Committee recommends studying P-100 lot for North Beach kayak launch, asks for 24250K design funding in FY26

City Parks and Recreation staff briefed the committee June 10 on options for a North Beach kayak and non-motorized vessel launch and recommended further study of the P-100 parking lot at 80 First and Hawthorne as a promising site.

John Rebar, Parks and Recreation director, said staff is focused on water quality and parking as core site-selection criteria. "One spot that we do like to examine further is the P-100 lot ... it already has the parking that we're looking for," Rebar said. Staff asked for direction on other candidate sites or whether to focus on P-100 for permitting, design and water-quality testing.

Environmental staff said other suggested locations, including sites near Parkview Island, have known water-quality concerns or lack suitable parking. A public comment suggested two private parking opportunities for discussion: a fire station at 60 Ninth Street adjacent to a church parking lot, and a vacant waterfront parcel near Seventh Street owned by the Catholic church; staff said they would evaluate those suggestions.

Staff provided a planning estimate of about 24250,000 for design and permitting and said permitting could take roughly 24 months depending on approvals from state and federal regulators (e.g., Department of Environmental Protection, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers). The committee recommended that staff include 24250,000 in FY26 budget discussions (starting at the budget retreat) for design and permitting and to return with construction estimates in a later fiscal year.

The committee asked staff to proceed with further water-quality sampling and to prioritize sites that already have parking to avoid repeat access issues. No construction authorization was made at the meeting; staff said design and permitting work would precede any construction-phase request.