Breakwater could spark new tourist attractions
Plans to bring sail boats and sport fishing back to the Santa Monica Pier may be put on hold indefinitely.
City officials had budgeted $2.1 million to help the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers rebuild the breakwater north of the pier. However, for the project to move forward, the city would now have to allocate another $2 million, for a total contribution of $4.1 million. The federal government has budgeted $4.7 million for the project.
But city officials, who are facing an $8 million budget deficit, want to use the previously earmarked $2.1 million to help balance the city’s books.
“There are some difficult decisions to be made because of the budget shortfall,” said Environmental and Public Works Director Craig Perkins. “The pier is supported by the general fund, and if this project gets $4 million then that takes money away from something else.”
Over the past few decades, the 2,000-foot-long sea wall has slowly deteriorated to the point where only a glimpse can be see of it at low tide. Rebuilding the breakwater would include a harbor and dock for boats.
The Army Corps plans to repair the existing breakwater, rebuild 900 feet of it and construct a small boulder field to restore the rocky habitat. Not only will it provide recreational opportunities for the pier, but it also will protect the shoreline, said Don Spencer, project manager for the Army Corps.
The Army Corps was ready to begin the project years ago, but the City of Santa Monica held off on completing a state-mandated environmental review, Spencer said.
Army Corps engineers had estimated that the environmental review would be completed by July 2002. However, it was delayed again late last year and the report may not be ready until the end of the summer, Perkins said.
If Santa Monica doesn’t complete the report, certify it and come up with the necessary funding within the next two years, it’s likely the Army Corps of Engineers will torpedo the project and use the funds elsewhere, he said.
629,“The Corps of Engineers is basically getting a little bit impatient at this point,” Perkins said. “They have been ready to go with this project for about two years and it kept being delayed. And now that it’s nearly complete, the city might take the funding away.
“It becomes hard for Army Corps of Engineers to keep this on the books when it’s taken so long to get it going.”
The City Council is scheduled to decide the fate of the breakwater project when it begins budget deliberations in May.
If installed, the breakwater would have 12 moorings where recreational boats could dock temporarily. It would also allow some fishing boats or party fishing boats to take people out during the summer.
Others envision small ferries that could take people from the pier to Marina Del Rey or even out to Catalina Island.
Environmental impacts could be significant. The purpose of the breakwater is to minimize the wave energy before it hits the shore, but that also means the shoreline could be affected.
Studies have shown that bacteria levels are higher in areas with breakwaters because the man-made barriers prevent the ocean’s waves from washing unhealthy waste out to sea. The result is that swimming can become unhealthy in those areas.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 7, 2003. Read the original PDF.