Pacifica beach access denied during erosion repairs

PACIFICA, Calif. (KGO) -- Crews are working to fix an access path to the beach in Pacifica after waves created a large sinkhole. The repairs are one of two changes coming along Esplanande Avenue.

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When Bill Hanson's wife got a job in California, the prospect of a beachfront property was promising enough to leave Minnesota. Hanson discovered a hole in his plan when he arrived in Pacifica. "We checked it out online and nothing like this had happened," he said. "So when we got here it was quite a surprise."

Cement trucks were parked outside Hanson's new home Monday as repairs were set in motion after a 30 foot section of coastal access path buckled a few weeks ago.

"In five years, six years, this whole bluff could be all the way back to the street," said Bart Willoughby a coastal analyst.

"Be here long enough there will actually be a beachfront property right out the front door," said Hanson.

Once the holes are filled and the path is deemed safe Willoughby says beach access could reopen in two to three weeks and that's the same projected timeline for demolishing the crumbling cliff side apartment on Esplanande Avenue. Residents had to move out last January because of the eroding cliff.

"The hazmat people have to come in, take a look, do an analysis," said Willoughby.

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None of this is what Harrison had in mind but he says it still beats Minnesota. "Once this is finished, I got the beach right down here, can't go wrong."