The plan – still more of an idea backed by a handful of studies – would continue the transformation of a once-gritty area by creating a new neighborhood full of residences, offices, shops and restaurants, hotels, and entertainment establishments. But opening the area to development would mean major changes to the city’s transportation system and could affect plans for high-speed rail and for extending and electrifying Caltrain.

In addition to demolishing I-280 from 16th Street north and replacing it with an Embarcadero-style boulevard much like the Octavia Boulevard replacement of the Central Freeway, the plan envisions:

– Shrinking – and perhaps eventually eliminating – the Caltrain yard at Fourth and King streets.

– Eliminating the need for deep underpasses beneath a future high-speed rail line, one at 16th Street and one at what will one day be the Mission Bay Boulevard crossing.

— Possibly rerouting the long-planned, but still unfunded, Caltrain extension to the Transbay Transit Center, which would also carry high-speed trains when they arrive in the next decade.

Together, the 20-acre Caltrain rail yard and the massive concrete I-280 structure and right-of-way create a wall that isolates the growing Mission Bay neighborhood from downtown, and is an outmoded and inefficient use of what has become prime real estate, San Francisco officials argue.

‘Something really smart’

“We can do something really smart here,” said Gillian Gillett, Mayor Ed Lee’s transportation policy director and author of a six-page letter that lays out the city’s vision to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the Bay Area’s transportation planning and financing agency.

But not everyone is on board. Caltrain officials are concerned that the city’s plans could stall or even stop plans to electrify the commuter railroad, a decades-long effort that moved close to reality only last summer when the state Legislature and the California High-Speed Rail Authority made it part of the new “blended” high-speed train project that will share the tracks, and gave it $700 million.

“We understand it’s a good thing to do, but we are concerned about the implications if we change” the rail yard, said Marian Lee, director of Caltrain’s modernization project.

High-speed trains are not likely to reach the Peninsula until 2026 at the earliest, but Caltrain wants its rails electrified by 2019. With electric power and lighter trains that can start and stop faster, Caltrain could add service, cut fuel costs and reduce emissions produced by its diesel locomotives. Electrification is a key part of the business plan for the financially struggling rail line.

The trouble is that Caltrain is in the midst of revising an environmental impact report for the electrification project. San Francisco officials want that update to include the possible downsizing or elimination of the Fourth and King rail yards. Caltrain officials fear that expanding the study, especially if it requires development of new train storage areas, would mire the project in red tape and possibly endanger the state funding.

“There is an urgency for Caltrain to get electrification in place with expediency,” said Jayme Ackemann, a Caltrain spokeswoman. “With electrification we significantly reduce our operating costs.”

Shrinking the rail yard could increase Caltrain’s operating costs if it needs to store trains farther from the Fourth and King station and bring them downtown to start service every morning, Ackemann said.

Working together

Caltrain and San Francisco have been squabbling over the environmental report and rail yard plans for months, but agreed recently to work together on a study to determine if there’s a simple way to include the city’s rail yard visions without slowing electrification. The study is expected to take about eight months.

“I think we’ve landed on a way of dealing with this that won’t slow the process,” Caltrain’s Lee said. “At the end of the study, we should have a good idea of all the trade-offs.”

Those trade-offs could include money from the development of the Caltrain yard, which might be used to help pay for the connection to the Transbay Transit Center. And if I-280 and the rail yard were to disappear, it could clear the way for a more direct, quicker and possibly cheaper route to the Transbay center.

“This is a golden opportunity,” said Supervisor Scott Wiener, who represents San Francisco on the regional transportation commission. “The rail yard served its purpose for many years, but it’s no longer the best use for that land.”

Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Razing-I-280-stub-only-part-of-vision-4227940.php

Los Gatos, California (PRWEB) June 26, 2012

Real estate investment firm Pertria of Los Gatos, California, announces their Founder and former President, Helen Pastorino, will undertake a new role as CEO of the firm.

Harry Murray, former Vice President of J. Rockcliff Realtors and Manager of the J. Rockcliff Danville office will fill Pastorino’s role as president, playing an instrumental role in expanding the company while running internal operations. This will leave Pastorino with more time to focus on business development, strategic affiliations and Pertria’s vision for the future.

Regarding the change in her title, Pastorino said: “It is with great pride and pleasure that I transfer the Presidency of this firm to Harry Murray, a very well respected professional within our community. The result of strategic vision and work well done, our growth now demands this ‘rite of passage’ and I look forward to my new role, its challenges, and the continued growth it will bring.”

Since 1975, Pastorino has had major impact on the world of real estate and, consequently, the lives of millions of people throughout Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2004, Pastorino founded Pertria, representing residential and commercial real estate sales, investment analysis and property management strategically aligned with like-minded financial professionals including certified financial planners, tax advisors, insurance specialists and specialized legal counsel.

Pertria recently expanded into the former Zynga Los Gatos office space and is now located at 720 University Avenue, Suite 100, in Los Gatos, California. For more information on Pertria and Helen Pastorino, please visit http://www.pertria.com or call 408-357-7777.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2012/6/prweb9638898.htm

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/Pertria-Real-Estate-Investment-Firm-Announces-3662498.php

New York, NY (PRWEB) June 25, 2012

Blocksy.com, formerly known as Blockhawk.com, a growing New York-area website designed to make it easier and more intuitive for consumers to find homes and apartment rentals in New York’s five boroughs, announces today its official name change and the unveiling of a refined website design at http://www.blocksy.com.

Jason White, one of Blocksy’s Co-Founder explains, “We’re thrilled to announce our new website brand name, Blocksy, because among other things, it’s shorter, easier to pronounce, and more memorable than our previous brand.” White continues that “the Blocksy brand is now much more aligned with our team’s vision of creating the simplest, cleanest, and most consumer-friendly real estate site and brand online.”

In the coming weeks, the company plans to make additional announcements about product and feature extensions, as well as various industry partnerships which it expects will underscore the strength of its brand and the growing traction of Blocksy in the online real estate marketplace.

Launched in late 2011 by White, a serial entrepreneur, along with a handful of entrepreneurs in the technology and real estate industries, Blocksy has grown rapidly into a significant source for New York area real estate information.

In addition to its fresh user interface which is intended to make searching for real estate simpler and less cluttered than other real estate sites, Blocksy imports real estate information and home sale and apartment rental listings multiple times each day. All of which is intended to create the freshest and most up to date informational resource for New York real estate.

The site also offers reports, currently in beta mode, letting consumers and real estate professionals see, in an easy snapshot, information about home sales and apartment rentals in New York City. Reports are also available for each of the five boroughs and hundreds of neighborhoods in NYC.

About Blocksy

Blocksy is a new site that provides the highest quality, cleanest, and fastest method of searching for real estate in the New York area. The site combines listings of townhouses, co-ops, condominiums, rental apartments, and more. Blocksy listings are updated hourly and constitute the most comprehensive and up to date information for New York home buyers and apartment renters online.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2012/6/prweb9630069.htm

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/Growing-Real-Estate-Website-Blocksy-com-Announces-3660635.php

Los Gatos, California (PRWEB) March 29, 2012

Real estate investment firm Pertria of Los Gatos, California, announces the appointment of Harry Murray as President effective February 7, 2012.

Murray, former Vice President of J. Rockcliff Realtors and Manager of the J. Rockcliff Danville office, will play an instrumental role in expanding the company while managing its internal operations. Helen Pastorino, Pertria’s Founder and CEO, will focus on business development, strategic affiliations and Pertria’s vision for the future.

Regarding the new position, Mr. Murray said: “It is rare to receive a second opportunity to work with someone who has maintained the level of integrity and professionalism that Helen has throughout her career and has played such an influential role in the real estate industry. I look forward to working with the exceptional team of professionals she has aligned to produce this highly effective model integrating financial, tax, insurance, legal and real estate services”.

Murray, a San Francisco Bay Area real estate executive of exceptional notoriety, has worked more than 40 years in real estate with over thirty years of holding positions in executive management. Pastorino and Murray worked together at Fox and Carskadon and then went on to build Alain Pinel Realtors into the successful business it is today.

“Harry has built and maintained an astonishing career”, says Pastorino. “He is a true statesman who engages people with the utmost respect, understands the value of relationships and is impeccable in all his dealings. I am incredibly fortunate that he has accepted this position and delight in the idea that we will be working together again”.

As Vice President of J. Rockcliff Realtors, Murray played a pivotal role in the company’s growth. Before joining Rockcliff, he managed the Fox and Carskadon Los Gatos office for over ten years, acted as the Broker of Record for Alain Pinel Realtors for nearly 17 years and was Vice President and Directing Officer at Intero Real Estate Services.

In 2004, Helen Pastorino founded Pertria, representing residential and commercial real estate sales, investment analysis and property management strategically aligned with like-minded financial professionals including certified financial planners, tax advisors, insurance specialists and specialized legal counsel. Pertria recently expanded into the former Zynga Los Gatos office space and is now located at 720 University Avenue, Suite 100, in Los Gatos, California. For more information on Pertria and Helen Pastorino, please visit www.pertria.com or call 408-357-7777.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2012/3/prweb9344172.htm

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2012/03/29/prweb9344172.DTL

But the failure of the statewide marijuana legalization initiative last fall, and subsequent threats from federal prosecutors, derailed the ambitious plan of city leaders to license four giant farms and thus make Oakland the legal cannabis capital of the country. And with the collapse of Oakland’s vision of marijuana supremacy came disaster for Mr. Ebyam.

Mr. Ebyam is now locked in litigation over the $1.25 million sale of one of his growing operations, and another installation has been decimated by a string of suspicious burglaries — a fitting symbol, perhaps, of an industry that could have been.

“The morality tale of Yan’s grows is perhaps the morality tale of the Oakland ordinance,” said James Anthony, a medical marijuana lawyer in Oakland. “The size, the money — it all attracted too much attention.”

Mr. Ebyam, 33, does not fit the profile of the smooth new-wave entrepreneur. He blurts out his thoughts in rapid fire and is highly intelligent but pays little attention to matters like clothing or social cues. During a recent interview at a coffee shop, Mr. Ebyam, a stocky man with short, curly black hair, didn’t want espresso or cappuccino. He ordered milk and cookies.

In terms of background, Mr. Ebyam seems to have been born for his profession. His parents, who gave him his odd name, grew marijuana to put food on the table while raising him in Willits in Mendocino County, he said. But Mr. Ebyam rebelled against his hippie upbringing, seeking his fortune instead in Silicon Valley.

“When we were little, my brother surfed and I played computer games,” Mr. Ebyam recalled.

In his early 20s, he went into the business of buying and selling computer equipment from bankrupt start-ups. His venture ended badly when he was arrested and pleaded guilty to money laundering in the sale of more than $6 million worth of stolen Sun Microsystems servers and Cisco routers. He was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison, where, he said, he became an expert chess and Scrabble player.

Mr. Ebyam showed up in Oakland as the medical marijuana bubble was inflating three years ago. He started small but quickly broadened his ambitions, becoming partners with a Los Angles lawyer named Nathan Hoffman. The plan was to grow marijuana on a large scale and sell it to patients in Los Angeles. (Mr. Ebyam said his mother was “amused” that he had gone into the business.)

Searching for a warehouse, Mr. Ebyam met with Jeff Wilcox, a businessman who had been a leading advocate for the Oakland marijuana farm legislation. Mr. Wilcox said he was not impressed with the business plan but that Mr. Ebyam was memorable.

“He seemed really smart, but he was a little different socially,” Mr. Wilcox recalled. “He was going a mile a minute, and he talked a lot — about everything under the sun.”

Mr. Ebyam eventually struck a deal with the Nurisso family, which boasts four generations of Bay Area plumbers. The Nurissos run Broadway Mechanical-Contractors, an industrial plumbing and metal fabrication company, and have big warehouses around their headquarters in East Oakland.

 Ken Nurisso said the family had decided to lease to a cannabis grower because “there’s never been a harder time for commercial real estate to be leased out.”

Mr. Ebyam’s setup was enormous: a total of 454 grow lights in 16 rooms, according to court documents. Industry experts say that 20 to 40 plants can be grown with one light, and an average marijuana-growing installation in Oakland uses about 10 lights.

zelinson@baycitizen.org

Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/22/us/22bcentrepreneur.html