Staff Report

ITEM NO.  2

BACKGROUND

A proposal has been made to construct a pier, boat lifts and boat storage on property located at 16 Old Landing Road. As originally proposed, the 54 foot long pier would extend out into San Francisco Bay from an area near the lower driveway on the site. A boat lift would be installed on the left side of the pier, and a portion of the right side of the pier would also function as a kayak lift. Rack storage for kayaks and canoes would also be provided on the pier.

This application was reviewed at the December 13, 2000 Planning Commission meeting. At that time, concerns were raised by and neighboring property owners regarding potential visual impacts which would be caused by the proposed pier and boat and kayak storage. The Commission raised concerns regarding the visual prominence of the proposed structure, and regarding the compatibility of the pier and storage to surrounding properties.

The Planning Commission continued this request to the January 24, 2001 meeting, with the applicant directed to reduce the overall size of the pier, consider elimination of one or both of the proposed lifts, and improve communications with the neighboring property owners regarding this project. The Commission also directed Staff to obtain information from BCDC regarding its standards for reviewing such applications.

Revised Plans

The applicant has submitted revised plans for the proposed pier. The length of the pier would be reduced by 2 feet to a length of 52 feet, and the width of the end of the pier would be reduced by 4 feet to a width of 12 feet. The kayak lift and storage would be removed. The proposed boat lift would remain, but would be moved from the left side of the pier to the right side.

The applicant has indicated that he has spoken extensively with his neighboring property owners, several of whom have since dropped their objections to the proposed structure. As of the date of this report, no additional correspondence has been received from any neighbors regarding this application. The applicant has also submitted photographs illustrating the views of the proposed pier location from several neighboring properties.

BCDC Review

At the request of the Planning Commission, Staff spoke with Steve McAdam of BCDC regarding that agency’s approach in reviewing applications for piers such as the one proposed for this property. Mr. McAdam indicated that the primary charge of BCDC is to determine whether the proposal is for a water-oriented use, which encourages private recreational use of the bay, including boat and kayak uses.

Once the proposal is deemed to be a private recreational use, BCDC considers the following factors in its review of a pier:

The amount of fill needed in the bay, encouraging the smallest amount of fill necessary to achieve the desired purpose of the structure, and the least amount of dredging necessary.

The possibility of another upland location for the proposed use which will require less intrusion into the bay.

Whether the pier would impede public access to the water or beach, or if the height of the pier would prevent anyone from walking across the beachfront.

Any interference with other recreational uses of the bay, by blocking access to the bay from other properties.

Protection of public views from streets and other public access points, leaving protection of views from private properties to the Town.

BCDC assumes that the Town of Tiburon is lead agency for CEQA review on projects within the Town. Mr. McAdam said that piers with a surface area under 1,000 square feet are considered by BCDC to be exempt from CEQA requirements; both the size of the original design (740 square feet) and the revised design (472 square feet) are smaller than the size that BCDC generally considers to be categorically exempt from CEQA. Mr. McAdam indicated that, as a rule, BCDC finds that small boat docks rarely have any other environmental impacts. BCDC will look into whether any sensitive mudflats or marsh areas will be disturbed and may not allow work to be done during the herring spawning season. BCDC also prohibits the use of creosote on pilings for piers.

In order for the Town to require additional an Initial Study for a project that would otherwise be considered to be categorically exempt from CEQA requirements, there must be substantial evidence in the record sufficient to support a fair argument that the proposed pier will have a significant unmitigated impact on the environment. There has been no such information presented regarding the particular environmental sensitivity of the location of the proposed pier, and therefore no additional CEQA review is warranted for this project at this time.

General Plan Consistency and Zoning Compliance

As noted in the previous report for this project, Policy LU-4 of the Land Use Element of the Tiburon General Plan states that:

"the Town recognizes and wishes to preserve its bay and waterfront as significant resources and shall closely consider the sensitivity of its coastal environment through the development review process, and shall encourage public access to the waterfront."

The Planning Commission should determine whether the revised plans are sensitively designed for the coastal environment of this portion of San Francisco Bay, or whether the revised plans only minimally respond to the concerns raised at the previous meeting for this project.

RECOMMENDATION

Staff recommends that the Planning Commission take additional public testimony on this item, close the public hearing, deliberate upon the project merits, and direct Staff to prepare an appropriate resolution.

EXHIBITS

1. Draft resolution

2. Minutes of the December 13, 2000 Planning Commission meeting

3. Revised site plan and elevations, dated January 16, 2001