‘Spirit of optimism’ as Richardson Bay restoration progresses

Galen Licht owner of the paddle board and kayak rental company Sea Trek takes a motor boat out onto Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Galen Licht s flat-bottom boat glides over the gray-green salty waters of Richardson Bay It s medium tide on Friday morning Swirling below the surface are the tips of green eelgrass The aquatic plant once lined the shallows off the bay s shoreline from Sausalito s Spinnaker restaurant north to the Strawberry Peninsula point the second largest bed in San Francisco Bay Licht owner of Sea Trek a Sausalito kayak and paddle board rental business turned off the engine and surveyed the shimmery vista You come out here and you look around it s wholly open he reported There s birds There s eelgrass seals Bat rays are beneath us You get that feeling of being connected to this place so fleetly within a three-minute paddle or boat ride Blades of eelgrass float on the surface of Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Eelgrass grows below the surface of Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Galen Licht owner of the paddle board and kayak rental company Sea Trek holds a blade of eelgrass discovered floating on Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal A paddle boarder heads out onto Richardson Bay from Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Gulls at in Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Galen Licht owner of the paddle board and kayak rental company Sea Trek takes a motor boat out onto Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Boats float moored in Richardson Bay off Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal A group of paddleboarders leaves the Sea Trek dock along Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Show Caption of Blades of eelgrass float on the surface of Richardson Bay in Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Expand Open waters and a vibrant setting aren t the only things he sees Licht who has spent years on Richardson Bay says a district of mariners who lived for decades on boats have mostly moved ashore Their boats and way of life as anchor-outs are mostly gone For six years Licht mentioned he has given rides to successive teams of social workers who have encouraged this transition We were one of the first touch points for the folks residing on Richardson Bay revealed Zoe Neil Marin County director for the Downtown Streets Association We really worked hard to build trust and rapport Various folks were definitely more willing wanting ready for life on land Others definitely were not The challenge and complexity of getting folks off the water was so hard because there s this deep-rooted practices of people living on the water for long Licht mentioned That s one of the reasons it was so hard to get people to come off I didn t rent for years and I lived out on the water and it was the the majority beautiful experience in the world announced Steven Alioto who moved ashore to help a friend dying of cancer Since mid- Alioto has been living in a motorhome I gave up my house on the water to live here Richardson Bay has had more transformation in the past months than in the past years Three years ago abandoned and occupied vessels dotted the middle of the bay In there were such vessels People lived rent free Various boats were well-kept Others were not or abandoned Anchors tore up the eelgrass Wastewater and bilge drained into the bay Storms tossed debris overboard Bay living was poetic but rugged Efforts to clear the bay of illegal vessels were fiercely resisted prompting lawsuits and protests from boat residents and activists who explained the movement exacerbated homelessness during the COVID- pandemic A concerted effort to press on involving local county and state representatives and agencies helmed by the Richardson Bay Regional Authority RBRA has overseen this transition Downtown Streets Crew s outreach began a half-dozen years ago Situation workers would show up and offer anchor-outs help with supplies vitality care drivers licenses Social Precaution and eventually making plans involving new housing Particular of the hardest things I heard were people transitioning because they knew it was time whether they were older or had a medicinal condition or couldn t truly physically do the boat life any more because it is tough mentioned Laurel Halvorson a Street Teams worker who visited weekly What they were going to miss majority is living a way of life that is with the tides You re literally out there you can t step out your door and go to the store The relocation efforts picked up steam in February when the Marin Housing Authority s Board of Commissioners which includes the five Marin supervisors approved a housing voucher scheme that tapped million in state funds secured by state Sen Mike McGuire Before the initiative the RBRA had a buyout operation for boaters The housing authority and its partners offered incentives to move into subsidized long-term housing As of late August vessels remained on the bay noted Brad Gross RBRA executive director Under a settlement with the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Evolution Commission a state agency boats that are not seaworthy cannot stay past Oct Two or three boats fit that description The rest are seaworthy and can stay through October outside the eelgrass restoration zone The state grant is spending a month to subsidize housing for two dozen ex-mariners Gross announced A good handful of people who are in their s and s have taken advantage of this he mentioned It s not as easy as it used to be mainly because there s not boats out there anymore RBRA also won million in federal grants to begin restoring eelgrass which anchors the near-shore ecosystem and to clean up underwater debris Its partners for that restoration effort include San Francisco State University s Estuary and Ocean Science Center based at the Romberg Tiburon campus The bay s average depth is feet Eelgrass lining the bay bottom nurtures the ecosystem People have been anchoring out there for years noted Gross There s no record of underwater cleanup There s no eelgrass restoration But with this influx of the million from the state the million from the feds from NOAA and the other grants we put this all together in to make all of this happen Although chosen waterfront residents like Licht are wistful about the anchor-out counterculture s disappearance particular local executives and marina owners see the relocation and restoration as long-awaited progress For years our residents visitors and businesses struggled to access the full beauty of Richardson Bay due to the proliferation of boats on the anchorage stated Supervisor Stephanie Moulton-Peters who represents southern Marin Now with the number of vessels on the water reduced to from we are seeing more and more people kayak paddleboard and otherwise explore and enjoy the bay Aquatic wildlife from seals to otters are back in large numbers because the eelgrass has been restored she reported And we were able to accomplish all this in a compassionate manner by relocating individuals living off their boats through a safe empathetic and collaborative approach We are so grateful for the RBRA and all their partners who have helped oversee this transformation Harbormaster Curtis Havel passes boats in Richardson Bay near Sausalito Calif on Thursday April The Richardson s Bay Regional Agency RBRA is working on a plan to remove derelict vessels from the bay Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal A cluster of boats at anchor in Richardson Bay in Sausalito in Sherry LaVars Marin Independent Journal Boats at anchor in Richardson Bay off Sausalito on July About anchor-out vessels were on the water as of Dec a decline from in June according the Richardson s Bay Regional Authority Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Boats float on Richardson Bay between Sausalito and Belvedere in Sherry LaVars Marin Independent Journal Boats sit at anchor in Richardson Bay off Sausalito in James Cacciatore Special to the Marin Independent Journal Show Caption of Harbormaster Curtis Havel passes boats in Richardson Bay near Sausalito Calif on Thursday April The Richardson s Bay Regional Agency RBRA is working on a plan to remove derelict vessels from the bay Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal Expand Sausalito s waterfront is entering a new chapter declared Curtis Havel harbormaster at Clipper Yacht Harbor in Sausalito For the first time in years there is a spirit of optimism among local marina operators who are now working with each other and the city to reimagine and revitalize our waterfront Clipper Yacht Harbor is part of the Sausalito Sustainable Waterfront Association which includes mariners marina operators and business owners Havel the former RBRA harbormaster who long clashed with anchor-outs over illegally anchored vessels explained the relocation and restoration efforts have improved access to the bay ease of navigability and society safety For decades abandoned and derelict vessels anchored in Richardson Bay have degraded the atmosphere and undermined the vitality of the waterfront he commented RBRA has pursued compassionate solutions helping transition vulnerable individuals on unseaworthy vessels into safe and stable housing Those who venture onto the open waters say the transformation is tangible What s majority of impressive about Richardson Bay is the wildlife has returned dramatically revealed Wayne Aleshire president of the Open Water Rowing Center Brown osprey black-crowned night heron and seals are back Farther offshore porpoises feed in tidal change zones We re starting to see a huge gathering of people who want to enjoy the water stated Aleshire whose rowing center will soon host athletes training for the Olympics We just had an open house A whole bunch of people signed up because they want to see what s out there Paddle boarders head out onto Richardson Bay from Sausalito Calif on Friday Aug Alan Dep Marin Independent Journal