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Resident presses commission on Crocker Trail CEQA timeline and rising EIR costs; staff to follow up
Summary
A longtime resident urged the commission to finish environmental review for Crocker Trail and flagged EIR cost increases (from a cited $70,000 in 2021 to a cited $175,800 in 2025); staff said CEQA work is expected through August 2026 and offered to confirm whether optional consultant services are required.
Michael Barnes, a Brisbane resident who has repeatedly raised trail issues at city meetings, urged the Park and Recreation Commission on March 11 to complete the environmental review for Crocker Trail and criticized what he described as long delays and steep cost increases for the project's environmental work.
"The original EIR cost estimate was $70,000. ... the actual cost of the EIR is now $175,800," Barnes said, urging the commission to push for completion so physical improvements can proceed. He said a categorical exemption or a negative declaration would be required to proceed without an extensive environmental impact report and warned that if additional optional consultant services are required the city might need to seek more council funding, potentially delaying implementation further.
Staff (Noreen) said the city entered an agreement with RRM Design Group in 2025 to provide preliminary design and environmental-compliance services and that the CEQA process is expected to continue through August 2026. On whether optional consultant services are necessary to reach a CEQA determination, staff said, "My understanding is that, no, they are not required, that they can accomplish what is needed in order to get to a CEQA-compliant document in order to start implementation," and offered to confirm the details with RRM.
The staff update described the next steps as refining schematic designs to a 30% construction-document level, completing wetland and biological work through a subcontractor (WRA), and then returning materials to advisory bodies in the months before an anticipated August CEQA completion. Staff also said completing CEQA work would allow the city to apply for grants and alternative funding to begin implementation and that commissioners would have opportunities to weigh in on sequencing (for example, benches or fitness stations first).
Barnes asked the commission to clarify whether optional services listed in the consultant proposal are required for a CEQA clearance and to prepare the council for any additional funding requests; staff said they would provide a follow-up report at the next meeting. No formal action was taken at the March 11 meeting.
Background: staff described the Crocker Trail master plan as a 2021 city effort and said RRM Design Group was engaged in 2025 to continue design and environmental compliance work. CEQA (the California Environmental Quality Act) was identified as the next major step and staff said they anticipate the CEQA process to continue through August 2026.
