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Peter Douglas, executive director of the California Coastal Commission for 26 years, announced his retirement Wednesday August 10th,  after 26 years as executive director of the California Coastal Commission.

Douglas, age 68, who has been battling lung cancer, told the panel he will go on sick leave Monday and will retire on Nov. 1, planning to hand off leadership of the agency to Senior Deputy Director Charles Lester. However, it is ultimately up to the 12-member panel to choose a new leader.

As reported in the LA Times blog Greenspace,
Douglas began his crusade for coastal protection in the 1970s as a legislative aide and consultant, helping to draft Proposition 20, which voters passed in 1972, and the 1976 state Coastal Act, which created the Coastal Commission. After serving as the agency’s chief deputy, he was named its third executive director in 1985.