Pillar Point Harbor Burnham Parking Area

The proposed Piller Point Harbor Burnham Strip Parking Area Project is necessary to provide safe and accessible public parking in support of Pillar Point Harbor and prevent overflow parking in the surrounding neighborhoods.  The parking area is required to support parking for the multiple missions of the San Mateo County Harbor District to include support of the coastal access, commercial and recreational vessel fleets, shoreside fishing, maritime recreational opportunities, and limited low-cost housing options.  The parking area is also required to support parking for beach and coastal access from Mavericks Beach in the North to Surfers Beach in the South. 

The project is in the initial stages and is being socialized with the public, it has not been finalized.  The Harbor Board introduced the proposed project idea publicly at the Harbor District Board Meeting on December 18, 2024, and again at the February 19th, 2025, Board Meeting.  The General Manager of the Harbor District also discussed the project in detail at the February Mid-Coast Community Council meeting.  The concept for the parking area is to appear more like a natural park, versus an open paved, brightly lit, parking lot with no consideration given to the surrounding area, habitat, and drainage.

To further assist the District in public communication/awareness of a parking area project, the District has issued a request for proposal, seeking an engineering and design firm to work with the District, Public, Mid-Coast Community Council, Granada Community Services District, San Mateo County, San Mateo RCD, City of Half Moon Bay, California Conservation Corps, Water Board, etc, to further develop the idea into more specific plans.  This will assist the District in communicating the exact project to the public.  As of now, no plans have been developed or proposed.

It is important to note that any project will take into account public comments, “Connect the Coastside” initiative, “Ohlone-Portolá Heritage Trail” (Approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2019), and zoning restrictions applicable to the Burnham Strip.  The project will need to provide beach (coastal) access (Hotel Beach and Surfers Beach), access for shoreside fishermen, access to the Coastal Trail, and access to the Pillar Point Harbor Boat Launch Ramp. 

In that the parking area is a public asset, it can also be used by members of the public going to commercial public establishments such as Spanglers Market, Sams Chowder House, etc.  This is a secondary benefit to the public, but not the primary purpose of the project.  This will be of more importance following the Caltrans Hwy 1 project that will eliminate all parking on the Hwy 1 shoulder.

Stormwater management and runoff will be specially addressed in the design, as well as improving and protecting the flow of Deer Creek through the area.  The project may include a stormwater catchment system to store water for landscape watering throughout the Harbor.  The possibilities are endless.

A lot has been said about the “large” and “empty” parking lots in Pillar Point Harbor.  While the lots are open a majority of the time during the week, they fill and quickly overflow on sunny weekends, or summer days, when the fish are biting, or on opening day for crab, salmon, tuna, etc.   This overflow forces visitors to the Harbor onto Hwy 1 and into the neighborhoods to park. 

The Harbor District is also required by the State to maintain 119, 40 feet parking spaces in support of the heavily used public launch ramp.  These 119 spaces take up the majority of Parking Lot C1, C2, and C3, leaving very little room for cars and trucks without a boat trailer.  Harbor Tenant parking also takes up a significant amount of parking at the Harbor, with each of the 483 slip holders receiving two parking passes, routinely exceeding the permit parking lots, overflowing into the open parking areas, leaving minimal parking spaces for the general public.  The Harbor District will need to provide parking for the overflow resulting from the limited open parking in the harbor.

The parking lots at the Harbor are also heavily used by Coastal Trail users.  It is one of the only open (free) parking areas with accessible access to the Coastal Trail.

The parking area will not be a RV park, or storage area.  The rules and regulations for the proposed project have not been developed yet but will be written to prevent this.  The parking hours have not been determined or defined.  The parking can include parking for up to 72 hours, or the District can limit the parking to less then 72 hours.  The parking area can also be closed at sunset each evening, with no parking permitted overnight (similar to state parks).  This is yet to be determined.  Similar to parking at the Harbor, no overnight camping in vehicles or RVs will be permitted.    No oversized vehicles (large trucks, box trucks, RVs) will be permitted.  The view corridor will be protected.

With reference to lighting, the Harbor District will comply with guidance and requirements published by DarkSky International with the goal of minimizing glare, reducing light trespass, and preventing any light pollution of the night sky.  The area will also be designed under a concept of a public area parking park with a public trail, with native landscaping, trails, and benches to rest and view the ocean/harbor/sunset.  The plan is for the project to include little to no asphalt.   Parking surface may be permeable parking pavers.  It will not simply be a paved lot with bright overhead lights.

The parking area, if developed, will be patrolled by Harbor Patrol on a regular basis, trash picked up several times per day, with professionally designed landscaping with native, drought resistant plants. 

There have also been several references to the open land located west of Hwy 1 between the Harbor and Sam’s Chowder House, and the RV lot at Surfers Beach.  The Harbor District is both a public agency supported by public funds, and an enterprise revenue district, supported by the “profits” and “revenues” from District leases and activities.  The RV lot lease at Surfers Beach is a significant source of enterprise revenues for the District, and the land next to Sam’s Chowder House is being reserved for a “yet to be determined” enterprise purpose to financially support needed capital investment in the Harbor.  A parking lot is not a source of enterprise revenues.

The Harbor District looks forward to working with every member of the public in the design of this proposed project to ensure the best possible solution possible, which can include “no project.”

If you have any questions, please contact me at kslater-carter@smharbor.com or the General Manager, Jim Pruett at jpruett@smharbor.com.

If you would like to be placed on a mailing list for project updates, please email Melanie Wright at mhadden@smharbor.com.