The Harbor Commission postponed its dredging contract vote for the third consecutive month on Thursday, sending the sediment survey back to staff and leaving the fishing fleet without a firm schedule for the spring season.

Commissioners spent most of the two-hour meeting on a single figure: the estimated 40,000 cubic yards of material that would have to be removed from the inner basin. Two commissioners said the number had not been independently verified since the survey was commissioned.

"I am not voting to spend four million dollars on a number nobody has checked," said Commissioner Alma Beltran, who has voted against the contract each time it has come forward.

The delay puts the project close to the June window, after which dredging is restricted until fall. Fleet operators told the commission that a missed window would push them into a second season of navigating the shoal at low tide.

Staff will return with a revised survey in April.