The fort’s time has come to an end. Photo: Spencer v. Lunada Lawsuit Exhibit
The stone fort on the point at Lunada Bay, allegedly a kind of clubhouse for localist surf gang Lunada Bay Boys, is going to be demolished. On Tuesday night, Palos Verdes city officials approved a permit for a contractor to dismantle and cart it away “soon”. Apparently, no precise timeline for the demolition was set at the planning meeting.
But the infamous fort on the point where the bay’s contentious right-hander peels isn’t the only one. City officials found two other rock structures, both of which are also set to be razed. One of the structures is in the middle of the bay, near where the trail from the bluff-top meets the beach, and the other is on the point forming the southern edge of Lunada Bay.
Earlier this year, it seemed city officials were brushing off requests by the California Coastal Commission to remove the fort, which it deemed an illegal coastal development. The city failed to meet a timeline for the fort’s razing set by the commission, but it appears the demolition is in line with the commission’s standards.
The stone fort, which has stood for three decades, has become a hot-button issue since the Bay Boys were hit with not one but two federal lawsuits, the first filed last March, increasing media coverage of the bay and local surfers who allegedly intimidate outsiders from surfing there.
