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Report regarding an update and seeking feedback in regards to the ongoing and developing Sign Hill Master Plan. (Joshua Richardson, Parks Division Manager)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council be apprised of the development of the Sign Hill Master Plan, and provide feedback.
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BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
Towering over the City of South San Francisco, Sign Hill is the last true open space left in South San Francisco. Sign Hill is a foothill to the larger San Bruno Mountain, located just to the north of the city, with both being geologically and ecologically linked. In many ways the hill has stood as a testament to the enduring legacies of South San Francisco. It is home to the historic sign stating, “South San Francisco The Industrial City,” which celebrates its centennial anniversary this year, and is also recognized as a registered national historic landmark. In a somewhat paradoxical manner, the hill proclaims the city as the industrial city, while itself being home to some of the rarest endangered endemic habitat left in California and the nation: Franciscan grassland.
Historically, much of the San Francisco Peninsula was covered in Franciscan grassland, but urban sprawl, cattle grazing, and invasive species encroachment has reduced this habitat type drastically. The City’s Parks Division recognizes the importance of this critical habitat on Sign Hill which is home to two endangered butterfly species, the Callippe silverspot and Mission blue butterfly, as well as many rare native plants.
In 2018, the Parks Division received grant funding, totaling $75,600 over two years, from San Mateo County’s Measure K to begin restoration of endangered habitats primarily focusing on the Mission blue butterfly. In the fall of 2019, this restoration program began and grew rapidly despite the COVID-19 pandemic starting in early 2020. In the first two years of the program, over two-hundred volunteers participated in restoration work on Sign Hill. During this time, staff developed best management practices and built the framework for a program to continue managing the hill after the grant funding was exhausted. The project spawned “Sign Hill Stewards,” the monicker given to the volunteer contingent on the hill. Since Measure K funding was depleted, staffing has been funded by Parks Division part-time salaries.
In October of 2020, the Diamond Fire swept across the southern face of Sign Hill, threatening homes and killing thousands of trees on the hill. Fortunately, staff had performed some preventative fuel load reduction on the hill in 2019 which helped prevent this fire from reaching homes. After the fire, City Council allocated funding to the Parks Division to mitigate erosion issues caused by fire, address damaged and hazardous trees, and bring the City-owned parcels of Sign Hill into compliance with fuel load best practices as defined by CalFire. This work saw the removal of thousands of trees on the hill, redefining the landscape and the way the hill is enjoyed by the public. With the hill now in fire management compliance, staff determined a master plan was needed to guide the future of Sign Hill to manage its resources responsibly.
In 2022, the Parks Division received grant funding from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to create a Sign Hill master plan and perform some final tree work. In the fall of 2022, Parks staff began soliciting bids for consultants to create this master plan. After bids were received, Gates and Associates in conjunction with WRA were chosen to draft the plan. The focus of this master plan is to perform assessments on the ecology, biological systems, historical resources, recreational infrastructure, fire safety and visitor usage/safety on Sign Hill. The plan will also provide recommendations on how to manage the resources on the hill while focusing on creating more accessible trails while educating and engaging the public.
To date, the master plan process has gathered internal information from City staff and has conducted one public “pop-up” event at Sign Hill while also distributing a survey to the community in both English and Spanish. The survey was open from March 13 to April 7 of this year and received a total of 428 responses. The “pop-up” event was also advertised in English and Spanish and was held on April 1, 2023. Twenty-eight individuals participated in that event, providing valuable feedback. On May 16, 2023 the Parks and Recreation Commission was presented an update and similar material that is contained in this report for their feedback. Since that meeting, their comments have been incorporated into the plan.
A summary of the results from this first round of public outreach is attached to this staff report, in addition to the survey itself. Most notably, respondents stated that they enjoy Sign Hill for its views and scenery, walking trails, and the native flora and fauna on the hill. They also would like to see improvements in the way of trail enhancements, signage, and additional seating areas. Moving forward, the characteristics of Sign Hill and this master plan that were identified as most important to respondents consisted of natural beauty, sustainability and conservation, and opportunities for exercise.
As the master plan progresses the consultant team will reconcile public feedback with sensitive resource areas to create conceptual recommendations for trails, habitat management, and fuel management. As with most master plans, this plan will not provide detailed construction documents for trails or signage, but it serves as a guiding document to highlight general areas of need and potential areas that trails could be placed. This master plan will help the Parks Division be more competitive for grants that can potentially fund these future enhancements.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for this project is provided entirely by the MTC grant and will have no impact on the General Fund. The City’s “match” for this grant funding was satisfied with previous fuel load reduction and restoration work performed in response to the Diamond Fire of 2020.
RELATIONSHIP TO STRATEGIC PLAN
The Sign Hill Master Plan applies to the City’s Strategic Plan by supporting Priority #2: Quality of Life by providing safe and sustainable open space recreation opportunities; Priority #4: Public Safety by providing a guiding document to create more accessible and safer pathways while also helping address fuel load reduction through restoration recommendations; and Priority #6: Community Connections by providing conceptual plans for a trail system that connects multiple neighborhoods and restoration work that provides a significant opportunity for volunteerism for all residents.
CONCLUSION
This initial round of feedback has informed the early development of the master plan and the direction that the community wishes the plan to take. At this time, staff are requesting that the City Council provide feedback to further inform the master plan prior to the next rounds of public outreach. Staff intend to bring a near final version of the Sign Hill Master Plan to Council for final acceptance later this summer.