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San Leandro Council advances Eden Road sale-to-build plan, seeks stronger contractual protections
Summary
Council reviewed a proposal to sell Eden Road to Alco Metals for $1 under conditions that the company build the road to public standards and grant a public utility easement; staff said the purchase-and-sale agreement includes conditions and a minimum pavement-condition index but councilors pressed for explicit timelines and enforceable remedies.
Mayor Mary Gonzales and city staff told the San Leandro City Council on May 19 that the city plans to transfer Eden Road to Alco Metals for $1, contingent on the company building the unpaved road to modern public standards and granting a public utility easement back to the city.
Deputy City Manager Eric Engelbart, who led the staff presentation, described the arrangement as the product of a memorandum of understanding adopted about a year earlier and a purchase-and-sale agreement currently before the council. “The city will be selling the road to Alco Metals for $1,” Engelbart said, while stressing that the transfer carries conditions requiring the private owner to construct fire hydrants, a turnaround for Alameda County Fire, and to maintain the road at a minimum pavement-condition index (PCI).
Why it matters: Eden Road is an unpaved roadway the city acquired in 2004. Staff said a full city-funded build-out could be near $6 million and that, after redevelopment agencies were dissolved, the funding mechanism the city had relied on disappeared. The proposed approach shifts construction cost to the private owner while preserving public access and emergency access through a publicly acquired easement.
What the council pressed for: Multiple council members asked whether the purchase-and-sale agreement contains a firm completion date and “ironclad” remedies if the private party fails to deliver. Engelbart and the project consultant, Diana Kanko, said the PSA requires the applicant to acknowledge readiness to mobilize within 30 days and that escrow conditions must be satisfied before transfer. Staff also said the agreement includes a PCI requirement of “65 or greater” and that most funds to purchase the public-utility easement will come from non-general-fund project accounts.
Council members said those protections should be more explicit. Mayor Gonzales asked for measurable deliverables, specific completion dates and clear consequences for noncompliance, noting that “we have found ourselves in situations…where they have not been good partners.” Several council members said they would expect staff to return with contract language that spells out timelines, measurable milestones and enforceable remedies.
Background and scope: Staff said Eden Road serves a limited user base including industrial properties and abuts Port of Oakland and water pollution control property. The city’s consultant and engineering team said the proposed private construction would include utilities and improve emergency access; in exchange the city would acquire a public-utility easement to guarantee continued access and emergency use.
Next steps: Council discussion produced direction to staff to strengthen the contract language — including clearer start/finish dates, measurable deliverables and remedies — before finalizing the sale and the transfer of the easement. No final sale was recorded as completed at the meeting; council directed staff to return with updated contract language and recommended protections.
