New details have been released for one of the largest projects in the region, a several-thousand-unit mixed-housing expansion across the former Concord Naval Weapons Station in Concord, the largest city in Contra Costa County. Details must be released, but the project is expected to create over ten thousand dwelling units over the 2,350-acre property.
Concord Naval Weapons Station site, image via Google Satellite outlined approximately by YIMBY
The City of Concord selected Brookfield to lead the master plan for the development in late August of this year. This is the fourth time over a period of two decades that the city has started the negotiation process with a prospective development team. Most recently, plans with the Concord First Partners joint venture fell through earlier this year after the city rejected the term sheets presented by the team. The city has been pushing for more affordable housing than state requirements and for local labor commitments.
The development is among the largest development proposals on the books in the city, exceeding the roughly 8,000-unit masterplan for Treasure Island across 300 acres. The low-end prediction for around 10,000 units would be smaller than the vision for the 10,672-unit Hunters Point Shipyard masterplan across 693 acres. If Brookfield’s development plan were to match the density of both projects, Concord could construct between 36,200 and 60,000 units across the site.
The site had operated as a Navy military base since 1942 as a major supply hub for the military through the mid-20th century. The 12,660-acre complex became effectively unused by 1999 and was officially closed in 2008.
Concord Naval Weapons Station redevelopment timeline for city council approval, illustration by Brookfield via Bay Area News Group
Brookfield has shared a flow-chart graphic, published by the Bay Area News Group, to illustrate the pathway towards eventual project approval, starting with detailed plans to be published by November 14th. The most substantial first step ahead is the agreement of a term sheet with the city, which Brookfield expects to have ready by January 2024. Final approval is expected by early 2026.
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This will surely be stuck in endless bureaucracy until they finally break ground on a site a fraction of the potential. I hope Concord has some foresight and can build something incredible and transit oriented.
So much potential, so much doubt.
They should also upzone everything between downtown Concord and Hwy 4.
The Concord Naval Weapons Station should be used to provide housing for 25,000 Disabled Veterans. Our VA System is begging for homes for our Disabled Veterans and here we have the US Navy with the ability to decide the future of the property (NOT the City of Concord). The Navy decides the final price to charge for the land – the price that the developers have to pay is an unknown and will be needed for the developer to decide if this project will make sense or not. Not a single person who lives in Concord wants the traffic that another 10,000 homes would bring with the development that is being pushed on them. If you had 25,000 Disabled Veterans, the traffic impact would be minimal – these are NOT commuters. Our President, Vice-President, Governor and/or Congress could jump in at any time to fast-track this to make it happen immediately – and become HEROS to every person in the Military for making a meaningful change to how our Veterans are treated. Using this land to help Disabled Veterans would be a model that other de-commissioned US Military properties can follow. This property is next to Bart and just a few minutes to a large VA Hospital. The City of Concord could also get behind the effort by asking their citizens what plan they support – a simple mail-out ballot would cost less than $20,000 and would give the City Leaders feedback on what is wanted by the people who live in Concord. The City Leaders should honor this and put their support into the results. A mail-out vote could be done in less than 30-days. The need for this type of housing is staggering – the Veterans Administration could also step-up and support this type of use. I could go on for hours about how right this is to turn into homes for Disabled Veterans – every home could be pre-sold before construction is even started.
Traffic impact on willow pass rd & hyw 242 will be devastating. Not sure why new schools aren’t part of the community requirements to minimize the already failed traffic conditions. Helping disabled veterans with housing should definitely be at the top of the list.