Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Navy claims that the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, must pay $11 million for cleanup of a landfill on Yerba Buena Island near the agency's $6.6 billion Bay Bridge project, according to NBC Bay Area.
- Caltrans officials maintain that the Navy was supposed to clean up the landfill when the state acquired the property in 2011, a transaction that made it possible for the state to start construction on the eastern span of the bridge. The Navy said that since the state took control of the island, the landfill has been used to deposit bridge paint, waste and construction debris, meaning Caltrans should pick up the tab.
- Steve Heminger, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, reportedly said Caltrans would not "pay a dime to clean up the Navy's mess," particularly since the Navy fought the bridge project early on, claiming that the new span would cast a shadow on its historic buildings. This, according to Henninger, caused early delays on the over-budget project.
Dive Insight:
The Navy has made a few deals for property in the last few years. By virtue of its mission, the department has accumulated waterfront sites, which are a dwindling commodity and worth a lot of money to developers.
The former Navy Broadway Complex in San Diego is being converted to $1.5 billion, 3-million-square-foot, eight-block mixed-use waterfront complex with three office buildings totaling 850,000 square feet, including a 29-story high-rise. When complete, the redevelopment will also feature almost 300,000 square feet of luxury retail; a 260-room boutique hotel and an 1,100-room convention hotel; a 2-acre park and a 17-story, 372,000-square-foot building to replace the old Navy headquarters.
Construction of a new Navy headquarters was a condition of the 99-year lease for the property, but lawsuits filed by environmentalists and those who were against the $165 million Navy building's location have hindered progress. However, developer Doug Manchester last month secured financing for the project, which is expected to be complete by mid-2021.
On the other coast in Brooklyn, New York, a former Navy shipyard is now an industrial park, home to a modern manufacturing base. Brooklyn Navy Yard, now owned by New York City, totals 5 million square feet currently, but the nonprofit development company that manages the site announced earlier this year that it was building a $2.5 billion, 5.1 million-square-foot expansion. The three buildings, which will feature manufacturing and creative space, will be built one after the other.
