The specifications for the new benches on the Lunada Bay bluff call for seating about six feet long, 22 inches wide and 30 inches high. A landscape architect did not pick those numbers. They come from a stipulated settlement agreement that the City of Palos Verdes Estates signed in 2024, and that agreement also sets the angle of the interpretive sign, the materials the trail can be made of, and the corner where the drinking fountain goes.
That level of detail explains how the open space at Paseo del Mar and Avenida Mirola is changing, and why it will stay that way. The city agreed to the improvements to resolve a lawsuit over public access to the Lunada Bay shoreline. The Daily Breeze reported in September 2024 that a Los Angeles Superior Court judge approved the consent decree. The city's own announcement says the City Council voted unanimously to accept it. The agreement's stated aim is a bluff top that is "inviting" and welcoming to visitors while it "will continue the natural look and feel of the blufftop area." Every item below follows from that sentence.
The Settlement Wrote the Spec Sheet First
The settlement listed eight required improvements before any design existed. In January 2025 the city hired the design firm Dudek, and in March 2025 the City Council accepted Dudek's concept design. Final design and construction management were added to Dudek's contract that September. On August 18, 2026, the Planning Commission approved the coastal development permit, CDP-005-26.
Here is how each settlement term lines up with what the approved plan installs:
| Settlement term | What it requires | What the approved permit installs |
|---|---|---|
| Trail | Maintained, defined path of decomposed granite, fine gravel, crushed oyster shell or similar natural material | 34 native rock trail markers along the bluff top |
| Seating | At least four benches, roughly 6 ft by 22 in by 30 in, some near the start of the south trail | Four stone benches |
| Welcome signs | At least two, stating the bluff and shoreline are public and open to everyone | Two welcome signs, plus a rules and regulations sign |
| Trail signs | Marker for the south trail; warning and redirection at the middle trail | Advisory sign and public access sign |
| Interpretive sign | At least one, panel at least 24 by 36 inches, tilted 30 to 45 degrees toward the viewer | One interpretive sign |
| Planting | Drought-tolerant natives, removal of mustard and fennel | Native plants, seeding, bark mulch, temporary irrigation |
| Water | Fountain for people and dogs near Paseo del Mar and Avenida Mirola | Drinking fountain with pet water bowl |
The council's version says the trail markers will use "common PV stone" and the benches will resemble the PV stone benches at the Bluff Cove overlook. Anyone who walks Palos Verdes Drive West already knows the look. The plan carries an existing piece of the city's coastline north to Lunada Bay instead of bringing in a new park style.
The permit also includes erosion control blankets and coir logs to protect the bluff slope, and six months of plant establishment and site maintenance. The city's staff report describes the work as "minor surface improvements," with no significant grading and no change to the bluff itself.
Two Trails Down, Signed Differently on Purpose
The bluff has two informal routes to the shoreline, and the settlement handles them in opposite ways. The south trail, closest to Resort Point, which the agreement calls the Palos Verdes Estates cliff walk "drop in," gets a trail marker sign meant to be easy to see from the top. The middle trail, which the agreement also calls the "goat trail" and which sits closest to Rocky Point, gets a "shoreline access" sign pointing to the south trail and a second sign warning that the middle trail has unstable cliffs and does not reach the shoreline.
The planting is supposed to do the same job without words. The agreement calls for landscaping that "directs" visitors away from the cliffs and the false trails and toward the south trail. The staff report gives the same goal in planning terms, saying the project should reduce "the proliferation of informal trails" that have formed across the disturbed grassland.
The same passage of the settlement sets a limit on the planting itself. The landscaping "will be designed and maintained to not permanently block any current residential views." The new planting is meant to stay low.
The Walk From the Curb, in Order
The settlement places each feature by function, so the order of a walk is mostly set in advance:
- At the street. The drinking fountain and dog bowl sit near the corner of Paseo del Mar and Avenida Mirola, beside the existing roadway access point.
- On the bluff top. The rock markers line a defined path, and the welcome signs state that the bluff and the shoreline are public.
- Near the head of the south trail. Some of the benches and the interpretive sign go here. The sign's subject is either Lunada Bay's marine life or its geology and geography. The agreement's sample list includes kelp, abalone, California spiny lobster, octopus, California sheepshead, gray whales, harbor seals and sea lions.
- At the bottom of the south trail. A separate shoreline sign lists the rules, the public's rights and responsibilities, references to the Coastal Act and fishing regulations, and phone numbers for state Fish and Game and several city departments. It names fishing, snorkeling, hiking, dog walking, boating and surfing as uses meant to share the beach.
The agreement adds that benches and the interpretive sign must not block emergency crews.
A $337,598 Project With a Deadline Attached
On July 17, 2026, the city received three construction bids, ranging from $210,544 to $301,350. The City Council awarded the contract to Marina Landscape Inc. at the low figure on July 28. Even the low bid went past the money set aside. The fiscal year 2026–2027 capital plan allocated $274,000, and the full project estimate came to $337,598. That total covers the $210,544 contract, a 10 percent contingency of $21,054, $70,000 for conceptual and final design, $24,000 for project management and bid work, and $12,000 for construction management and inspection.
Most of the money comes from Sacramento. The 2018 Park Bond Act per capita grant authorizes up to $186,230, reimbursed by California State Parks, and requires a 20 percent city match. After the bids came in, the city's General Fund share rose from a projected $87,770 to $151,368, an increase of $63,598.
The report gives the deadline as the reason for paying the extra rather than rebidding. Starting over "could delay construction beyond the September 2026 compliance deadline," which might have forced the city to ask the plaintiffs for an extension. The settlement gives the city 24 months from its effective date to finish the bluff-top work. At the July meeting, staff scheduled 40 working days for the base contract and expected work to begin in August 2026 and end in September 2026.
The Next Ten Years Are Written Too
Installation starts a longer clock. The city must maintain every bluff-top improvement for at least 10 years, counted from the settlement's effective date or from completion of installation, whichever comes later. It must also notify plaintiffs' counsel and Coastal Commission enforcement staff as each item is finished. The benches, markers and native planting are a decade-long commitment.
The shoreline below has its own schedule. For five years, the city must sweep the Lunada Bay shoreline at least every two months for stored items, a list in the agreement that runs from coolers and barbecues to kayaks, patio chairs, lobster traps and crab pots. Drones can handle some sweeps, but at least once every four months the sweep has to be done in person, and the written reports go to the plaintiffs' counsel and the Coastal Commission twice a year. The agreement also required a one-time removal, with Coastal Commission approval, of the bamboo stand at the south end of the bay.
The council's work plan also lists a second item at Rocky Point, farther north, as a separate condition of the consent decree. At the Coastal Commission's request, the city has been presenting the Lunada Bay and Rocky Point improvements together.
The full settlement text is posted on the City of Palos Verdes Estates website. Its terms specify the plants, signs and benches on the Lunada Bay bluff and require the city to maintain them for at least 10 years after installation is complete.
At Keith Kelley, we follow changes to the Palos Verdes Estates coastline closely, from the Bluff Cove overlook to Lunada Bay, because the city's open spaces are part of what every home here offers. If you would like to talk through what the Lunada Bay plans mean for a property along Paseo del Mar, Schedule a Private Consultation.
