STAFF REPORT RECREATION AND SAN FRANCISCO BAY July 7, 2006 San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission STAFF REPORT RECREATION AND SAN FRANCISCO BAY July 7, 2006 San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission 50 California Street, Suite 2600 San Francisco, CA 94111 Information: (415) 352-3600 Fax: (415) 352-3606 Web Site: //www.bcdc.ca.gov CONTENTS CONCLUSIONS AND GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................ 1 CHAPTER 1. RECREATION DEMAND ................................................................................................ 13 National Standards ....................................................................................................... 15 Population ...................................................................................................................... 16 Performance-Based Standards.................................................................................... 19 Participation and Preferences ..................................................................................... 20 Demographic Factors and Recreation ....................................................................... 25 Ethnicity.......................................................................................................................... 26 Age................................................................................................................................... 32 Income............................................................................................................................. 33 Education........................................................................................................................ 35 Mobility........................................................................................................................... 37 Health Motives and Available Leisure Time ........................................................... 39 Density ............................................................................................................................ 41 CHAPTER 2. RECREATION SUPPLY.................................................................................................. 45 Waterfront Park Priority Use Areas........................................................................... 46 Requests for Priority Use Area Changes................................................................... 51 Environmental Justice .................................................................................................. 55 Local Parks ..................................................................................................................... 65 Regional Parks ............................................................................................................... 66 State and Federal Parks................................................................................................ 66 Waterfront Park Settings.............................................................................................. 67 Beaches............................................................................................................................ 69 Marinas ........................................................................................................................... 70 Launching Lanes and Floats........................................................................................ 71 Fishing Piers................................................................................................................... 73 Regional Trails............................................................................................................... 73 Factors that Limit Supply of Recreation Opportunities......................................... 74 Urbanization............................................................................................................ 74 Land Cost................................................................................................................. 74 Funding .................................................................................................................... 75 Impacts of Propositions 13 and 98....................................................................... 76 State Fiscal Problems ............................................................................................. 77 CHAPTER 3. WATERFRONT PARK MANAGEMENT ........................................................................ 79 Diversity in Improvements and Programs............................................................... 79 Interim Uses ................................................................................................................... 80 Environmental Education............................................................................................ 81 Ferry Terminals and Stops .......................................................................................... 83 CHAPTER 4. ON-WATER RECREATION ............................................................................................ 85 Trends in On-Water Recreation.................................................................................. 85 Non-Motorized Small Boating.................................................................................... 87 San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail .......................................................................... 90 Non-Motorized Small Boating Issues........................................................................ 91 Access and Parking....................................................................................................... 91 Site Improvements ........................................................................................................ 95 Equipment Concessions............................................................................................... 95 i Overnight Accommodations....................................................................................... 95 Compatibility and Disturbance .................................................................................. 96 Navigational Safety and Security............................................................................... 97 Education and Stewardship ........................................................................................ 98 Swimming Beaches and Water Quality .................................................................... 99 Health Advisories for Anglers.................................................................................... 101 CHAPTER 5. HISTORIC BUILDINGS IN WATERFRONT PARKS AND WILDLIFE REFUGES...... 105 CHAPTER 6. RECREATION IN WILDLIFE REFUGES, ECOLOGICAL RESERVES, WILDLIFE AREAS AND HABITAT AREAS IN WATERFRONT PARKS.................... 107 Wildlife Refuges ............................................................................................................ 107 Wildlife Areas and Ecological Reserves.................................................................... 109 Waterfront Parks ........................................................................................................... 110 Recreation in Wildlife Refuges, Wildlife Areas and Ecological Reserves........... 110 Trends in Consumptive and Non-consumptive Recreation ................................. 113 Disturbance, Compatibility and Conservation........................................................ 115 Relevant Bay Plan Findings and Policies.................................................................. 118 ii CONCLUSIONS AND GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS Recreation is a critical part of our Bay Area culture. The Bay is intrinsic to residents’ perceptions of the region and their place in it, including their recreational choices. This helps drive the demand for water-oriented recreational pursuits. Speaking in support of the development of Central Park in New York City over 100 years ago, Frederick Law Olmsted noted that: “…in the densely populated central portion of an immense metropolis, a means of certain kinds of refreshment of the mind and nerves which most city dwellers greatly need and which they are born to derive in large measure from the enjoyment of suitable scenery.” Today, the San Francisco Bay is the central feature in a densely populated, immense metropolis, and Bay Area residents need and desire respite from the pressures of crowding and everyday life, and most seek refreshment and amusement, at least occasionally, in the many recreational facilities that are provided on and along the shoreline of the Bay. Certainly, things have changed in the 100 years since Mr. Olmsted uttered these words, and since the Commission completed the Bay Plan over 37 years ago, yet, in many ways, they remain the same. People still like to enjoy beautiful land and waterscapes; they still swim, hunt, stroll, fly kites, fish, picnic and paint natural scenes. For some in the Bay region, recreation means bicycling along public roadways through the hills and valleys. For others, recreation means an afternoon of model airplane flying or volunteering on a wetland restoration project. On-water recreation such as windsurfing, boating, fishing, or duck hunting are also very popular recreational pursuits. The Bay and its shoreline provide one of the most desirable recreational sites in the region with over 25,000 acres of waterfront parks, boat launching ramps, fishing piers, marinas and other water-oriented recreational