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Belvedere commission approves replacement pier at 43 Cliff Road with conditions
Summary
The Planning Commission granted design‑review and demolition permits for a smaller, rebuilt pier at 43 Cliff Road and asked staff to update the eelgrass survey to reference the site and to clarify square‑foot measurements from mean high water; the applicant acknowledged outstanding CTL penalties and said demolition and most construction would occur from a barge.
The Belvedere Planning Commission voted to approve design‑review and demolition permits for a new pier at 43 Cliff Road, finding the proposed structure would reduce overall massing while keeping the existing 88‑foot length.
Mark Swanson, the project's builder, told the commission the current pier is “about 50 years old” and “in severe disrepair,” and described a replacement that would reduce the pier’s footprint from 712 square feet to 450 square feet, narrow the walkway from 8 feet to 4 feet and install seven 18‑inch steel piles. Swanson said most construction and demolition would take place from a barge and estimated the pier work would be completed within a seasonal in‑water window if downstream agency approvals come through.
Staff outlined the project’s permitting path and said the file shows the project’s original building permit included a construction time limit (CTL) that has been exceeded by more than 18 months. The commission asked staff to ensure the administrative record reflects a project‑specific eelgrass survey for 43 Cliff and to clarify how the pier square footage is measured. “I think if we wanted to add a condition that the eelgrass report be modified to specifically reflect the address of the site, I think I'm fine with that,” Chair Bridal said during deliberations.
Sean Avant, an environmental consultant with Sunset Ecological Solutions, told commissioners the mitigation framework is established by US and California requirements, including the California Eelgrass Mitigation Program (CEMP). He described a process of pre‑construction baseline surveys and post‑construction monitoring that would trigger mitigation if habitat loss is detected and said the team does “not anticipate any disturbances” beyond the conditions already anticipated by regulators.
The commission adopted three motions by voice vote: (1) the initial study and mitigated negative declaration for the 43 Cliff Road project with a record update to the eelgrass report, (2) the design‑review resolution (amended in language to clarify that the 450 square feet is measured from the mean high water line), and (3) a demolition permit to remove the existing 712 square foot pier. The approvals were conditioned on the standard plan checks and the applicant obtaining required downstream permits from agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers, BCDC and the Regional Water Quality Control Board before work could begin.
Next steps: staff will update the project record to reflect the site‑specific eelgrass documentation and will coordinate permit conditions with the applicant. The applicant acknowledged the CTL penalty exists; staff said the city can calculate and collect penalties under existing code procedures.
