The Coastal Commission requires height limits along mapped sight lines to the ocean, helping residents living further inland to see the coast and the ocean and enjoy ocean breezes. Those limits directly reduce project value in a city where added height near the water translates into real money. Local elected officials, facing pressure from developers and housing advocates alike, have never written those restrictions into law in a form the Commission would accept. Today’s Council majority favors intense densification of the areas within the city’s Coastal Zone.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2026/05/sm-a-r-t-column-santa-monicas-coast-is-about-to-change-forever-most-residents-dont-know-its-happening-part-1/