Future of Sharp Park golf course remains uncertain

Sharp Park in Pacifica is an Alister MacKenzie gem that environmentalists want to see shut down in order to
protect the very species that the golf course has enabled to find a home.

The future of Sharp Park Golf Course in Pacifica remains uncertain following the August 17th meeting of the Pacifica Planning Commission.  The "Center for Biological Diversity", an extreme environmental advocacy group, has threatened to sue the city of San Francisco over protection of the two endangered species that exist in a small section of the golf course.

“Scientists familiar with Sharp Park have made it clear that restoration of the Sharp Park wetlands and surrounding habitat is a superior alternative for the long-term survival of the San Francisco garter snake and California red-legged frog than maintaining the current golf course,” Jeff Miller of the CBD said via press release this week.

That the species could not have come to exist there without the golf course in place in the first place has been lost in the arguments being made by CBD. Sharp Park was originally built on sand dunes and salt marsh: neither of which are suitable habitat for the snakes or frogs. The existence of the golf course created the environment that has enabled the snakes and frogs to build up their population in the region.

This is a stance you would expect golfers and golf course supporters to take, but other environmental advocacy groups share the position. Michael Ferreira is with the Sierra Club of San Mateo, and he recently told Wayne Freedman of KGO that, "The Red Legged Frog and San Francisco Garter Snake are fresh water species. Sometimes people get into advocacy and then the advocacy gets more important than the original idea. I get that feeling here."

At their meeting on Monday, the Pacifica Planning Commission delayed making a vote on whether or not to give Sharp Park Golf Course an historic landmark designation. Such a designation would simply ensure that the Pacifica Planning Commission had a say in any decision made about Sharp Park. But the Pacifica Commission isn't making any moves until San Francisco releases its report on how to protect the two endangered species there.

San Francisco missed its July 31 deadline of finalizing July 31 deadline to finish the study, but is apparently stil at work on it. During a recent round of golf at Sharp Park with an employee of the San Francisco Department of Rec and Park, I was told that the agreement for how to protect both species was nearing finalization. Said employee seemed nonplussed about the situation, expressing their feelings that the course wasn't going anywhere.

While such optimism is appreciated, it hardly seems appropriate until a final agreement is inked between all parties. Jeff Miller and the CBD have made it clear that their priority is complete removal of the golf course, and a restoration of the low-lying wetlands.

So far, neither San Francisco nor Pacifica seems to be heading in that direction, but with politics - as with golf - you can never add up the score until the match is over.