San Leandro Marina Alts Study_Final

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4. Alternatives costly and may be prohibitively expensive for some community members to participate in.6 Most others, however, would either require no admission fees or have nominal access fees, and would therefore be open to most individuals. This would hold true for activities such as bird watching, water contact, and walking along the perimeter trail. The variety of recreational uses proposed under Alternative 1 would also appeal to families and groups with individuals who have wide- ranging interests for both active and passive recreation.. Simply stated, this Alternative would be attractive across the wide range of uses it would provide. Most uses envisioned under this alternative would be considered aquatic in nature. Activities such as boating would clearly require a water body and would be dependent on the bay. Although bird watching, walking, and staged events do not necessarily require adjacent marine habitats, locating them proximate to the harbor would nevertheless add to their uniqueness and make them a more desirable destination. In terms of the demand for a boat harbor at the site, a poll of San Leandro voters was conducted in November 2007 (GodbeResearch), which found that the boat harbor is among the relatively least used features (by residents) of the Shoreline Recreation Area. The poll indicated that Marina visitors patronize restaurants (74%), use shoreline walking trails and paths (71%), and use play areas and picnic facilities (54%) more often than they use the boat harbor (12%) or boat launch ramp (7%). Nevertheless, the existing Marina is approximately 40% occupied, which indicates that some demand for boat berths persists, even if it is utilized by a small fraction of the overall population. Furthermore, participants at community meetings have indicated that keeping recreational boating activities at the harbor should be a component of any future reuse plan. In terms of beach and performance stage uses, it is unknown whether these are in demand among City residents. However, they could conceivably be used by hotel patrons and visitors to the park and golf tournaments. In conclusion, the Marina Park Alternative would provide an adequate mix of recreational uses, most of which would be aquatic in nature and publicly accessible, except for the docks themselves. The harbor, while patronized by a small number of users, would likely enhance the overall appearance of the Harbor Basin and increase its attractiveness as a local and potentially regional destination. Aquatic Park Alternative As described in Section 2, the Aquatic Park Alternative would emphasize non -motorized boating uses at the harbor, and would permit kayaks and canoes to be used within the basin after removing the Marina slips and eliminating all motorized boating. Recreational uses under this alternative would include a multi -use perimeter promenade along the interior edge of the Harbor Basin, and a small, publicly accessible beach area with stepped shoreline seating and a stage area, and several boardwalks/vista points overlooking the water. The western, northern, and eastern rip -rap shoreline of the basin could be backfilled to create a natural shoreline appearance and a 6 The partial marina would enrich the visual quality of the Harbor Basin by maintaining the marine profile along the basin. As such, even those who do not boat (or cannot afford to boat) may find their leisure time at the Harbor Basin enhanced simply by viewing the boats at the marina.. San Leandro Marina Harbor Basin 4-2 ESA / 210461 Alternatives Study March 2011