Excerpt:

Oaktown Jerk’s Randy Hughes feels lucky to have found commercial kitchen space in an old McDonald’s on the former Naval Air Station where he can produce his artisan beef jerky. But the brevity of his lease for the shared kitchen space is cause for unease.

The former McDonald’s sits at the heart of what city leaders hope will be ground zero for a renaissance at Alameda Point; the search for potential developers who could transform a pair of moldering parcels encompassing 150 acres into homes, shops, offices and more began last week, and development work could begin as soon as 2015. The lease that covers Hughes and two other food businesses that share the space expires at the end of this year, and their future is uncertain, he said.

“It is a nice location, and we do feel very lucky to be here. But we are concerned,” Hughes said, adding: “I speak for probably everyone on this base who has a short-term lease.”