Letter From the Executive Director

The Final Reuse Plan for Oakland Army Base is the community's blueprint and vision for redevelopment of the Oakland Army Base. It defines a reuse scenario that meets the City of Oakland's economic development goals and provides for a flexible mix of development options. Adopted by the Governing Body of the Oakland Base Reuse Authority (OBRA) on July 31, 2002, the Final Reuse Plan updates earlier drafts of the Reuse Plan with the final conveyance strategies that resulted from regulatory requirements, while continuing to reflect the commitments to sustainable economic development, job generation, community benefit and Port maritime expansion that formed the basis of the 1998 Draft Final Reuse Plan and the 2001 Amended Draft Final Reuse Plan.

This printing of the Final Reuse Plan describes the conveyance actions that occurred in fall 2002. On September 27, 2002, the Oakland Base Reuse Authority and the Oakland Redevelopment Agency signed the Economic Development Conveyance (EDC) agreement and related documents with the U.S. Department of the Army. On the same date, OBRA and the Redevelopment Agency signed the agreements with the Army and the state Environmental Protection Agency Department of Toxic Substances Control which will guarantee the funding and the program for environmental cleanup at the Army Base. Signing the agreements for a no-cost EDC transfer of 366 acres of the Oakland Army Base and for the Army's funding commitment were critical to ensuring a viable economic development program for the Base. The state agency signed off on a package of complex environmental remediation documents, which will be forwarded to Governor Gray Davis for approval. In order to give the reader a more complete picture of the Oakland Army Base conveyance process, we have included details of these actions.

Now that the critical conveyance and environmental documents have been signed, OBRA is going forward on implementing the conditions of the EDC and beginning planning for the environmental remediation process. We anticipate that development of the Oakland Army Base will mean significant economic growth and job generation for Oakland and the region.

ALIZA GALLO, Executive Director
Oakland Base Reuse Authority
November 18, 2002
Oakland, California