San Mateo County Harbor District asks Army Corps to examine beach erosion

▸ Members present: William Zemke, Tom Mattusch, Virginia Chang Kiraly, George Domurat, Kathryn Slater-Carter. 

▸ Staff present: General Manager Jim Pruett, Director of Operations John Moren, Director of Administrative Services Julie van Hoff, Deputy Secretary Melanie Hadden, General Counsel Trisha Ortiz. 

▸ Updates: In a tweak of the agenda, the general manager, operations and finance departments all gave updates early in the meeting. Instead of having these reports after the regular business items, the switch allows people to hear highlights from staff earlier. Pruett said he is planning tours with several elected officials, including U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo and San Mateo County Board of Supervisors President Dave Pine. Van Hoff said the district has filled three of the four new positions the board authorized last year. 

▸ On consent: The board agreed to send Pruett and Commissioners Kiraly and Zemke to attend the California Marine Affairs and Navigation Conference in Washington, D.C., later in February. Staff estimated the cost of attending to be $7,000 for conference registration, hotel, transportation and other expenses.

▸ Committees: The board approved new committee assignments for the year. Among the usual finance and human relations committees, Commissioners Mattusch and Domurat will serve on a dredging and sedimentation ad hoc committee. Commissioners Kiraly and Domurat will serve on a sea level rise ad hoc committee, which will serve as a liaison with the San Mateo County Flood and Sea Level Rise Resiliency District, also known as OneShoreline. 

▸ Midyear budget: Van Hoff provided a midyear report for the fiscal year 2022-23 budget. Through the first six months, the district’s operating expenses are in good shape, amounting to 33.7 percent of the year’s expense budget. However, van Hoff said those expenses are expected to increase in the second half of the fiscal year and include costs for vessel destruction, contract services, training and legal fees. 

The district’s working capital balance is projected to be $700,000 higher than forecasted due to a $200,000 increase in non-operating revenues and $500,0000 saved in salaries from vacant job positions. The Harbor District intends to use that $200,000 surplus to redesign Pillar Point Harbor’s launch ramp and restroom area. 

▸ Erosion letter: The board authorized Pruett to send a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requesting help to fund a study to determine if the outer breakwater of Pillar Point Harbor, which was built by the federal agency, is responsible for the ongoing erosion to nearby beaches.

The Army Corps conducted a feasibility study of Surfer’s Beach in 2015, but there was no federal action. However, Pruett’s letter says the conditions have deteriorated and requests a new study of the eroding beaches inside and outside Pillar Point Harbor. If the Army Corps’ construction of the breakwater is proven to have caused erosion, the Harbor District intends to have the feds pay for it. 

The Army Corps can fund the initial $100,000 to start the study, and the rest of the cost would be split with the Harbor District. According to federal law, a federal navigation works project like this, costing more than $7 million, will require approval from Congress. 

▸ Quote of the day: “When you look at the ownership (of Highway 1), Caltrans was approached and basically said we don’t want to participate. This isn’t our issue, we’ll just move the road inland. So that’s why the 2015 report kind of just went away. Without that major player, there wasn’t a lot of benefit to the study,” said Commissioner George Domurat adding the Harbor District needs to prove there is a benefit to the Army Corps to remove the threat of erosion inside Pillar Point Harbor. 

— August Howell