Coastal Commission, Supervisor Gordon reprimand County staff over “Geisha” permit

The California Coastal Commission has told San Mateo County that it should not have waived a Coastal Development Permit for the filming of "Memoirs of a Geisha" at Fitzgerald Marine Reserve. According to Susan Craig, Coastal Planner with the Commission’s office In Santa Cruz,  the waiver was improperly granted because "temporary events" must last less than two weeks, but the construction of the set, filming, and teardown took longer.

The Commission doesn’t plan any further enforcement, but they have made it clear to the County that a permit would be required for this sort of thing in the future.

Supervisor Rich Gordon told me, "I’m blown away by what was agreed to by County staff. But by the time we found out, the county had a contract with the film company."  He noted that the county has renegotiated to improve the terms of the restoration agreement.

Gordon has asked for a complete report on commercial use of county facilities to be delivered to the Board of Supervisors some time in mid-March. His concern is that decisions of this type should be made by the Board of Supervisors or the Parks and Recreation or Planning Commission—not by County staff.