The History of Lawson's Landing

In the 1920s the Lawsons, a ranching family from Woodland, purchased the 900+ acres of land around Dillon Beach, California, on which Lawson's Landing now sits. Merle and Mike Lawson opened the campground in 1957 and, almost entirely by word of mouth, it began to grow. The area was and still is popular among people from the inland valleys trying to escape the summer heat and maybe catch a few salmon, halibut, clams or abalone while cooling off. After a few years of operation the Lawsons were notified that they lacked the required permits to operate. So began a 40+ year series of attempts to legitimize the business. Many permits were obtained. The final permits require the creation of a Master Plan and that required the completion of an Environmental Impact Report.

The Master Plan for Lawson's Landing adds more restrooms, a wastewater disposal system, one additional water tank and the existing water tank replaced with a larger one for fire suppression. The Dillon Beach Community Plan requested pathways through the dunes to the beach and so those were included. There is no plan for growth, only improvement of the current visitor-serving facilities. The Lawsons have voluntarily limited the number of vehicles below the number the State allowed in its permit on many occasions and have no desire to increase that number.

The Draft Environmental Impact Report was open to public review and comments from late August through mid-October 2005 and was attacked repeatedly. Claims were made of "increased development" and growth along with statements that rare or endangered species were being hurt by visitors. One claimed that campers and boaters interfere with the breeding of Tule elk on Tomales Point, the same elk that federal dollars paid for contraceptives to prevent their overpopulation.

The primary group against Lawson's Landing is the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin under the leadership of Catherine Caufield. The EAC and their friends at the Marin Conservation League and the Marin chapter of the Sierra Club were not able to stop the EIR / Master Plan process at the Marin County Planning Commission meetings last fall largely due to a large public response from supporters of Lawson's Landing and to those who went to the meetings or wrote letters we are very grateful. However, Ms. Caufield went over the County's head to the California Coastal Commission, presenting 1200 postcards to the Commission at its December 2005 meeting and demanding something be done to stop Lawson's Landing. The CCC responded by sending a Notice of Violation letter to Lawson's Landing requesting that the permit applications should be made to the CCC first, not the County. The Lawson family met with Coastal Commission staffers and learned that the staff has been waiting for the County to shut down Lawson's Landing and, since the County hadn't, it was the Coastal Commission's duty to do so. Therefore, the Lawsons would rather work with the County for permits.

The Coastal Commission staffers have also told the public that they have no desire to halt public access to the coast at Lawson's Landing. However, they don't like it known that their definition of coastal access does not necessarily include camping, fishing or even parking at the coast. That's why it is important for everyone to let the Coastal Commission know that Lawson's Landing is important as an overnight recreational coastal access area. Your elected representatives in the state and federal government should also be included in your letter writing, as they too can exert influence in getting the Coastal Commission to step back and let the County do its work. The letters written so far have had an effect and more letters to more officials will surely help.