More on Vinod Khosla

On Sunday, I was strolling along Redondo Beach in Half Moon Bay, trying to shake off my grogginess as the coastline worked to shake off the morning fog. I came upon a row of people standing in the surf, casting nets into the water.

I stood back and watched in awe as the group of young men and women went about their sea dance, gracefully unfurling the nets --as white as the fog-- into the waves with a heave, and then dragging them ashore by jogging alongside them. Sometimes, the nets glimmered with flipping smelt, shorter than a school ruler. Seagulls scampered along the gravelly sand, hoping to grab a fish before the net fishermen dropped them all into plastic buckets.

Little did I know that these nets are symbolic of a debate over public access to San Mateo County beaches that is coming to a head in a protest planned for July 21, and that my little Sunday walk would bring me to the lawyer representing the owners, which includes Silicon Valley Venture Capitalist Vinod Khosla, and that lawyer would tell me the owners' story publicly for the first time.

On Sunday, it was a young woman, dressed in a sweatshirt and rubber pants and boots to fend off the cold water who as she fished explained the debate to me. She pointed to the sand here, which the smelts are fond of. It is similar to the sand at Martin's Beach, a few miles down the road, where she used to fish before "a millionaire bought it and shut it down."


What? I grew up in Connecticut, where private beaches are commonplace, but this is California, where the California Coastal Commission lords over public access to beaches like a nagging grandmother.

Vinod Khosla, a co-founder of Sun Microsystems and a green venture capitalist, bought the beach land in two lots in 2008 in the guise of Martin's Beach 1 LLC and Martin's Beach 2 LLC.

Sometime after the Deeney family sold the property, the new owners shut the gate to outsiders, even though since the 1920s generations of net fishermen, surfers and beachgoers had paid a fee -- 25 cents initially, $10 eventually -- to drive down a private road and set up in the shadow of the gigantic pyramid rock that is the centerpiece on this beach. A restaurant once operated here; there were restrooms. Both are closed and dilapidated now.

Families throughout the Bay Area can point to albums filled with snapshots of their grandparents and parents picnicking and frolicking on the sand. But now, unless they take a boat to Martin's Beach, own the rights to one of the 40 rustic cabins lining the property or are invited onto the beach, these families and others are closed out.

One of those shut out is Terry Louwerens, who had been going to the beach all her life. Her grandfather, Raymond Cunha, bought a cabin there in the 1940s, which the family used for 50 years, until it was sold.

"We'd go there and watch everyone smelt-fish, and play in the tide pools," Louwerens recalls. "It's pretty sad. There's so many great memories there..., so many things I want to share with my son, but I cannot take him there."

One day, after driving to the beach from Tracy and finding the gate locked, she started a Facebook page. Since then, the page has been filled up with photos and recollections from families like hers.

Why does the gate remain locked?

Because both sides have stubbornly drawn a line in the sand, and neither will cross it.

Michael Wallace, a financial analyst, surfer and "reluctant activist," argues that the closing of this beach to the public sets a dangerous precedent. "For us, it is a line in the sand, figuratively and literally."

Typically, once beaches have been opened to the public, they must stay open under California law, Wallace says. Working with Friends of Martin's Beach and the Surfrider Foundation, "we want to get our point out there that this is wrong."

Joan Gallo, attorney for the Martin's Beach LLC's, says the current owners had every intention of opening the gates when they bought the property -- and did so, charging $15 for access. "When the property was purchased, it was at that time the intent to open it when it was practical to do so."

However, the owners reversed that decision when San Mateo County, in 2009, said part-time access was not enough; year-round access was required, and the charge should be no more than $2. The owners' position: If they could not decide when to open the gate, it would not be opened at all.

Inviting people to this land on their own terms is exactly what the previous owners did, Gallo argues. The public has no legal right to use the land; the previous owners ran a business there, and by charging, they were inviting people to the land, she said. "Just because people want to use your property does not give them the right to use property."

While Khosla is a wealthy man, there are costs to providing access, including a gate attendant, road maintenance, liability insurance.

Will the owners ever open this beach again?

Gallo said, "Martins Beach LLC wants it to be clear that we own our property, and that we are not giving up any of our property rights. Then we will decide who can come on our property and when they can come on the property."

She urges the California Coastal Commission to hold a hearing, or for someone to sue so the legal theory can be tested. Wallace's realistic fear is that a lawsuit would drag on for years. "It could be a generation of people that loses access."

On July 21, protesters will turn their anger to action. They are urging people to bring nets, surf boards and banners at noon to the gate at Martin's Beach in protest over the continued lack of access.

"This is an opportunity for those of us who want to see public access restored to Martin's Beach to gather, share stories and show the public how much this means to us!" says a flyer being circulated to businesses along the coast here.

I, for one, think that is a great idea. Go out and protest and let people know bout the injustice that is occurring here. Then, everyone, roll up your sleeves and get to work hammering out a compromise. It is time for both sides to take a step closer to the line in the sand.

For more information about the protest, visit

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