In Pacifica, a coastal conundrum persists
Nothing comes easily in Pacifica. The citizens of that coastal town are known for their dogged propensity for personal privacy and a distinct lack of enthusiasm for higher taxes and any hint of extensive land development.
Two fresh examples reaffirmed that prickly reputation last week when a pair of ballot measures, one a library bond issue and the other a carefully crafted proposal to speed up city approval of new construction in a former quarry, were knocked out at the ballot box.
The latter plan’s defeat extends questions about the 86-acre quarry site and its future into at least 2017. The Rockaway Quarry, a source of local limestone since the 18th century, closed for good in 1987. So the privately-held property will have been lying fallow for a full 30 years when the calendar turns again in just over six weeks.
Pacifica voters, an independent-minded lot to be sure, voted thumbsdown on a previous quarry proposal in 2006 too. This time, the margin of defeat was overwhelming, well over 2-to-1.
For the hopeful developer of the vacant land, a grand vision for a mixed use enterprise, which would include a modest Rockaway Beach hotel, housing and other amenities while leaving 75 percent of the acreage off Highway 1 as open space (a considerable sop to environmentalists by any definition), remains in a sort of vague municipal Limbo. So what else is new?
More housing
The ongoing Pacifica quarry case brings up a point: How much more housing can San Mateo County’s suburbs handle? What is the reasonable limit on additional population here?
These are not easy questions to answer. Places like Pacifica and Brisbane, as just two examples, are saying a very loud no to any sort of significant new residential development.
And, let’s be honest, wealthy towns like Portola Valley, Woodside, Atherton and Hillsborough are never going to be home to big “stack and pack” construction projects. That’s not going to happen.
Furthermore, the California Coastal Commission has some heavyduty control over what happens on and near the county’s Coastside. Fully 75 percent of the Peninsula is protected in one way or another as open space as well.
For the most part, that leaves the rest of the county (most of it on the bayside) to bear the brunt of more housing. And the pressure on them is growing.
Redwood City is a good example of a town that is bound and determined to add dwelling spaces, either by going up or by allowing development on the bayfront. You can be the judge of how that’s turning out.
MAD at USPS
Mail delivery took a hit during the heated last few days of the just-completed election campaign.
Our over-worked USPS carrier brought the mail, bulging with election materials and other junk, to our Burlingame lean-to at 11:15 p.m. on Oct. 31, an all-time record for federal futility.
It’s a minor miracle that the poor guy can even bring most of the mail to the correct addresses at that late hour. For weeks, we’ve been fortunate to receive our mail by 6 p.m. We call it “Mail After Dark,” or MAD.
With the holiday season fast approaching, heaven only knows how late December delivery will be this year. Maybe the neighbors should chip in for a powerful MAD flashlight.
Maserati moment
Yes, it’s true. There’s a mid-Peninsula Uber driver who is behind the wheel of a new Maserati. But, when you think about it, with Uber ridership prices low and a Maserati’s gas mileage no picnic as well, his motoring profit margin has to be slimmer than a Vogue model’s waistline.