Ground was broken last month for Alameda’s third ferry terminal, the Seaplane Lagoon dock at Alameda Point. A group of builders, Alameda government officials and WETA staff gathered for the ceremony on the southern side of Alameda’s former naval air station. The terminal site, which will include a 400-vehicle parking lot, is expected to be completed next spring. Alameda Mayor Marilyn Ashcraft and Community Development Director Debby Potter also addressed WETA directors early this month, stressing how important ferry service is to the huge new Alameda Point development, which will be adding thousands of jobs and residential units to the area over the next decade. Developers are contributing $10 million toward the ferry terminal’s construction. It is unclear, however, when ferry service will start and how much service there will be. An original plan called for three morning and three evening trips between the site and San Francisco, but the freeze on funds from Regional Measure 3 due to litigation has raised questions about WETA’s ability to finance service at that level while maintaining all the current runs to the two other Alameda docks, the Main Street and Harbor Bay terminals. WETA Board Chair Jody Breckenridge noted that funds may be needed for expansion at Mission Bay in San Francisco and Treasure Island, in addition to Seaplane Lagoon. “There isn’t going to be enough money to fund all three of them,” she said. In light of these concerns, the board is expected to re-examine priorities for capital spending at its October or November meeting.
