Alameda residents will get to vote on the proposed redevelopment plan for Alameda Point in February after the City Council decided Tuesday to place it on the ballot.

The vote was 3-2, with Councilmembers Lena Tam and Marie Gilmore opposing the February date, saying that having a special election was too expensive and that the council should put the plan on the June 8 general election instead.

Tam called it "unconscionable" to hold the election Feb. 2, especially in light of the city having to "brownout" fire stations and make other cuts to save money.

But Mayor Beverly Johnson said the city needed to hold the election in February because the initiative contains both a charter amendment and an ordinance, citing City Attorney Teresa Highsmith's analysis of the election law.

Both Johnson and Councilman Frank Matarrese, who also voted for the earlier election date, have come out publicly against the ballot initiative by developer SunCal companies for the former Navy base.

Gilmore said the February election could cost the city $325,000, while a June election could cost up to $75,000.

"That's a huge difference," said Gilmore, who abstained.

Anne Spanier of the League of Women Voters of Alameda opposed the February election, saying it was too expensive. But Rob Ratto of the Park Street Business Association supported the move, saying he thought city officials did not have a choice, echoing Johnson.

SunCal

must put its redevelopment plan before voters because it does not comply with Measure A, which restricts most housing in the city to single-family residences and duplexes. Unless the plan can sidestep the measure, it's not financially viable, according to the company.

SunCal's mixed-use plan calls for a new ferry terminal, 150 acres of public parks and about 4,500 homes, a number that critics say will cause traffic in the city's West End to skyrocket.

If the project goes ahead, demolition at the former base could start as early as next year. The overall development could be completed by 2025.

The city selected SunCal as the master developer for the 770 acres at Alameda Point — an area that takes up about one-third of the Island — in May 2007. SunCal was one of five developers that submitted proposals.

Among those who support the plan is Doug Siden, Alameda's representative on the East Bay Regional Park District and the chair of Alamedans for Alameda Point Revitalization.

Siden asked the council to go for the June date.

Along with deciding an election date on Tuesday, the council certified the petition that called for placing the initiative on the ballot.

The petition that SunCal turned in to city officials had about 9,618 signatures, well above the approximately 6,335 needed for it to qualify for the ballot. But at least 550 people have since asked for their names to be removed, saying they believed they were misled when they signed it.

"Unfortunately, we don't have a decision on this," Matarrese said about the certification. "This is one of those things we just have to do."