Council Determines Pedestrian Path Unwarranted

General Plan Amended, Ped Path Removed

One Path Saved

The Emeryville City Council voted last Tuesday night to amend the City's new General Plan in order to remove a planned pedestrian path in east Emeryville but in the same evening they voted to stand by the General Plan and save another path in the same neighborhood, a move that surprised many including the mayor Kurt Brinkman.

  

EBI Pedestrian Path Deleted

The City Council revisited the two paths they claimed they did not want to delete from the General Plan two weeks ago.  The paths in question are one connecting 45th and 47th on the eastern property line of Escuela Bilingua Internacionale school (EBI) and one connecting 47th and 53rd on the western property line of the future site of the Emeryville Center for Community Life (ECCL).  The Council asked staff two weeks ago, to bring them amendments to the General Plan that would, in each case, move the paths to undetermined locations to the east instead of deleting them from the General Plan entirely.

In the intervening time between the meeting two weeks ago and last Tuesday, the Council lost its appetite for paths moved to the east.  The EBI path alternative considered would have continued Essex street northward through at least two private residences.  One resident that thought he might be affected showed up to ask what exactly the Council had in mind and whether they were planning on taking his property via eminent domain.  He expressed the view that a pedestrian path right between residences was not desirable.

The alternative design of the EBI path proposed by Planning Commissioner Sean Moss was not given serious consideration, although his recommendation to preserve the irrevocable 'offer of dedication' of the path property, already recorded against the title to EBI's property, found favor among a majority of the Council.   This would leave open the possibility that a path or other public use of that proposed path area could be made at any time in the future, even decades from now.

In a somewhat comical moment, EBI's attorney explained that the conditions of approval granted to EBI still require EBI to build the path no matter what the Council might do with respect to altering the General Plan.  Ultimately this means that there will be future public meetings discussing this path, because EBI will need to have those conditions altered and may negotiate to provide some other public benefit instead of the path.

In a 4-1 vote, Councilmember Jennifer West dissenting, the Council decided to simply delete the EBI path from the General Plan.

ECCL Bicycle/Pedestrian Path Survives

The ECCL path met a different fate. The alternative path location considered was a pedestrian-only path through the middle of the ECCL site, instead of the bicycle-pedestrian path that the General Plan calls for along the property's western border.  No one believed that this alternative path location was viable, and no modification of the current ECCL design was provided to show whether it could be accommodated.  No one was willing to make a motion to accept this alternative.

Councilmember Nora Davis then proposed that the Council simply delete the ECCL path from the General Plan.  

"What do we do now?"
Caught flat footed, Mayor Brinkman
seemed stunned after a majority
voted to save the ECCL path.  

 Mayor Kurt Brinkman agreed, both of them citing safety concerns regarding the path.  Council watchers will recall Ms Davis' warnings from the previous meeting of gang rapes being the inevitable outcome if the path were to be approved.  
Vice Mayor Jac Asher however highlighted a different safety concern, the large number of cars that are likely to envelope the ECCL site once the schools are consolidated there.  Ms Asher made reference to the tragic incident in 2001 in which an Anna Yates kindergartener was killed by a car during morning drop-off and argued that providing better bicycle and pedestrian connectivity around the site could actually contribute to safety rather than detract from it.  

Then, in a surprising vote, Councilmembers Atkin, West, and Asher voted against deleting the ECCL bicycle/pedestrian path from the General Plan. Mayor Kurt Brinkman responded with, "Well, what do we do now?"  
With no majority willing to move or delete the ECCL path, it simply remains in the General Plan.  
Director of Planning and Building, Charlie Bryant, then suggested to the Council that simply because a path is in the General Plan does not require it to be built today.  He suggested that the ECCL's various design components that might come before the Council could be approved even if they lacked this path, perhaps proposing that the path might be added years—or decades—down the road in "Phase 2" of the ECCL, if there ever is such a thing.

Former Emery Superintendant Tony Smith Resigns From Oakland

Tony Smith

Former Emery Unified School District Superintendent Tony Smith has resigned from his position as the schools chief in Oakland, surprising many including his close associates at the district.
While at Emery, Mr Smith was instrumental in getting the Center for Community Life off the ground, insisting that Anna Yates Elementary School be shut as part of the arrangement.  His polarizing and rancorous tenure continued and expanded at Oakland, earning him the wrath of many parents in that city.

In Oakland as in Emeryville, Tony's philosophy included generous use of educational consultants and a top down managerial style while disempowering the teachers and their union.  Many parents protested his "Cut, Shut & Charter" tactics; those being his proclivities to cut educational budgets, shut down schools and encourage private charter schools to take over under performing public schools.  It's part of a larger program of educational entrepreneurialism, much in vogue and touted by anti-unionists including President Obama's Education Secretary Arnie Duncan.

From EdSource:

Oakland Unified Superintendent Tony Smith to resign June 30

April 5th, 2013 | Add a Comment |
By Lillian Mongeau

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In a surprise move Friday morning, Oakland Unified Superintendent Tony Smith announced that he is stepping down at the end of June. In his letter of resignation, Smith said his father-in-law has recently been hospitalized and his family will move to Chicago to help.

“The decision to leave at this time is very difficult,” Smith wrote. “However, my commitment to my family first means this is the right decision.”

In an official statement from the Oakland school board, board president David Kakishiba wrote that Smith would leave “a legacy Oakland can be proud of.” Smith’s unexpected resignation will not trigger a change in course for the district, which has focused on a community schools model similar to the one Smith piloted in Emeryville, Kakishiba wrote. Oakland is also one of the nine CORE districts that have applied as a unit for waiver to some components of the No Child Left Behind Act.

“If people are worried that there’s going to be a big upheaval, they shouldn’t be,” said two-term Oakland school board member Jody London. “We’re really committed to carrying on the direction.”

Smith was hired to run the 36,000-student district in 2009. That was the first year since the state’s 2003 state financial takeover that the board was able to select its own superintendent, as the Oakland Tribune’s story on the resignation explained this morning. Long-time Oakland education reporter Katy Murphy also put together a Storify post collecting her past reporting on Smith and readers’ current reactions to the news.

Troy Flint, spokesman for Oakland Unified, said Smith has had several strong performance reviews and that the resignation is “strictly a family matter.”

Oakland education activist and leader of Great Oakland Public Schools Jonathan Klein said he had worked closely with Smith over the years and was surprised and saddened to hear about his resignation.

“There is – more than I’ve ever seen – a broader alignment and ownership of this direction” in Oakland toward high-quality, full-service public schools, Klein said.

Klein, whose organization emphasizes community organizing and took heat last fall for its well-financed efforts to elect three new school board members, said that Smith’s leadership and the community focus he helped galvanize has made this a time of hope in Oakland education.

“For the next person in that seat, it’s a huge opportunity,” Klein said. “Being the superintendent of OUSD is one of the most high-impact roles in education, and our city and our system are in the best place for the next person to come in.”

Former Emeryville Mayor Assaulted, Pistol Whipped

Emeryville Police arrested four youths after former mayor and current Emeryville resident Ken Bukowski was assaulted under the Powell Street overpass near Shellmound Street last night.  Police won't release the names of the arrested youths or details of the case until next week.  At least some of the arrested are juveniles a police representative said.
A lucid Ken Bukowski told the Tattler the group attempted to rob him at gun point under the bridge at approximately 10:30  but he refused to cooperate,*  after which the four assailants knocked him to the ground, kicked and pistol whipped him.  Mr Bukowski sustained a head injury and he sought medical attention on his own recognizance.
The assailants fled on foot after passing cars on Shellmound Street noticed the attack.  Police gave chase, apprehending the four suspects near 59th and Doyle Street.
Mr Bukowski said the gun appeared to be a .45 caliber pistol, "It was a large gun" he said.  He said the four assailants got nothing from him.  This morning, he was waiting for a friend to take him to the hospital to address his head wound, "I think I need stitches" he said.

*Correction-  Previously we reported that Mr Bukowski said to his assailants, "f*** you, I'm not giving you anything".  Now Mr Bukowski reports he ran away after the gun was pointed at him.  He says he thought the quote but didn't actually say it to the youth brandishing the gun.

Planning Commissioner Offers Solution to Pedestrian Path Problem

Plan Straightens Ped Path, Takes Away 

Safety Problems

Will Detractors be Appeased?

Emeryville Planning Commissioner Sean Moss has waded into the imbroglio over the City Council's idea to remove a pedestrian path slated for the Triangle neighborhood with a creative fix for the much publicized safety concerns that have threatened the path with removal.  The pedestrian thoroughfare, the Escuela Bilingue Internacional path (EBI) was required to be built as a condition of approval for the private Spanish immersion school on San Pablo Avenue but it received complaints from two would be neighbors and as a consequence, City Hall proposed amending the City's General Plan to permanently remove the path.  Mr Moss previously appealed to his colleagues on the Planning Commission and the City Council to disallow removal of the path saying the path  comports with the General Plan's guiding principles.  One of the original complainants joined with Mr Moss and has spoken out against removing the path.

Commissioner Moss' new idea involves moving the EBI parking lot to take advantage of the property line jog and remove the jog from the pedestrian path, the main reason neighbors cited for safety concerns.  The idea would seem to render impotent the crime issues some City Council members glommed onto at their last meeting.

The Council will make their final decision on Tuesday night and this idea from Sean Moss should help inform the Council members as they consider amending our new General Plan.

Here is the letter from Commissioner Moss to the City Council dated Friday March 29th:


Hello Councilmembers:

As you consider alternate options for a mid-block pedestrian pathway between 45th and 47th Streets, I write to you to ensure that all options are considered.  

There has been much discussion since the EBI project was first submitted regarding the safety of the proposed pathway.  At the time EBI was approved, some residents advocated for a straight pathway to enhance safety.  Due to the existing configuration of the property, EBI claimed that they were not able to accommodate a straight pathway and the City Council, in their approval of the project, agreed that this option was not feasible.  I find it somewhat paradoxical that the Council is now considering eliminating the pathway based on safety concerns that were, in part, created during the Council's approval of the project.      

I submit to you one alternative design which I sketched out in about 10 minutes.  It is by no means the only alternative available, but it is meant to demonstrate that plenty of alternatives exist.  The design I have sketched out could easily be refined to include additional landscaping and to further enhance the pedestrian experience within it.  We accept these types of pathways through commercial parking lots frequently as a way to provide pedestrian circulation through a auto-dominated environment.  Several commercial parking lots in and around Emeryville have similar pathways.
The parking lot shown in this sketch would be a replacement for the existing northern parking lot.  The existing northern parking lot and the remainder of the large, contiguous area next to the existing building would be available to EBI for future development.

 Having previously worked as a consultant, I am keenly aware of the needs of property owners.  I have a good eye for master plans, and I worked very hard to develop an alternative which provides plenty of future expansion opportunity for EBI.  I am simply trying to demonstrate that an alternative exists with a straight pathway which makes sense for EBI.  EBI will most likely resist this alternative.  When I suggested it to John Horsch many months ago, he replied that "there was significant concern that it would impact future development opportunities."  I'll remind the Council that the "future development opportunities" which Mr. Horsch refers to have not been approved by the Planning Commission or City Council or analyzed under CEQA and thus should not garner any consideration from the City at this time.  
EBI may have begun preparation of an internal long-term master plan, but again, this master plan has not been approved or vetted by the City in any way.  The City Council's role is not to speculate about future development at EBI, but to make decisions that best serve the citizens of Emeryville based on current information and current entitlements. 

The Council is in an extremely good negotiating position at this point in time.  Any changes to EBI's current approval require approval of the City Council.  The City Council will not find itself in a better negotiating position regarding this pathway.  It would be irresponsible public policy to now eliminate all the public benefits of the project which the Council negotiated.  

Lastly, if the Council decides not to require EBI to build a pathway, I implore you to at least leave in place the Irrevocable Offer of Dedication (IOD) which has been recorded for the pathway.  IODs are commonly used instruments which allow a City or other entity to dedicate property at any point in the future.  Leaving the IOD in place would allow EBI use of their property, while still allowing the City to improve the pathway at any point in the future.  

There almost no downside to leaving the IOD in place.  EBI could use the portion of the property within the IOD for a variety of uses and in 30 or 50 or 75 years or any point in the future, the City could determine that it made sense to improve the pathway an would be free to do so.  We all know this is the only way a pathway will ever be developed on this block.  Moving the pathway in the General Plan makes the provision of the pathway almost certainly unfeasible.  
We have the opportunity now to provide the City with a resource which can serve the citizens of Emeryville when the conditions are right.  It would be incredibly short-sighted to eliminate this opportunity forever. At a minimum, please leave the IOD in place.  

I regret that I cannot attend the Council meeting on Tuesday since I have to attend the El Cerrito City Council meeting as staff of that city.  I ask that you please consider my comments and I would be happy to discuss them further with any of you.  

Thank you so much for your time,

Sean Moss

This rendering by Sean Moss shows the trajectory of the proposed EBI pedestrian path.
San Pablo Avenue is on the left and the path connects 47th Street (on the top)
and 45th Street (bottom).The new parking lot is at the bottom and the path traverses thorough the lot, shown by "zebra stripes". Parking slips are seen on the sides of the proposed lot.  The northern trajectory of the path can be seen with proposed tree plantings.

Shorebird Park Body ID'ed

From the Oakland Tribune:

Police: Fremont woman found dead on Emeryville beach  Thursday was apparent suicide By Harry Harris Oakland Tribune Posted:   03/29/2013 11:50:54 AM PDT Updated:   03/29/2013 12:52:39 PM PDT EMERYVILLE -- A woman found dead Thursday morning on the beach at Shorebird Park was a Fremont resident who committed suicide, authorities said Friday. The woman's name and age were not immediately released. Fremont officers had taken a missing-person report Thursday about the woman and were told she had threatened to drown herself in the Emeryville area. The report was taken after the woman was found. The woman was found by a passer-by about 7:14 a.m. Thursday, wet and clothed on park's beach, near Interstate 80 off Powell Street next to Chevy's Restaurant. It was not known how long she had been in the beach before being found. Police said her car was parked nearby.

Bank Robber Caught in Emeryville

THE Hunter Thompson?
From the Milpitas Patch:

Police Arrest Man Connected To Milpitas Bank Robbery in Emeryville

    

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Police in Milpitas arrested a man Tuesday in connection with a bank robbery from more than two weeks ago, police said.

Hunter D. Thompson, 32, of San Jose, is believed to have robbed a Chase Bank, located at 37 N. Milpitas Blvd., on the afternoon of March 9, according to police.

Thompson allegedly walked into the bank with a firearm, approached
a bank teller and handed over a demand note, police said.

The teller handed over cash and the suspect fled, according to police.

Police were unable to find the suspect during a search after the robbery and, after a joint investigation with San Jose police, Thompson was located and arrested in Emeryville on Tuesday, according to police.

Officers recovered a revolver and an air gun in the car Thompson was traveling in. Methamphetamine and heroin were also found in Thompson's possession, police said.

Thompson also may be responsible for bank robberies in San Francisco, Redwood City and Palo Alto, as well as retail store robberies in Palo Alto, Santa Clara and Fremont, police said.

He was booked into the Santa Clara County main jail.

Anyone with information about the robberies is asked to call Milpitas police at (408) 586-2400, or anonymously to (408) 586-2500.

Body Found at Shorebird Park

From the Oakland Tribune:

Woman's body found on Emeryville beach By Harry Harris Oakland Tribune Posted:   03/28/2013 12:05:33 PM PDT Updated:   03/28/2013 12:21:45 PM PDT EMERYVILLE -- Authorities are trying to identify and determine the cause of death for a woman whose body was found Thursday morning on the beach at Shorebird Park. A passer-by saw the body about 7:14 a.m. and called police. Officer Brian Head said until the autopsy is completed, police are investigating the incident as an unattended death. Police are not sure how long the woman had been on the beach before she was found or if she washed up on the shore from the bay. She was clothed, police said. The park is near Interstate 80, off Powell Street next to Chevy's Restaurant, authorities said. Anyone with information about the woman can call police at 510-596-3700.