Tri-Valley mayors face off Tri-Valley mayors face off (July 30, 2004)

'Love fest' includes disagreements over traffic, growth, airport
by Jeb Bing

Dublin's Mayor Janet Lockhart called last week's Tri-Valley Mayors Summit a "love fest," and for the most part, she was right. There were friendly handshakes, polite introductions and cordiality throughout the hour-long look at the area's future.

That doesn't mean there weren't difference, and, in the end, when many of the more than 200 luncheon guests compared notes, it was clear the cities of Dublin, Livermore, San Ramon and Pleasanton are not heading in the same directions.

Consider housing and traffic congestion, which dominated much of the discussion.

Mayor Tom Pico talked about Pleasanton nearing buildout in terms of future residential construction, with nearly 26,000 of the city's 29,000 voter-approved housing units now built. Mayor Marshall Kamena said that while there's room in Livermore for more business development, housing growth would likely be in higher density units near the downtown. Livermore has land use laws that prohibit new residential developments north of I-580 and in much of the vineyard areas to the south.

But while the Livermore and Pleasanton mayors talked about no-growth to slow residential growth in their cities, Lockhart and Mayor H. Abram Wilson of San Ramon gleefully talked about population and business growth in their cities.

For Wilson, who recalled moving to San Ramon 27 years ago when it wasn't much of a factor in Tri-Valley political considerations, new developments have made his city a key player in recruiting housing and business development.

"Historically, we've been one of the smallest cities in the Tri-Valley," Wilson said. "But thanks to Dougherty Valley, that is changing."

Dougherty Valley will add 10,000 new homes and apartments, with major new roadways, many of them emptying onto already congested I-580, under construction. Disgusted with the lack of response from county and regional transportation agencies, Wilson said San Ramon would "go it alone" in developing public transportation for residents and employees in its business parks.

Lockhart said that Dublin, unlike Pleasanton, which now limits the number of building permits to 350 or less to curb growth, is, in fact, moving aggressively to allow more housing.

"Housing is one of the most important things that we need in the state," she said. "It's almost like the air we breathe. People have to have a place to live and to thrive. Plus, I think that housing can be an incredible benefit to a community with the new people it brings to the city and the opportunities housing development gives us."

"In Dublin, we've issued more than $1 billion in building permits over the last six years," she added. "That growth in both the residential and business sectors will continue. We're a city of 38,300 residents, with a goal to reach our population cap of 55,000-60,000 residents in the next 15 years. There are still many opportunities in our community for both business and new residents."

With regard to traffic, Lockhart again jabbed at Pleasanton and Livermore's efforts to narrow streets and block thoroughfare extensions, such as Stoneridge Drive to El Charro Road.

"We're taking a very different approach," she said. "We know that the people coming through our town are trying to get to their homes. We don't discourage that. In fact, we've adjusted our traffic lights during rush hours to move these drivers comfortably and quickly through our community, and let them get back on the freeway as fast as possible."

"We don't consider cut-through traffic as the enemy," she added. "In fact, there are some added benefits for us in having them. We're noticing that many are stopping in Dublin to do some shopping on their way home, and that's not all bad."

The mayors also took different positions on the proposed expansion of Livermore Airport. Kamena said increased demand requires that the airport lengthen the second of its two runways to accommodate more jet and general aircraft flights. For that reason, he set up an Airport Advisory Commission to review a proposed new Master Plan for the airport that would allow more flights, more hangars and more airport-related businesses in the vacant acreage around the airport.

Lockhart said Dublin would participate in the commission review, but warned that Dublin residents are concerned over possible increases in noise levels from jets and propeller plans flying low over their city.

Pico, whose council has threatened to file a suit to block the airport expansion, asked Kamena to agree to a new environmental impact report on how the proposed expansion would affect Pleasanton. Kamena and airport authorities have said an earlier EIR already contains the same information Pleasanton wants and that a new, costly and time-consuming study is not needed.

Despite the differences, the mayors agreed that the airport as it now operates is an asset to the Tri-Valley, with Pico and Lockhart questioning the need to expand it more. As for San Ramon, whose city lies north of the Livermore Airport flight paths, its mayor stressed its value to the Valley's businesses.

Although disagreeing on housing growth plans and traffic congestion remedies, the mayors shared their support of Proposition 65, the Nov. 2 ballot initiative that would prohibit the state from taking property and other municipal tax revenue away to meet state budget requirements. The proposition was put on the ballot by the California League of Cities.

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