A settlement has been reached that appears to herald the end of the Bay Boys’ six-decade reign over the coveted waves at Lunada Bay, famed for unspooling in a dreamy, unbroken right hand line.
The city of Palos Verdes Estates agreed last week to a series of steps to improve public access to the bay and “vigorously enforce” coastal access laws to ensure that all surfers can shred in peace.
The agreement was reached between the city and two surfers — Cory Spencer and Diana Miernik — who filed a lawsuit in 2016 accusing the city of turning a blind eye to the bullying tactics employed by the surf gang to prevent nonmembers from accessing the waves.
These alleged tactics included slashing car tires, throwing dirt clods at surfers descending the bluffs and full-on fistfights in the water. Spencer alleged that while he was surfing in 2016, a member deliberately ran him over with a surfboard, slicing open his wrist.
The lawsuit also named 12 alleged members of the surf gang as defendants. Most of them have already reached separate settlements with the plaintiffs, agreeing to stay away from the beach for a year or pay $35,000 to $90,000 in fines, or a combination of the two, according to court documents.
The city has agreed to make improvements to the pathway along the bluffs, add signs indicating that beach access is available to everyone and install stone benches along the bluffs, according to the consent decree.