State Panel Torn on Beach Curfews : Government: Huntington Beach’s Moulton-Patterson is among Coastal Commission members who oppose move to issue guidelines that limit cities’ options.

If a meeting here Wednesday was any indication, the California Coastal Commission may have a hard time deciding whether to force coastal cities to limit beach curfew laws.

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“This commission must put some trust in local city councils to govern,” said Linda Moulton-Patterson, a commissioner and mayor of Huntington Beach.

As an elected official whose council imposed a beach curfew last year, Moulton-Patterson is a vocal critic of the commission’s recent challenge of curfews imposed by local governments to help curb late-night crime on beaches.

Despite criticism and reluctance from five of the 11 commissioners, the panel voted to distribute proposed guidelines to local governments for comment. The guidelines, proposed by the commission’s executive director, would tightly regulate any future beach closures.

Last October, the commission’s executive director, Peter M. Douglas, issued warnings to 73 cities and counties, including four in Orange County, along the state’s 1,100-mile coastline that beach curfews are illegal without state approval.

That action prompted heated debate by elected officials who believed the commission was going beyond its authority and meddling in local affairs. As Moulton-Patterson said: “We are closest to the problem and know what our problems are.”

On Jan. 28, after meeting with representatives of six Orange County coastal cities, Douglas said the state would no longer challenge the curfews recently imposed by cities, but would review them.

The guidelines drafted by Douglas are the commission’s attempt to determine when and how curfews may be enacted without violating state laws and ensuring the public’s right to beach access.

Under the proposed guidelines, cities wishing to prohibit or restrict public use of beaches must notify the commission before the action, state a reason for a curfew, and carefully consider alternatives to sweeping beach closures. Also, city ordinances enacting a curfew should last no more than three years.

Douglas described the guidelines only as a “work sheet, a starting point for beginning dialogue with local governments.”

But some commissioners called the proposals premature.

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“We need to hear more from the cities first,” said Eureka Mayor Nancy Flemming. “I thought it was premature to distribute these proposed guidelines when we haven’t heard back from a lot of cities yet.”

Division among commissioners was clear as Moulton-Patterson was questioned by her colleagues about remarks she made on local control.

“These cities want to reduce their police enforcement on the beaches, and no person in their right mind would even want to go fishing or walking on the beach where there’s no police protection,” said Madelyn Glickfeld, a commissioner from Malibu. “With a curfew, all we’re doing is just ceding the beach to the criminals.”

“I understand that the gang problem is real,” Glickfeld said, “but if people want to roll up their communities at night, well, these curfews seem to do just that.”

Commission member Lily Cervantes took exception with the Huntington Beach curfew which, as explained by Moulton-Patterson, allows fishing and walking on the beach but prohibits youths from gathering.

“What if we have people congregating to fish at night? If four or five people want to get together and go fishing and they’re laughing out there and having fun, that’s OK?” Cervantes said. “We need to be explicit about ordinances that use the word congregate. “

If local governments say they don’t have enough money to patrol beaches and parks now, Cervantes added, “how do they enforce the curfew?”

Douglas said the guidelines will be sent to at least 2,000 agencies, organizations and environmental groups. Once the commission staff receives comments, Douglas said, he plans to revise the guidelines before he brings them back to the commission for a public hearing.

“Hopefully, we can get our guidelines approved this year,” Douglas said.