County balks at selling land for downtown parking County balks at selling land for downtown parking (July 29, 2005)

Haggerty says ACE station must be moved first
by Jeb Bing

Downtown merchants who are hoping to gain access to more than 300 off-street parking spaces for employees and customers on the old Alameda County Transportation Corridor shouldn't "hold their breath."

That's the advice of Atty. Peter MacDonald, head of the Pleasanton Downtown Association's parking committee, who told PDA members about the ongoing feud between city officials and Alameda County, which owns the corridor.

Even though part of the corridor is already being used for parking between Angela Street and Bernal Avenue, it's county property and could be sold or used for other purposes. It has also been a major bargaining chip for County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, who wants Pleasanton to move its ACE train station off the County Fairgrounds parking lot on Pleasanton Avenue, a location he temporarily approved five years ago.

"I thought I had a handshake agreement that the station would be moved," Haggerty said. "I won't make that kind of agreement with Pleasanton again,"

But with a new mayor, new City Council and new city manager since then, Haggerty has found no one who made the commitment or wants to keep it.

"The whole situation is very disappointing to me," Haggerty said. "When Pleasanton had a deal to acquire the Bernal property from the city of San Francisco, I agreed to a tax sharing agreement that was part of the sale requirement only after I had assurance from Pleasanton that they would move the station off the Fairgrounds parking lot. I learned a valuable lesson in that: get it in writing."

Haggerty noted that the city wants to obtain the transportation corridor as part of its Downtown Specific Plan to add more parking downtown.

"My view is that the relocation of the train station and the acquisition of the corridor go hand in hand, there's a quid pro quo here," Haggerty said,

Despite Haggerty's pleas, however, the City Council, in concert with its commissions and committees that are planning the Bernal property development, wants no part of a train station on the acreage. Nor does the Pleasanton school district, whose representatives have said it might be a safety hazard and certainly a noise distraction for students at Pleasanton Middle School and Hearst Elementary across from where the station would likely be located.

Although the council agreed to include a relocated station in the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) now being prepared for the Bernal property, officials have said unanimously that they don't want to devote public acreage to accommodate the station and the large parking lot that would be required for commuters.

"The council believes that the best site for the ACE station is right where it is and it wouldn't make any sense to move it, said City Manager Nelson Fialho. "The fact is that we have pulled any concept of placing the ACE station on the Bernal property out of any current plans for the site."

Christine Salidivar, the PDA's Executive Director, said the PDA board and representatives from other business organizations, including the Pleasanton Chamber, have scheduled a meeting with Haggerty next month to discuss acquisition of the corridor.

One option under discussion is the construction of a jointly financed multi-story parking garage and train station on the Fairgrounds lot, which would provide ACE riders with a covered station and the Fairgrounds and city with more public parking.

"If we were to cooperate with the Fairgrounds and the county and jointly finance a parking garage, I think everyone's needs could be met and we could turn that station into a permanent facility," Fialho said.

Although the ACE station has been discussed at numerous public meetings in Pleasanton, those who ride the train have been noticeably quiet even though they're the only ACE commuters left without an enclosed station.

"Pleasanton has an obligation to provide a train station to serve those who use it to get to work or to commute to jobs in other cities," Haggerty said. "I don't know of many Pleasanton residents who want those trains to go through Pleasanton without stopping because there's no station there anymore."

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