"LOS ANGELES — The agency that decides what gets built and where along the California coast is facing questions about transparency after it pushed out its top executive in a closed-door vote and without a clear explanation of why the change was being made.

Executive Director Charles Lester was dismissed on a 7-5 tally Wednesday night, which was announced after the commission listened to hours of testimony from dozens of witnesses, virtually all of it extolling Lester's work and commitment to a coastline open for all.

Former Commissioner Steve Blank, who was viewed as an environmental advocate while on the panel and resigned in 2013, said he was astonished by the commission's decision to take a vote in private on the closely watched debate over Lester's future.

'It should have been explained in public,' Blank said. 'What did they do? They retreated to the back room.'

Billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer, a potential candidate for governor, said in a statement that 'behind closed doors, the Coastal Commission defied the will of the people and acted to weaken the protection of California's iconic beaches.'"

Michael R. Blood reports for the Associated Press February 11, 2016. [2]