Pacifica Pier damage prompts funding push from county, state, feds

At a press conference at the pier June 15, U.S. Rep. Sam Liccardo, D-San Jose, called on the federal government to step up. He pointed to the $50 million in Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program money that Pacifica was shortlisted for before the Trump administration canceled the grant, as well as his hope that $963,000 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could be repurposed to help with the reconstruction. 

Liccardo is also introducing legislation that would allow for community block grants to be used not just for disaster mitigation, but disaster preparedness. 

“We’ve got some critical tasks to take on to help support Pacifica,” he said. 

On the state level, legislators are also working to secure some of the $112 million allocated for coastal resilience in California’s last budget for Pacifica, state Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, said. He also highlighted the importance of prevention over reconstruction. 

“Right now, we need the money just to assess the extent of the damage, but when vulnerable infrastructure is not reinforced, repairs become more, more expensive, more disruptive and more urgent,” he said. “We cannot wait until infrastructure fails before we invest in protecting it.” 

Damage to the pier has been heartbreaking for many city residents, from those who fish and crab off its edge to residents and visitors who come to enjoy the proximity to nature. It also prompted the demolition of Chit Chat Cafe, a beloved local institution that was situated on the pier’s edge. 

“Waking up one morning and being told that much of your livelihood is about to be erased is not an experience I recommend. We’re devastated,” owner Ginger Davis said. “We had folks that were here every day, as soon as our doors unlocked, hoping to warm up with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate.” 

The city is working to stabilize the pier’s abutment structure so damage doesn’t worsen, City Manager Sean Charpentier said, and will then move into work on the first span of the pier. The timeline and construction decisions that will go into that have yet to be finalized, he said. 

“Despite our best efforts, planning and financial, one of the things that we’ve come to realize is that we need significant resources from the state and federal government to be able to maintain and continue to provide these resources,” Charpentier said. 

The pier’s collapse is a failure of the federal government, said San Mateo County Supervisor Ray Mueller, who represents the coastside, citing the pullback of BRIC funding. Liccardo held a press conference in 2025 denouncing the move, which could have funded the creation of a seawall to protect the area against coastal erosion. 

“On that day, on that press conference, that actually said across the country, the next time someone sees a bridge fall or they see a casualty of infrastructure, they’re going to ask, ‘Wasn’t there a program to fix it?’ and they’re going to point to the fact that the BRIC program is canceled,’” Mueller said. “I cannot believe one year later I’m standing here saying those exact words.” 

The damage to Pacifica Pier is also a stark reminder of the city’s proximity to climate change, Pacifica Mayor Christine Boles said at the press conference. 

“While the state has focused a lot of attention on fires, we in Pacifica are the canary in the coal mine for the increasing effects of the warming ocean, sea-level rise, coastal erosion and flooding,” she said.