Here's a message from the Alameda Food Bank. Please help share this widely:

Dear Neighbors,

I am reaching out to inform you of a significant challenge facing the Alameda Food Bank. Recently, two members of the public have filed a lawsuit to nullify our project approval and halt construction at our new facility located at 677 West Ranger Ave. This legal action, which has been pursued against numerous other approved projects at Alameda Point, focuses on the City's approval process and does not allege misconduct by our organization.

(Above link added to relevant documents from a recent Planning Board packet.)

We have worked closely with City staff throughout this process to ensure our Project adheres to all necessary guidelines, regulatory requirements, and procedures. It is incredibly frustrating and disheartening to face such a threat to our mission. A delay of this magnitude could severely impact our ability to provide essential nutrition to thousands of residents—nearly 9% of our Island neighbors. The potential disruption to our services would be devastating for the community we are dedicated to supporting.

We urgently need your support. Please join us on Tuesday, September 17, at 6:45pm at City Hall ( 2263 Santa Clara Ave) for the scheduled City Council meeting for a rally in support of the Food Bank. Your presence will help demonstrate the strong community backing for our mission.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to contact me. Your support is vital during this challenging time.

Thank you for standing with us.

Warmly,
Teale Harden (she/her)
Executive Director
Alameda Food Bank
Feeding the Island Community since 1977

If I may also make a suggestion: folks seeking to support the Alameda Food Bank at City Hall this coming Tuesday can also utilize the non-agenda public comment period near the start of the meeting to speak directly to Council. Here's where it is on the agenda:

Note that non-agenda public comment is limited to in-person only (thanks to awful comments previously made by "zoombombers"). On all other agenda items, public comment is also accepted via Zoom.

Also note that if Item 4 non-agenda public comment goes longer 15 minutes, any others who haven't yet had a chance to speak will have the opportunity at the very end of the meeting under Item 9). That could be many hours later... which is fine if you have other reasons to be at City Council (like for the Neighborhood Greenways or Aquatic Center agenda items)... but if you only want to speak in support of the Food Bank, it may not be worth your time to stay that long.

As neither the Food Bank nor this lawsuit are on the agenda, City Council members will not be allowed to respond to comments. However, I do believe that 4 of the 5 members will listen very closely and appreciate a strong show of community support for the Food Bank — and against frivolous lawsuits that harm Alamedans.

P.S. for City Council Candidates

Seeing as this coming Tuesday will be the first of the three City Council meetings at which we'll be holding the "Morning Bun opportunity/challenge," the three City Council candidates may wish to consider this as an opportunity to speak in support of this valuable local institution (in addition to Neighborhood Greenways or other regular agenda items). This blog will be ready to publish and share their public comments.