Laguna Beach : Ban on Surfing May Be Lifted by City Council

In what could become a boon for local surfers, changes in Laguna Beach’s municipal ordinance that would permit surfing off the Agate Street beach will come before the City Council for a final vote Tuesday.

Although surfing is now prohibited at the Agate Street beach, it nevertheless has been a popular spot for surfers who brave often stiff fines for pursuing their sport there.

Under the proposal coming before the council, the beach would be open to surfers between sunrise and noon and again from 4 p.m. to sunset. Swimming would be permitted during the interim period.

If the changes in the municipal code are approved Tuesday, they would take effect until Sept. 20.

Robert McMahon, a Laguna Beach lawyer who has been spearheading a petition drive to get the city to change the ordinance, said the beach is one of the best surfing spots in Laguna Beach because of a reef just under the water’s surface.

Because the bottom is so rocky, he said, most swimmers prefer to use other beaches in town, and so opening the Agate Street beach to surfers would not create an inconvenience.