The Alamedan
From the article:
The City Council voted Wednesday to approve an exclusive agreement with Alameda Point Partners to negotiate a deal to develop a 68-acre waterfront town center at the former Naval Air Station, despite opposition from residents who think the lame duck council should wait and let the new council decide.
“This is a tough decision. But stalling is not the answer to a tough decision,” Vice Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft said.
Council members, who voted 5-0 to approve the agreement a few minutes after midnight Wednesday, said they needed to respect the two-year public process they’ve engaged in to develop a plan for the Point and select developers to fulfill it – a process they said demonstrated the public’s interest in their plan to redevelop Alameda Point.
“This has been the culmination of an active engagement process,” Councilwoman Lena Tam said. “It’s important to respect that process and move it forward.”
Councilman Tony Daysog said many of the people asking the council to wait were simply seeking to undo the work that had been done over the past several years.
“We can’t move backwards,” Daysog said. “We can’t have that whole discussion again.”
The council faced a packed house, with dozens of speakers divided between those who wanted the city to keep moving forward on efforts to develop the Point with others who wanted the council table the negotiating agreement until new members are seated.