Point Reyes Light - October 10, 2002
Lawson's Landing tells its renovation plans
By Ivan Gale
The owners of the campground and marina at Lawson’s Landing in Dillon Beach said this week the county is asking for suggestions over plans to upgrade the campground’s septic systems that were built in the 1960’s.
Requests to obtain a use-permit for new sewage disposal facilities have in the past failed due to the lack of a master plan. An all-encompassing master plan would cover the various camping and beachgoing uses as well as quarrying operations at the Dillon Beach property, county officials said.
Third time’s a charm
"This is the third shot at it," said Bill Vogler, who with his wife Nancy owns the coastal property which houses facilities for recreational vehicles and car-camping.
Vogler said he’s been working on a master plan since 1970 but has been unsuccessful in its implementation. He said the creation of regulatory agencies after the campground began its operation, plus new environmental codes partly explain why the campground has continued to fall short of permit requirements.
Complicating the issue is the fact camping and quarrying in the area predated the creation of the county permitting process. Camping has been a popular attraction at Dillon Beach since the early 1900s, and facilities were first built there in 1957.
County environmental and planning officials said they are only focusing on evaluating proposed improvements to the area such as new sewage disposal facilities. Existing uses such as the RV park and sand quarry will be in effect grandfathered in.
In the past, designs for these septic system improvements at Lawson’s Landing have been opposed by the Tomales Bay Association and the Environmental Action Committee.
New report necessary
In addition Tim Haddad, environmental coordinator of the Planning Commission, said a new environmental report was deemed necessary because the county received a number of comments indicating people wanted more information or were dissatisfied with the conclusions of a earlier studies of Lawson’s Landing.
The Vogler’s proposal would replace the campground’s sewage disposal facilities. The new facilities would be designed to serve thousands of visitors on peak summer weekends.
The plans also call for a road to maintain the new drainfields which run over a potentially ecologically sensitive sand dune area, according to county planner Ben Berto. The Voglers also proposed the construction of 200,000-gallon water tanks to be fed by the several wells on-site.
Written comments will be accepted by the county until Monday, Oct. 28. In addition, a public scoping session will begin in November or December, once a consultant has been hired and contract has been completed, county officials said.