Sea Wall Battle: Family Seeks To Protect Laguna Beach Home

LAGUNA BEACH, CA —The oceanfront home at 11 Lagunita Drive, owned by Jeffrey and Tracy Katz, is once again in jeopardy of being battered by the Pacific Ocean. The couple has lost multiple times in legal efforts to remove the sea wall designed to keep the waves at bay.

In 2018, it was found that a seawall, erected in front of the property in 2005 as a temporary measure, was in violation. The sea wall, designed with a faux rock exterior, has become a permanent fixture, but the Katz family has stated it it necessary. Neighbors alerted the California Coastal Commission to extensive remodeling at the historic property, work large enough that it could be construed as a new construction.

The case of the Katz sea wall went to court, and earned a $1 million fine which they battled into 2019. In December of 2020, that fine was reimposed by the appellate court. The Katz family has since purchased a home next door to the property in question, now considered an "investment home," according to the OC Register.

The California Coastal Commission opposes the edifices that protect homes from erosion. Typically, walls constructed before 1976 are grandfathered in. Still the sea wall at 11 Lagunita Drive does not fit that bill, as a colossal remodel added square footage and dramatically raised the home's value. The Coastal Commission considers the work done on the Katz home as "new development," though homeowners lobby the 1952 Victoria Beach residence received a substantial remodel to bring the home up to present standards.

Seawalls prevent sand from reaching the beach, damaging the beaches and causing them to shrink to the point of disappearing, Commissioner Donne Brownsey, the Coastal Commission explained in a previous Patch report.

The homeowners have already been fined upwards of $1 million, and an order to remove the sea wall was upheld in early December. A petition to the Fourth Appellate District Court was filed on Dec. 21, and a panel of judges will decide on whether the Katz's claim that their case was "improperly disregarded" by Jan. 4.

The home at 11 Lagunita Drive sold for $2.3 million in 1989, and last sold for $11,000,000 in May according to Realtor.com. It has a moderate flood factor, according to flood risk assessment information, and is at a moderate to low risk of flooding according to FEMA flood maps.

The history of the seawall...
The house at 11 Lagunita Drive, was initially built in 1952 on the bluffs over Victoria Beach. The famed public beach was the birthplace of skimboarding and is popular with locals and visitors to Laguna Beach. In 2005, the previous owners received "temporary authorization for an emergency seawall, but never sought permanent approval for the structure as required by law, City News Service reported.

The 4,837-square-foot home is iconic. Initially listed in 2012 for $17 million, it was sold to the Katz family in early 2013 for $9 million. The seawall permit was never updated after that time, according to reports.

It is not clear as of this report if the Katzes were aware of the need for permanent approval when they purchased the home.

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