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Recommendation to Approve Jennifer Ott, City Manager, Lisa Maxwell, Community Development Director, Andrew Thomas, Planning Building & Transportation Director, Scott Watson, Base Reuse Manager, and Len Aslanian, Assistant City Attorney, as Real Property Negotiators for the West Midway Market-Rate Development Project bounded by West Midway Avenue to the North, West Tower Avenue to the South, Main Street to the East and Pan Am Way to the West. (Community Development 29061822)
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To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
E XECUTIVE SUMMARY
Staff is recommending that City Council designate City Manager Jennifer Ott, Community Development Director Lisa Maxwell, Andrew Thomas, Planning Building & Transportation Director, Base Reuse Manager Scott Watson, and Assistant City Attorney Len Aslanian as the real property negotiators for the West Midway Market-Rate Development Project (Project), which will allow them to meet with City Council in closed session to discuss price and terms related to occupancy of the Project in a manner compliant with all applicable laws and to represent the City of Alameda (City) in negotiations with a public or private party.
B ACKGROUND
The Property is an approximately 32-acre site consisting of two-hundred (200) existing low-income housing units, former Naval Air Station structures and vacant land bounded by West Midway Avenue to the North, West Tower Avenue to the South, Main Street to the East and Pan Am Way to the West. The market-rate component of the West Midway project, which is comprised of 22 of the 32 total acres, contemplates four hundred and eighty-three (483) new housing units to be built across three phases. The City is currently in contract with the market-rate developer, comprised of Catellus and Brookfield Homes, under an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement (ENA) that is set to expire April 6, 2023 with one possible administrative extension that allows for an additional three-month extension that would then expire July 6, 2023. Staff and the developer are currently negotiating a Disposition, Development Agreement and a Development Agreement and related documents.
Staff is recommending that City Council designate City Manager Jennifer Ott, Community Development Director Lisa Maxwell, Planning Building & Transportation Director Andrew Thomas, Base Reuse Manager Scott Watson, and Assistant City Attorney Len Aslanian as the real property negotiators for the West Midway project, which will allow them to meet with City Council in closed session to discuss price and terms for this property in a manner compliant with all applicable laws and to represent the City in negotiations with a public or private party.
D ISCUSSION
Under Government Code Section 54956.8, Title 5, Division 2, Part 1, Chapter 9, the City Council must identify, in an open and public session, the real property negotiators for negotiation of the price and terms concerning real property, such as the Project. Staff recommends that the negotiators for negotiations related to the Project include Jennifer Ott, City Manager, Lisa Maxwell, Community Development Director, Andrew Thomas, Planning Building and Transportation Director, and Scott Watson, Base Reuse Manager. This will allow those individuals to negotiate on the City’s behalf, based on direction provided by the City Council.
A LTERNATIVES
• Approve Jennifer Ott, Lisa Maxwell, Andrew Thomas, Scott Watson and Len Aslanian as real property negotiators for the Project.
• Identify other staff as negotiators.
• Choose not to negotiate terms related to occupancy of the Project, and thus do not identify negotiators.
F INANCIAL IMPACT
There is no financial impact from the approval of real property negotiators.
M UNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Alameda Municipal Code.
E NVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action does not constitute a “project” as defined in California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378 and therefore no further CEQA analysis is required.
C LIMATE IMPACTS
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
R ECOMMENDATION
Approve Jennifer Ott, City Manager, Lisa Maxwell, Community Development Director, Andrew Thomas, Planning Building & Transportation Director, Scott Watson, Base Reuse Manager, and Len Aslanian Assistant City Attorney, as Real Property Negotiators for the West Midway Market-Rate Development Project.
Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Maxwell, Community Development Director