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Pittsburg Hillsides

On January 16, 2007, the Pittsburg City Council adopted a general plan amendment to expand the city's sphere of influence. This change is a step toward allowing development of the rugged hills between Pittsburg and Concord. The expansion includes the Faria property, the Montreux property, both owned by the Seeno Company, and the Thomas Ranch property. (See a map here.) At the same time, the City also released a draft ordinance governing hillside development. The public had 30 days to comment on the ordinance. The draft ordinance, called "Hillside Development Standards & Design Guidelines," is available here.

Concord Naval Weapons Station

The City of Concord is planning for the future of the 5,100-acre Concord Naval Weapons Station. Much of the station is relatively pristine open space with rolling hills. Mount Diablo Creek, the last freely flowing creek in Contra Costa County, flows right through the military base. This stream attracts salmon and trout, among many other species. Part of the base is also a good location for transit-oriented development near the BART station. Developing this part of the base while protecting the rest could create a model smart growth community adjacent to protected open space.

Pleasanton Hacienda Business Park

The Hacienda Business Park is an 854-acre development in Pleasanton near the junction of I-680 and I-580, about halfway between San Francisco and Silicon Valley. The park—portions of which are still under construction—offers over 10 million square feet of rentable space and is currently home to some 475 companies that locally employ approximately 19,500 people (with the capacity for an addition 8,500 at build-out). The Hacienda Business Park has potential to brighten and redefine the character of northern Pleasanton. The failure to develop this area in a smart and thoughtful manner would be a grave loss of opportunity for the City and for the greater East Bay community.

Tassajara Valley Urban Limit Line Threat

Voters approved the Contra Costa County Urban Limit Line (ULL) in November 2006, putting Tassajara Valley off-limits to development. However, developers recently proposed a 193-unit housing development outside the ULL on a 770 acres of land east of San Ramon and Danville.

Pittsburg eBART

eBART is a proposed 21-mile BART extension into East Contra Costa County. The proposed extension would operate in the median of Highway 4 and would continue east toward Byron. The City of Pittsburg is developing a Specific Plan for the area surrounding the eBART station. Greenbelt Alliance is working with partners to promote the creation of a compact, walkable neighborhood around the station, with affordable homes, shops, and offices.

Oakley

Oakley is proposing to build on the Hotchkiss Tract, a 2,500-acre island in the San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta. The tract would be mostly submerged at high tide if not for levees around the island. This project would pose a grave risk to the lives and property of its future residents, as well as to the approximately 200 people now living there. The traffic created by the project would also likely result in additional congestion on Highway 4, leading to more traffic and air pollution. The project also poses threats to the Delta ecosystem and drinking water quality for millions of Californians.

Livermore Cemetery

Greenbelt Alliance is working with the Friends of Livermore to oppose the Vineyard Memorial Cemetery, a development proposed in an agricultural district outside Livermore. The proponents of the cemetery claim that the cemetery constitutes “infrastructure” and so should be exempted from Measure D, which protects rural county lands. This claim is patently absurd.

Livermore Downtown Theater

The City of Livermore is planning to build a new theater that will serve as a regional destination. As part of Livermore’s downtown Specific Development Plan process, Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center was chosen in 2004 to create a two-venue performing arts center. This is another component of the Downtown Livermore Revitalization Project. The regional theater, expected to have seating for around 2,000, would attract approximately 300,000 to 400,000 visitors annually.

East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservation Plan

Under the East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Community Conservation Plan, development in a defined area would no longer require permits from state wildlife agencies. Developers would simply pay a mitigation fee to develop in those areas. The fees would then be used to conserve priority wildlife habitat in another defined area. This takes a more concerted approach to planning for development and conservation, gives more certainty to developers, and provides funding for wildlife conservation.  

Urban Limit Line Threats

Recently, developers have made several attempts to break through voter-approved urban limit lines in Contra Costa and Alameda counties and build on protected open space. The voters approved these urban limit lines to define where growth should and should not occur, but now sprawl developers are attempting to use loopholes to build in rural areas outside the lines. Greenbelt Alliance is actively working on several campaigns to defend urban limit lines that protect natural areas and working farms.