Title
Recommendation to Name the New Park known as Alameda Landing Waterfront Park as Bohol Circle Immigrant Park and Direct Staff to Include Educational Signage About Bohol Circle. (Recreation 10051400)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The four-acre park at the Alameda Landing Waterfront (Park) will be opening soon and was built by Catellus, as a requirement for its housing development. The Recreation and Parks Commission (Commission) followed the four-step process detailed in the City of Alameda (City) Facilities and Street Naming Policy (Naming Policy). This process included naming discussions at three Commission meetings and two community-wide surveys. The Commission unanimously recommended the name Bohol Circle Immigrant Park to the City Council with the inclusion of educational signage with information and history about Bohol Circle.
BACKGROUND
In October 2021, the City Council updated the City Naming Policy. The goal of the updated Naming Policy is to broaden the naming criteria to allow greater diversity, equity and inclusion as well as broader community input at public Brown Act meetings. Therefore, standing criteria is written into the Naming Policy that names should reflect diversity, equity and inclusion to intentionally broaden the representation of people in our community.
The Naming Policy provides for a four-step public process that was followed by the Commission.
On December 9, 2021, the Commission received a presentation on the Park describing the location, background and any identifying features. At that meeting, the Commission approved the naming criteria for this park as “The uniqueness of the park’s location on the pier and estuary with an intersection with diverse and inclusive cultural significance in Alameda.”
Staff then conducted a community-wide survey to solicit name ideas for the Park based on the established criteria. The community survey included four new parks for efficiency. These included Alameda Point Waterfront Park, Alameda Point Neighborhood Park, Alameda Landing Waterfront Park and Alameda Marina Park. The first three of these parks are being presented tonight for final approval. The name recommendation for Alameda Marina Park will come to City Council for approval at a later date because it includes the name of a specific person and per the City Naming Policy, further historical and background research is required. During the public outreach, efforts were made to reach a broad and diverse representation of the Alameda community. Exhibit 2 includes all name ideas generated from the survey (excluding inappropriate or offensive names) as well as a shorter list of names vetted based on the identified Park name criteria and parameters of the City Facility Naming Policy.
On March 10, 2022, the Commission reviewed the entire list of names generated from the survey as well as previously created park name lists and the shorter list of names that met the established Park criteria. The Commission then approved a list of 10 Park names and a second community wide survey was then conducted to solicit feedback on the approved list of the top 10 Park names.
The top 10 Park names include:
• Bohol Circle Immigrant Waterfront Park
• Alameda Pier Fleet Park
• Fleet and Industrial Supply Park
• Waterways Terminal Park
• Costanoa Park
• Gateway Park
• Immigrant Landing Park
• Island City Park
• Diversity Pier
• Waterfront Pier Park
On July 14, 2022, the Commission voted to recommend the final name of Bohol Circle Immigrant Park and to include educational signage with information and history about Bohol Circle. The final step is for the City Council to consider the Commission’s Park name recommendation of Bohol Circle Immigrant Park and approve the final Park name.
The Naming Policy includes the following requirements:
• A focus on local Alameda significance but may reflect California or a national lens as appropriate.
• A person must be deceased for at least three years to be considered.
• Names must reflect values of inclusivity and diversity.
DISCUSSION
The Alameda Landing Waterfront Park is located at the end of 5th Street, just off Mitchell Avenue on the Alameda Oakland Estuary. The location and park design is detailed in Exhibit 1. This park is unique in that most of it is on a pier. The park includes a playground with a ship theme, group picnic area, chess and corn hole games, fish cleaning station, dock for non-motorized water craft and a water taxi shuttle, large open concrete area for events, fitness equipment, connection with the SF Bay Trail, and seating along the public water promenade. This park will serve the residents of new and existing homes in Alameda Landing and is a connection for the San Francisco Bay Trail through to Estuary Park.
This section of Alameda is known as the Fleet and Industrial Supply Center (FISC). This area of Alameda was originally undeveloped marshlands and tidal flats of the San Francisco Bay. During the 1800s to the 1960s, this land was created by filling these areas with dredge materials from Seaplane Lagoon, San Francisco Bay and Oakland Inner Harbor.
From 1920 to 1941, the area was a commercial airport. The federal government purchased the land in 1941 and was constructed from 1944 - 1945 by the U.S. Army Corps. The Army Air Forces conducted operations from 1945 - 1948 and used the site as a supply center to support military operations. In 1951, the site’s use changed and it became the Alameda Medical Depot including cold storage facilities with a mission to procure, store and distribute perishable food. From 1955 - 1962, the Quartermaster General, Washington D.C. managed the site as the Alameda Administration Center. [Historical information cited from 1) US Army Corps of Engineers History - Fleet Industrial Supply Center Alameda Annex, 8/21/2017 and 2) Dept of the Navy Base Realignment and Closure Fact Sheet - 5-Year Review of Alameda Point and Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Oakland, Alameda Facility/Alameda Annex Alameda, California, November 2011]
Bohol Circle is a Filipino-American social society founded in Alameda in 1936. During the design review of the Park, representatives of Bohol Circle requested that the Commission name this park after their organization in honor of their place and role in the Alameda community and history. They also made the request to the Planning Board during the park design approval and the Planning Board voted to recommend to the Recreation and Parks Commission to name the park Bohol Circle Park.
It is important to note that since the Park name criteria, the uniqueness of the park’s location on the pier and estuary with an intersection with diverse and inclusive cultural significance in Alameda, is specific to the City of Alameda, this eliminated numerous names of people of color and women who had major achievements or were of cultural significance but not specific to the City of Alameda.
ALTERNATIVES
Alternatives include:
• Name the park at Alameda Landing Waterfront as Bohol Circle Immigrant Park.
• Consider an alternate name for the Park from the names submitted.
• Identify a new alternate name for the Park.
• Send back to Recreation & Parks Commission to consider further based on specific direction from the City Council.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The park name signage for this park is funded by the developer responsible for building the park and will be updated with the final approval name. If City Council approves inclusion of the educational signage about Bohol Circle then staff will include a mid-year Fiscal Year 2022-23 budget request to fund the design and installation costs. This is estimated to cost $15,000.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action has no effect on the Alameda Municipal Code. It is consistent with the City’s Facility Naming Policy.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Approval of naming this Park is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15301, Existing Facilities, as a minor alteration of an existing public facility.
CLIMATE IMPACT
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Name the new park at the Alameda Landing waterfront as Bohol Circle Immigrant Park and direct dtaff to include educational signage about Bohol Circle.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy Wooldridge, Recreation and Parks Director
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Margaret O’Brien, Finance Director
Exhibits:
1. Alameda Landing Waterfront Park Location and Design
2. Alameda Landing Waterfront Park Name Ideas from Survey
cc: Nancy Bronstein, Interim City Manager