1. home and garden

11
May 7, 2015
www.alamedasun.com
Alameda Sun
Letters: To the editor this week focus on traffic, development
Continued from page 4
Adopt-a-Bed update
Editor:
The Midway Shelter for abused
women and their children would
like to thank those individuals
and groups who contributed to
the shelter during the month
of April. A number of the listed
donors contributed several times.
Two donors chose to remain
anonymous.
The woman and children
couldn’t survive without generous donors like Brocade
Communications and Joel Ross,
MD/Mabrie Cosmetics & Pinole
Hearing Aid Center. Dawn Graeff
sent in a donation in April, as did
Virginia Krutilek, Robyn Wu and
the eighth grade class of St. Philip
Neri School. Marjorie Lanzit joined
Betty Sanderson, Christine Buck
and Isle City #51 YLI in sending in
donations. Lina Rubio, Mary Ellen
McMuldren, Paula Patillo-Dupree
and Richard A. Algire also sent
their donations.
If you’d like to see your name
among the generous May donors,
send you check to Alameda
Homeless Network, P.O. Box 951,
Alameda CA 94501. To learn more,
call 523-2377 or visit www.midway
shelter.org.
— Ginny Krutilek
Prevarication
Editor:
I have watched Andrew Thomas
operate at City Hall for many years
now, and I simply do not trust him.
Frankly, whenever I think of his
name, the phrase, “Prevaricator!
Prevaricator! Trousers aflame!”
comes to mind.
To illustrate, let’s consider just
one point from his letter, (“City
planner responds,” April 30) about
BART being a long-term transit
option for Alameda. Officials have
gone on record saying that BARTto-Alameda is “decades” away, if it
can be done at all. The reality is
it’s probably 20 to 30 years away,
just like it took more than 20 years
to build a new Bay Bridge after
Loma Prieta.
The first passenger ride on a
BART train out of Alameda will
be long after many of your readers retire and no longer commute
on a daily basis. And yet, Andrew
Thomas speaks as if it’s going to
make a difference in response to
projects on the table now.
Readers would be well-advised
to consider Thomas’s writings with
a highly critical eye.
— David Howard
Spend money on
solutions, not schemes
Editor:
I recently visited the “openforum” for the Central Avenue
project. It was certainly not open
to diverse viewpoints and was
a forum only for the pro-bicycle
coalition. I, therefore, developed
my own list of priorities for the city
staff to consider:
n No more bike lanes.
n No traffic calming on Central
east of Webster Street.
n Respect the disabled and the
elderly.
n Stop wasting tax payer dollars.
n Stop pandering to a vocal,
law-breaking often obnoxious but
well-organized minority.
n Recognize that traffic will not
disappear; it will only be diverted.
n Do not ruin Central Avenue
like you ruined Shore Line Drive
The city administration should
recognize that people live here so
they can enjoy the shore line, parks
and tree-lined streets. Making it
more difficult to drive on the Island
will only benefit the limited number of bike riders. If drivers are
forced off Central, they will move
to other streets. They will not take
non-existent public transportation.
Thinking that the thousands of new
houses planned for the base and
other areas will not increase traffic
is, at best, naive and, more likely,
dishonest.
Before spending ridiculous
amounts of money to hire a consultant and then move forward with
a predetermined plan, the City
Council should consider simple
steps to improve safety on Central.
Have the police actively and continuously enforce speed limits and
stop signs. Place crossing guards
at intersections around schools.
Crossing guards and police should
ensure that students use cross
walks and bike riders and students
alike obey traffic laws.
It is surprising that the city
has not yet been sued under the
Americans with Disabilities Act
for limiting access to Shore Line.
Residents of streets that will be
adversely impacted by the changes proposed for Central Avenue
(Otis Drive, Santa Clara Avenue,
and so on) should organize to take
legal action.
The City Council’s obligations
are to all the residents of Alameda.
Spend money on solutions to traffic
problems not on schemes to make
them worse.
— Kathleen McCarthy
America is about
automobiles
The Alameda Sun received a
copy of this letter addressed to “my
elected officials.”
Editor:
What do I want? I want my elected officials to discontinue promoting the policy of, “we have to get
people out of their automobiles.” I
want to drive my automobile in and
out of Alameda. I am fortunate and
proud to live in Alameda, to own an
automobile and to be an American.
America is about automobiles;
I do not want my elected officials
to continue depriving me of my
privelege to drive my automobile.
I want no approval of any further home construction, including
the approval of home construction
at Alameda Point, not until the
effect on traffic resulting from the
completion of the hurried current
projects can be properly studied,
preferably through a non-fiction
version of a traffic study. We do
not need a traffic study now, we
need one after the current projects
have been completed. A study now
would be nothing more than costly
self-serving speculation.
I want no further constriction of
the streets in Alameda; no reducing of four lanes to two or one to
none. The goal of such a construction is to “get people out of their
automobiles.” The results of the
last election should convince my
elected officials to cease and desist
the approval of further housing and
constriction of streets; if not, I, and
I trust many others, will see you at
the polls.
I realize I could be mistaken,
but I beleive the view I express
here is the majority view in
Alameda respecting futher housing and restriction of our streets,
including our street parking spaces. Whatever your view, let it be
known.
— Michael Cosentino
Save the Arctic
Editor:
I love the Arctic because it is so
important for the environment. It’s
the earth’s built-in cooling system.
Shell Oil got a permit to drill in
the Arctic, which would be very
bad because there’s a 75 percent
chance of an oil spill. If there were
to be an oil spill, many animals
would die. If you love the Arctic
like I do, please pass on this information because together we might
be able to change Shell’s mind.
For more information, go to www.
greenpeace.org.
— Maggie Spiegel
Support Site A
Editor:
We are writing on behalf of
more than 140 Alameda businesspeople who have signed the petition: “Support Plans for Site A at
Alameda Point” on Change.org
We represent some of the larger
employers currently operating in
Alameda. One of the many attributes that attracted us to locate
on the island is the promise of
desirable housing and recreation
for our employees — an attractive environment for jobs. We call
upon Alameda’s Mayor and City
Council to fulfill this promise.
Collectively, we employ thousands of people, many of whom
commute on and off the island
each day. Our employees work
EIR: Discussion misleading on traffic
Continued from page 4
be beyond overwhelming if all the
development projects take place.
But that’s not the most alarming
part of what is happening here. The
Alameda Point EIR’s traffic data was
used for the Del Monte project and
is being used for several other new
development applications. The city
simply modified the Alameda Point
EIR’s traffic volume data for a few
intersections near the proposed
development sites and then accepted all the other findings in the
EIR regarding cumulative growth.
The traffic study in this EIR is fatally flawed and should not be used
as the basis for approving even
one project, much less multiple
developments.
Don’t be misled by Thomas. The
Alameda Point EIR’s traffic evaluations indisputably result in the
conclusion of one net car off-island
during the morning commute as a
result of the redevelopment of Alameda Point. They constitute nothing more than a fairy tale. Alameda
needs an honest, realistic traffic
study of the predicted cumulative
development, with reasonable assumptions regarding growth in jobs
and housing, in order to realistically plan for the island’s future.
An old saying comes to mind:
“Fool me once, shame on you; fool
me twice, shame on me.” Shame
on Thomas for trying to pull the
wool over the eyes of the people of
Alameda in order to push through
the Alameda Point redevelopment
and Northern Waterfront projects,
despite the fact that it clearly is inappropriate for the island and will
throw us into a traffic gridlock that
will make all our lives miserable.
Shame on us if we let him get away
with it.
Eugenie P. Thomson PE is a licensed civil and traffic engineer,
retired, and a long-time resident of
Alameda. The Traffic facts and Figures cited above are available on the
website of the Alameda Sun.
hard and play hard and prefer to
rent or own in Alameda. However,
the persistent housing shortage,
lack of mid-size apartment rentals and rising costs create obstacles and present a recruiting and
retention challenge for local businesses.
The city is presented a real
opportunity to attract quality
commercial tenants with plans
to re-develop the former naval
base. Most employers are no longer looking to fill large office
parks and force employees into
long commutes to corporate campuses. The Site A plan will attract
commercial businesses in the
technology and new economy sectors. But to start-up or relocate
here, and to recruit and retain a
durable workforce, they need a
community to support them. This
includes infrastructure, capital,
facilities, a collaborative culture
and places to live.
Plans for two-thirds rental
housing — workforce housing —
including 25 percent affordable
units, are part of this business
ecosystem. Housing employees
near their workplaces also will
alleviate rush hour traffic in the
tubes and on our bridges. A new
ferry terminal, bus rapid transit
and bike paths also are part of
this network. Artisan dining and
retail, parks and recreation complete the community. Without an
interconnected system, we cannot grow or sustain jobs. Site A is
the catalyst for job generation at
Alameda Point.
There is a reason Alameda
is considered one of the mostsought-after places to live in the
country. It is also one of the
best places to work. By joining in
this public-private partnership,
Alameda can model the success of
other cities that have planned for
a thoughtful mix of housing near
workspaces — creating a sense
of place for employees seeking to
improve their lifestyle by living
closer to where they work.
— Christopher Seiwald,
Perforce Software, Patricia
Pierce, VF Outdoor, Inc.,
Doug Biggs, Alameda Point
Collaborative, Leslie Cameron,
Bay Ship & Yacht Co., Robert
Doud, McGuire and Hester
& Brad Shook, Bladium
Open letter to
council, mayor
The Alameda Sun received a copy
of this letter addressed to the Mayor
and members of the City Council.
Dear Mayor Spencer and council
members:
In your current budget deliberations, please consider the serious
and pressing need for additional
building inspectors to handle the
substantial number of new residential units that have recently been
authorized for Alameda.
Over the past 30 years, I have
seen several examples of lowquality construction that have
been accepted, including our own
brand-new house.
Together with 15 of our neighbors, we filed a successful lawsuit
against the builder, leading to the
complete replacement of defective
siding.
Since that time, however, widespread adoption of the practice
of “design-build” construction has
largely eliminated architect/engineer inspections prior to acceptance of buildings, so the only
check on quality of work is being
done by the building inspector.
Since housing comprises
much of the value of property
in Alameda, its inherent quality
is of prime importance. For this
reason I request that you resist
the easy temptation to go along
with some of the budget proposals put forth by the previous City
Council and allow sufficient time
to fully assess the situation you
have inherited while you still have
a little time.
— Ewart “Red” Wetherill
AIA Emeritus
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APPLICATIONS FOR MEASURE I BOND
OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE AVAILABLE
The Board of Education of the Alameda Unified School
District is seeking qualified, interested community members
to serve on the Independent Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (BOC) for the implementation of the District’s $179.5
million Measure I school facilities bond program. The committee is responsible for reviewing AUSD’s expenditures of
Measure I funds and reporting on those expenditures to the
community and the board.
The Committee consists of seven members, including
a member of a senior citizen organization, a member of a
taxpayer association, a parent, a PTA/PTO parent, and a
businessperson.
Interested in serving? Please visit the District’s website
at www.alameda.k12.ca.us, and click on the Measure I link
to view the Committee bylaws and application. Completed
applications should be mailed to: Superintendent’s Office,
Alameda City Unified School District, 2060 Challenger Drive,
Alameda, CA 94501.
Applications must be received
by 4:30 pm on May 22, 2015
It is the policy of the Alameda City Unified School District not to unlawfully discriminate on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender, ethnic
group identification, race, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, marital
status, age or mental or physical disability in the educational programs or
activities which it operates.
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