These two letters were printed in the Alameda Sun. The first is a letter that urges the Mayor and City Council to have an open dialogue about the Alameda Point Revitalization Initiative. The second discusses HOMES's support for the initiative.
Educate the public on the plan
By Doug Siden, President, Alamedans for Alameda Point Revitalization
The Alameda Sun received a copy of the following letter:
An Open Letter to Mayor Johnson and Council Members:
Alamedans for Alameda Point Revitalization is a citizen committee advocating for the revitalization of Alameda Point. Part of our advocacy includes ensuring that the revitalization of Alameda Point remains consistent with the objectives stated by the community and set forth in the city's own plans.
At the Oct. 20 city council meeting, the mayor requested a briefing on the Alameda Point Development Election Report. It was also revealed that the city and SunCal have been negotiating areas of concern. We feel it is imperative that the council makes every effort to educate the public on this process.
The initiative will go before the voters sometime in 2010. Public discussions about the negotiations with SunCal need to happen sooner rather than later so that everyone in the city can evaluate for themselves the merits of this plan. This initiative will decide the future of Alameda Point, which has sat underutilized and blighted for far too long. We have all been through this process for long enough to know that there is still much work ahead of us. It would be important that the city grasp the urgency of the situation with a thorough, public discussion.
HOMES endorses AlPo Specific Plan
By Joan Konrad
HOMES is a citizens group that has been advocating for environmentally sustainable, mixed-use, transit-oriented development at Alameda Point since 2003. We believe the Revitalize Alameda Point Specific Plan fulfills these objectives as well as the community vision for Alameda Point.
We understand the Revital-ize Alameda Point Initiative must be approved by the voters of Alameda and that the mayor has concerns over this Initiative.
Therefore, we were extremely interested to hear at the Chamber of Commerce breakfast on October 22 the interim city manager speak of a city "contingency plan" should the Initiative fail.
Since the voters will determine the future of Alameda Point through this initiative, we need to know what the city's contingency plans are should the initiative fail.
We were pleased by the commitment to transparency on the issue of negotiations between the city and SunCal shown by the council at its Oct. 20th meeting. In this spirit, we ask that we be informed about the city's contingency plans.
