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Committee forwards Treasure Island lease extensions to full Board without recommendation amid new radiological findings
Summary
Facing constituent concern and recent Navy reports identifying nine potentially radiologically impacted areas, the committee forwarded six Treasure Island master-lease and cooperative-agreement extensions to the Board without recommendation so the full Board can weigh contamination, cleanup oversight, and liability questions before acting.
The Budget and Finance Committee on Sept. 1 voted to send six Treasure Island items — five master-lease amendments and one cooperative-agreement modification with the U.S. Navy — to the full Board of Supervisors without the committee’s recommendation, after extensive discussion about newly disclosed Navy findings and resident concerns about potential radiological contamination.
Marian Saez and Michael Timeoff of the Treasure Island Development Authority reviewed the set of one-year extensions to existing leases and the cooperative agreement that lets the city provide municipal services on the island. Timeoff acknowledged Navy draft findings noting nine areas "radiologically impacted" (a regulatory term indicating potential for radiological material that merits additional investigation) and said the Navy’s cleanup is being conducted under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) with oversight by the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and radiological/health oversight by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). He said the city has engaged independent environmental engineering consultants and asked CDPH to conduct surveys; CDPH scans of the Boys and Girls Club, daycare center and community housing partners’ facilities showed no radiological contamination in those tested areas and preliminary surface wipes were negative.
Supervisor Kim and Supervisor Avalos emphasized the need to protect residents and keep the Navy accountable for cleanup and said they supported moving the items to the full Board to allow a public hearing and further review. Budget analyst Deborah Newman noted that the requested action is a one-year extension and summarized TIDA revenues (about $7.8 million actual FY11-12; budgeted $8.3 million for FY12-13), with the John Stewart Company providing more than $4 million of housing revenues.
Eric Brooks of the San Francisco Green Party and Our City urged halting the lease extensions and recommended evacuating Treasure Island residents until contamination is fully resolved. TIDA staff and supervisors reiterated plans to schedule on-island public meetings with the Navy and regulators and to continue independent testing and oversight. The committee’s procedural decision to send the items forward without recommendation preserves the city’s ability to continue providing essential services while enabling the full Board to examine contamination, liability and funding questions publicly.
