Six homes red-tagged in Dana Point, several yellow-tagged following big hurricane swell

Seven beachfront homes in Dana Point have been red-tagged because of damage from the big waves and high tides that pummeled the Orange County coastline over the past few days.

Two more have been yellow-tagged along the same stretch of Beach Road, along with three in Laguna Beach.

The homes in Dana Point are in the private Capistrano Bay District, a community that has been vulnerable in recent years as sand erosion has depleted beaches that once protected the properties from the ocean.

Crews worked throughout the day Tuesday to remove debris along the stretch of coast wedged between San Clemente and Dana Point, while homeowners with red and yellow notices on their homes assessed the damage.

Chris Rogers bought his oceanfront home on Beach Road about six years ago, just a year before neighboring Capistrano Beach was destroyed during big winter storms.  A wooden walkway, basketball court, restrooms and parts of the parking lot had to be removed because of the damage.

On Tuesday, he looked out to where his deck once stood outside of his red-tagged home, a beachfront retreat he dreamed of as a gathering place for his family, where now waves tossed around patio furniture and broken concrete and glass were evidence of the ocean’s destruction.

“It is always close,” he said of the ocean in relation to his home. “But it’s nothing like what you’re seeing now.”

Typically, when there’s sand in front of the house, it absorbs a lot of the wave energy, he said. “And it sort of trickles up to your house.”

But big swells the past few years, especially in recent months, have depleted the sand, with the ocean waves now slamming onto his property, each set of waves inching closer as the evening tide rises.

“Now we’re just trying to save the house,” he said, noting he hopes to fill in gaps under the home with concrete.

“It’s just so sad,” he said, looking out to neighbors’ patios that have also been decimated, their homes also red-tagged.

Donal Russell, general manager of the Capistrano Bay District, called the situation “a disaster.”

“We’re playing chase, which is the worst way to deal with the situation,” he said. “It kind of snuck up on us.”

While the beach in front of the homes has been eroding for several years, the wave action since early June has been a “freight train of hurricanes and tropical storms that have damaged our communities,” he said.

“While we are fully aware of sea-level rise and global warming,” he said, “these series of storms since June 9 was a surprise.”

While some of the residents impacted are newer to the community, many are second-generation owners whose parents or grandparents bought the home after World War II, Russell said. “They are older, shallow-footing homes not made to withstand this kind of damage.”

Patrick McNulty, president of the community association, has lived on Beach Road since he was 5 years old. He remembers ocean damage in the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s — but never as bad as this.

“This week by far has been the worst week we’ve ever had,” he said, standing among a group of other residents where a red-tagged home was torn down, now an empty lot. “Something has to be done or we won’t be here. And nor will the train track and (Pacific Coast Highway).”

He’s hoping some sort of offshore reef, like what is being proposed at North Beach in San Clemente, could be built to help absorb the ocean’s strength. Other residents talked about a jetty that could maybe help.

“If you look around the world, any place we’ve had a lot of wave action, they’ve put either artificial reefs or something else that protects the coastline,” Mayor John Gabbard said in support of the need for some project to help protect the homes. “Whether it’s mangroves down in the Caribbean or artificial reefs like in Australia. There are solutions, but policymakers need to figure out what they want to do.”

Steve Watts and his wife, Jane, bought their beachfront dream home, now yellow-tagged, a year ago to be close to their 14-month-old grandchild about 15 houses away.

“The ocean is like god; it’s going to do what it’s going to do,” Steve Watts said. “We were left a little defenseless.”

The couple was getting ready to move from their Ladera Ranch home to make the Dana Point home their full-time residence. When they bought it, they remodeled the home, but were restricted in what exterior changes they could make.

While they would be allowed to stay in the home with the yellow-tag designation, the gas has been turned off, Jane Watts said.

She braced every time she heard wooden planks hitting the pylons under her home’s deck, her home shaking each time water rushed underneath.

“So powerful,” she said of the ocean’s force. “It’s scary.”

Next door, workers were getting soaked by ocean waves as they removed wood on what was once a patio. Jane Watts described how waves the previous night had reached 40 feet tall, above the neighbor’s home.

Resident Michael Jackson, who lives in the community and bought his home 10 years ago, said he was willing to take the risk when he bought, knowing the ocean was a threat.

“The price you pay to live in paradise,” he said.

The city, meanwhile, has been in communication with the Capistrano Bay District community “and is monitoring for damage,” an email from city officials said. “City staff have been and will remain on site to inspect damage and, when appropriate, place tags and advise residents to vacate homes that exhibit structural damage that make them unsafe.”

The affected property owners are collaborating with a coastal consultant and engineering firm on emergency measures to protect their property.

Permits for that kind of emergency work are issued directly by the California Coastal Commission. Coastal Commission staff have been reviewing and approving the requested permits — including over weekends and after hours — as they recognize the urgency of the situation, city officials said.

“The interim emergency work underway includes installation of a boulder revetment behind the homes to protect them from wave action,” the city said.

“It’s tragic for everyone,” Mayor Gabbard said, but added he has learned some of the homes are not full-time residences. “So at least it wasn’t someone losing their house that they live in every day. So that’s the good side, but nobody wants to see anyone losing their house, even if it was their vacation home.”

Damage along the oceanfront homes dates back to last month when the city was first notified about a residential deck that was destroyed on Aug. 28. It was inspected that night and red-tagged as unsafe in its current condition due to the undermining of the slab foundation, according to city spokesperson Jessica Spaulding.

Councilmember Mike Villar, who represents the district where the damage is, said while the damage is extensive, “Thank God, no injuries have been reported.”

In Laguna Beach, the city received notice of a damaged seawall along the frontage of two homes on Lagunita Drive on Sunday, Sept. 6, city spokesperson Lauren Ezzell said.

The Laguna Beach Fire Department responded and assessed the situation, confirming there were no damaged utilities or immediate threats to the existing homes. The affected properties were secured as a precaution, Ezzell said.

City lifeguards cordoned off the beach area fronting the seawalls to protect beachgoers and passersby from potential hazards associated with additional erosion or deterioration.

The city conducted on-site safety inspections Tuesday morning and yellow-tagged three homes on the road, restricting access to the rear exterior portions of the properties.

“The yellow tags do not prohibit occupancy of the homes; they restrict access to the affected exterior areas as a safety precaution,” Ezzell said.

The city will continue to coordinate with the affected property owners to facilitate necessary repairs, she said. And, city staff will continue monitoring conditions and take additional safety measures if warranted.

Public safety remains the city’s primary concern, including protecting residents and maintaining safe public access along the beach, Ezzell noted.