More on the Chevron plant in Richmond

On June 19, the Richmond Planning Commission approved of Chevron's plans to upgrade its refinery, but it attached about 70 provisions to the approval. Both Chevron and its opponents appealed this decision to the City Council, which voted 5-4 yesterday to approve Chevron's plan. The City Council rejected project opponents' demands for a crude cap, which has been a contentious issue for months.

Apparently the CBA proposed for the project also generated some controversy. The last time I posted about this project, the Planning Commission had removed the CBA provisions from the plan, claiming that it was unfair. However, the City Council approved the CBA by a 6-1 vote. This may, in fact, have been a new CBA, since one of the council members claimed that "it first came to public light 20 hours ago."

The CBA, according to news reports, includes:

• $6.8 million for job training and placement;
  
• $11.3 million for public safety;
  
• $6 million for a local health clinic;
  
• $10 million for local nonprofits;
• $5 million for the Bay Trail;
• $14.6 million for alternative energy programs; and
  
• $5 million for environmental mitigation.

The Mayor criticized the CBA because, apparently, the agreement was negotiated between Chevron officials and some city officials, but the full city council and the community at large were not at the table. Looking more like a New York CBA than a California one, opponents argued that the CBA was a "bribe" and "guilt money."

Environmental groups are poised to file a lawsuit to prevent the upgrades from going forward.