December Board Meeting 2003

MEETING NOTICE

Paul Morabito (Public Member), Chairman

Douglas Bosco (Public Member)

Jeremy M. Hallisey (Public Member)

Gary A. Hernandez (Public Member)

Donna Arduin (Director, Department of Finance); Fred Klass (Designated)

Mike Reilly (Chair, California Coastal Commission); Susan Hansch (Designated)

Mike Chrisman (Secretary for Resources); Mike Spear (Designated)

Senate Representatives                       Assembly Representatives

Wesley Chesbro (District 2)                                       Hannah-Beth Jackson (District 35)

Betty Karnette (District 27)                                        John Laird (District 27)

Bruce McPherson (District 15)                                  Fran Pavley (District 41)

Sam Schuchat, Executive Officer

Pat Peterson, Deputy Attorney General

TENTATIVE AGENDA

LOCATION:   Bayside Conference Room

Pier 1, Port of San Francisco

San Francisco, California

DATE:   Thursday, December 11, 2003

TIME:   9:30 a.m.

1. Roll Call

2. Approval of Minutes of October 23, 2003 Public Meeting

North Coast

3. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $10,000,000 ($4,000,000 reimbursable) to The Conservation Fund to acquire the approximately 23,500-acre Coastal Forestlands, Ltd. properties in the Garcia River watershed, Mendocino County. [Additional Letters of Support]
4. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $300,000 to the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center for preparation of the Salmon Creek Estuary Enhancement Plan.

San Francisco Bay

5. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to (1) accept a grant of $357,146 from the California Bay Delta Authority Ecosystem Restoration Program to implement a public outreach program in the Marsh Creek watershed in Contra Costa County and to conduct planning for restoration of lower Marsh Creek in Oakley; and (2) disburse up to $110,000 of the California Bay-Delta Authority funds to the Natural Heritage Institute to implement the Marsh Creek public outreach program and to plan the restoration of lower Marsh Creek.
6. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $500,000 to the Sonoma Land Trust for the purposes of providing public access improvements and associated management at the Sonoma Baylands, a 322-acre restored wetlands.
7. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $150,000 to the City of Benicia to improve public access to the First Street Peninsula Pier on the Carquinez Strait in Benicia, Solano County.
8. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $400,000 to the City of Oakland to restore a portion of Arroyo Viejo Creek and construct five educational classrooms alongside the creek.
9. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to enter into an interagency agreement and disburse up to $400,000 to California State University Sacramento to lead facilitation and public outreach efforts for the South San Francisco Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project.
10. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse two grants related to the restoration of the Laguna de Santa Rosa in Sonoma County as follows: 1) Disburse up to $225,000 to the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation to prepare a restoration management plan. 2) Disburse up to $225,000 to the Sonoma County Water Agency to conduct a Phase II sedimentation study including design plans and environmental documentation for one or more habitat restoration and flood control projects.
11. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to accept approximately $2,325,000 from the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission to assist the Commission with implementation of the San Francisco Bay Plan, and further authorization to disburse up to $30,170 to the Richardson Bay Regional Agency for fish and wildlife habitat enhancement.

Central Coast

12. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $115,000 to the City of Pismo Beach for construction of a section of the Coastal Trail between the Cities of Pismo Beach and Grover Beach. [Revised text & new Exhibit 7: Letters of Support]

South Coast

13. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $12,500,000 to the County of Orange to implement the Upper Newport Bay Ecosystem Restoration project.
14. Consideration and possible Conservancy authorization to disburse up to $13,826,298 to the Department of Fish and Game to acquire properties within the Otay River watershed in order to implement the San Diego Multiple Species Conservation Plan, as part of the state’s Natural Communities Conservation Planning (NCCP) Program.
15. Consideration and possible Conservancy adoption of the Carbon-La Costa Beach Acquisition Mitigated Negative Declaration and Monitoring Program and authorization to disburse up to $1,250,000 for acquisition of a vacant parcel located at 21724 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu for scenic visual and passive public access.

Consent

16. Consideration and possible Conservancy action on the following Consent Items:
    1. Authorization to disburse up to $200,000 of Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP) funds to the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project to implement the Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project Science Advisory Project.
    2. Authorization of the following actions to implement the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Plan, approved by the Conservancy on August 2, 2001: 1) Authorization to disburse up to $62,957 to the Los Angeles Conservation Corps to undertake the Redondo Beach Bluff Restoration Pilot Project; and 2) Authorization to disburse up to $444,000 to the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District for final planning and feasibility for the Malibu Creek Recycled Water Line Extension Project.
    3. Authorization to amend the Conservancy’s January 24, 2002 authorization for disbursement of planning funds to the Bay Foundation of Morro Bay to authorize use of funds for preparation of conceptual designs, preliminary engineering plans, and cost estimates for future restoration activities.
    4. Authorization to disburse up to $50,000 to the Center for Ecosystem Management and Restoration (CEMAR) for conceptual design of barrier modifications to allow for anadromous fish passage in Stonybrook Creek, a tributary of Alameda Creek.
    5. Authorization to disburse up to $100,000 to the City of El Cerrito to produce final construction documents and a maintenance and management plan for restoration of Baxter Creek and a parallel multi-use trail; to complete environmental review and obtain permits for the construction; and to create educational signage for this public open space in the Cities of El Cerrito and Richmond, Contra Costa County.
    6. Authorization to disburse up to $137,600 to the City of Santa Rosa for the construction of recreational pathway improvements and fencing for the Prince Memorial Greenway Phase 2004 in downtown Santa Rosa along Santa Rosa Creek.
    7. Authorization to disburse up to $60,000 to the Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District for the design, production, and placement of watershed signs and hazardous river condition signs for the Russian River watershed and the Sonoma Creek watershed.
    8. Authorization to disburse up to $78,000 to the City of Fort Bragg to conduct engineering and design of public access improvements at Pomo Bluffs Park, Mendocino County.
    9. Authorization to disburse up to $614,100 to the Point Cabrillo Light Keepers Association for restoration of the eastern lightkeeper’s residence and for management of the public use improvements at the Point Cabrillo Light Station.
17. Authorization to disburse up to $50,000 to Sustainable Conservation to develop and implement a permit coordination program, which includes Best Management Practices, in order to reduce the duration, cost, and complexity of the regulatory review process for proposed habitat restoration projects, and thus encourage the implementation of voluntary water quality and habitat improvement projects on private lands in Humboldt County.

17. Executive Officer’s Report
18. Approval of Meeting Schedule for 2004

18. Deputy Attorney General’s Report
19. Litigation Summary

19. Board Member Comments

20. Public Comments

21. Possible closed session to confer with counsel regarding Balkanski v. State Coastal Conservancy, Monterey County Superior Court Case No. M59080; City of Malibu and David Geffen v. Access for All, California Coastal Commission, California Coastal Conservancy, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. BC277034; Serra Canyon Co. LTD v. California Coastal Commission, California Coastal Conservancy, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. SCO 73699; Colony Beach Preservation Assn. v. California Coastal Commission, Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. BS 083683; California State Coastal Conservancy and California Coastal Commission v. City of Trinidad and John Frame, Humboldt County Superior Court No. CV030643; and other pending litigation; and/or to consider the initiation of litigation. Session will be closed to the public pursuant to Government Code Section 11126(e).

22. Possible closed session to confer with and give instruction to staff negotiators regarding negotiations with the Hearst Corporation pertaining to exploration of potential acquisition of property interests at the Hearst Ranch, San Luis Obispo County. Session will be closed to the public pursuant to Government Code Section 11126(c)(7).

23. Adjournment.

N.B.:   Following or at any time during the meeting, the Conservancy may recess or adjourn to closed session to consider personnel matters, prices and terms of real estate transactions and possible and pending litigation. Session will be closed to the public pursuant to attorney‑client privilege and statutory authorization under Government Code Section 11126(a), (c)(7) and (e).

Next Meeting: Thursday, January 29, 2004 (tentative, subject to approval)