Alameda Marina Development

[DaveH]

Ya know, it occurs to me there is a nearby space, owned by the City of Alameda [or at least the Alameda Point Development Authority].
It even has a travel lift equipped pier.

Now, admittedly, the city liquidated Nelsons old travelift to satisfy the back rent, and there is little other infrastructure in the seaplane lagoon, but zoning wise it is likely to stay light industrial for sometime to come, and is emphatically NOT in the path of the 5000 planned units on the point.

Top of mind, since my office looks right across the lagoon at the empty building and yard...

DH

[BobJ]

I agree Seaplane Lagoon is a good candidate due to depth, proximity to racing areas and development status (open but already concrete/paved). Regarding other infrastructure, take a hard look at the existing Gate 4 area at Alameda Marina (where the 3-ton hoist is) and you'll see almost none. No electrical to the spaces (there are a couple 110 outlets if you know where to look), a couple water spigots and the bathroom by Doyle Sails - that's it. That's also part of why it has been an affordable option.

One downside of Alameda Point is crew parking vis-a-vis not being close to any other marina where you could pick them up. We (SSS) don't tend to think like that but it could be a factor for the fully-crewed crowd. To keep this affordable you need most of the space you're leasing to be generating income - parking for crew doesn't do that.

Another downside is access. As said in previous posts, getting in and out of Alameda is not getting any easier. At least we'd be doing it at non-commute times.

After dry-sailing from Nelson's for a season, I tried to convince Carl that he could probably have the entire J/105 fleet lined up along his fence if he could set up a dry-sailing operation instead of trying to run what was, by then, a mediocre boat yard. You know where that went.

[AlanH]

Gentlemen, I have news for you. The entirety of Alameda Point...the ENTIRE THING has been zoned by the City of Alameda, exactly the same as the Alameda Marina...aka "North Alameda Shoreline". It's all zoned for mixed housing and light retail.

We CAN'T move a replacement for the Alameda Marina to Alameda Point. The zoning won't allow for it.

It's possible that a little business that did nothing but haul boats out of the water and store them in parking lots might be able to work....as long as the public had access to the waterfront. But there will be no haulout, boat repair, metal work, or "light industry" in Alameda Point, according to the zoning.

[AlanH]

Ya know, it occurs to me there is a nearby space, owned by the City of Alameda [or at least the Alameda Point Development Authority].
It even has a travel lift equipped pier.

Now, admittedly, the city liquidated Nelsons old travelift to satisfy the back rent, and there is little other infrastructure in the seaplane lagoon, but zoning wise it is likely to stay light industrial for sometime to come, and is emphatically NOT in the path of the 5000 planned units on the point.

Top of mind, since my office looks right across the lagoon at the empty building and yard...

DH

Not according to the zoning map we were shown at the meeting last night. Now, that map could have been BS. It was pointed out to us by the former vice-mayor of Alameda last night that the development company wonks were less than honest with us about zoning and the housing imperative. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if they "lied" to us via a much ovr-simplified map of zoning areas on the island.

[BobJ]

It's possible that a little business that did nothing but haul boats out of the water and store them in parking lots might be able to work....

That's all I'm contemplating. Even if the zoning allowed it, no one can set up a boatyard on San Francisco Bay any more.


Alan, I don't know if I have your current e-mail addy - I just sent one to your address at Yahoo.

[Philpott]

I love the mob scene from the Simpson's cartoon. Cute. But we are civilized people, if singlehanders. According to Erin Garcia, administrative assistant at the Alameda Planning Department, NO FORMAL APPLICATION regarding the Alameda boatyard or marina has been filed with the City as of today. If you would like to write a letter regarding this issue, send it to Andrew Thomas, Assistant Community Development Director. The address is: City of Alameda Planning Division 2263 Santa Clara Avenue Room 120, Alameda California 94501. Emails to PlanningBoard@Alamedaca.gov
Board members are David Burton, David Mitchell, John Knox White, Kristoffer Koster, Lorre Zuppan, Mike Henneberry and Sandy Sulllivan; Letters are forwarded to individual board members every two weeks.

[AlanH]

I love the mob scene from the Simpson's cartoon. Cute. But we are civilized people, if singlehanders. According to Erin Garcia, administrative assistant at the Alameda Planning Department, NO FORMAL APPLICATION regarding the Alameda boatyard or marina has been filed with the City as of today. If you would like to write a letter regarding this issue, send it to Andrew Thomas, Assistant Community Development Director. The address is: City of Alameda Planning Division 2263 Santa Clara Avenue Room 120, Alameda California 94501. Emails to PlanningBoard@Alamedaca.gov
Board members are David Burton, David Mitchell, John Knox White, Kristoffer Koster, Lorre Zuppan, Mike Henneberry and Sandy Sulllivan; Letters are forwarded to individual board members every two weeks.

Excellent. Thanks!

[AlanH]

Here's the e-mail I just sent:

=============================================

Hi I'm writing to you as someone who does not live in Alameda, but is extremely concerned about the process underway to redevelop the marina. I can't speak to local issues such as traffic and congestion. However, I can write about the value of the Alameda Marina as it stands right now.

Because of economic, political and permitting issues, it is essentially impossible to open another boatyard anywhere on San Francisco Bay any more. The costs would be astounding and the bureaucratic and permitting hurdles would take many, many years to complete. Once the Alameda Marina is gone, its function will not be replaced in our lifetimes.

I know that all the pretty boats along the shoreline are very attractive, but without a place to take them out of the water, clean the bottoms of weed and barnacles, and do repairs, owners can not maintain those boats. The number of yards around the SF Bay that can service boats has plummeted. It was only a decade ago that there were 4-5 yards in Oakland/Alameda that could do this. Now there is one.....Alameda Marina.


Not only is the Alameda Marina the last remaining place in Oakland/Alameda to do this work, but because of its unique nature, the Marina serves as a hub for other local businesses. A drive down Clement Avenue reveals a large number of light industry...Sals (liferafts and inflatable boats)... a couple of welding shops, outboard motor repair shops and so on. If the Alameda Marina closes, it's pretty certain that those industries will leave.

At the community meeting last night, the employees of the development company showed us a map of the island of Alameda that says that the North Alameda Shore has been re-zoned to "mixed use housing" and "light retail". We were told that this is incompatible with any sort of boatyard, and that housing and light retail, maybe a waterfront restaurant, are the only things that can be there. The rezoning, we were told, happened in 2012. The developer has no choice, according to their presentation. They MUST infill the entire marina with housing and remove the boatyard and associated industries.

I cannot strongly enough encourage the planning office and the city council to reconsider this zoning. There are other locations along Clement Avenue that have not served the community in any way, really for many decades. I just drove down Clement twice in the past week, and the old warehouses at the south-east end are now gone. Housing, if it must be built, can be built there. The Alameda Marina can be changed in ways to improve it's appearance, if that is what bothers people. "The "Clement Wall" ... the 200-yard long brown "wall" of the sides of the buildings are indeed unattractive. However, that can be changed without destroying the character and function of the place.

The development company representatives talked about "revitalizing the waterfront". If you've been to the Alameda Marina in the last few months, you'll realize that it doesn't need "revitalizing". It's busy. People are working and playing there. Could the space be used more efficiently? Yes, probably so. But the site is emphatically NOT "dead". It's quite vital and active.

To close, I want to emphasize that once the Marina is razed, and that is the stated goal of the developer as per the two meetings that took place yesterday, that function will never be replaced. The Alameda Marina is a unique place in a unique location. It is not just an Alameda resource, it is a resource used by people from all over the Bay Area. I live in Menlo Park, and I drove 90 minutes in rush hour traffic to attend the meeting last night because I realize how valuable the Alameda Marina is.

By the way, before I got there, I spent $12 in Nob Hill market to buy something for dinner. I filled up my cars gas tank at the Chevron station. I have my boat in dry storage and use the Alameda Marina hoist to launch it. I buy sails and equipment from Marina businesses. If the Marina is razed and replaced by townhouses and condos, I literally will have no reason to ever go to Alameda again.

Please reconsider the zoning for the area, that according to the developer, is driving the demolition and destruction of this vitally important place.

Alan Hebert

[Philpott]

That is a very articulate and serious letter, Alan, and you make excellent points about the effects upon other marine businesses in the area. However, if the owner of the boatyard has sold the development rights, it sounds like he does not want to be in that business anymore. Imagine the clean-up issues inherent in marine property, the liability costs and the disdain of the ecologically pure with regard to boatyards. By selling to the developers the owner has been able to wash his hands of all that. I attended a dockside party in Berkeley recently, where a young child was fascinated with the sailboats. As little children do, he walked around opening and closing everything up and down the docks. When he got to my dockbox he lifted the cover and peeked in at my West Marine epoxy and etc materials just as his father came to recover him. The father grabbed his son in horror (HORROR!!!) and cried, "Don't touch anything!" I thought there was a snake in my dockbox. "Those are TOXIC MATERIALS!!!", he informed his child. "Don't touch anything else! We're leaving!" I think that's the way boatyards are viewed by people who don't have boats, and it's a significant attitude to overcome. That's why your argument about the effects upon people's livelihoods needs to be made by the people who own and work in the businesses all around. I'm sure that will begin now. You have served as the canary in the mine.

[BobJ]

To be precise, there is also a boat yard at Grand Marina along with associated marine businesses like the Blue Pelican, Marchal Sailmakers/UK Sails, Pacific Marine Canvas, etc. But as Grand Marina also gets surrounded by housing, those businesses days could be numbered. Alameda needs to decide how important its maritime heritage is, and the importance of the accessibility the city provides for boating recreation.

They also need to figure out how they would get all those new residents on and off the island. That's the 500# gorilla in the room.

To add: I wonder if the owner of Grand Marina is saying its boat yard and related businesses have to leave because of a zoning change in 2012. That argument by Poland's company isn't making sense.