Tribal nonprofit asks Coastal Commission for a gate at Blues Beach near Westport

MENDOCINO CO., 10/15/26 — Kai Poma, the tribal nonprofit that took ownership of Blues Beach from Caltrans in July, has asked the California Coastal Commission for permission to put a steel swing gate at the beach entrance.

Kai Poma filed the application Sept. 14. The gate would “manage access and protect natural and cultural resources in compliance with Streets and Highways Code Section 118.9,” according to a coastal commission staff report dated Sept. 18. The commission could hear the request “as early as November 2026,” the report says. It doesn’t say when the gate would be closed or whether it would stop people on foot as well as vehicles.