The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service believes the proposed Wavecrest development, which has been the talk of Half Moon Bay for more than 20 years, would permanently harm two federally protected species and irrevocably degrade animal habitat.
Monday's finding led the California Coastal Commission to postpone deliberations on the project indefinitely. It had been planning to review the development at its Sept. 8 meeting in Eureka. Now, once again, the multi-use project is up in the air.
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"At this point we're postponing the commission hearing indefinitely," said Chris Kern, the commission's coastal program manager. He termed the Fish and Wildlife Service report "pretty significant comments."
Because the Fish and Wildlife Service believes the project may significantly degrade the habitat and injure federally protected wildlife in the process, it is recommending further review of the project's impact and a new plan to conserve habit.
"We recommend that the applicant work with this office and the California Department of Fish and Game to develop a habitat conservation plan that minimizes the project's direct and indirect impacts to listed species and mitigates for project-related loss of habitat," the service wrote in its letter to the commission.
The Coastal Commission will also be involved in that process.
The Wavecrest development consists of 206 acres with 217 housing units planned as well as a new middle school and a Boys and Girls Club.
This week's findings reverse an earlier position by the Fish and Wildlife Service which had said the project would result in no "take" of the red-legged frog or garter snake or habitat for these species.
"There will have to be authorization of that take by the Fish and Wildlife Service," Kern said.
A take is defined in the Endangered Species Act as a "significant habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills or injures wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns, including breeding, feeding or shelter."
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