After months of advocating for State Parks to bring camping reservations back to pre-pandemic levels, the Friends of the Oceano Dunes recently announced that the number of units available to overnighters at the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area [ODSVRA] will increase to 500.
“Friends of Oceano Dunes is pleased with the camping increase and looks forward to working with State Parks to improve the overall experience of camping and OHV recreation at the Oceano Dunes,” Friends of Oceano Dunes President Jim Suty told New Times.
Although camping spaces numbered 1,000 units before the pandemic, State Parks Southern Communication Manager Jorge Moreno told New Times that the Oceano Dunes SVRA is currently at a capacity of 400 units, which will grow to 500 on Jan. 25. However, that number is expected to drop to 300 on March 1.
“California State Parks adjusts camping inventory throughout the year to address public safety, visitor experience, and park operations,” Moreno said. “One example is a seasonal reduction of camping inventory from March through September to protect the endangered shorebird during its nesting season.”
The increase in camping units comes months after a San Luis Obispo Superior Court ruling that ensured off-road vehicle use could continue at the Oceano Dunes despite a March 2021 California Coastal Commission decision to phase out off-roading permanently at the dunes in 2024.
On July 19, 2023, Judge Tana Coates released the ruling, which brought closure to four lawsuits—three from the Friends of Oceano Dunes and one from EcoLogic Partners—against the Coastal Commission.
“The court’s ruling is narrow; it is based solely on the commission’s authority to impose a permanent prohibition on [off-highway vehicle] driving at the ODSVRA under current statutes and the county of San Luis Obispo’s current certified local coastal program,” the ruling stated.
Coates ruled that only a local government can alter its coastal programs, so SLO County would need to amend its current local coastal program to ban off-roading before the Coastal Commission could enact its decision to do the same.
Suty said he believes the new increase in camping units is a direct result of Friends of Oceano Dunes winning their lawsuits. He added that although the increase in camping units is a nice start, the fight isn’t over.
“Friends want the acreage and use limits returned to what they were previously [1,000 units], so 500 units was never a goal,” he said.
In previous New Times reporting, Suty said that keeping off-road vehicles on the dunes protects jobs and local businesses situated in the state park, referencing a 2019 study from Visit SLO CAL that found visitors from outside SLO County who go to the dunes generated a total economic impact of more than $500 million that year.
South County Chambers of Commerce member Jeff Chambers told New Times that the units increase would bring a welcome boost of economic revenue.
“The pandemic had many negative impacts, including decline in visitors,” he said. “Resumption of the campsite units helps our local tourism economy by increasing our visitors to where we were pre-pandemic.”
Oceano business owner Adam Verdin echoed this sentiment and told New Times an increase in camping units is exciting for local businesses like his own, Old Juan’s Cantina in Oceano.
“As a small business greatly impacted by the pandemic, we are very pleased to finally have camping normalized to pre-pandemic level,” he said.
This article appears in Jan 25 – Feb 4, 2024.