Plan for Bayfront Park tees off activists

By Nicole Neroulias, Staff Writer Inside Bay Area/Menlo Park
Thursday, October 13, 2005

THE city's largest park could have a lucrative future as a golfing facility, but environmental activists already staunchly oppose two development proposals under preliminary City Council consideration.

Bayfront Park, a 160-acre parcel off Marsh Road, was created from a municipal landfill in phases between 1982 and 1995. While the landfill-related maintenance costs are covered by garbage-collection fees, the annual $187,000 park budget — including providing rangers and bathrooms — comes out of the $1.6 million left of old dump fees.

"In approximately 10 years, the fund will be depleted," said Public Works Director Kent Steffens. "It's certainly an issue that's on the horizon that has a potential to have a significant impact on the city's general fund."

Menlo Park is facing an estimated $2.9 million deficit out of a

$28.6 million annual budget. City staff are analyzing more than 1,000 surveys completed by residents about their funding priorities.

Developing a revenue-generating portion of Bayfront Park would ease budget constraints while opening the land up to more active use — an objective that past City Councils have considered in the last four years.

The park includes parking areas, bicycle and hiking trails, but no athletic facilities. Both proposals submitted to the city — one for an 18-hole course, the other for a golf-practice facility — would include soccer fields and a softball or baseball field.

But the Loma Prieta Chapter of the Sierra Club, alerted to the proposals this week by former Mayor Stephen Schmidt, opposes developing any golf facilities on the open waterfront space."The Sierra Club believes that the current use of Bayfront Park is most compatible with the surrounding baylands. Any kind of change in the use is a big concern of ours," said Melissa Hippard, chapter executive director.

The Sierra Club, Schmidt and other environmentalists have written letters of concern about the potential impacts of golfing on the area's endangered species. They chided city officials for considering options to limit public access to the park and complained that the proposals scheduled to go before the Parks and Recreation Commission and the City Council later this month had not undergone any public review process.

City officials say the opposition is premature because the developer and City Council would conduct an outreach campaign after deciding whether to pursue one of the proposals submitted.

"The decision before the City Council is not on whether to develop the park, but whether to proceed with further studies," Steffens said.

The Parks and Recreation Commission will discuss Bayfront Park at 6 p.m. Oct. 19 in the Burgess Recreation Center, 700 Alma St. The City Council will discuss the park 7 p.m. Oct. 25 in the Senior Center, 110 Terminal Ave.

Staff writer Nicole Neroulias can be reached at (650) 306-2427 and nneroulias@sanmateocountytimes.com.