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law Public Trust Doctrine, the California Constitution, and case law. The specific uses
<br />permitted in each granting statute vary. For example, some statutory trust grants authorize
<br />the construction of ports, harbors, airports, wharves, docks, piers, slips, quays and other
<br />structures necessary to facilitate commerce and navigation, while others allow only
<br />recreational and visitor oriented uses. All grants reserve to the people of the State of
<br />California the right to fish in the waters over the trust lands and the right to convenient
<br />access to those waters over the trust lands for that purpose.
<br />While granted public trust lands and assets are managed locally, the Legislature delegated
<br />the State’s residual and review authority for granted lands to the State Lands Commission.
<br />The Commission is responsible for monitoring administration of each statutory grant by the
<br />trustee to ensure compliance with provisions of the granting statute and the Public Trust
<br />Doctrine. The Commission has the authority to investigate, audit, and review the
<br />administration of all statutory trust grants. The Commission also has the authority to
<br />investigate specific allegations of maladministration, to seek corrective measures by
<br />trustees, and make recommendations to the Legislature; the ultimate trustee of public trust
<br />lands.”
<br />Two key passages in the section above note that public trust lands “are sovereign, not
<br />proprietary, and have unique restrictions in their management and use”, and “all sovereign lands
<br />are held in trust for the benefit of the people of California.” In other words, an individual cannot
<br />be granted exclusive use of public trust lands, thereby restricting access for all citizens of
<br />California.
<br />The California Constitution (all applicable articles attached) also reiterates this message:
<br />Article 10, Section 4: “No individual, partnership, or corporation, claiming or possessing
<br />the frontage or tidal lands of a harbor, bay, inlet, estuary, or other navigable water in this
<br />State, shall be permitted to exclude the right of way to such water whenever it is required
<br />for any public purpose, nor to destroy or obstruct the free navigation of such water; and
<br />the Legislature shall enact such laws as will give the most liberal construction to this
<br />provision, so that access to the navigable waters of this State shall be always attainable
<br />for the people thereof.”
<br />Redwood City Granting Statutes:
<br />In 1945 the State first granted the City authority to manage certain portions of Redwood Creek
<br />(where Docktown sits today). This statute, amended most recently in 1954 for construction of
<br />flood control measures, is attached to this report. The statute includes several conditions on the
<br />City’s management of these lands, which reiterates many of the points above, for example:
<br />“That said lands shall be used by said city, and successors, only for the establishment,
<br />improvement and conduct of the harbor, including an airport and aviation facilities, and for
<br />the construction, maintenance and operation thereon wharves, docks, piers, slips, quays
<br />and other utilities, structures, the appliances necessary or convenient for the promotion
<br />and accommodation of commerce and navigation by air as well as water and for the
<br />construction, maintenance, and operation of flood control projects, and said city, or its
<br />successors, shall not, but anytime, grant, convey, give or alien said lands, or any part
<br />thereof, to any individual, firm or corporation for any purposes whatsoever, provided, that
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