EDITORIAL: Half Moon Bay’s City Council Record So Far
Do you ever stop and think about what you like about Half Moon Bay? Can you easily verbalize it? Does it have anything to do with the mix of open vistas and rural character situated near convenient urban amenities? Do you like this mix enough to want to preserve it for the foreseeable future?
Growth Limits
Things change over time, but residents have increasingly voted to slow down the rate of change, first with Measure A and a 3% annual growth limit, then Measure D in 1999 with a 1% annual limit. The majority on the current council is in tune with the 64% of voters who voted for Measure D.
What does this mean in practice? First it means commitment to adhering to the present Local Coastal Program (LCP) while the council completes its update begun seven years ago. Integrating Measure D into the LCP has proven to be a time-consuming and controversial process requiring hundreds of hours of work and numerous public meetings.
Loyal Opposition?
Old guard politicians, real estate interests, property rights advocates (“I have the right to do anything I want to my property, without regard to community standards”), large scale developers, and Main Street businesses desiring faster economic growth oppose the council and their work on the LCP. Raising countless objections, the net effect is to obstruct the process.
Half Moon Bay’s main media outlet, the Half Moon Bay Review. has waged a clever-yet-undeclared war, with some success. Over the past year, the Review has used its ink to tar the council in a variety of ways, both in its editorials, and in the way it chooses and slants its news coverage.
So what has this council accomplished that earns it the dedicated partisan attack by the Review and its cohorts?
Why the LCP is important
The near completion of the LCP update frightens opponents the most because it diminishes the ability of large-scale developments to control the machinery of growth. Measure D ties infrastructure to specific project approval. Large projects are limited to 50% of available building permits, allowing individual builders to complete their projects. The community can pick and choose the projects that fit the community’s vision and character.
The council passed an under-reported campaign finance law in July. Proposed by Mayor Jim Grady and voted for by everyone except Marina Fraser (Naomi Patridge spoke against it as well), the idea is to lower the potential influence of big money on our elections. Opponents accused Grady, Ferreira and Taylor of self-interest in passing this in an election year, which was an odd criticism since incumbents historically raise more money than challengers.
Who Needs Parks?
Half Moon Bay (and the rest of the Coastside) sorely lack enough parks. Past politicians (notably Naomi Patridge) allowed major developments while negotiating few infrastructure improvements. Consistent with the values of the current council majority, parks are now a priority. For example, the current council acquired and developed the Oak Street Park and secured grants that cover almost $500,000 of the total $600,000 price tag.
Last fall the council achieved a major goal by buying 22 acres near downtown for a community park. (Marina Fraser opposed the purchase.) Nurserymen’s Exchange sold the land for $3.1 million, about $141,000 per acre, coming in at $1.5 million under the appraised value. Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) both acted as broker and provided an interest-free loan for three years (a $400,000 savings at current interest rates).
The Review lost no time in accusing the city of stealth dealings, which has become its central theme for trying to eliminate the council members they don’t like this November.
Federal and state agencies are sanctioning the development plan so far, even with frog habitat in the irrigation pond. Final design before the environmental review process commences is due in November.
Council Momentum
The city council, under the leadership of Mayor Jim Grady and Mike Ferreira, have a head of steam, and are hard at work tackling a wide range of problems. Here is a short-but-representative list of things they’ve done in four short years:
• The council has begun the under-funded and over-designed Highway 92/Main Street improvement project they inherited and which was stalled for ten years.
• For the first time, Half Moon Bay’s streets and potholes are being systematically repaved.
• A stunning new bridge crosses Pilarcitos and links the Strawflower Shopping Center with the adjacent neighborhood. No longer do neighbors face two bad choices – walk out alongside the highway to go shopping, or cross the stream. They can now walk safely and easily across a well-constructed, safe bridge.
• The Coastal Trail now extends near Poplar, and a new trail bridge was added at Seymour.
• New stoplights now protect the public at Ruisseau Français and Miramontes Point Road.
• After Cunha’s general store burned, the council fast-tracked the project and helped Bev Ashcraft get it built in a year.
• The council helped four local families find a cost-effective solution for their failed wells.
• Secured the Railroad Right of Way from Poplar to Kelly as permanent open space.
• A pedestrian safety trail is currently underway and will run alongside the full length of Highway 1, inside the city limits.
These are the kinds of things that demonstrate that this council is serious in their efforts to preserve the look and feel of the town we all love.