Save Pete's Harbor

Save Pete’s Harbor (SPH) is a group of concerned citizens whose goal is to preserve the state-owned, outer portion of Pete’s Harbor as an environmentally friendly marina open to the boating public. We are dedicated to ensuring that any development at Pete’s Harbor, such as the one currently proposed, responsibly mitigates all potential environmental impacts under CEQA** and is fully compatible with a public (commercial) marina. We recognize the need of current and former Pete’s Harbor tenants to pursue relocation costs on an individual basis, but the SPH Coalition will only engage in negotiations that pertain to the preservation of the harbor. **Such impacts include the disruption of boating communities which require the building of replacement units in Redwood City to mitigate impacts to all recreational boaters, including liveaboards and cruisers.

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Alex Kekauoha has reported on Pete’s Harbor twice for KPFA radio. Here you can listen to his recent report, posted online on June 20, 2013. You can hear James Lee (Secretary for Save Pete’s Harbor), Buckley Stone (Pete’s Harbor resident), and Alison Madden (former Pete’s Harbor resident) speak.

There is one slight inaccuracy in this report. A special July 1 State Lands Commission (SLC) hearing is mentioned. There was no such hearing, but there was a resident whose unlawful detainer hearing was that day and where the SLC was invited to attend. (The SLC did not attend.)

The battle over Pete's Harbor in Redwood City is escalating with boat-dwelling tenants saying their landlord might be guilty of false imprisonment. Pete's Harbor was once packed with boats before owner Paula Uccelli evicted tenants in the hopes of selling the property to a developer. But questions over her legal right to do so are stalling the process. Now, with a handful of boaters left fighting to stay, Uccelli has fenced up the property and hired security, which tenants say impedes their ability to come and go at will. Alex Kekauoha reports from Redwood City.

[fuckyeahredwoodcity]

13 June 2013 - Evening outside the Seaport Conference Center near the Port of Redwood City. The first meeting of the Inner Harbor Specific Plan was held here. Residents of Docktown and officers of Save Pete’s Harbor were present to advocate for vibrant, sustainable waterfront communities that understand an work with the local environment and the effects of sea level rise.

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VICTORY! A Message from Our President

We did it. After more than seven months, we forced the City Council to send the development plan back to the Planning Commission. There will be further modifications, public input, and environmental review. We'll let you know the next steps. On September 20, Paula Uccelli told us that there was nothing we could do, that it wasn't going to be "like last time" (when a vote of the people of Redwood City stopped the Marina Shores project). But we fought the good fight, and we made a difference. I am enormously proud of our group.  Please do join us as we continue fighting the good fight. Thanks for all your support.  Leslie Webster President, Save Pete's Harbor

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VICTORY! A Message from Our Treasurer

At last night's meeting, Redwood City's councilmembers voted unanimously to accept the recommendation of the planning staff and remand the plan for development to the Planning Commission. We are truly back to the drawing board, this time with public input and full regulatory compliance. Rick Drain Treasurer, Save Pete's Harbor

[thepeoplesrecord]

Via pipperipembo:

something to think about when you catch yourself worrying about how messy your room is. looks like we need to shift our perceptions if we’re going to stick around here on earth. 

i heard an interesting talk about global warming, too. remember an inconvenient truth? and how the data went back a couple hundred years? well, some scientists got together to gather climate data from the deepest ice, before it melts. their data shows co2 and temperature levels from thousands of years ago.  so, while an inconvenient truth did a great job of bringing the fact that we need to change our habits into people’s living rooms, it pinned the cause of warming on human activity.  the ice tells a different story: we’re entering a cyclical period of warming. sure, humans have destroyed much of our habitat. but we didn’t make the oceans rise. we need to get over trying to “stop” global warming, and start working together to survive global warming. 

I reposted instead of reblogged (from pipperipembo) to format the infograph to make the images & text readable/aesthetically approachable from the dashboard.

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BREAKING: VINDICATION IMMINENT FOR SAVE PETE'S HARBOR!

Vindication Imminent for Save Pete’s Harbor, But Struggle Continues after Council Meeting Media Contact: SavePetesHarbor at Gmail dot Com REDWOOD CITY - After more than seven months, Save Pete’s Harbor (SPH), the group working to preserve the state-owned submerged lands in the Smith Slough portion of Pete's Harbor as a commercial marina open to the boating public, can finally celebrate after learning that Redwood City staff will be recommending that the city council vote on Monday, May 6, to send the proposed development at Pete’s Harbor back to the drawing board.[1] SPH feels vindicated by the fact that the staff recommendations virtually mirror the position our organization put forth in a widely read op-ed two weeks ago.[2] We are also proud to have overcome what most people thought were insurmountable odds: a planning commission and city council whose members have been friends with and received contributions from the land owner;[3] a professional PR firm hired to attack SPH and its allies;[4] theft, defamatory attacks, and a calculated spread of mistruths; and a well-heeled and well-connected developer who has expressed his desire to develop the entire Redwood City waterfront regardless of the negative impact to the boating public of California and the community's public access rights to the bay. However, because the city council may only be sending the project back to the planning commission and not rejecting the proposal outright, the struggle continues to preserve the state-owned outer harbor as a viable commercial marina open to the boating public. We also have no guarantee that the city council, with their close ties to the landlord, will follow staff recommendations. For this reason, SPH is asking that the public turn out to support our cause at the city council meeting at 7 PM. Every supporter will be another pair of eyes on the council. SPH is also accepting much-needed donations to pay for our ongoing legal fees via Paypal and Rally.[5] SPH is applying for 501(c)(3) status and expects to be approved, so all donations will be tax deductible. We at SPH would like to thank our attorney Brett Jolley of Herum Crabtree, as well as Redwood City staff, for all their hard work. We would also like to thank all the community groups and members who contributed letters, research, and support, and spoke out at so many community meetings. Our struggle continues, but we are heartened to see the first signs of progress. We look forward to working with the City of Redwood City and the Pauls Corporation on a plan that will be good for recreational boaters and Redwood City. SPH's only interest in meeting with these parties is to discuss the preservation of a viable commercial marina for the public. As implied in our mission statement and by the very nature of our organization,[6][7] SPH has no interest in acquiring the smaller "consent" lease (Lease PRC 6857) of state-owned submerged lands for ourselves, nor are we looking to pursue any sort of profitable venture through our advocacy. Our goal has been consistent from the beginning, and we truly appreciate the City of Redwood City taking the time to hear our concerns over the last seven months. As Chair Alan Gordon of the State Lands Commission stated at the commission's meeting on December 5, 2012, it seems there is room for a compromise solution that truly incorporates public input and benefits the wider community. We hope and expect that the city council does the right thing and follows staff recommendations to these ends. (SPH invites the public to the May 6 city council meeting at 1017 Middlefield Road in Redwood City, at 7 PM.) * [1] http://mercurynews.com/ci_23162044 [2] http://tinyurl.com/sphoped [3] http://tinyurl.com/recuserwc [4] http://tinyurl.com/singerlies [5] http://tinyurl.com/helpsph [6] http://tinyurl.com/aboutsph [7] http://tinyurl.com/sphbylaws

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7 January 2013 - At the BCDC (Bay Conservation and Development Commission) design review board hearing, San Mateo County Harbor Commissioner Sabrina Brennan and others raised concerns about the Pauls Corporation's development plans for Pete's Harbor.

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The Daily Journal wrote an article about us about three weeks ago. However, we did not take part in the counter-offer they mention at the end of the article.

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Pete's Harbor: Redwood City's Bayside Treasure

Pete's Harbor and the Waterfront Restaurant afford Bay Area residents an opportunity to explore Redwood City's natural and rustic charm.

A nice short Patch article from two years ago on why Pete's Harbor is Redwood City's treasure. Save Pete's Harbor is trying to preserve Redwood City's legacy of recreational boating and public access to this part of the Bay Area waterfront.

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Op-Ed: Paul Powers and Redwood City Must Start Over

Internal communications between city officials showcase the dubious relationships between the land owner, city officials, and the developer.

Check out our op-ed piece from yesterday's edition of the Redwood City-Woodside Patch!

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Last week, Save Pete's Harbor donated 195 books to Kepler's books in Menlo Park. The books were rescued from the Pete's Harbor laundry room.

The books will go to Sally Lieber's donation program to women in prison, or to the Maple Street shelter in Redwood City.

[savepetesharbor]

Leslie of Save Pete's Harbor (SPH) speaks to the California State Lands Commission (SLC) at their 24 January 2013 special meeting. Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom was present in his capacity as an officer of the SLC.

In this video, Leslie explains why she has come to the SLC: because all local government bodies and agencies and elected officials whom we at SPH have reached out to have either refused or neglected to help the community of nearly two hundred boaters and RV residents at Pete's Harbor (in Redwood City, California) who were evicted on 15 January 2013 by Paula Uccelli, a prominent local campaign fund donor and long-time friend of city, county, and state government.

SPH is a group of concerned citizens whose goal is to preserve the state-owned, outer portion of Pete’s Harbor in Redwood City, California as an environmentally friendly marina open to the boating public.

The SLC manages the submerged state lands at the outer harbor. Pete Uccelli placed a marina on these submerged state lands without the state's permission and he was ultimately given clear title to land to which the state had some public trust right, title, or interest that was subject to uncertainty and dispute. SPH hopes that the SLC understands that Mr. Uccelli was only given a unique deal on the leases of these submerged state lands because Mr. Uccelli was providing a major service to the boating public by providing maximum feasible public access to these submerged state lands in Smith Slough.

Otherwise, Pete's Harbor could not have happened at all. The SLC needs to understand that at a minimum, they must make sure that boater access isn't decreased and that these submerged lands must be kept for a public access marina in keeping with the Commission's own policy statement on the Public Trust Doctrine.

SPH is dedicated to ensuring that any development at Pete’s Harbor, such as the one currently proposed, responsibly mitigates all potential environmental impacts under CEQA and is fully compatible with a public (commercial) marina. Such impacts include the disruption of boating communities which require the building of replacement units in Redwood City to mitigate impacts to all recreational boaters, including liveaboards and cruisers.

[fuckyeahredwoodcity]

7 December 2012 - A small plane from the San Carlos airport flies overhead at Pete’s Harbor. Taken from the deck of Galaxaura.

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Local pilots were ambivalent about a development at Pete's Harbor and how it would affect their already limited flight paths. Will the Pauls Corporation tell potential buyers that they will have to deal with plane noises overhead all day?

[fuckyeahredwoodcity]

30 January 2013 - KTVU newsvan at Pete’s Harbor. Robert Handa was on the scene to report on an attempt at dock removal while tenants and property were still attached to the docks.

[fuckyeahredwoodcity]

17 January 2013 - Impromptu birthday party at Back Yard Coffee. :D

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Nice photo of Pete's Harbor residents celebrating. :)

[fuckyeahredwoodcity]

22 March 2013 - Paula Uccelli’s construction staff blocking off access to boat slips at Pete’s Harbor.

[jamesleerwc]

Harbor staff, hired and supervised by landlord Paula Uccelli, were going around cutting the power lines on empty slips at the outer harbor. Also, metal cables are being stretched across the empty boat slips, but since they line up right next to the yellow “Caution” tape, almost no one can spot that cable unless they knew it was there. If you were bringing your boat into one of the slips and didn’t know the steel wires was there, you could get “clotheslined” off your boat, or one of the cleats the wire is tied to could come off and ounch a hole in the boat or severely injure a person standing on the dock.

  This is a HUGE safety issue at the harbor.

  The outer harbor actually does not belong to Ms. Uccelli. It is public trust land leased to her for a fee from the state. The state owns the land and has already stated that they wish to see a commercial marina of some sort continue on THEIR land. Ms. Uccelli has no right to be evicting tenants, stretching out unsafe wire, and sabotaging the power at the outer harbor. Those issues should be for the state to decide, especially since Ms. Uccelli’s PR spokesperson Adam Alberti stated to the media that she is “closing the marina” — which is a direct violation of her lease terms and in essence means she has abandoned her lease to the state. She therefore lacks authority to say who gets to stay or go on STATE land where she has vacated her lease.