Politics & Government
Concord To Restart Search For Naval Weapons Station Developer
The city abandoned its agreement with the last developer after being widely criticized by the community.
CONCORD, CA — Will the third time be the charm or strike three?
The Concord City Council will once again consider how to go about selecting a master developer for the former Concord Naval Weapons Station at its meeting Tuesday.
The council will consider staff's proposed draft request for qualifications (RFQ) from potential developers and likely formally authorize release of the RFQ, pending any changes the council may make.
Find out what's happening in Concordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The council voted 3-2 in January to reject the city's term sheet with Seeno Homes-owned Concord First Partners (CFP) to develop one of the largest redevelopment projects in Bay Area history.
It was the city's second failed attempt to come to a final agreement with a chosen master developer for the site. The city's deal with Lennar Five Point collapsed in March 2020 when it couldn't come to agreements with local labor unions, which was one of the city's conditions.
Find out what's happening in Concordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The city's exclusive negotiating agreement with Seeno expired Jan. 31.
Development of the 5,046-acre site on the city's northeast side has been the city's biggest issue since the Navy abandoned it in 1999. The Navy officially designated it as surplus and made Concord the area's local reuse authority, of which 2,300 acres are targeted for 13,000 units of housing and millions of square feet of commercial space.
The site will also be home to a new 2,540-acre East Bay Regional Park, named Thurgood Marshall Regional Park - Home of the Port Chicago 50, commemorating the nearby Port Chicago tragedy during World War II.
The city abandoned its agreement with Seeno after being widely criticized by the community. Among the points of contention between the city and the developer were CFP's requests to amend the agreement to give them early property rights and reimbursement of costs should the deal fall through.
The Concord City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the city council chambers at city hall, 1950 Parkside Drive, in Concord. The meeting can be seen virtually at https://bit.ly/3VITKhy.
By Tony Hicks. Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.
