Crews began preparing Blackie's Pasture in Tiburon the week of Aug. 31 for a shoreline restoration project that will close parts of the park through late November.

Active construction at Greenwood Beach and Brunini Beach begins Tuesday, Sept. 8, according to a Town of Tiburon notice. Delivery trucks will pass through the park during the work, and sections of the shoreline will be off-limits. Trails will remain open.

The town is asking visitors to follow posted signs and access restrictions.

The Tiburon Town Council voted 3-0 on Aug. 19 to award a $468,983 contract to Livermore-based Goodfellow Bros. LLC for the work, as the Marin Independent Journal reported. Vice Mayor Isaac Nikfar was absent. Councilmember Holli Thier recused herself, citing a potential conflict involving her business and the contractor.

The project covers 1.4 acres along Richardson Bay and uses a "living shoreline" approach rather than hard barriers like seawalls or riprap. Goodfellow crews will grade back the eroding scarp where the beach has been cut away, remove old asphalt and debris, install two rock sills at Brunini Beach and place a log backstop at Greenwood Beach.

Fresh sand and gravel will be brought in.

David Eshoo, the town's public works engineering manager, explained the method to The Ark on Aug. 26: "We're installing a living shoreline, meaning that the material that's being installed here at this beach, the wave action will pull the material out and push it back in so that it doesn't erode any of the areas along Blackie's Pasture."

The project is fully funded by a $1.5 million grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy awarded in 2024. The council also authorized the town manager to approve change orders of up to 15%, or $70,347, bringing the maximum contract value to $539,330.

In an Aug. 26 email reported by the Marin Independent Journal, Eshoo said the town intends to keep as much of Blackie's Pasture and the surrounding trail system open as practical while restricting the active construction and staging areas.

Tiburon started an initial phase of the restoration in March, primarily installing drift sills and importing sediment. Construction on this final phase is expected to wrap up by Nov. 20, with monitoring and maintenance to follow. Eshoo told the Marin Independent Journal on Aug. 26 that the project is a pilot program that could guide the town's approach to erosion in other areas.

Residents can find project details and updates on the Town of Tiburon website.