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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-07-18_cityofsanrafael_23801bf4ccda69b29ef1376617fdd952Page 1 of 2 Esther Beirne From: Carlene McCart Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 1:28 PM To: Esther Beirne Subject: FW: Baseball in San Rafael From: Corey Busch Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2u11 12:51 PNi To: Carlene McCart Subject: Baseball in San Rafael Dear Ms. McCart - As a resident of Marin County for 17 years and as a neighbor of Albert Park, I am very enthusiastic and supportive of the proposal currently under consideration by the City Council to bring professional baseball to our community. I know first hand as an avid baseball fan and as the parent of two youngsters who grew up in Marin, played youth ball, who love the game and who have learned so much from it, that bringing professional baseball to San Rafael would be tremendous for our community. I know you hear a lot about the, economic benefits of bringing baseball to San Rafael, all of which is true, but the tremendous social benefits and the good that baseball can bring to a community and to our children can not be measured or over -stated. I know you also hear from neighbors who think that this proposal will somehow have a negative impact on their neighborhood. But the truth is that Albert Park was built for baseball and the proposal before the Council only utilizes a valuable public park for the purpose for which it was intended. This proposal can only serve to enhance the neighborhood, not hurt it. Besides, having happy kids and great family entertainment nearby is a good thing for the community - not a bad thing. It was my privilege to serve as executive vice president of the San Francisco Giants from 1979 through 1992, and I know first hand how the baseball experience can have a positive impact on young people and their families. I have seen it time and time again. San Rafael is no different than any other community and we need to encourage activities for our kids that keep them out of trouble while at the same time bringing them together with their families. Please approve the proposal to bring professional baseball to Albert Park, San Rafael will be just a little better for all of us if you do. Sincerely, Corey Busch 7/14/2011 Esther Beirne From: Jack Gilbert _.,,,. _.,. , Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011,11:22 HSI To: Distrib- City Clerk Subject: A Baseball proposal We live in Sonoma Co. and were regular attendees at the Crushers games. It was a great addition to the community and was well supported. We would drive to San Rafael to support a new team. We urge your approval of this proposal. It will benefit many people and groups in your community. Jack Gilbert 1 Page 1 of 1 Esther Beirne From: Judi Shaffer �,..._.... , Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 9:31 AM To: Distrib- City Clerk Subject: I'd love to see Minor League Baseball in San Rafael! . It's such a great activity for a community to get to participate in-- good for kids to watch (inspirational), families to go to together-- very, very fun --affordable baseball! Imagine that! I'd love to see this in San Rafael! 7/14/2011 Page 1 of 1 Esther Beirne From: Dana Melnichek on behalf of Al Boro Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 9:46 AM To: Esther Beirne Cc: Carlene McCart; Nancy Mackie Subject: FW: Baseball at Albert Park - YES!!!!! -----Original M ------- From: '�)comcast.net] Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 20116:02 Nisi To: Al Boro; Greg Brockbank; Damon Connolly; Barbara Heller; Marc Levine Subject: Baseball at Albert Park - YES!!!!! I received an inflamatory flyer from GPNA urging me to have my voice heard about the ballpark at Albert Park. I would resounding vote yes. I have never been in a town that has minor league baseball where it is not a bonus. All of us who moved in near Albert Park knew it was a park with a lighted field. I would love see it used as much as possible. If we never do anything that might annoy someone else, nothing will ever happen. This is simply NIMBYism. Lindy Jung 7/14/2011 Page 1 of 1 Esther Beirne From: bob leedy Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 10:03 AM To: Distrib- City Clerk Subject: Baseball R.D. Leedy 07/15/2011 773 Beechnut CT San Rafael, CA I would love to see AA / A ball in San Rafael. Since the Giants and A's charge so much for a game a reasonable ticket to minor league play is extremely attractive. There is much concern for noise and debris plus alcohol at the proposed site. I too would be upset if I lived in the area. My suggestion is to propose the team use McInnes Park. Thank you. 7/14/2011 Page 1 of 1 Esther Beirne From: Richard Carlsen i. — Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 8:30 AM To: Distrib- City Clerk Subject: Albert Park Thumbs up to minor league baseball at Alberts park. Richard and Barbara Carlsen 7/14/2011 Page 1 of 1 Esther Beirne From: Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 8:00 AM To: Distrib- City Clerk Subject: baseball Dear Council, Would love to see baseball at Albert's park. Madelon Montobbio . 7/14/2011 Page I of 2 Esther Beirne From: i Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2011 11:05 PM To: Distrib- City Clerk; Distrib- City Clerk Subject: Fwd: San Rafael City Council - Baseball at Albert Park I would like to see baseball again at Alpert Park. Mary Ellen Trainor -----OriainalFrom: i m> To: Mary Ellen <msbearvly@aol.com> Sent: Wed, Jul 13, 2011 9:03 pm Subject: FW: San Rafael City Council - Baseball at Albert Park ME Maybe you and Ian or anybody else interested can send an email to the City Clerk supporting the program., rg Would like to see minor league (Class A) baseball (like the former Sonoma Crushers/ Redwood Pioneers) played at Albert Park in San Rafael next season? The San Rafael City Council is going to make a decision on Monday night July 18 at 8:00. Let the Council know your position either by being there, or if you can not attend, by sending an email preferably by Friday morning to city.clerk@cityofsanrafae1.org Below is the detail information and web site to the City Staff Report to the Council. Hello, In response to your request for updated information on the proposal for professional baseball at Albert Park, I refer you to the link below. It contains the Staff Report, proposed Agreement and support documents submitted to the City Council for consideration at their next regular meeting on Monday, July 18, 2011. 7/14/2011 Page 2 of 2 Centerfield Partners, LLC submitted a proposal to the City to bring professional baseball to Albert Park Baseball Field and Stadium. This requires an Agreement to be approved by the Council, to specify the improvements that will be made by Centerfield to the existing Stadium, and to manage the operations of the games in the park and its vicinity. The Agreement to be considered by the Council is a multi year, non exclusive contract that includes implementation plans to address parking, traffic, security, service of alcoholic beverages, noise, concessions, community benefits and a site plan. The proposal covers three seasons, with regular season play taking place in late May through the first part of September. The games would be scheduled for up to 45 season dates, with a combination of evenings and weekend day games. This item will be brought before the City Council on July 18th at 8 pm in the City Hall Council Chambers. Support and concerns have been voiced in the community, and all are encouraged to attend the Council meeting. Click here for the staff report, the Agreement, and additional information related to the proposal http•//www cityofsanrafael org/News Section/Professional Baseball Proposed for Albert Park.htm Thank you for your interest in this issue. Carlene McCart, Director San Rafael Community Services 618 B Street San Rafael, CA 94901 tel: 415.485.3340 fax: 415.485.3186 7/14/2011 I am unable to attend the meeting on Monday but I want to make sure that my support comes through here. Baseball at Alberts Park will change the lives of this county in the best way possible. 41, Thank you, Natalie Corsini Natalie Corsini B.A. for Media Studies May 2010 University of California at Berkeley Dear Friends: I am a Gerstle Park resident and unequivocal supporter of baseball at Albert Park. I will be unable to attend the meeting Monday night and am registering my support here. The neighborhood and city will benefit greatly. Studies conducted at Johns Hopkins Medical School have shown that minor league baseball is good for the mind. Thank you. Skip Corsini 215 Bayview Street, Apt. #327 San Rafael CA 94901 415.205.3039 Dear. Ms. McCart, This letter is in full support of bringing professional baseball to San Rafael. I am a San Rafael native. Born at Marin General in 1964, I have lived my whole life in San Rafael (where I still live) and teach at Dominican University. My brother and I both played Little League baseball at Alberts Park. I love San Rafael and am excited to think of how a minor league baseball team would revitalize our towns decaying sense of community. I can think of no better vehicle than America's Pastime to bring the city together, to further enhance our shining image and to boost our local economy. This is a great opportunity; the kind that sets one town apart from the others - and allows her to really stand out. As County seat, overseer of our beloved Mission and the gem of the North Bay, San Rafael is the obvious choice for this project. Please do not let this opportunity pass us by. Please bring professional baseball to Alberts Park in 2012. Sincerely, Stuart Horne Department of Communications Dominican University of California Page 2 of 2 Zip Code 94901 Phone Number 415-460-1875 * E---' !'A,'--ess 1 1. -- * Send email to (select one) Mayor Albert J. Boro * Please enter your questions/ comments below Dear Major and City Councilmembers, I appreciate that you would like to bring business in our lovely city. It is generally a welcome proposition. Unfortunatly having a baseball team in the heart of town will have devastating consequences for those of us in the surrounding neighborhoods. As it currently stands we are already greatly affected by the noise from Davidson school, Albert park and other social and school events. Please take us into consideration when making this decision. It will be an added burden for us. Thank you for listening. Marguerite Borba 7/15/2011 Esther Beirne From: Dana Melnichek on behalf of Al Boro Sent: Friday, July 15, 2011 7:57 AM To: Esther Beirne Subject: FW: Albert Park Development, a Respectful Note of Concern Attachments: FW: Formsite email to Mayor Albert J. Boro 6225117 LLJ FW: Formsite email to Mayor Al... Couple more emails... -----Original Message ----- From: Marina A. Ledin [mailto:marina@aikan.org] Sent: Friday, July 15, 2011 12:19 AM To: Al Boro; Greg Brockbank; Damon Connolly; Barbara Heller; Marc Levine; Nancy Mackle; Carlene McCart Cc: Bob Beyea President GPNA; Samantha Sargent Chair GPNA Parks Committee Subject: Albert Park Development, a Respectful Note of Concern Dear Mayor Boro,Vice Mayor Brockbank, City Manager Mackle, Director of Community Services (and Parks and Rec) McCart, and Council Members Connolly, Heller, and Levine, My name is Marina Ledin. I live at 44 Pleasant Lane in the Gerstle Park Neighborhood. I own my home and have lived there for well over 20 years. Prior to this, growing up, I lived with my parents for 22 years in another home in the Gerstle Park Neighborhood. I went to Laurel Dell Elementary School, Davidson Middle School, and San Rafael High School. I started voting and paying taxes when I turned 18. At this time I would like to register my concern about the plans for Albert Park's conversion to a professional sports facility. I live where I elected to live, knowing all of Marin County's neighborhoods as a former professional Real Estate Appraiser assigned to Marin County by a national savings and loan corporation. The installation of any professional sports venue in any geography brings up sound levels to higher decibel rates. In some cases this is a non issue, such as Industrially Zoned areas. Residential neighborhoods are not zoned for such sound level increases, which in this case would qualify as a "noise disturbance" which is prohibited by law. The accommodation of expected parking increases due to any professional sports facility installation would add to already congested roadways with residential cars parked on right and left hand sides of neighboring residential streets. The addition of any entertainment facility to any area escalates traffic patterns in that vicinity. In underpopulated zones this again is a non issue. However in residential neighborhoods regular traffic increases of any magnitude statistically change the incident rates of both vehicular and pedestrian accidents to all surrounding neighborhoods. This drives property insurance premiums up and property values down. As a former professional Residential Real Estate Appraiser I can assure you that any government certified lending institution would formally 1 document and forecast economic value decreases for "subject property fair market values". This is a highly undesired impact on any homeowner in any affected neighborhood in any area. The choices that you make as public servants always carry consequences. If you approve of this plan I, along with others of like mind will proactively seek your recall through appropriate channels as responsible, voting San Rafael citizens. In closing, I ask all of you -- do you live in such a neighborhood? If you were contemplating purchase of a residential property in our community to be your home of primary occupancy, would you settle down in the vicinity of a Professional Baseball venue? Respectfully Yours, Marina A. Ledin 2 Michael A. Soldavini 20 Taylor Street San Rafael, CA 94901 July 14, 2011 Re: Centerfield Partners LLC Proposal to Bring Professional Baseball to Albert Park Mr, Albert J. Boro, Mayor City of San Rafael 1400 Fifth Avenue San Rafael, CA 94901-1943 Dear Mayor Boro: I have been observing the various machinations of Centerfield Partners, LLC (hereinafter "CP"), with keen interest, as they pertain to the captioned proposal, and I am astounded at what appears to be a cleverly orchestrated series of willful and premeditated actions that have been instigated by CP to intentionally blindside the residents of the Gerstle Park Neighborhood concerning CP's desire to bring professional baseball to Albert Park. CP appears to have gone out of its way to lobby almost every advising body with input to City Hall in order to set the stage for quick approval of an extremely favorable and one-sided Use Agreement that not only includes the ball park itself but the surrounding facilities of the San Rafael Community Center and Lonatese Gardens, while doing their best toavoid meeting directly with the residents of the Gerstle Park neighborhood concerning this project. I am also very concerned by what appears to be the apparent predisposition in favor of the proposal by Ms. Carlene McCart, Community Services Director, the members of the Parks and Recreation Commission Board of Directors, Ms. Katie Korzun, Economic Development Coordinator, and Mr. Robert Epstein, City Attorney and their willingness to provide CP with an inordinate amount of staff support at taxpayer expense in what seems to be a concerted effort to ram the CP proposal through the Public Review process and guarantee final approval of the proposal by City Council, again, all with absolute minimal Gerstle Park neighborhood involvement. For your edification, I am a 58 year native resident of San Rafael who grew up on C and Taylor Streets and played ball at Albert Park long before Safeway, the Community Center, Parkside Children's Center, The Lofts, the San Rafael Corporate Center, or Bocce were even envisioned to have been placed at their current locations. I speak from a perspective that predates your tenure as Mayor by some 39 years. Prior to these developments, the Centerfield proposal would have made some sense; however, in view of the developments which have taken place since my childhood, I can't help but view this proposal as pure and simple folly aimed at giving a select group of individuals "bragging rights" by exploiting the provenance of an historic ball field at the neighborhood's expense. Consequently, I tend to become a little "animated" when I see certain individuals at City Hall favoring adoption of such ludicrous proposals. Hence, this letter appealing to you as Mayor to insert some common sense into this debate. I can respect the individual opinions of certain of my less tenured neighbors and various members of the Council, City departments and advisory committees, and I am not anti -baseball; however, I am loath to understand how anyone could be in favor of this proposal when the potential impact on the Gerstle Park neighborhood is fully appreciated. The numbers below speak for themselves. There is simply no other way to describe it. If this proposal passes, the Gerstle Park neighborhood will be invaded! The area immediately surrounding Albert Park will need to accommodate a nighttime influx of more than 117% of the ENTIRE population of the City of San Rafael duriniz the 4 month playing season, not including several pre -season exhibition games, try -out camps, and post -season games. If this realization doesn't help to put things into perspective for those who don't believe that there will be an impact on the Gerstle Park neighborhood, then I am at a loss to comprehend what will. This statement is not an exaggeration. It is based on numbers provided by CP and the City, and calculated as follows: (1,500 spectators per game)(45 games per season) = 67,500 spectators within a 4 month window The ENTIRE population of San Rafael, per the City website = 57,713 (2010 Census) 67,500 calculates to 117% of 57,713 Add to this the fact that human nature dictates that no one will pay for parking unless they really need to, and you can imagine what will happen to the neighborhood streets when spectators try to find an additional 18,125 places to park. (67,500 spectators) / (2.4 spectators per vehicle) = 18,125 vehicles To place the scope of this proposal into further context, its magnitude and impact on the Gerstle Park neighborhood over a 4 month period is akin to supplanting the Albert Park ball field (present 4 month usage of 33,750 at capacity seating) with any of the following facilities (all capacities approximate): I Kezar Stadium (San Francisco) — 10,000 seats Oakland Coliseum (Oakland) — 63,000 seats California Memorial Stadium (UC Berkeley) 60,500 seats ATT Park (San Francisco) — 42,000 seats Candlestick Park (San Francisco) — 69,000 seats Stanford Stadium (Palo Alto) — 50,000 seats Shoreline Amphitheater (Mountain View) — 22,000 Concord Pavilion (Concord) — 12,500 seats I draw your attention to the fact that Page 106 of the San Rafael General Plan 2020 summarizes the Gerstle Park Neighborhood as: "Gerstle Park is a unique, historic and walkable neighborhood in close proximity to Downtown. It is essentially built -out ... Opportunities should be taken to ... reduce impacts of through - traffic on neighborhood streets, and restore parlunij on neighborhood streets." (Emphasis Added.) With respect to the issue of traffic, it would seem that the Centerfield proposal runs counter to this publicly recognized reality. Regardless of the obviously contrived conclusions provided by members of the Parks and Recreation Commission, Ms. McCart, and Mr. Epstein in support of the CP proposal, the proposal is factually incompatible with the written statements found in the San Rafael General Plan 2020 and the requirements of CEQA. San Rafael does not need to become a "Me Too" City at the expense of its historic neighborhoods. The infrastructure requirements profiled in the CP proposal are more readily accommodated at a site that is less densely populated. Has anyone considered offering CP the McGinnis Park facilities as an alternate location? The parking on neighborhood streets around my home is already committed to several businesses whose workers choke the streets by 9:OOAM, and residents who attempt to find parking for themselves throughout the day and evenings, 7days/week. Taylor Street is constantly being used as a direct connector for traffic between Anderson Drive and D Streets. It is also used as a "Park - N -Ride" lot by several groups who begin to claim their spots by 6:30AM daily. Current weekend and evening events at the Community Center and Albert Park already cause neighbors' driveways to be partially blocked by parked vehicles. My front yard is constantly littered with beer cans, bottles, and debris, not to mention the loud and disorderly stragglers from these events wandering through the neighborhood during early morning hours, the persistent vandalizing of flowers and shrubbery, or occasional vomit and urine that I must cleanup. Adding some 67,500 more individuals and some 18,125 more vehicles to an already mounting problem is nothing short of irresponsible from my perspective. Does the City plan to restrict access to parking and redirect traffic away from the Gerstle Park neighborhood, keeping it on the Lindaro Street side of the park? If so, how will this be accomplished without added expense to the City? How does the SRPD intend to maintain the present safety and security of the neighborhood during and after an event? Evening noise generated by crowds from the current activities at the Albert Park ball field, the San Rafael Community Center, and Bocce courts is already very loud and disturbing to many of us in this quiet neighborhood; however, it is presently somewhat "tolerable", as these activities and related noise are intermittent in nature. Any increase in the amount of activity and noise at these facilities, to the extent being proposed by the CP proposal, dramatically changes the neighborhood dynamic and likewise changes the ensuing noise level from being tolerable to being completely intolerable, and likely a violation of Chapter 18 of the San Rafael Municipal Code, as it pertains to noise. Consequently, it is my opinion that the CP proposal will have a very real and measurable negative impact on the quality of life that we, in the Gerstle Park neighborhood, presently enjoy. Several of us are already talking about the possibility of moving out of the neighborhood, and possibly San Rafael altogether, if this proposal is approved. The recent endorsement of the CP proposal by the San Rafael Chamber of Commerce seems to be rooted more in wishful thinking than in hard fact. This proposal is not an economic stimulus package for the Downtown merchants, as CP would have everyone believe. There are no guarantees that that this proposal will help revitalize the downtown. In fact, recently published reports in the IJ suggest that San Rafael is suffering from gentrification and, in view of the present economic crises that cities, families, and senior residents in particular are facing; I seriously doubt that many residents will have the discretionary funds needed to participate in evenings out on -the -town prior to or after a ball game. Couple this reality with the fact that CP plans to provide concession stands at the Park and I question the incentive for spectators to even want to visit Fourth Street. In my opinion, and contrary to Mr. Epstein's June 21, 2011 response to Mr. Rossi' letter of May 4, 2011, the CP proposal will indeed necessitate a material change in "Operations" at Albert Park that will directly impact the surrounding neighborhood if the facilities are to switch from an occasional use by a maximum crowd of possibly 1,200 spectators, (Davidson School Graduation), to a concentrated use that requires that the facilities accommodate in excess of 67,500 spectators and some 28,125 motor vehicles within a 4 month period. I've heard comments that suggest that the Council has already decided that the Centerfield proposal will simply be grandfathered in under Albert Park's current use plan, regardless of the wishes of the Gerstle Park residents or CEQA requirements. These comments are substantiated by the contents of Mr. Epstein's letter and the fact that various members of the City's staff have actively participated in drafting a Lease Agreement to accommodate CP, even prior to the proposal being presented to City Council for approval. Who authorized City staff to spend tax payer dollars and proceed to draft such an Agreement prior to completion of the requisite public review .process and any subsequerit approval by City Council? This further suggests that City Council is prepared to ignore any ensuing public comment and simply rubberstamp the deal. The draft Use Agreement between the City and CP that is presently published on the City of San Rafael website also gives me great concern, because it appears to provide CP with unprecedented control over more than just the ball field and stadium. It now seems that CP is to have sole discretion over who will be able to use the Community Center and Lonatese Gardens, in addition 0 to the ball field. If this understanding is correct, then I strongly question the Council's motives for allowing the expansion of the original CP proposal to now include these public assets. What right does an out-of-town, private entity have to be given preference for use of these community assets over the residents whose tax dollars paid for these assets in the first place? In view of the above, I am adamantly opposed to the CP proposal and the Terms and Conditions of the Use Agreement, as presently drafted. In my opinion, this deal is not in the best interests of the City as a whole, nor is it in the best interests of the residents of Gerstle Park in particular. I respectfully request that you please vote allainst this proposal. c ae Sorin ""�ac ; Cc: (Via Email) Vice Mayor, Mr. Greg Brockbank Council Member, Mr. Damon Connolly Council Member, Ms. Barbara Heller Council Member, Mr. Marc Levine City Manager, Ms, Nancy Mackle Director of Community Services, Ms, Carlene McCart City Attorney, Mr. Robert Epstein Esther Beirne From: Carlene McCart Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 12:53 PM To: Esther Beirne Subject: FW: Albert Park Commercialization proposal -----Original Message ----- From: Bob Brown Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 12:37 PM To: Carlene McCart Subject: FW: Albert Park Commercialization proposal Foryou... BB P Think of trees before you print please. nrt From: ___ net] Sent: Thursday, July 14, 2011 11:19 AM To: Bob Brown Subject: Albert Park Commercialization proposal Dear Representative R. Brown, I'm outraged by the fast track of the commercialization proposed for Albert Park in San Rafael, CA. After more than two years of researching Marin neighborhoods I've just moved to a San Rafael neighborhood within 2 blocks of this park. I chose this San Rafael neighborhood because of it's quiet neighborhood feeling lending itself to quiet serenity. I've invested thousands of dollars in making this new residence work for me. The commercialization of Albert Park will completely change the atmosphere turning it into a more city -like busy thoroughfare with all the accompanying noise, increased small business, auto and foot traffic, litter, and lowering the safety of the neighborhood. My new home, and all the financial, time and labor that went into creating it, will all be destroyed. Not by a hurricane or flood, buy by those interested in increasing commerce and power for non-residents. I would move out, of course. But, this is entirely unfair and unjust. I've spoken with many neighbors who do not want this intrusion into our lives and our neighborhood. Please stop this commercialization project. It's not what the residents want. We've invested in this area. We deserve this influence in what happens here. Sincerely, Barbara Moore San Rafael, CA 94901 1