SUNSET CLIFFS: Is the City’s master plan improving the park?  

A conversation is ensuing over the effectiveness – or ineffectiveness – of ongoing drainage and other improvements, like native plant re-introduction, at scenic Sunset Cliffs Natural Park.

The long-term goals of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park are embodied in its master plan and vision statement, which calls for the “creation of a park where people can enjoy San Diego’s natural coastal environment as it once was, free from the effects of man.”

Toward that end, SCNP’s master plan proposes corrective measures for past and present Sunset Cliffs’ abuse and neglect that may have degraded the park’s natural beauty. These corrective measures include the removal of man-made elements such as structures, construction debris, and excess pavement, as well as the implementation of a comprehensive on-site drainage system. Along with that has come the eradication of exotic invasive plants, and a re-vegetation program for restoring native vegetation.

Point Loma resident Scott Mac Laggan, an SCNP watchdog who visits the park daily and has closely monitored improvements underway there, claims the City’s efforts are not working. He cites continuing erosion, formation of sinkholes, and failure of reintroduced native species like Torrey Pines, as examples of intended improvements gone awry.

Conversely, Ann Swanson and Leon Scales, both of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park Council Executive Committee that oversees the coastal park, said critics of SCNP improvements are taking things out of context. They argue park improvements are not yet complete, pointing to geological reasons for why erosion is continuing, and why some replanted native species, like Torrey Pines, are not faring well.

Concerning the current status of SCNP’s ongoing “overhaul,” City senior spokesperson Tyler Becker said: “The Sunset Cliffs Natural Park Hillside Improvements Phase 2 project is in the fourth year of its five-year long-term maintenance and monitoring program for restoration efforts. This project aims to identify and improve major trails in the park, close off ‘spider foot’ trails, and plant more than 10 acres of native planting to replace non-native species.”

Added Becker: “While this project is not specifically designed to address drainage issues and erosion in the park, it is improving drainage by reducing and slowing down runoff and re-vegetating the slopes with native plants. A total of 51 Torrey Pines trees and more than 10 acres of container-native plants were planted at Hillside Park. Container-native plants are grown to a certain point before being planted within the project area, increasing the survival rate compared to other planting methods. There is currently more than 60% of native coverage within the project limit, which is on track to meet the project restoration success assessment criteria.

“The City is also working on the Sunset Cliffs Natural Park Drainage Improvements Project,” continued Becker. “This project is currently in the design phase and will provide long-term solutions to address the ongoing drainage issues and erosion across the park. The design phase is expected to be completed in fiscal year 2025, but this is subject to change due to the comprehensive environmental permitting process.”

The Peninsula Beacon toured the Hillside Park section separately, both with Mac Laggan, and Swanson and Scales, to get their respective takes on what’s going on with park improvements.

“That’s what it would look like if nobody had done anything to it for 100 years, or at least since World War II,” said Mac Laggan during a Hillside area tour, gesturing toward a fenced-off section of pristine natural Navy land beneath the bluff on which Point Loma Nazarene University sits. “There’s almost zero erosion because the roots of all those plants have been there 100, 200 years,” he said.

Mac Laggan pointed out the Hillside habitat has changed drastically, noting you could lay out a blanket and picnic or fly a kite before, but no longer. “You can go back and look at the pictures (he’s got many),” he said, adding a bridge has since been built through the property, which he characterized as “completely unneeded and unnecessary.”

Mac Laggan’s tour reveals partially buried pieces of concrete, stairways, and the remains of Balboa Stadium where the Chargers once played. “The City destroyed all these (yellow) daisies because they’re not native,” noted Mac Laggan pointing out a parking lot noticeably in disrepair with potholes and eroding speed bumps, which he claims “is what caused all this erosion.”

But Scales and Swanson have different explanations for why erosion is occurring at Sunset Cliffs. “The land has been mistreated for over 100 years – and underappreciated,” said Swanson. “Erosion is just a natural process. Sometimes it’s exacerbated by us, and that is an issue. Water comes down from the top of the bluffs and under the subsurface as well. And the exotic (non-native) plants, come down the hill as well. Birds bring the seeds. It’s an ongoing cycle.”

“There are almost no native plants here at all,” contended Scales. “We should recognize that [Sunset Cliffs] is the most dangerous area in terms of habitats. When people moved in they planted the plants they were familiar with.”

As one example, Scales noted non-native ice plant was planted by the Army during WWII here to hide entrenched gun emplacements. The guns are gone, Scales pointed out, while adding the fast-growing ice plant has since “escaped and is everywhere.”

“They put in these water bars supposedly to stop the flow of water down the hill and they’re completely buried: They do no good whatsoever,” argues Mac Laggan about park restoration efforts adding, “and all these trails by bikes away from where they are allowed has gotten rid of all the plant roots – and that causes new erosion.”

Standing next to a huge sinkhole, Mac Laggan cites this as proof that erosion is not being improved in the park. He then points to what he considers to be SCNP’s biggest failure with replanting native vegetation. “There is one of the few Torrey Pines that has survived out of the 100 some they planted,” he said. “And the only reason these have survived is because they’re off the trail and can’t be run over by bikes.”

There are sound geological reasons for sinkholes forming and some native plants, like Torrey Pines, not doing well in SCNP, say Swanson and Scales.

“Sinkholes are a part of the (erosion) sculpting process, and that happens because there are caves under here and (earthquake) fault breaks in the Point Loma formation,” said Swanson. “There is a very hard impermeable (impenetrable) soil layer with very permeable soil on top of it. Water is going to create a cavity, and that’s going to collapse and create a sinkhole.”

Scales concurred. “When I was out here with a couple of City engineers and geologists after the first sinkhole opened, they were not in the least surprised: They just expected it,” he said.

Of reintroduced Torrey Pines failing, Scales pointed out they are extremely specialized in a rare habitat that makes them extremely difficult to grow. “They have the longest and most needles because they depend on fog for their moisture in the summer,” he said. “And they live in sandstone soil. This [soil] is the farthest from sandstone that you can have.”

Scales pointed out the natural reaction of settlers of SCNP was, “My God, we’ve got an endemic pine tree (Torrey) in San Diego, let’s plant it every place.” But he concluded, “It doesn’t anymore belong here, then it belonged there (elsewhere).”

Scales chalked up the reaction by some folks taking exception to ongoing work by the City to improve erosion and replace non-native vegetation in the park to “people falling in love with a certain time period of their own lives, and they want things to continue to be that way.”

Concluded Scales of the City’s native re-vegetation efforts at SCNP: “Over time, nature will tell us what belongs here.”

SUNSET CLIFFS NATURAL PARK

The 68-acre park extends 1.5 miles along Point Loma peninsula’s western shoreline. The unique coastal park provides expansive ocean views offering colorful sunsets. It is comprised of striking cliff formations and caves, a captivating intertidal area, and the native sage shrub habitat.

The park connects to the neighboring Point Loma Ecological Reserve. Sunset Cliffs Park has two distinct sub-parks. Eighteen-acre Linear Park is an extremely narrow one-mile-long tract bordered by the Pacific Ocean and Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. It extends from Adair Street to Ladera Street with several intermittent promontories with epic views.

The other side of Sunset Cliffs Park is Hillside Park, a 50-acre hillside that begins at Ladera Street. The cliffs continue southward into the surrounding residential area along the west-facing slope of Point Loma Ridge. This entire park is 300 feet above sea level, and the drive into the park along Sunset Cliffs Boulevard has been officially designated as a scenic drive. The park’s vision is to protect the unspoiled beauty of Point Loma and provide a place to contemplate the grandeur of the ocean.

WILL YOU MARRY ME?

Sunset Cliffs Natural Park in Ocean Beach has been identified in a survey as one of the top 250 most iconic landmarks for a marriage proposal/family vacation destination this summer, according to Infographic. The survey revealed that Americans are notably drawn towards unique, Instagram-worthy locales for popping the question. Topping the charts is the Sunset Cliffs Natural Park offering a serene and beautiful setting with a clear ocean view, making it an ideal spot for a memorable marriage proposal. The sound of waves and the majestic sunsets create an atmosphere that’s both romantic and awe-inspiring.