In response to pressure to make the historic military base economically self-sufficient, the park service created a plan to transform the base adjacent to Sausalito and the Golden Gate Bridge into a conference center and leisure destination that could accommodate as many as 2,700 people.
The city filed suit against the National Park Service's plan to expand its children's museum and build a 25,000-sf conference center and 350-room hotel because the city says it will bring thousands of additional tourists through the small town without addressing planning issues such as parking problems.
The city alleged in the lawsuit that the park service's plan did not adequately assess the environmental impacts to Sausalito and violated statutes such as the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, National Park Service Organic Act and Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act, among others.
However, Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Laporte in San Francisco granted the park service's motion for summary judgment, ending Sausalito's bid to block the development.
According to City Councilwoman Sandra Bushmaker, the council voted 4-0 at its Thursday night meeting to appeal Laporte's decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Bushmaker also says they reached a tentative agreement with the Discovery Museum that will allow it to move forward with its expansion.
The decision would allow the museum, which is located at Fort Baker, to move forward with its plans for a new facility. But museum spokesman Derek Henkle says nothing has been signed and no details have been finalized.
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