Title
Introduction of Ordinance Authorizing the City Manager to Execute a Lease with Longshot Space Technologies Corporation, a Delaware Corporation, for a Term of Thirty-Seven Months for a Portion of Building 29 known as Suite 200, Located at 1701 Monarch Street, at Alameda Point. [Requires four affirmative votes]
This action is categorically exempt from further environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 (Existing Facilities). (Base Reuse and Economic Development 29161822)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Gerry Beaudin, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Staff recommends that City Council authorize the City Manager to execute a thirty-seven (37)-month lease with Longshot Space Technologies Corporation, a Delaware corporation (Longshot), for an approximately 9,200 square-foot portion of Building 29, designated as Suite 200, and approximately 7,400 square feet of adjacent yard space, located at 1701 Monarch St, Alameda CA 94501 (Building 29), for a rate of $5,670 a month for the first twelve months, and an annual increase of 3.5% commencing on the 13th month.
BACKGROUND
Building 29, a City of Alameda (City)-owned building located at 1701 Monarch Street, is a flat-roof T-shaped concrete building containing approximately 19,480 square feet, located at the southwest corner of the Seaplane Lagoon. The building is a former Naval workshop and gun-testing facility built in 1987, and as such, this suite is unusually sized and configured and is usable only by a limited pool of businesses. Building 29 is slated for eventual demolition as part of the future DePave Park. In late 2023, City Council directed staff to keep the building occupied until the park construction is ready to proceed.
Dreyfuss Capital Partners, LLC currently leases Suite 100, which is occupied by a variety of metalworkers, craftspeople, and artists. Suite 200, the remaining portion of Building 29, is a long, narrow reinforced concrete corridor designed by the Navy for gun testing. Longshot is currently occupying Suite 200 under a short-term administrative license agreement that will expire on December 31, 2026.
Longshot is a start-up company developing a non-rocket-based satellite launcher that uses a linear accelerator tube instead of the traditional vertical launch of a rocket. In August 2026, Longshot approached the City for a license to use the gun-test portion of Building 29 to install and test a scaled-down prototype of its accelerator. The unique shape and design of the former gun tube are ideally suited to Longshot’s prototype.
Staff agreed to license this portion of Building 29 to Longshot on a short-term license basis, and Longshot began occupying Suite 200 of Building 29, as well as the adjacent yard and other outdoor space, in the fall of 2025.
As part of the licensing terms, Longshot was required to obtain necessary permits and regulatory approvals for its occupancy and use. On March 16, 2026, Longshot received an Administrative Use Permit and is working to finalize its Building Permit for the proposed tenant improvements and alterations necessary for its use of the site. The application has been processed, but the planned work has not yet received final approval.
City staff advised Longshot to submit an offer if they were interested in a longer-term occupancy of Building 29 beyond the license term, which staff presented in closed session to City Council on June 2, 2026.
DISCUSSION
The recommended lease premises include exclusive use of a portion of Building 29, Suite 200, and part of the adjacent paved yard. It also includes non-exclusive parking in the unfenced area adjacent to Monarch Street. The leased premises, land, and parking areas are shown in the lease as Exhibits A, A-1 and A-2.
For the first twelve months, the monthly rent for Suite 200 will be $3,450.00 (at $0.375 per square foot), and the monthly rent for the yard will be $2,220.00 (at $0.30 per square foot), for a total monthly base rent of $5,670, with the first month’s base rent abated as part of the negotiated terms.
On the one-year anniversary of the lease commencement, the monthly base rent shall increase by 3.5%, to $5,868 per month in the second year, and $6,074 per month in the third. Under these terms, over the three-year lease term, the total base rent to be paid to the City will be $211,751, assuming one month of abated rent. The net present value of the lease to the City is $189,632.
At any time during the term of the lease, the City may opt to terminate with sixty (60) days prior written notice to Longshot.
Staff recommends that, after opening the public hearing and considering all of the documents and testimony, City Council approve the first reading of the ordinance authorizing the City Manager to execute the lease agreement with Longshot as described, as the lease’s short-term nature allows the City to generate revenue while the De Pave Park project moves forward.
ALTERNATIVES
City Council may consider the following alternatives to the staff recommendation, as well as other alternatives not identified below:
• Choose not to approve the first reading and direct the City Manager to terminate negotiations with Longshot and notify Longshot to vacate Building 29 at the end of their license term. In this case, it is unlikely that the City would find another tenant to lease this space for the foreseeable future, given the unusual building configuration as a long, narrow testing facility.
• Choose not to approve the first reading and direct the City Manager to continue negotiations with Longshot. In this scenario, City Council should identify the specific lease terms or conditions that require further negotiation.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
With abated rent, the lease will contribute base lease revenue of $211,751. These funds will be deposited in the Alameda Point State Tidelands Fund (291) and will assist with the expenses for City-owned land in the Alameda Point Tidelands trust areas.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
The proposed uses for the building are consistent with the tenant’s approved Use Permit, and the General Plan. The recommended lease is in alignment with Strategic Plan goal TIE 26 to expand Citywide business economic development activities, including an Alameda Point attraction and retention program. This matter is subject to the Levine Act.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action does not constitute a “project” as defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15378 and therefore no further CEQA analysis is required.
On a separate and independent basis, this action is categorically exempt from further environmental review pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 (Existing Facilities).
CLIMATE IMPACT
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Hold a public hearing and introduce an ordinance authorizing the City Manager to execute a lease with Longshot Space Technologies Corporation, a Delaware corporation, for a term of thirty-seven months for a portion of Building 29 known as Suite 200, located at 1701 Monarch Street, at Alameda Point.
Respectfully submitted,
Abigail Thorne-Lyman, Base Reuse and Economic Development Director
By,
Annie Cox, Administrative Management Analyst
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Ross McCarthy, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Lease