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[20:08]
>>> if everyone can please take a seat and
[20:09]
quiet down, we're going to start the meeting here
[20:10]
momentarily.
[20:28]
>> good evening, everyone,
[20:30]
and welcome to the regular session
[20:31]
of the martinez city council.
[20:33]
it is wednesday, july 16th, and it is 7:03 p.m.
[20:39]
please rise and join vice mayor howard for the pledge of
[20:40]
allegiance.
[21:04]
>> vice mayor
[21:05]
howard, can you please confirm that you
[21:07]
can hear me?
[21:08]
>> I can hear you.
[21:09]
>> okay. Great. Thank you. I couldn't
[21:10]
hear anyone giving the pledge
[21:12]
of allegiance. I just wanted to make
[21:13]
sure audio was
[21:16]
working. All right. Wonderful.
[21:18]
so, quickly, before roll call, I just
[21:19]
wanted to let
[21:21]
everybody know I'm calling in remotely
[21:22]
tonight
[21:24]
as many of you know. All of the council
[21:25]
do have day jobs so
[21:26]
I'm calling in tonight from rhode
[21:28]
island. I'm presenting at a
[21:31]
society of wetland scientists conference
[21:32]
this
[21:33]
week, so thank you for your patience as I run the meeting
[21:34]
remotely.
[21:37]
so, clerk, please
[21:40]
call the roll.
[21:41]
>> mayor brianne
[21:42]
zorn.
[21:43]
>> present. >> vice mayor jay
[21:44]
howard.
[21:45]
>>
[21:46]
present.
[21:47]
>> councilmember greg young.
[21:48]
>>
[21:49]
present.
[21:50]
>> councilmember
[21:52]
satinder mahli.
[21:53]
>> present.
[21:55]
>> councilmember
[21:58]
debbie mckillop.
[21:59]
>>
[22:00]
present.
[22:01]
>> we have two proclamations
[22:02]
recognizing the service for two of
[22:03]
our planning commissioners.
[22:04]
vice mayor howard, would you please bring
[22:05]
the council
[22:07]
down to present to tracey and sean?
[22:33]
>> this is an exciting day for all
[22:34]
of us.
[22:37]
I would like to
[22:40]
read the proclamation for tracey casella.
[22:42]
whereas tracey casella has been a
[22:43]
resident of
[22:45]
martinez since 1984, whereas she has
[22:46]
actively
[22:49]
served her community and whereas tracey casella
[22:52]
was appointed as an alternate to the
[22:55]
planning commission in june of 2016,
[22:57]
and whereas tracey casella was appointed
[22:58]
as a
[23:01]
regular planning commissioner on may
[23:04]
of 2017, and whereas tracey casella
[23:06]
was elected vice chair of the planning
[23:07]
commission in
[23:10]
february of 2020 and whereas her
[23:13]
nine-year tenure on the
[23:16]
planning commission, casella has
[23:18]
played a pivotal role in assisting
[23:19]
the city to
[23:20]
reach notable accomplishments, such
[23:22]
as the adoption of the general
[23:25]
plan 2035, the 2023
[23:28]
to 2031 housing element, the waterfront
[23:29]
marina
[23:31]
land trust use plan, the general plan
[23:32]
amendment for the vine
[23:34]
hill subdivision, and the amendment
[23:35]
to the
[23:37]
commercial cannabis regulations. Whereas
[23:40]
martinez community has greatly
[23:42]
benefitted from casella's service
[23:43]
and the city
[23:44]
of martinez will be forever grateful,
[23:46]
now, therefore, be it
[23:47]
resolved that the city council of
[23:49]
the city of martinez
[23:51]
does hereby recognize and express
[23:52]
appreciation and gratitude
[23:55]
to tracey casella's service on the
[23:56]
planning commission and her commitment
[23:58]
to serve the martinez
[24:01]
community. In witness, I
[24:04]
hereunto set my hand and cause the
[24:07]
city of the
[24:08]
seal of the city of martinez to be
[24:10]
affixed hereto.
[24:11]
>> thank you. >> yeah.
[24:21]
>> it's been an honor, really, it has.
[24:22]
>> you're welcome.
[24:25]
>> okay. >> that's it.
[24:41]
>> we've got
[24:43]
one more. We've got this handsome
[24:44]
gentleman sitting up
[24:46]
here, so we're going to recognize
[24:47]
sean trambley.
[24:49]
whereas sean trambley has been a resident
[24:50]
of
[24:52]
martinez since 1984, where he has
[24:54]
actively served his community and
[24:56]
whereas sean trambley was appointed
[24:59]
as an alternate to the planning commission
[25:02]
in april of 2017, and
[25:03]
whereas sean trambley was appointed as
[25:05]
a regional
[25:08]
planning commissioner in july
[25:11]
of 2017, and whereas sean
[25:13]
trambley was elected vice chair of
[25:14]
the planning
[25:16]
commission in january of 2019, and
[25:19]
whereas sean trambley was elected
[25:20]
chair
[25:22]
of the planning commission in february
[25:26]
of 2020 and whereas during his eight-
[25:29]
year tenure on the planning
[25:31]
commission, trambley has played a
[25:32]
pivotal role in
[25:34]
assisting the city to reach notable
[25:35]
accomplishments, such as
[25:38]
the adoption of the general
[25:41]
plan 2035,
[25:43]
the 2023-2031 housing element, the
[25:44]
waterfront
[25:47]
marina trust land use plan,
[25:49]
general plan amendment for the vine
[25:50]
hill
[25:53]
subdivision, and preventing
[25:55]
approval of a downtown gun range,
[25:56]
and
[25:57]
whereas the martinez community has
[26:02]
greatly benefitted
[26:03]
from trambley's service and the city
[26:05]
of martinez will forever be grateful,
[26:07]
now therefore be it resolved that
[26:08]
the city council
[26:11]
of the city of martinez
[26:13]
does hereby recognize and express
[26:14]
appreciation and
[26:17]
gratitude for sean trambley's service on
[26:18]
the
[26:19]
planning commission and his commitment to serve the martinez
[26:20]
community.
[26:23]
in witness
[26:26]
whereof, I have hereto set my hand
[26:29]
and used the seal of the city of martinez
[26:30]
to
[26:31]
be affixed hereto this 16th day of july.
[26:32]
congratulations, sean.
[26:33]
>> thank you very much.
[26:35]
thank you. [ applause ]
[26:41]
>> I'll also keep it brief
[26:43]
because people are here for a lot
[26:44]
of other reasons, but thank
[26:46]
you. It has been an honor, and I look
[26:47]
forward
[26:48]
to continuing to serve martinez in
[26:49]
a myriad of ways. Thank you all.
[26:50]
>> thank you, sean.
[26:56]
>> thank you again. >> thank
[26:58]
you, sean and tracey.
[26:59]
>> another photo op.
[27:20]
>> thank you guys. >> thank you.
[27:44]
>> all right. Our
[27:47]
next item on the agenda is public
[27:49]
comment, and I know that we have a
[27:50]
really big agenda tonight, and a
[27:53]
lot of people are here in attendance for
[27:54]
the presentation
[27:55]
about potential plans for the marina.
[27:56]
the public
[27:59]
comment right now is for non-agendized
[28:00]
items only. I understand that we have
[28:02]
one, two, three,
[28:05]
four, five speaker cards. By a show
[28:06]
of
[28:07]
hands, vice mayor howard, can you
[28:08]
check to see how many people in the
[28:10]
room want to speak on non-agendized items.
[28:14]
>> can you raise your hand?
[28:16]
>> that have not submitted -->> I
[28:17]
have three, four, five.
[28:20]
four. Three.
[28:26]
four.
[28:27]
>> okay, so, we have a total
[28:28]
of five plus
[28:29]
four and then maybe a handful on virtual audience?
[28:30]
>> give or take.
[28:32]
>> okay. So, because we have so much
[28:33]
we
[28:35]
need to cover this evening, I am
[28:38]
going to just reduce the public comment
[28:41]
time to two minutes so that way we
[28:42]
have an
[28:43]
opportunity to get through the public
[28:44]
comment tonight.
[28:47]
so, with that said, vice mayor howard, you
[28:48]
can
[28:50]
start by reading the names
[28:52]
and calling people up. For those people
[28:53]
who did not already submit
[28:55]
a speaker card, you can queue up once
[28:56]
the folks
[28:58]
who did submit a speaker card have
[28:59]
finished speaking.
[29:00]
>>
[29:01]
please come to the podium if you want
[29:02]
to speak on
[29:05]
nonagendized items.
[29:06]
>> but we're going to start with
[29:07]
karen collins.
[29:24]
>> good evening.
[29:25]
thank you for the opportunity to speak.
[29:27]
my name is
[29:29]
actually christine friel. I'm sharing
[29:30]
with karen collins.
[29:33]
first, we want to
[29:34]
sincerely thank the city council and the
[29:35]
public works staff for completing
[29:36]
the water project in
[29:38]
muir oaks. They improved water pressure
[29:40]
and additional hydrants have made
[29:41]
a huge difference for safety and peace of mind
[29:45]
in our neighborhood. And we really
[29:47]
appreciate your commitment to infrastructure
[29:48]
that serve
[29:49]
our community. But we also would like
[29:50]
to bring to your attention tonight
[29:51]
an
[29:52]
issue that's becoming increasingly
[29:54]
urgent, and that's the condition of
[29:57]
our private roads. These
[30:00]
roads were designated as
[30:01]
private decades ago before most of
[30:02]
us lived in the neighborhood and any
[30:06]
of you were on the board. And
[30:08]
today, maintaining those roads has
[30:09]
become financially unmanageable. Really.
[30:14]
and engineering assessments estimate the
[30:15]
cost of
[30:18]
repairs at over $1
[30:19]
million, and at the current rate of
[30:21]
dues collection, we are
[30:24]
literally never going to meet
[30:25]
that need. So, we're here tonight to ask
[30:27]
the city to meet with us to
[30:29]
come up with a plan that's sustainable
[30:30]
for our
[30:31]
roads. Thank you. I'll pass it over to karen now.
[30:33]
>> thank you.
[30:36]
>> good evening.
[30:38]
thank you for the time. My name is
[30:39]
karen collins.
[30:40]
I have been a resident in martinez
[30:42]
for almost 15 years, and
[30:44]
most recently, that last eight years, in
[30:45]
the development
[30:46]
known as muir oaks just south of highway 4.
[30:51]
I think falls under debbie mckillop's jurisdiction.
[30:54]
area. Yeah.
[30:57]
the road
[31:00]
issues go far beyond
[31:02]
inconvenience and is a public safety
[31:03]
concern at this point. Our
[31:05]
roads serve not just residents but
[31:06]
also fire
[31:09]
services, police, and city
[31:12]
maintenance vehicles. Their
[31:14]
deteriorating condition affects everyone's
[31:15]
access and
[31:18]
emergency response times. What
[31:19]
complicates matters further is that
[31:21]
the legal status of our
[31:22]
roads remains to be very unclear.
[31:27]
even the city, county, and
[31:28]
residents of the neighborhood have
[31:30]
different
[31:31]
understandings, which has created
[31:32]
inequities and legal gray areas that leave us
[31:33]
struck.
[31:39]
we are also seeing new
[31:41]
development approved in muir oaks,
[31:42]
bringing additional revenue to
[31:43]
the city, but none of that revenue
[31:45]
helps maintain the
[31:46]
roads that these new residents also depend on.
[31:51]
we respectfully ask that the
[31:54]
city meet with us to find a more
[31:57]
workable and equitable path
[32:00]
forward, whether that involves
[32:01]
clarifying jurisdictions, exploring
[32:03]
legal options,
[32:06]
or helping us create a
[32:07]
sustainable funding model. We are
[32:09]
here looking for help. And partnership.
[32:15]
we're ready to collaborate and find
[32:16]
a
[32:17]
solution that supports the long-term
[32:18]
safety and
[32:19]
accessibility of muir oaks and the greater martinez community.
[32:23]
I really want to stress my thanks
[32:24]
for your
[32:26]
time and attention to the development and
[32:27]
to this issue. Thank you.
[32:30]
>> thank you.
[32:36]
>> good evening. I
[32:37]
don't normally come to these meetings,
[32:39]
but I had a
[32:41]
request, and I just walked in and
[32:42]
somebody said, this is
[32:43]
the period you speak something not
[32:45]
on the agenda.
[32:51]
>> I'm sorry, did you submit a speaker card?
[32:54]
>> you
[32:56]
know, I came in, and there were so
[32:57]
many people here, I didn't
[33:00]
see a card.
[33:01]
>> would you mind --
[33:02]
the clerk and the vice mayor are reading
[33:03]
out the people
[33:05]
who submitted cards, and then you
[33:06]
are more than welcome
[33:08]
to come back after those folks who submitted cards
[33:09]
speak.
[33:12]
>> get a card here. >> yes. >> that
[33:14]
would be great. Thank you. So sorry to
[33:15]
interrupt.
[33:16]
>> thank
[33:17]
you, mayor. Next, we have declan archer.
[33:39]
>> hi, hi namename
[33:41]
declan archer and I am 8 years old.
[33:42]
I
[33:43]
live in martinez and I love playing soccer.
[33:45]
when I grow up, I want to be a professional
[33:48]
soccer player. I'm here to ask the
[33:49]
city to
[33:51]
think more about soccer when building
[33:53]
and taking care of parks. Right now,
[33:54]
a
[33:57]
lot of parks have baseball fields
[33:58]
and basketball
[34:00]
courts, but not many have
[34:03]
soccer fields or with goals.
[34:05]
even the ones --there's a big --even
[34:06]
when there's
[34:09]
a big grass area, the grass
[34:12]
is too long, and the ground
[34:15]
is very dangerous to play on because
[34:18]
of gopher holes. And there are no
[34:19]
goals
[34:21]
to use. The
[34:23]
city maintains these parks, watering
[34:24]
the grass and
[34:27]
mowing the lawns, but it's done in
[34:30]
a way that makes the areas useful
[34:33]
as grass lawns, not quality soccer
[34:34]
fields.
[34:37]
for example,
[34:39]
hidden valley has a big field, but
[34:40]
no
[34:43]
goals, and the grass is rough.
[34:49]
yancy boyd park has no goals.
[34:51]
mountain view park has flat grass but
[34:52]
no goals, and the
[34:54]
grass is too long. Waterfront park
[34:55]
has
[34:58]
a big grass area, perfect
[35:00]
for soccer, but they're not set up
[35:01]
for soccer
[35:03]
either. The waterfront soccer field
[35:06]
has goals, but they're often locked
[35:07]
up
[35:10]
oror have nets. The grass is
[35:12]
also kept long and the field is full of
[35:15]
gopher holes. A few weeks ago, the
[35:16]
pine
[35:18]
meadow park opened just up the street
[35:19]
from
[35:22]
our house. Like many other
[35:25]
parks, it is --it has a large
[35:27]
grass area, but the grass is kept
[35:28]
long,
[35:30]
and there are no soccer goals. It
[35:31]
feels
[35:34]
like soccer gets
[35:36]
left out. Baseball fields are clean
[35:37]
and ready to use.
[35:39]
basketball hoops have nets, but for
[35:40]
soccer,
[35:41]
it's harder to find a place to play.
[35:49]
[ applause ]
[35:51]
>> thank you, declan. I really appreciate those
[35:52]
comments.
[36:01]
>> thank you, young man. You are clearly
[36:02]
after
[36:03]
our jobs in the future. That was nicely
[36:04]
done.
[36:07]
thank you.
[36:08]
>> yes. Next
[36:10]
up, we have william
[36:11]
frolich.
[36:12]
>> mine should probably go with
[36:13]
the agenda.
[36:14]
it should probably be moved to the agenda item.
[36:19]
>> okay. If you can see
[36:21]
me here in a second. All right, next, we have matt
[36:22]
reagan.
[36:23]
>> agenda item too.
[36:25]
>> okay.
[36:27]
all right. Next is richard anderson.
[36:28]
and just for the
[36:30]
record, those two names I called, they
[36:31]
are changing their comments to an
[36:32]
agendized item.
[36:36]
richard anderson, you can come up, sir.
[36:55]
>> I'm not going to be as entertaining
[36:56]
as the
[36:58]
young people,
[36:59]
but I have been requesting that the
[37:01]
city of martinez do a
[37:03]
building code inspection on my property,
[37:04]
my rear of my
[37:07]
property, for quite some time.
[37:08]
the city council and everybody, well,
[37:10]
a good number of people
[37:12]
in attendance right now have documents
[37:13]
that I submitted
[37:15]
again by email. What I would like to
[37:16]
do
[37:19]
is to have a code enforcement inspection
[37:22]
of my property, looking at city ordinance
[37:24]
violations, building code violations, penal
[37:25]
code violations,
[37:27]
health and safety code violations,
[37:28]
whatever is
[37:30]
possible. I would also like to have
[37:31]
the chief building official be the
[37:34]
person doing the actual inspection,
[37:35]
but if
[37:36]
he's not available, then whoever the
[37:37]
city might be willing to
[37:39]
come up with is satisfactory with
[37:40]
me. I
[37:43]
would also like to have officer
[37:45]
budda with the martinez police department
[37:46]
present as
[37:48]
a witness. That's all I can say is
[37:49]
I really don't
[37:52]
have much more to say. Since
[37:54]
I submitted this andand everyone that I
[37:55]
would
[37:58]
be here tonight, has there
[38:00]
been any decision made as to whether
[38:01]
or not a building inspection,
[38:03]
even if I have to pay for it, on my property can be done?
[38:10]
>> we don't answer questions during
[38:11]
public
[38:12]
comment. You have 46 seconds left if you
[38:13]
have any further comments you would like to make at this time.
[38:16]
>> well, since I'm hard of hearing, I didn't hear a word
[38:17]
you said.
[38:19]
>>
[38:22]
we don't answer questions during public
[38:23]
comment.
[38:25]
you have about 30 seconds left if you have any
[38:26]
final comments
[38:28]
you would like to make.
[38:29]
>> okay, using
[38:30]
my 30 seconds,
[38:31]
I submitted to the city of
[38:33]
martinez the reports of four expert
[38:34]
people, all licensed
[38:37]
by the state of california, regarding
[38:40]
structures that do not exist in my
[38:41]
rear yard. I would
[38:43]
like to be contacted by anyone, the
[38:45]
city manager, chief building official, anybody.
[38:46]
I cannot
[38:48]
get any response from anyone, and thank you
[38:49]
very much. Have a nice evening.
[38:50]
>> thank you.
[38:51]
>> thank you.
[38:55]
>> I have no
[38:58]
further cards. For those who still
[38:59]
have public
[39:01]
comment for nonagendized items, if you
[39:02]
can please
[39:04]
line up at the microphone, and we can proceed
[39:05]
in taking the comments.
[39:16]
>> am I good? Hi. My name
[39:18]
is bernadette fernandez, I'm a business
[39:19]
owner and downtown resident.
[39:21]
now that we are in mid summer, I would
[39:22]
like to again stress the
[39:25]
importance of healthy trees to
[39:28]
the wholistic well-being of our downtown.
[39:30]
trees reduce temperature, they beautify
[39:31]
the space, they
[39:33]
deeply affect the mental health of
[39:34]
the people visiting downtown, as
[39:37]
well as the people who call downtown
[39:40]
home, whether they are on our streets or
[39:41]
in a home.
[39:44]
the
[39:46]
lack of trees that will mature into
[39:47]
shade-
[39:48]
providers impacts everything from
[39:50]
public well-being to our
[39:52]
recent parking discussions. Nearly
[39:54]
every issue downtown could be solved
[39:56]
by
[39:57]
fostering a safe, shady environment
[39:59]
that allows people
[40:01]
to use the farther away parking spaces, as well
[40:03]
as safely spend their afternoons in
[40:05]
our downtown.
[40:08]
rather than
[40:09]
leave immediately if they're at risk of heatstroke.
[40:17]
I know
[40:18]
that this issue has been previously
[40:20]
addressed, but I would like to request
[40:22]
that its priority is moved up. We
[40:23]
work really
[40:25]
hard on fostering a really nice community
[40:29]
downtown, and that's almost
[40:32]
impossible to do when
[40:35]
the very, like,
[40:37]
structure of downtown means that you
[40:38]
can not spend more than ten minutes outside.
[40:41]
our hottest months
[40:43]
are coming up, obviously. A tree can't
[40:44]
grow
[40:46]
to maturity in a couple weeks, but I
[40:48]
would love some transparency into what
[40:50]
is being planted, when it
[40:53]
is being planted, and what
[40:55]
the care looks like. Even the trees that
[40:56]
are
[40:57]
currently, like, outside of my store,
[40:59]
outside of main street arts
[41:02]
gallery, they look
[41:03]
terrible. Their leaves are a little
[41:05]
curled up, sad trees.
[41:07]
so, yeah. I just request that that
[41:08]
priority is moved up and
[41:10]
maybe that we could get some information
[41:11]
about when
[41:12]
that's going to happen and when that'll
[41:14]
change. Thank you.
[41:15]
>> thank you.
[41:22]
>> final call for nonagendized item comments.
[41:26]
okay.
[41:28]
no one left in the chambers. I'm going
[41:29]
to move to the virtual
[41:31]
audience. For those attending virtually,
[41:32]
if you would like to make
[41:34]
a comment on nonagendized items, please use the raise hand
[41:35]
feature now.
[41:41]
all right, I
[41:42]
only have one hand. Jason, I'll ask you to unmute.
[41:47]
>> can you hear me? >> yes.
[41:50]
>>
[41:52]
hi, this is jason. These new updated
[41:53]
hours of
[41:55]
8:00 a.m. To 8:00 p.m. Of pickleball have
[41:56]
been
[41:59]
miserable. It is the
[42:01]
exact same high-pitched sharp sound that I
[42:02]
have to listen to for 12 hours every day.
[42:05]
it gives
[42:06]
me headaches and really affects my sleep.
[42:08]
to
[42:10]
add pickleball courts, especially
[42:11]
eight of them,
[42:13]
right next to homes, was a terrible
[42:14]
idea.
[42:16]
this has really decreased the liveability and enjoyment of my
[42:17]
home.
[42:20]
I
[42:21]
do understand that as a homeowner, I
[42:23]
have the
[42:25]
right to an environment that gives
[42:26]
me the ability to enjoy my home.
[42:29]
martinez
[42:30]
has failed miserably at providing this.
[42:34]
no one listens to the encouragement of quiet
[42:35]
equipment.
[42:38]
it is
[42:41]
always loud pops. In addition, no
[42:42]
one listens
[42:44]
to these pickleball
[42:46]
ambassadors. For example, I watched
[42:47]
a pickleball
[42:50]
player park their van on
[42:52]
glacier court. An older woman went over to
[42:53]
correct them.
[42:56]
this took a lot of courage, and
[42:59]
I do appreciate her efforts.
[43:02]
when she went to tell him to move
[43:05]
the van, he replied with, "thank you"
[43:06]
and
[43:07]
had no interest in following suggestions,
[43:08]
which
[43:09]
have done absolutely nothing to improve
[43:11]
the life of the homeowners.
[43:14]
people understand
[43:15]
that all these are, are weak suggestions with
[43:17]
no enforcement.
[43:20]
we actually have a
[43:23]
public health issue that myself and
[43:24]
my neighbors
[43:25]
have stated many times in past meetings.
[43:29]
these 90-day pilot periods
[43:31]
are way too long, and I recommend
[43:32]
completely
[43:34]
closing the pickleball courts and
[43:35]
moving them far
[43:37]
away in a park where the noise production is not an
[43:38]
issue to homeowners.
[43:41]
these courts need
[43:43]
to go back to tennis, because that
[43:44]
is what they were before, with zero
[43:47]
complaints.
[43:48]
thank you for allowing me to speak tonight.
[43:50]
>> thank you.
[43:55]
next we have brooklyn stout. I'll ask you to unmute.
[44:05]
>> can you hear me? >> yes. >> thanks
[44:07]
for taking my comment. I'm actually
[44:08]
at work, so I'm glad I
[44:10]
can do this. My family had the opportunity
[44:11]
to go to
[44:13]
pine meadows park the other day, and it
[44:14]
was quite lovely. I like that
[44:16]
it's brand-new, very accessible, very
[44:17]
nice park. The
[44:20]
bathrooms were great. One thing that
[44:21]
would
[44:23]
be definitely helpful, I think, for
[44:24]
everyone is
[44:26]
shade over the tables. And that can
[44:28]
just be a pergola. Doesn't have to
[44:31]
be fancy canopies. It can just be
[44:32]
a normal type of,
[44:34]
you know, like a picnic cover that
[44:35]
you see at other
[44:38]
parks. It was only 85 that day,
[44:41]
but I think we were only there for 30
[44:42]
minutes just because everyone was hot.
[44:45]
so, it would be
[44:48]
great if that
[44:49]
>> thank you.
[44:51]
I have
[44:52]
no further comments. That completes public comment.
[44:57]
>>
[44:59]
thank you, kat. Let's move on to the
[45:00]
consent
[45:03]
calendar. We have items --
[45:05]
well, on my screen, I have 2 through 11.
[45:06]
would anyone on
[45:09]
council like to --
[45:11]
>> this is the city council public
[45:12]
comment.
[45:14]
>> brooklyn, you're still off mute.
[45:15]
can you go on mute? Thank you.
[45:21]
all right. So, we have consent calendar
[45:23]
items 2 through 11. Does anyone on
[45:24]
council want
[45:25]
to pull any of these items for additional discussion?
[45:33]
>> none for me.
[45:34]
>> okay. All right, seeing none, I'm
[45:36]
going to open up
[45:39]
the consent calendar items to
[45:40]
public comments. So, if anyone in
[45:42]
the room or in
[45:45]
the virtualvirtual has comments
[45:48]
on consent calendar
[45:49]
items 2 through 11, please raise your hand now and approach the
[45:51]
podium.
[45:57]
vice mayor howard, is
[45:58]
there anyone in the room who appears
[45:59]
to have a public comment?
[46:00]
>> no. >> no?
[46:01]
okay. How about the virtual audience?
[46:03]
>> for those
[46:04]
attending virtually, please use the raise
[46:06]
hand feature.
[46:13]
I have no hands.
[46:14]
>> all right. Excellent.
[46:15]
back to council for a motion, please.
[46:18]
>> yeah, I'd like to make a motion
[46:21]
to approve
[46:22]
the consent calendar items 2 through 11.
[46:26]
>> second. >> all in favor, please --
[46:27]
oh, no.
[46:29]
can I have a roll call vote since
[46:33]
I'm remote?
[46:34]
>> mayor brianne
[46:36]
zorn. Vice mayor jay howard.
[46:38]
councilmember greg young. Councilmember
[46:42]
satinder mahli. Councilmember
[46:44]
debbie mckillop. Motion passes. All
[46:45]
ayes.
[46:46]
>> thank you
[46:47]
so much. Moving on to our first general
[46:48]
business item, the
[46:50]
item of the evening, receive a presentation
[46:51]
from
[46:53]
tucker sadler on a proposed vision
[46:54]
for the
[46:56]
revitalization of the martinez marina and
[46:57]
waterfront.
[47:03]
lauren, will you be --great.
[47:04]
>> I'll take
[47:05]
it from
[47:06]
here, mayor. So, good evening, mayor
[47:07]
and
[47:08]
council, members of the public and members who are joining us
[47:09]
online.
[47:12]
this evening, we're bringing forward
[47:13]
a significant opportunity for the
[47:15]
future
[47:17]
of our waterfront and marina, one
[47:18]
that builds on
[47:21]
years of community conversation, council
[47:23]
direction, and a shared desire to
[47:24]
transform the marina
[47:26]
into a safe, vibrant, and sustainable
[47:27]
public space.
[47:30]
tonight's presentation marks
[47:33]
an early but important step, a
[47:36]
conceptual vision presented by
[47:37]
tucker sadler that begins to explore
[47:38]
what revitalization could look like.
[47:42]
it is important to note that while we
[47:44]
are asking the council to consider
[47:45]
a motion to
[47:48]
enter into negotiations with tucker
[47:51]
sadler, with the intent to come
[47:54]
back with an exclusive negotiation
[47:55]
agreement, this
[47:56]
is by no means a final decision for
[47:57]
development.
[48:00]
it is
[48:03]
merely a first step in exploring the vision and a
[48:04]
partnership with our developer.
[48:08]
should the council authorize this
[48:09]
next step,
[48:11]
there will be many months ahead of
[48:12]
working with the city
[48:14]
council and the community to collaborate
[48:15]
on how to make
[48:18]
the marina and the waterfront a destination
[48:20]
that serves all of our residents and
[48:21]
tourists alike.
[48:25]
we understand that the community will
[48:27]
have a lot of questions. We've actually received a lot so
[48:28]
far.
[48:33]
and there will be public
[48:34]
comments where those questions are going to
[48:36]
be shared. We encourage them all.
[48:38]
now and of course ongoing. We will
[48:39]
not be able to
[48:41]
answer everybody's questions tonight,
[48:42]
and so I just
[48:45]
please ask for folks' patience. We will
[48:46]
be tracking
[48:48]
all of your questions, and we
[48:51]
do hope in due time, in future conversations,
[48:52]
which
[48:53]
there will be many more public conversations,
[48:54]
that all of your
[48:56]
questions will get answered. Please
[48:57]
note
[48:59]
for folks that folks here tonight in
[49:01]
the
[49:03]
chamber, we have an faq that's over
[49:04]
to --
[49:07]
right behind me on the
[49:10]
table near the
[49:11]
entrance. So, please feel free to
[49:12]
take one before we go. I'm just going
[49:13]
to
[49:14]
hold it up so you can kind of get a feel for
[49:16]
what it looks like.
[49:18]
tomorrow morning, we'll also have
[49:21]
a dedicated web page up, and there, you
[49:22]
can
[49:23]
find information about the project,
[49:25]
and then we'll also
[49:27]
have an interest form, so if you want
[49:28]
to continue to follow
[49:30]
along, get updates, I would encourage you.
[49:31]
and
[49:32]
again, this will be tomorrow, front, you
[49:34]
know, on
[49:35]
the city website, city of martinez.org.
[49:38]
can we turn to the next slide? Thank you.
[49:43]
okay, so, before I
[49:46]
turn it over to community and
[49:47]
economic development director jill
[49:49]
bergman, I want to
[49:50]
start first with, you know, what we've
[49:52]
all envisioned for a
[49:55]
long time. So, the
[49:57]
marina and waterfront revitalization has
[49:58]
been a
[50:00]
longstanding goal of the city council
[50:01]
over many
[50:03]
decades, and that really continued
[50:04]
with this city
[50:05]
council over the last couple years.
[50:07]
so, one thing I just
[50:08]
want to share with everybody here
[50:10]
tonight, and folks in the audience
[50:12]
might not know, but the last couple
[50:13]
years at
[50:15]
our city council retreats, we've started
[50:16]
the
[50:19]
retreat off with an
[50:21]
icebreaker that is titled "what do you
[50:22]
want the
[50:23]
headline for martinez to be in the
[50:25]
next three to five years?
[50:27]
" and it's a fun exercise, because
[50:28]
we get lots
[50:31]
of innovative,
[50:32]
creative headlines, but what seems to
[50:34]
stick out the last
[50:35]
couple years is that it always tends to be about the marina.
[50:40]
so, I
[50:41]
just put a few options up here. These
[50:43]
are pulled exactly from
[50:44]
the notes. Martinez welcomes new waterfront
[50:46]
and marina.
[50:47]
martinez secures funding for waterfront restoration.
[50:51]
newly renovated martinez marina opens to the public.
[50:55]
so, I just thought I'd
[50:57]
start there. Again, reinforcing that this
[50:58]
is just been
[51:00]
a long vision for us to bring you --
[51:01]
bring forward an opportunity to revitalize the
[51:02]
marina.
[51:04]
so, with that said,
[51:05]
I'll go ahead and turn it over to jill
[51:07]
bergman.
[51:10]
>> thank you,
[51:13]
lauren. Good evening, mayor
[51:14]
and councilmembers and the public.
[51:15]
thank you for joining us tonight.
[51:16]
we're going to start
[51:18]
with why this project matters and as we
[51:19]
all know, the
[51:20]
marina and waterfront are key community
[51:22]
assets, and the council has
[51:24]
been committed to really making them
[51:25]
safe, vibrant, and welcoming for all.
[51:28]
and one of the things that I
[51:30]
would like to share with the community,
[51:31]
if they are not aware,
[51:33]
is there is a senate bill, which is
[51:36]
senate bill 1424, which was enacted
[51:37]
specifically
[51:40]
for martinez, and to support the
[51:42]
revitalization of the waterfront while
[51:43]
ensuring that the public
[51:46]
trust principles, which is
[51:48]
providing public access, recreation,
[51:49]
commercial
[51:52]
uses, and environmental stewardship,
[51:54]
remains central to how these state
[51:55]
lands
[51:57]
are used. So, that's kind of what we
[51:58]
look at when we look at
[52:00]
anything that we do at the marina moving
[52:01]
forward.
[52:04]
so, tonight, we're going to
[52:06]
have a discussion about a lot of items.
[52:07]
we're going to
[52:10]
be starting with the
[52:11]
infrastructure deterioration, how
[52:13]
that's really rapidly outpacing
[52:15]
the improvements that we have. Talk about
[52:16]
our long-term fiscal
[52:18]
sustainability for martinez's future.
[52:19]
we will
[52:21]
also acknowledge a pivotal changes
[52:22]
that have
[52:24]
happened in 2024, and how that really led us here tonight.
[52:31]
we will then see
[52:32]
the vision that tucker sadler will
[52:33]
be presenting, followed by having
[52:34]
a conversation
[52:36]
about what we're asking this evening
[52:37]
about the exclusive negotiation agreement
[52:39]
and the council making a motion to
[52:40]
enter into one, and then
[52:42]
we'll talk a little bit about the
[52:43]
benefits -- the fiscal benefits of this project.
[52:48]
so, right now, with the current conditions, I don't
[52:49]
think it's any
[52:51]
surprise to anyone about the challenges that
[52:52]
the marina faces.
[52:55]
this
[52:57]
infrastructure was built in the 1960s.
[52:58]
it was
[52:59]
a very valued asset at that time.
[53:01]
but we all know it's beyond the
[53:03]
useful life. Typically, marinas last
[53:04]
about 30 to 40 years. We're reaching about 65.
[53:10]
in addition to that, a lot of the
[53:11]
infrastructure that was
[53:13]
developed on the land, you have seen many closures
[53:15]
or removals over the years of some
[53:16]
key facilities.
[53:19]
the restaurants, the bait shop,
[53:21]
the amphitheater, dock f and actually,
[53:22]
recently, this week,
[53:25]
we are in the process of decommissioning
[53:26]
dock d
[53:28]
and e. There has been longstanding
[53:29]
deferred
[53:30]
maintenance in the marina, and a lot
[53:31]
of it comes back to, you
[53:33]
know, having the financial resources
[53:34]
to be able to continue
[53:37]
to maintain it in terms of what revenue
[53:40]
comes in. For those that don't know,
[53:41]
the
[53:42]
marina is a private enterprise fund,
[53:43]
which means the revenue
[53:44]
that's generated through the boats that are
[53:45]
out there and anything through the
[53:46]
leases and so forth
[53:49]
is what is put back into the operations of this --
[53:50]
of the marina itself.
[53:55]
and at times, we have to look
[53:58]
towards the general fund,
[54:00]
which lauren will touch upon. There
[54:02]
are also a great
[54:03]
amount of environmental challenges.
[54:05]
with sea level rise, we
[54:08]
are seeing much
[54:11]
more saltation come
[54:12]
into the marina, as well as more flooding.
[54:13]
we have king tides, as well as a lot
[54:14]
of negative tides as a result of that
[54:16]
as well. That creates a significant
[54:19]
stress on the infrastructure, as well as
[54:20]
dock access.
[54:22]
right now, the picture to your right
[54:23]
is an example
[54:25]
of this past year, the f3 has taken
[54:26]
the
[54:28]
liberty to try and create a temporary
[54:29]
dock to
[54:31]
be able to raise the elevation, so
[54:32]
during these
[54:34]
flooded times, the --so that boaters
[54:35]
could
[54:37]
actually access their boats four more
[54:38]
hours a day just by that one
[54:41]
simple thing. Where a lot of
[54:42]
times, the boaters would have to time
[54:43]
whether they're going in and out with the tides.
[54:50]
other
[54:53]
things that
[54:56]
we experience. Our
[54:59]
public works team --the tremendous
[55:00]
amount of illegal dumping that happens
[55:02]
at thethe at this point. We want
[55:03]
to touch on the future maintenance.
[55:05]
we know that the seawall
[55:07]
needs to be replaced. It's too short because of
[55:08]
the
[55:10]
sea level rise, as well as the break
[55:11]
water needs to repair.
[55:13]
it's in deterioration. And again,
[55:14]
a lot of the general
[55:15]
dredging, there's a lot of expectations
[55:16]
as to when that's going to happen,
[55:18]
and there's a tremendous amount of
[55:20]
funding that comes with it. Our last
[55:21]
dredging cost a million dollars, and
[55:23]
it only covered
[55:25]
the main dock fairway out to the ocean and a little bit of the
[55:26]
slip areas.
[55:31]
we have been in the process the last few
[55:32]
years, trying
[55:35]
to secure grant funding to be help
[55:36]
with the repair walls for the seawall, as well
[55:38]
as the replacement, but a lot
[55:40]
of those have fell short. As you know,
[55:41]
there's a lot of changes
[55:42]
when it comes to federal funding now,
[55:44]
so limitations and access to grant
[55:47]
funding is getting very slim.
[55:49]
general operations also become a major
[55:51]
stress with continual improvements that have to be
[55:53]
made daily.
[55:55]
I'm going to just go through this --
[55:58]
this one, I'm hoping I can --can you
[55:59]
hit the button
[56:00]
to make this go? There we go. Sorry.
[56:04]
so, this is just an example of, in
[56:05]
photos,
[56:06]
the deteriorating buildings, the closure
[56:08]
of some
[56:10]
of the infrastructure we have. Shows you a lot of
[56:13]
the illegal dumping that's happening,
[56:14]
things that people may or
[56:15]
may not see each day, the flooding
[56:17]
that occurs daily, and this is really
[56:20]
a good example of all the
[56:23]
saltation that is
[56:24]
in when you hit low tide, as well
[56:25]
as infrastructure that's no longer
[56:29]
being used. It really gives you a
[56:30]
snapshot
[56:31]
of behind the marina part as well.
[56:38]
so, we
[56:41]
have daylighted
[56:43]
over the fiscal year 25-'26 budget
[56:44]
process but
[56:45]
also in the last fiscal year's mid
[56:47]
year conversation, the
[56:49]
financial challenges of the status quo at
[56:50]
the marina.
[56:53]
and really, the message has been
[56:55]
how there is a significant growing
[56:56]
strain the marina is
[56:58]
placing on the city's general fund.
[56:59]
for those who might not
[57:01]
know, the general fund is what provides
[57:02]
our core
[57:05]
services, police, park maintenance, all
[57:06]
the
[57:08]
nuts and bolts. So, the marina enterprise
[57:09]
fund
[57:11]
is currently has a structural
[57:14]
deficit. The, you know, what is
[57:16]
a structural deficit? It means that
[57:17]
over a long period of time,
[57:20]
there's a trend where expenses
[57:23]
are exceeding revenues. For
[57:24]
those who have been in martinez many
[57:26]
generations, many years, you might
[57:29]
know that at one point, revenues
[57:31]
were coming in and it could fund things
[57:32]
like utilities
[57:34]
and operations, but that hasn't been the case for a
[57:35]
long time.
[57:38]
in addition,
[57:41]
over $1.7 million has
[57:44]
been used
[57:46]
from the reserves, a transfer from reserves to key
[57:47]
projects, and this is stemming over
[57:48]
really the last
[57:50]
few fiscal years. Those key projects,
[57:51]
most
[57:52]
notably, have included the dredging
[57:53]
that we did in fiscal
[57:56]
year 2023, along
[57:57]
with numerous other key and critical repairs.
[58:02]
but this fiscal year,
[58:05]
and into the future, we just adopted
[58:06]
our fiscal year
[58:08]
'25-'26 budget, and that
[58:11]
included a --just over a half million
[58:12]
dollar
[58:14]
loan from the general fund to the
[58:15]
marina enterprise fund,
[58:17]
again, to cover operations, utilities,
[58:20]
maintenance and repairs.
[58:23]
but going beyond into the next fiscal
[58:25]
year and for many more fiscal years
[58:26]
to go, at least over the next ten
[58:27]
years,
[58:29]
if we do nothing, we're looking at
[58:30]
$650,000 a
[58:32]
year out of the general fund, and
[58:35]
what does that look like if we keep
[58:36]
doing
[58:38]
that? We are looking at going below
[58:39]
our reserve goals by 2027.
[58:45]
and the challenge there, and
[58:46]
this is what we have been trying to
[58:47]
communicate over the last few months, is
[58:48]
that what
[58:49]
happens when you go below reserves?
[58:51]
we have to start cutting into
[58:54]
core services. So, positions,
[58:56]
job freezes, starts to affect park
[58:58]
maintenance, public safety, because
[58:59]
we just can't afford those basic services.
[59:03]
one thing I
[59:04]
will call out that even if nothing's
[59:06]
done over the next
[59:07]
couple years, regardless, we already
[59:09]
have to make an
[59:12]
estimated $1.2 million
[59:13]
in budget cuts over the next few years.
[59:15]
so,
[59:18]
again, just the --what we're trying to communicate here
[59:20]
is just a very challenging fiscal
[59:21]
picture for the city.
[59:24]
the status quo cannot remain, and
[59:27]
frankly, without putting us in a very
[59:28]
difficult position, but most importantly, we have a
[59:30]
revenue problem.
[59:33]
so,
[59:35]
even if you somehow cut off the --
[59:36]
or we
[59:38]
no longer have to loan the marina
[59:39]
any
[59:41]
money, and let's just say that somehow
[59:42]
went away,
[59:43]
we still are in a structural deficit because we
[59:45]
have a revenue problem.
[59:51]
so, there's still a need
[59:53]
for us to go out and generate new
[59:54]
revenue.
[59:55]
>> so,
[59:57]
what changed in 2024?
[1:00:00]
in 2024, the trust land use
[1:00:02]
plan that is required by the senate
[1:00:03]
bill 1424 was approved by
[1:00:04]
the council and subsequently approved
[1:00:05]
by the state lands commission and that
[1:00:09]
was in june. At that same
[1:00:11]
time, almar management, they gave
[1:00:12]
their 60-day
[1:00:13]
notice. They were managing the marina
[1:00:15]
for over 20 years and got bought
[1:00:16]
out by sun tech, and so they were
[1:00:18]
looking at liquidating some of the
[1:00:21]
things they were doing so
[1:00:23]
that, unfortunately, really abruptly
[1:00:24]
provided us
[1:00:25]
the --where we had to take over the
[1:00:27]
management operations.
[1:00:30]
one of the things
[1:00:32]
that that provide was us to be able
[1:00:33]
to gain a
[1:00:36]
clear view of the structural needs and
[1:00:37]
the
[1:00:38]
issues that were out there, not only
[1:00:39]
with how things were being operated
[1:00:41]
but just kind of getting a bigger
[1:00:42]
picture of, what do we
[1:00:43]
have ahead of us and how do we move forward?
[1:00:47]
and then, as well as, understanding
[1:00:48]
that we're not in the
[1:00:50]
position to run a marina, so we needed to
[1:00:51]
be able to start the
[1:00:53]
search to be able to find a marina
[1:00:54]
management partner.
[1:00:56]
while I enjoyed being a harbor master
[1:00:57]
for four months, I didn't
[1:01:00]
want to do it any longer. So,
[1:01:01]
the search for the marina management
[1:01:03]
began, and f-3, one of our
[1:01:06]
partners, who's also in
[1:01:09]
the audience, the harbor master,
[1:01:11]
they were selected to come on and
[1:01:12]
stabilize the operations
[1:01:14]
and if you have been out there lately,
[1:01:15]
they're doing a wonderful job
[1:01:17]
with refreshing and doing their best
[1:01:18]
to keep the marina going forward.
[1:01:21]
but as part of this operator outreach,
[1:01:22]
there's a
[1:01:23]
lot that we learned, because part
[1:01:24]
of this process was just
[1:01:26]
initially, again, trying to find someone to
[1:01:27]
be an operator.
[1:01:29]
well, we reached out to about ten
[1:01:30]
firms, five that
[1:01:32]
really kind of were viable and interested
[1:01:33]
in
[1:01:35]
having conversations, and they ranged
[1:01:36]
from being just
[1:01:38]
marina operators to also marina operators
[1:01:39]
and developers,
[1:01:41]
and through those conversations, much of
[1:01:44]
the information we received was about
[1:01:45]
the marina
[1:01:46]
itself. There was concerns about,
[1:01:48]
oh, you
[1:01:51]
know, taking on that type of a liability
[1:01:52]
and
[1:01:53]
responsibility where they weren't
[1:01:54]
interested at that point. They were
[1:01:55]
interested when we
[1:01:57]
started looking forward to maybe potentially redeveloping it.
[1:01:59]
a lot of this led to conversations
[1:02:00]
like, okay, what would
[1:02:03]
that look like? Is this something
[1:02:04]
that
[1:02:05]
your company would be interested in
[1:02:06]
doing?
[1:02:08]
and we received a wide range of feedback
[1:02:09]
related to the
[1:02:11]
financial feasibility and that primarily
[1:02:12]
was really led back to
[1:02:14]
the seawall and the break water and
[1:02:15]
the dredging. You
[1:02:18]
know, with that project being 25 to
[1:02:19]
$30
[1:02:21]
million to really, truly do all of
[1:02:23]
that, it was something that a development
[1:02:24]
partner couldn't take on.
[1:02:26]
that would be something that the city would
[1:02:27]
have to be responsible for in some
[1:02:28]
way for
[1:02:30]
them to entertain the idea of moving
[1:02:33]
forward. There was also a discussion
[1:02:34]
about
[1:02:35]
the trust land use plan itself and
[1:02:36]
how it really had
[1:02:38]
a limited scope. There was just a
[1:02:41]
minimal amount of commercial, so when
[1:02:42]
you typically are going in
[1:02:45]
and putting a $50 million new marina
[1:02:47]
in, I want landside development that's
[1:02:48]
going to support that activity and be
[1:02:51]
an attracter for people want to come here.
[1:02:52]
with that
[1:02:53]
feedback, that really was eye-opening
[1:02:54]
for us, and
[1:02:57]
it continued kind of some of the conversations.
[1:03:00]
one of the operator
[1:03:02]
and developer for water marina development
[1:03:03]
was safe harbor, and
[1:03:06]
they expressed the most initial interest,
[1:03:08]
even when they were out visiting another
[1:03:09]
property. They chose to come down.
[1:03:12]
they met with city staff. We looked at
[1:03:13]
the property
[1:03:14]
together with them, talked through the
[1:03:16]
trust land use permit. Or
[1:03:18]
excuse me, plan. Talked through, just
[1:03:21]
in general, the community, the assets that
[1:03:22]
are already down
[1:03:23]
there, how we wanted to really look
[1:03:25]
at how can
[1:03:27]
we, you know, build in with these
[1:03:28]
assets and also be respectful of everything.
[1:03:33]
and they showed initial interest and
[1:03:34]
went back and did
[1:03:35]
a pro forma. They said, let's take
[1:03:37]
a look
[1:03:38]
at it, we'll evaluate it and see if
[1:03:39]
it's something we can do. When they came
[1:03:40]
back to
[1:03:41]
us, they really said, you know, this
[1:03:43]
property is a spectacular
[1:03:45]
gem, but we really can't make it work
[1:03:46]
with just
[1:03:49]
the marina alone. It needs
[1:03:50]
landside development, and they said
[1:03:52]
that's something we don't do, but we
[1:03:54]
have a partner that we have done that
[1:03:55]
with, and that
[1:03:57]
is where the introduction to tucker
[1:03:58]
sadler began. And so, we
[1:04:00]
said, all right, let's have that conversation.
[1:04:01]
so,
[1:04:03]
we, again, that was -- it was all
[1:04:04]
kind
[1:04:06]
of this organic, you know, process of
[1:04:07]
trying to find out
[1:04:08]
more information to see where we're
[1:04:10]
at, see what asset we had, and see
[1:04:12]
where we could potentially go with
[1:04:13]
the vision for the marina.
[1:04:15]
so, with meeting as we met with tucker sadler,
[1:04:16]
same
[1:04:17]
thing, they kind of looked at everything
[1:04:18]
and said, you know, this is just a
[1:04:19]
spectacular gem as well.
[1:04:24]
but they wanted to really study it
[1:04:25]
further.
[1:04:26]
they wanted to study the community, they
[1:04:28]
wanted to study the plan, give
[1:04:31]
an honest assessment
[1:04:34]
back to the city. So, they took everything
[1:04:35]
to heart, and several months later,
[1:04:36]
came back to the city and said, we have
[1:04:37]
a vision.
[1:04:38]
we have something to present to you.
[1:04:40]
it's not necessarily what was
[1:04:42]
outlined in the trust plan. It takes
[1:04:43]
into account all
[1:04:44]
the things that were incorporated in
[1:04:46]
the plan, and it builds on
[1:04:47]
them, and it builds on, you know,
[1:04:49]
a vision that we see for this
[1:04:52]
community that we think would work
[1:04:54]
perfect for the community and being
[1:04:55]
size appropriate for the community
[1:04:56]
and
[1:04:57]
creating a transformational opportunity.
[1:04:58]
with
[1:05:01]
that, we kind of evaluated
[1:05:02]
it and knew it was time to bring it
[1:05:03]
forward to the council. With that,
[1:05:04]
we went
[1:05:05]
forward to the council in a closed
[1:05:07]
session to
[1:05:09]
have that discussion, and then the
[1:05:10]
developer did a presentation to
[1:05:12]
share with the council. That's one of
[1:05:13]
the reasons why
[1:05:16]
we're here tonight.
[1:05:18]
at that particular meeting, the council
[1:05:19]
was very
[1:05:21]
much about transparency, wanting to make
[1:05:22]
sure the community was involved as
[1:05:23]
part of this process and didn't want
[1:05:25]
to continue on the conversation with
[1:05:28]
the closed session. So, that
[1:05:31]
really allowed us to, you
[1:05:33]
know, move forward and tonight is
[1:05:34]
pretty much that
[1:05:35]
where we are moving forward to kind
[1:05:37]
of share that vision
[1:05:40]
with
[1:05:43]
the community. And also talk about
[1:05:44]
what
[1:05:45]
a public-private partnership would
[1:05:46]
look like and why
[1:05:48]
it's important. We all know the marina
[1:05:49]
is beloved, and the waterfront is
[1:05:51]
beloved, and it's declining. So, what
[1:05:52]
can we do
[1:05:54]
to really enhance that? We know that
[1:05:55]
the status quo is
[1:05:57]
unsustainable, and it really does
[1:05:58]
create a burden for the general plan.
[1:06:01]
the city cannot fully revitalize this
[1:06:02]
on
[1:06:03]
our own with grants or bond measures.
[1:06:04]
that's something
[1:06:07]
that is just, as we all know, that
[1:06:08]
takes a
[1:06:09]
lot of time and typically is piecemealing
[1:06:10]
things, and given
[1:06:12]
the scope of this project and the
[1:06:13]
decay on the infrastructure, it's not
[1:06:16]
something we can do on our own.
[1:06:18]
and the council was very much, as
[1:06:19]
part of we were going through the
[1:06:20]
budget
[1:06:21]
process, kind of recognized that as
[1:06:22]
well, and that's why we
[1:06:23]
started talking through the conversations of
[1:06:25]
public-private partnership.
[1:06:28]
and really, what that does,
[1:06:30]
it helps offer a way forward for the
[1:06:31]
community. It
[1:06:34]
brings investment, activation, and there's a lot of
[1:06:35]
long-term benefits that
[1:06:36]
are associated with it. As well as
[1:06:40]
private funding. One of the things that
[1:06:41]
was very
[1:06:42]
attractive about the conversations
[1:06:43]
we had
[1:06:44]
was this is something that would be a
[1:06:45]
private investment. There would be
[1:06:46]
no city
[1:06:48]
subsidies, initially, and that's a
[1:06:49]
very rare thing to have when
[1:06:52]
it comes to a partnership. As I mentioned
[1:06:53]
earlier, about a
[1:06:55]
lot of the conversations of the city
[1:06:56]
wanting to --coming
[1:06:58]
up with a lot of funding to help offset some
[1:06:59]
of the cost, this
[1:07:00]
allows us to go forward with a process where
[1:07:01]
we're not having to come up with the upfront
[1:07:02]
parts.
[1:07:04]
it also reduces the
[1:07:07]
risk and keeps the public benefit at the
[1:07:08]
center of the
[1:07:09]
project, which is really what is required
[1:07:10]
under the
[1:07:13]
senate bill 1424 that granted us
[1:07:16]
this lantd in
[1:07:17]
d in the first place. It's always important for me to
[1:07:18]
share that with folks because many people
[1:07:19]
think that we own the land
[1:07:21]
outright and we can do whatever we want
[1:07:22]
with it. We don't. It's been entrusted
[1:07:25]
to us. So, with that, and why everyone
[1:07:28]
is here tonight, I would like
[1:07:31]
to turn this overover
[1:07:35]
tucker sadler.
[1:07:37]
greg mueller. And have him walk you
[1:07:39]
all through the vision which he shared
[1:07:40]
with us and wants to share now with the community.
[1:07:53]
>> we can't -- thank you. >> there we go.
[1:07:58]
mayor zorn, council members, city
[1:07:59]
staff,
[1:08:02]
and community members, it's a
[1:08:04]
pleasure to be here tonight to let you
[1:08:05]
know
[1:08:08]
what our vision is for the marina,
[1:08:10]
but I have to pause, and I have to
[1:08:11]
say that the
[1:08:12]
vision has changed as early as about
[1:08:14]
ten minutes ago.
[1:08:17]
and that vision
[1:08:20]
has changed because two
[1:08:21]
young men walked up and said they need a soccer
[1:08:23]
field.
[1:08:26]
so, we got to figure out how to get these kids a soccer field.
[1:08:32]
so, that is the type of partner we are.
[1:08:38]
we are here to be
[1:08:39]
part of the community. We're not here
[1:08:41]
to impose something on
[1:08:42]
the community. We're here to create
[1:08:44]
something that is
[1:08:45]
going to be successful for all of us.
[1:08:47]
and that is what we are looking to do.
[1:08:52]
I want to be very clear about one
[1:08:56]
thing and that is, this is
[1:08:59]
a partnership, and we are not
[1:09:05]
owners.
[1:09:06]
we will not be owners of the land.
[1:09:07]
the land stays with the city because
[1:09:08]
the city has it in
[1:09:10]
trust. We will be long-term leaseholders.
[1:09:11]
as we're talking about this,
[1:09:12]
and as you're thinking about this,
[1:09:14]
we will not
[1:09:16]
be owners. Not of the marina, not of
[1:09:17]
the development.
[1:09:18]
we are the ones that are going to
[1:09:20]
develop it. We're going
[1:09:23]
to operate it through a lease. That's
[1:09:24]
how this whole partnership will work.
[1:09:29]
tucker sadler,
[1:09:32]
I am the ceo, design principal
[1:09:34]
and owner. I'm accompanied tonight
[1:09:35]
with
[1:09:38]
my partner and wife, diane
[1:09:40]
mueller. I have the privilege of being
[1:09:41]
in a
[1:09:43]
company that's been around for 68
[1:09:44]
years. I've owned the company for 23.
[1:09:49]
with my other business partner, art
[1:09:50]
castro, who has
[1:09:51]
been with the firm for 48 of the 68 years.
[1:09:56]
longevity is important in our firm,
[1:09:57]
and it's because of
[1:09:59]
the way we handle all the projects
[1:10:00]
that we take on.
[1:10:10]
we have development experience on waterfronts throughout the
[1:10:11]
country.
[1:10:14]
we helped reshape
[1:10:16]
the naval shipyards in washington, d.c.,
[1:10:17]
into
[1:10:20]
what it
[1:10:23]
is today. And the progress
[1:10:24]
we made out in washington, d.c. , all of a
[1:10:26]
sudden, the
[1:10:29]
nationals put their stadium next to
[1:10:30]
our
[1:10:31]
development. It spawns other things
[1:10:32]
to happen. And that's
[1:10:34]
what we are trying to do here is be
[1:10:38]
catalyst for the future of
[1:10:41]
martinez. We've
[1:10:43]
worked from one area --one side of
[1:10:44]
the
[1:10:47]
country all the way
[1:10:50]
to hawaii and as well as here in california.
[1:10:53]
we are used to working with
[1:10:56]
government agencies. Whether it's
[1:10:57]
fish
[1:10:59]
and wildlife or park
[1:11:04]
districts, the city's understanding how we have to be
[1:11:05]
partners in everything that we're
[1:11:08]
doing. We are advocates
[1:11:10]
for the community, and we want to
[1:11:11]
be a partner in the development.
[1:11:16]
our design approach is something that
[1:11:17]
we look at
[1:11:19]
from a standpoint of economic stability.
[1:11:20]
we
[1:11:23]
want to look at what is
[1:11:25]
going to be sustainable. Sustainable
[1:11:26]
in two ways.
[1:11:29]
one,
[1:11:31]
being environmentally friendly. We're
[1:11:32]
going to
[1:11:35]
be proposing a development that is
[1:11:36]
going to be as close to net zero as we
[1:11:38]
can get. We're going to
[1:11:41]
create ourour energy to help
[1:11:44]
run this project. We
[1:11:46]
think it's important. We're also going
[1:11:47]
to employ some new things that
[1:11:50]
help clean up the bay water.
[1:11:53]
as part of the redevelopment of the marina.
[1:11:54]
those are
[1:11:56]
things that we take to heart, because
[1:11:58]
those are the things that make it
[1:11:59]
be sustainable from
[1:12:01]
an environmental standpoint. But from
[1:12:02]
an economic standpoint, we need to
[1:12:05]
be able to put something forward
[1:12:08]
that creates an engine that supports
[1:12:09]
the
[1:12:10]
community, that supports the things
[1:12:11]
that need to be
[1:12:13]
maintained over the length of the development.
[1:12:14]
and gets to a point where
[1:12:16]
we don't have a marina that we're
[1:12:17]
all sitting here talking about how do we keep it from closing?
[1:12:20]
and
[1:12:23]
unfortunately, we're in a position
[1:12:25]
where if we don't do something --
[1:12:27]
well, actually,
[1:12:29]
everything that's in there right now
[1:12:30]
is going to have
[1:12:33]
to come out in a couple years.
[1:12:36]
I already broached on some of
[1:12:37]
this, our experience in working on the
[1:12:39]
waterfront. We are
[1:12:42]
the architects for the
[1:12:45]
rady shell in san diego. That
[1:12:46]
was a 17-year partnership working with
[1:12:48]
the city,
[1:12:50]
the port, the state, to turn a public
[1:12:51]
park
[1:12:52]
into a performance venue, and if any
[1:12:53]
of you guys have had the chance to
[1:12:54]
be
[1:12:56]
down to san diego to listen to a concert,
[1:13:00]
suggest you go and listen to it.
[1:13:03]
there's things that we incorporated for
[1:13:05]
the community to allow for a no-cost option
[1:13:06]
for people to hear the concert.
[1:13:09]
there is no
[1:13:12]
high fences around that
[1:13:14]
performance venue so that you can
[1:13:15]
walk around
[1:13:16]
the venue as the performance is going
[1:13:17]
on, and you can see the performance and
[1:13:18]
hear the performance.
[1:13:24]
as part of the agreement we made
[1:13:25]
with the coastal commission to allow us
[1:13:27]
to have that out on
[1:13:29]
the water. Those are the agreements
[1:13:30]
that we make with
[1:13:32]
the agencies to make sure that the
[1:13:33]
public gets
[1:13:36]
access and it's
[1:13:39]
not just one contingency of the
[1:13:40]
public that has access to it, that everyone
[1:13:41]
has access. That's important to us.
[1:13:51]
safe harbor is the reason why
[1:13:52]
we're here. They came out and took
[1:13:53]
a look at the marina, made an assessment.
[1:13:54]
they asked me
[1:13:55]
to come look at it and confirm their assessment,
[1:13:57]
which I did.
[1:14:00]
which means the
[1:14:02]
marina needs to be a total redo, as well
[1:14:03]
as
[1:14:05]
the seawalls. Now, part of the reason
[1:14:08]
why we have the silt infiltration is
[1:14:09]
because the
[1:14:11]
way it's designed, it actually brings
[1:14:12]
silt
[1:14:13]
in, and that's why the dredging now
[1:14:15]
is going to happen and we're looking
[1:14:17]
at ways that we can redo the seawalls
[1:14:18]
to avoid that in
[1:14:20]
the future, to give the longevity and a
[1:14:21]
better boating experience to the marina.
[1:14:26]
but in order for the marina to be
[1:14:27]
successful, there's got to be a reason to be there.
[1:14:30]
and that means development.
[1:14:32]
and so, they asked me to come take a
[1:14:33]
look,
[1:14:36]
which I did. And started to look at
[1:14:37]
different plans, which is what I'm
[1:14:38]
going to show you tonight is what we
[1:14:39]
came up with.
[1:14:42]
this is the
[1:14:45]
type of thing that will get a developer like
[1:14:46]
safe harbor to come out and invest
[1:14:48]
money in redoing the marina.
[1:14:53]
why is it important to have a design-
[1:14:54]
led team that's also a developer?
[1:14:57]
I'll go right to
[1:15:00]
the bottom line. We
[1:15:01]
know how to gain consensus through participation.
[1:15:12]
we shoulder design charets. We'll
[1:15:13]
be
[1:15:14]
doing that to show you how we can
[1:15:15]
incorporate everything and
[1:15:18]
be respectful of all the issues with
[1:15:19]
the
[1:15:20]
environment and trails and how we
[1:15:21]
connect and
[1:15:23]
how we weave this into the site that is out there
[1:15:24]
currently.
[1:15:30]
now the fun stuff.
[1:15:42]
there's a very rich history
[1:15:44]
here, and when I very first came here
[1:15:45]
and sat and
[1:15:48]
had lunch in downtown, it
[1:15:51]
reminds me of the town I grew up in
[1:15:54]
during the summers in minnesota. Spent
[1:15:55]
time in battle
[1:15:56]
lake, minnesota. It has the same cultural
[1:15:57]
feel. It
[1:16:00]
has the same warmth, the same
[1:16:03]
vibe that makes you want to stay and have fun and linger.
[1:16:06]
and that's what martinez has.
[1:16:09]
and it's got a rich historyhistory
[1:16:12]
sports, with joe
[1:16:15]
dimaggio. It's politically connected
[1:16:18]
with the way that john muir and
[1:16:21]
his writings and
[1:16:24]
his contributing to
[1:16:27]
what we have
[1:16:29]
nationally, and you've got great,
[1:16:30]
great roots, and we want to build
[1:16:32]
off of that. In fact, I want to figure
[1:16:33]
out a
[1:16:36]
way to get
[1:16:38]
the jolting joe displayed down at
[1:16:39]
the new marina. It
[1:16:41]
needs to be down there, down by the
[1:16:42]
water. It needs to be here in martinez.
[1:16:48]
we start out by taking a look,
[1:16:50]
and we look at our market, and we
[1:16:51]
look at what is
[1:16:53]
available to us. Where are connections?
[1:16:54]
how can we get
[1:16:57]
transportation to happen? Is there a
[1:17:00]
way to get a ferry service here that
[1:17:01]
could
[1:17:02]
connect to the marina? That's important to me.
[1:17:03]
as you look
[1:17:06]
at a marina, and you look at the land and
[1:17:07]
you look at where activities
[1:17:09]
come from, if we can draw
[1:17:12]
people into martinez by having a ferry
[1:17:16]
system, it will be more
[1:17:17]
successful to martinez, to our waterfront,
[1:17:20]
to our downtown, to everything that
[1:17:22]
is in the
[1:17:25]
future of martinez.
[1:17:27]
we also take a look at what is around
[1:17:30]
from hotels, amphitheaters, performance
[1:17:32]
venues, things that are operating and
[1:17:34]
where's the hole and what can we
[1:17:35]
fill to make this be successful? We
[1:17:37]
don't want to
[1:17:39]
put something down there that is being
[1:17:40]
done somewhere else.
[1:17:42]
we want to make --we want to make
[1:17:43]
creative
[1:17:46]
and have that opportunity
[1:17:49]
to really tie together
[1:17:51]
a successful place for martinez. Not
[1:17:52]
just the waterfront, but for
[1:17:55]
martinez.
[1:18:01]
when I first came across the bridge,
[1:18:03]
I flew in from sacramento and drove
[1:18:04]
down from sacramento.
[1:18:05]
this aerial that is there, when I
[1:18:07]
drove
[1:18:08]
across that bridge, and I saw this
[1:18:09]
marina from the bridge, I said, this
[1:18:10]
is
[1:18:13]
the calling card.
[1:18:15]
this is a successful place to do a
[1:18:17]
nice development that really is the
[1:18:18]
calling card for martinez. Come see
[1:18:22]
us, come be down here. You
[1:18:24]
can see it so clearly, and it's going to
[1:18:25]
be
[1:18:27]
an attraction that won't even need signage.
[1:18:28]
people
[1:18:29]
will just turn off the road and come
[1:18:31]
down there because of
[1:18:32]
that great view and the ability to activate the
[1:18:34]
waterfront.
[1:18:37]
you got
[1:18:38]
to remember, one of the things with
[1:18:40]
state lands is our responsibility is
[1:18:42]
to activate the waterfront by bringing
[1:18:43]
people to the water. That's what we're going to do.
[1:18:46]
we're
[1:18:48]
going to find ways to bring all ages
[1:18:51]
down to the waterfront. We want to
[1:18:52]
activate this because
[1:18:54]
when we activate it, it becomes some
[1:18:55]
place that's
[1:18:58]
safer, more fun,
[1:19:01]
and enjoyable for the entire population of martinez,
[1:19:04]
region, and the state.
[1:19:06]
and I say the state because we want to
[1:19:07]
do some things that are
[1:19:10]
going to draw
[1:19:13]
people here and make it
[1:19:15]
available to have the sport fields,
[1:19:16]
which we're not going to touch
[1:19:18]
in this portion of it, except I do
[1:19:19]
have to figure out
[1:19:20]
how to get a soccer field out here.
[1:19:25]
but
[1:19:27]
understanding that what regionally can happen and what
[1:19:28]
can happen at
[1:19:31]
a state level, to have tournaments
[1:19:33]
out here. I mean, most of the kids
[1:19:34]
play club sports now. We want to
[1:19:37]
be able to draw from nevada, from
[1:19:38]
arizona,
[1:19:39]
have tournaments out here on these
[1:19:40]
ball
[1:19:43]
fields, which are phenomenal.
[1:19:44]
but have a development that will support that.
[1:19:46]
and that's what
[1:19:48]
we're looking at doing. We want to
[1:19:49]
make it be the place for
[1:19:52]
people to come. We
[1:19:54]
did take a look at the tulip, and
[1:19:57]
we looked at the development opportunities
[1:19:58]
with it, and we started putting numbers
[1:20:03]
and if you look at this, you can see --
[1:20:04]
and I'm going
[1:20:07]
to advance to the next slide --actually,
[1:20:08]
you
[1:20:09]
know what? I take it back. I want to back up one slide.
[1:20:15]
when we look at this from an aerial
[1:20:19]
view, and you look at
[1:20:20]
the great natural preserve that is
[1:20:22]
to our right and to our left
[1:20:25]
of
[1:20:27]
this marina, that is phenomenal that we
[1:20:28]
have that already on
[1:20:29]
the water. There's trails and things that
[1:20:31]
we can connect to.
[1:20:34]
but what --if you look at this
[1:20:35]
and how it's highlighted, and you
[1:20:37]
look
[1:20:39]
at martinez, this is where the downtown touches the
[1:20:40]
water.
[1:20:43]
this is the
[1:20:45]
one spot in here where we actually
[1:20:46]
get
[1:20:49]
to touch the water. That's important
[1:20:50]
because we're surrounded by nature.
[1:20:52]
we're going to engage nature,
[1:20:54]
and we're going to touch that water,
[1:20:55]
and that's important. That is
[1:20:58]
one of the things that I was
[1:21:01]
so impressed with is that here's an opportunity.
[1:21:02]
surrounded by
[1:21:03]
nature, and an opportunity that we're
[1:21:04]
saying, here, this is where we want
[1:21:05]
to
[1:21:06]
touch the water. This is where we want to have
[1:21:07]
responsible development.
[1:21:13]
so, when we looked at the
[1:21:16]
tulip and looked at what
[1:21:19]
was
[1:21:22]
available, there's not enough
[1:21:25]
buildings out here to support the
[1:21:28]
redevelopment of a
[1:21:31]
marina, to support bringing people
[1:21:32]
out
[1:21:34]
here for --to activate your
[1:21:37]
ball fields. We need to have
[1:21:40]
a little bit more to attract people.
[1:21:43]
that the developer of the marina can have
[1:21:44]
an --
[1:21:45]
have amenities there that attract
[1:21:46]
new boats,
[1:21:49]
new
[1:21:52]
boaters, bringing back fishing tournaments,
[1:21:53]
things that
[1:21:54]
are going to make the marina active.
[1:21:55]
they need more
[1:21:56]
down there than just what we have.
[1:21:58]
this is a great starting point. It
[1:21:59]
hits all
[1:22:00]
the elements that we wanted to talk
[1:22:01]
about or wanted to touch on.
[1:22:02]
we just have to do it at a bigger level.
[1:22:08]
and we need to
[1:22:09]
take some of these parking lots and
[1:22:10]
reshape them and reuse them in a different way.
[1:22:19]
the things that I took from the tulip
[1:22:22]
as well is that we want to be engaging.
[1:22:23]
engaging in
[1:22:24]
the community, engaging in people
[1:22:26]
coming down there. We want
[1:22:28]
to engage the waterfront. Again, it's
[1:22:29]
about
[1:22:30]
engaging the waterfront. That is one
[1:22:32]
of
[1:22:33]
our responsibilities of this tidal
[1:22:35]
land is to be able
[1:22:36]
to touch that water and bring people
[1:22:38]
down there, give them
[1:22:39]
access to the water. That's what we're trying to do.
[1:22:43]
we want to elevate it. We want to
[1:22:44]
elevate the experience
[1:22:46]
to a point where people are drawn
[1:22:47]
here to come here,
[1:22:50]
to have festivals here, to enjoy
[1:22:53]
this marina and
[1:22:54]
really celebrate the asset that marina
[1:22:56]
gives to martinez.
[1:22:59]
we want to be
[1:23:02]
playful. We want to provide opportunities
[1:23:05]
for all ages, whether it's through
[1:23:07]
pickleball, paddleball, bringing the
[1:23:08]
kids down.
[1:23:09]
I know --I heard somebody complain tonight about the noise
[1:23:11]
of pickleball.
[1:23:16]
I agree with you. It needs to be in
[1:23:17]
a spot where
[1:23:19]
the noise isn't going toto interrupt people's daily lives.
[1:23:24]
but there's another sport that's out
[1:23:25]
there that is taking the world by
[1:23:26]
storm,
[1:23:29]
and it's called paddle.
[1:23:30]
it's played with a tennis ball. It's
[1:23:32]
played
[1:23:34]
in a court that's surrounded by glass
[1:23:35]
walls so
[1:23:36]
the noise didn't go out of it and
[1:23:38]
it's a softer
[1:23:40]
sound. I think what we're going to
[1:23:41]
see is we're going
[1:23:42]
to see pickleball start to move to paddle.
[1:23:44]
it's played on the same-
[1:23:45]
size court. It's almost identical.
[1:23:47]
it's just a better
[1:23:48]
sound, and it's more friendly to the
[1:23:49]
environment and to the community.
[1:23:56]
we want to find
[1:23:57]
playful playful for the kids to be
[1:23:59]
down there and all ages to be down at
[1:24:00]
the
[1:24:01]
water by activation. Whether it's
[1:24:02]
just
[1:24:05]
sitting in
[1:24:07]
an adirondack chair in a beach that
[1:24:08]
we'll create that is next to the
[1:24:09]
water that you can sit next to and enjoy
[1:24:11]
the setting
[1:24:14]
or a restaurant or
[1:24:17]
spend a night, do a night in
[1:24:18]
martinez, even though you live here.
[1:24:19]
come spend a night down at the marina.
[1:24:23]
we want to activate this marina.
[1:24:29]
this is how we believe we're going to be able to do that.
[1:24:32]
we are going to need to
[1:24:35]
reshape the things that are
[1:24:38]
out there.
[1:24:41]
the yacht club and the sea scouts and
[1:24:43]
the boat maintenance area, we're going
[1:24:44]
to need to redo them.
[1:24:46]
we are going to find spots for them to
[1:24:47]
be
[1:24:48]
relocated, and if you look on the
[1:24:50]
map,
[1:24:52]
number 5 is the sea scouts and yacht club.
[1:24:53]
we're going
[1:24:56]
to combine them together. They belong together.
[1:24:59]
that's where we're teaching
[1:25:02]
kids how to use boats and be a part
[1:25:05]
of a
[1:25:07]
yachting experience, and it has direct
[1:25:08]
access down to the docks to the water.
[1:25:11]
we
[1:25:14]
are going to also create
[1:25:17]
a boat storage area, which
[1:25:20]
is number 25, which is a
[1:25:23]
unique opportunity. It stacks the
[1:25:25]
boats that are in the marina that
[1:25:26]
may not get used all the
[1:25:28]
time, but need to be --want to still
[1:25:29]
be down there. There's a
[1:25:32]
place to store them above and out of
[1:25:33]
the water
[1:25:34]
so they're not deteriorating in the
[1:25:35]
water, but they're there so
[1:25:38]
when somebody wants to activate
[1:25:41]
them, they call, we take the boat off
[1:25:42]
the rack, take it
[1:25:44]
down, and we put it in the water for them and
[1:25:45]
have it sitting at
[1:25:46]
the dock, waiting for them when they
[1:25:47]
get down here. We
[1:25:50]
keep the boats from deteriorating in
[1:25:51]
the water,
[1:25:52]
and we have them in an area that can
[1:25:53]
be stored next to
[1:25:55]
a renovated maintenance facility,
[1:25:56]
so the maintenance
[1:25:59]
people can actually help maintain the boats in the
[1:26:00]
marina.
[1:26:05]
as we take a look at --as we
[1:26:08]
start to go down towards the entry, you
[1:26:09]
can
[1:26:12]
see that we've repositioned the
[1:26:13]
road coming in. We've widened the loop going
[1:26:15]
towards the water.
[1:26:18]
we are
[1:26:21]
going to put a amphitheater in
[1:26:23]
the middle. We have taken a look at
[1:26:24]
the market.
[1:26:27]
the market
[1:26:30]
would support a amphitheater. We have
[1:26:32]
partnerships with promoters that are
[1:26:33]
interested in
[1:26:36]
being out here. We want --if we
[1:26:39]
do it right, we will be
[1:26:40]
able to create a --an experience that
[1:26:42]
can be
[1:26:45]
used throughout the entire
[1:26:48]
year.
[1:26:50]
the amphitheater also provides an
[1:26:51]
opportunity at lunch. If you
[1:26:52]
want to go down there and sit in the
[1:26:53]
amphitheater and have your lunch,
[1:26:54]
and
[1:26:55]
somebody happens to have the notion
[1:26:58]
to get up and put on a little concert
[1:27:00]
and play
[1:27:03]
their guitar or put on
[1:27:04]
music, it's an opportunity for the
[1:27:06]
community to have
[1:27:08]
an element that can be activated on
[1:27:09]
their own, not
[1:27:12]
just by the concerts, but have an
[1:27:13]
opportunity to be involved in that.
[1:27:15]
there will be restrooms in
[1:27:18]
there. There will be
[1:27:20]
spots for restaurants that will serve
[1:27:21]
both the development around, as well
[1:27:24]
as the amphitheater.
[1:27:27]
as we go through the amphitheater
[1:27:30]
towards the marina, you can
[1:27:32]
see that that there a u-shaped buildings,
[1:27:33]
three
[1:27:35]
of them. And they're that way from
[1:27:36]
a standpoint
[1:27:39]
of what we're trying to do is brace
[1:27:42]
the energy coming off the water and it's in
[1:27:43]
an embrace as if you're getting hugged.
[1:27:46]
if you think about somebody embracing
[1:27:48]
you, their arms come out.
[1:27:50]
that's what we're doing. We're embracing
[1:27:51]
that opportunity.
[1:27:54]
we're embracing that energy.
[1:27:55]
we're bringing that into the development.
[1:28:03]
our connections to the pathways around in
[1:28:06]
the nature walks are going to be coming
[1:28:07]
through, right through this new
[1:28:09]
boardwalk. We're going to create
[1:28:11]
a boardwalk. There isn't a boardwalk
[1:28:12]
currently. We're
[1:28:15]
looking at 25 to 30 feet
[1:28:18]
of boardwalk that people can go walk
[1:28:19]
next to
[1:28:20]
the water, look at the boats, enjoy
[1:28:24]
the boats, sit
[1:28:25]
and have fun on the waterfront without doing anything.
[1:28:28]
there will be restaurants. There will
[1:28:30]
be shops.
[1:28:31]
there will be things that support the marina, but
[1:28:32]
there will be things that support
[1:28:33]
the life
[1:28:35]
of martinez, and that is what we're
[1:28:36]
trying to capture all in that energy.
[1:28:39]
those elements
[1:28:42]
that create that hug are the
[1:28:45]
hotels. We have a full
[1:28:47]
service hotel that will have meeting
[1:28:50]
space, ballrooms, opportunity for
[1:28:51]
people to have events down there.
[1:28:54]
we have two
[1:28:56]
extended stay hotels. The purpose
[1:28:57]
of that, having extended
[1:29:00]
stay hotels, is
[1:29:02]
that there are workers that come here
[1:29:03]
every week that go
[1:29:06]
to a neighboring
[1:29:07]
community to stay. We want them to
[1:29:09]
stay right here. Martinez
[1:29:11]
has something to give these workers
[1:29:12]
besides just a
[1:29:14]
job. This is a place to live and play,
[1:29:15]
and we want to
[1:29:17]
make sure that they stay right here,
[1:29:18]
and we have that opportunity.
[1:29:21]
and then, on the weekends, here come
[1:29:22]
those tournaments. Here they come.
[1:29:24]
we're going
[1:29:26]
to bring people in here for tournaments.
[1:29:27]
we're going to get them to stay here.
[1:29:30]
the basketball courts just got
[1:29:32]
redone. The volleyball opportunities
[1:29:33]
are right here.
[1:29:34]
we have camps. If you're going to
[1:29:36]
have camps, you got to have places
[1:29:37]
for families to
[1:29:39]
stay. This is an opportunity. There are
[1:29:40]
not
[1:29:42]
currently a lot of hotel rooms
[1:29:45]
in martinez. We need to fill that
[1:29:46]
void, and we believe that this will be
[1:29:48]
that void.
[1:29:50]
we are also putting in what we call
[1:29:51]
the plunge. If
[1:29:53]
any of you guys have been down to san
[1:29:54]
diego, there's an
[1:29:55]
opportunity on the waterfront called the plunge.
[1:29:57]
lot
[1:29:59]
of people don't like to get in the ocean.
[1:30:00]
they don't like to get in there, but
[1:30:02]
they like to be down by it. This is
[1:30:06]
indoor/outdoor facility that has
[1:30:09]
a swimming pool in it that does
[1:30:12]
swimming lessons, junior lifeguard
[1:30:13]
training,
[1:30:16]
but then it also has a
[1:30:18]
unique recreational opportunity inside.
[1:30:21]
it's got an obstacle course with blow-
[1:30:23]
ups that kids run up and down around
[1:30:24]
it and have fun and you can never
[1:30:25]
get in the place because it's always booked.
[1:30:28]
it's always
[1:30:30]
bringing people down there. The walls
[1:30:31]
of this building
[1:30:33]
open up so we have fresh air flow
[1:30:34]
through it.
[1:30:37]
it opens up to
[1:30:39]
sand lots that are on the outside.
[1:30:40]
they
[1:30:43]
have
[1:30:47]
adirondack chairs. They could have pickleball
[1:30:49]
or paddle ball
[1:30:52]
courts adjacent to it.
[1:30:58]
this all
[1:31:01]
is made
[1:31:04]
possible by trying to
[1:31:07]
understand what economic driven
[1:31:08]
responsible development is act. And
[1:31:10]
that's what we
[1:31:12]
are proposing. I'm going to show you one
[1:31:13]
other
[1:31:15]
item, and I can --I can't quite read.
[1:31:16]
I think it's 12 on the
[1:31:19]
bottom.
[1:31:20]
that is another sand beach. That is
[1:31:21]
away from the plunge. This is more
[1:31:23]
by the park. This is a beach that
[1:31:25]
allows you to
[1:31:28]
sit next to the water
[1:31:31]
in an adirondack chair.
[1:31:32]
maybe there's another beach volleyball area
[1:31:34]
there, but it's more of
[1:31:35]
a passive beach that allows you to
[1:31:37]
have your own time down there.
[1:31:38]
we want to provide activities that are
[1:31:40]
both passive and
[1:31:43]
active, so we can handle all the
[1:31:45]
needs of the community. One of the
[1:31:49]
things I
[1:31:50]
want to point out is that this is 70
[1:31:51]
acres that we are looking at, and we are only looking
[1:31:52]
at
[1:31:53]
touching the part of the waterfront that has already been
[1:31:55]
developed.
[1:31:58]
it happens to be a parking lot
[1:31:59]
now. Or buildings that are being torn
[1:32:01]
down and removed. We're not
[1:32:02]
going out into the preserve to touch that.
[1:32:04]
we are going to
[1:32:06]
actually augment the trails that are
[1:32:07]
in there
[1:32:09]
and make it more accessible. But we
[1:32:13]
are only touching the part that has
[1:32:14]
already
[1:32:16]
been touched. And we're only
[1:32:19]
doing it on 22 acres worth
[1:32:22]
of development. That's 32%.
[1:32:25]
we're
[1:32:28]
leaving almost
[1:32:31]
60% of the property -- I mean
[1:32:32]
70%. Sorry. Almost 70% of the property in
[1:32:34]
open space.
[1:32:37]
that's what we're trying --that's
[1:32:40]
what we're doing. We're not trying to
[1:32:42]
be --we're not trying to overdevelop
[1:32:43]
this. We're trying to be something
[1:32:46]
that is an asset to martinez.
[1:32:49]
the events that can
[1:32:51]
happen out here in the amphitheater can
[1:32:54]
be festivals that also touch downtown.
[1:32:55]
we want to be a
[1:32:58]
partner to downtown. We want to have
[1:32:59]
things
[1:33:00]
going back and forth where we're having
[1:33:01]
festivals in downtown
[1:33:03]
and at the waterfront and they're
[1:33:04]
two different elements of the same
[1:33:07]
festival. We want
[1:33:08]
to promote martinez from the marina
[1:33:10]
side and
[1:33:12]
downtown. We want to be very good
[1:33:13]
partners because
[1:33:15]
one, if it's good for one spot, it's
[1:33:16]
good for both.
[1:33:18]
if downtown's having a festival, it's
[1:33:19]
going to be good for the
[1:33:20]
waterfront. If waterfront's having
[1:33:21]
a festival, it's good for downtown.
[1:33:25]
and vice versa. If we
[1:33:27]
can have more people be here on the
[1:33:28]
weekends and stay here, it's good for all of us.
[1:33:38]
when we talk about access, what you're
[1:33:40]
seeing in
[1:33:42]
magenta is the access of how the cars
[1:33:43]
are moving through there.
[1:33:46]
the light blue
[1:33:49]
is the pedestrian paths that are going
[1:33:50]
through.
[1:33:51]
you can see that there's arrows going
[1:33:52]
in underneath.
[1:33:55]
we are going to take care of sea level
[1:33:57]
rise in a different way, in a way that I
[1:33:58]
have successfully done
[1:34:01]
it up and down the coast, by one --
[1:34:02]
we're going to create a little bit
[1:34:04]
of dirt so
[1:34:07]
it comes up. We're not taking the
[1:34:08]
dirt off
[1:34:09]
site. We're going to use it, and then
[1:34:10]
we're
[1:34:12]
going to put a parking garage that
[1:34:13]
provides the
[1:34:16]
opportunity to lift the development up.
[1:34:18]
a parking garage that will not get
[1:34:19]
flooded like the parking areas that are out there now.
[1:34:25]
those are the ways
[1:34:28]
that we develop in an environmentally
[1:34:31]
sensitive way. So we create
[1:34:34]
ways toto take unneeded trips of dirt
[1:34:36]
and hauling things away from the site,
[1:34:37]
but finding ways to use it
[1:34:40]
and keep it on site, keep
[1:34:42]
it where it is. The other thing that
[1:34:43]
we're going to be looking at, and
[1:34:46]
it's something that concerned me and
[1:34:48]
mainly because my son-in-law is a fire
[1:34:52]
chief down in san diego.
[1:34:55]
access out here. If there's a train and
[1:34:56]
the
[1:34:57]
access is cut off and there's something that
[1:34:58]
happens, whether we're
[1:34:59]
having an event at the fields or down
[1:35:01]
owe marina,
[1:35:04]
and we can't safely get
[1:35:06]
there, that's a crime. So, we are
[1:35:07]
going to find
[1:35:10]
a way to have a full
[1:35:12]
access at all times to this waterfront
[1:35:13]
so we don't
[1:35:16]
get cut off. It's important to us.
[1:35:17]
it's
[1:35:18]
important to the safety of the bay
[1:35:19]
front for
[1:35:22]
martinez, as well as all the activities that
[1:35:23]
are on the other side of that
[1:35:25]
train track.
[1:35:32]
we don't do
[1:35:34]
anything without using artists, and we
[1:35:35]
want to get
[1:35:38]
public artists involved. We
[1:35:40]
want to create opportunities to display
[1:35:41]
things,
[1:35:44]
whether it's a visual
[1:35:47]
art, whether it is a art that is
[1:35:49]
done through planting. We want to
[1:35:50]
find
[1:35:51]
different ways to have different elements
[1:35:53]
throughout the development,
[1:35:55]
and we have our own art walk that
[1:35:56]
people can
[1:35:57]
come down. If you come down at noon,
[1:35:59]
just walk through the art and enjoy
[1:36:00]
your lunch and sit in the amphitheater.
[1:36:05]
we want to create --or sit at
[1:36:06]
the beach and watch the water. We want to
[1:36:08]
create an opportunity to involve the
[1:36:10]
local artists. There's a great group
[1:36:11]
of artists
[1:36:12]
in this area, and we want to get them involved.
[1:36:14]
it's important to us.
[1:36:17]
art,
[1:36:20]
culture, that brings energy. That's
[1:36:21]
what we're wanting to include in this development.
[1:36:25]
this is what the marina looks like today.
[1:36:29]
you can see that one of
[1:36:30]
the docks is going in. This is an
[1:36:32]
older aerial, because there's more docks that are in
[1:36:35]
the water right now.
[1:36:38]
and you see a slew of parking.
[1:36:44]
we want to create that
[1:36:45]
and make that be something that is
[1:36:47]
more active, and this is what it
[1:36:50]
would look like. From the water
[1:36:52]
aerial, you can see how the hotels
[1:36:53]
embrace that
[1:36:55]
energy. The boardwalk is wide. Everything
[1:36:56]
is stepped
[1:36:59]
back from the water. To allow
[1:37:01]
for us to have better access for more
[1:37:02]
people at
[1:37:05]
the water.
[1:37:06]
and the connections to the preserves
[1:37:07]
on both sides, you can see the development
[1:37:10]
steps away from that to allow that
[1:37:11]
connection to happen near the water.
[1:37:14]
this is looking
[1:37:17]
at it from an --another view.
[1:37:20]
looking the opposite direction.
[1:37:25]
this is what it would look like from the other side.
[1:37:26]
the amphitheater,
[1:37:29]
the hotels,
[1:37:32]
the plunge, you can see
[1:37:35]
how it
[1:37:38]
very sensibly touches the
[1:37:41]
property and allows there to be more opportunity
[1:37:44]
for open space. You know, we
[1:37:47]
concluded somethingsomething
[1:37:48]
the development squaresquare that
[1:37:49]
is really, truly open space, and that is the
[1:37:50]
amphitheater.
[1:37:53]
that amphitheater's really
[1:37:55]
open space. It's actual grass. It
[1:37:56]
just means
[1:37:59]
that it is an active
[1:38:01]
and an opportunity for somebody to activate an open
[1:38:02]
space in a different way.
[1:38:05]
so, if we
[1:38:08]
take that out of what we're touching,
[1:38:09]
we're over 70%
[1:38:11]
of open space.
[1:38:17]
nothing is set in stone. This
[1:38:19]
is not meant to be --here's what it
[1:38:23]
is. This is our first blush of what
[1:38:25]
this could look like. You're looking at
[1:38:26]
the boardwalk.
[1:38:27]
you're looking at some of the shops that
[1:38:29]
are going to be down near
[1:38:31]
the boardwalk that support the marina, some
[1:38:32]
of the
[1:38:33]
restaurants, the hotels in the backdrop.
[1:38:38]
underneath the canopy, the one
[1:38:41]
building you're seeing, that is
[1:38:44]
reimagining the
[1:38:46]
boat master's building. We want to
[1:38:47]
make that into a building that's
[1:38:48]
accessible to the public through --
[1:38:50]
whether it's
[1:38:53]
a restaurant or
[1:38:54]
another opportunity, but we want to
[1:38:55]
reuse that building because it's out
[1:38:56]
over the water.
[1:38:58]
we think it needs to be something
[1:38:59]
that more people can
[1:39:01]
be out over the water, because it's
[1:39:02]
the only one that we have
[1:39:05]
that currently breaks
[1:39:07]
that barrier and is out slightly over
[1:39:08]
the water. We want to reuse
[1:39:09]
that, and we want to celebrate it with
[1:39:11]
everyone.
[1:39:14]
this is a view from the marina
[1:39:17]
looking back. That new
[1:39:20]
envisioned restaurant is on the left-
[1:39:21]
hand
[1:39:23]
side. You can see that there's multiple
[1:39:24]
decks. There's
[1:39:25]
multiple places to view the water,
[1:39:26]
to view
[1:39:29]
the development, to view up and
[1:39:32]
down the martinez coastline.
[1:39:35]
the reimagined marina
[1:39:37]
a little bit further out. You can
[1:39:38]
see the plunge. You can see the
[1:39:41]
hotels. You can see the things are
[1:39:42]
stepping
[1:39:43]
away from the water, that the buildings
[1:39:44]
near the
[1:39:46]
water are lower scale, and the higher
[1:39:47]
buildings are
[1:39:48]
placed behind them. Setting a backdrop up.
[1:39:55]
little bit further down, going out to
[1:39:59]
the jetty, that is going to
[1:40:01]
be improved. That boardwalk's going to
[1:40:02]
be improved all the way down there.
[1:40:03]
there will be a fence that we are
[1:40:05]
going to put in there because we do
[1:40:08]
not want people climbing down into
[1:40:09]
the
[1:40:11]
new rivetment that's going to be in
[1:40:13]
there to hold the newnew up. We don't
[1:40:15]
want people climbing down
[1:40:16]
in there and getting hurt, so we want to
[1:40:17]
be able to provide the opportunity
[1:40:18]
to see it, to
[1:40:21]
walk by it, but protect and
[1:40:22]
be mindful of all people that are
[1:40:24]
out there, because as
[1:40:25]
we get more people out there, it's
[1:40:27]
about accessibility,
[1:40:28]
and it's about accessibility to people
[1:40:30]
with all abilities.
[1:40:33]
which means
[1:40:36]
if there's somebody out
[1:40:37]
there that is blind, there's a barrier
[1:40:38]
so they do not go beyond where they're supposed to
[1:40:39]
go.
[1:40:43]
those are the things that we think about.
[1:40:44]
those are the things that we want
[1:40:45]
to make sure are included
[1:40:48]
in what we're doing.
[1:40:52]
this is an idea of the amphitheater.
[1:40:54]
you notice
[1:40:57]
the boat shape of it. It's
[1:40:59]
taking the boats, stacking them three
[1:41:00]
together to
[1:41:02]
create an amphitheater. This is a
[1:41:03]
marina
[1:41:04]
that brought us here, and we're going
[1:41:06]
to celebrate that marina in
[1:41:08]
a way of a form that will produce
[1:41:12]
sound, energy, fun,
[1:41:15]
excitement, hopefully
[1:41:17]
get the shakespeare festival to come back here
[1:41:18]
and be
[1:41:19]
a part of this amphitheater throughout the year.
[1:41:27]
I was talking
[1:41:28]
about how we make the parking work.
[1:41:30]
this is a quick
[1:41:31]
cross-section through it where you
[1:41:33]
can see we've
[1:41:35]
already lifted the earth all the way down
[1:41:36]
by the water.
[1:41:38]
we've got to lift everything up to
[1:41:39]
get it out of
[1:41:41]
the sea level rise, and then we use
[1:41:42]
the parking to
[1:41:45]
help create some of that lift
[1:41:47]
and that's what we're doing, and the parking goes
[1:41:48]
beneath the hotels.
[1:41:51]
that's
[1:41:52]
important, because when you put something
[1:41:54]
below, it gives you
[1:41:57]
an opportunity to do something
[1:42:00]
above it. It gives you the
[1:42:01]
opportunity to have more activities
[1:42:03]
above, and the cars are
[1:42:04]
no longer in your sight and they're
[1:42:06]
no longer an
[1:42:07]
impediment to what we, as a community, want to be able to
[1:42:09]
do.
[1:42:16]
this is the video. I'm going to be quiet and let
[1:42:18]
this play.
[1:42:57]
>> this is just
[1:42:58]
reimagining what that waterfront can
[1:43:00]
be and how martinez can start to touch the
[1:43:03]
water.
[1:43:15]
I want to end the presentation. I know
[1:43:16]
I'm
[1:43:17]
getting a little longwinded, but I'll
[1:43:18]
tell
[1:43:20]
you, I'm excited about the opportunity.
[1:43:21]
I'm excited to be here.
[1:43:24]
I'm excited about
[1:43:27]
the way that this community engages
[1:43:28]
one
[1:43:30]
another and the way
[1:43:32]
that they look out for what's best for
[1:43:33]
the community, and that
[1:43:36]
was true today when those two young
[1:43:37]
men
[1:43:39]
came up. Huge.
[1:43:42]
I wish more young young men stand up and ask for the things
[1:43:43]
they need.
[1:43:48]
that's part of the benefits of what we
[1:43:49]
are
[1:43:50]
about. We're about getting something
[1:43:51]
for all ages. We're
[1:43:54]
about creating things that are equitable,
[1:43:56]
accessible. We're about creating opportunities that
[1:43:57]
are
[1:43:58]
going to create revenue for the city.
[1:44:03]
to have the ability to have
[1:44:06]
more safety, more police, more
[1:44:09]
fire, more access, more
[1:44:10]
activities that really celebrate what it
[1:44:12]
means to live here in martinez.
[1:44:18]
we're going to be stewards
[1:44:19]
of nature, because we are going to
[1:44:21]
find a way to
[1:44:23]
work together, and as we touch the
[1:44:24]
water, touch those
[1:44:27]
parks that are next to us in a way
[1:44:29]
that creates better access and better
[1:44:30]
opportunities to really
[1:44:33]
enjoy that preserve that has
[1:44:35]
already been done on the water. Compliments to you for already
[1:44:36]
having that in place.
[1:44:40]
innovation. Innovation through the
[1:44:42]
way that we create energy. Innovation in
[1:44:43]
the
[1:44:45]
way that we store boats that are more
[1:44:47]
environmentally friendly and softer
[1:44:48]
and make it be more viable.
[1:44:51]
we are going to
[1:44:54]
be able to have
[1:44:57]
future-ready infrastructure in place
[1:44:58]
and make this be the place it needs to be.
[1:45:04]
this is just a start.
[1:45:09]
the na is just an engagement of us
[1:45:11]
talking with the city as to how we
[1:45:13]
get through this process.
[1:45:19]
it's been described to me
[1:45:21]
as, we like each other, so okay, let's
[1:45:22]
talk about dating a little bit.
[1:45:27]
let's see if we really like each other
[1:45:28]
before we get married, and
[1:45:29]
that's really what it is. That's really
[1:45:31]
what this is all about. It is an
[1:45:33]
opportunity to see if we can find
[1:45:37]
a way to work with the community,
[1:45:39]
work with the city, to come up with
[1:45:40]
something that is going to be
[1:45:41]
viable for all to get this done. It's
[1:45:43]
going to take three to five
[1:45:44]
months to get there. During that time,
[1:45:46]
we're going to start doing
[1:45:48]
all of our studies on the environmental side.
[1:45:49]
there's a bunch of studies that have to be done.
[1:45:52]
and we will
[1:45:54]
begin doing that from the transportation
[1:45:55]
side of
[1:45:57]
it, which includes the ferry, but
[1:45:58]
also includes
[1:46:01]
how we get access
[1:46:02]
across and over to the --over to the water side.
[1:46:07]
and then, we want to be ready to
[1:46:09]
have, as we get our development agreement put
[1:46:13]
together, we want to get our plans pulled together
[1:46:15]
so that everything's reaching the
[1:46:18]
point at the same time that we can pull
[1:46:19]
a building
[1:46:20]
permit and get started immediately.
[1:46:25]
we are privately funding
[1:46:27]
this, and the one thing I know about
[1:46:28]
private money is it does not
[1:46:31]
like to sit still.
[1:46:33]
that's why it will move faster. We
[1:46:34]
don't have to
[1:46:35]
wait for a grant to come in. We don't
[1:46:37]
have to wait for the state
[1:46:38]
to decide on whether or not we're going to get that
[1:46:40]
grant.
[1:46:42]
the private money wants to be put
[1:46:43]
in place, because it wants
[1:46:44]
to go to work, and that's what we're going to be doing.
[1:46:52]
I want to thank you
[1:46:55]
guys, mayor, council,
[1:46:58]
city, and the community, for letting
[1:46:59]
me present tonight, and thank you
[1:47:01]
for the opportunity.
[1:47:12]
>> thank you. So, what happens next?
[1:47:16]
greg
[1:47:17]
mentioned about the exclusive negotiating
[1:47:19]
agreement and what that means. This
[1:47:20]
kind
[1:47:21]
of gives you a little bit of an idea
[1:47:22]
of what that means. It
[1:47:24]
really grants the developer exclusive
[1:47:25]
rights to negotiate for the city,
[1:47:26]
so
[1:47:27]
we're not going to be going out and talking
[1:47:28]
to
[1:47:30]
anybody anybody else. It would be
[1:47:31]
us having the conversation together.
[1:47:32]
it's important to know it's not a
[1:47:34]
final deal. It is just the first
[1:47:35]
step to exploring whether this public
[1:47:36]
partnership will work, and it's feasible and can happen.
[1:47:40]
and
[1:47:41]
typically, what's in an ena is it
[1:47:43]
establishes
[1:47:44]
the preliminary roles, the responsibilities,
[1:47:47]
the deliverables and the timelines
[1:47:49]
that both parties have to
[1:47:52]
agree upon. Its
[1:47:53]
also requires both parties to negotiate
[1:47:55]
in good faith. It sets clear
[1:47:58]
milestones but does not obligate the
[1:47:59]
city to move forward with the final
[1:48:01]
project and typically, like greg
[1:48:03]
had shown in the last slide with the
[1:48:06]
timeline, then after that is signed and
[1:48:10]
agreed upon, there's that time frame between them
[1:48:11]
before you get to
[1:48:12]
the development agreement and that's
[1:48:13]
been going through the environmental
[1:48:14]
process and going through all those
[1:48:15]
things to say, all right, is this
[1:48:16]
going to work? Until
[1:48:17]
you get to the development agreement,
[1:48:19]
and that development agreement
[1:48:21]
really is the next phase of negotiating,
[1:48:22]
and
[1:48:25]
it defines all the specific project
[1:48:26]
terms, the
[1:48:28]
public benefit,
[1:48:30]
the long-term commitments, and what
[1:48:31]
would be in the operating
[1:48:33]
lease in which would be managed for
[1:48:34]
this property and the
[1:48:37]
expectations the city would have holding
[1:48:38]
the developer and leaseholder responsible for that
[1:48:40]
in the future.
[1:48:42]
so, that's something that comes a little bit later.
[1:48:43]
it's important
[1:48:45]
to note that as part of this whole
[1:48:46]
process,
[1:48:49]
like we had mentioned throughout this
[1:48:50]
presentation,
[1:48:51]
that should the council make a motion
[1:48:52]
to go forward
[1:48:55]
with exclusive negotiating, the community will
[1:48:57]
be a part of this whole process throughout the entire process.
[1:49:01]
we're just at
[1:49:04]
the beginning. And as you can see, it's a very
[1:49:05]
exciting
[1:49:06]
beginning, but we're just at the beginning
[1:49:07]
and there's still a lot of unknowns
[1:49:09]
and ways in which we need to move forward with that.
[1:49:13]
go ahead.
[1:49:16]
>> there's a
[1:49:18]
good reason why I brought my partner
[1:49:19]
with me, because she
[1:49:21]
goes, you didn't mention the unions.
[1:49:27]
we do so much work on the waterfront that it is, to me,
[1:49:28]
it's second nature.
[1:49:31]
we
[1:49:32]
can't do anything on the water without the unions.
[1:49:34]
everything
[1:49:38]
that we do is going to have
[1:49:39]
union labor. It's going to have agreements
[1:49:41]
with the unions,
[1:49:43]
and martinez is a union town. There's
[1:49:44]
no way we are going
[1:49:45]
to come in here and not do it with
[1:49:47]
unions.
[1:49:48]
I apologize for not mentioning that,
[1:49:50]
but I think
[1:49:52]
my partner for reminding me that, hey,
[1:49:53]
you
[1:49:54]
didn't say anything about the agreements we're going to have
[1:49:55]
with the unions. So, I apologize.
[1:50:05]
>> and I appreciate you
[1:50:06]
saying that, because it also, I mean,
[1:50:07]
again, as part of the conversations,
[1:50:08]
these
[1:50:09]
are things, when we talked about this with
[1:50:11]
the developer, about what's important to
[1:50:12]
our community, and this is a union
[1:50:14]
town, and that was something
[1:50:16]
we brought up really early on and
[1:50:17]
it didn't
[1:50:20]
faze greg at all.
[1:50:22]
it's something that is expected. And that was
[1:50:23]
the same when
[1:50:24]
we talked about all the other leaseholders that
[1:50:25]
were out there. How do we embrace
[1:50:26]
it
[1:50:27]
and pull it together? Thank you for pulling that
[1:50:29]
together or mentioning that.
[1:50:32]
I know greg touched upon a
[1:50:34]
lot of the fiscal impacts but it's
[1:50:35]
supposed to be benefits.
[1:50:37]
he talked about the fiscal benefits
[1:50:38]
that cities receive from
[1:50:39]
things like this. A couple ways in
[1:50:41]
which this helps, really, with the
[1:50:43]
revitalizing and how it benefits our
[1:50:44]
community even
[1:50:46]
more is really eliminates our debt,
[1:50:47]
eliminates
[1:50:48]
the debt that we have currently to
[1:50:49]
the city. Allows us to pay ourselves back
[1:50:50]
for that debt.
[1:50:53]
which is super critical, because then
[1:50:54]
that money can be redirected to the
[1:50:55]
other things that we love and appreciate
[1:50:56]
within the community.
[1:50:59]
the
[1:51:01]
developer, you know, would fund the
[1:51:04]
full marina and waterfront reconstruction,
[1:51:05]
and that includes the dredging and
[1:51:06]
the seawall, and then we'd work out
[1:51:08]
through our
[1:51:09]
agreement the terms of what responsible
[1:51:11]
share the city would take on
[1:51:13]
later and what that means is typically
[1:51:14]
what happens is
[1:51:15]
you --they put everything up front
[1:51:17]
and then as part of that process,
[1:51:19]
as part of our lease terms, we give
[1:51:20]
them --we give
[1:51:21]
reduced rent to allow them a little
[1:51:22]
bit of time to make some of that money back.
[1:51:23]
it's
[1:51:25]
a way in which the city is being financially
[1:51:26]
responsible, not having to
[1:51:27]
put that money up front. It comes at the end.
[1:51:31]
to be able to be our commit and our share toward something like
[1:51:32]
this.
[1:51:35]
one thing
[1:51:37]
that's very important for our community is it
[1:51:38]
generates
[1:51:41]
new revenue for this city. Like lauren had
[1:51:42]
mentioned, we are really at a point
[1:51:44]
where we do not have new
[1:51:45]
revenue and it is not in the interest
[1:51:46]
of the council to be going back and
[1:51:47]
taxing the voters more.
[1:51:50]
so, this
[1:51:52]
really --it generates a revenue source
[1:51:56]
and it comes through the source
[1:51:57]
of transient occupancy tax for the
[1:51:59]
hotels, sales
[1:52:01]
tax, possessory interest tax, and then the lease payments
[1:52:02]
as well.
[1:52:05]
and this,
[1:52:07]
again, if you know of all these taxes,
[1:52:08]
they also have
[1:52:11]
help augment other types of uses
[1:52:12]
when it comes to, like, our county and our fire and so
[1:52:14]
forth.
[1:52:17]
it also will support,
[1:52:19]
like I mentioned, the loan repayment of
[1:52:21]
the $1.7 million state loan that we have had for years.
[1:52:29]
that we
[1:52:30]
really want to be able to take care
[1:52:32]
of and be fiscally responsible. Another
[1:52:33]
thing the revenue
[1:52:34]
helps is it allows us to look at the
[1:52:35]
core services in
[1:52:37]
which we provide. We hear a lot about
[1:52:38]
wanting more ability to
[1:52:41]
have more police, have more officers that
[1:52:43]
are going to be downtown, be more
[1:52:44]
proactive, you know,
[1:52:46]
maintaining our parks and our infrastructures
[1:52:47]
and so
[1:52:50]
forth. When you have a source of revenue coming
[1:52:51]
in like
[1:52:52]
this, it really allows the council and
[1:52:53]
the community to look forward and how you can program that.
[1:52:56]
and
[1:52:58]
it really will also foster future economic vitality
[1:52:59]
throughout martinez.
[1:53:02]
typically, these
[1:53:05]
types of transformational catalyst
[1:53:06]
projects will
[1:53:08]
spur more interest in
[1:53:11]
our property owners downtown, revitalizing their property.
[1:53:14]
the vacant lots getting built on.
[1:53:16]
it also will spur a lot of interest
[1:53:17]
in retailers that we want to attract
[1:53:18]
to this community that people have
[1:53:20]
been asking, for trader joe's and
[1:53:23]
certain ones to come. There has to
[1:53:24]
be a
[1:53:25]
"there" there for certain companies
[1:53:26]
to come, and they
[1:53:28]
have certain profiles and segments.
[1:53:29]
these lead
[1:53:30]
to opportunities for our community and
[1:53:32]
the future of our community and not
[1:53:33]
just for us.
[1:53:34]
when we look at these types of things,
[1:53:35]
we're not looking at what's in it
[1:53:36]
for us now? We're looking at it for the
[1:53:37]
generations that are still yet to come.
[1:53:41]
so, this is an opportunity, as part
[1:53:42]
of this transformational
[1:53:44]
project, to really look at that. So,
[1:53:46]
with that, the recommendation that we
[1:53:47]
have tonight is
[1:53:49]
to ask the city council to make a
[1:53:50]
motion to authorize
[1:53:53]
the story enter into negotiations
[1:53:54]
for an
[1:53:55]
exclusive negotiating agreement with
[1:53:56]
tucker sadler.
[1:53:59]
and at this time, we
[1:54:01]
are available, both staff as well
[1:54:02]
as tucker sadler is available for
[1:54:03]
any questions you might have.
[1:54:06]
as before
[1:54:07]
you go into public comment and then
[1:54:09]
just kind
[1:54:10]
of reiterating what lauren had mentioned.
[1:54:12]
I know there's going to be a
[1:54:14]
lot of excitement and questions and
[1:54:15]
comments that are --we're
[1:54:16]
not going to be able to answer tonight.
[1:54:18]
we have eve, who's going to
[1:54:19]
be transcribing everything for us,
[1:54:20]
so it will be something that we can
[1:54:21]
have as part of this process when we start this process.
[1:54:24]
the qr
[1:54:25]
code leads us to the website, so we
[1:54:27]
would definitely encourage
[1:54:30]
you to share the website with others
[1:54:32]
should this motion go forward. We will have
[1:54:33]
a website that will
[1:54:34]
be dedicated to this effort so that everyone will always know
[1:54:36]
what's happening.
[1:54:39]
and so, I'll turn it back over to the council.
[1:54:42]
and the
[1:54:43]
mayor.
[1:54:44]
>> great. Thank you. Thank
[1:54:45]
you, jill and lauren
[1:54:47]
and greg for your participation and
[1:54:48]
the presentation this evening.
[1:54:51]
I know that the
[1:54:53]
council chambers are full this evening
[1:54:57]
of members of the public listening in, and
[1:54:58]
I assume many of them have questions.
[1:55:00]
we will follow
[1:55:02]
the normal process of what we do on
[1:55:03]
all
[1:55:04]
of our council meetings. We'll start
[1:55:06]
with questions from the
[1:55:08]
council, and then I'll open it up
[1:55:09]
to public
[1:55:11]
comment, and then we'll come back to the
[1:55:12]
council for thoughts and general comments.
[1:55:18]
I did want to reiterate the one thing that
[1:55:19]
was brought up kind of at the very
[1:55:20]
end of the presentation, and so I wanted to
[1:55:21]
reiterate that.
[1:55:24]
as we're asking
[1:55:26]
questions, as we're providing comments, I
[1:55:27]
wanted to
[1:55:29]
remind everyone what is on the table
[1:55:30]
this evening, what's on
[1:55:32]
the agenda this evening, is to consider
[1:55:33]
a motion
[1:55:36]
to authorize the city to enter
[1:55:37]
into negotiations for an exclusive negotiating agreement
[1:55:39]
with tucker sadler.
[1:55:42]
you are, of course, welcome
[1:55:43]
to ask questions about the design.
[1:55:45]
you're welcome to ask questions about
[1:55:46]
any phase of the project but I want
[1:55:48]
to make sure it's very clear to everyone,
[1:55:49]
we're
[1:55:51]
not approving a design tonight.
[1:55:54]
we're not approving a
[1:55:55]
development agreement tonight. We are only
[1:55:57]
potentially approving that staff can
[1:55:58]
move
[1:56:00]
forward with negotiating an
[1:56:01]
exclusive negotiating agreement. So,
[1:56:03]
so, we're very early on in the process
[1:56:04]
and this is just the first of many steps before we
[1:56:06]
get to what you see today.
[1:56:09]
so, with that
[1:56:11]
said, would anyone on council like
[1:56:12]
to kick off questions for staff or tucker
[1:56:15]
sadler?
[1:56:18]
>> sure. I just have a comment.
[1:56:20]
and a couple of questions. I don't want
[1:56:21]
to hog all the time.
[1:56:22]
I really want to hear what everybody else
[1:56:24]
has to say, but I really want
[1:56:27]
to thank the staff, because that was
[1:56:29]
a very straightforward report, and
[1:56:30]
they did all
[1:56:33]
the heavy lifting as far as daylighting all
[1:56:35]
the information and getting it out
[1:56:36]
there and getting us
[1:56:39]
educated and bringing a lot of you
[1:56:40]
into
[1:56:42]
city hall to get you educated on
[1:56:45]
what we want to do and all the
[1:56:48]
different options. I
[1:56:51]
really want to thank greg and diane
[1:56:54]
for being here, especially diane bringing
[1:56:56]
up that this is uniontown, usa, so
[1:56:57]
I really want to thank you
[1:56:58]
for making that important. There's
[1:57:00]
a lot
[1:57:02]
of stuff that I would like to ask
[1:57:03]
questions about, but really, as the
[1:57:06]
mayor just stated, what we're here
[1:57:09]
for today is to go into an
[1:57:12]
ena, right? And if you read --I hope
[1:57:13]
all
[1:57:15]
of you got a little --
[1:57:17]
right? And I just want to read it
[1:57:18]
one more time,
[1:57:19]
just because it's super clear and very easy to
[1:57:21]
understand.
[1:57:24]
what does an ena do?
[1:57:27]
it outlines preliminary terms, roles,
[1:57:30]
responsibilities, and deliverables
[1:57:33]
for each party. Establishes key milestones,
[1:57:34]
so that's
[1:57:36]
super important, and a timeline for
[1:57:37]
negotiations, which
[1:57:39]
you guys all saw the slide, I think it
[1:57:41]
was 21. I'm not sure. But it commits
[1:57:42]
both parties
[1:57:44]
to a good faith negotiation but does
[1:57:45]
not
[1:57:47]
obligate either side to enter into
[1:57:50]
final agreement. Right? So, I think
[1:57:51]
as greg was so
[1:57:54]
good and eloquent about talking about
[1:57:55]
this
[1:57:58]
project, it feels, like he said,
[1:58:00]
it changed ten minutes into us, and it's
[1:58:04]
living, breathing
[1:58:05]
plan, right, that we are all going to
[1:58:07]
have
[1:58:09]
a part of and input on. So, I think that
[1:58:10]
is one of
[1:58:11]
the most important things to remember
[1:58:15]
as a third-generation martesian, I have
[1:58:16]
been dreaming
[1:58:17]
about something like this. I didn't
[1:58:19]
even
[1:58:20]
imagine something this spectacular,
[1:58:22]
but for at least
[1:58:23]
30 years, and I think one other point
[1:58:25]
that I really
[1:58:28]
want to make is that to do
[1:58:31]
nothing, to do nothing will
[1:58:32]
cost us $20 million. So, get your head around that.
[1:58:37]
this is --
[1:58:40]
this enterprise fund
[1:58:41]
is bleeding money. Since I have been
[1:58:43]
on council, I want to
[1:58:46]
say it's $1. 7 million. Now,
[1:58:49]
if it continues this way, I want the
[1:58:50]
person to stand up who is going to
[1:58:51]
be prepared to start laying off police officers.
[1:58:55]
right?
[1:58:56]
so, I don't mean to be dramatic, but let's think about that.
[1:58:58]
that's really all I have.
[1:59:04]
>> thank you.
[1:59:05]
>> thanks. Go ahead. >> I'm sorry?
[1:59:10]
bueller? Bueller? Can I talk?
[1:59:12]
>> yes, of course. I'm sorry. I was
[1:59:13]
trying to let you talk.
[1:59:14]
but you guys --
[1:59:15]
>> I will defer to
[1:59:16]
you. You have something?
[1:59:17]
>> no problem.
[1:59:18]
>> okay.
[1:59:19]
>> no, go ahead. >> okay.
[1:59:22]
now that we've got all
[1:59:25]
that worked out,
[1:59:28]
first, I want to commend greg
[1:59:31]
and diane and the team
[1:59:34]
at tucker
[1:59:37]
for the amazing presentation.
[1:59:43]
I still have
[1:59:46]
the same emotional
[1:59:49]
reaction that I had when we
[1:59:51]
first saw this in closed session.
[1:59:58]
and I had the
[2:00:00]
emotion because we've lived here 24 years,
[2:00:03]
and it's always been the marina, the
[2:00:04]
marina, the marina.
[2:00:05]
we need to do something about the marina.
[2:00:10]
but nothing was ever done.
[2:00:12]
and nothing ever seemed to really
[2:00:13]
be
[2:00:16]
moving in that direction to
[2:00:19]
revitalize
[2:00:22]
this jewel that we
[2:00:25]
have and have a significant amount
[2:00:28]
of pride over. So,
[2:00:31]
to see the
[2:00:34]
presentation and the possibility and
[2:00:37]
what this could be
[2:00:40]
like for for new families coming
[2:00:43]
in to martinez, for many of our
[2:00:46]
children and grandchildren to
[2:00:49]
be able to
[2:00:51]
experience and benefit from this in
[2:00:52]
their own
[2:00:55]
hometown without having
[2:00:58]
to drive to monterrey
[2:01:01]
or saucalito
[2:01:03]
or tiburon or any other place that
[2:01:04]
has a marina but can do it right here right
[2:01:05]
now.
[2:01:10]
it evoked emotion,
[2:01:13]
because it's almost
[2:01:14]
like this thing could really happen.
[2:01:19]
after all this time.
[2:01:22]
so, thank you all. Thank you to
[2:01:25]
the --our
[2:01:28]
staff for your due diligence
[2:01:31]
and willingness and
[2:01:33]
commitment to also seeing the vision,
[2:01:34]
and I want
[2:01:36]
to remind folks, again, and it's been
[2:01:37]
said, and
[2:01:40]
it's going to be said throughout this
[2:01:43]
evening, this is not final.
[2:01:45]
this is not something we're etching in stone tonight.
[2:01:51]
this is the very beginning stages.
[2:01:55]
so, it's a vision.
[2:01:58]
and the beauty of visions is you think
[2:01:59]
big, and you think large, and you think out of the box.
[2:02:04]
but then you fine-tune.
[2:02:06]
you narrow it down. Because I'm sure some
[2:02:07]
of you out there
[2:02:10]
are, like, oh my god, that's too many hotels.
[2:02:11]
okay.
[2:02:12]
this is the beginning. Maybe it's one.
[2:02:13]
maybe it's two.
[2:02:16]
maybe it's none.
[2:02:18]
so, don't --you saw a vision. You saw a concept.
[2:02:24]
but this thing is going to, if it
[2:02:25]
goes forward, it's going
[2:02:28]
to evolve with your
[2:02:31]
input, with your feedback. With your historical knowledge.
[2:02:37]
so, again, this is a very
[2:02:40]
beginning, but it's a vision.
[2:02:44]
it's doing something that,
[2:02:45]
for so long, folks have said something needs to be done.
[2:02:50]
but nothing's
[2:02:51]
been done until now, and we're on this --
[2:02:56]
we're on this
[2:02:59]
critical precipice,
[2:03:02]
because to do nothing is going
[2:03:05]
to be devastating to the
[2:03:07]
city on the trajectory that we're
[2:03:08]
going now,
[2:03:11]
and putting money
[2:03:14]
into a marina that
[2:03:16]
is not sustainable in this current structure.
[2:03:20]
so, I would just
[2:03:22]
ask all of us, and you notice I said
[2:03:23]
all of
[2:03:26]
us, to
[2:03:29]
be open
[2:03:35]
minded, community-
[2:03:38]
focused, family-focused,
[2:03:39]
and collaborative. Because if we do
[2:03:41]
this thing
[2:03:44]
thing right, if we get this
[2:03:45]
right, this will be transformative to
[2:03:47]
this community.
[2:03:50]
this will be a
[2:03:53]
true legacy that we are leaving
[2:03:56]
for future
[2:03:57]
generations that will be unique to
[2:04:01]
not only martinez but contra costa county.
[2:04:02]
the bay area.
[2:04:08]
so, again, thank you,
[2:04:10]
staff. Thank you, greg and diane, for
[2:04:11]
bringing this forward.
[2:04:17]
>> all right. Thank you very much.
[2:04:23]
and I too would like to acknowledge
[2:04:25]
staff and tucker sadler. Thank you very much for
[2:04:26]
the
[2:04:28]
very informative presentation. I'd
[2:04:29]
also like to
[2:04:30]
thank all of you, ladies and gentlemen,
[2:04:32]
who have joined us
[2:04:33]
here in the audience tonight. Both in-person and virtually.
[2:04:38]
I think this speaks volumes to
[2:04:40]
the fact of how much our waterfront
[2:04:41]
and our marina
[2:04:44]
is a beloved
[2:04:46]
asset. And I very much just appreciate
[2:04:47]
folks taking time
[2:04:49]
out of their evening to join us here
[2:04:50]
tonight.
[2:04:53]
I think this is something
[2:04:56]
that, quite
[2:04:57]
frankly, I think at least certainly in
[2:04:59]
the four-plus decades that my
[2:05:00]
family and I have been living here, we have
[2:05:02]
been kind of waiting for.
[2:05:05]
and
[2:05:07]
I really do want to acknowledge the efforts
[2:05:08]
that
[2:05:11]
have went in
[2:05:14]
here, building off the tulip that many
[2:05:15]
in the community did participate in,
[2:05:17]
but also recognizing that there
[2:05:18]
were shortcomings there, and we need to acknowledge that.
[2:05:22]
that the status quo, as was said, is simply not sustainable.
[2:05:26]
and I'm glad that we're
[2:05:29]
having this conversation now and not
[2:05:30]
in a
[2:05:31]
few years from now where we're trying
[2:05:32]
to scramble and trying to figure out,
[2:05:35]
oh my god, how are we going to
[2:05:38]
avoid devastating service
[2:05:41]
cuts that we are seeing in other communities
[2:05:42]
throughout the bay area and the state
[2:05:44]
taking place now.
[2:05:47]
so, I did want to just pick
[2:05:49]
up on something that my colleague,
[2:05:50]
councilmember
[2:05:52]
young, mentioned. This is a starting point.
[2:05:53]
it's not the
[2:05:56]
be-all, end-all, right? And
[2:05:59]
so, the concept that we have
[2:06:00]
seen here tonight is just that. It's a concept.
[2:06:08]
and it's one that is going
[2:06:11]
to change, and so, again, I just want
[2:06:13]
to really emphasize thatthat this is
[2:06:14]
an
[2:06:16]
iterative process. It needs to be
[2:06:17]
done in partnership with
[2:06:20]
the community. That's
[2:06:22]
why, when we were first made aware
[2:06:23]
of this, I was like, all right, time-out.
[2:06:26]
we're not doing anything more
[2:06:27]
until we get all of you involved in this process.
[2:06:29]
it's really, really important.
[2:06:32]
and so, that's my --
[2:06:34]
that's our commitment. As a council.
[2:06:35]
we want to make sure
[2:06:38]
that we're being transparent, open,
[2:06:40]
collaborative. We want that input.
[2:06:41]
we can't do this
[2:06:44]
alone, nor should we.
[2:06:45]
this needs to be done in partnership with the community.
[2:06:50]
so, that being said,
[2:06:53]
I do have some
[2:06:56]
questions for staff and for the representatives from tucker
[2:06:57]
sadler.
[2:06:59]
if it's appropriate,
[2:07:01]
mayor, if I may ask those questions at this
[2:07:02]
stage?
[2:07:11]
so, the presentation
[2:07:13]
mentioned that a construction timeline
[2:07:14]
of three to five years for all phases.
[2:07:17]
assuming everything goes
[2:07:20]
on time, there's no delays, what have
[2:07:23]
you, but the staff presentation at
[2:07:24]
the
[2:07:26]
outset did paint somewhat of a dire
[2:07:29]
financial picture. And my question
[2:07:30]
is, even in
[2:07:32]
the best case scenario, let's say
[2:07:33]
we get all the
[2:07:36]
ducks lined up in a
[2:07:39]
row, we reach an
[2:07:42]
agreement, aware still looking
[2:07:44]
at three to five years before there's
[2:07:45]
any
[2:07:46]
type of revenues that are being generated.
[2:07:48]
so, what
[2:07:51]
is the plan in the interim to
[2:07:52]
help us tide us by, no pun intended?
[2:07:59]
do we have any thoughts? How would
[2:08:00]
we
[2:08:03]
begin to address that
[2:08:04]
financial shortfall? That was one question that I
[2:08:06]
had.
[2:08:09]
do you have any insights on
[2:08:11]
that?
[2:08:12]
>> so, you know, first of all,
[2:08:13]
we don't --we
[2:08:14]
haven't worked out the details and timeline of
[2:08:15]
said construction.
[2:08:18]
should
[2:08:21]
we move forward. And certainly,
[2:08:24]
one of the elements of
[2:08:25]
negotiations and putting together
[2:08:27]
milestones
[2:08:29]
and start dates and putting shovels
[2:08:30]
in
[2:08:32]
the ground is around closing things
[2:08:36]
down, right? So that construction
[2:08:39]
can start. So, that's kind of an element, I
[2:08:42]
would just say, is undefined right
[2:08:43]
now to the extent that there will
[2:08:45]
be, if things go
[2:08:48]
forward, based on that timeline, there
[2:08:51]
will eventually be a closure of things
[2:08:54]
down at the marina. Up until
[2:08:57]
then, however, to be
[2:08:59]
very clear, before construction starts,
[2:09:00]
before we start to kind
[2:09:02]
of decommission things down there, we
[2:09:06]
have to continue the
[2:09:09]
loans from the general fund
[2:09:12]
until, again, with hope that eventually we get to pay the
[2:09:15]
general fund back.
[2:09:18]
so, I hope that's clear, but as long as
[2:09:21]
we're preconstruction, we still have
[2:09:24]
to loan the general
[2:09:25]
fund money.
[2:09:26]
>> I appreciate your candor on
[2:09:27]
that.
[2:09:29]
so, I just want to make sure that
[2:09:30]
we're going in
[2:09:33]
with eyes open on that, that there
[2:09:36]
is still going to
[2:09:38]
be financial challenges ahead, but if
[2:09:39]
we do
[2:09:40]
nothing, the financial challenges will be even greater.
[2:09:45]
so,
[2:09:48]
that's why it's important that we
[2:09:49]
begin to take
[2:09:51]
the steps necessary to, you know,
[2:09:52]
keep that --the worst case scenario
[2:09:54]
at bay.
[2:09:57]
so, thank you for that, lauren.
[2:10:03]
so, for our
[2:10:05]
friends at tucker sadler, couple of
[2:10:06]
questions that came to my mind.
[2:10:09]
if I may.
[2:10:15]
so, the proposal, as you have presented
[2:10:18]
it here tonight, is
[2:10:20]
calling for up to -- it looks like three hotels, if I
[2:10:21]
understand correctly.
[2:10:27]
and candidly, I think that's just
[2:10:28]
a little ambitious, at least at the onset.
[2:10:32]
and you know, one of the things that
[2:10:33]
kind of
[2:10:35]
gives me pause, at least here, and I don't
[2:10:36]
know what the situation is like
[2:10:39]
down in san diego, but
[2:10:42]
certainly here within the bay area,
[2:10:44]
post-pandemic, we've actually seen a number
[2:10:45]
of
[2:10:47]
hotels falter for whatever reason.
[2:10:48]
they've gone
[2:10:49]
into insolvency. They've been taken over.
[2:10:54]
I'm just kind of
[2:10:56]
curious, you know, what sort of data
[2:10:57]
or
[2:11:00]
market analysis do you
[2:11:02]
have which would support such an ambitious development?
[2:11:03]
and
[2:11:06]
so that we don't meet the
[2:11:09]
fate of other hotels that
[2:11:11]
we have seen in the east bay and the broader bay area.
[2:11:15]
>> we've
[2:11:18]
done our own
[2:11:21]
little demand study, and the demand
[2:11:23]
for martinez is actually greater than what we've presented.
[2:11:27]
we will do a deeper
[2:11:28]
dive demand study that will support that.
[2:11:33]
whatever that study comes back at, that
[2:11:34]
is
[2:11:36]
where we're going to
[2:11:37]
end up from the standpoint of rooms,
[2:11:38]
because we will only develop what we believe can be
[2:11:39]
supported.
[2:11:42]
in regards to the
[2:11:46]
pandemic,
[2:11:47]
and having different hoteliers go
[2:11:49]
down
[2:11:51]
the state. It is not just in state,
[2:11:52]
it's
[2:11:53]
in several different states that that's happened.
[2:11:55]
we're on a cyclical curve
[2:11:58]
that's going the opposite
[2:12:00]
direction now wrote where you're going
[2:12:02]
to start see --in fact, we have two
[2:12:03]
new hotels going up in san diego right now that
[2:12:05]
are coming up because the funding
[2:12:07]
is now there. The support is now there.
[2:12:08]
there's people are traveling again.
[2:12:13]
and that is what supports the
[2:12:14]
room demand. And businesses are traveling
[2:12:16]
again.
[2:12:18]
that was one of the things that really
[2:12:19]
hurt
[2:12:20]
the hotel industry is that businesses were not
[2:12:22]
traveling.
[2:12:25]
they were doing everything
[2:12:28]
remotely, and everybody was through
[2:12:30]
the internet and teams and zoom meetings.
[2:12:32]
that's what happened, and that's why there
[2:12:34]
was such a bad crash
[2:12:35]
in the hotel market. That's starting
[2:12:36]
to change. It's going back the other
[2:12:37]
direction now.
[2:12:40]
>> okay. Thank you for that.
[2:12:43]
I appreciate that. I
[2:12:46]
look forward to seeing some
[2:12:47]
more of that data moving forward.
[2:12:52]
one of the other questions that was
[2:12:54]
touched upon in your presentation,
[2:12:57]
greg, was that --and you did --and
[2:12:59]
do appreciate you acknowledging that,
[2:13:01]
that currently, the
[2:13:03]
main entry and exit into the waterfront
[2:13:04]
area is
[2:13:06]
the ferry street railroad crossing
[2:13:07]
down there by the amtrak station.
[2:13:13]
which is notorious
[2:13:16]
for backups caused
[2:13:17]
by the union pacific rail cars, which, to
[2:13:19]
be fair, has gotten somewhat better
[2:13:20]
over the years, but it's still an issue.
[2:13:24]
so, it sounds like, based on your
[2:13:25]
presentation here
[2:13:27]
tonight, you don't quite have a silver
[2:13:28]
bullet in
[2:13:31]
terms of how we overcome
[2:13:33]
that barrier, because it is a concern.
[2:13:34]
it's a
[2:13:36]
longstanding concern of how do we
[2:13:37]
move
[2:13:40]
both people and first
[2:13:41]
responders down into that area seamlessly and without
[2:13:43]
delay?
[2:13:46]
so, just wanting
[2:13:49]
to see if you had
[2:13:50]
any additional thoughts in terms of,
[2:13:52]
how do we overcome
[2:13:53]
that? How would we go about doing
[2:13:55]
that? And the
[2:13:56]
costs associated with that, whether
[2:13:58]
that's an overpass
[2:14:00]
or some alternate access point, is
[2:14:01]
that something
[2:14:03]
that would also be fronted by you all?
[2:14:06]
>> so, it needs a lot more studying.
[2:14:10]
we
[2:14:12]
have not had the time to deep dive into how that works yet.
[2:14:18]
I did mention we would be doing a
[2:14:19]
full transportation study to get a
[2:14:21]
full understanding of what the actual
[2:14:22]
cost to do what we think we need to do is going to
[2:14:23]
be.
[2:14:25]
at that point in time,
[2:14:27]
we'll look at how we get it funded,
[2:14:28]
because I do think
[2:14:31]
it needs to be done at the same time as we
[2:14:32]
do our development.
[2:14:34]
and we need to be
[2:14:36]
able to open safely. So, we'll find a
[2:14:37]
way to get
[2:14:39]
it funded. I don't know what that is
[2:14:40]
yet, so
[2:14:42]
it can't commit to what that's going to be yet, but we
[2:14:43]
will find a solution.
[2:14:45]
>> okay. From my vantage point, that has
[2:14:46]
to be a priority.
[2:14:51]
all of this is moot if we can't move people in and out of that
[2:14:52]
site safely.
[2:14:55]
>> I think you heard me
[2:14:58]
say in my presentation that my son-in-law is a fire chief.
[2:15:04]
access for them,
[2:15:07]
access to get first responders
[2:15:09]
in to a spot to be able to help people
[2:15:10]
out, help
[2:15:13]
out if there's a fire, if there's
[2:15:14]
an
[2:15:15]
accident, if there's something that
[2:15:16]
happens at an event and
[2:15:18]
we need to get help down, we need to have that
[2:15:19]
access. I agree with you 100%. It is a priority.
[2:15:22]
>> okay. Thank you.
[2:15:28]
and
[2:15:31]
then, you
[2:15:34]
know, pivoting to
[2:15:36]
your stated commitment commitment
[2:15:37]
environmental
[2:15:38]
stewardship, conservation, and what
[2:15:43]
have you, so, this site, no
[2:15:46]
doubt, will generate some
[2:15:49]
significant
[2:15:51]
energy usage. You mentioned, I believe, at the
[2:15:52]
outset of your presentation, your
[2:15:53]
goal
[2:15:55]
is to try to get it as close to net zero as
[2:15:56]
possible, so is
[2:15:58]
the way that you do that -- are we
[2:16:00]
incorporating solar, wind energy?
[2:16:01]
what are thoughts there? As I
[2:16:05]
was looking at the
[2:16:06]
design, do the hotels have solar panels
[2:16:08]
on them? Do any of --
[2:16:09]
like, help me better understand how
[2:16:11]
we get close to
[2:16:14]
net zero.
[2:16:15]
>> so, solar is a
[2:16:16]
mandate by the state. Any new project
[2:16:17]
has to have
[2:16:19]
solar on it. But we're going to use
[2:16:21]
new modern technology that's been
[2:16:23]
used for
[2:16:25]
many years in europe where they actually use
[2:16:28]
the glass of the buildings actually
[2:16:32]
have small little solar cells in
[2:16:34]
them that you don't see, but it creates energy.
[2:16:35]
we're
[2:16:37]
doing that currently in some apartments
[2:16:38]
that we're doing down in
[2:16:39]
san diego. We're using that glass.
[2:16:40]
we will continue to use that glass as one element.
[2:16:44]
the
[2:16:45]
other thing that we have abundance
[2:16:48]
of up here is wind. And it doesn't
[2:16:50]
take a
[2:16:51]
large wind wind turbine to do it.
[2:16:53]
they're small.
[2:16:56]
wind-
[2:16:57]
generating turbines that are also --
[2:16:59]
I mean,
[2:17:01]
the size of a baseball that are put on
[2:17:02]
the
[2:17:05]
side of a building that are spinning that are creating
[2:17:08]
energy. There's
[2:17:11]
the ability to have smaller
[2:17:12]
turbines that are 18 inches high,
[2:17:14]
about a foot wide,
[2:17:15]
that create the same amount of energy as seven solar
[2:17:17]
panels.
[2:17:22]
one of the ther elements we're working with,
[2:17:23]
we're working
[2:17:24]
with universities currently, and we're
[2:17:25]
going to be deploying, at the maritime
[2:17:26]
museum down
[2:17:29]
in san diego, a pilot
[2:17:32]
project that
[2:17:35]
takes a --a tidal flow
[2:17:37]
in a safe manner that allows us to
[2:17:38]
create the energy with
[2:17:39]
movement of the water. There's a lot
[2:17:41]
of movement of water here.
[2:17:43]
it's constantly moving. We want to
[2:17:44]
capture that energy
[2:17:45]
that's part of the energy that the bay
[2:17:47]
is giving
[2:17:50]
us. We want to
[2:17:51]
use it. We're looking at those three
[2:17:53]
things to really
[2:17:55]
capture the energy and create it into
[2:17:56]
something that gets us to the net zero.
[2:17:57]
>> okay.
[2:18:03]
appreciate that. With respect to the
[2:18:05]
rising sea levels, the
[2:18:08]
king tides, which do,
[2:18:10]
as we saw from the photos, they come
[2:18:11]
and visit
[2:18:14]
us every
[2:18:17]
year, how --so, is your proposal
[2:18:19]
here, is it to --will this -- all
[2:18:20]
of
[2:18:23]
these proposed facilities, will
[2:18:25]
they be raised a certain amount off
[2:18:26]
the ground so even as
[2:18:27]
the sea levels begin to rise, the
[2:18:29]
king tides come
[2:18:31]
through, that the facilities would
[2:18:32]
be
[2:18:35]
immune from any type of flooding?
[2:18:38]
help me better understand that.
[2:18:41]
>> that's one of the things
[2:18:42]
that we have to solve. When I was out
[2:18:44]
there for the first time, one of
[2:18:46]
the parking lots was full of water.
[2:18:47]
so, can't have that.
[2:18:49]
we can't have a development that's full
[2:18:50]
of water. Part of
[2:18:52]
the problem that we have is the infrastructure
[2:18:53]
going into the bay and the
[2:18:56]
way that it
[2:18:57]
feeds back and forth allows for that
[2:18:59]
water to easily flow through
[2:19:00]
so that'll be corrected when we do
[2:19:02]
the seawall. We have to
[2:19:05]
raise the seawall up, because it's
[2:19:06]
currently
[2:19:07]
below where it needs to be. In order
[2:19:08]
to get us
[2:19:09]
up out of the sea level rise, we need to lift
[2:19:11]
that up a little bit.
[2:19:14]
the way that we do the parking
[2:19:17]
garages, the way that we handle that, we'll
[2:19:18]
be immune
[2:19:19]
to water going into them. So, those
[2:19:20]
are all things that we're
[2:19:21]
going to do to help protect the development.
[2:19:26]
>> okay. >> because
[2:19:28]
remember, ultimately, these are your assets.
[2:19:35]
we're going to be asees of
[2:19:37]
these assets. We're going to operate them
[2:19:38]
through a lease, but
[2:19:39]
ultimately, these are all going to be assets
[2:19:40]
for the city of martinez.
[2:19:41]
>> okay.
[2:19:44]
thank you for that.
[2:19:47]
the last question I
[2:19:50]
had, and I do
[2:19:53]
appreciate the inclusion of our labor
[2:19:54]
and
[2:19:55]
the recognition that martinez is a
[2:19:59]
longstanding union town, and
[2:20:02]
providing good union jobs has been
[2:20:04]
long priority for me and many on the
[2:20:05]
council.
[2:20:07]
and you know, I am excited about the
[2:20:11]
prospect in terms of the jobs aspect
[2:20:14]
of this, both during the
[2:20:17]
construction, but also the jobs to
[2:20:18]
be
[2:20:19]
provided once the project is fully completed.
[2:20:23]
and so, can you speak --
[2:20:26]
I mean, you did mention
[2:20:27]
it, that you have experience working with
[2:20:29]
labor unions.
[2:20:33]
can you talk a little bit
[2:20:34]
about, you know, how have you been
[2:20:36]
able
[2:20:37]
to bring consensus within labor, who
[2:20:39]
may not always necessarily see
[2:20:40]
eye to eye on particular projects?
[2:20:45]
you know, I know just
[2:20:46]
here, candidly, I mean, we have had
[2:20:48]
some
[2:20:49]
discussions around project labor agreements
[2:20:51]
here in this
[2:20:54]
chamber, that there are --
[2:20:56]
there is not a unanimous decision
[2:20:57]
in terms of
[2:20:59]
how those agreements should be shaped
[2:21:01]
and so I'm just kind of --I would
[2:21:03]
like to hear a little bit
[2:21:05]
more in terms of your background working
[2:21:06]
with
[2:21:08]
labor unions, because candidly, our
[2:21:09]
city,
[2:21:11]
our sister city here, concord, has
[2:21:12]
also --was also
[2:21:15]
looking at a very large project
[2:21:16]
at the former naval weapons station
[2:21:18]
site. They have had
[2:21:21]
to go through multiple
[2:21:24]
developers and one
[2:21:26]
developer came in, promised a lot
[2:21:27]
of things
[2:21:30]
and turned
[2:21:32]
around and said, I can't do this project
[2:21:33]
because I can't reach an
[2:21:34]
agreement with the unions. So I just
[2:21:36]
want to know, is this
[2:21:37]
something that you are committed to,
[2:21:39]
we're going into this eyes wide
[2:21:42]
open, like you are prepared
[2:21:45]
to work with ourour partners to
[2:21:46]
reach an agreement at the outset?
[2:21:48]
that's something that's really important
[2:21:51]
for
[2:21:53]
me.
[2:21:54]
>> absolutely. I was given the
[2:21:55]
opportunity to
[2:21:56]
meet with several of them to start
[2:21:57]
the conversation
[2:22:00]
to talk about
[2:22:03]
our commitment.
[2:22:05]
and we'll have conversations to iron
[2:22:07]
everything out. One of the things we do
[2:22:08]
is all our general contractors are
[2:22:09]
union
[2:22:12]
to begin with.
[2:22:13]
so, they automatically start to get the
[2:22:15]
unions behind them.
[2:22:16]
>> okay. >> it's
[2:22:17]
a matter of getting consensus as to
[2:22:18]
what --
[2:22:20]
who's doing what, what unions are
[2:22:21]
handling what trades.
[2:22:24]
it's getting everybody to be on the same page
[2:22:26]
and understand that one big project
[2:22:28]
with everybody getting fair wages is
[2:22:30]
better for everyone.
[2:22:33]
and that's what we're going to do.
[2:22:34]
we'll
[2:22:35]
building consensus. That's what we do.
[2:22:36]
>> okay. Thank you very much.
[2:22:37]
those are all the questions that I had at this time.
[2:22:42]
I'll turn it over to my colleague,
[2:22:43]
councilmember
[2:22:44]
mckillop. Thank you.
[2:22:45]
>> I want to
[2:22:46]
say thank you
[2:22:48]
to greg and diane for your vision
[2:22:49]
and for coming to martinez with this idea.
[2:22:54]
and thank you to the staff for bringing
[2:22:55]
it to
[2:22:56]
the council at the closed session, and
[2:22:57]
I just
[2:23:00]
want to say that all the council was
[2:23:01]
united at closed session when we saw
[2:23:03]
this.
[2:23:06]
we said, as satinder said, stop right now.
[2:23:08]
our community --this is a community
[2:23:09]
asset. This is
[2:23:11]
part of martinez, and so we wanted
[2:23:12]
to make sure
[2:23:15]
that all of you understood what this
[2:23:16]
was
[2:23:18]
and that we're here tonight so that you can
[2:23:19]
understand
[2:23:20]
what this is. This potentially could
[2:23:21]
be
[2:23:24]
a legacy project, as
[2:23:25]
my fellow council members have mentioned.
[2:23:26]
I love all your comments. This is
[2:23:27]
something that we really
[2:23:28]
have to think about. This is something
[2:23:30]
not just for
[2:23:32]
us, but for the future generations
[2:23:33]
of martinez, for
[2:23:35]
our youth, for the survival of our
[2:23:38]
city, financially, for the type of
[2:23:39]
life we want to have in martinez.
[2:23:41]
we want to have a safe community.
[2:23:42]
we
[2:23:44]
want to have good police officers
[2:23:45]
that protect our community. We
[2:23:47]
want to have enough revenue to be
[2:23:48]
able to support the lifestyle
[2:23:50]
that we have in martinez, and this
[2:23:51]
is an
[2:23:53]
opportunity to think about how this could piece that together
[2:23:54]
for us.
[2:23:57]
so, I wanted --
[2:23:59]
just I want to really stress how much
[2:24:00]
time and attention
[2:24:02]
our city staff have put together over
[2:24:03]
the last month or so to be
[2:24:06]
able to get this out to our community.
[2:24:07]
I know
[2:24:08]
they met with many community groups.
[2:24:09]
many of you out
[2:24:11]
here tonight, to let you know about
[2:24:12]
this, so that we could encourage people
[2:24:15]
to come here tonight, either in the
[2:24:17]
council chambers or online. I think
[2:24:18]
earlier, we
[2:24:20]
had over 85 people listening. This
[2:24:21]
is a
[2:24:24]
really, really big and monumental
[2:24:25]
decision
[2:24:27]
for the city
[2:24:29]
of martinez, and it's not just us up here.
[2:24:30]
this is your city. This is your marina.
[2:24:36]
this is your decision as well. I know
[2:24:37]
a lot
[2:24:38]
of you waited a long time. We have been
[2:24:39]
here for several
[2:24:42]
hours, and I know you have questions
[2:24:43]
and concerns. This is
[2:24:44]
a lot to wrap your head around, and you may have future
[2:24:45]
questions and concerns.
[2:24:48]
and we will continue to have outreach
[2:24:50]
to our community so that everyone
[2:24:51]
is
[2:24:53]
apprised of what is happening and
[2:24:54]
no
[2:24:56]
surprises. This isn't something that's
[2:24:57]
going to be, you
[2:24:59]
know, a surprise. This is something
[2:25:00]
that if you are engaged and you want
[2:25:01]
to know
[2:25:02]
about your city and you want to take
[2:25:03]
part in something revolutionary, this is the
[2:25:04]
opportunity.
[2:25:08]
I can't think of anything larger than
[2:25:09]
this that I can think of in
[2:25:11]
the history of martinez other than
[2:25:13]
maybe when the bridge
[2:25:15]
was created, when ferry service was
[2:25:16]
retired and we had
[2:25:18]
a bridge, and that was in the 1960s.
[2:25:19]
I think it
[2:25:20]
opened in '62. I think that was the year I was
[2:25:22]
born. Long
[2:25:25]
time ago.
[2:25:28]
this is something really amazing
[2:25:30]
and it's not going to just touch the
[2:25:31]
city of martinez, it's
[2:25:32]
going to touch the entire county and
[2:25:33]
beyond. Even the state. People will
[2:25:34]
come
[2:25:35]
here because this is going to be an
[2:25:37]
amazing --if we decide we want
[2:25:39]
to go in this direction, an amazing jewel for this area.
[2:25:46]
we've wanted ferry
[2:25:47]
service for a hundred years and people
[2:25:49]
want to take the ferry
[2:25:50]
and go to the city, take the ferry
[2:25:52]
and go places.
[2:25:53]
this is a potential way to get there.
[2:25:55]
this is going
[2:25:56]
to revolutionize martinez and downtown martinez.
[2:26:04]
I know a lot of
[2:26:05]
my council members have had great
[2:26:06]
words to say. I want to hear what you
[2:26:07]
have to
[2:26:09]
say. I want to hear. You have public
[2:26:10]
comment. You have lots
[2:26:11]
of questions and concerns, so I would
[2:26:13]
like
[2:26:16]
to make sure we can turn this over
[2:26:17]
to you, both in the council chambers
[2:26:19]
here tonight and online so that
[2:26:20]
people can ask questions. I'm sure
[2:26:21]
people have concerns. This is a big, big deal.
[2:26:22]
a big deal.
[2:26:25]
so,
[2:26:28]
I'm going to allow everyone
[2:26:31]
now to have their opportunity to ask questions.
[2:26:34]
take it away, vice mayor.
[2:26:39]
>> I had some questions before we
[2:26:40]
move
[2:26:43]
to public comment.
[2:26:44]
>> of course,
[2:26:45]
bri.
[2:26:46]
>> I didn't ask any at the beginning.
[2:26:47]
sorry, jay, to cut in line.
[2:26:48]
>> thanks, bri.
[2:26:49]
>> it's going to my seat.
[2:26:52]
so, most
[2:26:54]
of my questions are for greg. Before we
[2:26:55]
open this up to public
[2:26:56]
comment, I just wanted to clarify
[2:26:58]
a few items from
[2:27:01]
your presentation. So, you did make
[2:27:04]
reference to a safe harbor. My understanding
[2:27:07]
that safe harbor would be your partner
[2:27:10]
that would do the marina
[2:27:11]
infrastructure repairs. Where along
[2:27:13]
the project timeline would
[2:27:16]
the marina
[2:27:19]
repairs
[2:27:25]
occur? Do you anticipate all
[2:27:27]
of that parallel?
[2:27:28]
>> it would be parallel.
[2:27:30]
the development will happen in a parallel
[2:27:31]
track. It has to
[2:27:33]
happen in a parallel track because of
[2:27:34]
the way that we
[2:27:36]
have to raise the site up. The marina improvements have to
[2:27:37]
be done at the same time.
[2:27:40]
>> okay.
[2:27:43]
and then, the many
[2:27:45]
of my colleagues have made comments
[2:27:46]
about this being
[2:27:49]
conceptual design, a vision. The
[2:27:52]
ena process is not really
[2:27:54]
going to have much comment on this
[2:27:55]
design, but if the
[2:27:58]
ena process goes smoothly, and
[2:28:00]
we approve moving into a development
[2:28:03]
agreement, in your experience, in
[2:28:04]
other
[2:28:07]
cities, how much does a conceptual
[2:28:10]
design change from your vision to when
[2:28:13]
you finally finalize that development agreement and start
[2:28:14]
moving forward with permitting?
[2:28:19]
>> I have never had one
[2:28:22]
get
[2:28:24]
developed exactly how I started out with it, the
[2:28:25]
vision.
[2:28:26]
>>
[2:28:27]
okay.
[2:28:28]
>> like I said, when I walked
[2:28:29]
up tonight, it changed
[2:28:30]
when those two young men asked for
[2:28:31]
a soccer field.
[2:28:32]
>> already changed.
[2:28:33]
right. Got you.
[2:28:34]
okay. We already have
[2:28:36]
a soccer field. It just needs some improvement.
[2:28:37]
it's just around the corner from the baseball field.
[2:28:40]
noted.
[2:28:43]
noted, declan. The
[2:28:45]
one question --I know we've sort of
[2:28:46]
talked about sea level rise a
[2:28:48]
little bit. You've talked about building
[2:28:49]
up the
[2:28:51]
seawall and for clarification, sometimes
[2:28:52]
we use the
[2:28:54]
word seawall to refer to the marina
[2:28:55]
infrastructure, the
[2:28:58]
outside, but you're referring to actually,
[2:29:00]
like, the rip rap. That's the seawall you're
[2:29:01]
talking about building
[2:29:04]
up, right?
[2:29:05]
>> yeah, the rivetment.
[2:29:07]
stone edge. Yeah.
[2:29:08]
>> okay.
[2:29:09]
so, I have had some people since the
[2:29:12]
agenda went live talking about the
[2:29:14]
stability of building a hotel down at
[2:29:16]
the waterfront, you know,
[2:29:17]
people are concerned about sea level
[2:29:19]
rise, so can you
[2:29:22]
just speak to the
[2:29:23]
geotechnical nature of the design that
[2:29:25]
you do? This is clearly
[2:29:28]
conceptual now, but what kind of geotechnical
[2:29:30]
input do you get when you build something down at a place like
[2:29:31]
our waterfront?
[2:29:34]
>> we will
[2:29:37]
go to full
[2:29:39]
geotechnical reports on it. We have
[2:29:40]
preliminary stuff given
[2:29:42]
to us and looked at. We need to get
[2:29:43]
better information
[2:29:45]
to have and understand what that is.
[2:29:49]
more than likely we
[2:29:50]
will end up with caissons and a matte
[2:29:52]
foundation to support it and be able
[2:29:55]
to handle
[2:29:58]
the seismic activity in
[2:29:59]
the area. Very similar to what we
[2:30:01]
have to do everywhere along the coast
[2:30:04]
of california. So, all
[2:30:05]
of that will be in the next phases
[2:30:07]
as we start doing our due diligence
[2:30:10]
further. As we go through the
[2:30:14]
ena, we will get better information
[2:30:16]
is what we need to do. The foundations
[2:30:17]
will be secured. They will be seismically
[2:30:19]
to code
[2:30:22]
and we are looking at the
[2:30:23]
new codes coming out so we will always
[2:30:25]
be current with regards to our
[2:30:28]
seismic response.
[2:30:31]
>>
[2:30:32]
do you have to do anything special
[2:30:34]
for an underground parking lot? I
[2:30:35]
feel like that was one of the components
[2:30:37]
of the questions I received from folks.
[2:30:39]
>> so it is the way in which the lower
[2:30:40]
level of the
[2:30:43]
parking lot is handled.
[2:30:45]
and the way we do not let the water
[2:30:46]
infiltration come up from the
[2:30:49]
ground because it's
[2:30:52]
liquefaction which is
[2:30:53]
what oppresses up on that. It's a
[2:30:55]
matter of having enough weight on
[2:30:56]
top
[2:30:57]
of it to hold it down so we do not
[2:30:58]
have a look faction pushing a.
[2:31:00]
we waterproof it in a way that will
[2:31:01]
not allow water to
[2:31:04]
come through.
[2:31:05]
>> only a few more questions.
[2:31:07]
so the
[2:31:10]
had mitigation
[2:31:13]
and restoration of the dewatering
[2:31:14]
ponds
[2:31:15]
as part of the assumption of the plan.
[2:31:19]
so, can you just speak to what your
[2:31:22]
assumptions are , the dewatering ponds
[2:31:23]
is
[2:31:25]
the area
[2:31:27]
you are not proposing, the open space
[2:31:28]
you are not proposing to develop.
[2:31:29]
are
[2:31:31]
you anticipating that be
[2:31:32]
an independent project or are you
[2:31:34]
looking at that
[2:31:40]
as a mitigation project for your project?
[2:31:41]
does
[2:31:42]
that question makes sense?
[2:31:43]
>> yes
[2:31:44]
it does. I am
[2:31:45]
not sure at this point if it will
[2:31:46]
be a full
[2:31:47]
mitigation project for what we need.
[2:31:49]
we will have some influence
[2:31:52]
on that. We will be contributing
[2:31:55]
to some of that as well.
[2:31:57]
during this negotiation we are going
[2:31:58]
to
[2:32:01]
find out
[2:32:04]
what
[2:32:06]
our full mitigation needs to be. We
[2:32:07]
have to go through that full eir
[2:32:09]
process to find out what we have to
[2:32:10]
mitigate. So it will be determined
[2:32:15]
through that process, and if it comes
[2:32:16]
out that that is our mitigation and
[2:32:19]
we have to improve it.
[2:32:20]
>> thank you.
[2:32:24]
lastly, the one thing you mentioned
[2:32:25]
near the end of
[2:32:27]
your comments was with respect to
[2:32:31]
these hotels, this infrastructure
[2:32:32]
that
[2:32:33]
would be part of this project would
[2:32:34]
be something that your organization
[2:32:37]
would lease from the city was how
[2:32:38]
you worded it.
[2:32:40]
what is your expected timeline? I
[2:32:41]
realize
[2:32:43]
we are still in vision mode,
[2:32:52]
but in the future, when your lease
[2:32:53]
from
[2:32:54]
the city, you decide to break that,
[2:32:55]
would that look like for martinez?
[2:32:58]
we would
[2:33:00]
just out right on the hotel and we
[2:33:01]
would operate it, how does that
[2:33:03]
work?
[2:33:04]
>> during the lease there are
[2:33:05]
certain things that we will be
[2:33:06]
required to do. And that will be the
[2:33:07]
way we have to maintain.
[2:33:09]
we have to invest money over the time
[2:33:10]
of the lease to make sure that
[2:33:13]
the asset stays at a high level.
[2:33:16]
if we get to a point where
[2:33:19]
ending our lease
[2:33:22]
, let's just throw out a number, let's
[2:33:23]
say it's
[2:33:25]
a 50 year lease, and in 50 years we decide
[2:33:33]
, we have operated the hotel long
[2:33:34]
enough, we are not
[2:33:35]
interested in operating anymore, still
[2:33:37]
in very good condition, still great
[2:33:38]
asset, we would
[2:33:40]
help you find a suitable operator
[2:33:42]
to come in and start operating the
[2:33:43]
hotel and take on a new lease.
[2:33:46]
>> okay.
[2:33:49]
those are all of my questions right
[2:33:50]
now. Now I'm
[2:33:51]
going to go back to what councilmember
[2:33:52]
mckillop said,
[2:33:58]
take it away,
[2:34:00]
vice mayor howard, if you would like
[2:34:01]
to call out names of people from
[2:34:02]
the public who submitted speaker cards
[2:34:04]
or you can call on people by name
[2:34:06]
and they can come out, depending on
[2:34:07]
how many speaker cards were submitted.
[2:34:10]
>> I have
[2:34:12]
one question before we jump into speakers.
[2:34:17]
earlier in your presentation, greg,
[2:34:18]
you mentioned the configuration of
[2:34:19]
the actual marina.
[2:34:25]
there has been criticism over the
[2:34:27]
years that the way we configured our
[2:34:28]
marina, the opening facilitation comes
[2:34:29]
in and there
[2:34:31]
has been a lot of talk about the positioning
[2:34:32]
of the
[2:34:33]
opening of the marina, the mouth,
[2:34:35]
where boats actually should be entering
[2:34:38]
. And having been
[2:34:49]
in an italian family that did fishing,
[2:34:51]
am fifth-generation italian, they
[2:34:52]
all came here from sicily and fished
[2:34:53]
all these waters
[2:34:54]
and there people here in the audience
[2:34:55]
who fished in these waters that know
[2:34:56]
the
[2:34:57]
waters, that no the way the currents
[2:34:59]
flow and it's part of their dna of
[2:35:00]
being a artesian. That is something
[2:35:01]
I have been asked about and there
[2:35:02]
was
[2:35:03]
concern we don't want to make the
[2:35:04]
same mistake again. You did mention
[2:35:05]
you're studying
[2:35:07]
that and that you had, or maybe not yourself,
[2:35:11]
but safe harbors was aware.
[2:35:13]
I want to make sure we don't overlook
[2:35:14]
let and
[2:35:17]
look into
[2:35:20]
or tapping into
[2:35:21]
some of the expertise that is here
[2:35:23]
in martinez the could talk about some
[2:35:24]
of the natural flows of the water
[2:35:26]
in the river. We have the creek,
[2:35:27]
and how that comes together so we
[2:35:29]
don't make a mistake
[2:35:34]
and affect the environmental makeup
[2:35:35]
of
[2:35:36]
the geography here in a way that would
[2:35:38]
contribute to some sort of future
[2:35:39]
problem
[2:35:41]
in the marina access again.
[2:35:42]
>>
[2:35:43]
that is one of the studies we would
[2:35:44]
be doing. We
[2:35:47]
do have a maritime engineer
[2:35:50]
that we employed to do the studies
[2:35:53]
and
[2:35:54]
hydraulic studies to look at the flow
[2:35:56]
of the water, look at where it
[2:35:57]
needs to be. We do that in conjunction
[2:35:59]
with safe harbor because
[2:36:02]
it means a lot to us
[2:36:05]
on the land side as well.
[2:36:08]
we are
[2:36:09]
providing the access to the boats
[2:36:10]
with the understanding of exactly
[2:36:11]
how we're going
[2:36:13]
to do that and how to do it safely.
[2:36:14]
and again, good point, we want
[2:36:16]
to make sure we avoid another type of
[2:36:17]
catastrophic
[2:36:20]
event happening.
[2:36:22]
so, during these opportunities we have
[2:36:29]
the ability
[2:36:30]
to reach out to the community, we
[2:36:31]
definitely would like to hear from
[2:36:32]
the fishing industry
[2:36:33]
here. And those that know these waters.
[2:36:35]
they can give our engineers insight
[2:36:38]
to
[2:36:39]
things that they may not be able to
[2:36:41]
see just on maps and just through
[2:36:43]
some of their studies that they do. But
[2:36:44]
we
[2:36:45]
will definitely make sure that is
[2:36:47]
addressed.
[2:36:48]
>> okay, thank you, I
[2:36:50]
appreciate that.
[2:36:51]
>> okay, we're going to start with
[2:36:53]
the speaker cards that were submitted.
[2:36:56]
first up we have beverly.
[2:37:02]
>> hello, and beverly,
[2:37:08]
I am one of the owners of power
[2:37:09]
sports which is the basketball facility
[2:37:10]
adjacent to the marina. I'm extremely
[2:37:11]
excited
[2:37:14]
about this as we host
[2:37:17]
tournaments weekly
[2:37:20]
, every weekend, pretty much
[2:37:21]
through the year. That range anywhere
[2:37:23]
from basketball tournaments to gymnastics qualifications,
[2:37:32]
these
[2:37:33]
are things that people rent out and
[2:37:35]
people come from all over the country.
[2:37:37]
and they need a place to stay. And
[2:37:38]
right now we are sending them to
[2:37:40]
the creek. It be great to have them
[2:37:41]
in our backyard. And,
[2:37:44]
in between
[2:37:55]
pretty much when the people come they
[2:37:56]
are here for the entire weekend
[2:37:57]
and they are looking for something
[2:37:59]
to do in between their competitions.
[2:38:00]
or their
[2:38:01]
games. It would be nice to be able
[2:38:02]
to send them over to the marina
[2:38:03]
to walk around on the boardwalk, go
[2:38:05]
to the restaurants. Shop. Keep them
[2:38:06]
local, keep
[2:38:07]
the money here. So I am excited about
[2:38:08]
it. The only thing I agree
[2:38:10]
with the you mentioned, it would be
[2:38:11]
great to have an alternate way to
[2:38:12]
get
[2:38:13]
over to our area because that is always
[2:38:14]
a concern. So, thank you.
[2:38:15]
>> thank
[2:38:17]
you. Next I have tim.
[2:38:32]
>> all right, good evening. Honorable mayor,
[2:38:33]
vice mayor,
[2:38:34]
council members and staff, and the
[2:38:35]
executive director of the contra costa
[2:38:36]
construction trades
[2:38:37]
council. I want to speak tonight in
[2:38:38]
favor of the council moving forward
[2:38:39]
with
[2:38:41]
the ena.
[2:38:46]
it was an exciting presentation, I
[2:38:47]
think the benefits are
[2:38:48]
evident, the potential evidence have
[2:38:50]
been well articulated. Both the project sponsor,
[2:38:52]
your staff and several of you have
[2:38:53]
commented, obviously this is step
[2:38:55]
one in a long process, that has already
[2:38:56]
been mentioned,
[2:39:01]
but the benefits are evident. I think
[2:39:02]
what is also evident when
[2:39:04]
you look at the project is all the
[2:39:05]
various components, a lot of
[2:39:08]
different components a lot
[2:39:10]
of different areas of work that need
[2:39:11]
to be done.
[2:39:13]
and our members of our 20 affiliates,
[2:39:14]
other members of
[2:39:17]
the contra costa
[2:39:20]
building trades stand ready to do
[2:39:21]
that
[2:39:22]
work. We are excited to hear the commitment
[2:39:23]
that was made tonight
[2:39:26]
by tucker sadler and your support
[2:39:28]
as well of union labor. The other
[2:39:29]
issue
[2:39:34]
referenced was working with carpenters.
[2:39:35]
we already reached out to them and
[2:39:36]
look
[2:39:37]
forward to having a good partnership
[2:39:38]
with them. Working on a collaborative
[2:39:39]
nature on
[2:39:40]
an agreement with the project sponsors
[2:39:46]
and all of you. And working shoulder
[2:39:47]
to shoulder with them on this project.
[2:39:49]
it does take skilled hands to build
[2:39:50]
a project of this nature. I think
[2:39:51]
speaking
[2:39:52]
directly to councilmember young's
[2:39:54]
comments this has the potential
[2:39:57]
with union labor
[2:39:58]
on it and the benefit and input of
[2:40:00]
the community of being not just
[2:40:03]
a crown jewel for contra costa
[2:40:04]
county but really the entire bay area.
[2:40:06]
we are excited to be part of the
[2:40:07]
process and look forward to working
[2:40:09]
with all of you. Thank you.
[2:40:10]
>> thank
[2:40:12]
you. Next is desmond.
[2:40:18]
>> thank you. Desmond.
[2:40:23]
I came up here to read something for
[2:40:26]
kevin bacon, he is a member of the
[2:40:27]
marina and
[2:40:29]
a long-term resident of martinez.
[2:40:34]
he is not here, he's flying for work
[2:40:36]
right now.
[2:40:39]
I will go for it. Some of
[2:40:40]
what has been talked about today has
[2:40:42]
already been covered.
[2:40:43]
but this was already written and I'm
[2:40:45]
not going to edit it on the
[2:40:48]
fly. So,
[2:40:51]
my name is kevin bacon, am and
[2:40:52]
longtime martinez resident, boat owner
[2:40:53]
and am on the board of directors for
[2:40:57]
the martinez
[2:41:00]
sportsmen's
[2:41:01]
clubs. Since I'm out of town I'm sending
[2:41:02]
this written letter in support of
[2:41:03]
exploring
[2:41:04]
the prospect joint venture between
[2:41:05]
the city and a private developer to
[2:41:06]
reform the
[2:41:07]
marina area into a more prosperous
[2:41:08]
economic water recreational destination.
[2:41:20]
contra costa county encompasses 716
[2:41:21]
square miles. It is home to
[2:41:22]
19 cities with a population of over
[2:41:23]
1 million residents making it california's
[2:41:24]
ninth
[2:41:27]
most populous county.
[2:41:30]
out of the 15 cities in
[2:41:31]
the central and west county, only
[2:41:33]
one city has the benefit of
[2:41:36]
the marina. With gateway access
[2:41:37]
to california's largest rivers, bays
[2:41:38]
and even the pacific ocean. That one
[2:41:39]
being the
[2:41:42]
city of martinez. With its boating marina
[2:41:45]
that has been around since
[2:41:48]
the 1920s,
[2:41:50]
of the 15 cities in central and west county,
[2:41:51]
of the
[2:41:54]
ninth most populous county
[2:41:57]
in california, only martinez has
[2:41:59]
existing commercial recreational waterfront infrastructure
[2:42:03]
and is the only city eligible
[2:42:06]
for any of the marina
[2:42:09]
grants offered. Transforming
[2:42:11]
a marina into a thriving economic
[2:42:12]
hub involves
[2:42:15]
a multifaceted approach balancing
[2:42:17]
economic growth with the environmental responsibility
[2:42:21]
--
[2:42:22]
>> time is up.
[2:42:24]
>> but that's not
[2:42:26]
even the first page.
[2:42:27]
>> [ laughter ]
[2:42:33]
>> I'm sorry. >> you can
[2:42:35]
get submitted for the record.
[2:42:36]
>> the
[2:42:37]
given the time, he did send it
[2:42:38]
in. On my behalf, thank you for all
[2:42:39]
of your effort, it's very exciting.
[2:42:41]
time to be a martisian. Thank you.
[2:42:45]
>> next I have connie miller.
[2:42:57]
>>
[2:43:00]
connie miller. Thank you for
[2:43:03]
the council and is it greg,
[2:43:06]
for your presentation.
[2:43:11]
I have lived in martinez for 46 years
[2:43:12]
and I spoke 20
[2:43:15]
years ago to a council about,
[2:43:18]
you know, we were supposed
[2:43:21]
to revitalize martinez
[2:43:24]
and we
[2:43:25]
had people from other cities talking
[2:43:27]
against it. They shouldn't have any
[2:43:28]
say because
[2:43:29]
they don't live here. But when I scan
[2:43:30]
the qr code there
[2:43:33]
it said
[2:43:36]
martinez, bay area's hidden gem. That
[2:43:38]
is exactly what it is. I used to say
[2:43:39]
it's a diamond in
[2:43:40]
the rough. And it shouldn't be hidden.
[2:43:42]
this is our chance. I think you all
[2:43:43]
agree
[2:43:45]
that we definitely want to make
[2:43:48]
our community
[2:43:54]
a place that draws people
[2:43:56]
here. Because like he said, and I
[2:43:57]
have always said that, we are the
[2:43:58]
only
[2:43:59]
community that has water, of all these
[2:44:00]
cities, danville, orinda, we have
[2:44:02]
the water. But we don't polish it.
[2:44:09]
we
[2:44:11]
don't take care of it. And yes, the
[2:44:12]
train problem, I have waited over
[2:44:14]
an hour many times either on one side
[2:44:17]
or the other. If you have a heart
[2:44:18]
attack on the side
[2:44:20]
of the tracks you are dead because
[2:44:21]
are not going to fly a helicopter
[2:44:23]
over to get you. That definitely needs
[2:44:24]
to be fixed. When I
[2:44:26]
moved here in 1979 I believe there
[2:44:27]
was a restaurant boat
[2:44:29]
in the marina. Someone who lives here
[2:44:30]
probably knows.
[2:44:33]
yeah, there was a
[2:44:34]
boat on the water the people could
[2:44:36]
go dying, tiburon
[2:44:39]
has that restaurant on the water
[2:44:41]
the people flock there and it's fun
[2:44:42]
on
[2:44:44]
a nice sunny morning to go for brunch
[2:44:45]
or something.
[2:44:51]
so yeah, I think everyone is for
[2:44:53]
it. This is the best idea. Finally,
[2:44:54]
maybe I will live long enough to see
[2:44:57]
it happen.
[2:44:58]
>> next is stephen.
[2:45:02]
I apologize if I pronounced steven's
[2:45:03]
name wrong.
[2:45:04]
>>
[2:45:06]
good evening mayor and city council.
[2:45:09]
and residents. Am a proud resident
[2:45:12]
of martinez and a journeyman
[2:45:31]
of local 34. I am here to
[2:45:32]
voice my strong support for the proposed
[2:45:33]
marina project including the hotel,
[2:45:34]
retail, recreation space
[2:45:35]
and marina facilities. This project
[2:45:36]
isn't just another job site, it's
[2:45:37]
a chance to
[2:45:38]
build something meaningful in our
[2:45:39]
own backyard. For work is like me
[2:45:40]
working close to
[2:45:41]
home means, this means no more long
[2:45:42]
commutes or working out of town. It
[2:45:44]
means spending more time with family,
[2:45:45]
being present at the moments that
[2:45:46]
matter in doing
[2:45:47]
work I love. Union jobs on this project
[2:45:48]
will offer minimum wages, full family
[2:45:52]
healthcare, retirement security,
[2:45:53]
the kind that let people buy a home,
[2:45:55]
raise kids and stay rooted in
[2:45:58]
their communities.
[2:46:00]
these are just paychecks, they are
[2:46:01]
pathway to
[2:46:02]
better life. This is more than just
[2:46:03]
a waterfront development, it's a real
[2:46:04]
opportunity
[2:46:05]
to control the --grow the workforce.
[2:46:07]
it will create hands-on training for apprentices
[2:46:10]
working
[2:46:11]
side-by-side with seasoned journeyman
[2:46:12]
who can pass down the knowledge, skills,
[2:46:14]
standards and that define our trade.
[2:46:16]
that is how you build a
[2:46:17]
strong workforce through real experience
[2:46:19]
and union values.
[2:46:20]
we have a responsibility to make sure
[2:46:22]
these opportunities
[2:46:25]
that are open for everyone
[2:46:31]
. This project gives us a chance to
[2:46:32]
bring more women into construction,
[2:46:33]
a field where they historically have
[2:46:34]
been underrepresented. But
[2:46:35]
where they belong. It gives veterans
[2:46:36]
a path forward. When they return home.
[2:46:40]
career where there discipline,
[2:46:46]
work ethic
[2:46:47]
and teamwork and thrive. It opens
[2:46:48]
doors for people of color who deserve
[2:46:50]
fair shot of high-quality jobs that
[2:46:52]
offer growth and security. The marina project
[2:46:53]
will be a place where people from
[2:46:55]
all walks of life come together
[2:46:58]
to build, grow and succeed.
[2:47:00]
and we create long-term jobs, only
[2:47:01]
during construction
[2:47:02]
but in the hotel, retail and marina
[2:47:03]
operations. Generating academic activity
[2:47:04]
that stays right
[2:47:07]
here in martinez.
[2:47:09]
is a union member --
[2:47:10]
>> time is up.
[2:47:12]
>> I urge you to support this project.
[2:47:13]
>> [
[2:47:16]
applause ]
[2:47:19]
>> next is chris.
[2:47:31]
>> I will raise is up. Good evening,
[2:47:34]
mayor, vice
[2:47:35]
mayor, staff, members of the community.
[2:47:39]
my name is chris and I'm a local resident.
[2:47:42]
I am also proud member of northern
[2:47:43]
california
[2:47:46]
carpenters union,
[2:47:48]
local 34, the martinez waterfront
[2:47:49]
project is an
[2:47:50]
exciting opportunity for the city
[2:47:52]
of martinez new york I asked the council
[2:47:54]
to approve the exclusive shooting
[2:47:55]
agreement with tucker
[2:47:58]
sadler. Nql for your service.
[2:47:59]
>> [
[2:48:01]
applause ]
[2:48:02]
>> thank you. >> next
[2:48:04]
is william.
[2:48:10]
>> hi,
[2:48:13]
and bill,
[2:48:22]
I'm going to modify my statement a
[2:48:23]
little
[2:48:24]
bit based on the presentation. Am
[2:48:25]
a california licensed geologist and
[2:48:26]
engineering geologist. I'm not
[2:48:27]
looking for work. But, we did talk
[2:48:28]
about sea level rise and that
[2:48:31]
is real. In 1850,
[2:48:32]
1852 and again in 1860s there were
[2:48:34]
major floods
[2:48:43]
. About 1 billion cubic yards of sediment
[2:48:44]
washdown from
[2:48:45]
hydraulic mining. The waterfront used
[2:48:46]
to be at about the train tracks. It
[2:48:47]
is now
[2:48:49]
about where we see it today.
[2:48:51]
they have added extra sediment. Those
[2:48:52]
sediments are considered under consolidated.
[2:48:53]
they are compacting under their own
[2:48:55]
weight. So it's not like typical
[2:49:03]
payment. This is sediments deposited
[2:49:04]
later. So a
[2:49:05]
significant portion of this relevant
[2:49:06]
project will need to consider these
[2:49:07]
sediments. If you just build
[2:49:09]
a nice foundation but don't address
[2:49:10]
the underlying sediments
[2:49:16]
that land is sinking under
[2:49:17]
its own weight. You had buildings,
[2:49:19]
that will continue to cause it to
[2:49:20]
sink even
[2:49:21]
more. So you kind of have two things,
[2:49:22]
what are coming up and land
[2:49:24]
going down. So that will be a very
[2:49:25]
significant how to address the land
[2:49:26]
surface
[2:49:27]
actually subsiding under its own --
[2:49:28]
that was one of the main things. The
[2:49:30]
other, I'm going to pitch. At a small
[2:49:31]
boat launch, a small kayak launch
[2:49:32]
and
[2:49:34]
maybe for kayaks and paddle boards.
[2:49:37]
maybe sunfish
[2:49:39]
side sailboats, that would be a nice
[2:49:40]
addition to the waterfront. That's
[2:49:43]
it.
[2:49:44]
>> [ applause ]
[2:49:49]
>> next is matt.
[2:49:52]
>>
[2:50:01]
mayor zorn, council members, I'm here
[2:50:02]
representing the
[2:50:03]
bay area council an organization comprised
[2:50:05]
of the larger employers
[2:50:07]
in the area. Our mission is to make
[2:50:08]
this region
[2:50:09]
the best place in the world to live
[2:50:11]
and work. Our office is actually
[2:50:12]
on san francisco bay in a 100-year-old
[2:50:19]
ferry boat, you're welcome to visit
[2:50:20]
us. It is public
[2:50:21]
access as part of the bay trail. We
[2:50:22]
are very excited about this project.
[2:50:23]
I'm
[2:50:24]
not a martisian myself but I look
[2:50:26]
over my back fence into martinez.
[2:50:27]
I am particularly and personally excited
[2:50:29]
about this project.
[2:50:31]
one thing we as an organization are
[2:50:32]
very bullish on is ferry
[2:50:34]
boat service. We created the water
[2:50:35]
transit authority and
[2:50:38]
over the years and it's
[2:50:39]
getting the site connected to the
[2:50:42]
regional ferry service is mission critical.
[2:50:50]
it has been described as
[2:50:51]
an economic engine, this is the fuel
[2:50:52]
that will get the engine going. So
[2:50:53]
we
[2:50:54]
would urge that whatever the project
[2:50:56]
ends up being, that there is a physical
[2:50:57]
component to have eight ferry terminal and
[2:51:01]
a part of the financing mechanism
[2:51:02]
to subsidize
[2:51:05]
the ferry
[2:51:06]
operations, that is required as part
[2:51:08]
of the ferry expansion
[2:51:11]
plans. I don't know if
[2:51:16]
councilmember molly remembers, I was
[2:51:17]
on vacation, texting
[2:51:20]
photographs saying
[2:51:25]
this looks like martinez. Except it's
[2:51:26]
full of
[2:51:27]
tourists and their hotels in the waterfront
[2:51:29]
is activated.
[2:51:30]
>> I do remember that.
[2:51:32]
>> dude, you got to see this place.
[2:51:33]
it
[2:51:34]
is what martinez could and should
[2:51:35]
be and will be if this project moves
[2:51:36]
forward. We approve the agreement
[2:51:37]
and hope this comes as fast as possible.
[2:51:38]
thank you.
[2:51:41]
>> thank you.
[2:51:44]
>> next is
[2:51:47]
joey.
[2:51:50]
>>
[2:51:53]
33+ year resident. I just want
[2:51:56]
to say I really want you
[2:51:59]
to embrace this ena , take care of martinez
[2:52:02]
, it has brought
[2:52:05]
so much joy to the community to have
[2:52:08]
this waterfront , you know,
[2:52:11]
I don't know how to
[2:52:14]
say it, it's going to bring so many
[2:52:15]
jobs
[2:52:17]
and so much
[2:52:20]
needed money to the community
[2:52:25]
that we can enjoy. I just want to
[2:52:26]
say, my vote
[2:52:28]
is yes, please do it.
[2:52:29]
>> [ applause
[2:52:31]
>> thank you.
[2:52:32]
next I have samantha.
[2:52:44]
>> hi. Before I begin,
[2:52:47]
I am
[2:52:49]
with the sea scouts and one of the
[2:52:50]
entities that will be probably
[2:52:51]
most affected by this development
[2:53:01]
phase. I was hoping to be so bold
[2:53:02]
as to
[2:53:03]
ask for the full three minute allotment,
[2:53:05]
totally okay if it's no. Something
[2:53:06]
to
[2:53:07]
ask for an extra minute.
[2:53:08]
>> unfortunately
[2:53:09]
we cannot.
[2:53:10]
>> I will talk
[2:53:11]
quickly. My name is sam, and with
[2:53:12]
the sea scouts and the
[2:53:14]
key adult
[2:53:16]
leader. For those in the room the
[2:53:17]
don't know what
[2:53:18]
sea scouts are we are specialized
[2:53:20]
branch of scouting america the focus
[2:53:21]
is on
[2:53:22]
teaching today's youth safe recreational
[2:53:23]
boating, maritime trade skills and
[2:53:24]
life skills. For 93 years
[2:53:25]
our proud institution has martinez
[2:53:26]
and the greater community about safe
[2:53:27]
boating
[2:53:28]
and maritime trade in our mission
[2:53:29]
is to continue the legacy for many
[2:53:30]
years
[2:53:32]
to come.
[2:53:41]
many of the youth leave our program
[2:53:42]
pursue a career
[2:53:43]
in the maritime field and for those
[2:53:44]
that don't they leave as a lifelong
[2:53:45]
passion
[2:53:46]
for the water and important skills
[2:53:47]
the better the world community. Those
[2:53:48]
trade skills we
[2:53:49]
teach directly translate into a wide
[2:53:50]
variety of blue-collar jobs and as
[2:53:51]
you know
[2:53:52]
blue-collar jobs helps make the world
[2:53:53]
go round. Our program
[2:53:55]
has shipped many youth into adults
[2:53:56]
with experiences in a wide
[2:53:57]
variety of trades such as maritime,
[2:53:58]
law, engineering, construction, coast
[2:53:59]
guard and more. I cannot
[2:54:00]
stress enough the importance mariners
[2:54:02]
have on the global trade as well as
[2:54:03]
importance
[2:54:05]
of her blue-collar workers.
[2:54:16]
you may be asking yourself, why am
[2:54:17]
I talking about the maritime industry and
[2:54:18]
community when we are really talking
[2:54:20]
about the martinez master plan and
[2:54:21]
the two are
[2:54:22]
one and the same. We all in this room
[2:54:23]
have a shared and vested interest
[2:54:25]
in the water and the different industries
[2:54:26]
it serves, recreation and business.
[2:54:27]
we understand
[2:54:28]
as part of this change we may be asked
[2:54:29]
to move to make way
[2:54:31]
for industry and tourism in our ask
[2:54:32]
a simple. Let us be part of the
[2:54:33]
change. Retained the valuable space
[2:54:35]
where we grow great people. And if
[2:54:36]
it's a plan
[2:54:38]
to move us to make way for the changes
[2:54:43]
it's of vital importance we retain
[2:54:44]
our training center for our
[2:54:46]
youth wherever we move too. And a
[2:54:47]
place where they can learn things
[2:54:48]
such
[2:54:49]
as welding, engine work, woodwork,
[2:54:50]
a place where they can have class
[2:54:51]
centers and
[2:54:52]
teach about important skills. Time
[2:54:53]
is a.
[2:54:54]
>> thank you. >> [
[2:54:56]
applause ]
[2:54:59]
>> if you cannot complete your
[2:55:02]
comments you can email them.
[2:55:05]
I will make sure it gets to the city
[2:55:06]
council and
[2:55:07]
staff members. You can take one of
[2:55:08]
the city clerk cards on the table
[2:55:09]
over
[2:55:10]
to the side. Next we have kelly webster.
[2:55:18]
no kelly?
[2:55:24]
>> I can be
[2:55:26]
very brief. I think this is a great
[2:55:27]
idea. I
[2:55:28]
love it. The one thing I noticed in
[2:55:30]
the pictures,
[2:55:38]
and granted those are not exact buildings,
[2:55:39]
is that we
[2:55:40]
have a beautiful historic town and
[2:55:41]
I would like to see the materials
[2:55:42]
used to
[2:55:44]
create the buildings reflect that
[2:55:45]
in some way so
[2:55:46]
that when you come from downtown into
[2:55:48]
the marina it's not like a
[2:55:50]
time jump from a beautiful old town
[2:55:51]
to a
[2:55:54]
super modern waterfront.
[2:55:57]
that's all I have to say.
[2:56:00]
>> [ applause ] >> thank you.
[2:56:03]
next is
[2:56:06]
r. Robertson.
[2:56:09]
thank you.
[2:56:12]
>> read robertson. Yes,
[2:56:15]
a couple of things,
[2:56:17]
to greg, I actually have been to the
[2:56:18]
national stadium
[2:56:21]
and to the peer you designed
[2:56:23]
and the district of columbia and it's beautiful.
[2:56:27]
I took the ferry over I think
[2:56:30]
to virginia
[2:56:31]
down the potomac. Very nice work.
[2:56:33]
I can endorse greg for that. My
[2:56:36]
second thing,
[2:56:38]
I guess, you brought it up, my mom
[2:56:41]
is one of the contractors the built
[2:56:42]
the concord martinez
[2:56:47]
station 30 years ago. I remember being a
[2:56:48]
much younger kid
[2:56:49]
walking around in a hardhat thinking
[2:56:51]
this should be a nice place to
[2:56:54]
build houses. You can just be here
[2:56:55]
and
[2:56:56]
walk and go to the city. And there
[2:56:57]
has been nothing there.
[2:57:00]
the concord city
[2:57:03]
council demanded
[2:57:05]
I believe a wall-to-wall contract
[2:57:14]
labor agreement and it drove the car so
[2:57:15]
high nothing was
[2:57:17]
built in the thing is going to be
[2:57:18]
built there. People have lost their
[2:57:19]
political careers because of that.
[2:57:21]
the recent one was the mayor. I mean,
[2:57:22]
I'm
[2:57:23]
not saying anything bad about the
[2:57:24]
unions, I'm just saying
[2:57:28]
you need to extend extreme caution
[2:57:30]
with that. Because they have nothing
[2:57:31]
there. And there is nothing coming.
[2:57:32]
eatable job in virginia. And just
[2:57:36]
kind of, that is my
[2:57:39]
cautionary tale.
[2:57:40]
>> [ applause ]
[2:57:42]
>> next
[2:57:45]
is rick.
[2:57:51]
>> good evening
[2:58:00]
mayor zorn,
[2:58:01]
council members and staff. My name
[2:58:03]
is rick, I am with carpenters local
[2:58:04]
152 of
[2:58:05]
the norcal carpenters union presenting
[2:58:06]
roughly 2800 members here in
[2:58:09]
contra costa . I'm here to express
[2:58:10]
my support
[2:58:11]
for the city to enter into a negotiating
[2:58:12]
agreement with
[2:58:13]
tucker sadler to design the future
[2:58:15]
of the martinez arena and waterfront.
[2:58:20]
for far too long the city has had
[2:58:21]
to utilize the
[2:58:22]
general fund to cover the cost of
[2:58:23]
marine operations. And much needed
[2:58:24]
minutes. Just to
[2:58:27]
keep it afloat. Especially after
[2:58:29]
elmar management left their post as
[2:58:30]
operations director's. The area is
[2:58:33]
no longer sustainable and is in dire need
[2:58:36]
of a complete restoration. According
[2:58:37]
to
[2:58:38]
the developer the proposal requires
[2:58:39]
no city
[2:58:42]
subsidies are nip city
[2:58:45]
necessary with all improvements funded to
[2:58:46]
private investments along
[2:58:48]
with federal funds.
[2:58:51]
tucker sadler has verbally
[2:58:52]
committed that the construction of
[2:58:54]
the project will be done using some
[2:58:55]
type of labor
[2:58:56]
agreement ensuring that the construction
[2:58:57]
will be done by union trains
[2:59:00]
people bringing
[2:59:03]
much-needed work, opportunities, to
[2:59:04]
the unionized residents of martinez
[2:59:05]
and throughout contra costa county.
[2:59:06]
an agreement of this type
[2:59:09]
makes it a
[2:59:12]
win
[2:59:14]
win win for the developer, the city
[2:59:15]
and its residents. I urge you to enter
[2:59:16]
into an exclusive negotiating agreement
[2:59:18]
with tucker sadler to start the design
[2:59:19]
for
[2:59:20]
the future of a fleet revitalized
[2:59:21]
martinez arena and waterfront.
[2:59:24]
thank you.
[2:59:33]
>> next is dennis mccarthy.
[2:59:39]
>>
[2:59:42]
good evening, I am one of
[2:59:45]
the managers
[2:59:48]
of universal sports academy which
[2:59:49]
is a
[2:59:50]
city-owned facility on the other side
[2:59:51]
of the tracks, I guess one of the
[2:59:53]
first things I would say is that additional
[2:59:54]
access to that area would be
[2:59:57]
much needed for a variety
[2:59:59]
of reasons. The other thing I would
[3:00:00]
say is I have been a high
[3:00:03]
school soccer coach at la habra for
[3:00:06]
seven years. I also have been on the
[3:00:09]
board of the
[3:00:12]
soccer association and young
[3:00:14]
santiago that spoke earlier is not
[3:00:15]
wrong, there
[3:00:17]
is desperate need for additional facilities
[3:00:18]
in
[3:00:21]
martinez and I think that , sort of
[3:00:22]
a revitalization
[3:00:24]
of the waterfront
[3:00:28]
, bringing in hotels, revitalizing
[3:00:30]
the whole area would be great for
[3:00:31]
the city. I
[3:00:32]
can tell you that I have spoken to
[3:00:37]
lauren multiple times,
[3:00:38]
we have people believe our facility
[3:00:39]
at 8:00, 9:00 and 10:00 at night and
[3:00:40]
there
[3:00:42]
is nothing to do. I also, it is a beautiful
[3:00:46]
hidden gem of the city and
[3:00:47]
people are looking for things to do.
[3:00:48]
so the more that can be brought to
[3:00:51]
the community I think a better. I
[3:00:52]
would also
[3:00:55]
say that there is a massive
[3:00:58]
sports travel organization
[3:01:01]
groups that come in.
[3:01:03]
three hotels would be nothing to fill
[3:01:06]
for those events. I think it would
[3:01:07]
bring a lot
[3:01:10]
of dynamic energy to what is
[3:01:12]
really a beautiful city. Reminiscent
[3:01:13]
of the
[3:01:16]
east coast which is where
[3:01:17]
I'm from but I've been here for 17
[3:01:19]
years, you can
[3:01:23]
do me now, I live in pleasant hill,
[3:01:25]
but spend about 85% of my life
[3:01:26]
in martinez. Thank you for the time
[3:01:28]
and I'm looking forward to this project.
[3:01:31]
>> [ applause ]
[3:01:34]
>> I have no further speakers.
[3:01:37]
>> did they all booed
[3:01:39]
him for being in pleasant hill?
[3:01:40]
>>
[3:01:41]
there was no booing.
[3:01:43]
>> we love
[3:01:46]
everybody.
[3:01:47]
>> just checking.
[3:01:54]
>> I have no further speaker cards.
[3:01:55]
if there are additional
[3:01:56]
people here in the chambers tonight
[3:01:57]
that would like to make a comment,
[3:01:58]
please go
[3:01:59]
ahead and start lining up to the microphone.
[3:02:01]
>> good evening
[3:02:03]
everyone. Great, having met you. And
[3:02:07]
of course, --
[3:02:10]
I cannot stress how much
[3:02:13]
this project excites me.
[3:02:19]
too often this whole
[3:02:20]
idea of revitalizing the marina has
[3:02:22]
been something we have all talked about
[3:02:25]
and have yearned for.
[3:02:27]
and the moment I saw your timeline and it
[3:02:28]
said three to
[3:02:29]
five years, I told sarah, my god,
[3:02:31]
I could still be alive!
[3:02:34]
apart from that, I cannot
[3:02:37]
, I cannot
[3:02:40]
support samantha's comments more as
[3:02:43]
a see scout mom whose son went on
[3:02:44]
to join the navy and now works for
[3:02:46]
military sealift command.
[3:02:49]
yes, the see scout's offer an enormous
[3:02:53]
amount of opportunity for young people
[3:02:55]
to go into highly skilled
[3:02:57]
trades at the completion of their involvement,
[3:02:58]
so keep
[3:03:00]
them there and thank you so much.
[3:03:04]
>> thank you.
[3:03:10]
>> hello.
[3:03:13]
vice chair of the martinez
[3:03:20]
diversity and cultural commission.
[3:03:22]
I wanted to say, from a cultural perspective,
[3:03:24]
am in full support of this. I think
[3:03:25]
it's a fair proposal.
[3:03:27]
the money we are hemorrhaging as a
[3:03:28]
city, there's a tendency to think
[3:03:29]
let's plug the gap. Good enough. I
[3:03:31]
think there is time for good enough
[3:03:34]
and time for admission.
[3:03:39]
it seems like this is time for admission
[3:03:40]
judging by the amount of
[3:03:41]
people we were able to bring out.
[3:03:43]
I think the presentation we received
[3:03:44]
was one
[3:03:45]
of ambition. So, I voice my support
[3:03:46]
and voice my hope that we continue
[3:03:47]
with that ambition and look to make
[3:03:49]
this the hidden jen we know martinez
[3:03:50]
to
[3:03:52]
be. Thank you.
[3:03:57]
>> you want to take the rest of her
[3:03:58]
time? Just getting.
[3:04:01]
my name is joseph burton. They are
[3:04:02]
pretty much
[3:04:04]
good what they do.
[3:04:10]
I am so happy to be here tonight.
[3:04:11]
I want
[3:04:12]
martinez to thrive in every single
[3:04:13]
way possible. We can't be ignorant
[3:04:14]
and say
[3:04:16]
that we can't do things, city council
[3:04:18]
is right, we have to do things. We
[3:04:19]
have to grow. We have to
[3:04:22]
economically build in our city
[3:04:25]
, but we can't be ignorant of the
[3:04:28]
things we are already facing, like
[3:04:29]
we have
[3:04:30]
a homeless problem, we have a litter problem,
[3:04:34]
I know it's not a famous and popular
[3:04:35]
thing and
[3:04:36]
we have people that may not agree,
[3:04:46]
but with this development will come
[3:04:47]
more people, which is okay, because
[3:04:49]
we want people to come to martinez. We
[3:04:50]
want people
[3:04:51]
to experience the waterfront, but
[3:04:52]
what about the protection of the waterfront?
[3:04:54]
what about the birds of the air and
[3:04:55]
things that a lot of martinez love
[3:04:59]
to experience.
[3:05:00]
one thing I don't like to see on the
[3:05:02]
ground is litter. I don't like
[3:05:03]
to see a trashy city. Actions speak
[3:05:05]
louder than words
[3:05:20]
. A man
[3:05:21]
without a vision will definitely parish. But
[3:05:23]
what I want to ask
[3:05:24]
is, as people come in and we build,
[3:05:25]
I am down for this, I love amphitheaters,
[3:05:27]
love people, some of you might know
[3:05:29]
me already, I'm joseph. A people person.
[3:05:30]
how are you going to protect the waterways?
[3:05:32]
when we already have a
[3:05:33]
problem detecting our waterways. As
[3:05:34]
we continue to expand and grow people
[3:05:35]
come into
[3:05:36]
the city, 27 seconds, was going to
[3:05:37]
be responsible for cleaning up the
[3:05:38]
plastic,
[3:05:39]
the micro plastics, the more people
[3:05:41]
to come in, we don't have
[3:05:44]
that mindset are
[3:05:45]
just going to throw plastic on the
[3:05:47]
ground right next to the
[3:05:48]
waterways. Is going to be responsible
[3:05:50]
for that?
[3:05:52]
that is one of my questions for them.
[3:05:53]
who is
[3:05:54]
going to pick up the trash? Because
[3:05:55]
obviously people are not responsible
[3:05:56]
it comes
[3:05:59]
to these things.
[3:06:00]
>> time
[3:06:01]
is up.
[3:06:02]
>> that is all I've got to say.
[3:06:05]
>>
[3:06:08]
cheryl grover.
[3:06:09]
lifetime resident of martinez and
[3:06:11]
I will
[3:06:14]
tell you
[3:06:17]
that is 75 years but
[3:06:19]
then you would know how old I was.
[3:06:20]
nevermind. Okay. I do want to
[3:06:21]
say I fully support the comments made
[3:06:23]
about making sure that their areas,
[3:06:24]
at
[3:06:25]
least some part of this hotel structure that
[3:06:29]
resonates with the historical
[3:06:32]
martinez theme the we have
[3:06:33]
spent many years building on that
[3:06:35]
team. And had billboards
[3:06:38]
that said it and so
[3:06:41]
forth. But also, in my travels I have
[3:06:42]
been
[3:06:44]
envious of the hotels
[3:06:47]
in other beautiful cities, especially
[3:06:49]
historic ones, where they have rooms
[3:06:53]
and areas for weddings.
[3:06:56]
we are at the county seat
[3:06:59]
. And one thing you can get is a
[3:07:00]
marriage license, and if you want
[3:07:02]
to get married
[3:07:04]
in downtown martinez, you stand on
[3:07:05]
the corner in
[3:07:08]
the little bush,
[3:07:10]
it's like, it's not what it should
[3:07:11]
be. It would
[3:07:13]
be really nice to have a beautiful area
[3:07:22]
that would also, in a hotel, that
[3:07:23]
would be for the guests, for the
[3:07:24]
reception, for the wedding itself.
[3:07:26]
if you're
[3:07:28]
going to do that let me know how long
[3:07:29]
I have to keep waiting
[3:07:31]
for him to bring me down the aisle.
[3:07:32]
>> [ applause ]
[3:07:35]
>> hello,
[3:07:38]
thank you mayor,
[3:07:41]
council members, city staff.
[3:07:44]
everyone is supporting it so that
[3:07:45]
is wonderful. So
[3:07:46]
I will not go on and on, just quick,
[3:07:47]
but I would
[3:07:50]
be remiss
[3:07:53]
not to stand up here and tell you
[3:07:54]
do you have
[3:07:55]
full and strong support of downtown
[3:07:56]
martinez, we could not be
[3:07:58]
more excited about this. I know the
[3:07:59]
small businesses and all of the people
[3:08:02]
who work downtown are just very excited
[3:08:10]
, we have people close to tears when
[3:08:12]
they are finding out this week.
[3:08:13]
I think it's important to share and
[3:08:15]
make sure you know you
[3:08:16]
have our full support and that we
[3:08:17]
want you to move forward with this.
[3:08:18]
thank you.
[3:08:21]
>> [ applause ]
[3:08:27]
>> hi, my name is colleen
[3:08:28]
and I have been a resident of martinez
[3:08:30]
for 27 years now. My husband was
[3:08:31]
a teacher at the high school. I'm also
[3:08:33]
an employee at the chamber of commerce.
[3:08:34]
I have been begging anyone who would
[3:08:36]
listen to me for the last 13
[3:08:38]
years to please bring a hotel down.
[3:08:39]
so three of them
[3:08:40]
is awesome. I am so excited and they
[3:08:42]
couldn't support this more. Thanks.
[3:08:45]
>> [ applause ]
[3:08:48]
>>
[3:08:54]
hi, bri.
[3:08:57]
miss you. If you don't know,
[3:09:00]
I'm tony.
[3:09:02]
also known as the kite man of martinez.
[3:09:06]
born and raised in minnesota
[3:09:09]
. You betcha. For
[3:09:12]
25 years
[3:09:15]
I have cleaned up
[3:09:16]
a little chunk of sand or dirt you
[3:09:18]
want to turn into a volleyball court.
[3:09:21]
my heart broke and there's a
[3:09:22]
puddle thereby stand whose cleaning
[3:09:24]
it up. I challenge you
[3:09:26]
, come out and fly with me. Fourth
[3:09:30]
of july
[3:09:32]
the last 10 years I go to the city
[3:09:33]
of alejo because they invite
[3:09:35]
me to fly the kites for the city of
[3:09:36]
alejo's mad
[3:09:38]
hatter parade . I put up a big display
[3:09:39]
of kites along with
[3:09:40]
vendors and food vendors. Cool. I've
[3:09:42]
been approached by
[3:09:45]
bri as one of the people to do
[3:09:48]
a kite festival here.
[3:09:50]
not enough space, really. In three
[3:09:51]
weeks, for the third
[3:09:53]
year in a row I go to san mateo as
[3:09:54]
their lead
[3:09:56]
kite flyer. To put on a kite festival
[3:09:57]
in san mateo.
[3:10:00]
right there on the water.
[3:10:02]
why can't we do that here? Instead
[3:10:03]
of turning my patch
[3:10:06]
of ground that I've been flying kites
[3:10:09]
--it looks cool for flying kites on
[3:10:10]
their, I give kites away to people
[3:10:12]
and it's fun to see
[3:10:15]
people come back with their kids
[3:10:17]
10 years later saying, I remember you.
[3:10:21]
it's like, my legacy,
[3:10:24]
I had an unhoused individual ,
[3:10:27]
gave him a kite couple years ago
[3:10:30]
saying it will bring you
[3:10:31]
happiness. When year later he came
[3:10:33]
back and says,
[3:10:35]
thank you for that kite, I lost all
[3:10:36]
my stuff but I still have
[3:10:39]
my kite. You know, things
[3:10:42]
like that. Look up google,
[3:10:46]
kite man of martinez.
[3:10:48]
is part of martinez. Don't get
[3:10:51]
rid of me. I will take you
[3:10:54]
kite flying. Night kite flying.
[3:10:57]
okay?
[3:10:58]
>> your
[3:11:00]
time is a.
[3:11:01]
>> thank you.
[3:11:04]
>> conceptual.
[3:11:07]
easy fix
[3:11:10]
for a kite facility.
[3:11:12]
>> I totally encourage you to go night
[3:11:13]
flying, night
[3:11:16]
kite flying with tony.
[3:11:19]
--it's amazing.
[3:11:22]
>> hi, how's it going?
[3:11:25]
my name is keith,
[3:11:28]
I'm a resident here in martinez.
[3:11:31]
fairly new by
[3:11:34]
martinez standards. 13 years I.
[3:11:38]
I own states coffee that has been
[3:11:39]
10 years. Also knew. Anyway, didn't
[3:11:40]
even
[3:11:42]
think I would be here tonight, my friend
[3:11:46]
, we
[3:11:48]
were on his boat about a week and
[3:11:49]
half ago, fell in
[3:11:50]
love with the community, we've been
[3:11:52]
friends for a long time. I ended up
[3:11:53]
buying
[3:11:55]
a boat a couple days ago. Wish
[3:11:58]
me luck. Anyway,
[3:12:01]
the downtown,
[3:12:05]
the marina, it's very exciting to
[3:12:07]
develop, I think we are really excited
[3:12:09]
about that. I echo what everyone is
[3:12:10]
saying, it's been a long
[3:12:13]
time coming. Being a family man
[3:12:16]
to two boys, raising
[3:12:19]
them here, just my knee-jerk reaction is
[3:12:22]
the public access,
[3:12:27]
I think, you said it's a moot point,
[3:12:28]
I agree with you 100%, I
[3:12:30]
just feel compelled to say that has
[3:12:31]
to come with
[3:12:34]
it. An overpass has to come
[3:12:37]
with the deal.
[3:12:40]
to meet that is a make
[3:12:43]
or break, it can't
[3:12:45]
be, we are going to do this and develop
[3:12:46]
it and figure it
[3:12:50]
out later. They go hand-in-hand.
[3:12:59]
all the other things, the hotels,
[3:13:00]
all this other stuff, that's all going
[3:13:02]
to get ironed out in the community
[3:13:03]
is going to rally together and we're
[3:13:05]
going to have many meetings, we all
[3:13:06]
rallied together and the last time
[3:13:08]
you saw me here was about the gun
[3:13:09]
range. So we're going to have many
[3:13:10]
more conversations. Have no doubt.
[3:13:11]
all the council
[3:13:12]
people here are doing fantastic job,
[3:13:17]
mayor
[3:13:18]
zorn, big fan. Thank you for your
[3:13:20]
time. Again, that access has to come
[3:13:23]
with this deal.
[3:13:25]
is very important.
[3:13:26]
>> time is a. >>
[3:13:27]
thank you.
[3:13:34]
>> good evening city council, my name
[3:13:38]
is mike.
[3:13:40]
I am with sea scouts, you've been
[3:13:41]
hearing a lot of
[3:13:42]
sea scouts tonight. It's because we
[3:13:43]
have been entrenched in martinez for
[3:13:44]
93 years. What
[3:13:47]
I would ask , currently we have
[3:13:50]
a space that is 223.7
[3:13:53]
feet by 160.
[3:13:57]
the minimal training size
[3:14:00]
we require for
[3:14:01]
our youth. The development physically
[3:14:03]
and mentally
[3:14:05]
within that zone helps these kids.
[3:14:06]
we put out quality
[3:14:08]
youth the go into the maritime industry
[3:14:12]
, but we also have our oddballs the
[3:14:13]
become
[3:14:14]
doctors and lawyers. But at the same time,
[3:14:15]
we
[3:14:18]
are developing that need, right now,
[3:14:21]
in the nation, for
[3:14:24]
seaworthy vessels and programs
[3:14:30]
is there for that purpose,
[3:14:32]
it's a great job. Please invest in
[3:14:33]
their youth. Please invest
[3:14:36]
in their future. Thank you.
[3:14:39]
>> [ applause ]
[3:14:45]
>> I am erin,
[3:14:46]
president of the martinez chamber
[3:14:48]
of commerce. I just want to
[3:14:51]
echo sarah's sentiments that the
[3:14:53]
excitement level we feel for this
[3:14:54]
project is boundless. And, I
[3:14:57]
know that
[3:15:00]
together we are going to do the best
[3:15:01]
we can
[3:15:02]
to make sure the business community
[3:15:03]
rallies behind this concept and whatever
[3:15:06]
it becomes
[3:15:12]
. We will put everything into helping
[3:15:13]
make this successful.
[3:15:14]
we can't wait. We are so excited for
[3:15:15]
this. Thank you.
[3:15:18]
>> anyone else in the
[3:15:20]
council chambers for comment on this item?
[3:15:27]
okay. I have no one further. I'm going
[3:15:30]
to move to the virtual audience.
[3:15:33]
I'm going to call for a
[3:15:34]
show of hands, only once. For those
[3:15:36]
who wish to make public comment on
[3:15:37]
this item, please
[3:15:39]
use the raised hand feature now.
[3:15:42]
all right, they are streaming in.
[3:15:45]
while they come in we will start with ann.
[3:15:52]
>>
[3:15:54]
can you hear me?
[3:15:55]
>> yes. >> this is
[3:15:56]
ann
[3:15:57]
mobley. It's a very nice concept and
[3:15:58]
I hope
[3:16:01]
it happens in my lifetime.
[3:16:02]
I have a few comments I have to make.
[3:16:04]
one is, how do state
[3:16:07]
parks come into this? As
[3:16:10]
martinez gave half of the land in
[3:16:11]
the marina are they part of the agreement?
[3:16:13]
the other thing I wanted to
[3:16:14]
say is the sea scouts and martinez
[3:16:16]
yacht club should not be in
[3:16:17]
the same building. We love the sea
[3:16:19]
scouts but the kids are the
[3:16:22]
sea scouts
[3:16:24]
and the adults are it martinez yacht
[3:16:25]
club and I think
[3:16:26]
they should be two separate buildings
[3:16:27]
and two separate entities. I wanted
[3:16:28]
to
[3:16:30]
know also has the railroad been contacted
[3:16:31]
regarding development near their
[3:16:33]
tracks? Also, has the contra costa
[3:16:34]
water district
[3:16:37]
been
[3:16:40]
contacted about providing
[3:16:41]
water for the new development? I know
[3:16:43]
contra costa water sells raw water
[3:16:44]
to martinez water and I'm wondering
[3:16:46]
if this might require
[3:16:49]
a new water treatment plant. Is very
[3:16:52]
high limit for hotels regarding
[3:16:54]
the airlines and their routes? Again,
[3:16:57]
talking about the overpass, we need
[3:16:58]
the overpass is
[3:17:01]
a must. I heard
[3:17:02]
the gentleman talk about a museum honoring
[3:17:07]
joe dimaggio. It would be great
[3:17:08]
if you could build a museum for us.
[3:17:10]
also I like the idea of
[3:17:13]
the harbormaster
[3:17:16]
building is a restaurant. I
[3:17:17]
been saying that friday how many years.
[3:17:19]
also I'm not sure about hotels near
[3:17:20]
the railroad because they're also
[3:17:22]
lots and lots of noise
[3:17:23]
with that. But, overall I'm hoping
[3:17:25]
this can be
[3:17:27]
and this can happen, it is been way
[3:17:28]
too long.
[3:17:33]
and martinez needs something like
[3:17:34]
this. I just
[3:17:35]
hope it's not all talking pictures I
[3:17:37]
hope it really happens. Thank you
[3:17:38]
so
[3:17:40]
much.
[3:17:41]
>> thank you. >> next I
[3:17:43]
have amy. I will ask you to unmute.
[3:17:49]
>>
[3:17:52]
hi, my name is amy.
[3:17:55]
can
[3:17:57]
you hear me?
[3:17:58]
>> yes. >> great. I have
[3:17:59]
lived in martinez for about
[3:18:00]
eight years. I love this town. As
[3:18:01]
many of us do. A
[3:18:03]
couple of things, I just want to add
[3:18:07]
some comments food for thought for future,
[3:18:10]
for future planning discussions, a
[3:18:13]
lot of the talk has me thinking about
[3:18:16]
our community
[3:18:19]
and some of the things
[3:18:20]
sound really expensive in terms of
[3:18:22]
you have this new boat
[3:18:25]
marina
[3:18:28]
with
[3:18:29]
stacking votes, you have shops, you
[3:18:31]
have concerts going to potentially partner
[3:18:36]
with an outsourced promoter, I just
[3:18:37]
wanted to make sure we keep in
[3:18:40]
mind our community the currently lives
[3:18:41]
here
[3:18:42]
in making sure we are not going to
[3:18:43]
be priced out of what
[3:18:46]
is happening.
[3:18:49]
and eventually happens down there
[3:18:50]
and that we
[3:18:51]
think about the people who live there
[3:18:52]
currently. And the we don't just
[3:18:55]
make it a super fancy place that none
[3:18:56]
of
[3:18:57]
us can really afford to go down into
[3:18:58]
that. Also,
[3:19:00]
maybe consider not putting a bunch of
[3:19:07]
chain restaurants or chain
[3:19:09]
shops in there. One of the things
[3:19:10]
that makes us unique is are downtown,
[3:19:12]
are small businesses. We want to do
[3:19:13]
things that are going to connect
[3:19:16]
the marina with main street and what's
[3:19:18]
happening downtown because it's blossoming
[3:19:19]
, and trying
[3:19:22]
to thrive. Yeah I know it has it struggles.
[3:19:25]
those are my main things .
[3:19:28]
just trying to keep in mind
[3:19:31]
our current
[3:19:33]
community. All of it sounds super
[3:19:34]
exciting, I always thought there was
[3:19:35]
so much
[3:19:37]
unused potential down at the waterfront. I
[3:19:38]
just hope it
[3:19:39]
reflects the community. Thank you
[3:19:40]
so much.
[3:19:41]
>>
[3:19:43]
thank you. Next I have
[3:19:46]
iphone 152,
[3:19:50]
I will ask you to unmute.
[3:19:53]
>>
[3:19:56]
good evening. My name is matt,
[3:19:59]
I am the owner
[3:20:00]
of the albatross or was the owner
[3:20:02]
of the albatross,
[3:20:05]
the longest restaurant
[3:20:08]
at the marina. Unfortunately
[3:20:11]
it doesn't exist anymore.
[3:20:15]
have a few concerns, I'm very excited
[3:20:17]
about having this project, the only
[3:20:18]
thing
[3:20:20]
is because
[3:20:26]
I was at the
[3:20:27]
albatross for 17 years, the biggest
[3:20:29]
problem is the train. You need to
[3:20:30]
put
[3:20:31]
the overpass before you start the project.
[3:20:32]
we had two incidents I
[3:20:34]
remember, maybe greg should think about
[3:20:38]
some sort of medical emergency with
[3:20:39]
that project
[3:20:40]
because you bring in three or four
[3:20:41]
hotels with 280 rooms,
[3:20:45]
you're probably looking at close to
[3:20:47]
500 to 1000
[3:20:50]
occupancy. And
[3:20:53]
then the regular people, you have
[3:20:54]
over 2000
[3:20:55]
people and sometimes the train that
[3:20:56]
is over 20 minutes to half
[3:20:58]
an hour. It would be life-threatening,
[3:20:59]
so you need to
[3:21:02]
think about that. Secondly, I'd like
[3:21:04]
to mention to you, my job now I work
[3:21:05]
as a supervisor,
[3:21:12]
do advise different businesses, since
[3:21:14]
martinez is my town and I've been
[3:21:15]
here 46
[3:21:16]
years, I think it's a very ambitious plan,
[3:21:19]
is one of the councilmembers said,
[3:21:20]
this project probably be
[3:21:23]
have a billion-dollar project , at least,
[3:21:26]
four to $5
[3:21:29]
million and you need usually
[3:21:32]
45% cash. I hope the city will
[3:21:34]
verify that money before signing a
[3:21:35]
contract for 50 years
[3:21:38]
and finding themselves entangled for
[3:21:40]
at least if the job is not done. I
[3:21:41]
hope the job gets
[3:21:44]
done and eventually having
[3:21:47]
a beautiful marina at the
[3:21:50]
waterfront. I wish
[3:21:52]
you the best of luck, greg. I hope
[3:21:53]
the city does their own
[3:21:56]
due diligence to make sure there is financing.
[3:21:59]
and talk about the financing
[3:22:02]
a little more. We know the job can
[3:22:05]
get done,
[3:22:09]
they're not going to start a job
[3:22:10]
and that be able to finish it. Thank
[3:22:11]
you very much. Have a good night.
[3:22:12]
>>
[3:22:15]
thank you. Next is craig.
[3:22:21]
>> okay, thank you.
[3:22:26]
I hate
[3:22:30]
to be
[3:22:32]
debbie downer here tonight, I always
[3:22:33]
seem to
[3:22:37]
be debbie downer
[3:22:43]
in public
[3:22:44]
comments whatever the issue is, to
[3:22:46]
be perfectly honest, following these issues with
[3:22:48]
the marina over the last several years,
[3:22:49]
90% of what I
[3:22:50]
heard and saw in this presentation
[3:22:51]
tonight is pie in the sky, completely
[3:22:52]
unrealistic. The reason I
[3:22:54]
say that is, we went through a long
[3:22:55]
process of, a visioning process
[3:22:56]
of a marina and developing the land
[3:22:58]
trust plan
[3:23:01]
and multiple public meetings, we went
[3:23:02]
through the idea
[3:23:03]
of the hotels and amphitheaters, we went
[3:23:07]
through why the previous amphitheater
[3:23:09]
failed and we went through the pros
[3:23:10]
and cons and feasibility. That was
[3:23:12]
years long process when the community
[3:23:13]
was heavily involved,
[3:23:16]
now we are basically being
[3:23:18]
told, were going to throw that out,
[3:23:22]
we're going to bring some guy from
[3:23:23]
san diego who
[3:23:24]
doesn't north city and he's got everything
[3:23:26]
figured out.
[3:23:27]
is the impression I got from the presentation.
[3:23:29]
he has it all figured
[3:23:30]
out. We are going to have pickleball
[3:23:32]
despicable courts, some fun things
[3:23:34]
here. I'm sorry, martinez is never
[3:23:35]
going to be a
[3:23:36]
regional destination the way this
[3:23:38]
plan envisions it. I remember 20
[3:23:41]
years ago
[3:23:42]
when antioch and pittsburgh were doing their
[3:23:44]
marina stuff and they
[3:23:46]
were like, pittsburgh is going to
[3:23:47]
be a
[3:23:48]
regional destination. We are going
[3:23:50]
to build a bed-and-breakfast
[3:23:52]
. We were laughing, I was in journalism
[3:23:53]
at a newspaper
[3:23:54]
and we were laughing about it, it's
[3:23:56]
pretty is going have a bed and
[3:23:57]
for some people are going to flock
[3:23:59]
here. I don't think there is a
[3:24:01]
bed-and-breakfast, I googled it and
[3:24:02]
couldn't find it.
[3:24:03]
what we focus on having a functioning marina
[3:24:06]
with some simple basic amenities to
[3:24:08]
get us started
[3:24:09]
to stop the drain on our budget and
[3:24:11]
go from there. Because what
[3:24:14]
I am seeing
[3:24:17]
is
[3:24:18]
pie in the sky stuff that is not at
[3:24:20]
all realistic. That is how
[3:24:22]
I see it. Every time I hear about
[3:24:27]
ferry, I know people aren't realistic
[3:24:29]
because of her that 30 years.
[3:24:31]
>> time is up. >> be realistic, thanks.
[3:24:32]
>> thank you. Next I
[3:24:33]
have abby stinson. I will ask you
[3:24:35]
to unmute.
[3:24:44]
>>
[3:24:46]
hello, can you hear me?
[3:24:47]
>> yes. >> yes,
[3:24:50]
am abby, I happen to live
[3:24:52]
down at rangers wharf which is on
[3:24:53]
the
[3:24:56]
marina side
[3:24:59]
of the railroad tracks. So well watching
[3:25:00]
this presentation and fully understanding
[3:25:02]
that we do need to do something
[3:25:03]
as increasing revenue streams and revitalizing
[3:25:08]
all of the marina areas ,
[3:25:09]
I can't help but also be slightly
[3:25:11]
cautious because I am
[3:25:13]
marina adjacent and what would be
[3:25:17]
the east bay regional park side.
[3:25:20]
and the traffic is very much an
[3:25:22]
issue. People coming and going, they
[3:25:23]
already get confused,
[3:25:24]
they already get backlogged trying
[3:25:26]
to get in
[3:25:29]
and out of the marina. I am on the crossing.
[3:25:32]
are crossing gets blocked
[3:25:35]
substantially more than the
[3:25:38]
ferry street crossing.
[3:25:41]
that is a big concern. Also in talking
[3:25:42]
about
[3:25:44]
obviously they need to lift the
[3:25:46]
land on the marina side, that then,
[3:25:50]
water displacement, if we are not
[3:25:53]
addressing or having the east
[3:25:54]
bay regional park side of the marina
[3:25:56]
be addressed, I live on
[3:25:59]
the creek
[3:26:02]
kevin bacon is
[3:26:04]
my neighbor, he is on the creek and
[3:26:05]
I am across the street.
[3:26:06]
things like this is we are addressing
[3:26:08]
future flood plans and every thing
[3:26:09]
else, I
[3:26:10]
feel like I need to also be cognizant
[3:26:11]
of the fact that we do
[3:26:13]
have residents who live not only at
[3:26:14]
the marina but down
[3:26:16]
here at the waterfront and although
[3:26:22]
we are not being factored into this
[3:26:23]
part of the plan, these
[3:26:25]
are things that do need to logistically
[3:26:26]
be addressed. I think it
[3:26:29]
is great, very ambitious.
[3:26:35]
and I get pie
[3:26:37]
in the sky and then you work back
[3:26:38]
down, shoot for the stars or
[3:26:40]
shoot for the moon and land among
[3:26:41]
the stars. I would need some
[3:26:44]
additional reassurances
[3:26:47]
that we are going to be dealing with
[3:26:48]
the traffic
[3:26:49]
and we are going to be dealing with
[3:26:50]
the transients and were going to be
[3:26:51]
dealing with as another person said
[3:26:53]
the letter.
[3:26:54]
>> time is a. >>
[3:26:55]
thank you.
[3:26:56]
>> next I have deborah white.
[3:26:59]
>>
[3:27:02]
hello mayor, city council,
[3:27:04]
good to see all of you, even though
[3:27:05]
you can't see me. I
[3:27:07]
think this is a wonderful thing. I
[3:27:08]
am the director of
[3:27:11]
grace episcopal church up the
[3:27:14]
hill in martinez. My folks are all
[3:27:15]
very
[3:27:16]
excited about this. The only thing
[3:27:20]
, I just wanted to make sure I remind everyone
[3:27:21]
that
[3:27:23]
one of the values expressed
[3:27:26]
in the presentation was equity, accessibility,
[3:27:29]
and reflection of the social goals
[3:27:32]
of the city and committee of martinez.
[3:27:33]
those
[3:27:35]
goals include making sure that
[3:27:37]
everyone is included and that there is
[3:27:38]
housing
[3:27:42]
available for everyone. And
[3:27:43]
so my hope is that this revitalization
[3:27:45]
will also
[3:27:49]
keep the city council and mayor accountable
[3:27:51]
to all of the wonderful
[3:27:54]
and faithful agreements you
[3:27:57]
have made to be a leader
[3:27:58]
for everyone. And to include thoughts
[3:28:00]
about that
[3:28:04]
if this moves forward. And I thank
[3:28:06]
you for always having that
[3:28:07]
faithfulness and kindness. And for
[3:28:09]
this proposal.
[3:28:11]
blessings, everybody.
[3:28:12]
>> thank you.
[3:28:18]
>> next I have jillian.
[3:28:24]
>> hi. This is been
[3:28:25]
a really interesting evening and,
[3:28:30]
mayor zorn, you are really impressing
[3:28:32]
me. I do have a few questions. I know
[3:28:33]
this is
[3:28:35]
a public and private partnership.
[3:28:36]
I am wondering, first,
[3:28:41]
what funds we are talking about since
[3:28:44]
a lot of funding that was available
[3:28:45]
before the big
[3:28:47]
bill are not going to be available now
[3:28:48]
. Grants
[3:28:50]
and other kinds of funds are not available.
[3:28:54]
I am curious what happens
[3:28:57]
if we
[3:28:58]
don't get federal funding or state
[3:29:00]
funding that we are going to
[3:29:03]
, that we are
[3:29:04]
counting on. Second, I want to know
[3:29:06]
, I
[3:29:07]
am sure you will be looking at, I
[3:29:09]
am trusting you will be looking at
[3:29:10]
what
[3:29:11]
the city of martinez is on the hook for
[3:29:12]
if there
[3:29:15]
are economic downturns
[3:29:24]
or things don't continue to go as
[3:29:25]
planned. And the third thing is, am
[3:29:26]
curious why we would go to somebody
[3:29:28]
in houston rather than somebody in
[3:29:29]
california. California has a lot of
[3:29:30]
very specific
[3:29:32]
things like and a lot of requirements.
[3:29:41]
so I am curious about why you would
[3:29:42]
do that. I think if
[3:29:43]
this turns out really well it will
[3:29:45]
be a real gift to the community.
[3:29:47]
but I have seen communities really suffer
[3:29:50]
if they haven't really taken care of
[3:29:51]
themselves fiscally.
[3:29:53]
thank you so much and good luck.
[3:29:54]
>>
[3:29:55]
thank you.
[3:29:57]
>> next is
[3:30:00]
constance.
[3:30:06]
>> hi,
[3:30:09]
I'm wondering if everyone can
[3:30:12]
hear me?
[3:30:13]
>> yes. >>
[3:30:14]
evening. Two points I wanted to bring
[3:30:15]
up for the
[3:30:16]
city council to remember. Currently
[3:30:18]
are parking at the marina
[3:30:21]
is free.
[3:30:24]
with a parking garage, I am assuming
[3:30:25]
there will be parking fees. Wondering,
[3:30:27]
for residents here who really enjoyed
[3:30:30]
the marina daily
[3:30:34]
and frequently, what that will look
[3:30:36]
like for us, driving down there and parking.
[3:30:39]
obviously I get it, we need the
[3:30:42]
revenue, there probably will be
[3:30:45]
parking prices. But to kind of
[3:30:46]
keep that in mind for residents here
[3:30:48]
who enjoy it.
[3:30:51]
another
[3:30:53]
thing I was thinking that came across
[3:30:54]
recently, we just had the fourth of
[3:30:55]
july,
[3:30:56]
at this town we enjoy our fireworks.
[3:30:57]
what does that look like with
[3:31:00]
this agreement
[3:31:03]
is something I would like the council
[3:31:04]
to
[3:31:05]
consider as well. And discuss. And
[3:31:06]
note that the city really enjoys that.
[3:31:07]
and we hope we would be continuing
[3:31:09]
enjoying that in the future. Thank
[3:31:10]
you so
[3:31:11]
much for your time.
[3:31:12]
>> thank you.
[3:31:13]
next I
[3:31:15]
have trevor race.
[3:31:21]
>> hello, can you hear me? >> yes.
[3:31:22]
>>
[3:31:24]
thank you.
[3:31:27]
I just wanted to say I have some conflicted
[3:31:28]
thoughts
[3:31:29]
about the presentation we saw this evening.
[3:31:33]
on one hand I'm very excited, but
[3:31:34]
in reality
[3:31:35]
I'm excited about the excitement I
[3:31:36]
heard from the community. And honestly
[3:31:37]
not so
[3:31:38]
much about the development vision.
[3:31:39]
I think it is concerning to
[3:31:42]
me that
[3:31:45]
there was
[3:31:47]
such a lack of use of the significant
[3:31:48]
amount of public input we have already
[3:31:51]
seen envisioning for the marina.
[3:31:53]
I am honestly not concerned about
[3:31:54]
the development in general. But
[3:31:57]
by the lack of how the vision presented meets
[3:32:06]
the special nature of martinez and
[3:32:07]
what
[3:32:08]
this community is interested in seeing
[3:32:09]
out there. I think there are ways
[3:32:10]
to do
[3:32:11]
balance and responsible development. And I
[3:32:12]
just didn't see that in this particular
[3:32:13]
vision.
[3:32:14]
I'm not saying we can get there I
[3:32:15]
think there are definitely some concerns
[3:32:19]
I have.
[3:32:20]
for a designer that spoke of valuing
[3:32:22]
public input,
[3:32:24]
the multiyear public engagement process,
[3:32:27]
that doesn't seem to make sense to
[3:32:28]
me. There
[3:32:31]
was a market lack
[3:32:34]
of a number of components
[3:32:40]
that were such a big deal to
[3:32:41]
so many community members. Small boat
[3:32:42]
facilities. Public interpretive educational
[3:32:43]
elements. The cultural facilities.
[3:32:44]
green
[3:32:45]
infrastructure, ecosystem restoration.
[3:32:51]
and for the development itself there was no mention
[3:32:52]
of how the
[3:32:53]
hotels and retail would be designed,
[3:32:54]
built, or partnered with in ways that
[3:32:58]
would match
[3:33:00]
what makes martinez special. Where
[3:33:01]
were the historical
[3:33:02]
elements, the recreational elements?
[3:33:04]
finally, the last
[3:33:06]
thing I will bring up, chicken is further down
[3:33:10]
the line, the vision was well
[3:33:13]
vetted by
[3:33:15]
regional regulators. It's concerning to
[3:33:16]
me I heard no
[3:33:18]
mention of whether this vision is likely
[3:33:19]
to meet the requirements of the state
[3:33:22]
commission, how --
[3:33:23]
>> time is a. >>
[3:33:25]
thank you.
[3:33:26]
>>
[3:33:27]
last hand for the night is donna.
[3:33:31]
I will ask you to unmute.
[3:33:36]
>> hello, can you hear me? >> yes.
[3:33:40]
>> actually I am glad I followed
[3:33:43]
the person that I just followed.
[3:33:51]
am a resident of martinez for over
[3:33:52]
50 years. I background is
[3:33:53]
all in planning. City planning. I
[3:33:55]
was the first project planner on the
[3:33:56]
public-private partnership in contra
[3:33:58]
costa county with the bart system.
[3:34:01]
so I am well aware of that. This is
[3:34:04]
a good vision
[3:34:07]
. But, it's not unlike several prior
[3:34:08]
visions that
[3:34:10]
we have had for hotels and restaurants
[3:34:13]
and amphitheater and all of the like.
[3:34:16]
so, I would like
[3:34:19]
to see in any
[3:34:22]
future reviews a summary
[3:34:24]
of what was presented in the past
[3:34:28]
and why it didn't fly.
[3:34:31]
I think that would be important.
[3:34:37]
obviously the access to the site
[3:34:43]
will have a major effect on the development
[3:34:44]
of
[3:34:46]
the property.
[3:34:54]
my last question is, I would like
[3:34:55]
to know, I heard
[3:34:57]
a lot about southern california developments.
[3:34:58]
but I would like to
[3:35:00]
know if there is a development in
[3:35:01]
our area
[3:35:04]
, in the bay area, that we can go
[3:35:05]
to
[3:35:06]
that we can see that these people
[3:35:07]
have done.
[3:35:13]
that is it for me.
[3:35:14]
>>
[3:35:16]
thank you. I have no
[3:35:19]
further hands.
[3:35:22]
ringing it
[3:35:25]
back to mayor zorn.
[3:35:28]
>> apologies, I
[3:35:31]
couldn't unmute. Thank you so much
[3:35:32]
for all of
[3:35:35]
the comments. I felt like
[3:35:42]
it felt like a very good conversation,
[3:35:43]
even though I recognize it was a one-sided
[3:35:45]
public comment. But I just want to
[3:35:47]
voice my
[3:35:49]
appreciation to everybody. We had
[3:35:50]
almost all
[3:35:53]
positive comments.
[3:35:55]
and for those that were not 100% positive,
[3:35:59]
they were supportive
[3:36:02]
with very well thought
[3:36:03]
through critiques. So I just want
[3:36:04]
to thank everyone who had those very
[3:36:08]
good critiques.
[3:36:10]
they are all constructive criticism,
[3:36:11]
they are all things
[3:36:12]
I think we will be able to discuss
[3:36:14]
and incorporate is
[3:36:17]
the process moves forward, if we
[3:36:18]
are to vote on this, if we vote in
[3:36:20]
favor this evening. I think they
[3:36:21]
are all very valid questions and comments
[3:36:25]
that I am interested in getting answers too.
[3:36:26]
I did
[3:36:29]
want to open this backup
[3:36:31]
to a few comments from council. There
[3:36:32]
were
[3:36:34]
a lot of great comments from the community,
[3:36:35]
and so,
[3:36:38]
if anyone on council wanted
[3:36:49]
have tucker sadler respond to any
[3:36:50]
specific questions you heard, please
[3:36:51]
let
[3:36:52]
me know. I can see all of you, by
[3:36:53]
show of hands does anyone
[3:36:54]
have follow-up russians they like
[3:36:56]
to hear an answer on? Yes, debbie.
[3:36:58]
>> go ahead. >> so, thank you all
[3:36:59]
for the comments. A lot
[3:37:01]
to reflect on. One of the biggest
[3:37:07]
concerns we have is a council and
[3:37:08]
as a community
[3:37:09]
has stated the access . I know you
[3:37:11]
mentioned there was going to be
[3:37:14]
thought and
[3:37:15]
decisions about creating some sort
[3:37:17]
of remedy for the access.
[3:37:19]
I know you probably have a lot of
[3:37:20]
the
[3:37:22]
things you can share, or maybe can't share.
[3:37:28]
but I think to make everyone feel
[3:37:30]
a little more reassured that that
[3:37:31]
is a critical element, I'm looking
[3:37:32]
for maybe some
[3:37:35]
sort of
[3:37:37]
, I don't know, something you can
[3:37:38]
share with
[3:37:39]
us about different possibilities,
[3:37:42]
different things you have considered.
[3:37:44]
what has worked in the past, just
[3:37:45]
brainstorming so we have an idea you
[3:37:47]
are considering some feasible alternative
[3:37:50]
for transportation over
[3:37:53]
the tracks.
[3:37:56]
>>
[3:37:57]
will I don't have a solution I can
[3:37:59]
provide tonight. We
[3:38:01]
are committed to finding a feasible
[3:38:04]
solution to having a permanent access
[3:38:05]
across
[3:38:07]
the tracks. It's important, it's imperative,
[3:38:08]
to
[3:38:11]
the success of the project. And as
[3:38:14]
we have heard,
[3:38:19]
those who already have operations
[3:38:20]
on the other side of the
[3:38:21]
tracks, it's imperative for them to
[3:38:23]
have that as well.
[3:38:24]
>>
[3:38:26]
with the mrc property be something
[3:38:27]
we could
[3:38:29]
potentially discuss that with is another
[3:38:31]
partner since they own a lot of land
[3:38:32]
along the shoreline? That would be
[3:38:34]
the refinery at the marina vista exit.
[3:38:38]
just to throw that out, a lot of land
[3:38:39]
there.
[3:38:41]
that potentially could be
[3:38:42]
utilized for transportation methods.
[3:38:44]
>> we
[3:38:46]
would be open to all types of partnerships.
[3:38:47]
looking at the best way,
[3:38:50]
the most
[3:38:52]
feasible way to get it done, yes,
[3:38:53]
absolutely.
[3:38:54]
>> I will
[3:38:56]
add on that that is an area when
[3:38:59]
we're looking at the options, we have
[3:39:00]
kind
[3:39:01]
of looked at that is a consideration because
[3:39:02]
we
[3:39:04]
will come up with a creative solution,
[3:39:05]
>>
[3:39:08]
thank you.
[3:39:11]
I know that in years past there was
[3:39:12]
some discussion, I think many years
[3:39:14]
ago, about having access to some of
[3:39:15]
that
[3:39:17]
land so that sort of the s turn
[3:39:20]
in the
[3:39:22]
way we currently enter into the downtown
[3:39:23]
could be different. I think
[3:39:26]
outside
[3:39:27]
of the box, maybe other alternatives
[3:39:29]
we are not considering that we need
[3:39:32]
to consider, all types of strategies to
[3:39:33]
look
[3:39:35]
at transportation needs thank you, greg.
[3:39:41]
>> anybody else have any questions?
[3:39:44]
have just one
[3:39:45]
or two follow-ups from public comment
[3:39:47]
this evening.
[3:39:50]
go ahead.
[3:39:51]
>> thank you very much. Again,
[3:39:53]
I want to sincerely thank everyone
[3:39:55]
who took the time to be here tonight
[3:39:56]
for your comments
[3:39:59]
here tonight
[3:40:01]
and for your critiques. We need that
[3:40:02]
input. In order to make this
[3:40:05]
a successful project. But,
[3:40:08]
I do have one question,
[3:40:10]
I just want to offer some additional thoughts,
[3:40:13]
it has been talked about, martinez
[3:40:14]
being a hidden gem, we
[3:40:16]
have been hidden a little too long.
[3:40:17]
and
[3:40:20]
so this is our opportunity,
[3:40:23]
this is a once in a generation transformational
[3:40:24]
project that
[3:40:26]
is before us here. And,
[3:40:29]
it deserves every consideration
[3:40:32]
. And,
[3:40:34]
you know, I have been fond of saying to
[3:40:36]
folks in
[3:40:38]
the community who I regularly come
[3:40:39]
up
[3:40:42]
to me, you know,
[3:40:46]
yes, we have our challenges, just
[3:40:48]
like any community does. But
[3:40:49]
here's the thing, if you get so fixated
[3:40:51]
on challenges
[3:40:52]
you lose sight of the opportunities
[3:40:54]
right before you.
[3:40:57]
and ladies and gentlemen, this
[3:41:00]
is a huge opportunity for us.
[3:41:03]
I will make no
[3:41:05]
apologies for dreaming big. Because
[3:41:09]
we owe that
[3:41:11]
to not only our current residence,
[3:41:12]
but
[3:41:15]
those that are to follow.
[3:41:18]
and, years from now
[3:41:20]
, I believe, in my heart of hearts,
[3:41:24]
this process the
[3:41:25]
we are embarking on here tonight will
[3:41:27]
be a pivotal
[3:41:30]
turning point for the better
[3:41:32]
in our community. I do generally believe that.
[3:41:36]
now it is not to say
[3:41:39]
that there
[3:41:40]
are some hurdles that will need to
[3:41:42]
be overcome. And we can do
[3:41:45]
that. That is what
[3:41:48]
martisian
[3:41:49]
do best. We come together when we
[3:41:51]
have to figure out a solution.
[3:41:54]
and, I believe that
[3:41:57]
greg and his team
[3:42:00]
will come forward in good faith and
[3:42:02]
that we at least owe it to ourselves
[3:42:06]
to at least explore this idea
[3:42:09]
a little further.
[3:42:12]
we are not saying again to what
[3:42:14]
the mayor said at the outset, we are
[3:42:15]
not making a decision here
[3:42:18]
tonight that this is done, we
[3:42:19]
are having a groundbreaking ceremony
[3:42:21]
next week. That is not what we are
[3:42:23]
doing. What we are saying is that
[3:42:27]
, do we
[3:42:30]
want to take a little further?
[3:42:33]
you know? Based on
[3:42:34]
everything I have heard here tonight,
[3:42:36]
and the comments I
[3:42:39]
have provided
[3:42:41]
and been provided, I like to explore
[3:42:42]
that a little further.
[3:42:47]
but I will definitely have some questions.
[3:42:48]
I'm going
[3:42:49]
to pose hard questions along the way.
[3:42:51]
and I will just say this
[3:42:54]
right now, we need to figure out
[3:42:56]
the access point issue. For me, that
[3:42:57]
is a dealbreaker.
[3:43:00]
we've got to figure
[3:43:02]
that out. Because the rest of it is
[3:43:03]
secondary. As far as
[3:43:06]
I'm concerned. It is
[3:43:09]
really, really important.
[3:43:11]
and so I just want to be transparent
[3:43:12]
and up front.
[3:43:15]
right now.
[3:43:17]
I hope that, I take you at your word
[3:43:18]
that you
[3:43:20]
are committed to putting forward and
[3:43:21]
coming up with
[3:43:23]
a viable solution that works. I think what
[3:43:27]
councilmember mckillop mentioned
[3:43:30]
here, reaching out to the team at
[3:43:31]
mrc
[3:43:32]
is something that should absolutely
[3:43:33]
be on the table.
[3:43:36]
and then,
[3:43:41]
to some of the comments, some of the
[3:43:42]
commentators here
[3:43:44]
tonight, I do also believe that the project
[3:43:45]
does need
[3:43:48]
to reflect the historic
[3:43:51]
character of our city.
[3:43:54]
we are ,
[3:43:56]
you may or may not know this, but
[3:43:57]
we are
[3:43:59]
celebrating our sesquicentennial,
[3:44:00]
150 years
[3:44:03]
since our city
[3:44:06]
was incorporated.
[3:44:09]
and,
[3:44:10]
that is a huge source of pride for
[3:44:12]
many in our community because we are
[3:44:14]
and historic waterfront community.
[3:44:15]
and the development
[3:44:18]
that takes
[3:44:20]
place, whether in the immediate downtown
[3:44:23]
whether it's here, should honor that
[3:44:24]
history and it should
[3:44:25]
reflect that. I definitely would like
[3:44:27]
to see
[3:44:33]
, I think there is ways to blend
[3:44:34]
some of that historic character in
[3:44:36]
the fa?ades in the way the buildings
[3:44:37]
are designed.
[3:44:38]
works for san diego and what worked
[3:44:41]
for you down there may not necessarily
[3:44:42]
work for us.
[3:44:45]
and so, I really appreciate what you
[3:44:46]
said
[3:44:47]
at the outset about how your approach
[3:44:48]
is
[3:44:51]
really one that is really rooted in
[3:44:54]
committee dialogue and honoring
[3:44:57]
the history
[3:45:00]
of the town.
[3:45:06]
and so, that is something that is really
[3:45:07]
important to me
[3:45:08]
because I think for too long in our
[3:45:09]
community you know, any type
[3:45:12]
of development
[3:45:18]
, it's kind of an either or proposition,
[3:45:19]
right?
[3:45:20]
it's kind of like, when we look at
[3:45:21]
the downtown for instance, it's always
[3:45:23]
like, going to build these huge monstrosities. Well
[3:45:24]
no, you can do
[3:45:27]
good development responsible development projects
[3:45:35]
mixed-use, but you can design the
[3:45:36]
fa?ades in a way that honor the
[3:45:37]
historic character of the community.
[3:45:45]
and I don't, I reject this notion
[3:45:46]
that
[3:45:47]
it's either or. You can do that, a
[3:45:48]
lot of small towns have figured that
[3:45:49]
out.
[3:45:50]
only income for --california other
[3:45:51]
parts of the country. So that is something
[3:45:53]
I really want to emphasize here. To
[3:45:55]
please understand
[3:45:57]
that this is a town that does deeply
[3:45:58]
value
[3:46:01]
its history and I appreciate
[3:46:03]
the comments that were made by cheryl
[3:46:07]
on that. And so, again,
[3:46:10]
my sincere thanks to all
[3:46:13]
of you.
[3:46:15]
and folks, this is going to be the
[3:46:16]
start of
[3:46:17]
a process. Like what councilmember
[3:46:19]
mckillop said,
[3:46:22]
we need you as part
[3:46:23]
of this. That is why we felt it was
[3:46:25]
so important
[3:46:28]
, we are
[3:46:29]
going to engage this community, we
[3:46:31]
wanted to be an open
[3:46:33]
and transparent process. And committed
[3:46:34]
to it. I know all
[3:46:35]
of us up here are. There's going to
[3:46:37]
be a lot of time for
[3:46:39]
that input as jill and lauren stated,
[3:46:40]
at the outset.
[3:46:42]
we're going to have a website up.
[3:46:45]
there's going to be ample opportunity
[3:46:46]
for public input.
[3:46:51]
and lastly, I would just say, I too
[3:46:52]
share the concerns about
[3:46:53]
the the were expressed because, yeah,
[3:46:55]
we went through that process
[3:46:58]
, it was a good process.
[3:47:01]
but unfortunately,
[3:47:06]
as we saw here tonight, and as was
[3:47:07]
said, we
[3:47:10]
have a revenue problem. And the
[3:47:13]
t-lip incorporates
[3:47:14]
a lot of wonderful elements I hope
[3:47:16]
will make it into
[3:47:18]
the final design. And again, I want
[3:47:19]
to
[3:47:22]
stress that,
[3:47:25]
I do want to brush it
[3:47:26]
aside, I know your presentation talked
[3:47:27]
about some of those elements. But
[3:47:28]
there is
[3:47:29]
seriously something in there I want
[3:47:31]
to see
[3:47:33]
, having an education center. Something
[3:47:36]
that recognizes the contributions
[3:47:37]
of the indigenous peoples
[3:47:39]
who inhabited this land long before
[3:47:40]
any of us were
[3:47:43]
here. We need to have that.
[3:47:46]
I don't want it to be just completely dismissed.
[3:47:49]
but, we also have to face the reality
[3:47:52]
that, again,
[3:47:54]
we have a serious revenue problem here.
[3:47:58]
and we don't have any other
[3:47:59]
viable options before us. That is
[3:48:01]
just the reality.
[3:48:04]
I am at least willing
[3:48:06]
to tonight at least give the green light
[3:48:07]
to it
[3:48:10]
and say, hey, let's see if we can
[3:48:11]
make
[3:48:13]
this work. I think we
[3:48:15]
owe that to ourselves and to future
[3:48:16]
generations of
[3:48:26]
martisians. Those are my thoughts.
[3:48:28]
thank you very much.
[3:48:29]
>> you have any
[3:48:30]
follow-up questions
[3:48:31]
for staff or tucker
[3:48:32]
sadler?
[3:48:33]
>> no follow-up questions,
[3:48:34]
just a couple of comments.
[3:48:40]
and I appreciate all of
[3:48:41]
the comments this evening. Here, and
[3:48:43]
online, I appreciate the concerns
[3:48:45]
that have been expressed. Like my fellow
[3:48:49]
councilmembers stated, they're going to
[3:48:52]
be challenges.
[3:48:55]
but let's look at the upside. Because here's
[3:48:58]
the thing. As
[3:49:01]
tucker was going through the presentation,
[3:49:04]
I wasn't really
[3:49:07]
necessarily thinking about the end product
[3:49:10]
of the waterfront.
[3:49:13]
what I was thinking about
[3:49:16]
was that because we have this waterfront,
[3:49:19]
our businesses on main street
[3:49:21]
are thriving. There is so much activity
[3:49:25]
in our immediate downtown
[3:49:27]
because of the waterfront. Businesses
[3:49:28]
are booming.
[3:49:31]
the vacant buildings
[3:49:34]
that we are so comfortable in seeing
[3:49:37]
are now occupied.
[3:49:40]
and it's so busy downtown
[3:49:42]
I don't even have time to go over
[3:49:43]
to
[3:49:45]
the waterfront. Because restaurants
[3:49:46]
and music
[3:49:49]
and things are popping.
[3:49:52]
that is what this is about.
[3:49:55]
this is not about abandoning
[3:49:58]
our core. But it's
[3:50:01]
about enhancing the overall
[3:50:04]
community
[3:50:07]
yeah, we've got to figure out access.
[3:50:10]
but we
[3:50:13]
are going to get there.
[3:50:16]
but the time is
[3:50:19]
now. This is a can that has been kicked
[3:50:22]
, again,
[3:50:24]
I've been here 24 years, and that
[3:50:25]
can has been kicked
[3:50:27]
and I am sure the can was kicked prior
[3:50:28]
to me.
[3:50:31]
the time is now.
[3:50:34]
and I challenge everybody
[3:50:37]
for all of the reasons why
[3:50:40]
we can't and we shouldn't
[3:50:42]
be doing this, come up with a reason
[3:50:43]
why we can
[3:50:46]
. And I'm going to
[3:50:48]
tell you the reason why we can is
[3:50:49]
because if we don't,
[3:50:51]
we are going to be on the news for
[3:50:52]
a bad reason
[3:50:55]
because we are a bankrupt city.
[3:50:58]
none of us
[3:51:01]
want that. And we
[3:51:05]
can talk and
[3:51:07]
we can say, this is --but at the end
[3:51:08]
of the day,
[3:51:11]
if we don't have services,
[3:51:14]
we don't have a city. If we
[3:51:15]
don't have safe communities, we don't
[3:51:17]
have a city.
[3:51:20]
if we don't
[3:51:23]
have services,
[3:51:24]
we don't have trees, we don't have
[3:51:25]
beautiful signs saying welcome to
[3:51:26]
martinez.
[3:51:29]
and I am reminded
[3:51:31]
, when I was campaigning and I was
[3:51:32]
walking in
[3:51:35]
my district, I met this family,
[3:51:38]
brand-new to the committee, two
[3:51:40]
small children, I said, what brought
[3:51:41]
you here?
[3:51:44]
they said, we were living
[3:51:46]
in sunnyvale. We were on our way to
[3:51:47]
napa
[3:51:50]
and stopped in martinez
[3:51:53]
and fell in love.
[3:51:58]
and we moved here. And by the way,
[3:51:59]
we are still commuting to
[3:52:01]
sunnyvale. To work. But we came here
[3:52:05]
because we love the city.
[3:52:08]
it seems and feels like a place
[3:52:10]
for us to raise our families and raise
[3:52:14]
our children. That is what
[3:52:17]
we want.
[3:52:23]
we don't
[3:52:24]
want to just talk about a marina,
[3:52:25]
because we have been talking about
[3:52:26]
a marina
[3:52:27]
and people come down and say, the
[3:52:29]
marina? We want people to come
[3:52:31]
and say, oh my gosh, how have I missed
[3:52:32]
this? So
[3:52:35]
just think about the upside.
[3:52:38]
we can always come with reasons why
[3:52:40]
we can't. We've got to start looking
[3:52:41]
at the class
[3:52:43]
have full. And I have been here long
[3:52:47]
enough where folks
[3:52:50]
thought about
[3:52:53]
not wanting a downtown
[3:52:55]
, pleasant hill. And what has happened?
[3:52:59]
it is bustling. I remember
[3:53:02]
when folks
[3:53:03]
in the old walnut creek was opposed
[3:53:05]
to the new
[3:53:08]
walnut creek across mount diablo because
[3:53:10]
that was going to kill her businesses.
[3:53:13]
what did it do? It created foot traffic.
[3:53:17]
for those businesses on the
[3:53:18]
other side of mount diablo. So it
[3:53:20]
can work.
[3:53:23]
but we have to be open
[3:53:28]
and thoughtful. And yeah, we can challenge
[3:53:29]
and push and
[3:53:31]
pull but at the end of the day, it
[3:53:32]
benefits all of us.
[3:53:38]
not just council, all of you. We want
[3:53:40]
your input. We want to hear from you.
[3:53:41]
you want to
[3:53:44]
say that yeah, it's important
[3:53:46]
we maintain the character of our wonderful city.
[3:53:49]
yeah, we want you to say we need access
[3:53:50]
points. We
[3:53:53]
didn't say is, I want us
[3:53:56]
to be , I want us to be the bocce
[3:53:59]
ball capital of the world.
[3:54:02]
where we are international, where
[3:54:03]
people come from all over the world
[3:54:05]
to compete. Think about that.
[3:54:09]
think about hotel occupancy. Think
[3:54:11]
about revenue. Thick
[3:54:14]
about restaurants. Who benefits from that?
[3:54:17]
all of us.
[3:54:20]
so, I am in support of moving
[3:54:23]
down the road and beginning
[3:54:25]
these discussions and negotiations
[3:54:29]
and pull and push.
[3:54:31]
because it's for the betterment of
[3:54:32]
all
[3:54:35]
of us, everybody will win from this.
[3:54:38]
this
[3:54:41]
is an and conversation.
[3:54:44]
it's not an either or. It's
[3:54:47]
not us versus them.
[3:54:49]
it is an and conversation. It is all
[3:54:50]
of us in this together to
[3:54:53]
make our city better. Thriving.
[3:54:56]
a destination point
[3:54:59]
for us and people outside of
[3:55:02]
our community.
[3:55:04]
we have got a couple thousand county
[3:55:05]
employees down here
[3:55:08]
every day. They don't always stay.
[3:55:11]
but guess what,
[3:55:20]
if they have a reason to
[3:55:22]
stay they are going to stay. Going
[3:55:23]
to take their clients out. The going
[3:55:24]
to
[3:55:25]
have cocktails. They are going to
[3:55:26]
shop. The shopping, someone brought
[3:55:27]
up retail, I
[3:55:28]
want those retail locations at the
[3:55:29]
waterfront to be filled with local
[3:55:30]
business owners. I'm
[3:55:31]
not talking about bringing in eight
[3:55:32]
ruth chris. I want local is is is
[3:55:35]
down there benefiting from that.
[3:55:38]
just like downtown right here.
[3:55:41]
so it is
[3:55:44]
a visionary.
[3:55:46]
some folks are going to feel uncomfortable.
[3:55:50]
but, the
[3:55:53]
beauty of visionaries ,
[3:55:54]
often times folks can't always see
[3:55:56]
the vision.
[3:55:59]
but if you just
[3:56:01]
lean in, and you see the outcome,
[3:56:02]
and it's like, oh,
[3:56:05]
I got it.
[3:56:08]
wow, this is beautiful. Wow,
[3:56:11]
look at my kids.
[3:56:14]
playing and engaged. Look at the community.
[3:56:17]
look at our fireworks, they
[3:56:20]
are now on steroids out there. So
[3:56:21]
let's think
[3:56:23]
outside of the box. It's okay. We
[3:56:24]
will
[3:56:26]
get there. But
[3:56:29]
it will be to the benefit of all of us.
[3:56:35]
>> that is wonderful. I want to piggyback on
[3:56:36]
what my colleagues
[3:56:37]
have been talking about, the access.
[3:56:38]
honestly it's very important. If we
[3:56:41]
came in
[3:56:44]
from marina vista and then went down into
[3:56:47]
the ballfields area, that area, we
[3:56:48]
are
[3:56:49]
starting out at an elevated plateau,
[3:56:51]
just
[3:56:52]
a thought I wanted to throw out there.
[3:56:54]
it's interesting
[3:56:56]
because my phone is absolutely blowing
[3:56:57]
the. All these
[3:57:00]
people watching right now are
[3:57:03]
adding all these great ideas.
[3:57:12]
and, yeah, I've got
[3:57:13]
to agree with everybody, the historical
[3:57:14]
park is so important to this town.
[3:57:15]
another thing
[3:57:17]
I really want to ask all of you is,
[3:57:18]
you have to be are
[3:57:19]
ambassadors. You have to go out into
[3:57:20]
the public and help us sell this.
[3:57:24]
because not everybody
[3:57:25]
is getting to see this message. So
[3:57:27]
we need you to be
[3:57:28]
are ambassadors, we need you to spread
[3:57:30]
the word. Go to your
[3:57:31]
bocce ball teams until everybody about
[3:57:33]
it because
[3:57:42]
this is very exciting for our
[3:57:43]
town. Like I said we have been waiting
[3:57:44]
decades for something like this. I
[3:57:46]
can't wait to push this forward. I
[3:57:48]
do kind of want to lift up all
[3:57:49]
of the other council members and mayors
[3:57:53]
and all the fighting they have done
[3:57:54]
over the
[3:57:55]
years trying to do something. I feel
[3:57:56]
very grateful that this is landing
[3:57:57]
in our
[3:58:00]
lap and this is organically
[3:58:03]
found
[3:58:04]
us. It did happen through some strange circumstances.
[3:58:06]
right, and then all of
[3:58:07]
a sudden omar went away and all of
[3:58:09]
a sudden we realized this whole
[3:58:11]
marina is 30 years past its shelf life.
[3:58:15]
I do want to thank everybody.
[3:58:17]
and it's time I like debbie to make
[3:58:18]
a motion
[3:58:21]
if she would like to,
[3:58:22]
being our longest serving councilmember.
[3:58:24]
I think it would be an
[3:58:27]
honor and, thank you again.
[3:58:33]
>>
[3:58:42]
before, debbie, if you're comfortable
[3:58:44]
making that motion, before you do that
[3:58:45]
I just had one
[3:58:46]
quick follow-up question I wanted
[3:58:47]
to make sure got said tonight before
[3:58:48]
everyone went home.
[3:58:49]
we got a couple of questions about
[3:58:51]
the tlup approved in the past
[3:58:54]
and how
[3:58:55]
this design is not completely aligned with
[3:58:56]
the tlup that was approved before.
[3:59:00]
jill or lauren, can you
[3:59:01]
speak to your understanding of conversations
[3:59:03]
you have had
[3:59:04]
with california state lands and east
[3:59:06]
bay regional park's, have they
[3:59:08]
had an opportunity to look at this
[3:59:09]
, have
[3:59:12]
they given you any feedback?
[3:59:13]
>>
[3:59:14]
thank you, mayor. The proposal has
[3:59:15]
not
[3:59:18]
been shared
[3:59:20]
with them except if they are online
[3:59:21]
tonight, we did provide
[3:59:23]
them with a link to be able to watch
[3:59:24]
this. He also did reach
[3:59:25]
out to have conversations prior so
[3:59:27]
we made sure
[3:59:30]
we were kind of asking all the right
[3:59:31]
questions
[3:59:32]
as we were going along. To make sure
[3:59:34]
some things are being proposed would
[3:59:36]
be acceptable. Some of the
[3:59:38]
things we learned were that , the
[3:59:39]
trust land-use
[3:59:54]
plans are easy to amend.
[3:59:55]
they are and initial guiding documents
[3:59:57]
it happens all the time where documents need
[3:59:58]
to be
[3:59:59]
amended especially with visionary
[4:00:00]
type plans. For this very reason when
[4:00:01]
you look at
[4:00:02]
things that comes down to the economics
[4:00:03]
and these things can actually come
[4:00:04]
to fruition.
[4:00:05]
so they are aware, we have been in
[4:00:06]
contact with them. As well as
[4:00:07]
east bay regional parks, they were
[4:00:08]
one of the stakeholders we reached
[4:00:09]
out to
[4:00:10]
because we were mindful insensitive
[4:00:11]
to the parks surrounding this property.
[4:00:12]
and their
[4:00:15]
team was
[4:00:25]
supportive of the vision and supportive
[4:00:27]
of what is happening. They were excited
[4:00:28]
to
[4:00:29]
be included and definitely wanted
[4:00:30]
to --their goal was to get people
[4:00:31]
to the
[4:00:32]
parks. Get people to the water. That is
[4:00:33]
kind of what they communicated to
[4:00:34]
us,
[4:00:35]
anything that does that, this is fantastic.
[4:00:36]
we will definitely be working with
[4:00:37]
them
[4:00:38]
closely as well.
[4:00:39]
>> by the way, one
[4:00:40]
of the things, again, this will
[4:00:42]
be a later conversation,
[4:00:45]
but
[4:00:47]
that greg has talked with us about is
[4:00:48]
that east bay regional park
[4:00:49]
district will actually benefit from
[4:00:50]
this project because there will be more
[4:00:51]
connections built
[4:00:54]
and also
[4:00:56]
improvements to the trails, especially
[4:00:57]
those around the bordering areas.
[4:00:58]
that was something the very much peaked
[4:01:00]
their interest. One more thing I will
[4:01:02]
say too is that we spoke with every
[4:01:03]
official from federal
[4:01:08]
, state to local, we did that outreach.
[4:01:09]
as you know those are the
[4:01:11]
folks that often opus advocate at
[4:01:12]
the state level when
[4:01:14]
we are trying to champion our projects
[4:01:17]
and across the board everybody was
[4:01:21]
in support of this project, even
[4:01:23]
though some could make it here tonight,
[4:01:24]
they absolutely were very interested
[4:01:27]
and supportive.
[4:01:30]
>> great, thank you. With that,
[4:01:35]
I will hand this over to my colleagues.
[4:01:36]
if anyone would like
[4:01:39]
to make a motion.
[4:01:40]
>> I will gladly make
[4:01:42]
a motion that we enter into an exclusive
[4:01:45]
negotiation arrangement with
[4:01:48]
tucker sadler.
[4:01:49]
>>
[4:01:51]
debbie can you restate that. We are
[4:01:52]
entering
[4:01:54]
into negotiations --we don't actually have
[4:01:57]
--
[4:01:58]
>> so, I
[4:02:00]
will say that again.
[4:02:03]
make a motion to authorize
[4:02:05]
the city to enter into negotiations for
[4:02:06]
an exclusive negotiation agreement
[4:02:09]
ena, with tucker sadler.
[4:02:10]
>> I will
[4:02:11]
second
[4:02:12]
that.
[4:02:13]
>> >> mayor zorn. A roll
[4:02:15]
call vote.
[4:02:16]
>> vice mayor howard.
[4:02:18]
>> yes. >> councilmember young.
[4:02:21]
>> yes. >> councilmember malhi. >> >> aye.
[4:02:23]
yes.
[4:02:24]
>> councilmember mckillop. >> aye.
[4:02:27]
>> motion pashas.
[4:02:39]
all ayes.
[4:02:40]
>> [ applause ] >> based on
[4:02:41]
my
[4:02:42]
understanding the outcome of this vote
[4:02:43]
is that staff will begin negotiating
[4:02:44]
with tucker
[4:02:45]
sadler . We have a meeting in july and
[4:02:46]
we are actually taking the
[4:02:48]
month of august off as
[4:02:50]
we every year do. We should expect
[4:02:51]
a draft
[4:02:54]
coming to us probably
[4:02:56]
at a september meeting, is that the
[4:02:57]
approximate schedule the people
[4:03:00]
should expect?
[4:03:01]
>> possibly.
[4:03:04]
it's doable.
[4:03:06]
september or october.
[4:03:07]
>> okay. Great.
[4:03:10]
thank you. All right,
[4:03:17]
thank you, everyone, for participating.
[4:03:19]
I know it has been
[4:03:20]
a very late evening. I want to remind
[4:03:22]
everyone I am three hours ahead
[4:03:23]
of use with later for me. But that's
[4:03:25]
okay. So thank you for joining us
[4:03:26]
this evening. I would like to take
[4:03:27]
a five-minute break before we go into
[4:03:29]
our last few items on the agenda.
[4:03:31]
it is
[4:03:34]
10:45, let's regroup a
[4:03:37]
few minutes before 11:00.
[4:03:40]
thank you.
[4:10:22]
>> can everyone begin to take their
[4:10:23]
seats?
[4:10:24]
I'm not sure if anyone can hear me,
[4:10:26]
but if you can, let's get ready
[4:10:28]
to take on last few items on the agenda.
[4:11:45]
>> everyone, please take a seat. We're
[4:11:47]
going to resume the meeting.
[4:11:59]
>> let it show for the record,
[4:12:02]
vice mayor howard is ready.
[4:12:07]
>> we are not able to start until
[4:12:08]
we have a quorum on
[4:12:11]
the dais.
[4:13:05]
>> you may start. >>
[4:13:08]
oh, good, it still recording?
[4:13:10]
excellent, thank you. Hold on one minute.
[4:13:22]
all right, our next item, general
[4:13:23]
business item number two, adopt a
[4:13:24]
resolution approving
[4:13:26]
a general obligation bond
[4:13:28]
tax rate for fiscal year 2526 property
[4:13:29]
tax roll.
[4:13:35]
june,
[4:13:37]
I see you on camera. I assume you
[4:13:38]
will be leading off today?
[4:13:40]
>> actually I'm going to turn over
[4:13:41]
to my accountant, courtney butler
[4:13:42]
for
[4:13:44]
this item.
[4:13:45]
>> good evening,
[4:13:47]
mayor and council members.
[4:13:50]
I am presenting the recommended general
[4:13:51]
obligation
[4:13:53]
tax bond rate for fiscal year
[4:13:56]
25/26 property tax roll. In 2008
[4:13:59]
voters passed measure
[4:14:05]
h which allows
[4:14:07]
the city to issue up to $30 million
[4:14:08]
in bonds to improve our parks, library
[4:14:09]
and
[4:14:10]
swimming pool. Since then the city
[4:14:11]
has issued three sets of bonds and
[4:14:12]
refinanced
[4:14:14]
two of them to reduce interest costs.
[4:14:16]
these bonds are repaid through the
[4:14:18]
property tax base
[4:14:22]
on the value of each property. In
[4:14:23]
fiscal year 25/26 to cover the cost
[4:14:27]
of the debt service payments of
[4:14:29]
$1.3 million the tax rate is 0.0167
[4:14:33]
four
[4:14:36]
$100 of assessed property value.
[4:14:42]
tonight's action is for the city council
[4:14:43]
to approve this tax rate and authorize
[4:14:44]
staff to submit this tax rate to contra
[4:14:47]
costa county. And now I am here to
[4:14:48]
answer any questions.
[4:14:54]
>> that is
[4:14:56]
great. Thank you for the presentation.
[4:15:00]
it was even
[4:15:01]
shorter than I expected. Does anyone
[4:15:02]
on council have any questions for
[4:15:03]
courtney?
[4:15:12]
I'm sorry, I can't see if
[4:15:13]
they were shaking their heads, were
[4:15:15]
there any questions?
[4:15:16]
>> know the were
[4:15:17]
not.
[4:15:18]
>> all right, I don't have any
[4:15:19]
questions. Let me open this up
[4:15:20]
to public comment and we will see
[4:15:21]
if there is anyone in
[4:15:24]
council chambers. Vice mayor howard,
[4:15:25]
let me know if there is anyone raising
[4:15:27]
their hand to speak.
[4:15:28]
>>
[4:15:30]
negative.
[4:15:33]
>> we you check the virtual
[4:15:34]
audience please?
[4:15:35]
>> please use the
[4:15:36]
raise hand feature if you like to comment on
[4:15:39]
this item.
[4:15:42]
I have no hands.
[4:15:43]
>> okay, all right,
[4:15:44]
let's
[4:15:45]
bring that back to council
[4:15:47]
for a motion.
[4:15:48]
>> I like to make a
[4:15:49]
motion to pass
[4:15:50]
a resolution as the city council of
[4:15:51]
the city of martinez approving
[4:15:54]
the general obligation bond tax rate
[4:15:57]
for the fiscal year 2025 through 2026,
[4:15:58]
property
[4:16:00]
tax roll
[4:16:01]
in directing submittal to contra costa
[4:16:03]
county.
[4:16:04]
>> second.
[4:16:06]
>> roll call vote please.
[4:16:08]
>> mayor zorn. >> yes. >> vice mayor howard.
[4:16:09]
>> yes. >> councilmember young. >> yes.
[4:16:11]
>> councilmember malhi. >> aye. >> councilmember mckillop.
[4:16:12]
>> aye.
[4:16:20]
>> motion passes. All ayes. >> wonderful,
[4:16:21]
thank you courtney
[4:16:23]
and jen. All right, we have one more item.
[4:16:26]
we are now convening as the board
[4:16:27]
of directors
[4:16:28]
of contra costa county sanitation
[4:16:30]
district number six.
[4:16:32]
full public hearing for contra costa
[4:16:33]
este six
[4:16:35]
adopting the resolution of the written
[4:16:36]
statement and
[4:16:42]
district diagram and
[4:16:43]
assessments for fiscal year 25/26.
[4:16:44]
who will be presenting on this this
[4:16:45]
evening?
[4:16:48]
>> public works director.
[4:16:51]
>> good evening
[4:16:54]
, mayor and council members.
[4:16:57]
and member of the audience.
[4:17:03]
this procedural requirement in order to levy
[4:17:04]
assessments on the
[4:17:06]
tax roll is to hold the
[4:17:09]
public hearing for the
[4:17:11]
contra costa county sanitation district
[4:17:12]
number
[4:17:15]
six . The rates have
[4:17:18]
not changed. For the last
[4:17:21]
three years
[4:17:24]
we adopted an ordinance three
[4:17:27]
years ago that said the rates at
[4:17:32]
$24.50 per year. This will be the
[4:17:33]
last year those
[4:17:34]
were assessed. Total amount assessed
[4:17:36]
for the upcoming year is
[4:17:39]
$150,100.
[4:17:42]
so by holding the public
[4:17:45]
hearing and then subsequently adopting
[4:17:48]
of the confirming resolution,
[4:17:50]
we will allow the levy of the assessments and
[4:17:51]
next year's
[4:17:54]
tax roll. Open for
[4:17:57]
any questions after the hearing.
[4:17:58]
>>
[4:18:03]
have we received any protests or
[4:18:05]
any comments about this?
[4:18:06]
>> no. There
[4:18:07]
is no increase
[4:18:09]
in rates so there is no
[4:18:11]
protest to vote on this.
[4:18:12]
>> I see.
[4:18:15]
gotcha. Okay, and then,
[4:18:17]
I am still concerned and I'm going to
[4:18:18]
read to
[4:18:21]
you what you wrote in the fiscal impact
[4:18:24]
that
[4:18:26]
there is no impact toward general
[4:18:27]
fund. If
[4:18:30]
the proposed rate. If the
[4:18:32]
resolution authorizing on the county
[4:18:33]
property tax bills is
[4:18:36]
not improved
[4:18:38]
and alternate funding source would
[4:18:39]
be required. I am
[4:18:41]
reading that to mean if there is a
[4:18:42]
major failure or something of the
[4:18:45]
infrastructure in
[4:18:47]
este six the rate of $24.50 is not sufficient
[4:18:48]
or
[4:18:51]
I'm sorry,
[4:18:53]
$150,100 per year is not sufficient
[4:18:57]
to make any major changes. Is that
[4:18:58]
a correct reading
[4:19:00]
of that statement?
[4:19:01]
>> it is. >> okay.
[4:19:03]
this is definitely something I know
[4:19:06]
we had multiple years
[4:19:09]
of protests because we tried
[4:19:11]
to raise it. So I'm just acknowledging
[4:19:12]
the staff report
[4:19:16]
and acknowledging
[4:19:21]
that you have alerted us that this
[4:19:22]
is an issue. I also
[4:19:23]
recognize that the community is not
[4:19:24]
interested in raising the rates. But,
[4:19:25]
I just want to acknowledge that this
[4:19:28]
has potential
[4:19:31]
moving forward.
[4:19:33]
any council members have any questions
[4:19:34]
or comments?
[4:19:43]
hearing none, is one
[4:19:46]
person in the audience
[4:19:48]
have any comments on this item?
[4:19:49]
>> negative.
[4:19:55]
>> any one in the
[4:19:56]
virtual audience have any comments
[4:19:58]
on this item?
[4:19:59]
>> please use the raise
[4:20:00]
hand feature. I have no hands.
[4:20:01]
>>
[4:20:04]
go ahead.
[4:20:07]
I like
[4:20:09]
to make a motion to pass the resolution of
[4:20:10]
the city council of
[4:20:11]
the city of martinez. Constituting
[4:20:13]
the board of directors of
[4:20:20]
contra costa county sanitation district
[4:20:21]
number six approving the annual written
[4:20:22]
statement and confirming
[4:20:23]
the diagram an assessment for the
[4:20:24]
collection of sewer service charges
[4:20:25]
on the
[4:20:26]
county tax roll for the 2025 through
[4:20:28]
2026 fiscal year.
[4:20:29]
>> second.
[4:20:31]
>> mayor zorn. >> yes.
[4:20:32]
>> vice mayor howard. >> yes. >> councilmember young.
[4:20:34]
>> yes.
[4:20:37]
>> councilmember malhi. >> aye.
[4:20:38]
>> councilmember mckillop. >> aye.
[4:20:49]
>> motion passes. All ayes.
[4:20:50]
>> great, thank you so very much.
[4:20:52]
we now reconvene is acidic council is
[4:20:54]
the city of martinez in the next is
[4:20:55]
a report from the chief of
[4:20:57]
police. Do you have any updates?
[4:20:58]
>>
[4:20:59]
thank you,
[4:21:00]
mayor. Just one update, council member
[4:21:01]
malhi requested an update
[4:21:03]
regarding concerns of traffic issues
[4:21:04]
on ambra
[4:21:07]
and c
[4:21:08]
street. The police department has
[4:21:09]
conducted extra patrols out there
[4:21:10]
between
[4:21:13]
april 17
[4:21:15]
and june 30. There was a count of
[4:21:16]
133 incidents of us responding
[4:21:19]
out there.
[4:21:23]
eight of those resulted in traffic
[4:21:25]
stops. There were four citations issued
[4:21:26]
and
[4:21:27]
four warnings were issued. So we do continue
[4:21:33]
to patrol in that area regarding the
[4:21:34]
concerns that
[4:21:35]
had been raised. And we are also collaborating
[4:21:36]
with public works regarding longer-term
[4:21:39]
engineering-based solutions.
[4:21:40]
>> I
[4:21:41]
am
[4:21:43]
sorry, can you clarify, alhambra
[4:21:46]
and c street
[4:21:49]
is, which intersection
[4:21:51]
are we referring to?
[4:21:52]
>> it's a crosswalk
[4:21:53]
intersection with a rapid flashing
[4:21:54]
be
[4:21:55]
could lights. It's by
[4:22:01]
the hospital.
[4:22:02]
>>
[4:22:03]
when people get off the bus and walked
[4:22:04]
to the hospital. When people call
[4:22:07]
you the police are
[4:22:10]
able to in real-time respond that
[4:22:11]
quickly
[4:22:12]
and then issue citations? Can you
[4:22:13]
give an example of what you're talking
[4:22:14]
about?
[4:22:15]
>> I didn't explain it. We've
[4:22:16]
been doing extra patrols based
[4:22:19]
on concerns. It's not responses
[4:22:20]
to it. It's because they been out
[4:22:22]
there doing the extra patrols to look
[4:22:23]
for violations.
[4:22:25]
>> I see. Thank you for the
[4:22:28]
report out.
[4:22:30]
council member malhi, I appreciate
[4:22:31]
you asking for
[4:22:34]
that. I would like us to circle back
[4:22:37]
--if you have another
[4:22:38]
question, I'd like to circle back
[4:22:40]
on this because I think that crosswalk
[4:22:43]
seems problematic and I am
[4:22:46]
not sure
[4:22:49]
--I am not sure
[4:22:52]
that citations
[4:23:00]
will necessarily produce the outcome we
[4:23:01]
are looking for. But I will happily
[4:23:02]
be proven wrong. So, chief, if you
[4:23:04]
can give us regular report outs and
[4:23:05]
if
[4:23:06]
it turns out that increased surveys,
[4:23:07]
or increased patrols don't
[4:23:16]
show a reduction in issues, then maybe
[4:23:17]
we can circle back and identify some
[4:23:18]
other solution for that crosswalk.
[4:23:19]
it's the
[4:23:21]
only crosswalk that looks like that in
[4:23:22]
martinez. That's why I am
[4:23:25]
a little nervous about it.
[4:23:28]
>> yeah, just to clarify, as I understand
[4:23:29]
it from
[4:23:31]
the city engineer, that location
[4:23:34]
is already set for an engineering-based study
[4:23:35]
is one
[4:23:36]
of the safe streets for everybody
[4:23:37]
or safe streets for everyone grant.
[4:23:40]
I think the next update will be, what
[4:23:41]
is the result
[4:23:43]
of that.
[4:23:45]
and obviously enforcement continues
[4:23:46]
to be and then of
[4:23:49]
course education which I think
[4:23:52]
is being taken care
[4:23:54]
of in part by the committee case with
[4:23:55]
the hospital. I believe there's also
[4:23:57]
sign posted out there reminding the
[4:23:58]
strings of their duties when crossing.
[4:23:59]
it takes everybody
[4:24:00]
working together. The driving as well
[4:24:01]
as pedestrians.
[4:24:04]
>> great, am glad to hear, I
[4:24:05]
had forgotten that was identified
[4:24:07]
as part of the
[4:24:12]
safe streets for everyone. That is
[4:24:13]
exactly what I was going to suggest
[4:24:14]
being our
[4:24:15]
next step. But we have already done
[4:24:16]
it, that is great. Did you have a
[4:24:18]
follow-up question?
[4:24:19]
>> thank you.
[4:24:20]
thank you, chief,
[4:24:21]
for that update. I do appreciate it.
[4:24:22]
I just wanted to, you know,
[4:24:25]
the resident who initially
[4:24:28]
flagged this concern
[4:24:31]
, has, I believe,
[4:24:36]
they work at the county hospital,
[4:24:37]
but she did reference
[4:24:39]
that one of the doctors at the county
[4:24:40]
hospital was actually hit by
[4:24:43]
a vehicle
[4:24:46]
and that apparently, this is not an
[4:24:47]
isolated incident.
[4:24:48]
apparently there have been other incidents. Chief,
[4:24:49]
you have
[4:24:52]
any data to support that? Are you aware,
[4:24:57]
have pedestrians in fact been
[4:24:58]
>>>
[4:24:59]
there? Have we had first responders
[4:25:00]
go out in response?
[4:25:01]
>> there have
[4:25:02]
been collisions there
[4:25:04]
but in terms of it being attributed
[4:25:07]
to one particular issue, that hasn't
[4:25:09]
been established. I'm sure is part
[4:25:10]
of the
[4:25:13]
engineering study it will make available
[4:25:14]
to them whatever
[4:25:15]
data they want and they will be able
[4:25:16]
to look at it and determine what
[4:25:19]
recommendations they may have.
[4:25:20]
>>
[4:25:21]
yeah,
[4:25:22]
I would very much like
[4:25:24]
to get some continuous updates on this.
[4:25:28]
given it's a very highly trafficked
[4:25:29]
crosswalk that
[4:25:31]
is used not only by residents, but also
[4:25:36]
, you know, county employees, those
[4:25:37]
that work at the hospital, patients.
[4:25:40]
and I believe it is also next to the
[4:25:41]
teamsters hall
[4:25:44]
as well.
[4:25:49]
so there may be --and also its adjacent
[4:25:50]
to the
[4:25:51]
high school. So there is a good mix
[4:25:53]
of folks who are traversing that
[4:25:54]
area. I think it warrants our attention
[4:25:55]
and I look forward to getting some
[4:25:59]
additional updates as far as
[4:26:01]
proposed solutions. Very much appreciate
[4:26:08]
, chief, the work
[4:26:09]
of pd to at least get out there and
[4:26:11]
step up patrols in that area
[4:26:12]
while recognizing the fact that there
[4:26:13]
are some traffic calming mitigation
[4:26:17]
that can potentially be
[4:26:20]
undertaken there. So thank you.
[4:26:30]
>> great, next up is update from the
[4:26:31]
city manager. Acting city manager,
[4:26:32]
do you
[4:26:33]
have any updates for us?
[4:26:34]
>> there
[4:26:35]
are none.
[4:26:36]
>> great. Since I know
[4:26:37]
how involved you were in setting up
[4:26:38]
meetings and
[4:26:39]
doing outreach for tonight, thank
[4:26:41]
you very much for all of
[4:26:43]
your efforts, I was really happy to
[4:26:44]
see how
[4:26:47]
many folks divided input
[4:26:50]
from, not even
[4:26:51]
people here tonight, but people who
[4:26:53]
met with you earlier
[4:26:54]
to answer some questions about the
[4:26:56]
agenda and all that kind
[4:26:59]
of stuff. We just got a lot of
[4:27:00]
really positive feedback so thank
[4:27:01]
you for all of your efforts. All right,
[4:27:04]
no appointments. We do have a few subcommittee
[4:27:08]
report outs.
[4:27:09]
one is the sustainability subcommittee
[4:27:11]
the debbie and I
[4:27:14]
serve on.
[4:27:19]
debbie, any chance you have the agenda
[4:27:20]
in
[4:27:21]
front of you? Because I can't remember
[4:27:23]
all the things we talked about.
[4:27:24]
>> yes, I do have the agenda. The
[4:27:26]
first item was a presentation from
[4:27:27]
the contra costa county climate leaders
[4:27:29]
which was --
[4:27:32]
>> that's right. >> told us
[4:27:33]
how we fared in the assessment of
[4:27:35]
our climate leadership.
[4:27:38]
then we also had a report out
[4:27:41]
from the
[4:27:42]
eco-awards programs. And their plans
[4:27:44]
for doing additional
[4:27:45]
recognition for individuals and businesses
[4:27:47]
that do
[4:27:50]
good work in sustainability.
[4:27:54]
and then we also heard a staff report
[4:27:56]
on the
[4:27:59]
bag and food
[4:28:01]
wear accessories and condiment update.
[4:28:05]
those are the three evidence.
[4:28:10]
--items.
[4:28:11]
>> just a quick update on
[4:28:12]
the last one
[4:28:13]
for this meeting, we had, right before
[4:28:17]
the
[4:28:22]
vacant to vibrant workshop, so we
[4:28:23]
got cut a little
[4:28:24]
short at the end. And so the discussion
[4:28:26]
of single-use plastics
[4:28:28]
and what was the other freezing in
[4:28:29]
that item?
[4:28:30]
>>
[4:28:31]
food wear accessories.
[4:28:32]
>> food wear accessories,
[4:28:41]
we just barely scratched the surface
[4:28:43]
and so we asked for carrie and michael
[4:28:44]
to bring that up at
[4:28:45]
a subsequent meeting. We will talk
[4:28:46]
about that again, we didn't make much
[4:28:47]
progress on
[4:28:48]
that topic. That's great, thank you.
[4:28:50]
anybody have any outside agency or
[4:28:51]
subcommittee
[4:28:52]
report outs not listed on the agenda?
[4:28:53]
>>
[4:28:56]
I attended the
[4:28:59]
transpac meeting
[4:29:02]
last
[4:29:05]
thursday, july 10, one of the items
[4:29:08]
that was shared was the
[4:29:15]
contra costa transportation authority
[4:29:16]
integrated transit plan. This was
[4:29:17]
a presentation
[4:29:20]
really designed
[4:29:23]
, the plan
[4:29:24]
was designed to provide technical
[4:29:25]
and planning guidance with a clear
[4:29:26]
vision
[4:29:29]
for delivering
[4:29:31]
a robust transit network that connects
[4:29:32]
all major activity centers
[4:29:34]
and regional hubs in contra costa
[4:29:35]
county. So,
[4:29:38]
we were shown plans across
[4:29:41]
our five
[4:29:46]
counties. Central county action plan,
[4:29:47]
tri-valley, so across contra
[4:29:50]
costa county and timelines, so
[4:29:52]
far the discussion was looking at improving
[4:29:56]
our arterial ways
[4:29:59]
, connecting mobility hubs in our counties.
[4:30:04]
increasing express lanes, part-time transit,
[4:30:10]
so having buses during certain designated
[4:30:11]
times. Have the ability to go on the
[4:30:14]
shoulders, like the 680.
[4:30:16]
gave a full-blown presentation and then
[4:30:20]
next steps , as I'm getting to the
[4:30:21]
end of this, getting
[4:30:23]
input from
[4:30:25]
transpac and then coming back with
[4:30:26]
policy proposals to suggest
[4:30:29]
action plans based on
[4:30:31]
the different regions and corridors
[4:30:32]
. And then
[4:30:35]
delivering an integrated transit
[4:30:38]
plan. Countywide.
[4:30:41]
that was the majority of the
[4:30:43]
time last week. That's all I've got.
[4:30:44]
>>
[4:30:50]
thank
[4:30:51]
you for representing martinez at the
[4:30:52]
mayor's conference this past week.
[4:30:53]
much appreciated.
[4:30:54]
>>
[4:30:55]
yes, thank you. That was a spirited meeting.
[4:30:59]
>> all right, the last item is city council
[4:31:03]
comments. What we go
[4:31:13]
--actually, I know, debbie, are you
[4:31:14]
still interested in closing at the
[4:31:16]
meeting this evening?
[4:31:17]
>> yes. >> how
[4:31:18]
about I will start and we will
[4:31:19]
go down the line and then debbie you
[4:31:21]
can have the last comment. I
[4:31:22]
will pass the gavel to you and you
[4:31:23]
can adjourn the meeting after your
[4:31:24]
comments.
[4:31:25]
so I just wanted to thank st. Peter
[4:31:27]
and paul church, they had the
[4:31:28]
mediterranean festival over the weekend.
[4:31:30]
thanks for coming out. I want
[4:31:32]
to thank you for initiating that contact
[4:31:33]
a year
[4:31:35]
or so ago because it wasn't totally
[4:31:37]
on my radar before. I really appreciate
[4:31:42]
the we have
[4:31:43]
now started this tradition for council
[4:31:45]
to go to that festival. It was great.
[4:31:46]
and really fun. And the food was great.
[4:31:48]
I wanted to
[4:31:53]
only comment at the very, very beginning
[4:31:55]
of this meeting, we had some folks
[4:31:56]
from comment that they would like
[4:32:02]
to have some conversations with staff.
[4:32:03]
I understand staff
[4:32:04]
have already been in touch with one
[4:32:06]
of the women who spoke. And so
[4:32:07]
I just wanted to check with staff
[4:32:09]
and make sure you are good to
[4:32:12]
continue those conversations
[4:32:15]
with those folks and don't need
[4:32:16]
any additional guidance from council.
[4:32:18]
>> that
[4:32:21]
is correct.
[4:32:22]
>>
[4:32:23]
okay. All right, great, that is it
[4:32:24]
for me.
[4:32:25]
>> that
[4:32:27]
is great. So
[4:32:28]
the one thing I wanted to talk about
[4:32:30]
is, let's all remember it
[4:32:33]
is coyote season.
[4:32:35]
until the end of august. If you love
[4:32:36]
your cats and
[4:32:39]
dogs keep them inside at night.
[4:32:40]
>>
[4:32:42]
just again, I want to say
[4:32:45]
thank you to the staff for the marina
[4:32:48]
revitalization plan.
[4:32:51]
again, you all brought
[4:32:54]
this forward
[4:32:57]
and now
[4:32:59]
it looks like we are at least in the
[4:33:00]
beginning stages
[4:33:03]
of having
[4:33:04]
some real conversations about transforming
[4:33:06]
the marina. So again, I can't
[4:33:08]
thank you all enough, this is a heavy
[4:33:09]
lift. The
[4:33:10]
exciting part is the work is really
[4:33:12]
going to start to begin.
[4:33:14]
thank you all for making it happen.
[4:33:18]
>>
[4:33:21]
thank you very much.
[4:33:24]
just a couple of quick
[4:33:27]
shout outs, the pine meadow ribbon
[4:33:29]
cutting ceremony and fourth of july
[4:33:33]
thanks to staff and all of the
[4:33:36]
volunteers who helped
[4:33:39]
make those events successful and possible.
[4:33:41]
very much appreciate that. Another great
[4:33:42]
parade
[4:33:45]
, so thank you very much.
[4:33:48]
and, I did want to
[4:33:51]
also just highlight,
[4:33:54]
for my colleagues and staff in
[4:33:57]
the community, for those of you who
[4:33:58]
may not
[4:34:00]
be aware,
[4:34:03]
safeway/albertsons
[4:34:04]
and kroger have been in negotiations
[4:34:06]
with u of cw including
[4:34:08]
you of cw local five here in martinez.
[4:34:09]
yesterday
[4:34:11]
and informational eating was held
[4:34:15]
at the safeway in pleasant hill.
[4:34:18]
and,
[4:34:21]
so, it is certainly my hope and
[4:34:24]
I know
[4:34:27]
those of you, that the safeway will
[4:34:28]
negotiate
[4:34:29]
in good faith and pay their workers
[4:34:30]
a good living wage. With
[4:34:32]
benefits. I hope that an amicable
[4:34:36]
solution can be reached in the near
[4:34:37]
future
[4:34:39]
to avoid a strike . No
[4:34:42]
doubt we have
[4:34:45]
two locations in our community.
[4:34:47]
will certainly be impacted by that.
[4:34:51]
I definitely
[4:34:53]
do not want to see that happen. I
[4:34:54]
encourage safeway
[4:34:57]
to do
[4:34:59]
their part and do right by their workers.
[4:35:00]
that is really, really important.
[4:35:03]
other than that,
[4:35:05]
I don't have any further updates.
[4:35:08]
one question I did have about an upcoming
[4:35:09]
meeting, it's my understanding
[4:35:12]
the council will be
[4:35:18]
in the meeting, lauren, with the diversity and
[4:35:19]
cultural
[4:35:20]
commission? Is that still on the books?
[4:35:21]
and if so, do you
[4:35:23]
have any information in terms of what
[4:35:24]
that is going to look like?
[4:35:25]
>>
[4:35:27]
yes, so I will look over to eve,
[4:35:29]
jump in if I am miss communicating
[4:35:30]
this. So our joint
[4:35:32]
council and diversity and cultural
[4:35:35]
commission meeting is next thursday,
[4:35:36]
the 24th,
[4:35:39]
at 7:00. 6:00. 6:00.
[4:35:42]
it will be facilitated training
[4:35:48]
and kind of getting
[4:35:50]
to know one another. This is a new
[4:35:51]
commission reporting directly to the
[4:35:54]
council. We are still kind of determining
[4:35:55]
the location because
[4:35:56]
we wanted to have more of a unity
[4:35:57]
center feel,
[4:36:00]
but we unfortunately, the
[4:36:03]
senior center
[4:36:09]
--tbd on location.
[4:36:11]
we might have to stick here. But yeah,
[4:36:12]
it will be a facilitated discussion
[4:36:13]
around
[4:36:15]
the principles of diversity, equity,
[4:36:16]
inclusion and belonging
[4:36:17]
is a new commission really kind of
[4:36:18]
starts to take off from here.
[4:36:19]
>>
[4:36:22]
thank you so much.
[4:36:27]
>> here we are at the end of the evening.
[4:36:28]
we have
[4:36:29]
one person in our audience. Thank
[4:36:31]
you for sticking around.
[4:36:34]
I just wanted to say
[4:36:35]
that tonight I think we did something
[4:36:39]
miraculous. I think that we set the stage
[4:36:44]
for an amazing future for martinez.
[4:36:46]
I am proud to be
[4:36:49]
part of
[4:36:50]
this, with all of you, with all the
[4:36:52]
staff. And they just want to
[4:36:53]
thank the staff for your outreach
[4:37:00]
and your dedication to this. It has
[4:37:01]
been
[4:37:02]
quite a journey. And we just started.
[4:37:04]
and so I am looking forward to
[4:37:05]
the adventure. And the journey. I'm
[4:37:07]
very excited about developing
[4:37:09]
our waterfront , both land and sea.
[4:37:13]
very exciting. I also attended
[4:37:16]
the mediterranean festival.
[4:37:18]
I went there late but it was amazing.
[4:37:19]
I actually was
[4:37:21]
dancing late into the evening. It
[4:37:22]
was a lot of
[4:37:25]
fun. It was great. But on a more
[4:37:28]
serious note,
[4:37:29]
I have the honor this evening to close
[4:37:31]
the city council meeting in the
[4:37:33]
memory of harriet bird. I brought
[4:37:34]
with me
[4:37:37]
a picture
[4:37:40]
of harriet, I wanted
[4:37:42]
to put that out there. So people can
[4:37:43]
see her.
[4:37:49]
and I had something prepared, partially
[4:37:50]
from her obituary and partially a
[4:37:52]
little history about
[4:37:55]
harriet bert.
[4:37:57]
she was a longtime martinez resident
[4:38:00]
and integral part of our community.
[4:38:13]
so harriet bert, very proud
[4:38:14]
and active resident of martinez, california,
[4:38:15]
passed away peacefully on may 6, 2025
[4:38:18]
in san antonio, texas, she was 85.
[4:38:19]
she was born
[4:38:21]
in alameda to harold and jean bert,
[4:38:22]
both
[4:38:25]
devoted schoolteachers
[4:38:28]
. Harriet inherited
[4:38:29]
a lifelong passion for education,
[4:38:30]
civic engagement and public service. Harriet
[4:38:37]
began her
[4:38:38]
teaching career in martinez jr. High
[4:38:40]
school in 1962. She was hired
[4:38:42]
by principal john spade, many of us
[4:38:43]
might remember him from junior
[4:38:46]
high, he hired harriet
[4:38:49]
to replace a longtime educator
[4:38:56]
, mary gillespie. And the funny thing
[4:38:58]
is, harriet was a graduate of fresno
[4:38:59]
state university where she roomed
[4:39:00]
with her fellow roommate, sheila,
[4:39:01]
another longtime martinez resident
[4:39:03]
and that was the connection of how she
[4:39:04]
kind of
[4:39:05]
found martinez's to her roommate.
[4:39:15]
and john spade came down and hired
[4:39:16]
her. She spent 16
[4:39:17]
years at the martinez jr. High. A
[4:39:18]
couple years she went to australia
[4:39:19]
and
[4:39:20]
taught. The last 10 years of her teaching
[4:39:22]
she taught u.s. History to many, many
[4:39:25]
of us martisians and a
[4:39:26]
lot of kids remember miss harriet
[4:39:28]
bert. In 1978 she moved
[4:39:30]
into the school administration and
[4:39:31]
she
[4:39:34]
continued to
[4:39:45]
lead the administration with clarity
[4:39:46]
and compassion
[4:39:47]
until 1980. And then she began a new
[4:39:49]
chapter as an educational consultant
[4:39:50]
traveling across
[4:39:51]
the u.s. In canada for 15 years and
[4:39:52]
she taught classroom management and
[4:39:53]
behavioral
[4:39:55]
workshops to fellow educators.
[4:39:58]
harriet also shared her
[4:39:59]
talents as a journalist with the martinez
[4:40:01]
news gazette. Many of us remember
[4:40:02]
we
[4:40:03]
had a newspaper in town called the
[4:40:04]
martinez news gazette. She wrote with
[4:40:05]
sharp insight
[4:40:07]
and wit that was
[4:40:22]
--endeared her
[4:40:23]
to so many in our community. Later
[4:40:24]
in her career harriet brought her
[4:40:25]
intellect and dedication
[4:40:27]
to public service and she served on
[4:40:28]
this city council. She was a
[4:40:29]
city councilmember, planning commission
[4:40:30]
member, she worked with the california
[4:40:31]
public utilities commission and her
[4:40:32]
commitment
[4:40:33]
to improving our community never,
[4:40:34]
never wavered. She was deeply engaged
[4:40:35]
in our community.
[4:40:37]
she was in active member
[4:40:40]
of many civic organizations
[4:40:41]
including the american association
[4:40:42]
of university women, the boys and
[4:40:43]
girls club,
[4:40:58]
the optimist club, the martinez education association,
[4:40:59]
kiwanis, lions club, and the martinez
[4:41:01]
historical society. And that is just to
[4:41:02]
name a
[4:41:03]
few. You can see how active she was
[4:41:04]
in our community. She will
[4:41:05]
be remembered by her incredible intellect,
[4:41:06]
her razor sharp wit, her larger-than-life
[4:41:07]
presence, her lifelong commitment
[4:41:08]
to education, equity and civic life
[4:41:10]
leads a lasting legacy that will continue
[4:41:11]
to
[4:41:13]
inspire generations to come.
[4:41:16]
and we had a celebration and of her
[4:41:17]
life
[4:41:18]
this past sunday and the family has expressed
[4:41:19]
the request
[4:41:21]
instead of flowers that you make a
[4:41:22]
contribution to the
[4:41:28]
martinez historical society or local
[4:41:29]
educational nonprofit
[4:41:30]
in her honor. With that, I want to
[4:41:31]
say thank you to harriet for
[4:41:33]
all that you gave over the years to martinez.
[4:41:37]
and we are closing this meeting in
[4:41:38]
your honor.
[4:41:40]
and in your memory.
[4:41:45]
>> this meeting is adjourned. Thank
[4:41:46]
you so much and have a
[4:41:49]
lovely evening.