Docktown and Docktown Marina

The site at 1548 Maple Street, Redwood City, CA, is commonly known as Docktown Marina. Docktown Marina is owned by the Salaman Family Trust and leased/managed by Docktown Marina Inc. At present, Docktown Marina serves dual uses - one as a RV/Boat storage area, the other as a liveaboard community. The residents pay a month-to-month lease to Docktown Marina Inc. to anchor their floating homes, houseboats, and other watercrafts in the marina.

According to the Redwood City Attorney: “This area is comprised of two, separately-zoned areas: (1) the area where boat storage occurs has a general plan designation of Office Park Oriented Uses and a zoning designation of Tidal Plain; and (2) the area where boats and houseboats are tied up on Redwood Creek has a general plan designation of San Francisco Bay Waters and a zoning designation of Tidal Plain.“

This liveaboard community is inhabited by residents of varying socio-economic backgrounds reflective of the area at large. Motorists traveling on Highway 101 might get a passing glance of the floating homes at Docktown during high tides but for most of its multi-decade history, Docktown Marina has existed without much notice by the Redwood City residents.

Surrounding Area

Docktown is situated across the creek from the Peninsula Park project. Peninsula Park is not within the scope of Measure W. However, Measure W has an impact on a number of neighboring properties, including:

• Bair Island Aquatic Center (BIAC)
• San Mateo County Women’s Correctional Facility
• Maple Street Shelter  

News

Redwood Creek Floating Community Association hosted a panel discussion for Measures W & V on September 10th. Here is the local news coverage of that event:

• Redwood City Daily News - Panelists weigh in on inititatives - Thursday, September 11, 2008 
• San Mateo Daily Journal - Docktown takes on measures - Thursday, September 11, 2008

How does Measure W Affect this Site

There are several specific and speculative impacts to Docktown. Here is a brief overview of the complexity associated with Measure W:

• Freezes Land Use: The passage of Measure W will designate Docktown as Open Space, effectively locking in the existing zoning, and land use designation of the site by requiring a two-thirds voter approval for any future land use/zoning changes.
• Freezes Infrastructure: The freezing of land use could impede much needed infrastructure upgrades. Although general repair and maintenance do not require a permit, the overall infrastructure of Docktown Marina might need major upgrades requiring two-thirds voter approval, as they may not be consistent of open space purpose. For instance, not all basic utilities are commonly available here in Docktown. Most floating homes and houseboats do not have sewer connections and must rely on pump-out services for sewage disposal. Should the residents, the marina management, or the owner of the property wish to apply for a new sewer connection, speculations abound as to how Measure W is applied.

“No general plan amendment, rezoning, specific plan, precise plan, tentative subdivision map, parcel map, conditional use permit, planned community permit, or other discretionary entitlement for use shall be approved or issued unless consistent with the provisions of the Section 6a.”

The phrase ‘discretionary entitlements for use’ means licenses and permits. The second part of the sentence means that all the above, from ‘general plan amendment’ to ‘discretionary entitlements for use’ must be ‘consistent’ with all the other provisions. This means that all these tools of our city government must line up behind this new provision, like toy soldiers at attention.

Normally, a single master permit can handle the installation of a sewer system. In Docktown, such a sewer hook-up, which has to interface into individual floating vessels, generates a more interesting scenario. How such structures are treated is murky at best and thereby presents ample bandwidth for “judicial interpretation" that could prevent existing residents to enact basic improvements.

• Level-Two Jail Next Door: Should Measure W pass, subsequent drop in the land value of the existing San Mateo County Women’s Correctional Facility would make it more likely for the County to build the new level-two prison next to Docktown. For more information, please see the Women’s Correctional Facility case study.
• Future Development or Open Space: Change is afoot at Docktown.  The question is on the direction of the change. On one hand, a real estate developer has purchased an option to buy the site and performed feasibility studies on Docktown. Although this developer has stated that they are interested in maintaining the liveaboard community, a few Docktown residents fear they would be forced out if this developer bought Docktown for development and therefore they support Measure W as an insurance that would protect them from commercial encroachment. Another scenario presents itself as the property value of Docktown would be substaintially surpressed under Measure W. The passing of Measure W would change the players who might be interested in purchasing Docktown, but not necessary deter them from acquisition. For example, it would not require a two-thirds voter approval to turn Docktown into open space or a park under the language of Measure W.

Our Opinion: Loss of Floating Community Know-How. A significant portion of Redwood City is water, with large sections of our land just above sea level. The city is considering building new and raising existing levees to further protect against rising sea level. While such plans are rightly based on an appropriate concern for common welfare, the long history of Docktown Marina demonstrates Redwood City is an excellent venue for floating communities and provides a living example of another solution other than simply raising levees. Measure W will surely destroy exactly what we need in the future, a new way of adapting to the impacts of climate change. Simply, a rising tide floats all homes.

Legal Review by City Attorney

Source: http://www.redwoodcity.org/government/council/packets/2008/0630/7A.pdf

#7 Would the initiative affect Docktown and Docktown Marina?

Response: Yes, changes to the uses of these areas could require two-thirds voter approval. This area is comprised of two, separately-zoned areas: (1) the area where boat storage occurs has a general plan designation of Office Park Oriented Uses and a zoning designation of Tidal Plain; and (2) the area where boats and houseboats are tied up on Redwood Creek has a general plan designation of San Francisco Bay Waters and a zoning designation of Tidal Plain. Both areas would be covered by the initiative because of the Tidal Plain and San Francisco Bay Waters designation. As a result, any legislative action to change the use of these lands for Non-Open Space Uses would require two-thirds voter approval.

For example, approval by two-thirds of the electorate would be required if this area were to be developed for residential use. The site has been seen as an area that could be developed into residential and mixed-use neighborhood. City staff recently reviewed a conceptual design plan for the site which was submitted by Trumark. The plan includes residential development at a density of 40 dwelling units per acre and public access along the creek frontage as well as through the site. If the initiative passes, however, this proposal would require two-thirds voter approval because the Zoning Code would have to be amended to permit such development.

Relevant Sections in Measure W

Highlights have been added for emphasis.

Section 6a
§ B. Definitions: For the purposes of this Section 6a, the following definitions apply:
(2) “Non-Open Space Uses” means any use other than the following: (a) Agriculture; (b) Extraction of chemicals from sea water by natural evaporation and extraction of oyster shells or other deposits from San Francisco Bay; (c) Public parks and public recreation areas or facilities; (d) Restored Wetlands; and (e) uses defined as accessory to the foregoing uses in the applicable zoning district as of March 13, 2008.”

§ B. Definitions: For the purposes of this Section 6a, the following definitions apply:
“Open Space Lands” means all lands identified as either (a) “Park,”,“Unimproved Areas (Land or Water) Devoted to Preservation of Natural Resources, the Managed Production of Resources, Outdoor Recreation, or Public Health and Safety,” “Future Development Expanding Limits of Urbanization,” “Controlled Waterway (Redwood Shores Area),” or “San Francisco Bay Water” on the City’s General Plan Land Use Map as of March 13, 2008; or (b) “Tidal Plain” (“TP”) or “Redwood Shores Bay Front” (“RSB”) on the City’s Zoning Map as of March 13, 2008.”

§ C. Implementation, Paragraph #4 states:
“No general plan amendment, rezoning, specific plan, precise plan, tentative subdivision map, parcel map, conditional use permit, planned community permit, or other discretionary entitlement for use shall be approved or issued unless consistent with the provisions of the Section 6a.”

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