California: ICYMI: Newsom administration advances historic return of Blues Beach to local tribal stewardship 

News

Jul 10, 2026

ICYMI: Newsom administration advances historic return of Blues Beach to local tribal stewardship

Blues Beach in Mendocino County, California

What you need to know: California is scheduled to transfer 136 acres of Blues Beach and Mendocino County bluffs to Kai Poma, a nonprofit established by three local Native American tribes with ancestral ties to the region. The historic transfer of state-owned land is expected to be completed within the next two months.

SACRAMENTO – Building on Governor Gavin Newsom's commitment to return ancestral lands and strengthen tribal stewardship, the state is continuing its work to right the historical wrongs committed against the Native communities of California. Today, Caltrans, the California Transportation Commission (CTC), the California Coastal Commission, and the nonprofit Kai Poma — representing the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians, the Round Valley Indian Tribes, and the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians — are near completion of a multi-year effort to return 136 acres of Blies County Bluffs in Mendocino County to tribal ownership.

The CTC recently approved the transfer, which included defining boundaries, agreeing on access and environmental terms, and completing management plans. The transfer is now moving through the final administrative stages.

This momentous transfer restores a sacred cultural connection between Native peoples and their ancestral homelands in the north state. By virtue of a collaborative effort among tribal nations, state agencies, and regional partners, this majestic stretch of coastline will once again be managed under the rightful stewardship of local tribes.

Governor Gavin Newsom

The Blues Beach land transfer honors the cultural, historical, and ecological significance of the 136-acre property to local tribes and fulfills the intent of Senate Bill 231, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2021. The law, authored by Senator Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), gives Caltrans the authority to make the transfer, prohibits commercial activity on the property, and requires public access to be maintained.

"Ancestral lands hold profound importance to California Indian communities. The legacy of forced relocation continues to affect tribal families, and the protection of homelands remains essential for cultural continuity," said Kai Poma Chairman Eddie Knight. "Preserving and restoring Blues Beach supports ongoing tribal practices such as harvesting food, harvesting medicine, and safeguarding sites of historical and spiritual significance. Kai Poma looks forward to restoring and protecting Blues Beach for future generations."

Blues Beach in Mendocino County, California

California first acquired the section of cliffside and shoreline in the 1960s as part of a plan to create scenic overlooks and recreational opportunities along Highway 1.

"Thanks to Governor Newsom's leadership and Senator McGuire's legislation, this transfer acknowledges the deep cultural, historical, and ecological significance of this 136-acre property to local tribes and advances long-standing efforts to return stewardship responsibilities to tribal communities," said California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin

Generations of visitors have come to the beach for recreation and sightseeing, and that history will continue under tribal stewardship. Caltrans will keep an easement for future maintenance. Once transferred, Kai Poma will manage the site in keeping with its cultural, environmental, and public access commitments.

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Bigger picture

In 2019, Governor Newsom issued the first formal apology on behalf of the State of California to California Native American peoples at the future site of the California Indian Heritage Center. In that moment, he also announced the creation of the California Truth and Healing Council, charged with examining the historical relationship between the state and tribal communities and recommending steps toward truth, healing, and repair. Since then, the Council, led by Secretary Snider-Ashtari, has worked with tribal communities to record and better understand the historical relationship between the state and California Native Americans. Through collaborative and consultative work of the Council, the Governor's Office of Tribal Affairs, and tribes across the state, the state has developed a number of programs and initiatives that place tribal partnership at the heart of land conservation, climate resilience, and cultural preservation, such as:

• California's ambitious goal to conserve 30% of lands and coastal waters by 2030, also known as the 30×30 initiative, includes a core commitment to strengthen tribal partnerships, recognizing tribes as original stewards of California's lands and waters.
• California Natural Resources Agency's goal to support meaningful and durable tribal stewardship over at least 7.5 million acres of land coastal waters through three pathways (1) ancestral land return; (2) collaboration and shared management; and (3) increasing tribal access to ancestral territories, which builds on the Governor's direction for state entities to work cooperatively with California Native American tribes on ancestral land return and co-management
• Tribal Nature-Based Solutions grant program, which builds on the Governor's direction for state entities to work cooperatively with California Native American tribes to return ancestral lands in excess of state needs to tribal ownership and to support tribes' co‑management of and access to natural lands within a California tribe's ancestral land.
• California State Parks Tribal Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) Program, which establishes agreements with tribes to ensure access and, in some cases, co-management of cultural and natural resources of concern or interest to the tribes within state parks.

In 2020, the Governor directed state agencies to support California tribes' co‑management of and access to natural lands that are within a California tribe's ancestral land and under the ownership or control of the State of California. That directive, paired with record investments to tribes, has enabled California tribes to access and steward forests, rangelands, rivers, and coastline.

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Through the administration's Tribal Nature-Based Solutions grant program, and many other conservation grant programs, the state has awarded over $200 million to fund the return of over 100,000 acres of land to California Native American tribes, including

• The Hoopa Valley Tribe's acquisition of 10,395 acres of forested property, returning Hupa Mountain to tribal stewardship.  
• The Tule River Tribe's acquisition of 14,672 acres of land to support tribal environmental and species conservation.
• The Washoe Tribe's acquisition of 10,274 acres of land to support the Tribe's environmental and cultural priorities, including restoring the biodiversity and watershed.
• The Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel's acquisition of 1,107 acres, to support the Tribe's environmental and cultural priorities.

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