Supervisors hear status report on America’s Cup plans, CEQA schedule and community outreach

San Francisco city staff told the Board of Supervisors’ Government Audit & Oversight Committee on June 9 that work is under way to implement the host and venue agreement for the America’s Cup and that the environmental review schedule is compressed but on track.

Mike Martin, America’s Cup project director in the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, outlined the agreement’s event-related obligations and described nine required plans — including the people plan, security, waste management, workforce development, youth involvement, and water-and-air-traffic plans — intended to clarify how the events would operate and mitigate impacts. "The likely issuance of the draft EIR will be in early July," Martin said, adding that the city is also coordinating with more than 20 state and federal agencies on permits and authorizations.

Why it matters: The plans and environmental reviews will determine whether and how waterfront facilities, public parks and transportation networks can host large spectator events in 2012 and the America’s Cup finals in 2013. City officials emphasized that the CEQA and federal NEPA processes must be completed before final approvals for event infrastructure and uses are made.

Martin described the proposed event footprint along the northern waterfront and related venues, noting that the America’s Cup Organizing Committee and the private event authority are responsible for sponsorships and local fundraising. He said the ACOC has been asked to raise up to $32,000,000 to help cover public costs and that initial organizing-committee fundraising exceeded $1,000,000.

Board members focused questions on environmental and community concerns. President David Chiu asked how conversations with a coalition of environmental organizations were progressing; Martin said the groups "have been very helpful" and that staff had used their comments to refine the project description and the people plan. He told supervisors that technical studies supporting the EIR will produce more refined visitor projections and help determine transit and staffing needs for both super-peak days and lower-attendance weekdays.

MTA official Peter Albert said the people plan is being developed in coordination with existing transit initiatives, including the Transit Effectiveness Project and the bike plan, and that the event offers an opportunity to pilot strategies. Martin said the people plan and related status reports will be periodically published and that the revised people plan is due under the host-and-venue agreement in September, subject to environmental review.

Public comment: Resident Douglas Yap urged careful financial protections for the city, advance planning for demonstrations and controls on aerial viewing platforms, saying San Francisco should plan for both large crowds and protest activity.

What’s next: Staff will publish the draft EIR and follow with a public comment-and-response period; the committee indicated it will continue oversight and follow-up at the chair’s call. The committee did not take final action on the underlying agreements during the hearing.