Sausalito's Last Floating Anchored Homes Removed From Richardson Bay

The last floating home in Marin County’s ecologically fragile Richardson Bay has been removed following a state mandate to protect area eelgrass that is a vital part of the water’s ecosystem, a spokesperson for the Richardson Bay Regional Agency said Thursday.

The removal is also a coda to what had been a controversial floating subculture of boaters living on the waters off Sausalito.

In 2021, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission entered into an agreement with the Richardson Bay Regional Agency, ordering that all illegally anchored vessels and floating homes be removed from the Bay by Oct. 15, 2026. The arrangement was also largely driven by the need to protect the vulnerable eelgrass ecosystem in the area.

Brad Gross, the executive director of Richardson Bay Regional Agency, stressed to KQED that there are still boats out in the bay, but the last floating home, which he said is a different designation from a recreational or commercial boat, was identified as one of four vessels for removal.

“A boat is a boat that you can transport yourself on the water for recreation or commerce, whereas a floating home is like those houses that are strictly for living that you see off in Sausalito,” Gross said. “These floating homes were out anchored independently in Richardson Bay. That’s what has been removed.”

But the decision to remove the array of floating homes manned by people termed “anchor-outs,” who have lived rent-free on the water in a subculture that romantics might call aquatic-bohemian, but others describe as an eyesore, resulted in at least one lawsuit and accusations that the county and RBRA were throwing people off the Bay and onto the street.

Local agencies raised nearly $6 million to facilitate housing transitions and restore the Bay’s eelgrass. Last year, the county housing authority approved vouchers for those living on boats, who would otherwise face homelessness, to relocate to land-based residences. Many boat residents were moored illegally.

As of March, Gross estimated about 32 boats left in the anchorage.

One such anchor out was Daniel Knight, who won a preliminary injunction against the RBRA last year when it tried to remove his vessel first through offering a voucher — he said the amount would be far less than the boat’s worth — and then tried to remove his boat by calling it “marine debris.”

According to Knight’s attorneys, he eventually settled the case for an undisclosed amount.

The environmental impact the boats and vessels had on the eelgrass in the area, however, was indeed significant.

“Eelgrass is a critical component of a healthy and vibrant Richardson Bay,” said a statement released Thursday by the RBRA. “It supports herring runs, reduces erosion, sequesters carbon and is a crucial ecological resource for harbor porpoises and sea lions.”

Thousands of migratory birds also rely on the eelgrass for feeding and resting along the Pacific Flyway.

RBRA officials said that when anchors, chains and other ground tackle from vessels scrape the bottom of the Bay, they act as a “lawn mower” for any living plants and create areas where eelgrass cannot grow.

An area “four times the size of Alcatraz” now exists where the grass has been destroyed, the agency said.

In addition to the housing vouchers, 16 vessels were removed with the help of a buyback program funded by the RBRA.

As part of the agreement with the state, a small number of vessels will be allowed to remain anchored if they are deemed “seaworthy,” at least through October 2026. After that, all boats and vessels will be allowed only 72-hour anchorage, according to BCDC.

This story includes reporting from KQED’s Oscar Palma.