PRF at High Tide
I was part of a group who appealed Mason County’s approval of a 110-foot pier-ramp-float (PRF) project (see photo) in the Grapeview Channel across from my vacation place on Treasure Island. We filed a petition last year with the Shoreline Hearings Board (SHB), a state agency that provides a final chance to appeal county decisions concerning shoreline development (unless you want to sue in Superior Court). In its January 2009 decision, the SHB didn’t prohibit the PRF completely, but it did reduce the overall length by 10 feet and required the applicant to add an additional nearby waterfront property owner to his joint-use agreement. The PRF was constructed last weekend, and for the most part things turned out differently than I thought they might.
First, the PRF doesn’t look all that bad. I thought it would be a massive structure like the older docks in the wider part of the channel north of it. Instead it looks slim and unobtrusive considering that it extends 100 feet from shore. Design features like steel pilings, a see-through railing, and a narrow 8-foot float help mitigate the visual effect. This information was readily available in the plans submitted by the applicant. However, I was so against the project from the start that I didn’t spend much time trying to visualize what it would actually look like.
Surprise number 2 was how quickly the contractor, Marine Floats, built the PRF. They moved a big barge in last Thursday and anchored it just offshore from the owner’s property. By Saturday night the pilings were in and the float was attached. A tug pushed the barge out during high tide on Sunday afternoon, and then they were Tacoma bound. On Monday, a couple of workers finished up, attaching the railing and adjusting the ramp.
Finally while the PRF works well at high tide, at low tide it fares worse than I thought it might. Also, I figured the 10 feet lopped off the final length by the SHB (for technical issues about allowed square footage as well as for safety reasons due to the volume of boating activity in the channel) might be critical. They aren’t. The photo below was taken during a –3.6 foot tide, which only happens a few times a month. But after viewing the PRF at low tide yesterday, I wonder if just about any minus tide will make it unusable.
The only thing that didn’t surprise me is that the applicant went ahead with the project. I’m sure he thinks the new dock allows him to make better use of his waterfront retreat. And it does, at least until the tide changes.
PRF at Low Tide
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