Alameda Point, Alameda, California facts for kids
Alameda Point is a special area in the city of Alameda, California. It used to be a big military base called the Naval Air Station Alameda. This area covers about 1,560 acres (6.3 km2) of land at the west end of Alameda Island. Most of this land was created by filling in parts of the San Francisco Bay.
The Naval Air Station Alameda closed down in April 1997. This happened because of a government program called Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC), which decided to close some military bases. After the base closed, the Navy and the City of Alameda worked together to decide what would happen to the land. They agreed in 2006 that the land would be given to the city for new projects.
One big challenge was figuring out who would pay to clean up the environment. Before the land was fully transferred, some buildings at the old base were rented out to private companies and the City of Alameda. Alameda Point also has a very clean beach, which is one of the best in California!
This area has also been used for filming. For example, the TV show Mythbusters started testing their experiments on the old runway in late 2006. In 2009, another TV show called Trauma even filmed a fake plane crash there.
What's Happening at Alameda Point?
The City of Alameda has been planning to build new things at Alameda Point since the year 2000. It's a big job because the area is about 1,500 acres (6.1 km2). There are several things that make planning tricky:
- Land Rules: Some parts of the land are protected by special rules for waterfront areas.
- Clean-up: The soil and groundwater need to be cleaned because of past activities at the military base.
- Wildlife: There are rules to protect nearby wildlife areas.
- Nature Challenges: The land might have soft soil, and parts of it are in a flood zone.
- City Rules: There are city laws and agreements that affect what can be built.
Plans for New Development
In 2001, a group of companies called Alameda Point Community Partners (APCP) was chosen to lead the development. They planned to build new homes and other things, which was expected to cost about $2 billion and take 15 years.
By 2005, the plan was to build about 1,700 homes. In 2006, the city and the Navy agreed on a $108 million deal for the land. However, APCP decided not to continue with the project later that year.
In 2007, a new developer named SunCal Companies was chosen. They started working with the community to make new plans. But in 2010, the Alameda City Council decided to stop working with SunCal. This happened after a public vote in February 2010, where most people voted against SunCal's big development plan.
Building Begins at Site A
Good news! In May 2018, construction finally began on a part of Alameda Point called Site A. This area is about 68 acres (28 ha). It's part of a big $1-billion project to create a new waterfront area with homes, shops, and places to work.
This project is being led by a group called Alameda Point Partners LLC. They are building 637 new homes in the first phase. This includes 130 affordable homes built by Eden Housing, Inc., which helps people find homes they can afford.
