Off-roaders like Serra Dellavalle travel hundreds of miles to visit the Oceano Dunes.
“It’s a beautiful view,” described Dellavalle, who traveled from Buena Park in northern Orange County. “It feels like you're on a different planet out there. ”
Camping is another big-pull factor.
“It's good family time for us,” said Fernando Fernandez, who was visiting from Oakdale, east of Modesto. “You know, come out here, enjoy the beach, go downtown, Pismo and stuff.”
The future of off-roading at the Oceano Dunes has been a hot topic for years.
“I think it's important for the community to understand the economic impact that tourism brings to our community, and particularly the Oceano Dunes,” said Adam Verdin, who is the owner of Old Juan’s Cantina and supports off-roading activities at the dunes.
“It's very much an environmental justice issue,” explained Charles Varni, the former president of the Oceano Advisory Council. “We, the residents of Ocean, do not have a beach that we can safely recreate.”
There are legal battles happening after a decision was made to end off-roading by 2024. In the meantime, Visit SLO CAL commissioned an independent study.
“That cross-visitation and the way visitors move about south county is really important to the overall economic impact that occurs from the dunes,” said Chuck Davison, who is the president and CEO of Visit SLO CAL.
The Oceano Dunes Stewardship Study was made by Resonance Consultancy. It cost around $87,000 mostly funded by Visit SLO CAL along with the County of San Luis Obispo, and the cities of Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach.
“[Step] one was conducting an economic impact assessment,” explained Chris Fair, the president of Resonance Consultancy. “Second part was engaging with more than 30 different stakeholders, individuals and groups. And the third piece was then going through and creating some scenarios for alternative futures of how activity in the dunes might come together in the future. ”
According to the report, in 2019, the Dunes drew a total of 3.4 million visitors, 1.1 million were locals and 2.2 million visitors were from out of SLO County.
The study determined that in 2019, the Dunes brought in nearly $337 million in spending. That’s from the 2.2 million non-SLO county visitors, a breakdown shows nearly $71 million in food, close to $54 million in retail and $37 million in recreation.
“The dunes is our second most-visited site and attraction here at the county, so it's really important throughout the county of how we how we get a vision and ideas on the future,” said Dawn Ortiz-Legg, SLO County District 3 Supervisor.
According to Visit SLO CAL, the top tourist destination in SLO County is Hearst Castle.
“The decision regarding the future of off-highway vehicle activity at the park is with the courts and out of our hands, but we still have a responsibility to be prepared for the future,” said District 4 Supervisor Jimmy Paulding. “This report offers a roadmap to prepare for any possible outcome by transforming the Oceano Dunes into a world-class destination.”
The study shows an array of short-term plans such as: Improving visitor monitoring, expanding eco-experiences and programs and updating the park’s fee and reservation system.
“I think there's some great recommendations in there, things like creating more accessibility for differently-abled people to be able to access the dunes and access the beautiful oceanfront that we have,” said Davison.
The Oceano Dunes Stewardship Study makes some long-term recommendations including diversifying accommodations for visitors, upgrading the Dunes’ welcome capacity, and developing more venues, restaurants and retail spaces.
KSBY News reached out to California State Parks for comment on the study.
“California State Parks cannot comment due to pending litigation on Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area,” said Jorge Moreno, the information officer for California State Parks.
The California Coastal Commission’s Legislative Director Sarah Christie said they needed more time to review the study.
“The Commission looks forward to working cooperatively toward a future for Oceano Dunes that preserves its unique natural and cultural resources while continuing to provide high-quality visitor experiences, including low-cost beach car-camping at the more easily accessible north end of the park,” added Christie in a statement.
Verdin who was one of the people interviewed for this study said he is optimistic about the recommendations.
“Another provision that I think is very important is the concept of an oversight committee,” said Verdin, the owner of Old Juan's Cantina.
Jim Suty, the President of Friends of Oceano told KSBY News in a statement that the group was disappointed about the results. Suty was interviewed for the Oceano Dunes Stewardship Study.
“It does not clearly explain that this is a state-legislated park for beach camping and OHV recreation the way it has been continuously used for over 100 years,” said Suty. “The study fails to study the devastating impact when the town of Guadalupe had their dunes closed and they were given false promises of ‘Eco Tourism’ that never happened.”
“What I was interested in is what would the economic impact of a different form of tourism and a different type of tourist, the tourist that wants to come to a beach without vehicles on it,” said Varni, the former president of the Oceano Advisory Council, who also participated as a stakeholder.
If you want to review the report, you can head to Visit SLO CAL’s website to request a copy. Learn more here.
