The Concord City Council on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution approving an exclusive agreement to negotiate (EAN) between the city and Brookfield Properties to develop the former Concord Naval Weapons Station project.
The EAN allows for a 120-day initial negotiating period, to allow Brookfield to prepare and propose a term sheet to the city.
The agreement also specifies a 24-month period for the developer to complete a specific plan, environmental impact report, and a disposition and development agreement, all of which must be approved by the city.
The agreement requires Brookfield to reimburse the city $250,000 for costs so far accrued, and as a deposit moving forward.
The city also specified it wants Brookfield to refrain from making or soliciting campaign contributions to candidates for city offices or council members running for other offices. That includes associated political action committees supporting or opposing those candidates during the EAN’s term.
If everything goes as planned, the city will seek the approval of the U.S. Navy – still the property owner – when the 24 months are up.
The council will likely meet Nov. 14 for an update on negotiations, council members said Tuesday.
The city selected Brookfield to be the project’s new master developer in August.
Development of the site has been the city’s biggest issue since the Navy abandoned it in 1999. The city wants to develop the available 2,350 acres into 13,000 units of housing and millions of square feet of commercial space.
About half of the original 5,046-acre site will become a new park in the East Bay Regional Park District named Thurgood Marshall Regional Park – Home of the Port Chicago 50.
Brookfield Properties was the only company to be interviewed by the city to develop the site, after Housing America withdrew its application in August.
The city is requiring the developer to have an executed project labor agreement with Contra Costa County’s Construction and Building Trades Council and be willing to make it available to the public.
This is the third time the city has tried moving forward with a master developer for the former base. A deal with Lennar FivePoint collapsed in March 2020 when Lennar couldn’t reach agreements with local labor unions, one of the city’s conditions.
The city’s agreement with Seeno-owned Concord First Partners fell apart in January when the council rejected CFP’s term sheet after community members widely criticized CFP’s requests to amend the agreement, giving them early property rights and reimbursement of costs should the deal fall through.
20 comments
An agreement to negotiate, great progress!
Correction – Council did not include the company itself or any of its parent or subsidiary companies from making campaign contributions, only specific individuals within the company. So keep an eye out for contributions from the company entities because no one on Council cares about Concord when it comes to getting money for themselves and staff is there to make sure the counclmembers who support everything staff does get money for re-election.
Yep .. just what could go wrong. I trust all of these people about as far as I could throw a piano.
You are incredible at explaining things Hope Johnson. This should be copied and pasted everywhere repeatedly. Interchanging city council all the way up. Every city in every state does this. Every county in every state same. Every state legislature in the republic does this shady activity. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Post…again
When you give an exclusive you get lots of lining for your pockets.Gifts money and wined and dined.
Simpler translation : Hidden payoffs need to be adjusted
Why are we still naming Parks, Freeways, Buildings,Schools etc… after people. I just read the park will be named the Thurgood Marshall Regional Park. That guy is long dead so it’s not for him. He will never know. What is the political agenda?
The same reason NYC is taking down the statues of Washington, Columbus, and Jefferson. All you have to do is look and see who gets elected in this country anymore
It’s supposed to give added respect to those who very sadly and violently lost their lives when the loading docks and just about everything else at Port Chicago blew up. Yes, they got that assignment because they were 1) black, 2) dreadfully un-educated. I have no issues with that reasoning. You could say the same about who worked in auto and glass and brick factories, It is fact.
That it also gives some legitimacy to Bill Clinton’s “my bad” to those who had then refused, In War Time, to do the job they were assigned and being paid to do. That I take issue with. The men fighting on front lines in Europe or in the forests of Austria or on the ships having bombs dropped on them didn’t say “I quit.” How about we name something for a heroic figure without race being the deciding factor!) I’d also be happy to name those hills for the Miwok as the First to Settle here…which has Nothing to Do with their race.
NO EXCUSES,
.
The naming of the EBRPD park in Concord, “Thurgood Marshall Regional Park – Home of the Port Chicago 50” has absolutely nothing to do with those that were killed when the Port Chicago Naval Magazine, in the town of Port Chicago (formerly Bay Point) blew up. It was given the name because Thurgood Marshall represented 50 sailors that refused to load ships with munitions at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo and were charged with mutiny. The EBRPD was supposed to name the park the “Concord Hills Regional Park,” but they named the park “Thurgood Marshall Regional Park – Home of the Port Chicago 50” in 2021, because of pressure due to the 2 years of riots that took place across the country following the death of George Floyd. The choice of the name was convoluted because the land that the EBRPD sits on has absolutely nothing to do with the former Port Chicago Naval Magazine. That land was acquired by the federal government after the explosion and became the Concord Naval Weapons Station.
Concord was home to the Chupcan tribe of Bay Miwok. I also don’t find it very respectful how historical Chupcan Miwok grounds on the former CNWS will be treated.
I feel like we have done this before?
As I said before Brookfield properties is just a group of investors mostly the Chinese Government through banks etc.
Very true Ricardoh. By the way. BMO bank is making a huge advertising splash in the Bay Area. It is NOt your daddy’s BMO bank any longer. IT is now Just as much Chinese Bank as it is Montreal Bank…. But then in good ole’ USA we’ll sell or rent space to just about anybody if the price is right.
I guess the only consolation in all this is if they buy the property, build, and sell they will no longer own it. Just the mortgages. One hell of a crazy world our leaders have gotten us into. Maybe we should all give up and become One Worlders. Just go along to get along.
Read the whole [wiki] slowly and think about it. You think dealing with gangster American builders Lennar or local superganster Seeno was a scary no-go zone?
International Parent Co, Brookfield Corp focuses on 1) direct control investments in real estate, 2) renewable power, 3) infrastructure, 4) credit and private equity. ((That’s a helluvalot of “focus-on”)) The company invests in distressed securities through Oaktree Capital (investers) which it bought in 2019. Brookfield’s headquarters are in Toronto. It also has corporate offices in New York City, London, São Paulo, Mumbai, Shanghai, Dubai, and Sydney.
I’m thinking this was just the ‘first’ albeit subtle bribe we’ll see in this deal. Was this “Exclusive” the price we had to pay to get Brookfield to give up their bid on “renovating” the existing Coast Guard property? A couple on City council just splitting at the seams to turn that entire 50+ acre strip into North Monu-Ghetto Blvd … high rise, low income.
NO EXCUSES,
.
Brookfield has nothing to do with the former USCG housing property, that property is owned by developers out of Las Vegas. Brookfield was previously supposed to develop the North Concord/Martinez BART Station property.
Ooops, You;re correct Black Knight. mia culpa… That’s what I get for not being able to sleep. Do not try to post facts at 3:30 in the morning!!! Multiple build this build that projects swimming in the same pool of sharks. Plus the mess going on in Solano Co. Oy vey! So, Concord voted to exclusive the talks with a Canadian Golieth… who felt perfectly free to just leave BART at the alter without explanation…what could go wrong with our council.
@NO EXCUSES….Those 3:30 am posts can be challenging and the most fun to draft.
I’ve said it before, I will say it again. The PLA at CNWS will keep anything from being built there.
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