Newsom pushes coastal carve-out for Santa Monica donor's project
Last-minute bill would exempt a Frank Gehry-designed oceanfront project by Newsom appointee Jeff Worthe from state coastal environmental rules.
By Hans Laetz
CalMatters reports that Gov. Gavin Newsom is pushing for an eleventh-hour legislative proposal that would give an environmental carve-out to a Santa Monica developer who is a Newsom appointee to state commissions and a longtime donor.
The bill would effectively exempt a mixed-use project on Santa Monica's oceanfront, designed by the late architect Frank Gehry, from the state's environmental regulations of coastal developments, unless the city adopts its own land use policies by Jan. 1, 2028.
KBUU reported on this bill and this project Tuesday.
The project belongs to Jeff Worthe, who, along with his wife Kristin Worthe, has donated more than $274,000 to Newsom's campaigns and inaugural fund between 2018 and 2022, according to state campaign finance records. Newsom appointed Worthe to the California Privacy Protection Agency Board in 2023, and then to the California High-Speed Rail Authority last year.
The specific carve-outs in the latest proposal would set a precedent of overriding coastal environment protections for the interest of wealthy developers, said Susan Jordan, executive director of the California Coastal Protection Network.
"Every other developer is going to want the same treatment," Jordan said. "It sends the message: If you have deep pockets, you get a big payoff."
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