Alameda Food Bank Construction Threatened by CEQA Lawsuit

Plaintiffs Tod Hickman and Shelby Sheehan are challenging the City of Alameda’s approval of a conditional use permit for the Alameda Food Bank (AFB) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). They argue the City improperly exempted the project from full CEQA review by claiming a Section 15183 Exemption .

AFB Executive Director Teale Harden told the Alameda Post her “biggest fear is that this would result in a lengthy litigation that would result in the Food Bank’s inability to continue our services and that that would impact people who receive food on a weekly basis.”

“We are reaching out to inform our community 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,” the Alameda Food Bank posted to their social sites . The organization is hoping to gain community support at the Tuesday Sept. 17 City Council meeting by encouraging their supporters to show up at 6:45 outside of City Hall on Santa Clara Avenue for a rally.

“The Food Bank, at this point, is really just trying to let the community know what is going on and keep them informed, especially our customers,” Harden told the Post . “We think it’s incredibly important for people who utilize our services to know what is going on and what’s at stake.”

Harden said AFB received a notice of intent to file from one of the plaintiffs and the filing of the lawsuit through the county of Alameda.

“We are very concerned about how this will affect both the timeline and the financials of our project and our ability to complete our project,” she said.

Harden went on to say those who rely on AFB’s main program aren’t the only people who would be affected by a lengthy litigation. “We offer home delivery and curbside pickup,” she said. “We work with AUSD to provide snacks to students. There’s a lot of other programs and individuals who would be impacted by our inability to continue our services.”

When asked if she believes the lawsuit has any validity, Harden said, “We worked incredibly closely with the City of Alameda to follow all of their procedures and guidelines, and we relied heavily on the City to ensure that we met all of those restrictions. The City has been very supportive of the Food Bank. And so, to the best of our knowledge, no, we followed the guidelines as set by the City to the letter.”

Harden is hoping for public support from the City at Tuesday’s Council meeting. “We would love for them to be supportive of our cause and to show the broader community that AFB serves an incredible number of people,” she said.

In a written statement provided to the Alameda Post, Hickman declared that he and Sheehan “fully support the Food Bank” and the intention of their lawsuit is to save AFB “millions of dollars and a multitude of future problems.”

Hickman feels that “the City has deceived the Food Bank and manipulated them away from better building options.” The Building 43 Winery owner cites the location, which he says will be built “illegally on a historic parking lot,” as the reason for the lawsuit, as well as the site’s proximity to two preschools. He argues there is a nearby location better suited for the Food Bank’s needs. The property on West Ranger Avenue was formerly occupied by the Alameda Point Collaborative , a nonprofit providing housing and services for the unhoused.

“This lot will save the Food Bank huge money, provide much better traffic flow, will not steal historic resources from the people of Alameda, and will not endanger our children with excessive traffic directly adjacent to their schools,” said Hickman. “The goal is for the City to abide by the law, which will protect the Food Bank’s interests in the long and short run.”

The Alameda Food Bank has been serving the community as a nonprofit organization since 1977, and currently provides food to over 1,200 families per week. Their food distribution center at Alameda Point allows individuals to obtain the food they need to feed themselves and their families. AFB also provides mobile pantries at Alameda Housing Authority facilities and donations to Alameda organizations serving the unhoused.

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