# A $9.5M fence stole Fort Bragg's ocean view

> A safety upgrade on Highway 1 put a tall wooden wall between a California sea town and the sea it sells.
- Title: A $9.5M fence stole Fort Bragg's ocean view · Fox News
- Summary: A safety upgrade on Highway 1 put a tall wooden wall between a California sea town and the sea it sells. Accessibility work still has to answer for what it…
- Keywords: fort bragg, california, coastal views, public works, caltrans, news, politics, fence, stole, Fort, Bragg's, ocean
- Source: Fox News — https://foxnews.com/travel/coastal-town-revolts-after-9-5m-upgrade-walls-off-beloved-ocean-views-you-cant-see-sea
- Author: Teresa Mull
- Published: 2026-09-12T00:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: fort bragg, california, coastal views, public works, caltrans, news, politics
## The wall went up
Caltrans started installing a tall wooden fence along Highway 1 through Fort Bragg, and residents watching it rise realized the Pacific was disappearing behind it.
## What the money was for
The roughly $9.5 million project was meant to fix pedestrian safety and disability access along Main Street, with sidewalk widening that required pulling the old fence.
## A gateway, changed
City council candidate Mary Rose Kaczorowski wrote to the Ukiah Daily Journal that the new fence is far higher than the old one and alters the entrance to town.

> This is not simply a matter of replacing an existing fence; it changes the character and view of one of our town's important gateways
## A sea town without sea
Aiden McFadden, who works the front desk at the Seabird Lodge, put the problem in one line. The shorter wooden fence had let people see the Noyo Headlands and the ocean past it.

> We're marketing towards being a sea town, but you can't see the sea. It's a bit of a buzzkill.
## Nobody asked us
Caltrans held an open house for comment in April, but residents say no one weighed how a taller barrier would hit daily life and the view at the town's front door.

> Coastal local residents are shocked and angry.
## Crews are coming back
City Manager Isaac Whippy said permit documents show the fence was supposed to match what was there before, and the project manager agreed to modifications within weeks.

> We have a timeline for the construction crew to come back to town in the next couple of weeks for fence modifications
## Key takeaway

Accessibility work still has to answer for what it takes away, and Fort Bragg only got modifications because residents refused to accept the new wall quietly.