One of the Bay Area’s last fishing trawlers is once again without a home, forced out of Redwood City

REDWOOD CITY — The Pioneer Seafoods fishing trawler is once again without a home after being forced out of the Port of Redwood City less than two years since it was welcomed enthusiastically as part of the little-known-harbor’s revitalization plans.

Giuseppe Pennisi and the small crew of the 76-foot trawler “Pioneer” haven’t been out at sea in months after Pennisi was diagnosed with a hernia in January and underwent a difficult and intensive surgery that sent him down a months-long spiral of complications, waking up in pools of blood and seemingly endless hospital visits that continue today.

As an integral part of the trawler’s crew, Pennisi’s absence means the “Pioneer” can’t go to its usual stomping grounds near the Farallon islands to catch the rock fish, black cod and other fish that keep bread on the table. Now the Port of Redwood City has had enough. On Oct. 10, officials sent a 30-day notice to vacate, once again throwing the small fishing company’s future into uncertainty.

“I’m just sick of all this,” a visibly upset Pennisi said in an interview. “Trying to keep this fishing thing going has been nothing but disastrous for me because I put so much into it. Whether it’s Moss Landing, Monterey, San Francisco and now Redwood City. The trawler’s in Richmond now and I can’t even fish. It’s just a catastrophe.”

In the letter Pennisi received, Port of Redwood City Business Development Manager Trish Wagner said the port would be terminating its month-to-month agreement based on the lack of fish sales.

“We have valued our relationship with Pioneer Seafoods over the years and thank you for your business,” Wagner writes in the letter. “However, we cannot allow Pioneer Seafoods to continue storing vessels and equipment without providinga public benefit or having an active maritime use.”

That letter reads in stark contrast to the jubilation and open arms that the Pioneer found when it first came to the Port of Redwood City, which at the time was undergoing a cultural transformation. When Pennisi lost the spot where he used to dock in Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, he turned to the Port of Redwood City, a mainly commercial port dealing in materials for making concrete and sheetrock.

In 2021, Port of Redwood City Executive Director Kristine Zortman had a plan to turn the port into a destination for Peninsula families that could be a mini-Fisherman’s Wharf, complete with a real fishing boat and crew. Pennisi quickly invested in getting a food truck up and running that would sell calamari, fish and chips on top of the fresh fish he was selling from the trawler, usually at about $4 to $6 a pound. And Pennisi coaxed live music to the area too, making the area a destination for fresh seafood, music and fun by the water’s edge.

“We were really excited and we’re still really excited,” Zortman said in an interview this week. “What happened is he hasn’t sold fish at the port since February of this year and we were realizing that there’s still a need for people that like to come and get fresh fish. It was definitely successful, and that’s why we want to be able to open it up to other fishermen and even if Pioneer goes back out and wants to reopen selling we’d love to continue having fresh fish sales.”

For Pennisi, getting kicked out of Redwood City after previous stints at other ports in Northern California was a nightmare scenario, especially while going through surgery after surgery. During the interview, Pennisi was clearly upset and questioned his future in the fishing industry.

With the razor margins of the fishing world, nowhere to dock and sell fish, and the likelihood that he still needs months to recover from a year of health issues, Pennisi is throwing in the towel. He’s put the Pioneer up for sale and has had it with “all this government regulations.”

To leave the ocean, which has been his backyard his entire life, Pennisi is giving up a multi-generational trade that was once the backbone of the Bay Area economy, when small fishing boats dotted the Bay and Golden Gate and Fisherman’s Wharf actually meant real fish and real fishermen.

The Pennisi family has a long tradition of sustainable fishing in California and has been trawling in the waters off of California since the early 1900s. Pennisi started fishing in California when he was just seven years old. Beginning his career working on his father’s boats, he has made a career fishing everywhere from Monterey to the Bering Sea despite the decline of the industry and tougher regulations than ever before.

In 2000, he purchased his boat the “Pioneer” and launched Pioneer Seafoods, working alongside federal observes and the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration on each fishing trip. Their motto is simple: “strive to provide our customers with fresh, quality fish at an affordable price while keeping our oceans healthy.”

But now that dream of continuing on the legacy of his family is all but gone.

“If I don’t find a place here within a reasonable amount of time, then what am I doing this for?” Pennisi said. “Why am I trying to keep things alive? I mean it’s three generations. I don’t want my kids to go through this kind of hardship.”

Pennisi said the Bay Area “is all about its heritage, and part of that is fishing,” so what he doesn’t understand is “why isn’t this appreciated more?”

“I’ve been doing it my whole life because I know I’m one of the only people that has driven to help bring fresh local fish from own backyard instead of having to get frozen fish from other countries,” Pennisi said. “I’m angry that it’s so easy for them to throw all this away. All these ports are the same, they want their shiny signs but really don’t want to deal with fishing boats. It’s frustrating as hell.”