An excavator shovels sand in Broad Beach, Malibu, California. Court documents

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Billionaire Mark Attanasio, owner of the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team, was accused of stealing sand from Broad Beach in Malibu, California.

The Los Angeles Times reported that James Kohlberg, Attanasio’s neighbor, filed suit claiming the billionaire dug up sand from the public beach to use for an ongoing construction project on his home.

“This case involves a private property owner using a public beach as his personal sandbox and disturbingly converting a public natural resource (that is, Broad Beach sand) for the personal, private use of a nearby homeowner,” the lawsuit states, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.

Kohlberg’s lawyers accused Jilk Heavy Construction – Attanasio’s construction team – of using massive dredges that leaked oil into the intertidal zones and exposed marine life to toxic byproducts. The suit also alleges that the construction work restricted public access to the beach.

In California, all beaches are public up to the extreme high tide line.

Kohlberg and Attanasio both own homes on Malibu Beach, which is suffering from significant erosion due to extreme weather conditions resulting from the climate crisis.

A local homeowners association started the Broad Beach Restoration Project in 2011. Four years later, prominent residents – including Dustin Hoffman, Pierce Brosnan and Ray Romano – donated $31 million for a coastal restoration and sand replenishment project along the beach, The Guardian reported.

According to the complaint, Attanasio received repair permits in March for a damaged portion of the seawall along his two adjacent Broad Beach properties, one of which is a vacant lot.

In June, excavations began in the intertidal and intertidal zones of the beach, with sand being shoveled from the public part of the beach onto Attanasio’s property.

“2XMD and its principals have owned property on this beach for decades and act as stewards of beach restoration and natural resource conservation,” said Kenneth A. Ehrlich, Attanasio’s attorney, of his company, 2XMD Partners, The Guardian reported.

Ehrlich added that 2XMD is “in the midst of a fully approved emergency repair of the property to protect it from the forces of the ocean.”

Attanasio bought his home for $23 million in 2007. Ten years later, he paid $6.6 million for the empty lot next door, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The lawsuit accuses Attanasio of public and private nuisance and of violating the California Coastal Act – a 1976 state law that regulates the protection, development and public access of the state’s stunning coastline. The lawsuit calls for a halt to construction, replacement of the sand and the imposition of fines.

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