‘Brand new docks’ the last step in city’s Turning Basin upgrades

Petaluma’s ongoing efforts to spruce up the Turning Basin are entering their final phase, and Greg Sabourin is excited to see the changes.

“It’ll be great, brand new docks,” he said. “Great for bikes and pedestrians.”

Sabourin, who manages the Floathouse in the Turning Basin, was referring to the city’s dredging and dock restoration project, which this week entered its third and final phase as engineers began probing the bedrock under the Basin ahead of replacing the pilings and docks taken out last year.

“The aging docks within the Turning Basin were removed in 2022 during Phase 1 of the project to allow for dredging,” the city website states. “This necessary removal has given us an opportunity to replace the aging docks with new ones.”

Jonathan Sanglerat, an engineering and CIP manager for the city, said earlier this week that “Dutra will be mobilizing their equipment into the Turning Basin on Nov. 8. Once this initial exploratory work been completed we will have a better idea of the construction schedule going forward.”

He and other city staff hope things go smoothly, as November is the “work window” for the next step: driving new pilings into the bedrock below the silty Petaluma River.

After that process is completed – the city says it expects occasional noise and vibration, as well as “periodic openings” of the D Street Bridge to let equipment and materials through – the new docks will be installed upon the pilings, and Petaluma’s Turning Basin will be all dredged and renovated.

Under the city’s current timeline, installation of the docks could happen as early as mid-December and be done by Christmas. At the latest, work is expected to be done by the end of January.

Public use of the Turning Basin, including the Floathouse, won’t be possible while work is going on, but Sabourin said in terms of business, missing “the holidays from Thanksgiving through December is probably not a big deal.”

He said he hopes to be able to kick things off again in the New Year, after the work is done and people can take the popular shortcut between the east and west sides of the Basin.

That foot traffic will be good for the Floathouse too, he said, and at that point, “We’ll be open during the weekends for the winter, weather permitting.”

Private boaters will have better ways to dock as well, making the Turning Basin improvements “really good for the boating community.”

Sabourin said the Floathouse’s first year in operation – during which it has been renting out kayaks, canoes, stand-up paddle boards and more since opening in October of last year – “has been a good year, a learning year.”

“The response has been overwhelmingly positive,” he said.

To support the Floathouse online, go to thefloathousepetaluma.org. For more on the Turning Basin upgrades, go to cityofpetaluma.org/turningbasin.

Don Frances is editor of the Petaluma Argus-Courier. Reach him at don.frances@arguscourier.com.