1964    Shelter Cove resort development announced

 2,500 acres, 4,200 home sites, 3,300 ft. airstrip, 1,500 acres for parks, open space

1970      King Range National Conservation Area created

A spectacular meeting of land and sea is certainly the dominant feature of the King Range National Conservation Area. Mountains seem to thrust straight out of the surf; a precipitous rise unsurpassed on the continental U.S. coastline. King Peak, the highest point at 4,087 feet, is only three miles from the ocean. The King Range covers 60,000 acres and extends along 35 miles of coastline between the mouth of the Mattole River and Sinkyone Wilderness State Park.

1976    California Coastal Commission and Coastal Conservancy created

Stops development, demands studies for future use, threatens ownership

1980   Coastal Commission plans to turn Shelter Cove into a State Park

Plans “toll booth” at the entrance, and stop to all private home development

1981      Shelter Cove Property Owners Association formed

Members of the committee of property owners, which had been working with members of the Regional Coastal Commission, voted to form a legal organization.  They discussed names, and Mario Machi simply said, “Call it the Shelter Cove Property Owners Association.”  His suggestion was approved by unanimous vote.

1985   California Coastal Conservancy purchases property

The regional Coastal Conservancy attempts to buy waterfront property -- at very low prices  --  for public use.  The directors of SCPOA resist, and finally local property owners are offered generous prices for some of their waterfront property, which is set aside as open space and parks ... owned and managed by the Bureau of Land Management. 

SCPOA had worked hard to ensure that its members were protected and that Shelter Cove had a  bright future.  In December 1985 all the Regional and State Agencies signed off on the final plan, and once again property owners were free to pursue their construction plans.

Now, more than 20 years after that historic event, property values in Shelter Cove have increased dramatically, and a variety of great homes and businesses have been built.  The natural beauty of the Lost Coast and the King Range will help to ensure that Shelter Cove  continues to be a magnificent destination for visitors and homeowners in the future.