Allied conservation groups reached a compromise with San Francisco city officials on Tuesday, in which we agreed to support the city’s new Natural Areas Plan in exchange for removal of a harmful project component at Sharp Park golf course. The agreement will improve the chances for survival for two endangered species — the California red-legged frog (made famous in Mark Twain’s short story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County") and the San Francisco garter snake — that rely on the golf course fairways and wetlands for habitat. The city had planned to raise the height of the fairways in a way that would jeopardize their habitat
The Significant Natural Resource Areas Management Plan (SNRAMP) had been under development since 2006, with countless hours of community input. It is aimed at creating a framework to manage the city’s natural areas over the next 20 years. But the plan hit a stumbling block when, late in the process, the city added the controversial Sharp Park golf course redevelopment project to SNRAMP.
The Sierra Club and its allies mounted a campaign urging the Board of Supervisors to remove the Sharp Park project from SNRAMP so the golf course redevelopment could undergo its own separate, comprehensive environmental review.
On Tuesday, shortly before the Board of Supervisors was set to vote on SNRAMP, Supervisor Aaron Peskin forged a compromise in which the city agreed not to raise the height of the Sharp Park fairways. In exchange,the Sierra Club and our allies (including the Golden Gate Audubon Society, Wild Equity, and National Parks Conservation Association) agreed to drop our appeal over inclusion of the golf course project in SNRAMP.
With this compromise in place, the Board of Supervisors voted 9-1 to let the SNRAMP move forward.
Enactment of SNRAMP is a significant milestone for the City of San Francisco. It’s one of the country’s most thoughtful and progressive plans for promoting wildlife and habitat in an urban area. It establishes a framework to protect and enhance 32 areas where city dwellers can enjoy the beauty and solace of nature.
“It is always hard to reach decisions at the very last moment but we believe that this Agreement goes far towards protecting these species on the brink of extinction," said Arthur Feinstein, an Executive Committee member of the Sierra Club's San Francisco Bay Chapter. "And by removing the elements of the project that constitute a golf course redevelopment, the Natural Areas program that we all support can now move forward.
Thank you to all of our members who sent emails and made phone calls supporting a Natural Areas Plan that protects at-risk species like the red-legged frog and San Francisco garter snake!
Now we look forward to working to implement this plan with S.F. Recreation and Parks, our conservation allies, and the many city residents who treasure San Francisco’s wildlife.
Original article reposted with permission, by Ilana DeBare for the Golden Gate Audubon Society.