Among projects approved October through December, 2002 are these:

Better Access to Humboldt Bay Dunes

After many years of planning, the Manila Community Services District has obtained funding to improve trails and park facilities at the 101-acre Manila Dunes Recreation Area. Plans call for three miles of clearly marked trails, recreational and picnic facilities, increased parking, public restrooms, and a wheelchair-accessible boardwalk leading through the dunes to an ocean overlook. The work is expected to be completed by the end of 2003. Total cost is estimated at $473,000.

The Coastal Conservancy approved $246,000 in Proposition 12 funds in October, the District is contributing $100,000, partly with a grant from State Parks. Previously authorized Conservancy funds will pay for the remainder.

The Manila Dunes lie along the ocean side of the North Spit of Humboldt Bay and are a popular destination for hikers, birdwatchers, equestrians, and student groups. These dunes are part of a 13-mile dune system that runs from the Samoa Dunes Recreation Area north to the mouth of the Mad River. They support two federally and state-listed endangered plants, beach layia and Menzies’ wallflower, and are potential habitat for the endangered snowy plover.

Fort Bragg’s Glass Beach

Glass Beach, the only accessible beach in Fort Bragg, is to be purchased by California State Parks and added to MacKerricher State Park. The Coastal Conservancy approved $2,825,000 for the purchase in October, with $2.5 million coming from federal transportation funds, and $325,000 from Proposition 12 funds.

The Conservancy worked for over four years with the City, the Mendocino Land Trust, and other organizations to assemble funding for the purchase of the 38-acre property and to provide for its future management. The landowner told city officials in 1998 that he was interested in selling to a public agency.

Glass Beach is known for the polished glass pebbles often found there. They are shards of colored glass, worn smooth by waves and tides, legacy of a municipal dump located there from 1949 to 1967. Also left behind by the dump are two small areas contaminated with toxic materials. The California Integrated Waste Management Board will clean these areas before acquisition, which State Parks expects to complete in summer 2003.

A trestle that spans Pudding Creek will be repaired to allow people to walk between Glass Beach and McKerricker Park, and along several miles of beach trails.

Bodega Bay Trail Planning

Sonoma County will begin preparation of a comprehensive plan for hiking and biking trails in the Bodega Bay area, including a Coastal Trail link through the town, with $50,000 approved by the Conservancy. The plan will include design options, funding and management needs, and construction recommendations. The public will be invited to take part in the plan’s development.

Another Working Ranch near Tomales Bay Protected

Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT) will protect another 308 acres of west Marin County’s farmland by purchasing a conservation easement on the Zimmerman Ranch, on the east side of Tomales Bay, for $684,000. The Conservancy committed $350,000 in Proposition 40 funds toward the acquisition. MALT has applied to the Department of Conservation for the remainder, $334,000.

By purchasing the easement, MALT will permanently prevent the subdivision and development of a productive cattle ranch, and will enable the younger generation of the Zimmerman family to continue farming. In this area, agriculture is greatly threatened by the purchase of farmlands for use as estates. The easement will restrict the size of the farm’s two primary residences to 3,000 square feet, and will prevent uses of the land that would degrade water quality or cause soil erosion into Tomales Bay.

In the past 20 years MALT has permanently protected 47 family ranches, a total of 32,000 acres.

Petaluma River and Marsh

The City of Petaluma is moving forward with its plan to create a marsh and trail system modeled after the pioneering Arcata Marsh. The $8 million project on the Petaluma River is centered around around 30 to 40 acres of “polishing wetlands,” which will improve the quality of treated wastewater draining to the river while also creating habitat, trails, and wildlife-watching opportunities.

The Conservancy approved $2 million in Proposition 12 funds, and the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District is contributing another $2 million for the purchase of land on the east side of the river at the city’s southern boundary. A trail system will be built on the perimeter of the polishing wetlands, connecting with more than
two miles of trails at neighboring Shollenberger Park.

The City’s purchase will also allow protection and improvement of over 200 acres of riverside marshlands that provide habitat for the endangered California clapper rail, black rail, salt marsh harvest mouse, and other wildlife. The purchase is expected to be complete by summer. The polishing wetlands and other improvements are to be completed within five years. The Conservancy has worked for many years with the City and other parties on recreational and environmental improvements to land along the river.

Progress on San Francisco Bay and Ridge Trails

Over $1.1 million approved by the Coastal Conservancy in October will support the design and construction of new sections of the Bay Area Ridge Trail and the San Francisco Bay Trail. This funding will be matched by over $3 million from many other organizations.

Rector Ridge Trail, Napa County: To the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council, $600,000 to build a six-mile trail near Yountville on property owned by the California Department of Veterans’ Affairs. The trail will start near Silverado Trail and end near the Stags Leap rock formation, providing sweeping views of Napa Valley and San Francisco Bay. The council will raise the remainder of funds needed, estimated at $115,000, and coordinate volunteer efforts for the construction.

Inkwells Bridge, Marin County: To the Marin County Department of Parks, Open Space, and Cultural Services and the Marin Municipal Water District, $100,000 to build a 170-foot bridge across San Geronimo Creek, connecting a Ridge Trail segment in Samuel Taylor State Park to one on district property, and to a bicycle path along Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. The pedestrians, bicyclists, and equestrians who now use the trail must ford the creek, damaging creekside vegetation and causing erosion. The county, the district, and others will contribute over $1.2 million.

White Hill Underpass, Marin County: To the Marin County Open Space District, $40,000 to build a 2,000-foot pedestrian, bicycle, and equestrian trail under a new road bridge on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Marin County, providing trail users with a safe route across this major roadway. The new trail will connect a Ridge Trail segment at Loma Alta Open Space Preserve with White Hill Open Space Preserve. Caltrans will provide $80,000 of the project’s $130,000 cost. The Open Space District and Ridge Trail Council will each contribute $5,000.

Aoki Acquisition, Santa Clara County: To the Santa Clara County Open Space Authority, $250,000 toward the purchase of the 62-acre Aoki property on a prominent ridge in the foothills east of San Jose. The Authority will provide $1.5 million for the acquisition, which will help secure a four-mile Bay Area Ridge Trail alignment connecting San Jose’s Alum Rock Park to the county’s Grant Park while protecting habitat for black-tailed deer, coyote, badger, mountain lion, and other wildlife.

Coyote Point Park, San Mateo County: To San Mateo County, $71,500, administered by the Bay Trail Project, toward preparation of final plans for a new one-mile Bay Trail alignment parallel to Coyote Point Drive. The county will contribute an additional $20,000. The realignment will greatly improve the current trail route, which is narrow, underused, and disconnected.

Middle Harbor Park, Oakland: To the Port of Oakland, $100,000, administered by the Bay Trail Project, to construct a 2,500-foot trail segment on Seventh Street between Wood and Maritime Streets, filling a Bay Trail gap between the new Middle Harbor Shoreline Park and Jack London Square. The port will contribute $95,000 toward the total project cost of $195,000.

Delta Slough to Become Marsh

More than 1,160 acres along Dutch Slough, in the city of Oakley, will be purchased for restoration to tidal marsh. Because this acreage has not subsided as deeply as other parts of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, a variety of habitat types can be restored. Beneficiaries will include chinook salmon, delta smelt, sandhill crane, and other threatened or endangered species. The rapidly growing human population in eastern Contra Costa County will gain badly needed public access, open space, and recreational opportunities.

The purchase will require up to $5 million of the Conservancy’s funding, made available through Propositions 12 and 40. An expected $23 million grant from the CALFED Bay-Delta Ecosystem Restoration Program will cover the balance of the purchase price.

The Conservation Fund, a key partner in the project, will purchase the property from three private owners, who are willing to sell for $10 million below the appraised fair market value. The property is zoned for mixed-use development, and the owners have an approved agreement to develop between 4,100 and 6,000 residences here, which they will forego by the sale. The Fund will then sell the property to the Department of Water Resources.

The CALFED Bay-Delta Ecosystem Restoration Program will provide an additional $2 million for environmental restoration plans. In addition, the Conservancy will provide $50,000 to the City of Oakley to plan for public access on the restoration site and adjacent city property. Proposed projects include the construction of fishing piers, wildlife viewing areas, and a trail network. These will require future funding.

Eco Village for Youth in Richmond

To help launch an innovative environmental education program in the city of Richmond, the Conservancy approved a $350,000 grant and a $350,000 no-interest loan to the Trust for Public Land (TPL) in October. The funds will help TPL to buy 5.6 acres with a house and a small orchard on Laurel Lane, along San Pablo and Wilkie creeks, where the youth-oriented program will be undertaken by the Earth Island Institute.
The goal is to promote sustainable living through the teaching of “permaculture,” a strategy for land use and community building. Workshops will teach youth how to restore, value, and protect ecological systems while growing crops. At least 20 area schools are expected to be involved.

Water and energy conservation, composting, natural pest management, organic gardening, and creek restoration are among topics to be covered. TPL is launching a fundraising campaign for the purchase. It will reimburse the Conservancy $350,000 within 18 months, then transfer ownership to Earth Island Institute.

Pacifica Pier Repairs

The Pacifica Municipal Pier is the only open-ocean, deep-water fishing pier in northern California. Built in 1972, it is widely appreciated for both its near quarter-mile length and the opportunities it affords for deep-water fishing. The City has maintained it for the past 30 years, doing the year-to-year repairs to keep it safe and open to the public. However, the constant pounding of the ocean surf has taken its toll, and major structural repairs, beyond this small city’s means, became essential.

Such repairs were begun last spring after $500,000 for the project were included in the state budget. In anticipation of these funds, the City began the work, using its own money. But then the state funding was stripped from the state budget and the City interrupted its work. This left the pier even more vulnerable to storm damage, for concrete had been removed from large sections of the deck, exposing much of the steel structure to the elements.

The Coastal Conservancy has stepped into the breach by approving $500,000 in Proposition 40 money to enable the City to continue essential work, preventing further deterioration.

Santa Cruz Depot Site Renovation

The long-hoped-for restoration of an 8.5-acre area surrounding the site of the old Southern Pacific passenger and freight depots near downtown Santa Cruz has moved closer to reality.

The City’s plans include renovation of the historic freight depot, a new natural history museum, and beach parking for 200 cars. A transportation center for rail, bus, pedicab, and horse-drawn carriage, together with an extensive system of pedestrian and bicycle paths, will enable visitors to move easily to downtown, the nearby Neary Lagoon, and the city’s boardwalk, municipal wharf, and beach.

The City has invested or committed $5.4 million of its own funds for the project, and received a $2.4 million grant from the Regional Transportation Commission. The $10.8-million project budget still had a $3 million gap, which will be covered by the Conservancy’s grant, made available though Proposition 12.

The Southern Pacific depot site runs for about one-third of a mile between downtown Santa Cruz and the waterfront. West of the site is the 44-acre Neary Lagoon, a natural habitat preserve. The passenger depot was abandoned in 1940, when passenger service was discontinued. It later housed restaurants and nightclubs for about 20 years, then was demolished after a fire in 1998.

The Railway Express Office, known as the freight depot, operated from 1918 until the 1960s, when freight service was discontinued. The tracks at the depot site are currently used by branch lines of the Union Pacific Railroad and by the Roaring Camp and Big Trees Railroad, which transports passengers between Felton and the Santa Cruz Boardwalk.

War on Giant Reed along San Luis Rey River

Giant reed, Arundo donax, is a tall bamboo-like grass that forms dense stands and crowds out native vegetation along streams and rivers. It is the primary cause of habitat destruction in the 359,000-acre San Luis Rey River watershed, which extends from the Palomar Mountains to Oceanside in San Diego County. The reed is extremely flammable and also poses a flood hazard by holding back sediment and constricting water flows. If allowed to spread, Arundo donax can significantly reduce streamside habitats for many animals and plants.

The Mission Resource Conservation District (RCD) has apparently succeeded in eradicating giant reed along the Margarita River in San Diego County and has been overseeing eradication efforts in the upper watershed of the San Luis Rey River. The projected cost of removing the reed from the entire watershed is $5.05 million. Federal, local, and other state agencies have committed $2.01 million. The Conservancy approved $642,000 in Proposition 40 funds in December to enable the RCD to expand its attack to a 4.75-mile reach of the river’s central watershed. Within this reach, about 41 acres have 80 percent or greater reed cover. These sites will be treated with the herbicide Rodeo during the next five years and will be monitored so that any new infestations can be removed.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has designated the San Luis Rey River as critical habitat for three endangered species—the least Bell’s vireo, the southwestern willow flycatcher, and the arroyo southwestern toad. The river supports the state’s largest population of southwestern willow flycatchers and San Diego County’s second-largest population of least Bell’s vireos.