The anchor-outs: San Francisco's bohemian boat dwellers fight for their way of life

[cinematicdiversions]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/oct/31/anchor-outs-sausalito-california-richardson-bay

For decades, a group known as the “anchor-outs” enjoyed a relatively peaceful existence in a corner of the San Francisco Bay. The mariners carved out an affordable, bohemian community on the water, in a county where the median home price recently hit $1.8m.

But their haven could be coming to an end – and with it, a rapidly disappearing way of life.

The anchor-outs live aboard semi-derelict boats abutting the town of Sausalito, an upscale enclave just north of the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin county where mansions boast floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the water. Tourists arrive by ferry from the city on weekends, strolling the promenade of restaurants, wine bars, art galleries and boutiques.

The agency that oversees the local waterway known as the Richardson Bay has in recent months begun a fervent crackdown on the boat dwellers, who they say are here illegally and pose a threat to safety and the marine environment. Determined to clear the waters, a hardline harbormaster has even begun confiscating and destroying boats that overstay their welcome.

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Be interesting to hear from some locals. Sounds a bit like the "wrong kind of people" living to near some valuable real estate.

[MineralMan]

1. Sad and Unfortunate.

Sadly, many of those boats also have defunct waste disposal systems. So, it's likely that human waste is being dumped in the bay. While that's freedom of a sort, it's not really a good thing. Most likely, too, some of those boats can't move under their own power.

I feel bad for the people living on those boats. I really do. But...they put many other people in a bad position, as well.

[Ritabert]

2. Boats that anchor out are always running into bureaucrats

Unfortunately some of the boats are really run down, loaded with junk on deck and can't move. As for the toilet situation you can get a compost toilet that's non-polluting.

[PJMcK]

4. Most boats are required to have holding tanks

It’s illegal to discharge waste inside 3 miles from shore. Many marinas have pump-out facilities. Interestingly, some marinas don’t allow composting toilets.

[Ritabert]

5. The anchored are not going to pull up for a pumpout

In mooring fields run by various cities a pumpout boat comes out once a week to pump the tanks. You pay a monthly fee.

[PJMcK]

3. The 79th Street Boat Basin in NYC

For many years, there has been a marina on Manhattan’s West Side in the Hudson River. Many of the boats there were live-aboards and some of them were in pretty rough shape. Regardless, it was a colorful Bohemian life style even if things could be difficult: Cold winters where one has to transport the propane tanks off Manhattan Island to get them re-filled; grocery stores are many blocks away; no easy parking; questionable legal status, etc.

A friend of mine had a 45-foot houseboat that he and his girlfriend shared. They removed the engine to gain storage space. The growth on the bottom of his boat was so thick that he thought he was attached to the river bed! That’s not really the kind of boating I like to do but to each their own.

The City recently condemned the marina and all the boats have to be gone by tomorrow. For the next two years, the marina will be rebuilt and modernized. It’ll probably be very expensive when completed, (it had been very reasonably priced and a mooring cost about $225 per month). The adjacent neighborhood is pretty upscale and expensive, (a friend pays $1,000 per month for indoor parking!). I’m sure that factors into the decision to rebuild.