Alameda Point Site A (Waterfront Town Center)

Alameda, California

Master Plan Architect: BAR Architects
Project Architects: BAR Architects, KTGY Architecture + Planning, DLR Group | Kwan Henmi, BCV Architecture
Landscape Architects: April Philips Design Works, The Guzzardo Partnership

Thompson | Dorfman Partners formed a joint venture with srmErnst, a well-respected local commercial developer, and Madison-Marquette, a national retail development firm, to respond to an RFP to acquire the 68-acre Site A at the former Naval Air Station Alameda. Since the base was identified for closure in 1993, several previous attempts to redevelop it had failed due to the scale and complexity of the project, its extensive infrastructure requirements and issues relating to remediation, rising tides, and increasing construction costs. Upon the selection of this joint venture (known as Alameda Point Partners) in November 2014, it took APP 40-months until construction commenced. During this period, APP negotiated a Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA); revised the Development Plan; designed and entitled architecture for buildings, parks, and ferry terminal; designed, permitted, and priced the infrastructure; and financed the project. This required hundreds of meetings with City officials, staff, related agencies, and the community to gain technical input and political support. Additionally, five parcel sales were closed simultaneously to fund infrastructure improvements after the principals of Thompson | Dorfman transferred their interests in APP to Trammell Crow Residential.

Located on the Bay with stunning views of San Francisco and the surrounding area, Alameda Point Site A is a $1 billion mixed-use, transit-oriented waterfront development at the gateway of the former Base. The 68-acre Site A urban master plan is a public/private venture with the City of Alameda and includes 17-city blocks containing:

  • 800 units in a variety of for-sale and rental housing in townhome and higher-density configurations of which 25% is affordable;
  • Up to 500,000 square feet of commercial, maker, and resident-serving retail space;
  • A new ferry terminal and ferry service to San Francisco at the project’s “front door”;
  • A full-service hotel; and
  • 15 acres of public space/parks.

The project includes the replacement of backbone infrastructure to support the development including off-site improvements to the water, sewer, storm, and electrical systems as well as raising the site to address sea-level rise.

To reduce dependence on automobiles, the new ferry terminal and service to San Francisco is the highlight of a robust Transit Demand Management plan, which also includes a new Bus Rapid Transit line run by AC Transit, a new jitney service to BART, and bike- and car-sharing programs to create last-mile solutions – all of which are targeted to be operational in late-2020.