Quick Take
The California Supreme Court has declined to review a challenge by a Rio Del Mar homeowners association, effectively upholding lower-court rulings that an 800-foot walkway along Seacliff State Beach in Aptos is public property. Santa Cruz County officials say the decision leaves no further avenue for appeal and moves the case closer to resolution, including the removal of fences that currently block public access.
A California Supreme Court decision recently affirmed that an 800-foot stretch of walkway adjacent to beachside homes in Aptos is indeed public, according to Santa Cruz County officials.
For years, a Rio Del Mar homeowners association and the state and county governments have argued over whether the concrete path is private patio space – as the homeowners claim – or public property on Seacliff State Beach. However, after the court’s decision in favor of the county last week, it appears the homeowners’ chances of winning the fight are dwindling.
On Dec. 10, the California Supreme Court denied a request for review by the Rio Del Mar Beach Island Homeowners Association after the Sixth District Court of Appeals ruled in the county and state’s favor in October. The appellate court had reversed a February 2024 judgment from Santa Cruz County Superior Court that agreed that the walkway belonged to the homeowners, allowing them to block the public’s access. Fences are remain in place blocking the walkway.
County spokesperson Jason Hoppin told Lookout on Wednesday that the county is pleased with the decision. He added the parties have their first hearing Feb. 11, 2026, in Santa Cruz County Superior Court to start closing the case to resolve remaining issues, such as when the fence comes down.
“We’re grateful the California Supreme Court upheld the public’s right to access the coast,” Hoppin wrote via email. “We look forward to the next steps in this case and hope to see the barriers come down sooner rather than later.”
Hoppin told Lookout that there is no further appeal that the HOA can pursue and that the county “now considers those barriers a public nuisance.”
John Erskine, the HOA’s attorney with California-based firm Nossaman LLP, declined to answer questions but provided a statement: “As the Court of Appeal indicated, additional legal proceedings are necessary to fully address the property rights of the Rio Del Mar Beach Island homeowners.”
Over the past several years, the homeowners association and various government agencies have sparred over the use of the walkway. In January 2023, the homeowners erected a fence, only to see the California Coastal Commission fine the HOA nearly $5 million in December of that year and order it to take the fence down. The association then erected an even bigger new fence months later, in February 2024.
Barry Scott, who lives adjacent to the HOA homes, said he believes that the walkway has always been public, so he’s grateful for the court’s decision. He’s lived there for 11 years and followed the spat as an advocate in support of public access issues.
“I’m super happy,” he said. “It’s a matter of equity that California beaches are public beaches, they’re public parks.”
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