Monterey Bay Shores just can't get a break from the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District.

In March 2009, the water district board denied a water permit for the proposed Sand City eco-resort and ordered the developer to prepare an updated environmental impact report on the water supply.

But two months later, the Superior Court invalidated the water district's first denial and ordered it to reconsider the water permit.

On Wednesday, July 21, the district board did so - and again voted down the water permit, 4-3.

Last December, the California Coastal Commission rejected the project's coastal development permit. But developer Ed Ghandour, who has kept the project alive despite more than a decade of obstacles, has vowed to see his Sand City hotel and conference center become a reality.