Albany’s Chance to Reclaim its Waterfront

Every community that aspires to quality of life has CanWeReclaim Albany’s prevent these lands from being spectacular open spaces. Albany’s charm and gifts Shoreline for a Park? included in the Park. Second, equally include a unique setting of unparalleled beauty by bad, this mega-development would SanFrancisco Bay. Rarely does a community get a Yes. A magnificent park right on our practically sever the park in two, shoreline can be ours. eliminating the continuous shoreline second chance to undo a mistake like cutting itself park we have all worked for. Should off from its own shoreline. Why is the Albany Section of the Magna Development plan be Shoreline so Important? approved and built, the Park will Albany has that miraculous second chance now, never be whole. with the arrival of the Eastshore State Park and Albany is located at the very heart of the chance to reclaim its waterfront. We have just What Portion of the Albany the new shoreline park. The new Waterfront is in the State regained a toehold on our beach and the owner of the racetrack proposes to opportunity to win back the entire waterfront. build a gigantic development on top of Park Now? Fleming Point, a promontory rising We can rethink our entire perspective on our behind the racetrack. Fleming Point is The sliver of sandy beach and the shoreline. Let’s not be rushed into destructive the last natural part of the shoreline in Plateau, Neck, and Bulb are already development that would forever preclude the East Bay. in the Park (the Bulb portion is still in the process of being transferred recovering our waterfront for Albany and for the from the City to the State.) Not generations to come after us. This will be our This proposal by Magna Development Corporation would damage us in two included: the racetrack, all its parking legacy, the kind of town people want to live in, ways. First, it would permanently lots, stables, and operations yards. with a shoreline park resplendent with wildlife, and waterfront relaxation and recreation. What is the History of the Sierra Club, Audubon Society, What if the Track Leaves Albany? Eastshore State Park? Citizens for the Albany Shoreline, East Bay Regional Park District, Coastal Conservancy, CESP and the Sierra Club propose modest Thirty years of effort were met with jubilant , League of Women Voters, development which will provide a success on December 6, 2002 when other citizen organizations, many elected substantially larger tax base for Albany designated our shoreline as the officials, thousands of voters, volunteers, compared to current racetrack tax revenues. Eastshore State Park. For decades this vision community members, bird lovers, boaters, has inspired thousands in our community Albany students, seniors and families. Environmentally-sensitive development to work toward reclaiming our waterfront. would be built on the east side of the lot, This new State Park stretches 8 miles from near the freeway, acting as a noise buffer for Developing our shoreline into the park it the Bay Bridge to Point Isabel in Richmond. the park. This leaves most of the land for can be will take some time. Parcels along To make the park happen, thousands park and expanded beach while the the shore, such as , sit in banded together to ward off continual development benefits from having an the middle of the Park. Areas the owners are development proposals. Ballot initiatives excellent park at its entranceways. willing to sell should be included in the were passed to protect shorelines in Albany, Park.Weshould not allow development Berkeley and Emeryville. Park bond What Does the Magna that will interfere with creating a measures were passed to fund the creation of Development Corporation Want continuous shoreline park. our Park. We now have a shoreline treasure to complete – including fending off this to Do to the Waterfront? latest developer’s plans to bury Albany’s Those who have energized this drive to Magna Development Corporation, a shoreline under massive development. reclaim our shoreline include: Citizens for Canadian corporation, has proposed to add the Eastshore State Park (CESP), The massive development with the racetrack on Albany’s waterfront. The Magna Development Corporation Plan

Open Space Development minimal; Significantly expanded racetrack gambling facilities; a huge parking garage built to hold 4,400 development, racetrack and parking would cars; a massive 10,000 person convention center; expansive commercial, retail, and entertainment cover almost the entire area. buildings plus a huge hotel. A total of 900,000 square feet of development. The Magna Development Plan (“Rancho Can the Developer SanAntonio”) includes expanded gambling Do What It Wants facilities, large structured parking, retail on the Albany facilities, hotels and a conference center Waterfront? designed to hold 10,000 people. Concrete, steel and asphalt would dominate the No.Magna Corporation waterfront. The development, at the water’s bought Golden Gate edge, would privatize the parkland Fields a few years ago surrounding it and would practically split knowing that it has been the Park in two. a horseracing track for sixty years. Their proposal Put into perspective, at any given time, this is not allowed under the development could double the population waterfront zoning. of Albany. It would erode our city services and change the character of our town. Albany’s waterfront as Does the City of Albany Have the it exists today Instead of having a unique, world-class PowertoAllow This Development? shoreline park for Albany, we would have a headache of snarled trafficonthewest side. No.The City of Albany does not have the Can the Voters Say No to the Our opportunity for an expanded beach, a authority. Albany’s shoreline protection Magna Development Plan? park and playing fields would be forever lost initiative, passed by three fourths of fi in the shadow of Magna Corporation’s Albany’s voters, gives the voters the nal say Albany voters can simply say no to this racetrack development. in any changes like this on the waterfront. mega-development plan.

The CESP/Sierra Club Plan

Open Space Development maximum; Office and retail space of 110,000 square feet; hotel of 300 rooms. A total of 325,000 square feet expanded beach, sensational park, playing of development tucked by I-880 freeway, providing a freeway noise buffer for the Park. About fields for kids and adults. 550 parking spaces, under buildings. Variable height buildings not exceeding three stories. What if the Track Stays? What About the Economic Needs The CESP/Sierra Club Plan would also of the City of Albany? make certain that the school district and The racetrack can choose to stay as it is. library continue to receive at least the same We should not allow new development Currently Albany gets $565,000 as its yearly level of taxes they currently receive from alongside the racetrack. If the track leaves, share of the betting at the track plus about waterfront property taxes. the CESP Plan provides development, $235,000 in other waterfront taxes for total ample revenue for Albany, and a splendid of $800,000 per year. The CESP/Sierra HowWould We Get Racetrack park with an expanded beachfront. Club Plan compromises between all park Lands into the Park? and mega-development. It provides Magna Corporation recognizes that horse reasonable development tucked near the When the racetrack is ready to move, we racing is in a steady decline nationwide. freeway and allows the remaining lands for can negotiate a purchase of their lands. The Sports fans prefer everything from football waterfront park, beach and playing fields. CESP Plan for park with development can to golf over horse racing. Economics are The CESP/Sierra Club Plan is conservatively be included in that purchase agreement forcing cost cutting measures in horse projected to provide an annual revenue using State and Regional park bond money racing and may force the track to move stream to Albany of $1,450,000. to purchase the lands. This is how we inland where land and operating costs are aquired the Santa Fe Railroad waterfront cheaper. Golden Gate Fields is old and Arepresentative of Lincoln Properties, a properties for the park: negotiated needs costly upkeep. Magna Corporation nationally recognized developer with Bay agreements and park bond funding. purchased a large tract of land in Dixon and Area experience, created the CESP Plan. Currently the excess racetrack lands south of has begun plans to build a track there, They used standard analyses and the same Gilman Street are being purchased and put fueling the belief that they will eventually assumptions any developer would use for into the park for soccer and baseball fields. close the track in Albany. revenue generation. This plan would generate total revenues of $907,519 (in 1986 dollars), including property taxes, sales taxes, and hotel taxes. In 2003 dollars, accounting for inflation (per Federal Reserve Bank calculations) this would exceed $1,450,000.

Albany's Chance to Reclaim Its Waterfront

This brochure was created by Citizens for the Eastshore State Park, the Sierra Club, and Citizens for the Albany Shoreline.

Formore information please contact:

Citizens for the Eastshore State Park PO Box 6087 Albany, CA 94706

[email protected] Tel. 510.848.0800

Design MGrantham Design [email protected]

Images Urban Advantage www.urban-advantage.com

2003