Planning Update for Princeton Area

The area comprised of Princeton, Pillar Point Harbor and the Half Moon Bay Airport is the visitor-serving and industrial hub of the Midcoast.  Zoning regulations guide development. A comprehensive planning update for this area was initiated by the County in 2012. The purpose of the project is to update existing land use plans, development polices and zoning regulations applicable to Princeton and its environs.

Project Timeline & Scope of Work (5/7/13 Dyett & Bhatia)
8/28/12 Staff Report -- Scope of Work  --  Map of Project Area
7/11/12 MCC comments on 5/23/12 draft Scope of Work

Zoning Districts in and around Princeton

There are two light industrial zoning districts on the Midcoast –   M-1 (for manufacturing/light industrial) and W (for Waterfront – marine-related light industrial). Most of Princeton is zoned W, roughly half of which is also in the Airport Overlay zone, which provides a margin of safety by limiting the number of people that can be employed on site at any one time. The M-1 District includes the airport, and lowlands along the west side of Airport St. Two eastern-most blocks of Princeton shoreline and the rest of the harbor area are zoned CCR -- Coastside Commercial Recreation.

M-1 zoning regulations are antiquated, generic and county-wide. Many allowed uses are outdated or unsuitable for the Coastside, such as manufacturing steam engines or automobiles. The building height limit is 75-feet – higher than the coastal bluffs. No setbacks are required. 2009 MCC letter asked for updated M-1 zoning regulations. 

W zoning has a 36-foot building height limit (30 feet for narrow substandard lots), and no setback requirements. The neighboring CCR zoning has a 28-foot building height limit east of Denniston Creek, but allows 36 feet west of the creek in Princeton. Development permitted under current zoning regulations has led to the walling off of the entire western-most block of Princeton shoreline with 30-foot-tall buildings. See 4/25/12 MCC presentation.

Zoning Ordinances

A-O Airport Overlay District
M-1 - light industrial District (airport & west of Airport St.)
W - Waterfront District - marine-related light industrial
CCR - Coastside Commercial Recreation District

Zoning Maps

Midcoast Land Use & Zoning
Pillar Point & Marsh
Princeton
Harbor/Princeton Overview

Related Studies

1986 Princeton Area Study
2010 CA Coastal Trail Pillar Point to Mirada Surf

Princeton Shoreline Development

MCC Overview Presentation 8/22/2012.

Princeton Shoreline Erosion & Armoring

What can be done to remediate unpermitted armoring and restore coastal access along the Princeton shoreline?
4/25/12 MCC presentation and Letter to Supervisor Horsley.  
See also: Harbor/Shoreline Issues Page
2007 Harbor Dredge Material Preliminary Evaluation
2003 Princeton Shoreline Trail Alternatives 
2002 Broadway beach access concept plan 
2002 Vassar beach access concept plan 
2001 Princeton Shoreline Protection Study (body - 9MB)
2001 Princeton Shoreline Protection Study (appendices - 13MB)

Airport Plan Updates

C/CAG (City/County Association of Governments) is undertaking an update of the Half Moon Bay Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan (ALUCP).  County Public Works is in process of updating the Airport Layout Plan.  See the Airport Issues Page.