Welcome to the Neighborhood, Ted

A response to letters from Attorney Ted Hannig, who had just moved in across the creek.

Read the letters Ted Hanning wrote to the City about Docktown here.

May 14, 2014 Mr. Ted Hannig Hannig Law Dear Ted. Wecome to the neighborhood. Those of us who lived on the creek for years are happy to welcome a newcomer who is also a staunch environmentalist, and look forward to seeing you at our next creek cleaning expedition to remove trash that floats down from the city.

As you may know our "Creekmaster" was honored by the city at a recent council meeting for his efforts to organize these regular excursions, and on average we collect about 6000 lbs of trash a year from the creek banks. You will find more information about this as well as our efforts to promote clean water and healthy cleaning products on this website: http://www.romancingthecreek.org We also appreciate you calling attention to our need for a sewage connection, which is something we have asked the city for for many years. As you pointed out, while we have pump outs for raw sewage, we are still dumping shower and sink water into the creek like boats at other Marinas throughout the bay. The reason for not connecting us to sewage lines has always been that our landlord was on a month to month lease; the same reason why we couldn't get home improvement loans. We hope your calling attention to this will help make it happen.

I do have to let you know, however, that any microbeads you use to exfoliate your face at One Marina pass right through the city's sewage system and out into the bay just as if they had come from Docktown, so a sewer line is not going to solve that problem. I seriously doubt that many of us at Docktown even use an exfoliant. And a lot of us shower on land. Fortunately, because this is a huge problem everywhere, legislation will require removal of microbeads from all products in the US by 1916. We support your attempts to call attention to this problem. http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Skin-cleansing-microbeads-harm-marine-life-5405452.php , http://www.huffingtonpo;st.com/2014/02/20/microbeads-exfoliation_n_4815133.html

And I must correct your reference to "Poop Lagoon" which has nothing to do with Docktown. It has been used to refer to Steinberbger Slough where the rowing club now stands, which was just downstream from the City's old Sewage Treatment plant. And to "Peninsula Lake," the big pond at One Marina where there was a problem with raw sewage some years ago. I don't know of anyone at Docktown who has ever dumped raw sewage into the Creek, and like other residents, would report them if I knew that they did. As noted earlier, we do want our own sewage line instead of the holding tank pump-outs currently provided by the City, and would appreciate you using your talents and connections to make that happen.

You also correctly mention that twice a day at low tide most of our homes sit on the mud -- just as many do in Sausalito and other floating communities.

Unlike boaters who regularly cruise the bay, most of us do not require or use anti-fouling paint, which is useless in this environment. Nor has there ever been any significant number of oysters in the upper creek, which was regularly dredged in the early days, so if you are looking for "oyster shell laden mud" you will need to search further downstream in the main channel. Birds have been dining on mud pickings here for eons.

There is no "air-mud estuary environmental cycle," a term you must have coined yourself. Curriculum materials from the EPA and State of Oregon note that "Docks, pilings, and other solid structures may destroy the homes of some plants and animals, but at the same time, they provide new areas for some animals to colonize." http://www.oregon.gov/dsl/SSNERR/docs/Estuary_Ecosystem.pdf ; http://www.epa.gov/owow_keep/estuaries/kids/about/chlnges.htm

Apparently I also need to remind you that the letter from the State Lands staff was an "informational" opinion letter from and does not carry the force of law. The State Lands Commission has made no ruling on the presence of Floating Homes here, and in citing a 2001 opinion from the Attorneys' Office that was written to define the Public Trust, they overlook the fact that the Marina has been here for over 50 years and almost certainly qualifies for grandfather status like floating communities at Mission Creek in San Francisco and on the estuary at Alameda. We are, however, united in wanting to improve the physical appearance of the Marina. As the President of the Redwood Creek Association I cordially invite you to meet with me and other community leaders at Docktown to tour our floating homes and discuss ways we can work together to make the environment more attractive.

I look forward to hearing from you to schedule a visit. Best regards Lee Callister