This area should be reserved for public recreational facilities, not commercial development.
Pier 44 is part of the Marina Del Rey Over-Development. In the last 60 years, public recreation and the initial 6000 boat slips have shrunk in favor of commercial businesses, hotels, condos, and apartments on leased land Los Angeles County asserts it owns. With each new lease, more recreational area and parking set aside for either parks or parking lots have disappeared.
Current buildings on Parcel 44 occupy 14,724 square feet. Proposed buildings on Parcel 44 would occupy over 83,000 square feet. Commercial additions will include a Trader Joe's and an enlarged West Marine. Traffic impacts and access to recreational land will be severely impacted by Trader Joe's. Mindanao Way is the Gateway to the Marina.
The proposed lease extension is March 31, 2062 or 49 years. The current lease agreement expires in 2023. With perpetual growth, this area should be safe-guarded for future recreational needs, not commercial development.
In 1954 Marina del Rey U.S. Public laws 389 and 780 were created for a small craft harbor, land-side recreation and a bird sanctuary. U.S. Public Law 780 authorized federal tax dollars which requires reasonable rates with equal access for all.
Local park and recreation advocates are proposing a motion by an elected official like this:
“All of the development in Marina del Rey shall be consistent with what the United States Congress approved in House Documents No. 389 and 780. No further development shall be allowed until the U.S. Congress holds public forums and reviews current development plans for consistency with what was approved in these 1954 Documents.”
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