The Parks and Recreation Commission is in the process of applying for a grant from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to fund two projects: Chetco Cove Overlook, located on Tanbark Road, and Mill Beach Access. 

Both of the projects would provide the public with more beach access, Commissioner Tony Baron said. 

Monday night, the Brookings City Council approved a grant application to fund up to 50 percent of the estimated $125,000 costs. 

“Well that’s what we have to offer people,” Council President Ron Hedenskog said when asked why public beach access is important. “I don’t think people come here to see our beautiful little street lights. I think (people) come here to be on the beach.”

Chetco Cove Overlook

The Chetco Cove Overlook project involves paving the access trail to a width of 5 feet, constructing a 140-square-foot concrete patio area with guard railing at the end of the trail overlooking Chetco Cove, and the installation of picnic and viewing benches at the overlook, city manager Gary Milliman wrote in a press release.

“Overall, this project involves connecting and improving public beach access to over two miles of public beach,” Milliman wrote. “It enhances the visitor experience by providing safer, handicapped accessible access, facilitating longer stays at the beach, providing a mix of access opportunities and access to scenic vistas.”

The overlook consists of a walking trail from Tanbark Road to a bluff overlooking Chetco Cove.

The property was deeded to the city in 1987 by dedication, and has never been developed  for public use. 

Mill Beach Access

The city of Brookings recently acquired an access road to the Mill Beach area as well, and would like to make improvements to promote greater beach access.

The access consists of a 50-foot wide, 580-foot long roadway known as Macklyn Cove Drive which extends from Mill Beach Road to the beach, with a 4,000-square-foot parking area at the base of the road adjacent to the beach, City Manager Gary Milliman wrote in a press release. 

Improvements to the area would include paving the roadway to be 14 feet wide, paving the parking area for improved handicapped accessibility and installing a handicap-accessible restroom and picnic tables, Milliman wrote. 

Improvements are necessary because there has been a dramatic increase in the number of people using this access to the beach since the city acquired the property, Milliman wrote. 

Furthermore, there are access impairments such as lack of handicapped accessibility, and erosion to the gravel road surface. 

Although the city recently purchased an additional 25 feet of land from South Coast Lumber, the other 25 feet has always been deeded to the city for public right-of-way, Hedenskog said.

When the Macklyn Cove Condominium developers received a building permit in the late 1970s, the permit was issued on the grant that Mill Beach Road had to be paved as fire access to the lower side of the property. However, the road was never on the Macklyn Cove property, Hedenskog said. It was still deeded to the city, and was supposed to remain open for public beach access; people never should have been blocked from using the road, he said.

When Hedenskog joined the council in 2007, he made it a goal to get the land opened as a public right away and to make improvements to the area. 

“I don’t like people blocking off public right away,” Hedenskog said. “Fishermen should be able to get to the beach and fish. People who want to get to the beach should be able to get to it and use it.”

The grant deadline is April 5. Work on Mill Beach would start over the summer, and the Chetco Cove project would go out to bid, Baron said.