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1998-01-20 Special CIC MinutesMINUTES OF THE SPECIAL COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT COMMISSION MEETING TUESDAY - - JANUARY 20, 1998 - - 5:00 P.M. Chair Appezzato convened the Special Meeting at 5:09 p.m. Commissioner Lucas led the Pledge of Allegiance. Pastor Robert Broekema, First Christian Reformed Church, gave the Invocation. ROLL CALL - PRESENT: ABSENT: MINUTES Commissioners Daysog, DeWitt, Kerr, Lucas and Chair Appezzato - 5. None. (98-07) Minutes of the Special Community Improvement Commission Meetings held on January 6, 1998. Approved. Commissioner DeWitt moved approval of the Minutes. Commissioner Daysog seconded the motion which carried by the following voice vote: Ayes: Commissioners Daysog, DeWitt, Kerr and Chair Appezzato - 4. Noes: None. Abstention(s): Commissioner Lucas - 1. CONSENT CALENDAR Commissioner DeWitt moved adoption of the Consent Calendar. Commissioner Lucas seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous voice vote - 5. [Items so enacted or adopted are indicated by an asterisk preceding the paragraph number.) (*98-08) Recommendation to authorize the Executive Director to execute an Amendment to the Contract with Seifel Associates. Accepted. (*98-09A) Recommendation to appropriate $87,000 in Business and Waterfront Improvement Project (BWIP) Housing Funds, approve an Administrative Budget, and approve the Home Ownership Down Payment Assistance Program. Accepted; and (*98-09B) Resolution No. 98-73, "Allowing Subordination of Loans for Down Payment Assistance in Connection with a Pilot Program to Provide Assistance to Very-Low, Low and Moderate Income Homebuyers for Property Located Within the Business and Waterfront Improvement Project Area." Adopted. Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998 ( *98 -10A) Recommendation to approve the Community Assisted /Shared Appreciation (CASA) Homebuyer Pilot Program, appropriate $180,000 in Business and Waterfront Improvement (BWIP) Housing Funds, and authorize the Community Improvement Commission Executive Director to Execute the Grant Agreement with Northbay Ecumenical Homes and Related Agreements. Accepted; and ( *98 -10B) Resolution No. 98 -74, "Allowing Subordination of Affordability Covenants in Connection with the CASA Homebuyers Pilot Program to Provide Assistance to Very -Low, Low and Moderate Income Homebuyers for Property Located within the Business and Waterfront Improvement Project Area." Adopted. REGULAR AGENDA (98 -11) Presentation of Preliminary Design Concepts for the Fleet Industrial Supply Center by developers. David Currie, Alameda, stated development of the Fleet Industrial Supply Center (FISC) property will add to the quality of life in Alameda; Council should select the developer that will provide the most significant return to the City with the least financial risk; Catellus offers the best possible development of the area; the other two developers [Lincoln Properties and The Martin Group] require the City to be a joint developer and lack the take down guarantees of the Catellus offer. Noel Weidkamp, Oakland, stated residential development to Atlantic Avenue is an important part of FISC development; Catellus offers a guarantee of take down and timing. Sheila McElroy, Executive Director, West Alameda Business Association (WABA), stated WABA's Board of Director recommends Catellus as the FISC developer. Bill Garvine, Executive Director, Alameda Chamber of Commerce, stated the Chamber of Commerce endorses the process of developer selection; and requested Council to consider the return to the City, in dollars, as an important selection criteria. Gerhard Degemann, Alameda, endorsed Catellus as the FISC developer. Lincoln Property Co pany The following person(s) presented for Lincoln Property Company: Barry DiRaimondo, Lincoln Property Company, Senior Vice President; Steve Fee, Fee Munson, Architect; Doug Finley, Peter Walker and Associates. In response to Commissioner DeWitt, Mr. DiRaimondo confirmed that Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998 Lincoln increased the amount of money the company is willing to guarantee on each phase from $50,000 to $500,000; and Lincoln's guarantee for the first phase take down is $18.5 Million which is less than the other two developers. In response to Chair Appezzato's inquiry regarding experience, Mr. DiRaimondo stated Lincoln's experience at Mare Island is comparable to development of the FISC property; at Mare Island, Lincoln bridged the infrastructure gap, established a good working relationship with the Navy, and created a program to provide up front dollars to build infrastructure which allowed flexibility in development. In response to Chair Appezzato, Mr. DiRaimondo stated guaranteed price is nothing without a performance guarantee to go with it; the guarantee fixes the property take down timing and the amount to be paid for the property]. In response to Chair Appezzato's inquiry regarding housing on the estuary, Mr. DiRaimondo stated corporate use along the waterfront does not increase land value because higher rent is not paid; homebuyers do value being on the water; Lincoln suggests combining residential and public space along the water to maximize value. In response to Commissioner Daysog, Mr. DiRaimondo stated [Lincoln] envisions interactive public space along the estuary for yachts without compromising the waterfront. Commissioner Lucas stated that she is in favor of residential use of the waterfront and inquired as to the number of proposed housing units along the waterfront. Jeff Schroeder, Ryland Homes, stated approximately 125 housing units are planned for the neighborhood along the water; however, not all of the homes would be on the water; [the plan] is still flexible; and residential use of the waterfront will add value to the project. In response to Commissioner Lucas, Mr. Schroeder stated the price for homes depends upon size; [homes] could easily sell for up to $1/2 Million; [Lincoln] wants to have a mix in the housing stock to keep some prices lower. Mr. Fee stated Sydney, Australia, with housing along the water, is an example of successful use of waterfront property. In response to Commissioner Kerr's inquiry regarding alternate transportation, Mr. DiRaimondo stated the transportation issue has not been addressed; however, due to access issues, ferry service and alternate forms of transportation are important. Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998 In response to Commissioner DeWitt, Mr. DiRaimondo stated $250,000 for legal fees is a rough estimate; and [Lincoln] plans to keep said costs to a minimum. In response to Commissioner DeWitt's inquiry, Mr. DiRaimondo stated [Lincoln] is not looking to sell off to other developers; down the road property could potentially be sold to users; [Lincoln] does not want to be a merchant land developer. In response to Commissioner DeWitt's inquiry regarding residential and business use, Mr. DiRaimondo stated generally residential development drives to a higher [property] value; [Lincoln's] goal was to maximize property value without unbalancing use; and [Lincoln] reviewed market trends to determine value. Chair Appezzato stated [development plans] at Marina Village changed due to market conditions; for example, a hotel was planned and after reviewing the market during development, plans for the hotel were cancelled. Catellus Development Corporation The following person(s) presented for Catellus Development Corporation: Nelson Rising, Catellus, President and Chief Executive Officer; Marti Buxton, Catellus, Vice President and Project Manager; (submitted handout) Ken Kay, Ken Kay Associates, Urban Planner and Landscape Architect; Walt Richardson, RNM Architects-Planners, Chairman of the Board; Don Parker, Catellus, Vice President. In response to Commissioner DeWitt, Ms. Buxton stated the concept of guarantee is that [Catellus] has committed to take down a section of the FISC site every two years and Catellus agrees to provide the guarantee in the form desired by the City, e.g. bond. In response to Commissioner DeWitt's inquiry, Don Little, Catellus, Vice President, stated Catellus typically builds and holds property which results in a higher investment quality; without a third party investor there is no pressure to liquidate allowing the investment to mature with time. In response to Commissioner DeWitt's inquiry, Ms. Buxton stated, initially, Catellus did not put housing on the waterfront because the condition of the pier was unknown; the [FISC] site cries to be integrated with East Housing; [Catellus] wanted to keep the housing and the business park separate. Chris Hawke, Catellus, Senior Vice President, stated Catellus did not want to privatize the waterfront. Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998 4 r Ms. Buxton stated [the three developers] have not had the benefit of public process; ideas have been based on only existing public document, the Community Reuse Plan. Chair Appezzato stated the City has made a commitment to keep the waterfront open to the public. Mr. Hawke stated even if housing goes along the waterfront, the waterfront will not be privatized; community input caused housing to be put in the waterfront. In response to Commissioner Lucas's inquiry regarding crossing to Alameda, Ms. Buxton stated the size of this project would not be adequate to fund another crossing; however, [Catellus] would pay its share of an additional crossing if said crossing was planned as part of development of the rest of Alameda Point; a traffic study has not been completed; said study will verify whether the numerous access points to the FISC site can disperse traffic. In response to Commissioner Daysog, Ms. Buxton stated Catellus will not sell any property to other developers; at the appropriate time, residential property will be sold to homebuyers. Commissioner Kerr stated that she is not against protected residential streets and she admires [traffic] diversion tactics through residential developments. In response to Chair Appezzato, Mr. Rising stated Don Parker initiated Catellus's interest in development of the FISC property and Mr. Parker will have as much involvement with the project as he [Mr. Parker] desires. The Martin Group The following person(s) presented for The Martin Group: Michael Covarrubias, The Martin Group, President; Cathy Greenwold, The Martin Group, Director of Development; David Gates, Gates and Associates, Land Design. In response to Chair Appezzato, Ms. Greenwold stated [The Martin Group] has tried to take a mixed and flexible approach to the waterfront; housing along the waterfront will probably yield the greatest revenue; the process of planning [development of the FISC property] will be a series of decisions, choosing tradeoffs such as economic return to the community with community desires. In response to Commissioner DeWitt, Mr. Covarrubias stated a guarantee is the contract to purchase and take down the property at a given time and price; [The Martin Group] has planned a staged take down of the Commercial side; and [The Martin Group's] Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998 residential development can be completed by themselves or by bringing in a family of home development builders to increase diversity and have more houses being built at the same time. In response to Commissioner Daysog's inquiry regarding transportation, Mr. Covarrubias stated transportation has been a focus of [The Martin Group's] other projects; [The Martin Group] created and paid for a BART shuttle line during development in Emeryville then passed on operation costs for [said shuttle] to the corporate tenants. In response to Commissioner Kerr, Mr. Covarrubias stated integration with East Housing is a positive thing. In response to Commissioner DeWitt's inquiry, Mr. Covarrubias stated Mello Roos financing would benefit the City because [financing costs] would not be deducted from the price of the property. Chair Appezzato thanked the three developers for their participation; stated three years ago the City Council had discussions about whether the City should pursue ownership of the [FISC] property or lease the property from the Navy to allow non- profit organization use; if the City had not decided to pursue ownership, [the Commission] would not be entertaining proposals from three fine developers. DRAL COMMUNICATIONS, NON-AGENDA (Public Comment) None. COMMISSION COMMUNICATIONS (Communication from Commissioners) None. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Chair Appezzato adjourned the meeting at 7:02 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Affe Diane B. Felsch, CMC Secretary, Community Improvement Commission The agenda for this meeting was posted in accordance with the Brown Act. Special Meeting Community Improvement Commission January 20, 1998