A few points on my draft suggestion to restore Railroad Avenue as wetlands…

(1) The main question I am raising: What are the plans for Railroad Avenue? If the plan is to reclaim and restore the space as wetlands, then those efforts should be coordinated with the plans to restore Chelsea Wetlands, since they are really one in the same. It would be advantageous to apply for grant funds once, not twice.

(2) My plan for a boardwalk to replace the Bay Trail (including the removal of all the fill that makes up the existing berm) is likely the most expensive option. A much more cost-effective solution would be to install a series of culverts through the berm with inverts at an elevation below mean high sea level. Either would allow for the tidal inundation of Railroad Avenue.

(3) Do we want Railroad Avenue to be re-opened to casual traffic? If so, the crosswalk that connects the Bay Trail from the Chelsea Wetlands berm to the lower portion along the tracks north of Santa Fe Avenue would have to be safe. As it stands now, this is a very friendly walk since no vehicles cross the Bay Trail. If Railroad Avenue is re-opened, a traffic control component may have to be installed, e.g., a pedestrian push-button activated crosswalk. This would be a detriment to the contiguous nature of the Bay Trail.

(4) If the roadway is to be used for (or considered as) an emergency egress, then that should be the case now. Having an emergency phone system doesn’t count for much if you have no phone service. (I guess the plan could be to have an installation technician install the phone service once the emergency is transparent, but again, that is certainly neither a reliable nor commendable plan.) In order to make Railroad Avenue to be an effective emergency path…

(a) The temporary house that is currently staged at one end would need to be removed. (Obvious.)
(b) The bridge over Pinole Creek would have to be replaced. (Money. A few million at least, and Hercules would likely have to share the cost.)
(c) The road itself would have to be improved and widened. (More money. But more importantly, a seeming waste of precious waterfront space adjacent to wetlands and the Bay Trail.)