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Travis Schneider and Stephanie Bode, local property owners who tried to build a dramatically oversized home near Humboldt Bay and accumulated serious permit violations in the process, have agreed to a sweeping settlement agreement with the California Coastal Commission that would require full ecological restoration, a $400,000 penalty and the potential transfer of more than six acres of land to local Wiyot tribes.

The proposed agreement, detailed in a Coastal Commission staff report ahead of a February 4 hearing in Half Moon Bay, would resolve years of enforcement actions involving violations at two parcels located at the end of Walker Point Road, on a bluff overlooking the Fay Slough Wildlife Area.

If you’re just tuning into this saga, here’s a brief recap:

More than four years ago, county building officials posted a stop work order at the Schneider-Bode property. Subsequent investigations revealed a host of violations to the terms of the Coastal Development Permit they’d obtained in 2017.

That permit allowed for the development of an 8,000-square-foot home on one of two adjoining parcels owned by Schneider and Bode. The permit included strict conditions designed to protect wetlands, environmentally sensitive habitat areas (ESHA) and Indigenous cultural resources. That’s because the property abuts a sensitive wetland connected to Humboldt Bay and sits atop a former Wiyot village site that, experts say, could include tribal burial grounds, tools and other cultural materials.

But rather than constructing the permitted home, Schneider and his contractors began building a 21,000-foot mansion — more than two and a half times larger than what was permitted — and did so in a different location than what had been approved.

He and his construction crews also imported around 15,000 cubic yards of fill material (roughly 10 times what was allowed); built an unauthorized gravel road on an adjacent parcel; removed protected vegetation within established wetland buffers; and conducted heavy grading and fill placement in areas known to contain highly significant Wiyot cultural and archaeological resources.

Schneider initially tried to finesse his way through the controversy despite conflicts with local tribes, warnings from the Coastal Commission and increased public scrutiny over the entire permitting process. He made emotional appeals to the Humboldt County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. 

But eventually, facing daily $40,000 fines as evidence of even more permit violations surfaced, Schneider agreed through his attorney to tear down his partially built home. Even that apparent surrender hit a snag, however, when the Coastal Commission found “substantial issues” with the demolition plan. Commission staff concluded that the plan didn’t adequately protect archaeological and tribal cultural resources or the nearby ESHA.

That was nearly two years ago. Schneider and Bode, who grew up here and planned to settle with their children in that huge estate, have since decamped to Tennessee. They’ve signed on to a three-part enforcement agreement slated for Coastal Commission approval at its meeting next Wednesday.

The staff report says, “Despite the prior history that occurred on the Properties, [Schneider and Bode have] worked closely and cooperatively with Commission Enforcement staff to reach the proposed [Consent Agreement].”

Under the terms of that agreement, Schneider and Bode would:

• Remove all unpermitted development, including fill and site alterations
• Restore wetlands and habitat to pre-construction conditions, with at least five years of monitoring
• Fund tribal cultural monitors during all ground-disturbing restoration work
• Pay $400,000 in penalties, including $300,000 to the California Coastal Conservancy and $100,000 to the future land steward for ongoing care and management
• Offer both parcels (6.1 acres total) for dedication to a tribe, public agency or nonprofit — with the intent that the Blue Lake Rancheria, Wiyot Tribe and/or Bear River Band of the Rohnerville Rancheria accept the dedication.

The agreement is listed alongside a cease-and-desist order, a restoration order and the administrative penalty. If approved, it will bring this long-running saga to a close while permanently barring future development on the site.

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