Certainly not promising news, but a realization of the state’s troubled finances nevertheless… “Hercules has weathered the recession better than many of its neighbors, but a state take-away of redevelopment funds could force some changes of plans.”

The following projects would be delayed if the California Redevelopment Association loses the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the 2009 state bill that authorized the taking…

• Sycamore Crossing Phase I. Final construction drawings are on hold, but the agency will proceed with Initial Planned Development Plan.
• Palm Project (auto center).
• Sycamore Park and historic building rehabilitation at 133 Railroad Ave.
• Historic Clubhouse rehabilitation.
• Corporation Yard relocation.
• Preparation of plans for former Wal-Mart site.

And the following projects will move forward…

• Infrastructure improvements for Hercules waterfront and future Intermodal Transit Center.
• Acquisition of about 13 acres for waterfront infrastructure (Hercules Point).
• Willow Avenue property acquisition and I-80 off-ramp relocation (part of New Town Center, second phase).
• “Market Hall” mobile food court.
• Sycamore Crossing Phase II.

A few images of Hercules were included at the beginning of a recent TED lecture titled Retrofitting Suburbia.

The images (see below) show the potential transformation of the intersection of Sycamore and San Pablo Avenues (or the city’s “Main and Main”), which originally came about during the 2000 charette. The images however do not reflect the current plan, as the Central Hercules Plan called for liner buildings surrounding the now-former park-n-ride site, and not for the relocation of the site altogether (which took place last year).

The plans for Market Town (the first phase of New Town Center) do not include buildings immediately adjacent to San Pablo Avenue along the entire length of the project site, and instead features a rather large open area, effectively a new town square…

There are no plans yet to infill the Shell station plaza with liner buildings as well, but that would be a nice touch to finish the very prominent intersection.

Read the rest of the entry to view the video »

In closed session prior to Tuesday’s meeting — 7pm at City Hall — the City Council and Redevelopment Agency will enter negotiations to purchase Hercules Point (approximately 11 acres). Other items of note…

• Receive a report from State Senator Mark DeSaulnier.
• Additional consulting services for the annexation of property along Highway 4 (“the annex”) to be used in part for the proposed Big League Dreams complex. Cost: $30k.
• A second hearing of the proposed Art in Public Places program.
• Additional legal services to establish a homeowners’ association for the Baywood neighborhood. Cost: $12.5k.

The complete agenda is available on the City’s website.

The measure would include funds for “science facilities at Hercules Middle/High School” but it would not specifically address the need to rebuild Ohlone Elementary… “West Contra Costa voters will decide in June whether to award the school district another $380 million in bonds for school rebuilding and repairs. The school board this week unanimously approved moving forward with the bond measure after a community survey showed it would have voter support.“

A couple of library events scheduled for March are worth noting. The second one is of a particular and peculiar interest to me since I will be turning thirty later this month, and as they say, if you don’t start writing your memoir by the time you are thirty years old, you will never finish. (And if that is not what they say, they should.¹)

• Mon — Mar 22 — 7pm — A lecture on the physiological effects of the earthquake on the Haitian people.
• Sat — Mar 27 — 2pm — An introduction to memoir writing.

A couple months ago I responded to an email from a former colleague and I offered some advice on his upcoming Professional Engineering exam. I told him about my experience and the email ended up as a rather long, rambling story weaving somewhat random details of my life into a best-of-luck-to-you letter. It was meant mostly to be humorous (and the details were all true), but his response intrigued me. He said that I was “apparently in the middle of a memoir… it reads well, so keep going.”

I have since brushed that silly notion aside, of course, except for the following (very, very) short story, the second chapter of my memoir, what I titled The Free Library. Consider this an exclusive; it will be published in the Atlantic next month.²

The Free Library

I read a lot of books growing up — similar to most children, I suppose — pretty much any book I could get my hands on. The Boxcar Children, Encyclopedia Brown, anything. I had so many books I decided to start a library in my bedroom. I stacked the books neatly, created a library card and return slips with 3×5 index cards, and I invited my first customer into my room, my younger sister.

I am not sure which book she borrowed, but it was probably an Encyclopedia Brown, since following the thorough checkout process, she had returned to the library to borrow another book within an hour or two. (Encyclopedia Brown reads fast.)

I was caught off-guard and somewhat upset at the notion of a speedy return. I immediately established a new rule for a minimum borrowing time — that a book could not be returned within one day of checking it out — if only to validate the extensive effort of checkout. My sister thought that that idea was stupid, and that she wouldn’t borrow another book under such a rule.

The library folded later that day.

Notes

1. The other thing they say about turning thirty is that you finally realize you have something you want to talk about. I hope this is true for me, too. I have sort of been at a loss for words until now.↩
2. This is not true. It will be published in Tiger Beat. That is not true either.↩

Google has updated the satellite images for its ubiquitous maps service (but has not yet fixed all of its known errors). The photographs above Hercules must be from sometime this past summer or early fall, but no earlier than August. Some new additions are worth highlighting.

The excavation for Sycamore North, known to nearby residents as “the pool…”

A completed and handsome Frog Pad Park…

The relocated Transit Center (which provides a benchmark for dating the images)…

And the grove of trees that no longer exists on what was referred to as Eucalyptus Hill at the future site of Duck Pond Park…

Google’s street view images have not been updated.

UPDATE — The satellite images were taken prior to mid-October since that is when the Eucalyptus tree removal started.

The Times did more digging… “The latest home sale by the [Hercules Redevelopment] agency, in November, was a three-bedroom townhouse; one of the buyers listed in real estate industry records was a Hercules employee in 2008, according to a payroll list from that year. The price, about $387,000, was the same as the city paid to buy the house in August from the former owners, Ron Johnson and his wife; Johnson once worked as an independent contractor for NEO/AHSG, he said.“

There will be an informative update (presumably similar to the one provided to the City Council on Tuesday, but it may go into more detail) on the status of the Intermodal Station project at Monday evening’s Planning Commission meeting — 7pm at City Hall.

The complete agenda is available on the City’s website (and it features a new font).

It is disheartening to discover that a councilmember that would most likely be in jail, or at least out of office, if it weren’t for the remaining councilmembers being a series of dastardly passive puppets, has such great influence on the developer of the Waterfront. What also remains unclear is exactly what AndersonPacific received in return for agreeing to change the name of Bayfront Boulevard (the namesake of the development, Hercules Bayfront).

As a reader noted recently, Bayfront Boulevard is probably not worth defending, in and of itself, but it does raise the question as to why a seven-year-old street has to be renamed, if it weren’t for some peculiar demand of an ethics-challenged councilmember. And I can somewhat see Councilmember Ed Balico’s point. The name “bayfront” doesn’t accurately suggest the street’s proximity, or frontage even, to San Pablo Bay. A street name that has a better “waterfront” theme would make more sense. Like Waterfront Drive.

Shortly after Ed Balico made his demand in October, I emailed Ethan Sischo of AndersonPacific: “Please tell me that AP has no plan to change the name of Bayfront Boulevard, as oddly requested by Councilmember Ed Balico last night.” An hour or so later, Sischo replied: “No plans that I am aware of… I’ll let you know if I hear anything different.”

Well, we certainly heard something different Monday evening. Not only was news released that a change to Bayfront Boulevard is a set decision (as part of a cute naming competition¹), but the rationale for the change was either nonexistent or incoherent. Sischo repeatedly stated that the change had been discussed for “some time.” That is probably true: sometime since Ed Balico asked the developer to change it. (Balico didn’t just ask. He said it “has to be changed.“)

The naming competition was likely the developer’s idea — especially since they will have majority control over the selection of the finalists — not the City’s. But after the finalists are chosen, it is up to the residents of Hercules to vote, including young children. The decision may tear families apart at the dinner table: Balico Shorefront Avenue or Lollipop Lane or a restored Bayfront Boulevard?²

More important however: who controls the future of the Waterfront? Is it the developer with the expertise of New Urbanism, armed with an adopted initiative and a supportive community, or a rather renegade councilmember set on making his mark wherever he can in the city?³

And how can we honestly measure progress — let alone success or failure — if the benchmarks keep changing? The naming competition is a pleasant little ruse when you consider the opening of the Intermodal Station has now been pushed back to 2013.⁴

Any issue or controversy surrounding the street formerly known as Bayfront Boulevard is a convenient distraction from an uncomfortable truth. Despite the hard work of the design team, City staff, and even residents, through handfuls of workshops and meetings, the city as a whole is subject to the whim of one person. We live in Ed Balico’s town, and we better get used to it.

Notes

1. The competition is a novel and fun idea. It is a great way to get the community involved in the project. Names will be chosen for three planned parks/plazas and six future streets, plus one existing street that will be renamed for some reason.↩
2. And why isn’t John Muir Parkway up for a possible change if the developer seeks a “blank slate” for the names of streets in the Waterfront? John Muir Parkway is not yet completed, has no established residences or businesses with addresses, and transitions from four lanes to two when it enters the Hercules Bayfront project site. It seems to be an appropriate time (and location), if any, to change the connotation of a busy thoroughfare (i.e., “parkway”) to a pedestrian-friendly village (e.g., street, place, lane, etc.).↩
3. A developer would typically hire a naming consultant that would determine appropriate names for streets and pocket parks. (That is, if they could afford it.) The proposed naming competition would save the developer a little money and possibly result in a little less frustration with an arguably fickle public (myself included).↩
4. When will the restoration of the Clubhouse or the Administration Building even begin?↩

Councilmember Ed Balico will get his wish. A competition will be held to determine the names for the future streets and public spaces in the waterfront. For some reason, the existing Bayfront Boulevard is one of them. Finalists for the Waterfront’s main street include Balico Way, Corruptible Drive, and the very short, yet apt, Ego (with no suffix).

Heeding the awkward demand of ethics-challenged Balico, the City and developer announced news of the competition,* which will start March 15, at tonight’s workshop that unveiled a very impressive interpretative program for the Waterfront’s public spaces. However, you may not be drinking coffee along Bayfront Boulevard in the next few years, but a street with an entirely different name. There will be seven streets (including Transit Loop Drive) and three parks/plazas that will be named via the competition. (Bayfront Boulevard could remain the name if it garners enough votes; it is a cruel world.)

The contest will feature three judges to decide the finalists — two staff members from the developer and one City employee — and then city residents will vote for the winners in the style of American Idol. Balico Way is the hands-on favorite.

* The competition itself was not Ed Balico’s idea; just renaming Bayfront Boulevard was.

During tomorrow’s meeting, the City Council will hold its first public hearing on the creation of an Art in Public Places program. The new ordinance would “charge a 1% fee at the time of issuing a building permit” for new development projects in the city, and its proceeds would be earmarked for the installation of “sculpture, murals, mosaics, fountains, and paving designs” using “steel, bronze, stained glass, concrete, wood, ceramic tile, stone, and other suitable materials.” The program’s funds would also be used to maintain the art as well as “purchase or lease sites where the artwork would be installed.”

There will be plenty of opportunity for public art in the coming phases of the Waterfront and New Town Center and this program will provide a vehicle for the City to pay for and maintain the pieces. The program could also help install, say, a veterans tribute monument on Hercules Point.