DeHaan espouses proactive budgets

Friday, September 24, 2004 By Susan Fuller, Alameda Journal

Doug deHaan, 63, has served on many boards and commissions, particularly those related to base closure and reuse, and is currently chair of the city Economic Development Commission. An Encinal High School graduate, he has a bachelor's degree in public administration from the University of San Francisco. His professional experience is in operations, both for the Navy and private industry.

What do you think about what the city's done on work/live lofts? Should there be more work/live?

Work/live has its place to utilize worthy existing industrial buildings. It's worth coming back to (the ordinance) and look at it. Should it have come to the voters as a change to Measure A? That's still a questionable thing.

Hopefully we can tune it and it can be a working ordinance.

Do you want retail at FISC? Why or why not.

What matters is what kind of retail will be there. A 550,000-square-foot regional shopping center could be problematical, bringing a lot of off-Island traffic and causing concerns for South Shore and our ability to build out Alameda Point. I would want to be sure all our other retail opportunities are in process so we can assess where we're at and whether retail at FISC will work.

Rosenblum Cellars and the (Main Street) ferry terminal would be good uses there. Additional housing will have an impact on housing at Alameda Point. There could be some retail but not a major center. We need to revitalize the waterfront; it's so valuable.

What do you think about the budget cutting decisions the council made? What else would you have supported?

We should have acted a year and a half ago, when we knew major cuts were coming. We can't wait until annual reviews. I find it concerning that some departments weren't touched. We have to look at operations in general, for example, the two separate City Halls.

If the 911 fee is viable and legal, then we need to look at it. We need to set up an internal task force to look at all of the budget. Consultants aren't a healthy idea.

Should the city continue helping the schools financially?

The school system (paid for) officers in the schools until about five years ago. Schools are in a better financial situation than cities. We should make sure we support each other and that there's a give-and-take.

What would you have advocated for Harbor Island tenants that is different from what the council is doing?

From hindsight, we knew we had a situation, with lots of police activity, Section 8 termination and code violations that weren't fully enforced.

It was totally within the law for the property owners to do what they did, but it wasn't the most humane way. The injunction is probably proper and may get the landlord to recognize that what they did wasn't fair and ethical.

How would you use the barracks at Alameda Point, considering their historical status, challenging layout and Measure A?

On the officers' quarters, we could put something together for consent decree housing (multiple units exempted from Measure A), senior housing or conversion with kitchenettes.

The enlisted men's quarters were going to be a campus. A portion is being used by companies. A campus would have been ideal.

The core buildings were built well. Other buildings aren't worthy of standing. Adaptive reuse could be done. It takes market demand and a developer with a keen feel for it.

What could the City Council do to break down the real or perceived East-West Alameda divide?

I don't think the City Council can do anything; the City Council should not do anything. The West End is going to be meted out as we develop. A better question would be, "What could you do with the Island/Harbor Bay culture split?"

What actions has the council taken in the past four years that you strongly support or oppose?

I don't support the annual budget, it has to be an ongoing thing.

Eminent domain has its pros and cons. Bridgeside (Center) had to be done and (applying eminent domain to expand Goode Toyota is probably healthy. Taking Gim's, which wasn't in the library plans to start with, wasn't right. The council has to be brave enough to use it and understand the constraints.

There's a lack of being proactive and understanding Alameda Point and its constraints.

The council should have done a moratorium on work/live. Putting a moratorium on cigarette stores was a good decision, but a year ago, before Peet's opened, I would have said it was a waste of money.

Some say the Alameda Theatre is a white elephant, some say it's the key to Park Street's economic success. What is your position?

The community has wanted the theater for 15 or 20 years. I have delivered a promise for the theater and parking. We've got funding in place. With the changes on Park Street, parking is now a real issue.

I want the smallest theater that is viable.

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Last Modified: September 24, 2004

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