Alameda County
Oakland Mulls Cannabis as Land Use and Then Forgot What It Was Thinking About
Submitted by jstephens on 3 August 2010 - 9:07pmWhether or not Prop 19 passes, the Oakland City Council is already considering legalizing marijuana for fiscal reasons.
Tesla Motors May Recharge Fremont
Submitted by jstephens on 30 June 2010 - 12:36pmIt’s a saga straight out of the Rust Belt: auto giant closes its factory, laying off nearly 5,000 auto workers, and leaving behind an aging structure and contaminated site of 370 acres. Businesses throughout the region, which supply parts to the factory, also take a hit.
Pleasanton Voters Decide, What's in a Ridgeline?
Submitted by jstephens on 2 June 2010 - 8:57pmMany long, hard-fought battles have been waged for the control of high ground, and the one surrounding Pleasanton’s Measure D is no exception.
Measure D asks whether a 51-home development known as Oak Grove may be built on a parcel of 562 acres in the southeastern hills above the city, a Bay Area bedroom community which sits in a valley in inland Alameda County. Measure D was placed on the ballot by the City Council following a long saga of denials, approvals, lawsuits, new ordinances, and community outcry. A yes vote allows the development to go forward per the agreement with the city council; a no vote forces would-be developers to start from scratch.
Late Objections Doom Opposition To Lab Expansion
Submitted by jstephens on 27 April 2010 - 7:26pmA state appellate court has upheld the environmental impact report for expansion of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. It found that project opponents had forfeited most of their claims because they had failed to raise them at the administrative level. The court also ruled that the range of project alternatives that the lab considered, within a carefully articulated range of project objectives, was adequate.
Alameda Navy Base Reuse Agreement In Doubt
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 25 February 2010 - 10:19amRelations between the City of Alameda and developer SunCal appear to have soured in the wake of voters’ overwhelming defeat of SunCal’s plan to redevelop Alameda Naval Air Station. Three days after 85% of voters rejected SunCal’s plan during a February 2 special election, city officials sent SunCal a notice of default, the first step in ending SunCal’s exclusive negotiating agreement to redevelop the base.
Alameda Voters Reject Navy Base Reuse Plan
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 9 February 2010 - 12:27pmCity of Alameda voters have overwhelmingly rejected a plan to redevelop Alameda Naval Air Station. In a February 2 special election, 85.4% of voters said “no” to Measure B, which would have permitted developer SunCal Companies to move forward with a housing and industrial project on about 1,000 acres of Navy real estate.
Quarry Village: Suburban Life Without Cars
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 9 September 2009 - 11:06amSomething seems to be missing from the site plan for Quarry Village, a 42-acre proposed housing development in Hayward. Here are orderly rows of streets, a scattering of small parks and a “village center” for neighborhood-scale retail. The 950 housing units are made up entirely of three-story townhouses, arranged in rows of four and six units. What's missing? Garages.
In Brief: AG Challenges Pleasanton Growth Management
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 15 July 2009 - 9:29amThis collection of news briefs from around the state includes Attorney General Jerry Brown's decision to join a lawsuit over Pleasanton's growth management ordinance; a court's rejection of the state's diversion of transit revenues to balance the general fund; approval of the Hollywood Park reuse plan; and the introduction of a new groundwater study and modeling tool for the Central Valley.
San Leandro Embraces Its Past, Present And Future
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 31 March 2009 - 11:09amDowntown San Leandro is clearly in transition. A working-class city with a large industrial base located just south of Oakland, San Leandro’s suburban past and its more urban future are present at the same time. Now, the city has big plans to transform its downtown into a truly urban, pedestrian-oriented place that takes full advantage of the BART station and a planned bus rapid transit line.
Uptown Oakland Plan More Interesting Than You Think
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 3 February 2009 - 10:02amInitially, the Uptown Oakland plan may not seem that exciting. But look closely, and you'll see heavy use of pleasant courtyard housing, the promise of better street life and close proximity to two BART stations.