Marathon Meeting for City Council

 

The Marina City Council spent nearly 6 1/2 hours discussing the future of community, from how to prepare our coastline for climate change, to rules for dog parks, the resurfacing of tennis courts and a lot of things in between.

The report on sea level rise was the most alarming and took a lot of the evening. Without any adaptations, one foot of SLR could affect the Sanctuary Beach Resort and the Marina State Beach restrooms. Two feet might destroy the entire parking lot at the beach, as well as access roads to the resort. Five feet would pretty much destroy the resort and the Marina Coast Water District facility, impact 250 acres across the city and wipe out about 150 acres of dunes habitat. 

The California Coastal Commission wants the city to armor its coastline with some sea walls. However, the city doesn’t want to do that as that would basically allow the beach to erode away up to the wall. Instead, the city plans to replace the sand on the beach as it erodes way, and manage a retreat from the coastline in order to save access to the beach. That approach was passed unanimously by the City Council and the plan will be submitted to the Coastal Commission.

Remember the Children

The City Council also approved some initial rules for dog parks in Marina, which prohibits bringing food in, and requires dogs to be licensed and vaccinated. There are other prohibitions as well, but the rules left out people aged 14-17 — teenagers. The proposed rules say children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult, and that all dogs must be under the control of an adult. The age gap wasn’t missed by Mayor Pro Tim Liesbeth Visscher.

Visscher asked that if the dog must be with an adult, and a child under 13 must be with an adult, what about children between 13 and 18? “I mean if you are 14 or 15 years old, you need to have an adult with you,” she said.

City staff initially appeared confused by the question, possibly due to Visscher’s accent, but agreed to look at the rules and bring them back with changes.

Courts Decision Bounced

And after a lot of discussion, the City Council withheld, for now, funding to repair and resurface the Los Arboles tennis courts at the Jan. 22 meeting. The council decided to delay any funding until an agreement is made with the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District on liability issues surrounding the property, including the possible transfer of ownership.

The city had previously allocated $75,000 to improve the courts and had called for bids. However, due to the state of the courts, an additional $40,000 was needed for the project.

DEI Is Not Dead

The council also received a report from the city’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force. The task force’s goal is to develop a framework to embed DEI into the structure and organization of the city. The report makes many recommendations across all departments in the city in an attempt to include all races and genders in city administration and city policies. 

“At the federal level this week, everything we are talking about is being thrown into the trash can,” Mayor Bruce Delgado said. “Little cities like ours that re not the federal government, still have the chance to … recognize that there are a lot of groups of people that don’t get respect elsewhere. We can give them respect in Marina.”

How the report will be transferred from words on paper to actions, is the big question, said Kathy Biala. The council then appeared to decide to put it on the agenda for an action item at a future meeting.

Housing Market Update

Four homes have entered the market this week, three of them below $900,000. The least expensive is 274 Weber Circle. This is a 4-bedroom, 2-bath home with 1,326 SF on a 9,481 SF lot. Weber Circle, where this cute home with a 2-car garage is located, is a quiet little cul de sac. It’s listed for $849,000.  

The next home is 3296 Steven Court, listed at $850,000. This is another 4-bedroom, 2-bath home. Sitting on a 6,330 SF lot, this single-level home has a lot of potential and it’s just minutes away from Glorya Jean Tate Park.

The third home is 486 Alexis Court. This is another 4-bedroom, 2-bath home. It has 2,043 SF and sits on a nice 6,128 SF lot. It has hardwood floors and wide French door leading to the backyard. This two-story home, listed for $899,000, has some extras for seniors, including a chair lift to the second level.

The most expensive home on the list is 587 Santa Lucia Way. This 3-bedroom, 2-bath home has 2,061 SF and sits on a 5,126 SF lot. It’s a single-story home in the Sea Haven Community. Listed for $1,276,682.

If you’d like to see any of these homes or would like to list your home, give me a call at (831) 869-2484. 

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   This newsletter produced by

Jon Chown

(831) 869-2484

Renee Mello & Assoc.

44 Brennan St. Watsonville 95076

DRE#02040730