At 31275 Veasy Street in Alvarado, sat a 100
year old brick building that housed a pump that used to pump most
of the water to Southern Alameda County.
The brick pump house and
it's property were bought in 1995 by the Union Sanitary District.
In 1999, the Union Sanitary District made plans to level the
building and replace it with a new fuel station in a new
corporation yard. A 1995 Environmental Impact Report reported
that no buildings of historical significance were found on the
property and plans moved forth the demolish the building.
The oversight on the
brick pump house came to light when the Union Sanitary District
approached the Union City Planning Commission for permission to
demolish the building. The Planning Commission approved the
demolition of the only if the Union Sanitary District would first
study the feasibility of saving the building, and if not
feasible, then to document the building through photographs and
saving samples of historical elements of the building. Myrla
Raymondo was the only dissenting vote. She was pressing for
stronger measures to save the building.
After the study was
done, Steve Hayashi, the District's General Manager, said that it
would cost between $700,000 and $1 million to save the building.
"The cost to preserve the building was unreasonable",
said Hayishi. The District will spend $15,000 to document the
building. It will hold on to the material for 1 year, or until
the Union City Historical Museum finds a location.
After permission to
demolish the building was given by the Planning Commission,
Alameda County Planning Commissioner Audrey LePell, Alameda
County Historical Society Board member Jacqueline Beggs and her
husband, Vern Beggs, created the group "Save Alvarado
Pumping Station (SAPS)" in a last ditch effort to save the
building. The group accused the Union Sanitary District of
violating the California Environmental Quality Act. SAPS had even
hired a lawyer to assist their cause.
In response the SAPS,
Steve Hayashi said "Our board would not have moved ahead if
they felt we were not in compliance with all the laws."
In April 1999, the brick
pumping house was demolished. |
