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01/12/2009 Letter of intent The Redwood City Police Department takes a proactive approach to vessel abatement. In 1996, the Redwood City Police Department started it Marine Enforcement Unit. An integral part of the Marine Enforcement Unit was the development of the volunteer agency Aqua - Terra. Together, the Marine Enforcement Unit and Aqua -Terra were able to abate in excess of 130 vessels. Aqua Terra raised money through grants, fundraisers, and donations. The funds were used to maintain the Marine Enforcement Unit and fund the demolition of floating vessels. In 2004, Aqua -Terra was disbanded due to a lack of volunteers. Currently, the Marine Enforcement Units only vessel is in a state of repair. The Police Department has committed the funds to repair the boat. The Marine Enforcement Unit expects to have the boat repaired before July of 2008. The boat has been unusable for almost three years. In that time, a number of vessels have been abandoned in the waterways of the City of Redwood City. Three of these vessels are partially submerged because they were left abandoned for a long period of time. The Marine Enforcement Unit does not have the capability to remove submerged vessels. A boat salvage and recycling company must be utilized to remove these three vessels. Removing these vessels is a very difficult and specialized process. Bids for the project were approximately $50K. Because a marina is being developed adjacent to the site of the abandoned vessels, access is currently much easier than any other time in the future. Because of the easy access, The Marine Enforcement Unit was able to get a bid for approximately $15K. Unfortunately, the unit does not have the funds to accomplish this goal. Without funds, these sunken vessels will remain a hazard. By having the funds paid by a grant by the Department of Boating and Waterways, the Marine Enforcement Unit will be able to have these abandoned vessels removed. Because the boat will be repaired by July of 2008, we do not foresee this problem occurring again. Any future abandoned vessels will be removed by the Marine Enforcement Unit before they become submerged. Additionally, the City of Redwood City's city council has asked the founder of Aqua -Terra to reactivate the agency within the city. The new agency, Aqua -Terra it is in the beginning stages of redevelopment. This will further guarantee that the current situation of sunken vessels doesn't repeat itself. In the past, many of the commercial residents in the Port of Redwood City have volunteered their time and equipment to assist the Marine Enforcement Unit. This included using back -hoes to pick up and crush boats that the Marine Enforcement Unit towed to their waterfronts. This also includes having a metal recycling resident crushing steal hulled boats. The use of these unorthodox resources has helped to save the Marine Enforcement Unit funds. 14919 MUFF #505