Frustrations and Sand Rise at S.F. Marina West’s “Third World Harbor”

Over the past few months, sailors and boat owners have grown increasingly frustrated with the excessive buildup of sand at the entrance to San Francisco’s Marina West Harbor, and the lack of effective action by the relevant city authorities. Home to over 300 slips, and many of the racing sailboats that are based on the S.F. side of the Bay, Marina West is one of the city’s major harbors.

An SF Marina boat owner who wishes to remain anonymous  tells us, “I asked [harbormaster] Scott [Grindy] and he said that it isn’t in his hands, that it’s a [Department of Public Works] thing. But we pay money to Rec and Parks [S.F. Recreation and Parks Department], so we have this issue with unity of command. You can only report to one master. We have a side agency that doesn’t get money from us, and they’re not involved and not getting things done. It’s not good. It’s just not working.”

Sand buildup in the harbor entrance has been an issue for years, but as the harbor entrance was ineffectively dredged during the summer and fall months last year, it has now become much worse, particularly in the past few weeks and months. Not so much an issue during the slower midwinter regatta season, but significant with the onset of the spring and summer racing seasons.

“The Department of Public Works does the dredging, and they’re not really marina oriented,” the boat owner says. “They didn’t do it promptly in the dredging window between June 1st and November 30th when salmon and sturgeon aren’t spawning. Then they let it go too long.”

The sand built up quickly in late 2025, and by mid-January most of the channel markers and shoal buoys were high and dry on the beach. The harbor entrance was still navigable, but it became an increasingly treacherous entrance, especially at low tide.

The harbor entrance is down to seven to eight feet of navigable water at high tide (at most points), and down to as little as three feet during low tide. The following video taken by Mike Peterson tells some of the story.

“The harbormaster applied for emergency dredging to get it done in January or February, and the City put it out to bid, and they took the lowest bidder,” the boat owner continues. “They brought out rusty equipment, and didn’t use the heavy-duty clamshell stuff that Dutra had used in the past. They brought these backhoes to just take out one little scoop of sand at a time, and then their equipment broke down when they put it in place a few weeks ago. That’s led to this situation where we have an unsafe harbor, and the City didn’t vet the bid to see whether they were using modern equipment and could do it on time. I fault DPW, and I fault Rec and Parks for not coordinating with DPW in an effective way, and we berth holders are paying for all of this.”

The frustration has been echoed by boat owners and sailors across the harbor. “This is so unsafe, especially for our beautiful wooden boats that have to sail in because they don’t have engines,” Knarr sailor Mike Peterson tells us. “Someone could really get hurt. There is so much bureaucracy in our city and all of the various commissions that they can’t even move a pile of sand. None of them care at all.”

Peterson also noted, after conversations he has had with other sailors and boat owners, that most are sympathetic with the harbormaster and staff, thinking there is nothing they can do, and that it is an issue with S.F. Rec and Parks and DPW leadership. Sean Svendsen, also a Knarr sailor, noted that he had recently run aground three times while trying to sail back into the harbor.

San Francisco Rec and Parks hired a dredging company that was semi-present with an old, rusty barge and an equally rusty claw digger. Harbor tenants said the methods used were largely ineffective, and that the crew was not often on the job.

On April 23, San Francisco Rec and Parks announced that they had fired the original dredging company they had hired, and that a new dredger was scheduled to take over in early May.

“Dredging began earlier this spring, but progress fell short of expectations due to contractor performance,” Tamara Aparton, deputy director of Communications and Public Affairs at San Francisco Rec and Parks, told us in a statement. “We’ve taken decisive action to bring on a new dredging contractor with the capacity to complete the work quickly and effectively. Active dredging is expected to begin the first week of May. The good news is we are addressing both the immediate issue and the long-term solution. Our priority is restoring reliable access to the marina as quickly as possible. Looking ahead, the Marina Improvement and Remediation Project, including a new breakwater, will significantly reduce sand buildup and improve conditions at the harbor entrance.”

The condition of the harbor entrance has already impacted the racing season for boats based in San Francisco. St. Francis Yacht Club (StFYC), whose racing program relies on the accessibility of the entrance, was forced to cancel its Spring Fest regatta, one of the first major regattas of the year on San Francisco Bay. StFYC cited strong winds and weather, along with the safety of multiple fleets trying to maneuver into and out of the harbor.

The Knarr fleet had already backed out of Spring Fest due to concerns about wooden boats without motors sailing into and out of the harbor, particularly back upwind through the narrow entrance. The cancellation of Saturday’s racing was announced, followed by a cancellation of all racing that weekend. StFYC’s participation in the April 26 Opening Day on the Bay was all but canceled. The first Wednesday of the club’s Wednesday Evening Racing Series has already been canceled, and it seems likely that more Wednesday races will be canceled.

The next major regatta of the season for many of the one-design fleets is San Francisco Yacht Club’s Elite Fleet Regatta in May, highlighted by the massive J/105 fleet, and Corinthian Yacht Club hosting the Knarr and Folkboat fleets. While both of these clubs are based in Marin, a significant portion of the competing fleets are based in the Marina West Harbor. On the same weekend, StFYC is scheduled to host its annual Elvstrom/Zellerbach Regatta, one of the Bay Area’s biggest annual dinghy regattas. The event usually draws over 100 boats, the majority with junior sailors ranging from ages 7 or 8 to teenagers. With the current state of the harbor entrance, it’s uncertain if the event will take place. There is also the question of safety for junior sailors participating in the high school sailing programs at StFYC and Golden Gate Yacht Club, weekend learn-to-sail classes, and youth race teams.

“It’s unsafe, and we’re not getting the benefits.… We’re paying super-high rents,” the SF Marina boat owner adds. “We’re supposed to have a first-class harbor and what we have is a Third World harbor. Right now you can only come in or out on high tide, and even then sometimes you can’t get in or out.”

With the new dredging program in place, there is hope that the harbor entrance will return to normal. Regardless of if and when the harbor entrance issue is resolved, it will likely take time to repair the relationship and trust between S.F. Rec and Parks and the tenants of the Marina West Harbor.