{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 1, "text": "APPROVED MEETING MINUTES\nREGULAR MEETING OF THE\nCITY OF ALAMEDA PLANNING BOARD\nMONDAY, MARCH 23, 2015\n1. CONVENE:\n7:04 P.M.\n2. FLAG SALUTE:\nBoard member Burton led the flag salute.\n3. ROLL CALL:\nPresent: President Henneberry, Vice President Alvarez and\nBoard Members Burton, Knox White, K\u00f6ster and Tang and\nZuppan (arrived at 7:20 p.m).\n4. AGENDA CHANGES AND DISCUSSION: Mr. Andrew Thomas, City Planner, requested\nto move Item 7-B in front of Item 7-A. President Henneberry approved the agenda change.\n5. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None\n6. CONSENT CALENDAR:\n6-A: 2015-1463\nMake a Determination of Consistency of the Proposed Fiscal Year\n2015-2017 Capital Budget with the General Plan\nBoard Member Knox White motioned to approve the consent calendar. Vice President\nAlvarez seconded the motion.\nThe motion carried, 6-0.\n7. REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:\n7-A. 2015-1467\nPublic Workshop on the Alameda Point Site A Development Plan,\nincluding an Outline of the Transportation Demand Management Plan\nCompliance Strategy.\nMr. Thomas gave the presentation. He introduced Mr. Joe Ernst, of Alameda Point\nPartners, and Mr. David Israel, of BAR Architects.\nBoard Member Burton asked the team to clarify some of the design modifications in front\nof Building 77, especially regarding the road near the park.\nMr. Israel replied that the need for a two-way street in the area was primarily a requirement\nfrom the Fire Department, so the team opted to have one road instead of two.\nBoard Member Burton asked whether the buildings would be retail on only one story or on\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 1 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 2, "text": "multiple floors.\nMr. Ernst explained that the buildings on the site would be used for event space, public\nmeeting space, dining and retail, and the buildings would be no more than 35 feet high.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster asked Mr. Thomas if there would be a bus terminal at the site to\ncomplement the proposed ferry service. Mr. Thomas said that the ferry terminal would be\nbuilt at the end of Pacific Avenue, and that staff has been working with AC Transit to\ndetermine the routes.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster asked about the definition of a \"naked street\". Mr. Israel defined the\nterm.\nBoard Member Zuppan asked about the inclusion of universal design in the draft\nresolution. Mr. Thomas explained that the universal design plan was still under discussion.\nBoard Member Zuppan asked about the definition of solar-ready homes. Mr. Israel\nexplained that the concept of having solar-ready homes is a state requirement.\nThe Board opened public comment:\nMr. Jim Strehlow asked about the status of the non-profit museums that are currently at\nthe space. Mr. Thomas said that the Naval Air Museum would not be affected by these\ndesigns.\nMs. Jennifer Ott, Chief Operating Officer for Alameda Point, explained that staff would\nwork with all tenants affected by these plans.\nThe Board closed public comment:\nBoard Member Knox White said that he appreciated the plans. He said that the plan's\ncover image shows the park in the middle of the road, but it is not in the updated plan. He\nwanted staff to change the image to prevent confusion among members of the public. He\nalso expressed concern about the 12 diagonal parking spaces proposed for the naked\nstreet area. He wanted to see successful examples of shared space with similar parking.\nHe believes that the use of the central space at Site A would decide whether or not the\nentire project would be successful.\nBoard Member Burton said he believes it is important to get the diagram of the site plan\ncorrect. The townhouse blocs seem to have gaps between each other, and he wondered if\nthere could be a way to offset these gaps between the houses. He commended the design\nteam for trying to create a vibrant and pedestrian street front, with the fronts of the\nbuildings having either retail or residential units. He said he also appreciated the imagery\nchosen in order to highlight the vibrant environment planned for the site. Board Member\nBurton asked about the scheduling to remove fencing around Seaplane Lagoon, and said\nhe wants the site to be used as often as possible. He reminded the team to provide spaces\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 2 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 3, "text": "for other types of recreation as well.\nBoard Member Zuppan also commended Alameda Point Partners for their work. She said\nthat the existing buildings will enhance the site. She said she appreciates how current\nresidents and tenants were being included in the planning process. She said she agrees\nwith Board Member Knox White's comments about the central space and the naked\nstreets within it. She wanted to see an extension of the cross-Alameda shuttle to Site A in\norder to reduce traffic in the City. Board Member Zuppan said she appreciated how staff\nand the team incorporated the Board's ideas into the TMA.\nBoard Member Tang asked about the placement of basketball courts. Mr. Thomas said\nthat the City is not ready to program the parks at this time; instead, the design team was\ntrying to imagine potential uses of the space. When the City lays out the parks, these\ndesigns will be brought to the Board for Design Review and the Recreation and Parks\nCommission for programming.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster when the Board would see the final master plan for the site. Ms. Ott\nexplained that staff would be refining the master plan in the next month, but it would be\nbased off of the plans shown at tonight's meeting. The plans are meant to be very flexible,\nbut she encouraged the Board to give their input to the development team in the next 30\ndays.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster said he was very excited to see more park space in the plan. He\nsaid he would like to see a land-use diagram in order to see more detail of how the space\nwould be used. He reaffirmed the importance of drawing people to the waterfront, and said\nthat the character images and building designs are becoming more realistic. Board\nMember K\u00f6ster asked about the possible addition massing diagrams of the building and\nhow it relates to the buildings currently at the site.\nVice President Alvarez thanked Alameda Point Partners for including community input into\ntheir design plans. She asked for the diagrams to be shown to the public for their reference\nin the next meeting. She said that the plans continue to be modified in response to public\ncomment, and explained to the public that the Board received the notes from the City\nCouncil's meetings. Vice President Alvarez said that she agreed with her fellow Board\nMembers who suggested that the TDM for Site A be included with other projects in the\nCity. She expressed regret that more members of the community were not present.\n7-B.\n2015-1466\nPublic Hearing to Consider the Design Review and Use Permit\nApplications for Construction of a Central Bay Operations and\nMaintenance Facility, Emergency Operations Center, Outdoor Fuel\nStorage Area, and Extended Hours to Serve as the Central San\nFrancisco Bay Base for the Water Emergency Transportation Agency\nat 670 West Hornet Avenue. A Mitigated Negative Declaration has\nbeen prepared for the project pursuant to the California Environmental\nQuality Act.\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 3 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 4, "text": "Mr. Thomas gave the presentation. He introduced Mr. Kevin Connelly, head of WETA,\nwho, in turn, introduced Mr. Boris Dramoff, architect, to speak about the design of the\nbuilding.\nMr. Dramoff gave a presentation.\nBoard Member Tang asked about the potential hazardous materials at the tank storage\nsite. Mr. Dramoff said that the tanks would be double-lined, and there would be diesel fuel\nat the site.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster praised the team's plans. He asked how many vessels would be\nmoored at the site. Mr. Connelly explained that WETA currently owns 8 ships, and has\nother ships currently being used and stored elsewhere. Board Member K\u00f6ster asked about\npotential expansion of the site. Mr. Connelly clarified potential expansion plans.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster asked about bicycle parking at the site. Mr. Dramoff said that there\nwill be bicycle parking both inside and outside of the building.\nBoard Member Burton asked Mr. Thomas to elaborate on the parking and TDM for the site.\nMr. Thomas explained that there is no on site-parking but the City will lease space for up to\n75 parking spaces to WETA within 1500 feet of the building. A portion of the agency's rent\nto the City will go to fund other services at Alameda Point. Board Member Burton asked\nhow use of the parking spaces would be agreed upon. Mr. Thomas said that, since the\nproposed hours of operations are so unusual, it may be impractical to run transit at these\ntimes. Mr. Dramoff explained that the proposed hours of operations are not unusual in the\nmaritime industry.\nThe Board opened public comment.\nMs. Leslie Cameron, on behalf of her husband and her business partners, said she serves\non the Alameda Chamber of Commerce. She said she was very excited for the project.\nShe said that the design of the plans would be good for all sides, and urged approval.\nMr. Jim Strehlew said that the proposed plan is great for jobs.\nThe Board closed public comment.\nBoard Comments:\nBoard Member Zuppan said that she was not particularly encouraged by the design of the\nbuilding, and would defer to her fellow Board Members with the appropriate expertise. She\nnoted the importance of having the WETA facility in Alameda. She said that the parking\nissue was a big deal for her, and, in the event of an emergency, there might not be enough\nparking for all of the people who would most need it. She said she struggles with closing\npart of the waterfront, and asked if there are other solutions in order to make it more\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 4 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 5, "text": "accessible to the public. She said that she thinks it is otherwise a great project.\nBoard Member Knox White talked about the importance of having the maritime industry in\nthe city. He said that the project is an ideal use for the site. He echoed Board Member\nZuppan's comments about the details of the project needing to be determined. Board\nMember Knox White suggested that public transit be available for workers who work more\nconventional hours. He added that the Bay Trail might become an urban trail in this\nsection. Board Member Knox White expressed concern about the size of the streetlights,\nand inquired about the City's maintenance plan for the utilities coming to the site from Main\nStreet.\nMr. Thomas said that the main water line will come from Main Street and future\ndevelopment would be able to connect to it. He explained that a brand new water line is\nless risky to maintain than a 70-year old one.\nBoard Member Burton said he supports this project. He said it is a tremendous thing to\nhave the WETA maintenance facility in the City. He appreciated Board Member Knox\nWhite's proposed conditions of approval, and said that the architecture does not mimic the\nother buildings in the area. He likes the proposed design of the building, but wants to see\nminor changes made to the street side of the building, if possible. He addressed certain\nissues with placement of the men's and women's facilities inside the building.\nBoard Member Tang said that he is in favor of any project that will create jobs in Alameda.\nHe asked Mr. Thomas how the City would be leasing the land. Mr. Thomas said that the\nland was publicly owned, but will be leased to WETA for 60 years, and public land is\nexempt from property taxes.\nBoard Member Tang asked under what circumstances the project would be exempt from\nthe TDM. Mr. Thomas clarified that the project would not be exempt from the TDM, but the\nzoning ordinance allows the Board to have more parking spaces at the site if there is a\nfinding that suggests that they are necessary.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster said he is very excited about the project. He called the building an\nexemplary model for what the Board wants to see at Alameda Point. He said he agreed\nwith Board Member Burton about the issue with the facilities, and asked about if the\ncanopy around the rear side of the building could be expanded to the street side of the\nbuilding.\nVice President Alvarez said she likes the plan and the building, and agreed with Board\nMember Burton about the design variations on the street side of the building. She also\nsupported any job-creating project, and suggested that the building be open to tours for\nlocal schoolchildren.\nPresident Henneberry said the project is a coup for Alameda. He praised WETA for\ntrusting the City with this project and said that he is strongly in favor of the project.\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 5 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 6, "text": "Board Member Knox White made a motion approving Design Review and a Use Permit for\nthe site with the following conditions: that the portion of the Bay Trail be expanded to\naccommodate joggers and bicycists, that the total number of parking spaces be capped,\nthat the developer works with Alameda Municipal Power to scale the street lights, to stripe\nWest Hornet Avenue to 10 feet, and to include architectural enhancements to improve\nvisual interest in the building from the public right of way. Board Member K\u00f6ster seconded\nthe motion. The motion carried, 7-0.\n8. MINUTES:\n8-A. 2015-1460\nDraft Meeting Minutes-January 13, 2014\nBoard Member Knox White asked to continue this agenda item.\n8-B. 2015-1461\nDraft Meeting Minutes-February 23, 2015\nBoard Member Knox White motioned approval with edits. Board Member Burton seconded\nthe motion. The motion carried, 7-0.\n9. STAFF COMMUNICATIONS:\n9-A. 2015-1468\nZoning Administrator and Design Review: Recent Actions and\nDecisions.\n9-B. 2015-1469\nPLN14-0359-2700 Bette Street- Applicant: Resources for\nCommunity Development (RCD) and City of Alameda Housing\nAuthority. Minor Modifications to a Final Development Plan and Major\nDesign Review for a 32-Unit Affordable Housing Development.\nMr. Thomas said that the revisions are in the spirit of the agreement between staff and the\napplicant.\nBoard Member Knox White asked about the walk through. Board Member Burton\nexplained that the walk through was meant to be smaller than normal in order to allow\npedestrian access.\nBoard Member K\u00f6ster asked Mr. Thomas about the changes. Mr. Thomas said that the\nprimary reason was cost savings, but not at the expense of the quality of the project.\n10. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS:\nTwo citizens wrote letters to the Board expressing their opposition to the project at 2100\nClement Avenue.\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 6 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2015-03-23", "page": 7, "text": "11. BOARD COMMUNICATIONS:\nBoard Member Knox White said that employees at Safeway at Alameda Landing are\nparking their cars near the bike racks, which hinders bicyclists from parking. There are also\nissues with the shopping carts locking up in the parking lots. Mr. Thomas said that staff will\nfollow up with the store regarding both issues.\n11-A 2015-1462\nReport from the Alameda Point Site A Ad-Hoc Subcommittee\nPresident Henneberry said that the subcommittee has not met.\n12. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None\n13. ADJOURNMENT: President Henneberry adjourned the meeting at 9:45 p.m.\nApproved Regular Meeting Minutes\nPage 7 of 7\nMarch 23, 2015", "path": "PlanningBoard/2015-03-23.pdf"}