Trestles Hearing Update–We Need You Sept 22

Get ready! It’s time to gather and defend Trestles. A public hearing for the appeal of the 241 Toll Road will be held next Monday, Sept 22, and we need you there! Remember that in February the CA Coastal Commission turned down the application to build a massive toll road through San Onofre State Beach, threatening the integrity of this popular and wondrous natural resource. The TCA has appealed that decision to the US Commerce Dept. and they will be here Monday to hear from you.

We need you to bring your friends and family! As we saw at the Coastal Commission hearing, when over 3,000 people show up and demand protection of San Onofre and Trestles, decision makers listen! We cannot let the Bush administration overturn a decision that has already been made in California.

Hopefully you have had a chance to read the hearing procedures: click here Hand-held signs need be no bigger than 13 x 22 inches. Surfrider will be setting up sign-making stations to ensure everyone has “the right sized signs”; and we’ll also be passing out signs already made.

Since the hearing will go ‘all day’, we are creating interactive stations and planning fun activities outside the hearing (such as, face painting for the kids, frisbee, hacky sack, and of course letter writing stations)! If you can’t come for the entire day, please stop by for a bit–just coming for an hour or two CAN make a difference–at this point, public pressure is key to stopping this toll road.

At the hearing, there will be “drop boxes” for letters and we need to fill them up! If you have friends who cannot come, please let them know you can hand-deliver a letter for them. If you had previously requested to speak at the hearing, as required, we will have a schedule of speaker times by the end of the week.

Surfrider, and our partners, will be providing supporters with tee shirts and other goodies (first come, first served). We understand many of you will be at the hearing all day and we want to help keep you nourished and fray some of the costs associated with coming to the hearing. We will have a limited amount of food coupons that we can give to those who need it. Since we are a nonprofit, it’s hard to feed everyone, but we do want to make sure that our supporters are taken care of and have sustained energy to be at the hearing all day. Upon arriving, please check in at the welcome booth to receive your tee shirts and food coupons.

While we do NOT expect a final decision on Monday, a solid showing of public support for Trestles is critical; as we saw with the Coastal Commission!