Military

Point Molate

Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Naval Fuel Depot (NFD) Point Molate, California was operationally closed on September 30, 1998. Naval Fuel Depot Point Molate is a former fuel storage facility that was capable of storing more than 40 million gallons of jet fuel and marine diesel fuel. Historically, other fuels have been stored at the depot, including bunker fuel, aviation gasoline, and some gasoline. Fuel was transferred to and from the facility by off-loading and on-loading ships and barges at the depot fuel pier, as well as through the Santa Fe Pacific Pipeline transfer station.

NFD Molate is located on the San Pablo Peninsula, approximately 1.5 miles north of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge in the City of Richmond, California. NFD Point Molate covers approximately 412 acres in the Potrero Hills along the northeastern shore of San Francisco Bay. The San Pablo Peninsula is the land mass between San Pablo Bay and San Francisco Bay. The facility occupies approximately 1.6 miles of shoreline and its property extends into adjacent hillsides up to the top of the San Pablo ridge. Topography ranges from flat, filled areas (reclaimed tidal areas) near the bay to steep, dissected slopes of nearly 500 feet in elevation. The facility is bordered to the north, south, and east by the Chevron Richmond Refinery and to the west by San Francisco Bay.

Fuel storage and transfer operations at the facility ceased in May 1995. NFD Point Molate became a closing base under the BRAC IV program in September 1995, and operational closure of the facility occurred September 1998.

F.E. Jordan Associates, Inc., in a joint venture, provided engineering services for upgrading of facilities at the US Navy fuel depot at Point Molate. The project included design of a new pump station consisting of five electrically-driven centrifugal pumps with a total of 3000 HP and the design of a 2000 S.F. Operations/Administration building from which docking and unloading operations will be directed and monitored. Fuel from tankers will be off loaded to elevated tanks located on the hillside overlooking the docking facility. New piping and an upgrade of the electrical system at the site will be provided in order to accommodate the new pump station facilities.

The proposed action is the disposal of surplus Navy property for subsequent reuse and edevelopment, in accordance with the 1990 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act, and the 1995 Base Closure and Realignment Commission recommendations. A parcel totaling 413 acres (167 hectares) has been declared surplus and is the focus of this DEIS/DEIR.

The DEIS/DEIR evaluates three reuse alternatives, each emphasizing various types of development, e.g., residential, commercial, industrial, open space, recreation, etc. A fourth alternative, no action, assumes no disposal of property and retention of the depot by the Navy in caretaker status. Under the No Action alternative, the site would not be reused or redeveloped. Environmental cleanup would continue and be completed.

The base reuse plan recommended by the Blue Ribbon Advisory Committee, a committee appointed by the Local Redevelopment Authority (LRA), was approved by the Richmond City Council acting as the LRA. It includes the preferred reuse alternative of the City of Richmond and the Navy. This plan, Alternative 2, consists of the following major elements: Commercial uses including retail shops, bed and breakfast establishments, small hotels, conference centers, and office space; industrial uses including manufacturing, sales and distribution businesses, wholesale services, warehousing, data processing, telecommunications, and research and development. No decision on the proposed action will be made until the NEPA process has been completed.