Plans to upgrade visitor access and facilities for Marconi Cove in Marshall were put on hold indefinitely earlier this month, after the California Coastal Commission changed the terms for a $266,000 mitigation fee that it awarded in 2011 to Caltrans, to then give to the state parks department. That money, instead of funding the Marconi project, will go toward the conversion of an existing structure at Mount Tamalpais’s Steep Ravine into a low-cost cabin lodging. Funding for the Marconi project was meant to offset erosion control work done by Caltrans at the nearby Reynolds Cove in Marshall, as part of the terms for securing a coastal permit. Plans included a boat launch, a parking lot and six camping sites at Marconi Cove. But because the fee would not cover the cost of such an extensive project, the state park recently announced that it could not fund the rest and, now, is diverting the funds to Steep Ravine. The Coastal Commission amended the permit application last month to reflect the switch. “In order for Marconi Cove to move forward, they would need additional funding to get through the design review,” said Shannon Fiala, a coastal planner with the commission. But a letter sent from Marshall’s East Shore Planning Group on Oct. 30 argued that mitigation fees should be allocated where the work that required mitigation took place—in this case, right up the road at Reynolds Cove—and not 25 miles to the south. A representative from the park could not be reached for comment, though in July a park recreational specialist, Roy McNamee, told the Light that he believes the Marconi project will happen at some point many years down the line.