“Now, while things are down in the economy, we need to think about moving forward,” said district treasurer Jim Tucker. Over-fished waters and years without a salmon season are sinking the traditions associated with a working harbor. “We need to reorganize Pillar Point.”
Commissioners are slowly pushing through two major infrastructure projects, both of which they hope will attract attention while reinforcing the roots of commercial fishing and boating.
 Harbor District Commissioner Jim Tucker looks over Perched Beach and a portion of Pillar Point Harbor where massive renovations are under consideration. |
The second, jumpstarted at a district meeting last week, calls for a major overhaul of Perched Beach — where Half Moon Bay Kayak Co. rests. Commissioners reactivated a four-year-old engineering contract; the first step is getting design sketches and an engineering report.
The idea is to transform a prime section of little-used but highly visible beach space into a visitor-friendly venue. Commissioners are tossing around ideas for a community center, a new harbor office and a permanent structure for Half Moon Bay Kayak Co., in addition to a 71-berth docking station for charter and tour boats and a haul-out where boaters can repair their vessels. The endeavor would require massive dredging of sand and mud, followed by extending a bulkhead several hundred feet around the harbor. Such a public spectacle could reignite interest from locals and tourists alike, commissioners say, but right now it’s a pipe dream.
“I think this is just the beginning of a vision that we can increase the visibility and importance of the ocean resources,” said commissioner Pietro Parravano.
At the same time, the harbor district is working on inking lease agreements with the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary and Mavericks Surf Shop to bring a joint visitors’ education center and surfboard shop to fruition inside the old Fish Merchant restaurant at the harbor. They’re also pushing to get approval to dredge the southeast side of the harbor, which surfers say would restore a damaged wave break along the jetty at Surfer’s Beach.
The Perched Beach project would also pave the way for improvements to the section of Coastal Trail passing through the harbor, said district General Manager Peter Grenell.
“Nobody’s really on board with anything yet except, ‘Let’s see what the community wants to do,’” Tucker said. “It’s the beginning of a long process. … We gotta try to diversify so we can sustain.”
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