Title
Alameda Marina Planning Board Subcommittee Recommendations Study Session
Body
To: Honorable President and
Members of the Planning Board
From: Andrew Thomas, Assistant Community Development Director
Date: April 10, 2017
Re: Alameda Marina Planning Board Subcommittee Recommendations Study Session
background
On November 14, 2016, the Planning Board established a Planning Board subcommittee comprised of Board members Koster, Mitchell, and Knox White to work with Planning staff and the Alameda Marina project applicants (Bay West/Pacific Shops) to prepare a draft Master Plan for Planning Board and public consideration.
In January 2017, the subcommittee held its first meeting at which the project applicants presented their overall project objectives and major site improvement costs. At the meeting, the subcommittee discussed a process for developing recommendations for the proposed Master Plan. The subcommittee decided that work on the Master Plan and its recommendations should begin with the commercial component of the Master Plan.
The decision to begin the planning process with the commercial component of the mixed use plan is consistent with City Council feedback received at a City Council MX Mixed Use workshop in 2016, that the introduction of residential uses at Alameda Marina should support and supplement the continuation of maritime and other commercial uses at the site.
At this time, the subcommittee would like to share its initial recommendations with the full Planning Board and the community at-large and to request comments/questions from the Planning Board and community as it continues to work with the applicant on the master plan.
DISCUSSION
Subcommittee Initial Recommendations:
The subcommittee met on March 9, March 13, and March 16, 2017, to develop its recommendations for the commercial components of the Plan. On March 16th, the subcommittee advised the applicant and City staff that the subcommittee recommends that the commercial plans for Alameda Marina achieve the following objectives: (in order of priority):
1. Maritime Commercial Focus: The commercial plans for Alameda Marina should preserve the necessary land area and physical improvements and facilities necessary to support a boatyard at Alameda Marina, but may allow for flexible uses of the spaces. Priority would be maritime-serving boatyard, but as the city does not control the market, spaces should have the ability to adapt to other uses, while always maintaining the ability to re-adapt for maritime/boatyard uses.
2. Existing Buildings: The commercial plans for Alameda Marina should preserve the greatest number of existing buildings possible to: 1) provide opportunities for maritime and other commercial businesses, and 2) create a more interesting development plan that includes a combination of new and existing buildings on the site. It is expected that there are many trade-offs in making this decision, including financial ones.
3. The Graving Dock: The commercial plans should work to preserve the graving dock to create a more unique project design that retains this unique water feature, and avoid any uncertainty about the feasibility of regional permits to allow for filling of the graving dock.
4. Dry Boat Storage and Tidelands Configuration: The subcommittee encouraged the applicant and staff to consider an adjustment to the Tidelands property configuration to: 1) allow for consolidation of maritime uses such as the dry boat storage with the other maritime facilities adjacent to the boatyard, and 2) remove property lines that currently run through the middle of existing buildings. The subcommittee also stated that at least 50 dry boat storage spaces should be retained in the plan.
The subcommittee asked the applicant to consider the recommendations and revise the draft Master Plan accordingly. The subcommittee acknowledged that these changes may increase the development costs and that the total number of housing units necessary to support the cost to improve the existing deteriorating maritime facilities on the property and support the commercial aspects of the plan may also need to be increased.
From staff's perspective, the subcommittee's recommendations set the stage for an important public discussion that will require that the Planning Board and the Alameda community carefully balance the cost all of the community's objectives (shoreline improvements, boatyard and commercial building preservation, graving dock preservation, public open space, affordable housing, Clement Avenue improvements, etc.) with the need to include adequate land area and housing capacity in the Plan to cover the costs associated with the community's objectives. The resulting master plan will require careful planning, cooperation, and compromise.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Alameda Marina Master Plan is a project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act. Work is currently underway on a draft Environmental Impact Report.
RECOMMENDATION
That the Planning Board review and comment on the subcommittee’s initial recommendations.
Respectfully Submitted by:
Andrew Thomas
Assistant Community Development Director