Title
Public Hearing to Consider a Waterfront Plaza and Promenade Development Plan and Design Review for Approximately 4.5 acres of the Alameda Landing Waterfront. An Environmental Impact Report has been completed for the Alameda Landing Project, Including the Proposed Park
Body
BACKGROUND
In 2017, the City Council adopted an ordinance amending the Bayport/Alameda Landing Master Plan and Environmental Impact Report (EIR) Addendum that allows for 17 acres of maritime commercial uses within 364,000 square feet of existing waterfront warehouses, up to 400 residential units, and a 4.5-acre public park on the Alameda Landing waterfront.
The park site provides waterfront views of the San Francisco Bay and Estuary, Port of Oakland activities, cranes, and the Oakland and San Francisco skylines. The 4.5 acre public waterfront park will be located directly across the estuary from Jack London Square and the Port of Oakland Howard Terminal, which is currently being considered by the Oakland A’s for a possible new waterfront stadium site. On the Alameda side of the estuary, the park will be bordered by the existing dry boat storage warehouse, the Commodore Fleet facilities, and Cardinal Point assisted living to the east, a new residential neighborhood between the park and Mitchell Avenue to the south, and the Bay Ship and Yacht warehouses to the west.
Pursuant to the Alameda Landing Master Plan, the applicant, Catellus Alameda Development, LLC, is responsible for preparing the design of the park for the City. Upon approval by the Planning Board, the applicant will construct the new park. The City will own, operate and maintain the park. Maintenance costs will be provided by the Alameda Landing Municipal Services District (MSD), which is an assessment district on the Alameda Landing project that provides funds for public infrastructure and park maintenance at Alameda Landing.
Catellus submitted an initial plan for the park to the City for review in April of 2018.
On May 10, 2018, the Alameda Recreation and Parks Commission reviewed and commented on the initial conceptual park design.
On June 25, 2018, the Planning Board reviewed the conceptual plans and provided a number of comments on the initial plan in addition to the issues raised by city staff in the report.
On July 9, 2018, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) Design Review Board reviewed and commented on the same plans that were reviewed by the Planning Board.
Based upon all the comments received, the park design consultants at KayVictor, Landscape Architects revised the proposed design plans for the park for Planning Board review and approval. The revised plans are included as Exhibit 1. A draft resolution of approval is attached as Exhibit 2.
DISCUSSION
The Alameda Master Plan requires:
• At least 4.5 acres of public open space;
• At least 100 feet of width from the edge of the wharf to the face of any new buildings and some areas that are wider than 100 feet;
• A waterfront plaza at the foot of Fifth Street with a minimum width of 175 feet at the water’s edge and a water shuttle landing and kayak launch for public use;
• A pedestrian-only pathway separate from an extension of the Bay Trail; and
• A variety of spaces and facilities for passive and active recreation activities, including strolling, biking, kayaking and paddle boarding, picnicking and BBQing, fishing, large and small gatherings and events, sunset and boat watching, lounging, running, and learning.
The park plans shown in Exhibit 1 meet these objectives and provide a unique open space and recreational facility for all Alameda residents to enjoy. The following discussion describes the major features of the design plans.
The Plaza and Water Shuttle Landing: As shown in Exhibit 1, the plans provide for a waterfront plaza at the foot of Fifth Street designed to serve as a major gathering place, kayak center, water shuttle dock, and a gateway to Alameda. The proposed water shuttle landing shown on the plans is approximately 1,000 feet from the public dock at Jack London Square and the Jack London Square Ferry Terminal.
The plaza includes an arbor structure and a backdrop of shade trees. (The adjacent residential development will include at least 5,000 square feet of retail space.) The waterfront plaza serves as the main gathering area, activity area, and future water-based transportation connection between Oakland and Alameda.
The plan includes a series of smaller open space areas around the edge of the plaza that are programmed for children, climbing structures, games, picnic areas, café seating and public benches. A kayak storage and rental facility will be located at the northeastern end of the waterfront edge near the new public dock.
In response to Planning Board and others comments, the plans have been revised to: improve the facilities in the plaza area and include a creative play area with a ship play structure; remove pergola structures in front of the retail areas; improve the Bay Trail configuration to minimize conflicts to the extent feasible with pedestrians and shuttle users through pavement markings and additional wayfinding signage for bay trail; expand the parking lot to include 18 more parking spaces; improve the bicycle parking for the water shuttle launch; and improve the kayak drop off and access areas. The revised plans also now include specific plans and construction details for the floating dock that will serve as a public kayak launch and public water shuttle landing.
Parking for park users will be located off of Fifth Street. A condition of approval requires at least 35 spaces for park users, including ADA parking spaces. Seventeen (17) of the spaces will be constructed with the park on the 4.5 acres of park land. The other 18 spaces will be developed by the residential developer adjacent to the 17 within the park.
The Promenade: West of the plaza, the promenade extends for approximately 1,000 feet along the water to the west towards Bay Ship and Yacht. This waterfront promenade is designed for strolling, biking, sitting, passive recreation, and enjoying the views. Low landscaped areas bordered by low seating walls provide space for grass areas and plant materials along the residential areas that border the park. At the inland edge of the park, a separate pedestrian path runs the length of the park in front of the future adjacent residential neighborhood.
The promenade is designed as a 90 foot wide park, with a mandatory 10 foot setback on the adjacent residential property. The 10 foot setback ensures that all future residential buildings are set back at least 100 feet from the wharf’s edge. A public sidewalk and path with a continuous line of palm trees defines the rear edge of the park (90 feet from the wharf’s edge). The private property to the south of the sidewalk will be maintained by the private property owners.
The promenade plan is also designed to include two “park extensions” into the residential development. These “extensions” or small “pocket parks” are designed to serve several functions. They will provide wind protected areas for people to sit and enjoy the views of the park and waterfront. They will also provide pedestrian “gateways” to and from the park to the neighborhood, and they will serve as the terminus of two major view corridors through the residential area from inland Alameda to the park and the Estuary. Finally, these extensions provide areas within the park that are wider than 100 feet. (The Plaza also provides an area with a depth greater than 100 feet.) During the review of the adjacent residential development, the Planning Board will have the authority to adjust the location, width and configuration of the pocket parks to best serve both the park and the adjacent neighborhood.
The Western Buffer: Along the western edge of the park, the western greenway runs approximately 700’ north and south between the wharf edge and Mitchell Avenue. The amended Master Plan refers to this “buffer” area as a minimum 50’-wide building setback from the common property line with the adjacent Bay Ship & Yacht. This buffer, sitting atop storm drain easements, provides an appropriates separation from the maritime commercial uses and provides for Bay Trail and public access from the waterfront park to Estuary Park and the sports fields on Mitchell Avenue and the Bette Street Class I bike path to Stargell Avenue. From Estuary Park, cyclists will be able to continue on Singleton Avenue to reach the Main Street Ferry Terminal and over five miles of future waterfront bicycle trails at Alameda Point. During the review of the adjacent residential development, the Planning Board will review and approve the final design of the western buffer.
Bicycle Bridge to Oakland: The 2007 Master Plan states: “Establish and enhance pedestrian and bicycle connections between the waterfront, the overall development, and other Alameda neighborhoods and along the waterfront, as well as to the extent feasible across the Estuary to Jack London Square.”
In 2017, the City Council re-confirmed the City of Alameda’s commitment to working with Bike Walk Alameda, the City and Port of Oakland, and Alameda property owners to develop a plan for a bicycle and pedestrian bridge to Oakland. Working with Oakland, the design team has identified two potential locations for the bridge: one of which would connect Alameda Landing to Jack London Square. If this location were ultimately selected, the bridge would begin at Mitchell Avenue near the intersection of Mitchell and Fifth, and slowly rise over the project site to and across the Estuary. At the point the bridge crosses the park, the bridge would be between 30 and 35 feet in the air above the park. After crossing the estuary, the bridge would descend to a landing between the Oakland Ferry Terminal and the foot of Broadway.
The proposed park is designed to ensure that it does not present any additional challenges to the City’s efforts to design, fund, and build a bicycle pedestrian bridge after the park is completed. The 2017 Master Plan envisioned the bridge being located along the western edge of the property adjacent to Bay Ship and Yacht. Based upon more recent analysis of the bridge options with the Port of Oakland and the bridge engineers, staff has determined that it is likely infeasible to place the bicycle bridge in that location, which is an existing easement area for storm drains, as the alignment would conflict with Port of Oakland shipping operations. However, the Port has indicated that an alignment approximately 500 to 700 feet to the east would avoid the shipping operations. The design of the park can accommodate the bridge in this location, but careful work will be needed on the design of the adjacent neighborhood to provide a roadway right-of-way in a location approximately 500 to 700 feet east of the western buffer that is designed to accommodate the bridge at a future date.
Park Name: The naming of a City park is the purview of the Recreation and Park Commission and the City Council. The Recreation and Park Commission received a request from the Bohol Circle organization to consider naming the future waterfront park after Bohol Circle in recognition of the important history and role of the Bohol Circle community in Alameda.
Pursuant to the Planning Board’s prior direction in June, the draft Planning Board resolution includes a “whereas” paragraph expressing the Planning Board’s support for the proposal to name the future park after the Bohol Circle organization, while recognizing that the ultimate authority for park names lies with the Recreation and Parks Commission and the City Council.
Construction Phasing: Consistent with the Master Plan, the 4.5-acre park will be constructed and completed prior to or concurrent with the completion of the adjacent residential neighborhood. A condition of approval that requires completion of the park and the water shuttle landing prior to completion of the residential development.
Conclusions: In staff’s opinion, the proposed plan for the Alameda Landing Waterfront Plaza and Promenade complies with all of the design objectives for the park in the Alameda Landing Master Plan and will become a major new public asset for the benefit of the Alameda community. Staff is recommending that the Planning Board approve the draft plans.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
On December 5, 2006, the City Council certified the Final Environmental Impact Report for the Alameda Landing Mixed Use Development Project (a Supplement to the 2000 Catellus Mixed Use Development Project EIR) in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (State Clearinghouse #2006012091). The City has prepared several addenda to the 2006 SEIR.
On July 18, 2017, the City Council approved an Environmental Assessment of the Bayport/Alameda Landing Master Plan Amendment. The Environmental Assessment concluded that the Master Plan Amendment (provided that the traffic trip cap established by the Master Plan is maintained) would not generate any new, or substantially more severe, impacts than might be expected as compared to those identified in the 2006 SEIR.
No further environmental review is required for the approval of the park plans.
RECOMMENDATION
Hold a public hearing and approve the draft resolution of approval for the Alameda Landing Waterfront Plaza and Promenade Development Plan and Design Review plans.
Respectfully submitted,
Andrew Thomas, Assistant Community Development Director
Exhibits:
1. Alameda Landing Waterfront Plaza and Promenade Development Plan
2. Draft Resolution of Approval