NOTICE: Public Hearing on Proposed Treasure Island Marina Replacement
Interested parties are invited to a hearing at the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission on Thursday, February 6, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., regarding the marina development proposed by the applicant, Treasure Island Enterprises, LLC, which is leasing the project area of Clipper Cove from the underlying property owner, the Treasure Island Development Authority (TIDA).
We’ve previously shared stories about potential developments on Treasure Island, including Treasure Island Sailing Center’s temporary relocation in anticipation of construction. This week’s conversation will revolve around the plan to remove the existing 108-slip marina and replace it with a new 168-slip marina. The current marina has an “average slip length of approximately 32 feet,” constructed upon 100 12-inch-diameter creosote-treated wooden piles. This will all be removed and replaced with slips averaging 55 feet and will include a 705-foot guest dock that will also function as “a floating wave attenuator.” The new marina will rest upon “138 new HDPE-wrapped steel guide piles, 20 and 26 inches in diameter.”
Sound great? There are, of course, questions that have been raised throughout the entire process of the application, one being the size of the marina and its impact on public accessibility to Clipper Cove and surrounds.
The Application Summary includes the following.
“During the project’s CEQA [California Environmental Quality Act] process, resulting in its approval by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and approved lease in 2019, the permittee engaged with and was the recipient of significant public input on its design. Specifically, the Save Clipper Cove organization, spearheaded by the Treasure Island Sailing Center (TISC) and the Sierra Club, objected to a private marina negatively impacting existing uses of a unique well-protected open-water cove, including educational sailing programs and competitive sailing events held in Clipper Cove.”
In response, the project proposal was modified “by reducing the project footprint of the new marina to approximately one third, compared to the original proposal.”
The project applicants contend, “The proposed project would provide improved public access through providing a publicly accessible transient boat dock providing moorage at a nominal fee, which will allow for up to ten boats to be moored at a time along the eastern, external, side of Dock A, providing greater access to Clipper Cove to the general public boating community.”
On the environmental side, the proposal claims the piles for the floating docks will be “of adequate height to anticipate future sea level rise.” And regarding any impact on the Bay’s sea life, the considerations are as follows.
“Installation of new steel guide piles will be primarily by vibratory driver and then completed using an impact pile driver with a cushion block for the remaining three to five feet where necessary. Existing piles will be removed with the use of a vibratory hammer or other non-jetting processes.
“To reduce potential underwater noise impacts from pile installation on fish and marine mammals, the permittee will restrict pile driving to the in-water work window for salmonids for the San Francisco Bay, install only up to 8 piles per day, use a soft-start technique, and operate only a single diesel hammer at a time. The pile driving completion period is expected to be 18 to 35 days in duration.”
The above is only a brief summary, some notes on our understanding of the proposal. We encourage everyone to read the application (it’s only four pages) and form their own opinions. You can then attend the meeting forearmed and can share your thoughts on the proposal in accordance with the BCDC Virtual Commission Meeting Instructions — For Public, which include, “At the beginning of the meeting and for each agendized item at the public meeting, the BCDC Commission Chair will ask whether there are any requests for public comment on items not on the agenda.”
The meeting can be attended in person at the Metro Center, 375 Beale Street, 1st Floor Board Room, San Francisco, CA, (415) 352-3600; or at one of 12 teleconference locations; or via Zoom.
In this new plan, where will the Treasure Island Sailing Center go, and what facilities are they likely to have?
Our understanding is TISC will be approximately in the same location of the SE corner of Treasure Island which is currently under construction. They can’t move back in until that is finished.
Hi Ross, we shared this story about TISC’s plans in December – just click on the title: “Treasure Island Sailing Center Tacks Shift” Thanks.
Thank you for posting this notice! A couple of notable points in the application, which has a stated primary goal of “improving public access”…”Dredging necessary for future navigation safety and ongoing marina operations would be reviewed under a permit amendment application when needed, and not part of the construction process as described in the proposed project”…”The marina project authorized under this permit is located entirely within the Bay, with no shoreline protection component”
Clipper Cove used to be a great anchorage but is largely inaccessible now due to silting. The shoreline is inaccessible to kayakers and small boat sailors due to construction as John notes, but this project does nothing to improve shoreline access and parking.
If you truly want to improve public access, dredge the cove, build appropriate parking and beach access with public restrooms, and provide secure dinghy docking for transient anchored boats. You don’t need a bigger marina.
If they build this big of a marina they need to dredge the south half of Clipper Cove. The planned marina footprint will displace much of the current area where you can anchor
“Dredging necessary for future navigation safety and ongoing marina operations would be reviewed under a permit amendment application when needed, and not part of the construction process as described in the
proposed project.”
What markers will there be for the channel? Is the proposed channel even currently navigable? Is there any work showing that the silting was caused by bridge construction or do we know if it’s actually caused by the hydrology of the bay in that spot? And how radioactive IS that mud, anyway??