View source for Drakes Bay Oyster Company

[[File:Drakes Bay Oyster Company - 02.jpg|thumb|Drakes Bay Oyster Company]]
'''Drakes Bay Oyster Company''' was an [[oyster farming|oyster farm]] and restaurant formerly located at the shoreline and in [[Drakes Estero]] at 38°04'57.3"N 122°55'55.0"W, a bay within [[Point Reyes National Seashore]], on the [[West Marin]] coast of [[Marin County, California|Marin County]], in Northern California. In 2011, the lease for the business operation was not renewed at the direction of the [[United States Secretary of the Interior]]. After a two-year court battle, the business was terminated in December 2014, and Drakes Estero was cleared of the offshore racks and onshore structures, with the work completed in 2017.
==History==
A lease was signed between the company and the [[National Park Service]] in 1972 for oyster farming within the bay. Drakes Estero is protected within the NPS [[Point Reyes National Seashore]], part of the regional NPS [[Golden Gate National Recreation Area]].
The company was one of the largest shellfish operations in California, producing over eight million non-native oysters a year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/07/14/2014/Drakes_Bay_Oysters|title=After Long, Losing Battle, Drakes Bay Oyster Co. Prepares to Shut Down &#124; KQED News Fix|publisher=Blogs.kqed.org|date=2014-07-14|url-status=dead|accessdate=2014-08-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140725224356/http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/07/14/2014/Drakes_Bay_Oysters|archive-date=2014-07-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=|url=http://munchies.vice.com/articles/thousands-of-california-oysters-will-die-in-a-dump/ |title=Oysters Will Die Thanks to a California Legal Battle &#124; MUNCHIES |publisher=Munchies.vice.com |date=2014-07-17 |accessdate=2014-08-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Drakes-Bay-Oyster-Company-Will-Shut-Down-This-Month-266823921.html |title=Drakes Bay Oyster Company Given 30 Day Notice |publisher=NBC Bay Area |date=2014-07-28 |accessdate=2014-08-10}}</ref><ref name="sfgate">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/science/article/U-S-evicting-Point-Reyes-oyster-farmer-4077624.php|title=U.S. evicting Point Reyes oyster farmer|last=Fimrite|first=Peter|last2=Berton|first2=Justin|date=2012-11-29|website=SFGate|access-date=2019-08-16}}</ref>
===Closure===
The Drakes Bay Oyster Company's farm in the bay was originally slated to close on 31 July 2012, as its permit to operate had expired and the National Park Service had been directed to restore the area to its natural state. The decision to close the company was made in 2011 by [[Ken Salazar]], the United States Secretary of the Interior on the grounds it would set a precedent for other park lands.<ref name="latimes">{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/abcarian/la-me-1212-abcarian-oyster-farm-20141212-column.html|title=California Journal: After a long battle, Drake's Bay Oyster Co. packs it in|date=2014-12-12|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-16}}</ref> Salazar had telephoned owner Kevin Lunny personally to inform him of the decision, and later stated “The estero is one of our nation's crown jewels, and today we are fulfilling the vision to protect this special place for generations to come."<ref name="sfgate" />
The company's retail and restaurant operations on shore closed in July 2012. Due to an injunction filed by regional restaurants, the company continued to harvest oysters for commercial sales, until the National Park Service gave a 30-day notice for permanent closure of all operations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://abc7news.com/food/drakes-bay-oyster-company-shuts-down-shack/231357/ |title=Drake's Bay Oyster Company shuts down oyster shack |publisher=abc7news.com |date=2014-07-31 |accessdate=2014-08-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog/2014/07/28/drakes-bay-oyster-co-closure-delayed-thanks-to-restaurant-led-injunction/ |title=Inside Scoop SF » Drakes Bay Oyster Co. closure delayed, thanks to restaurant-led injunction |publisher=Insidescoopsf.sfgate.com |date=2014-07-28 |accessdate=2019-08-16}}</ref>
In early December 2014, the legal case by the restaurants and other interests was dropped, and the company terminated the oyster operation completely by the end of December 2014.<ref>[https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/management/upload/planning_dboc_sup_settlement_agreement_final_judgement_141008.pdf NPS.gov: "Drakes Bay Oyster Company ''et al'' − v. − U.S. Secretary of the Interior Jewell ''et al'' — "Settlement Agreement and Consent Decree], Filed 10/08/2014.</ref><ref name="latimes" />
Environmentalists hailed the outcome, allowing on-shore and off-shore environmental cleanup and [[habitat restoration]] projects to commence. The removal work, including 500 tons of debris, was completed in 2017.<ref name=restore>[https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/management/planning_drakesestero_restoration.htm NPS.gov: Drakes Estero restoration projects]</ref> Upon final completion, the closure effectively returned Drake's Estero to its original ecosystem condition, and established the waters as a permanent wildlife sanctuary within the [[Phillip Burton Wilderness|Phillip Burton Marine Wilderness Area]] and Point Reyes National Seashore.<ref name=restore/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_27061022/legal-stand-ends-drakes-bay-oyster-co-supporters|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150627042010/http://www.marinij.com/general-news/20141203/legal-stand-ends-for-drakes-bay-oyster-co-supporters|archive-date=2015-06-27|title=Legal stand ends for Drakes Bay Oyster Co. supporters|publisher=Marinij.com|accessdate=2019-08-16}}</ref>
==References==
{{Portal|San Francisco Bay Area}}
{{Reflist|30em}}
==External links==
{{Commons category|Drakes Bay Oyster Company}}
*[http://www.drakesbayoyster.com/ Drakes Bay Oyster Company website]
*[https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/management/planning_drakesestero_restoration.htm National Park Service − Drakes Estero Restoration Project]  — ''environmental cleanups and habitat restoration projects''
*[https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/management/upload/planning_drakesestero_map_oyster_racks_culture_beds.pdf NPS.gov: Map of Drakes Estero with Oyster Racks and Culture Beds (2008)]
*[https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/photosmultimedia/photogallery_drakesestero.htm  NPS.gov:  Drakes Estero photo galleries]
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[[Category:Oysters]]
[[Category:Oyster bars in the United States]]
[[Category:Point Reyes National Seashore]]
[[Category:West Marin]]
[[Category:Companies based in Marin County, California]]
[[Category:Food and drink companies based in California]]
[[Category:Defunct companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area]]
[[Category:Defunct restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area]]
[[Category:Food and drink companies established in 1972]]<!--40 yr lease begins-->
[[Category:Food and drink companies disestablished in 2014]]
[[Category:1972 establishments in California]]<!--40 yr lease begins-->
[[Category:2014 disestablishments in California]]
[[Category:Demolished buildings and structures in California]]
[[Category:Food and drink in the San Francisco Bay Area]]