The economy is in the doldrums and the State is facing a budget shortfall of over $10 billion, and California’s voters passed a $2.1 billion park bond act, Proposition 12, just two years ago. Yet on the March 2001 ballot voters will be looking at another bond measure, Proposition 40, with $2.6 billion for parks and natural resources. Is this good or bad timing?

Well, in terms of boosting the economy, the timing is excellent. “Bonds are the fastest way to get money into the California economy,” Fred Main, senior vice president and general counsel of the California Chamber of Commerce, argued recently in the Los Angeles Times.

Tourism is now the number one industry in California, and support for that industry is crucial to an economic rebound. Proposition 40 would make money available quickly to stimulate the economy through jobs and improvements to parks, beaches, and other tourist destinations.

Proposition 40 would not result in higher taxes. Moreover, the bond money would be paid back at a time when experts believe California’s economy not only will have rebounded itself, but will be leading the nation’s economic recovery. State Treasurer Phil Angelides has said that this measure is well within the State’s capacity for general obligation bonds. With interest rates lower than they have been in decades, this is a great time for the State to sell bonds: by acting now we will have to pay much less in the long run.

Between 1960 and 1988 California passed a park bond about every four years. Then came a 12-year gap. Between 1988 and 2000 unmet needs piled up. Beaches were degraded, water supplies were increasingly polluted, state parks had to raise rates just to stay open, and important acquisition opportunities had to be passed over while the state’s population kept growing, putting ever greater pressure on deteriorating facilities. In 2000, Proposition 12 helped alleviate some of the backlog, but almost all of that funding will be either spent or committed within the next year.

If we want to keep pace with growing needs, we need a new bond act, and we need it now.

Proposition 40 would provide over $800 million in local assistance to improve and create parks, nature centers, and other community facilities in all parts of the state. Almost $450 million would be directly allocated for work in some of our most important natural resource areas, including the coast, the Santa Monica Mountains, the south Central Valley, and Lake Tahoe. Well over $1 billion would be available to alleviate water and air pollution, restore wetlands and other wildlife habitats, and protect farmland from inappropriate development.

Proposition 40 guarantees that funding will be available throughout California. Many programs included in this measure require that money be distributed on a per capita basis, with minimum grants available to every city and county.

As for the Coastal Conservancy, Proposition 40 would enable us to continue the work that we’ve been doing for 25 years. Here’s where, in just three years, we have spent or committed Proposition 12 funds:

• Over $11 million to restore salmon habitat in coastal rivers and streams

• Over $1.9 million to add to the California Coastal Trail

• Over $7 million to restore wildlife habitat on the south coast, almost $1.5 million to restore south coast beaches, and $4.9 million to purchase a new public beach in Malibu

• Almost $7.2 million to restore the environment, improve recreational opportunities, and protect farmland in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, and Santa Cruz Counties; almost $39 million for similar projects in the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area; and over $8.2 million for projects from Mendocino County north.

Proposition 40 was placed on the ballot with strong bipartisan support from the State legislature and the approval of Governor Davis. It particularly benefited from the leadership of Assembly Speaker Robert Hertzberg, Speaker pro tem Fred Keeley, and Senate President pro tem John Burton.

Proposition 40 will improve the lives of all Californians, and the timing couldn’t be better.

Sam Schuchat is the executive officer of the Coastal Conservancy.

Protection for
Forests and Salmon
in Del Norte County

In America’s early days of salmon management, the concept of salmon refuges gained some currency as a surefire way to protect salmon from man’s many creative forms of habitat destruction and over-harvest. In an address to the American Fisheries Society in 1892, fish culturist Livingston Stone proposed refuges as a way to ensure that the abundant Pacific salmon didn’t go the way of the Atlantic salmon which, by Stone’s day, had been severely depleted. One refuge was established in the Uganik River on Atognak Island, near Kodiak Island in Alaska. It lasted only 31 years before being eviscerated by decree and legislative opportunism. Now, almost a century later, a broad alliance is working toward a similar goal in Del Norte County’s Smith River watershed, by protecting 25,000 acres of forest land and streams by purchasing it from the Stimson Lumber Company.

Spearheaded by the Save-the-Redwoods League, this effort moved forward in September when the Coastal Conservancy approved $5 million in Proposition 12 funds to help purchase the land, which includes two Smith River tributaries, Mill and Rock Creeks. Both support salmon spawning and rearing.

The Smith River is the only major river in California to flow freely, unimpeded by a single dam. It is a National Wild and Scenic River, and most of its watershed is protected within the Smith River National Recreation Area. The Mill and Rock Creek watersheds, however, are not protected. Along with coho salmon, the two creeks support Chinook and chum salmon, steelhead, coastal cutthroat trout, and lamprey.

Despite a history of intensive logging on this land, Mill and Rock Creeks remain relatively free of the high sediment loads that impair salmon habitat in most of California’s other coastal rivers and streams. Part of this is due to the area’s geology, but credit must also be given to Stimson, which has designed and maintained a stable road system for harvesting.

At least 23 species of animals that are listed as imperiled have been recorded on the Stimson property, including the marbled murrelet, northern spotted owl, Pacific fisher, and Del Norte salamander.

The Save-the-Redwoods League now has raised $55 million of the $60 million purchase price. Del Norte County is also seeking a tax replacement fund, and the League has said it will work hard to secure that, if it can. When the project succeeds—and the League is confident it will—the Pacific salmon in all its splendid forms will have a lasting sanctuary in the Smith River and its tributaries, as envisioned by Livingston Stone more than a hundred years ago.

—Michael Bowen

More Lost Coast for Public

In December the Conservancy approved $962,000 to the Conservation Fund to purchase the 180-acre Barri Ranch, about five miles west of Ferndale, in Humboldt County. To complete the acquisition, the state Wildlife Conservation Board is expected to contribute $413,000.

The Fund will convey the property to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to be added to the Lost Coast Headlands, expanding that protected area to 405 acres, including nearly a mile and a half of coastline. Last June, with $1 million from the Coastal Conservancy, the Fund purchased the 225-acre Lost Coast Ranch, which adjoins the Barri Ranch to the south, and in July conveyed it to BLM to establish the Lost Coast Headlands.

The Barri property contains a flat bluff top, steep ocean cliffs, a wide and open valley surrounding Fleener Creek, and a sandy pocket beach at the creek mouth. The Fund will acquire all but a five-acre homestead parcel with a residence and farm buildings. The purchased land will be leased for grazing to reduce the risk of fire and allow the ranch’s continued contribution to the local agricultural economy.

Protection of the Lost Coast Headlands follows a Conservancy-funded study completed by the Fund earlier this year. It showed strong local interest in maintaining the historic landscape, continuing grazing of cattle, and improving public access to the coast. If the property were not purchased for public use, it could potentially be subdivided into four homesites.

San Francisco Bay Area
Farmland Protected

The Coastal Conservancy has approved $1,895,000 in Proposition 12 funds to two local land trusts to protect a total of almost 600 acres of scenic open space and farmland in two Bay Area counties.

With the help of a grant of $395,000, the Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT) will buy an agricultural conservation easement on 326 acres of a family-run dairy ranch on the banks of the Estero Americano near the village of Valley Ford. This land is part of a 1,526-acre farm that straddles the Marin-Sonoma County line. It is operated by the Ielmorini and Moody families, who lease the land and have obtained option agreements to buy it. The families also hope to sell a conservation easement over the 1,200 acres in Sonoma County to help finance their land purchase and ensure the continued operation of the dairy.

Marin dairies provide about one-fifth of the San Francisco Bay Area’s milk supply and are the backbone of the county’s agriculture. Agricultural conservation easements preserve scenic open space, wildlife habitat, and cultural aspects of the region’s agricultural heritage while protecting productive uses of private property.

In San Mateo County, the Conservancy’s grant of $1.5 million to the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) will help to protect the 267-acre San Gregorio Farms property, south of Half Moon Bay near the intersection of Highways 1 and 84. The grant reimburses POST for part of $3.95 million it paid for the property last June.

San Gregorio Farms lies between San Gregorio State Park and Pomponio State Park. Eventually, California State Parks is expected to assume ownership. POST bought it because it was able to move more quickly than the State within the narrow time frame established by the sellers. Had POST not acted, the owners would have offered the property on the open market, and it is likely that it would have been bought for private residential development.

The coastal terraces and rolling hills of San Gregorio Farms offer outstanding views of the coast and present opportunities to create new trails, including a piece of the California Coastal Trail. San Gregorio Creek, historically a coho salmon stream, runs through the property and supports several threatened and endangered species. The Department of Fish and Game intends to reintroduce coho as part of its plan to restore salmon fisheries south of San Francisco.

Teamwork on Cerrito Creek

With $350,000 in Proposition 12 funds from the Conservancy and $75,000 of its own money, the City of El Cerrito will restore a three-block section of Cerrito Creek, which has been restrained by concrete and riprap. Friends of Five Creeks, a volunteer organization, will remove an undermined section of a parking lot, regrade the banks, and install native plants and trees to hold the soil. The owner of El Cerrito Plaza, Regency Centers, Inc., will cover the cost of concrete removal from the damaged parking lot and donate the land—more than one acre, valued at $158,000—for the project. Until it received the Conservancy grant, the City was reluctant to accept the property because it lacked the money needed for restoration.

One More Piece for Morro Bay Greenbelt

A $1,175,000 grant approved by the Conservancy to the Bay Foundation in December will protect almost 18 acres of scenic wildlife habitat on Morro Bay’s south shore, for eventual addition to Montana de Oro State Park.

This acreage provides habitat for endangered plants and animals, and will provide an important new accessway to the state park, minimizing disturbance to the mudflats frequented by thousands of resident and migratory birds. Current zoning would have allowed a 17-unit townhouse complex to be built on this property.

The Morro Estuary Greenbelt Alliance (MEGA), formed by local residents, is leading a partnership of public agencies and private groups to establish a greenbelt connecting Montana de Oro and Morro Bay State Parks. Five properties have already been acquired and negotiations are under way for others. MEGA has helped raise almost $10 million for acquisitions—a substantial accomplishment for a grassroots organization run by volunteers.

Of the funds approved by the Conservancy for this project, $550,000 were provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, $425,000 by Caltrans; $250,000 comes from the Morro Bay National Estuary Program, $190,000 from the Wildlife Conservation Board, and $100,000 from the Resources Agency.

Trash Collectors for Santa Monica Bay

Also in December, the Conservancy approved over $2 million in Proposition 12 funds to the cities of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Manhattan Beach for systems to collect trash from storm water and urban runoff, two of the most serious sources of pollution in Santa Monica Bay. Treatment controls will be installed at: four locations along Ballona Creek and an industrial area near the Baldwin Hills, Los Angeles; Centinela/Ballona Creek Storm Drain, Santa Monica; and three locations in Manhattan Beach. The projects are all part of the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Plan.

Over $1.7 Million for San Elijo Lagoon

The Coastal Conservancy provided $1.5 million to the San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy in October to purchase a 19-acre property on the lagoon’s northeast shore, and $224,000 to remove nonnative plants and replace them with natives along the lagoon’s perimenter. The property is habitat for the San Diego gnatcatcher, the San Diego horned lizard, the two-striped garter snake, and several other animals listed by the federal and state governments as endangered, threatened, or of special concern. Most of the habitat is currently of poor quality but highly suitable for restoration.

San Elijo Lagoon is one of the most important feeding areas for migratory birds on the San Diego County coast. Over 290 varieties of birds have been seen at the lagoon, including many endangered and threatened species.

In 1999 the Conservancy provided SELC with $1 million to maintain an open ocean inlet to the lagoon to improve tidal circulation. Last year the Conservancy awarded $63,000 to SELC for a pilot exotic plant removal program that was successfully completed this summer.

The Conservancy’s actions are part of its work with the Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project, a coalition of 17 state and federal agencies working in concert with local officials, businesses, and nonprofit organizations. The purpose of the project is to devise and carry out a regional wetlands restoration strategy in southern California’s five coastal counties.

Other Recent Projects

Among other projects approved by the Coastal Conservancy in September–December for Proposition 12 funding:

• For 13 projects to extend or improve the San Francisco Bay Trail, $2.8 million to the San Francisco Bay Trail Project.

The San Francisco Bay Trail Project selected the grants listed below from fifty applications. The $2.8 million in Proposition 12 bond funds will be met with $35 million in contributions from the project sponsors and other supporters.

Port of San Francisco for the Downtown Ferry Terminal Public Pier

$200,000 for improvements to the new public pier that will be built near the Ferry Terminal. This will add to $400,000 awarded by the Conservancy for the project last month.

City of Millbrae for the Millbrae Avenue Feasibility Study

$125,000 to complete the design for a new bridge at Millbrae Avenue and Highway 101 that will connect to an existing portion of the Bay Trail at Bayfront Park.

City of San Mateo for the Shoreline Park System

$500,000 to construct new trails and bridges and realign existing trail corridors.

City of Redwood City for the Blomquist Street Extension

$300,000 to construct a paved bike path and sidewalk along the planned 2,500-foot extension of Blomquist Street from Maple Street to the intersection of East Bayshore and Bair Island roads. The extension will include a new 550-foot bridge over Redwood Creek.

City of Santa Clara for the San Tomas Aquino/Saratoga Creek Trail Connector

$300,000 to upgrade the Highway 237 undercrossing to provide a paved path from the northern end of the San Tomas Aquino/Saratoga Creek trail to the Bay Trail.

City of Milpitas for a Portion of Coyote Creek Trail

$340,000 to construct 2.75 miles of the Bay Trail along levees adjacent to Coyote Creek between Highway 237 and Dixon Landing Road.

East Bay Regional Park District for a Damon Slough Trail Connection

$134,000 to construct 1,000 feet of the Bay Trail from Damon Slough north to the existing trail in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Regional Shoreline, including retrofit of the existing railroad bridge at the slough.

City of Oakland for the West Oakland Bay Trail

$250,000 to construct a 1.3-mile segment of the Bay Trail along city streets from Broadway to Mandela Parkway, ultimately providing a connection to the Bay Trail in Emeryville. The project involves installation of sidewalks and signs, bicycle lane striping, and landscaping.

California State Parks for the Benicia State Recreation Area

$100,0000 to construct 2.4 miles of trail that will link the Benicia State Recreation Area with Glen Cove Park in Vallejo. The project will include construction of foot and bicycle paths and installation of a pedestrian bridge, benches, fences, and display panels. The trail will provide access to a native plant garden planned by the California Native Plant Society.

Solano County Transportation Authority for a Countywide Trails Plan

$40,000 to develop a plan for improving and linking the Bay Trail, the Bay Area Ridge Trail, and the Countywide Bicycle Plan.

City of Napa for the Maxwell Bridge Replacement

$300,000 to construct bicycle lanes and sidewalks on the new 0.6-mile Maxwell Bridge over the Napa River. The pathways will connect to the planned Napa River Trail and provide safer access across the river.

City of San Rafael for Shoreline Park

$109,000 for construction of 0.25 mile of the Bay Trail along the edge of Shoreline Park’s south pond. The Marin Conservation League will assist with the project, which involves grading and paving of the trail, planting native trees and shrubs, and installing signs, benches, fences, and an entry gate.

Town of Tiburon for the Trestle Glen Feasibility Study

$60,000 for planning and design of bicycle and pedestrian improvements over a 0.7-mile segment of Trestle Glen Boulevard from the Tiburon Multi-Use Bikepath to Paradise Drive.

• For design of a regional center for the study and teaching of nonviolence, conflict resolution, and environmental education, to be built on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Regional Shoreline near Oakland International Airport, $250,000 to the nonprofit Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom Center.

• For the purchase of the historic 76-acre Wright Ranch on Morgan Territory Road just east of Mount Diablo, $590,000 to the nonprofit Save Mount Diablo. This organization has raised $50,000 from nearly 1,000 individual donations toward the $640,000 purchase price. The long-term goal is to transfer the property to State Parks.

• To obtain a 130-acre property in Carmel’s Hatton Canyon from Caltrans, $963,000 to State Parks. Most of these funds are available through Proposition 12. Hatton Canyon extends from steep hills to the Carmel River. The Coastal Conservancy, Caltrans, and others were recently sued to prevent the transfer, and they plan to address the suit.

• For studies to improve trails along Ballona Creek, and to restore the natural environment of the creek, $170,000 to Culver City, plus $20,000 to the nonprofit Ballona Creek Renaissance to develop and coordinate government and public participation. Supporters of this project envision a trail that will one day run from ocean beaches to Baldwin Hills Park and, eventually, to downtown Los Angeles.