After Backlash, Caltrans Agrees to Modify Fort Bragg's Highway 1 Fence

The new wooden fence that runs along Highway 1 near the southern entrance to Fort Bragg is going to be changed.

The City of Fort Bragg and Caltrans both said Wednesday that they are working together to modify the fence after residents objected to its height, appearance, and impact on the view.

In a press release, the city said the fencing is part of Caltrans' Fort Bragg sidewalk and Americans with Disabilities Act improvement project, and that it replaced an existing fence removed to widen the sidewalk. The fence and its cost, the city noted, are components of Caltrans' broader contract and "are not a separate city construction project."

The city issued a coastal development permit based on a project description calling for the fence to be replaced "in kind and in the same location as the previous fence," the release said. After residents raised concerns, city staff reviewed the permit and related documents, which the city said indicate the replacement fencing was intended to match the previous conditions.

"Take a breath. Remember there be beauty here."
— Jean Arnold, Mendocino

City Manager Isaac Whippy has spoken directly with Alex Arévalo, a Caltrans District 1 program and project manager. Whippy reported Arévalo was receptive to community concerns and committed to working with the city and Caltrans' contractor to identify and implement modifications.

"We appreciate residents bringing this issue forward and Caltrans' willingness to respond," Whippy said in the release. "Alex has listened carefully and made it clear that Caltrans wants to make this right for Fort Bragg. We will continue working together to ensure the modifications address the community's concerns and respect the coastal views and character of this important entrance to our city."

Caltrans confirmed it is engaged. "Caltrans is actively working with the City of Fort Bragg to address the concerns of the recently installed wood fence along Route 1," spokesperson Manny Machado said Wednesday. "We continue to have ongoing collaboration with the city, stakeholders, and the California Coastal Commission."

That last reference picks up a thread from earlier in the dispute. The Coastal Commission's Peter Allen told MendoLocal.News that the fence was authorized under the city's own coastal permit, and that "the replacement should have been in-kind, that is matching the existing fence."

Neither the city nor Caltrans has said what the modifications will be, or when they will happen. Caltrans will work with its contractor to determine the specific changes and a construction schedule, the city said, and the city "will remain engaged throughout the process."

The fence has drawn scrutiny partly for its price. Caltrans bid it at $82,450 to install, plus $15,035 to remove the old fence — roughly $97,000, both line items inside a larger, roughly $8.71 million Ghilotti Construction contract along Highway 1.

For some residents, though, the objection is less about dollars than about what the entrance to town says. Jean Arnold of Mendocino said the open stretch of ocean had felt like a greeting.

"That stretch of ocean view as you enter Ft. Bragg proper always struck me as a natural, quiet, yet huge, 'Welcome!' sign, something that differentiated the town from other municipalities," she wrote to MendoLocal.News. "To me, it said, 'Take a breath,' and, 'Remember, there be beauty here.'"

Typo fixed in pull quote, 9:27 p.m. August 19, 2026

Read our previous reporting:

Fort Bragg's New Highway One Fence Cost More than $80,000 — And Hid a Priceless Ocean View