transit – Alameda Point Environmental Report

Unexpected Environmental Review of VA Project

The City of Alameda announced on February 22 that it will be preparing an environmental impact report (EIR) on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) project for a health clinic and columbarium cemetery at Alameda Point. The VA completed its environmental review for the project in 2013. The deadline for commenting on what the city should evaluate is March 22.

The belated environmental review was triggered by California regulations requiring a state EIR in order for the Regional Water Quality Control Board to approve the VA’s wetland mitigation plan.

An EIR is also required for City of Alameda approvals. “Although construction of federal facilities by federal agencies is typically exempt from local land use regulations and review,” said city planner Andrew Thomas, “in this case, the VA plans to construct an access utility/road on approximately 6-acres of city land to the east of the VA Transfer Parcel and two new storm drains across city-owned land to the north of the VA property, which will require approval of easements from the city, which are discretionary actions subject to CEQA [California Environmental Quality Act].”

Revisiting the project’s environmental impacts six years after the VA completed its review presents an opportunity to evaluate the potential environmental benefits of locating the medical clinic and benefits offices in the business “Enterprise District” rather than in the open space on the former airfield. Continue reading “Unexpected Environmental Review of VA Project”

BART station may come to Alameda Point

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) staff are in the early stages of planning for a second tube across San Francisco Bay. One of the routes being considered is under Alameda and would bring with it at least one station. It could also bring Amtrak’s Capitol Corridor train service running in tandem with BART trains across the Bay.

Before any plans are drafted, the transit agency must first determine the amount of ridership the transit system will serve in the decades ahead. To get there, BART is looking at more than just the traditional 9-county region. They are looking at projected transit needs of a 21-county mega-region stretching from Placerville to Monterey. And standard-gauge rail agencies, like Amtrak, have become a partner in BART’s planning effort. Continue reading “BART station may come to Alameda Point”

New ferry to begin service

~More bike space, faster boarding, quieter ride, lower emissions

Ferry riders at the Alameda Main Street Terminal will soon be boarding the MV Hydrus, the cleanest running 400 passenger ferry in the world. The state-of-the-art ferry is designed for quicker on-boarding and off-boarding, faster speeds, low noise and vibration, and low emissions. The bicycle storage capacity will be more than doubled to 50 from the current capacity of 20 on the MV Encinal, which it will replace.

Captain Al Lewis and the Hydrus crew were running through training exercises in the Oakland Estuary on March 28. They stopped at the Main Street Terminal just after the Encinal departed with passengers. The Encinal was built in 1985 and was owned by the City of Alameda during the period when the city operated the ferry service to San Francisco. At 27 meters in length, the Encinal looked small by comparison to the 41-foot-long Hydrus.

Continue reading “New ferry to begin service”

Transportation agency calls for more housing in Alameda

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) issued a new regional planning document on August 30, 2016, suggesting the amount of housing needed in Alameda to meet state goals. MTC is requesting input from local jurisdictions.

Alameda City Planner Andrew Thomas slammed the commission’s recommendations as being woefully out of touch with Alameda’s existing land uses and its limited regional transit connections.

Approved plan for Priority Development Area (PDA) at Alameda Point.

MTC’s forecast calls for adding roughly 10,000 new homes in Alameda by 2040, with the majority to be added in existing neighborhoods, outside of so-called Priority Development Areas (PDAs) like Alameda Point and the Northern Waterfront. This could only be accomplished if a host of improbable and unrealistic events were to occur, according to Thomas. Continue reading “Transportation agency calls for more housing in Alameda”

Alameda Point gateway plan begins taking shape

At its January 20, 2015 meeting, the city council will weigh-in on the preliminary layout proposed by developer Alameda Point Partners (APP) for a 68-acre residential and commercial parcel between Main Street and the Seaplane Lagoon.

West Atlantic Avenue will be realigned as a four-lane divided street to the right of the big tree and become a continuation of Ralph Appezzato Memorial Parkway. Main Street in foreground.

APP was selected by the former city council on November 18, 2014, to work up a plan for 800 condos and apartments and 200,000 square feet of retail and commercial space. The developer will also be responsible for changing the gateway street alignment from an oval to a straight line leading to a new public plaza at the Seaplane Lagoon. Continue reading “Alameda Point gateway plan begins taking shape”