State Panel OKs Plan for Coast Development : Subdivision: The go-ahead for the gated-community project at Portuguese Bend stipulates a $250,000 builder’s fee to pay for beach access elsewhere in Southern California.

A proposed subdivision on the coastal bluffs in Rancho Palos Verdes has been given a conditional green light by the state Coastal Commission, ending a long-running fight over public access to local beaches.

The unanimous commission vote approving the project came last week and was seen as a setback for opponents who contended that the Portuguese Bend area project was illegal because it violated coastal access laws. Led by Save Our Coast-2000, the conservationists had appealed the city’s approval of the project to the commission.

The commission staff recommended that the project be denied, primarily because the 10 lots on 18 acres would be enclosed in a gated community with private beach access. The staff, backed by conservationists, wanted to open the beach areas to the public.

“Basically, the opponents lost,” said Lyman Lokken, vice president for Transamerica Realty Services Inc., project developer. The commission decision acknowledged that the developer’s plans conform to state and local coastal protection laws, he said.

The commission approved the project, but with conditions. To move forward, the developers must pay a $250,000 fee to the state in lieu of providing direct coastal access. The money would be used to provide coastal access somewhere else in Southern California.

In addition, the builders must restore native habitat, prevent bluff erosion at the site and guarantee that the public will have lateral access along the beaches. Transamerica officials have not agreed to the conditions, but city officials say they have indicated a willingness to do so.

City Manager Paul Bussey said the $250,000 fee “seems a little unreasonable” for such a small subdivision.

The city had approved the subdivision under the provisions of its coastal master plan, which had been approved by the Coastal Commission a decade ago. That plan recognized that the Transamerica site was part of privately held land within the gated Portuguese Bend Club, city officials said.

“No coastal access is legally required (by the plan),” said Bussey. He said the Coastal Commission staff arbitrarily decided that such access should be required.

Save Our Coast-2000 spokesman Gar Goodson put a positive spin on the outcome.

“On the whole we’re pleased,” Goodson said, noting that the conditions imposed by the commission gave his group a partial victory. “We feel we made some progress. . . . It was better than if we hadn’t appealed at all.”