Excerpt:

The two developers picked as finalists to build an 82-acre commercial development at Alameda Point may soon be out of the running after city officials said they will not commit funding infrastructure for the project.

The City Council selected Catellus Development Corp. and the Mission Bay Development Group in September as possible developers and were expected to settle on one of them Tuesday.

But Interim Finance Director Juelle-Ann Boyer and Jennifer Ott, the city's chief operating officer for Alameda Point, are now recommending the council reject both developers. Instead, they are calling for the council to postpone a decision on redeveloping the site for six months.

The redevelopment project at the former Alameda Naval Air Station would have been aimed at a corporation or similar major employer.

"When discussing with staff their unwillingness to commit to upfront infrastructure and land payments, both developers cited the significant challenge in attracting a corporate build-to-suit user to Alameda due to the less desirable location relative to other strong regional locations, such as downtown San Francisco and Mission Bay, the lack of an attractive 'gateway' and amenities for employees, and the high cost of infrastructure," Boyer and Ott said in a background report for the council.