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Grassroots Effort in Alameda to Oppose a Megaplex - City Council Mtg Tues, 7th
In 2001 Mayor Appezatto got advice from other City Mayors telling him that they regret erecting huge parking structures downtown, that they usually aren't necessary, but always pushed for by developers. They told him that parking garage will destroy a City's Civic Center. Do we want a Civic Center where we can walk, stroll, bike and drive when we need to, or one permanently choked in fumes and traffic? Did you know that if erected the 6 level parking garage will be the tallest building downtown? It will taller than the very peak of the Historic Theater! That's right, it will be taller than City Hall too! Way to go, City Council!
Important! To anyone who plans to address the City Council on Tuesday, June 7th.
City Council members are aware that citizens want to address the Council on Tuesday, June 7th regarding the theater project. However, they do not have a theater item on the agenda, meaning that we have to address them under Oral Communications. We have requested that Oral Communications be moved to the front of the meeting. Still, there is a chance that this doesn't happen and we have to wait till the end, so be ready for that.
The Council can hear communications related to the whole theater project its existence, its scale, its financing, etc. They do not make decisions regarding design features the Planning Board does that (June13 meeting). Comments focused on issues the Council has power over will be better received and have more impact. If you plan to speak you need to submit a speaker slip, available in the lobby. It is also a good idea to submit your statement in written form, making it part of the record of the meeting.
Please check this site again for future updates, and thank you for your support!
Click here to view June 7th agenda!
Open letter to Mayor Beverly Johnson
PETITION FOR A MEGAPLEX-FREE ALAMEDA
We, the voting citizens and taxpayers of Alameda oppose the building of a megaplex and six level parking structure next to the Historic Alameda Theater in downtown Alameda. We believe that the original vision of this community of restoring the Alameda Theater has been lost and replaced with a headlong rush to build an over sized megaplex and garage, with a permanent detrimental impact on Alameda's downtown. Such development will create a traffic nightmare, be an eyesore in the heart of our city and destroy Alameda's treasured charm.
We are concerned that sensible alternatives to a megaplex have not been given a fair hearing, and that in allowing the current project to move forward the City Council and Planning Board are not acting in the best interest of Alameda's citizens, nor are they working for the preservation and beauticication of this jewel of the Bay, Alameda.
Therefore, we call for and immediate halt in the development plans, a city wide forum with Mayor, City Council and Planning Board to openly discuss the long-term viability and consequences of a megaplex, and a list of realistic alternatives for a smaller complex involving the existing theater only.
Click here to sign the petition!
The Petition PDF file may be downloaded by anyone who wants to sign it on paper or pass it around. Of course you have to let someone know you have it, in order for the signatures to be counted! Send an email to stopmegaplex [at] yahoo.com to let us know you are circulating a petition. Thank you for being an active supporter!
Click here to download the petition!
Because we are a group that does not yet have funding we must rely on whatever free tools are available to publicize our effort. Many of these tools, like the petition site, are supported by advertising which can get annoying. The site can also fail to load at times if too many people try to access it at once. Please do not get discouraged. Just keep trying and click "No, Thanks" to the pop-ups until you reach the signing page.
The website states in their privacy policy that they do not "sell, share, or rent this information with any other company or individual in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement. From time to time, we may share your information with others on an aggregated basis. We will not share information in such a way that it can be linked to an individual."
"Million Dollar Baby"
Did you know that the City of Alameda is about to spend $25 million of our tax dollars to build a 10 screen megaplex theater and a six level parking garage on Central Avenue and Oak Street right here in Alameda?
The current development plan calls for seven screens in a megaplex building right next to the Historic Alameda Theater, and for three screens in the Historic Alameda Theater ten screens total! Do you think Alameda can support that?
"Analize That!"
The City of Alameda claims that the Megaplex will gross $3.2 million per year and eventually gross $5 million per year!
Did you know that in order to make $3.2 million per year the Megaplex will need to sell 24,000 tickets per month? Did you know that the Megaplex will need to sell 32,000 tickets per month to gross $5 million per year?
In order to gross $3.2 million the megaplex must sell 5,800 tickets per week, or 23,200 people per month. The average customer spends $8.00 for admission and $2.50 at the concession stand creating a per patron amount of $10.50. The formula is applied as: $10.5x5800ticketsx52weeks=$3,166,800.
The City of Alameda website says the population in Alameda is 76,459. According to the Motion Picture Association of America 21% of the general public attend a movie once a month. The monthly movie going population of Alameda is 16,056. Where are 7,000 extra patrons going to come from? And to gross $5 million per year, they'll need 9,000 more!
"Traffic!"
The additional people needed to fill the seats will not come from Alameda. If they come at all, they will zoom through Alameda, and they will create a traffic nightmare. Imagine a movie crowd trying to leave town when the Park Street Bridge is up!
Did you know that the plans call for a wider sidewalk on the Oak Street side, narrowing Oak Street even more? Have you ever waited at the exit of the Longs parking lot for a break in the traffic, even now? Imagine that at the garage entrance and exit one show time after another!
In 2001 Mayor Appezatto got advice from other City Mayors telling him that they regret erecting huge parking structures downtown, that they usually aren't necessary, but always pushed for by developers. They told him that parking garage will destroy a City's Civic Center. Do we want a Civic Center where we can walk, stroll, bike and drive when we need to, or one permanently choked in fumes and traffic?
Did you know that if erected the 6 level parking garage will be the tallest building downtown? It will taller than the very peak of the Historic Theater! That's right, it will be taller than City Hall too! Way to go, City Council!
"Take the Money and Run!"
Did you know that movies only stay in the theater for 3-6 months and that time is shrinking? What are we going to do with a big, ugly, deteriorating building in 5-10 years when the operator files for "bankruptcy" because the Hollywood Industry itself betrays this model by releasing movies to DVD in 4 weeks!
They say a movie theater will boost business on Park Street. In fact, businesses further away from the garage will see few patrons. Even now the City is eliminating parking spaces along Park Street, making it difficult for patrons to park close to their destination.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,157482,00.html
http://www.theage.com.au/news/Film/Can-we-save-Hollywood/2005/05/09/1115584889806.html?oneclick=true
http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2005-05-22-box-office-analysis_x.htm
"The Firm"
Did you know that in order to get the property to build the Megaplex, the City of Alameda is forcibly taking the land through a complex legal process called Eminent Domain? Eminent Domain is for acquiring private land for public projects, not for giving from one private owner to another! The City is about to approve this project without even owning the land for it. That's irreponsible!
Wake up, Alameda! We can stop this and get the original theater and reasonable parking solution if we act now!!!
City Council members are aware that citizens want to address the Council on Tuesday, June 7th regarding the theater project. However, they do not have a theater item on the agenda, meaning that we have to address them under Oral Communications. We have requested that Oral Communications be moved to the front of the meeting. Still, there is a chance that this doesn't happen and we have to wait till the end, so be ready for that.
The Council can hear communications related to the whole theater project its existence, its scale, its financing, etc. They do not make decisions regarding design features the Planning Board does that (June13 meeting). Comments focused on issues the Council has power over will be better received and have more impact. If you plan to speak you need to submit a speaker slip, available in the lobby. It is also a good idea to submit your statement in written form, making it part of the record of the meeting.
Please check this site again for future updates, and thank you for your support!
Click here to view June 7th agenda!
Open letter to Mayor Beverly Johnson
PETITION FOR A MEGAPLEX-FREE ALAMEDA
We, the voting citizens and taxpayers of Alameda oppose the building of a megaplex and six level parking structure next to the Historic Alameda Theater in downtown Alameda. We believe that the original vision of this community of restoring the Alameda Theater has been lost and replaced with a headlong rush to build an over sized megaplex and garage, with a permanent detrimental impact on Alameda's downtown. Such development will create a traffic nightmare, be an eyesore in the heart of our city and destroy Alameda's treasured charm.
We are concerned that sensible alternatives to a megaplex have not been given a fair hearing, and that in allowing the current project to move forward the City Council and Planning Board are not acting in the best interest of Alameda's citizens, nor are they working for the preservation and beauticication of this jewel of the Bay, Alameda.
Therefore, we call for and immediate halt in the development plans, a city wide forum with Mayor, City Council and Planning Board to openly discuss the long-term viability and consequences of a megaplex, and a list of realistic alternatives for a smaller complex involving the existing theater only.
Click here to sign the petition!
The Petition PDF file may be downloaded by anyone who wants to sign it on paper or pass it around. Of course you have to let someone know you have it, in order for the signatures to be counted! Send an email to stopmegaplex [at] yahoo.com to let us know you are circulating a petition. Thank you for being an active supporter!
Click here to download the petition!
Because we are a group that does not yet have funding we must rely on whatever free tools are available to publicize our effort. Many of these tools, like the petition site, are supported by advertising which can get annoying. The site can also fail to load at times if too many people try to access it at once. Please do not get discouraged. Just keep trying and click "No, Thanks" to the pop-ups until you reach the signing page.
The website states in their privacy policy that they do not "sell, share, or rent this information with any other company or individual in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement. From time to time, we may share your information with others on an aggregated basis. We will not share information in such a way that it can be linked to an individual."
"Million Dollar Baby"
Did you know that the City of Alameda is about to spend $25 million of our tax dollars to build a 10 screen megaplex theater and a six level parking garage on Central Avenue and Oak Street right here in Alameda?
The current development plan calls for seven screens in a megaplex building right next to the Historic Alameda Theater, and for three screens in the Historic Alameda Theater ten screens total! Do you think Alameda can support that?
"Analize That!"
The City of Alameda claims that the Megaplex will gross $3.2 million per year and eventually gross $5 million per year!
Did you know that in order to make $3.2 million per year the Megaplex will need to sell 24,000 tickets per month? Did you know that the Megaplex will need to sell 32,000 tickets per month to gross $5 million per year?
In order to gross $3.2 million the megaplex must sell 5,800 tickets per week, or 23,200 people per month. The average customer spends $8.00 for admission and $2.50 at the concession stand creating a per patron amount of $10.50. The formula is applied as: $10.5x5800ticketsx52weeks=$3,166,800.
The City of Alameda website says the population in Alameda is 76,459. According to the Motion Picture Association of America 21% of the general public attend a movie once a month. The monthly movie going population of Alameda is 16,056. Where are 7,000 extra patrons going to come from? And to gross $5 million per year, they'll need 9,000 more!
"Traffic!"
The additional people needed to fill the seats will not come from Alameda. If they come at all, they will zoom through Alameda, and they will create a traffic nightmare. Imagine a movie crowd trying to leave town when the Park Street Bridge is up!
Did you know that the plans call for a wider sidewalk on the Oak Street side, narrowing Oak Street even more? Have you ever waited at the exit of the Longs parking lot for a break in the traffic, even now? Imagine that at the garage entrance and exit one show time after another!
In 2001 Mayor Appezatto got advice from other City Mayors telling him that they regret erecting huge parking structures downtown, that they usually aren't necessary, but always pushed for by developers. They told him that parking garage will destroy a City's Civic Center. Do we want a Civic Center where we can walk, stroll, bike and drive when we need to, or one permanently choked in fumes and traffic?
Did you know that if erected the 6 level parking garage will be the tallest building downtown? It will taller than the very peak of the Historic Theater! That's right, it will be taller than City Hall too! Way to go, City Council!
"Take the Money and Run!"
Did you know that movies only stay in the theater for 3-6 months and that time is shrinking? What are we going to do with a big, ugly, deteriorating building in 5-10 years when the operator files for "bankruptcy" because the Hollywood Industry itself betrays this model by releasing movies to DVD in 4 weeks!
They say a movie theater will boost business on Park Street. In fact, businesses further away from the garage will see few patrons. Even now the City is eliminating parking spaces along Park Street, making it difficult for patrons to park close to their destination.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,157482,00.html
http://www.theage.com.au/news/Film/Can-we-save-Hollywood/2005/05/09/1115584889806.html?oneclick=true
http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2005-05-22-box-office-analysis_x.htm
"The Firm"
Did you know that in order to get the property to build the Megaplex, the City of Alameda is forcibly taking the land through a complex legal process called Eminent Domain? Eminent Domain is for acquiring private land for public projects, not for giving from one private owner to another! The City is about to approve this project without even owning the land for it. That's irreponsible!
Wake up, Alameda! We can stop this and get the original theater and reasonable parking solution if we act now!!!
For more information:
http://www.stopalamedamegaplex.com/
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Arrogance of public officials
Tue, Jun 21, 2005 4:06PM
also see ongoing story
Tue, Jun 21, 2005 3:09PM
Map & Directions to City Hall in Alameda
Mon, Jun 6, 2005 10:14PM
details - please come!
Mon, Jun 6, 2005 10:09PM
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