Now is not the right time for . The project has been under public consideration for the past five years. Based on community input at properly noticed meetings, changes have been made to the project since its inception. Compromises by both UC and the city have been reached, and the council approved the zoning changes necessary to let the project go forward. Now, unfortunately, a small group of Albany citizens along with people from other places are circulating petitions for a referendum on the zoning change and one on the development agreement. We ask Albany voters not to sign the petitions.
The project, characterized as a “Mega Mall” by petitioners is not a mall at all. Instead, it has a maximum of 85,000 square feet. It will bring more than $400,000 a year to the city with a net of about $200,000. This $200,000 is about the same as the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab project, the 6 million square foot projected project once proposed at the waterfront. The petitioners registered no public complaints about the size of the LBNL project.
Importantly, the project will also bring needed senior housing to our area. A number of Albany residents have told us this looks like a hopeful option for them. They want to stay in Albany and want the conveniences of such a facility. Further, the project helps Albany meet a long standing regional housing commitment and does so at the same time it helps meet sustainability goals to reduce carbon emissions by supporting transit-oriented-development.
Whole Foods Market is a large, out-of-state business; what the petitioners do not note is that the market provides an outlet for local organic vendors, 100 plus at one of their new Silicon Valley stores. Additionally, until very recently, no other market was interested in the site.
The project provides a large public good in that the Albany Little League fields will be preserved for future generations. This currently impacts 600 boys and girls directly and 2,000 indirectly as loss of fields impacts girls’ softball and girls’ and boys’ soccer.
Also, the project will provide much needed construction jobs and ongoing jobs in the senior and retail facilities. Many of these jobs will go to local residents.
Is the project ideal? No. We wanted inclusionary housing, but the law does not provide that when the senior housing is rental. The height will be four stories; we would have preferred three, but we brought it down from five.
Finally, the time has passed for petitioners to ask the council to put the measures on the November ballot; thus a special election would be required at a cost of about $60,000 from the city’s general fund that could be spent instead on services for residents. We ask Albany voters to say no if asked to sign the petitions currently being passed. Now is not the time for referenda.
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Albany City Council Members
Click the "Keep me posted" button below for an update when we publish future stories on the Whole Foods project. Learn about the proposed Whole Foods and senior housing development here.
Bottom line to me is that no matter what, the development is in the best interests of Albany. Get real; jobs, taxes and productive land use. Like the council members, I wish some of these Luddites would accept the results of the planning process and the mechanics of economic change and focus on other relevant issues like the increasing number of vacant storefronts along Albany's commercial corridors.
Like with voter suppression in PA and OH, if your ideas aren't popular enough that you need to lie to get them enacted, you're doing it wrong.
I thought yesterday (August 15) was the last day they could get signatures; I guess I was wrong.
I disagree that the inevitable increase in traffic will be offset by nearby residents walking to the market. Have you ever tried to walk home with weekly groceries for a family of four? I doubt that a lot of the nearby residents can afford to shop at Whole Foods anyway. The city has failed to approve any of the Safeway plans, yet they change zoning to allow a Whole Foods into Albany? Wouldn't our net taxes increase with a bigger Safeway, too? I, personally, like Whole Foods and would love to have one close by, but at least 800 people have signed this position.
what would your reaction be if the Safeway moved into the new proposed location currently slated for WF and the WF moved into smaller existing Safeway current location on Solano? Yes, we would walk to the new store. We currently walk or ride bikes to Tokyo Fish Market, Safeway, Andronicos, and occasionally to Monterey Market. We walk to Eunice Gourmet to get coffee and to Starbucks if we want a longer walk. We frequent the farmer's market on Solano and many of the local restaurants. Buy what you need - sometimes smaller amounts.
You listed several grocery markets within a mile of the 'proposed' Whole Foods; that is: Safeway, Tokyo Fish Mkt, Andronico's, and Monterey Market; you forgot Target (which has groceries and meat), Lucky's at the El Cerrito Plaza, Costco, and the weekly Albany Street Market. Costco underbids everyone here by an average of 14% on pricing, and Whole Foods charges more than all but Andronicos. Very few living immediately west of San Pablo will be shopping their unless they run out of milk or beer. Very few East of them will shop there unless they drive, and IF they drive, they will continue to shop from the surrounding stores which continue to offer much more, -for either price or quality-, then Whole Foods. (Meanwhile, the local Andronico's is in Chapter 11, and Safeway is waiting for their Berkeley store to be completed before they back-outa there). I don't think the Whole Foods marketing team is stupid. If Andronico's doesn't leave, then I doubt that Whole Foods will continue down this pipe dream. The City Council knows this too; they just want to get some retail stores fronts in, and the more the better. I suspect they are correct. The 'petitioners' are not doing this in the interest of Albany; -they will do anything to be a thorn in the side of the Big-U. From Oak Trees next to the stadium, to 'Tomatos' in the Gill Tract; they are just here to raise a ruckus (www.ruckus.org/).
While I also like the idea of having Whole Foods nearby, it is expensive and I don't forsee myself doing the bulk of my shopping there. But so what? It's all about choice and I like having options.
What percentage of the city's budget does the $200K in projected net benefit for this project represents?
You are using the wrong denominator b/c ~18K is the population of the city not the number of eligible voters. You bring up a good starting point. Suppose 2/3 of the population is eligible to vote then 800 / (18,786*2/3) = 6% of the electorate. Does 6% of the electorate warrant another look at the proposal?
The net benefit is about 1.5% of the City's General Fund revenues. The scope of the analysis of the net impact was limited to the General Fund. This does not include the benefit from parcel taxes to the School DIstrict of approximately $35,000, Library of $5,000 and various other agencies in other amounts. It also does not include the reduction in individual property taxes that each current taxpayer will receive because the fixed interest payments associated with City, School District and other bond issuers will be spread across an increased assessment base.
Has there been an environmental impact report? How many trips will be generated by Whole Foods, and how many by the senior housing? How much parking is being provided? WHY is there no subsidized housing for seniors in the project? Why are none of the units considered "affordable housing"? How will the height of the project affect the temperature at the ball fields and in the village when they block out the early sun? Why shouldn't this be put to a vote by ALL the people--since some of us weren't able to attend all the evening meetings?
If we've reduced the set of questions to those that include concerns about trick-or-treat traffic and ball field temperatures, then it seems that the process has been successful. I look forward to having a reason to walk down to San Pablo Ave from southern Albany. In the 7 years we've lived here, I've made that walk exactly twice.
it makes me disapointed that council members did not represent the opinions of people who live here.