rock landswap

By By Darren Graves, Malibu Rebuild Task Force Chair  · Mon Sep 28 2026

The Coastal Act was ratified into law in 1976.  I can count, on one hand, the amount of times the Coastal Commission appears to have helped maintain the health of the California coastline.  However, there are seemingly an infinite number of instances in which the Coastal Commission utilized their votes to eradicate coastline communities for the benefit of the ‘general public.’   

The newest iteration of this process is happening now, in the eastern Malibu community of Big Rock Beach. It is a long story: Since 2002, according to the Agenda Report for the Sept. 10 CCC Meeting in Eureka, a private homeowner (or series of owners) on two adjacent properties in Broad Beach, have been callously disregarding the MMC, LCP, and Coastal Act. However, rather than enforcing the statutes of the Coastal Act, the Coastal Commission apparently preferred to negotiate with the transgressors and opted to take 70 feet of eastern Malibu beach frontage away from the Big Rock Beach housing supply and community. The commissioners voted unanimously for this land swap in lieu of up to $12 million in fines. I find it interesting that the Coastal Commissioners disregarded the acts of a billionaire for over 20 years, but as soon as the Palisades Fire tore through eastern Malibu, their negotiations with the billionaire Brewer-master turned towards a land donation and eradication of triplex housing units south of PCH in Malibu.  

The subject property for the proposed land swap is approximately 310 linear feet from the Moonshadows access point to the west and 2,000 linear feet from the Big Rock Tidepools access stairs to the east. It is also 1,056 linear feet east of the Maritime Access Point further west, at 20466 PCH. Thus, it is between three existing access points, and not located along a stretch of impossibly blocked coastline, as stated by the Coastal Commission. I find it compelling that the Coastal Commission believes it is fair for the billionaire owner of property 15 miles away from Big Rock Beach to gift a debt burden to the state of California in lieu of actually helping the Coastal Commission fulfill its duties of Coastal Act enforcement. I believe the alleged transgressor ought to be paying the totality of fines that may be imposed upon him, rather than buying up burned properties, at a discount, to the detriment of our east Malibu community. We are in the middle of rebuilding after the Palisades Fire, and this proposed land swap spits in the faces of those who would like to restore our homes and our community. I would like to know how the elimination of six housing units conforms to the State Housing Element Requirements set forth by SB8, SB330, and CA Government Code Section 65863. The RHNA likely isn’t pleased with this landgrab by the Coastal Commission, and neither should we be.  

Did you know that Malibu is currently 24 percent parklands and open space? Thanks to the Coastal Commission, that number is likely now 25 percent. I love parks, and we all know that the parks within the city limits, managed by the city, are wonderful additions to our environment. Unfortunately for all of us, the City of Malibu will have little to no influence in the new open space being donated to, likely, the MRCA or another land trust. MRCA already has four accessways to Big Rock Beach, spaced between the 18000 blocks and 20500 blocks of Pacific Coast Highway. These accessways are consistently a blight on the Malibu community, even if they are a boon to the general public, considering MRCA hardly ever cleans them and has habitually allowed them to fall into disrepair. 

The parties involved in this land swap are not good neighbors.  MRCA has amassed over 27,000 acres of space in Malibu and over 75,000 acres in the Santa Monica Mountains.  They love "claiming" land — they don’t, however, like to manage it in any appreciable manner. Since the fires, I have hiked up along the fire access roads connecting Big Rock Mesa to Las Tunas, and the roads were so overgrown that I could barely squeeze through the brush without getting cut open by sharp branches. It is clear that no fire truck will ever get through these fire roads, if they remain in their current state ofovergrown brush. MRCA hasn’t appeared to perform its "land management" job for the last 20 months, or the last 20 years, to be honest. If possible, we need to limit MRCA’s ability to acquire more land until they prove, with markers that are managed by a third party, that they are masticating and clearing brush appropriately.  

According to the commissioners, we Malibuans should stop complaining and simply rejoice: This proposed ‘land swap gift’ is another fabulous opportunity! It’s the next chance for MRCA to mismanage and destroy open space. It also appears to be a debt burden for the taxpayers in the state of California, as the parcel will not serve the public in any way, but it will (and currently does) serve as a liability to the welfare of the public. The parcel is currently a steep bluff, 20 feet tall from sand to PCH asphalt, covered in a thin layer of shotcrete, with a subgrade septic system of unknown condition to me.  The 2025 fires burned at over 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit for hours, if not days, atop that shotcrete and septic system on the "gift" property, no doubt scorching the materials, weakening them beyond suitability. I believe this property would most likely qualify for costly brownfield remediation, rather than public parkway or accessway. Per the provisions of the MMC and LCP, the public access project requirements will likely require approximately $8 million to $10 million ofdesign, excavation, brownfield cleansing and, finally, an approved CDP and potentially construction of a seawall and staircase. Until this occurs, the subject property is a liability and constant threat of injury upon the south side of PCH.  

While these closed-door conversations about beachfront acreage were occurring, where was the local code enforcement agency? Where was the City of Malibu? Apparently, not present. As a community member of Big Rock Beach, I am astounded at the lack of attention this matter stirred up in Malibu City Hall. As a licensed architect, I am shocked that the Coastal Commission and the code enforcement agencies failed the citizens of California for so long. The Broad Beach Road infractions have been ongoing for over 24 years.  Why does it take 24 years to remove an illegal revetment and restore the beach to its natural state? There is no excuse for this tardiness.

Finally, I believe we need to ask: "Why does the City of Malibu allow the state agencies to eat away at our Specific Plan?" Do we no longer care about the integrity of the plan agreed upon in 1995 and further defined in the adopted LCP of 2002? Ironically, 2002 is the year of the first illegal construction (of a revetment) by the former owner of the Broad Beach property at the center of this maelstrom. Our city has been shrinking, and we need to defend its private property and public property zones as the writers of the Coastal Act intended. Otherwise, we may lose the entire city to the state park system.