SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google does not have the proper
permits for a mystery barge at a construction site on an island in San
Francisco Bay, a state official said, and must move the floating,
four-story building that drew wide attention and fueled weeks of
speculation when it was erected last fall.
"It needs to move,"
Larry Goldzband, executive director of the San Francisco Bay
Conservation and Development Commission, said Monday.
The
commission investigated numerous complaints and found that neither the
Treasure Island Development Authority nor the city of San Francisco had
applied for required permits for the work to be done at the site and
could face fines and enforcement proceedings, Goldzband said.
Goldzband
said Google can resolve the issue by moving the barge to one of the
fully permitted construction facilities in the San Francisco Bay.
Google Inc. said it is still reviewing a letter from Goldzband outlining the commission’s concerns about
the secretive project.
Google
has been vague about plans for the barge or a similar vessel off the
East Coast and says they may change, but preliminary planning documents
and a subsequent statement from the company said the barge would be an
interactive space for people to learn about technology as it traveled
from dock to dock.
The documents ended weeks of speculation that
the barge would be a party boat, data storage center or a store for
Google to sell its Internet-connected glasses.
But now it has
apparently become another headache for the search giant in its dealings
with San Francisco, 40 miles north of its corporate headquarters in
Mountain View, Calif.
Google also has been at the center of a city
controversy over private buses that several large tech companies use to
transport workers south to Silicon Valley. Some community members say
the buses are congesting city bus stops, so the city recently voted to
charge the companies for each stop the buses make.
The space to
build the barge is being leased by the Treasure Island Development
Authority for $79,000 per month under a contract set to expire in
August, according to agency records.
Mirian Saez, director of the authority, said, "We did not intend to violate or circumvent the
process."
The
authority will try to apply for the correct permits with the
commission, she said, noting her agency has not spoken to Google about
the issue.
For now, though, Google’s barge appears to be mired in
regulatory limbo. Goldzband said Google representatives had told him
construction had been halted on the barge late last year so the U.S.
Coast Guard can ensure the vessel will meet its standards.
"My
understanding is they are going to be in a holding pattern until the end
of winter," Goldzband said. "What we are strongly suggesting is that
this thing is moved in an expeditious manner so when they want to start
building again, they can build it lawfully at a place where it is
permitted."
Santa Clara University law professor Dorothy Glancy
says it’s highly unlikely that a permit would ever be issued for them to
continue building at their current site.
"I was surprised anyone
was building anything in the bay without a BCDC permit," she said, "and
shipbuilding is not what they’re supposed to be doing at Treasure
Island, it’s not in their development plans."
Goldzband said if the barge is eventually completed, it will need more even permits to be moored or
docked.
Jason
Flanders, program director at San Francisco Baykeeper, a nonprofit
pollution watchdog, said the group was pleased the state agency is
taking a strong stand.
"Obviously, the bay is a valuable resource
to everybody," he said. "Requiring people and companies large and small
to pass all environmental regulations before using the bay is
essential."
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