📋
Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

Santa Cruz County Grand Jury • 2001-2002

Review of the Santa Cruz Port District

View PDF View Full Original

Findings 13 findings

F1 Page 156
The jury visited the harbor three times during the course of this review: A. Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor is a popular tourist destination. B. Members of the Jury observed during these visits that the harbor area appears to be well maintained. C. Public Port District meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of every month starting at 7:30 p.m.. Public meetings are usually held at the Harbor Public Meeting Room, 365-A Lake Avenue, Santa Cruz. Members of the Grand Jury attended one of these meetings and observed that the meetings appear to be run in an orderly and professional manner. D. The District is responsible for many ongoing maintenance projects as well as long term improvements to the harbor. E. Revenues are generated from almost every aspect of the harbor operation. Launch fees, parking fees, slip fees, guest docking, RV parking, rent on retail space, boat storage all generate the money needed for daily operations and long term improvements. The District is also very active in obtaining grant money whenever possible.
F2 Page 156
Businesses are located throughout the harbor area: A. The Harbor Business Association Member Directory is located on the Internet through the Port District site: http://www.santacruzharbor.org/visitor/bus_dir.html. B. Retail shops must apply to the District for a lease. Upon approval, the District issues a lease for a determined amount of time. This is normally five years with the option to renew. C. The Harbor Patrol presence also adds to security and there is very little crime in the area. This fact also enhances the good business climate. D. There are many popular restaurants in the harbor attracting many locals as well as tourists to the harbor area. E. The closeness to the harbor and to the beach sometimes creates parking problems for visitors to the harbor and to the local restaurants. Parking within the harbor area is in high demand during the summer months. F. Other than minor complaints concerning restroom maintenance and dock repair, members of the Grand Jury found that the District has done an excellent job in making the harbor a favorable place for local merchants as well as their customers and other visitors.
F3 Page 156
Although there are about 1200 boat slips in the harbor, there are about the same number of boat owners waiting for slips. The District charges boat owners an annual fee to be placed on a waiting list. The waiting period for a slip in the South Harbor may be as much as 9-10 years. In the North Harbor the wait for a slip is much less, 2001–2002 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Report Review of the Santa Cruz Port District -13 about 3-6 years. The District tries to ensure that existing boat owners are, in fact, actually using the harbor and not merely parking a boat in a slip. The District has established a rule that a slip renter must take his boat out at least ten times per year or risk losing his place in the harbor. Slips are not transferable with the sale of a boat. When a boat is sold the new owner is given time to look for a new place to berth his boat. In the past, slips were transferred with the boat. This practice led to abuse of the slip rental policy. There are currently about 87 people who live on their boats in the harbor. The harbor provides non-metered electricity to these people and to the all other boat owners at a set rate of $35.00 per month. Some boat owners who use small amounts of electricity would prefer metered electricity for a more equitable charge.
F4 Page 157
Because the harbor is such a large area with many facilities, there are many ongoing capital improvements planned by the District. Recently a new lighthouse was constructed to mark the entrance to the harbor. This was done with private funds at no cost to taxpayers. Charles Walton donated the initial $60,000 to get this project started. Walton, a Los Gatos resident who is a semi-retired electronics businessman and fisherman, made the donation in honor of his late brother, Derek Walton, who served in the Merchant Marines. This new Lighthouse is known as the Walton Lighthouse and officially as the Santa Cruz Harbor Light.
F5 Page 157
Another project recently completed is the Joseph G. Townsend Maritime Plaza. The plaza is located just outside of the Crow’s Nest Restaurant. This project was made possible through grants from the Economic Development Administration and the Federal Transportation Enhancement Act. Additionally, many private donors also helped to fund this project. Joseph G. Townsend has been a Port District Commissioner for the last 25 years. His leadership of the District has been instrumental in making the harbor what it is today. State Senator Bruce McPherson, Supervisors Mardi Wormhoudt and Jan Beautz, and Mayor Tim Fitzmaurice of the City of Santa Cruz dedicated the plaza in his honor on September 7, 2001.
F6 Page 157
Apart from the above mentioned projects are long range plans for replacing the deteriorating seawall near Aldo’s Restaurant, increasing the number of visitor slips and general improvements to the North Harbor.
F7 Page 157
The District has recently installed an oil reclamation facility to protect the quality of the harbor’s water.
F8 Page 157
Much planning goes into all capital improvements and the District appears to be very diligent in finding funding before the projects are undertaken.
F9 Page 157
Santa Cruz Harbor is dredged generally between November and April annually. This dredging operation is the most expensive daily operation at the harbor. The harbor owns and maintains the dredging vessel. Geographically, the mouth of the harbor is located in an area where sand is constantly building up. In order to ensure that the harbor is navigable, the entrance must be constantly dredged. Dredging removes the sand from the mouth of the South Harbor. The sand is then deposited through a dredge discharge line, into the inter-tidal zone in the bay where it drifts down the coast, and helps to replenish the sand to all beaches east of the harbor. Dredging of the North Harbor is a much different operation. The North Harbor drains Arana Gulch and much of the surrounding area. The sediment deposited in the North Harbor is far different 2001–2002 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Final Report -14 Review of the Santa Cruz Port District from the sand that is dredge from the channel entrance in South Harbor, and must be treated differently. The North Harbor’s sediment consists of only 40% sand and 60% silt. Although this sediment does not contain chemical pollutants, it does contain much organic material and silt. Instead of dredging this material it is removed by a clamshell bucket, deposited in the parking lot and left to drain. The material is then removed by dump trucks and deposited in a landfill site in Seaside. This is a costly operation.
F10 Page 158
The Port District would like to be able to take the sediment dredged from North Harbor and deposit it further out in the Monterey Bay. Because of environmental concerns and possible pollution of the Monterey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, this method has not yet been approved. The District contracted with Moss Landing Marine Lab for a demonstration project to support its position that this sediment poses no threat to the Bay. The preliminary report of this project, issued in March of 2002, supports the Port District’s position that the sediment is not a threat to the Bay. Approval for depositing the sediment in the bay would result in a substantial savings of at least $325,000 per year to the Port District, based on 5000 cubic yards of sediment, which is the average annual amount of sediment dredged. Before proceeding with depositing this dredged material in the Monterey Bay, the District needs to receive approval from a number of agencies. The District must demonstrate to the Army Corp of Engineers that they are in compliance with section 404 of the Federal Clean Water Act and compliant with EPA standards. Next the District will need a permits from the Coastal Commission, the California State Water Quality Control Board in San Luis Obispo and the Monterey Bay National Marine Wildlife Sanctuary
F11 Page 158
Santa Cruz Harbor is home to a commercial fishing fleet. Santa Cruz Harbor is primarily a salmon fishery. There is also a small crabbing operation along with albacore, halibut, and rockfish fisheries. Foreign imports of fish from South America and domestic farming compete directly with local fisheries. There are, however, enough local markets such as restaurants and fresh fish retail markets in the area to minimally sustain local fishing. The last several years have been abundant for salmon. Salmon season runs May through September, albacore usually from September through December.
F12 Page 158
There is a local fish buyer located in the harbor at the “S” and “T” docks. Having a local buyer in the harbor ensures that the fisherman have an available market for their catch. The Port District has recently upgraded the District-owned facility leased by the resident fish buyer. The facility has been upgraded to include a new ice-making machine that is capable of providing all the ice that is needed to run the facility.
F13 Page 158
It is essential to the fishing fleet that the mouth of the harbor remains open all year. The commercial fishermen welcome the dredging program. The Santa Cruz Local Fisherman’s Association maintains a very good relationship with the Port District. Both the Santa Cruz Harbor and the Fisherman’s Association are members of Alliance of Communities for Sustainable Fisheries. This Alliance is an organization that seeks to preserve currently threatened fisheries and fishing communities. They work closely with the Monterey Bay Wildlife Preserve in order to achieve this end. The Alliance can be found on the Internet at: http://www.nfcc-fisheries.org/monterey/index.shtml. 2001–2002 Santa Cruz County Grand Jury Report Review of the Santa Cruz Port District -15 Conclusions

Recommendations 6