Transit Center May Not Be as Pedestrian-Oriented as Planned

"The future transit center will be part of Hercules Bayfront, a neighborhood within the Waterfront district that is supposed to include more than 1,200 homes, about 80,000 square feet of retail space and roughly the same amount of office space, and more than 130,000 square feet of 'flex space,' which could accommodate a variety of uses."

"Bayfront's developer, AndersonPacific LLC, envisions a multi-modal station 'planned and designed in the context of the existing physical constraints, the built environment and the community's vision for a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly waterfront,' as it stated in a Nov. 9 letter to several public agencies, including three regional transportation-related authorities."

"In AndersonPacific's concept, public parking is spread among several structures, including one on Bayfront's periphery."

"But a consultant brought on board by the city last year, George Szabo and Associates, wants to move the railroad station farther north as part of a complex at the end of John Muir Parkway that would include a convention center and a 385-space parking garage."

"Such a design would put Hercules on the map, not as a pedestrian-oriented 'destination' of restaurants, art galleries and upscale shops but as a regional commuter hub that funnels cars into Bayfront, said Jeff Wisniewski, a resident of the adjacent Baywood neighborhood."