What have developers proposed on the park space?
The land where Estuary Park is proposed is divided into three parcels owned by Dutra, Fox/Wright, and Collins. [See Maps of the Estuary Park Site.] The first map, General location of Estuary Park in Alameda, shows the entire island city and all parks, with a green oval on the proposed location of Estuary park. The second map, Three Land Parcels Affected by Proposed Site, shows a close view of the three properties along the Estuary where the park is proposed. The third map, 1991 Master Plan proposal for park site, is part of Figure 6.1 in the 1991 General Plan and shows the approximate location of Estuary Park.
Collins has proposed 99 units on his plot, densely packed, with a narrow walkway extending from the corner of Oak Street and Clement Avenue to a small minipark on the Estuary. The plan ignores the 100 foot setback along the Estuary controlled by the San Francisco Bay Area Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). This plan was so stubbornly pushed at City planners that staff recommended denying the project, denying any rezoning to residential, and denying the major design review of the project. The developers can resubmit, but will have to start over again.
Fox/Wright owners have withdrawn from a housing plan and, currently, have offered their parcel for sale. The City could buy it. We’ll need to help raise money.
Development of Dutra’s property is planned by BayRock. Their latest design shows 44 densely packed units and a small semi-circular lawn on the Estuary that doesn’t even provide a bathroom. Anyone who wants to stand or sit on that patch of lawn would have to walk in from Clement, a distance of more than 700 feet. The plan includes the frontage on the water owned by the Army Corp of Engineers, and the planned waterfront walkway is setback from an imaginary line beyond that. BayRock’s plan is still going through the planning process with City staff.