The matter is not a simple issue of economics. Many emergency, safety and access issues play a part in any reasonable person’s discussion and plan for reducing bridge tender staffing to water access for the maritime users of Oakland and Alameda.     

It is important to understand that the County of Alameda held no public meetings with recreational mariners, owners of waterfront properties on the estuary, nor the general public prior to official submission of this request to the USCG in July of 2009!

Alice Lai-Bitker did hold a meeting with the maritime community at the Aeolian Yacht Club in April 2010.  (9 months after the final was submitted to the USCG!)  At that meeting mariners were told that the issue was in the hands of the USCG and that the County would not alter the proposal pending rejection by the USCG.

What follows here are some very important mariners reasons for rejection of the proposal which were submitted to the Coast Guard.  The City of Alameda has also submitted a request for denial approved at city council meeting on July 27,2010 (sent to you previously) which well outlines emergency and other reasons for denial.

Highest regards,
Tom Charron
============================================
08/03/2010
To:
Docket Management Facility (M-30)
US Department of Transportation
West Building Ground Floor
Room W12-140
1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.
Washington, DC 20590-0001
From:
Thomas L Charron  
Xxxxxxxxxxx
Alameda, California 94501
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Pacific Marina Oakland Estuary
Subject:  Docket #USCG 2009-0803
Request for USCG Denial of Proposal  
Docket Number: USCG 2009-0803
    Alameda County Public Works Agency  submission 07/2009
    To discontinue current 16:00- 08:00 Bridge Tender Staffing
    Park, Fruitvale, High Estuary Bridges
    Require 4 hour Mariner request for openings 16:00 – 08:00
To whom it may concern:
Yachtsmen of Pacific Marina, Marina Village and many other maritime (Sail and Power) users of the eastern end of the Oakland Estuary oppose the proposal of the Alameda County Public Works Agency Docket Number USCG -2009-0803 as it does not meet the Navigation Needs of Mariners for the following reasons.
1.) Navigation Needs of Mariners not met:  Needs of the primary customers, Mariners, are not met by reduction (69% of each day) of bridge tender staffing of these bridges in that it will be regularly impossible for Sailboaters (and many Powerboaters) to meet scheduled openings using a 4 hour window of notification request to open Bridges.  Sailboats on SF Bay cannot time their arrivals from 4 hours out with sufficient accuracy to arrive at requested times. Over 220 Estuary water/dock parcel owners east of the Park Street bridge will have severe four hour notice restrictions on their vessels access to entering and exiting the eastern Oakland Estuary and San Francisco Bay.  Thus the proposal as submitted presents an unreasonable obstruction to navigation needs of the maritime community and marine property owners of this estuary
2.) Hours of non-staffing  occur during periods of highest weekend demand for opening:  Reduction of hours of staffing have been proposed which occur during weekend times of highest demand openings of recreational sail and power boater.  (52% of all openings occur on the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday).
2a.) No Maritime procedural Information submitted with application: No Procedural information on Request for Openings has been submitted. Ie. Window of accuracy of times of arrival of vessels for openings etc.
2b.) Estuary Bridge Openings Data sets submitted to USCG are inadequate for the conclusions drawn by Alameda County Public Works:  Data analysis of past openings submitted by Alameda County Public works does not display past years’ bridge openings data by hour by day of week by vessel type. (However traffic data for bridge auto usage was submitted in hour/day/vehicle format.)   Bridge opening data was submitted displaying data by ‘labor contract 8hr shift’ and is not appropriately demonstrative of our Alameda Maritime Community bridge openings history.
3.) Maritime Recreational Community not consulted by Alameda County Public Works prior to submission of this proposal:  Alameda County Public Works Agency did not seek nor consider input from the Recreational Maritime Community users of the Oakland Estuary in the preparation of this proposal.
4.) Security/Antiterrorist Plans for Estuary Bridges not included in Proposal: Provision for 24hour security/protection staffing to these important Maritime Bridges is mentioned or proposed in this document.  Leaving these important arteries of transport un-manned 69% of each day begs vandalism and possible severe destruction possibilities.
4a.) Fire Boat response access to fires on Vessels east of these bridges or on Fernside Docks/homes of Alameda was not considered:  No provision for Fire Boat Immediate Bridge opening access to structures and vessels to the East of Park Street Bridge in cases of waterfront Estuary fires.
4b.) No Provision for Emergency Exit Access of WETA ferry vessels dispatched for emergency back up of commuter ferries on SF Bay and emergency use of same at times of  evacuation for earthquake, fire or other natural catastrophy is not considered. ( WETA Vessels dock between the Park Street and Miller-Sweeney Bridges and thus are effective ‘land-locked’ by this proposal).
5.) Fiscal Savings the driving goal for Alameda County in not to be a consideration in this proposal:  The driving goal of this proposal of Alameda County Public Works is fiscal savings.  According to 33CFR cost savings to the bridge owner is never a valid consideration for non-staffing of bridges. No estimates of on-call/call-back costs are even mentioned in this proposal. (If approved,  these costs would seriously diminish if not negate, any of the proposed $500,000/year savings deemed the reason for this proposal).
Discussion:
As Maritime Recreational users of  Bridges of the Estuary it is our desire to keep the bridges staffed with bridge tenders at times of highest usage of the waterway.  We desire to work with the County of Alameda to reduce it’s need to staff the bridges during times of minimal to reduced-need of opening of these valuable recreational and commercial community assets. However we also seek to preserve the security/anti-terrorism capacity,  fire response capability, commercial vessel access, recreational vessel access, and  WETA ferry boat emergency access to SF Bay.
Alameda County Public Works Agency can, at any time, reconsider this proposal and schedule Maritime User/Public Works community strategic planning meetings which solicit proper input from users of the Bridges on this issue.  The County of Alameda Public Works Agency can submit a revised proposal which meets the needs of the Maritime User Community of the Estuary by working with the Maritime Community commercial-recreational users, WETA and the City of Alameda to craft a proposal based on appropriate data and consideration of the needs of all the Estuary users.
Alternative Proposals are possible:
A sample proposal which the Alameda County Public Works Agency might consider is the following:
1.) Estuary Bridges, (Park, Fruitvale, High) be staffed with Bridge Tenders 16 hours/day (0800 – 16:00 – 24:00).
2.) Requests for Opening Bridges during hours 00:00 – 08:00 be required to provide a ‘reasonable’  advance notice for requested openings which allows emergency access as needed by our First Responders and Ferry vessels.
Your consideration of this Request for Denial of Docket USCG 2009-0803 for the 220 Estuary Mariners of  the Oakland Yacht Club is respectfully petitioned.
Sincerely,
Thomas L Charron
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Alameda, California 94501
Representing Pacific Marina Mariners, Marina Village Mariners,
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Pacific Marina Oakland Estuary
Catalina 42 #631
Cc:
Eleventh Coast Guard District
Att: David H Sulouff
Chief Bridge Section
Waterways Management Branch
Bldg 50-2
Coast Guard Island
Alameda, California 94501