Questions surrounding use of beloved East Bay venue remain

RICHMOND - A deal to bring the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond back under city control failed, leaving more questions about the future of the historic venue.

The development firm that’s operated the Craneway Pavilion for more than two decades wanted to donate the property back to the city along with $80,000, but councilmembers voted 3-4 against accepting that agreement because the city would then be on the hook for more than $12 million in deferred maintenance.

"I see us as holding a $12 million bomb that's either going to explode tonight or in the future but we're still holding it," Mayor Eduardo Martinez said during an April 21 council meeting.

Former City Attorney Dave Aleshire, who resigned in 2025 but was contracted to complete the Craneway Pavilion deal, spent months negotiating with Orton Development, the site leaseholder.

The venue is just one part of the historic Ford Assembly Plant, which was used during World War II to build nearly 50,000 war vehicles before being abandoned in 1976. It was damaged during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and red-tagged in 2000.

Orton Development purchased the Ford Assembly Plant in 2004.

However, as a site under public trust, the Craneway Pavilion portion of the property was not sold but instead leased to Orton Development under a $1 a year lease for 55 years. An evergreen clause renewed the lease for another 55 years each passing year. The Ford Assembly Plant was sold to Madison Capital in 2024 but Orton Development’s lease of the Craneway Pavilion remained active.

Millions of dollars have gone toward renovating the property, including about $20 million of city funding. Under Orton Development’s management, the Craneway Pavilion became a go-to spot for Rosie the Riveter events, craft shows, Fourth of July celebrations, and other festivities.

That was until Orton Development leased the venue to a pickleball operator in 2023. A legal dispute between the development firm and business is ongoing after the pickleball club shuttered in the summer of 2025. The site has sat empty ever since.

According to Aleshire, Orton Development Founder Eddie Orton wanted the property to go back to the city because he knew people were unhappy with the pickleball use and wanted community events to return.

“He initially chose the city because he believed the city in the long term could make the best use of the facility,” Aleshire said. “With all the work put into the place, he said he was attached to it and he wanted it to go to the best use possible.”

A representative with Orton Development did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Councilmembers were largely in agreement the deal was a bad one. Where they diverged was on whether they should bite the bullet and take over management now, so that public access could be made available or delay action until the city is in a better position for what legal battles may come over what could be an illegal contract.

If the agreement wasn't approved, Aleshire said Orton Development planned to donate the lease to a different nonprofit organization which had plans to use the site for marine uses.

Those who voted in favor of moving on the agreement now were Martinez and councilmembers Claudia Jimenez and Sue Wilson.

Wilson, whose district covers the Craneway Pavilion, said the public is eager to see the site reopened for events and argued that the $12 million cost to take back the site would be split over a 10-year period.

"I'm not excited about taking on this liability either but it's coming to us. It's either going to come to us right now … or it’s going to sit empty or full of ropes for a couple of years," Wilson said.

Vice Mayor Doria Robinson and councilmembers Cesar Zepeda, Soheila Bana and Jamelia Brown were opposed to the agreement.

Arguing the city was "being sold a dream at $12 million," Bana said it would be immoral, unethical and incorrect for the city to take on building repairs and maintenance, which she said should have been completed by Orton Development.

The $12 million price tag does not include what the city has spent on legal fees, Bana noted. Aleshire has been paid $105,900 for services related to Craneway Pavilion negotiations between April and September 2025, staff said during the meeting. The city had not yet been billed for legal services provided since then.

Some work on the building would likely need to be addressed imminently, like repairs to windows and the roof, Public Works Director Daniel Chavarria said. Those repairs would probably result in delays for other capital improvement projects, he said.

While the city would be taking on liability of the site, Zepeda noted Orton Development would receive a tax break for donating it.

Robinson recognized what she described as a "profound vision for the marina," but shared doubt now was a good time to take on the responsibility of the Craneway, given the number of city projects already in view and the state of the national economy.

"I more and more believe that this is not the right time to do that when we've been making so much progress on turning things around in the core of the city and getting things done finally," Robinson said. "I keep trying to figure out how this thing could work in this moment and I just can't see it."

What comes next for the Craneway Pavilion is now up to Orton Development. Legal challenges regarding building conditions or lease provisions will be up for the city to consider.

"We definitely pushed. We didn't just say ‘what do you feel like paying?'” Aleshire said. “We tried to get more than what's there.”

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This story was originally published April 27, 2026 at 4:28 PM.