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A milestone in turning the former Alameda Naval Air Station into a place for homes and businesses is set for May 23, when a groundbreaking will take place at a key spot in the redevelopment.

The event at what city officials call “Site A” — the future neighborhood that will include a new ferry terminal to serve commuters traveling across San Francisco Bay — will happen between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. The groundbreaking comes in the wake of the City Council taking a final step in March toward allowing Alameda Point Partners to move forward with its $500 million project and letting the team of developers secure financing and take needed steps to get infrastructure built.

The 68-acre project calls for 800 apartments, town homes and condominiums. The plan also calls for up to 600,000 square feet of commercial space at the former naval base, now known as Alameda Point. Along with housing and commercial space, the project commits about $2.5 million toward rehabilitating and leasing an existing 100,000-square-foot building for light industrial and specialty manufacturing.