[0:01] Recording in progress. Okay, , uh, good evening. Welcome
[0:05] to the regularly meeting of the petaluma city council and the petaluma community development
[0:09] successor agency for monday, july 6th, 2026.
[0:13] may we have our roll call, please,
[0:19] al. Present. Kate thompson. Here to
[0:23] carly. Here. Now. Here. Quint,
[0:28] absent rebs. Here, mcdonald here.
[0:32] and we do have a quorum. Perfect. Um, tonight we have a
[0:36] close session, uh, a conference with labor negotiators, and I'd
[0:41] like to invite our assistant city attorney, dylan brady,
[0:45] to announce the closed session. Sure.
[0:50] pursuant to government code section 5 4 9 5 7 0.6,
[0:54] the city representatives will be peggy flynn, city manager. Brian cochrane,
[0:58] assistant city manager. Linda lee, deputy city manager in charles
[1:02] saka from sloan saka are outside counsel. The employee organization
[1:07] is iaff unit seven and unit eight compensation plan. Thank
[1:11] you. Thank you very much. Um, let's, um, look into public
[1:15] comment on the item tonight. And, um, as always,
[1:19] we have public comment available for the closed session.
[1:24] and, um, I'd like to ask our clerk if we've received any prior.
[1:28] we have not received any comments ahead of the meeting. Um, we do have
[1:32] two people on the zoom call, and so I'll read out the instructions.
[1:37] members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker cards to the clerk's
[1:41] desk. Members of the public attending online should raise their virtual hand,
[1:46] and those attending via phone should press darn nine to raise their hand.
[1:50] we will hear in-person comments first. The mayor will call speakers to the podium, and
[1:54] once those have concluded, I'll call upon remote speakers to unmute themselves.
[2:02] we do not have any in-person speaker cards, and I don't see any raised
[2:06] hands. Okay. Thank you. Um, with, with, uh, no
[2:10] speakers and no one moving here and no hands up, we will close public comment
[2:15] on the closed session and we will now adjourn to
[2:19] closed session. We will return to tonight's meeting at 6:00 pm or
[2:23] the conclusion of closed session, whichever comes later. Thank you,
[2:34] mr. Mayor, are we ready to begin? We are ready to begin. Okay. And we are recording.
[2:38] we're already recording. That's fabulous. Uh, good evening
[2:42] and welcome to the regular meeting of the petaluma city council and the petaluma community development
[2:46] successor agency for monday, july 6th, 2026.
[2:52] um, as you know, uh, or may know tonight's meeting marks the return
[2:56] of remote public comments, we'll, once again, be accepting both
[3:01] in person and via zoom. This is in compliance with
[3:05] sb uh, 7 0 7, which was an update to the brown act, california
[3:10] open meeting law. And we're pleased to welcome the opportunity for even broader community
[3:14] participation and make our meetings more accessible to people who can't
[3:19] always join us in person. And we look forward to hearing from a wider range of voices
[3:23] and to the increased engagement this will bring. Because this is a new
[3:27] process. We ask for your patience as staff gets used to the technology
[3:31] and works on refining things. And we know there's interest in rolling out
[3:36] remote, uh, comments to our committees and commissions.
[3:40] and we, uh, we'd like to wait until we've sorted all the bugs out of the council
[3:44] meeting, trying to do this at the same, same time.
[3:49] so as for our regular procedures, if you wish to provide a comment
[3:53] tonight, tonight's agenda, um, and you're joining us in person,
[3:57] uh, please fill out a speaker card, they're located in the hallway, and bring it to our clerk
[4:02] who is right up here in front, as per our new
[4:06] procedures. For those of you participating via zoom, please raise your hand
[4:10] virtually when the item is called. And, uh, those
[4:14] participating over the phone in zoom can raise their hand by pressing star
[4:18] nine. The city clerk will provide these instructions during each
[4:23] public comment period. And, uh, please do not raise your hand
[4:27] right now. Uh, please wait till the item for when
[4:31] we're doing comment occurs. And, um,
[4:37] so, um, also please note we do our meetings in, um,
[4:41] concurrent translation services and, um, in spanish in a
[4:45] variety of other languages. And so to access translations online,
[4:49] please use the link provided in the agenda and to, uh,
[4:54] access the translation in the room, please scan the qr code that's on the wall
[4:58] in the back, uh, to gain access. So
[5:02] with that, may we have our roll call for the evening, please? Yes. Barnacle
[5:07] present. Cater thompson here to carly here.
[5:12] now here. Quint, absent trips here,
[5:17] mcdonald here. We do have a quorum. Thanks, chuck. Thank you.
[5:23] um, let's all rise for a pledge of allegiance,
[5:31] which is two flag of the united states of america, and two
[5:35] republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible,
[5:40] with liberty and justice for all.
[5:50] just prior to this meeting. Um,
[5:54] well, let me, let me go back to, um, let's also have a moment of silence here.
[6:07] thank you. To start our meeting, I look up and down the, uh, dais
[6:11] and, um, and see if any of the council members wish to change the
[6:15] order of any of the business this evening. And, um,
[6:21] I, uh, I note that our workshop is really the largest time consuming,
[6:25] um, on, on the corona station area area. Um, and I suggest
[6:29] that we bring our other shorter items forward. And I'd like, uh, someone
[6:33] to initiate that. I'll make that motion. I'll second.
[6:38] thank you very much. And, um, then,
[6:42] um, let's see. And we, and for, for, uh, second clarity, let's have a roll call vote
[6:46] on, on that. Thank you. Barnacle.
[6:50] aye. Aye. Cater thompson? Yes. Di carly? Yes.
[6:55] now? Yes. Shrives. Yes. Mcdonald?
[6:59] yes. Motion carries unanimously. Thank you. So we'll notice that in
[7:03] the agenda there's a little switch going on there. And, um, we
[7:07] prior, just prior to this, we had a closed session. And I'd like to invite our city
[7:11] attorney to, uh, assistant city attorney to announce any reporter, at least
[7:15] the topic of the conversation. Sure. Nothing to report tonight. Yep.
[7:20] okay. Thank you very much. And, um,
[7:24] one of the, um, fun things we do here, um, my council meetings
[7:29] is we, uh, pay certain respects, uh, and, and, uh,
[7:33] and honors. And this month the proclamation that we have is
[7:37] for our park and recreation month. And it
[7:42] reads national park and recreation month, um,
[7:47] for july, 2026. And I'd like to invite
[7:51] our park and recreation staff to come forward while we, uh, do this,
[8:08] the right day
[8:15] support. Okay. Whereas the
[8:19] city of petaluma recognizes that parks, trails, recreational facilities, playgrounds,
[8:24] open spaces and community programs are essential to the health, wellbeing,
[8:28] and vitality of our community, providing equitable opportunities
[8:32] for people of all ages, abilities, backgrounds to connect, play, learn, and
[8:36] thrive. And whereas since 1985, the national recreation and parks
[8:40] association has celebrated july as national parks and recreation
[8:45] month, recognizing the dedicated professionals, volunteers, and community
[8:49] partners who enriched lives through parks and recreation. And
[8:53] whereas the city of petaluma parks and recreation department serves
[8:57] as a cornerstone of community life by creating welcoming spaces and
[9:01] meaningful experiences that strengthen connections, inspire active
[9:06] and healthy lifestyles, celebrate diversity and foster a deep sense of belonging
[9:10] for all those who call petaluma home. And whereas exceptional
[9:14] stewardship of parks, recreational facilities, natural areas, and public
[9:19] gathering spaces, the department protects and enhances the city's environmental
[9:23] resources while preserving these treasured places for future generations
[9:27] supporting biodiversity, climate resilience, and the health of our local
[9:32] ecosystem. And whereas petaluma parks and recreation brings
[9:36] people together through innovative programs, camps, aquatics, sports
[9:41] arts, cultural celebrations, volunteer opportunities, and community events
[9:45] that encourage lifelong learning, wellness and civic engagement
[9:49] and social connection. And whereas the city of petaluma
[9:53] proudly recognizes the outstanding dedication and creativity and service of
[9:57] its parks and recreation staff, commissioners, volunteers, and community
[10:02] partners and program participants whose collective efforts make petaluma's
[10:06] parks and recreation system a source of pride in one of the community's greatest
[10:10] assets. Now, therefore be it resolved that I, kevin mcdonald, mayor
[10:14] of the city of petaluma, together with all the members of the petaluma city council, do
[10:19] hereby proclaim july, 2026 as national park and
[10:23] recreation month in the city of petaluma and encourage all residents to celebrate
[10:28] by, in joining our parks, uh, participating in our recreation programs,
[10:32] connecting with neighbors, and recognizing the vital role that park and recreation
[10:37] play in creating healthy, inclusive, and thriving community.
[10:41] thank you.
[10:53] thank you. Uh, mayor, council members, vice mayor, city
[10:57] manager and community. I feel incredibly fortunate. Um,
[11:02] again, my name's drew halter. I'm the director of parks and recreation, and I'm fortunate to
[11:06] accept tonight's proclamation on behalf of this incredible team.
[11:10] uh, each july we are joined by, uh, hundreds of other agencies
[11:14] taking a moment to celebrate all things, parks and recreation, um, which
[11:19] recognizes the more than 160,000 full-time, uh,
[11:23] employees and recreation professionals. And over a couple of hundred
[11:27] thousand more seasonal part-time, uh, employees, uh, that,
[11:32] that call this industry their own. Um, you know, these are folks that
[11:36] all show up to maintain our parks, keep our recreation centers open, steward
[11:40] our history and traditions, uh, and, and offer places to create community.
[11:45] so this year's national, um, parks and recreation theme is, is the
[11:49] power of, and we get to fill in the blank, you know,
[11:53] and, and that really is special for us because it really does showcase,
[11:57] um, all the unique ways that parks and recreation creates
[12:01] impact at the local level. Um, you know, for example, the power of
[12:05] play. You know, the power of community, the power of belonging, of connection,
[12:10] of nature, of wellbeing. You know, what has always been fascinating to
[12:14] me about parks and recreation as a core service is just how
[12:19] multifaceted, uh, our days can be and how broad
[12:23] range of activities, parks is in spaces we get to support from one moment
[12:27] to the next. I am biased, um, being
[12:31] in petaluma, but I feel petaluma takes this challenge to the next level.
[12:35] you know, not many parks and recreation agencies can start their day, you know,
[12:40] checking in preda laps, swimmers, and then finish their evening,
[12:44] you know, tucking in livestock at the fair. Um, so
[12:48] while today is certainly a celebration of parks, you know, it's just as much a celebration,
[12:53] you of the incredible, passionate, hardworking professionals like
[12:57] those that are beside me tonight, uh, that show up each and every day to make
[13:01] their community a better place to live and play in. And I want to call
[13:05] it particularly, um, tomorrow marks the 40
[13:09] year anniversary of two city of petaluma employees, jim
[13:14] castle, our parks maintenance supervisor, and ron roski, our parks
[13:18] lead supervisor who started on the day together 40 years ago to
[13:22] tomorrow. Uh, all serving petaluma uniquely in their park
[13:26] system. So this year, definitely a, a special call out to jim, uh, and
[13:30] ron who couldn't be here tonight. 'cause they're, they're putting, um, you know, cream on their knees
[13:34] or something, . But, but, but you know, that just goes to show just
[13:38] kind of the dedication and passion that we have uniquely in petaluma couldn't be prouder of them.
[13:43] so thank you for the team and thank you for everyone. Yeah.
[13:54] and, uh, as they return to their seats, uh, I think council just wants to give a shout out for
[13:58] all the work going on right now in parks, um, having successfully,
[14:02] uh, pulled off another fare for petaluma. That's a big deal. And,
[14:06] um, also having run the fourth, the, uh, uh, fireworks for
[14:11] the fourth. These are big over and above kinds of items that the park and rec
[14:15] department pulls off. So thank you very much.
[14:25] now we move to general public comment and, um, per
[14:30] our regular procedure during general public comment, the public is invited
[14:34] to make comments on items of public interest that are within the city
[14:38] council subject matter jurisdiction, and not listed on the current agenda.
[14:42] public comments are limited up to three minutes per person, and depending on
[14:47] the number of persons wishing to address the council time will be allocated in equal
[14:51] shares totaling no more than 20 minutes per our new
[14:55] procedures. And as a reminder, we will be, um, accepting public
[15:00] comments in person as well as via zoom, uh, as per
[15:04] sb 7 0 7 in person and remote commenters will be granted
[15:09] equal time. So if I have more than 20 people wishing to speak,
[15:13] the first 10 in person and the first 10 remote speakers with
[15:17] raised hands will be accommodated. Zoom tracks the order of
[15:21] the hands that get raised, and we, we will be working from that
[15:25] zoom generated list in order for zoom
[15:29] and in-person participants to know if they are in the first
[15:33] 10 or not. The names of all 10 speakers will be
[15:38] announced. Um, before we start, additional comments will
[15:42] be heard after the last business item of the agenda. And if there are
[15:46] less than 10 of each in-person and online, we will fill
[15:50] from the other pool to get up to our, our 20 speakers for the evening.
[15:56] we will hear in-person comments first, and I will call the speakers to the
[16:00] podium. And once those have concluded, the city clerk will call upon
[16:04] remote speakers to unmute themselves and make their comments.
[16:09] so, um, let's go over to the city clerk to,
[16:13] uh, help us out with this next piece. Yes. Uh, we
[16:17] did receive 23 public comments ahead of the meeting, and those are posted on
[16:22] line. And I also wanted to let the group know that there are
[16:27] nine zoom attendees. Uh, so at this time, I
[16:31] will start a 32nd clock for general public comment. And during these
[16:36] 30 seconds, members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker cards to my desk.
[16:40] members of the public attending online should raise their virtual hand,
[16:44] and those attending via phone should press star nine to raise their hand.
[16:49] speaker request received after this 32nd clock may not be
[16:53] accommodated.
[17:30] so the clerk has advised me that there are, uh, two speaker hands up and
[17:35] I believe she has handed me 18 cards. And, um, my
[17:39] question back was, is that all the cards or you, you have some cards remaining.
[17:43] we have 29 total cards. So I have the rest of the stack, and this will be okay.
[17:47] so if I read your name, you'll be in the period right now.
[17:52] and if you don't hear a name, that means that when we open public comment at the end
[17:56] of the meeting, that will be your name will be called at that point. So
[18:00] the, uh, speakers and the order, um, for tonight's
[18:04] in person will be, uh, calvin antes, uh,
[18:09] joanna arango, renee salvato,
[18:13] gloria mcallister, eric vasquez, kat
[18:17] nrao kirk lot, uh, nazar ahmad,
[18:23] antonio jimenez, uh, alana feldman,
[18:28] eric leland, dennis pokay, jennifer boyle,
[18:33] tina yonkers, mark kimberly, susan
[18:37] hussey, kaitlyn quinn, and hayes, uh,
[18:41] swan hasser. So those are our in-house. And
[18:46] with 20, we'll be setting the clock at 20 minutes to one
[18:50] minute per person for um, cards. And,
[18:55] um, two points. One, one minute goes fast. Um,
[18:59] you know, you'll be shocked how fast it goes, so please try and get right to your point
[19:03] so we can hear you. And then second point is
[19:07] if you have, um, more that you wish to add, you can email it in
[19:11] and it gets to become part of the record that way. So, um, our first
[19:15] speaker, as I noted, was, uh, kavia walta to
[19:19] be followed by joanna arango.
[19:28] hello.
[19:32] hello, uh, my name is calvin. I'm a petaluma resident here with a coalition
[19:36] of other petaluma residents. There's a few of us, as you can see.
[19:41] um, I'm asking you to pass an ordinance for no cooperation with ice immigrations
[19:45] and customs enforcement preventing the use of any city resources for ice
[19:49] unless ordered otherwise by a judicial warrant. Uh, a binding ordinance
[19:53] is the moral, legal and logical next step from the 2025 resolution that this
[19:57] council passed, it would build trust between our immigrant
[20:02] neighbors and the public services intended to serve them. Such an ordinance
[20:06] is constitutionally protected by the 10th amendment, and similar ordinances have been
[20:10] well practiced in many other cities around the country. Let's stand up for our
[20:14] immigrant neighbors and join the other brave jurisdictions around the country who have already taken this
[20:18] step. I believe other members of my team have already provided each of you with a draft
[20:22] of this ordinance, and now I hope you will listen to other members of the community
[20:26] who have similar sentiments. Thank you. Thank you.
[20:34] so, good evening. Um, on a decorum basis, we will say,
[20:38] start, you'll see the clock. Sorry. We're gonna ask no applause to the end, or no
[20:42] cheering or jeering or, or, you know, we'll maintain the quorum so the speakers can have
[20:46] their minute and, and make that point. And so our next speaker is joanna
[20:50] arango, to be followed by renee, uh, al
[20:55] sdos sdo. Si. Thank you. Good evening,
[21:00] everyone. I'm juana arango from oaxaca, mexico,
[21:04] and I'm here with, uh, with alma libre. We
[21:08] are part of sonoma county sanctuary coalition. I've been living in petaluma
[21:12] for 29 years, and I feel very fortunate to be here
[21:17] as a petaluma resident. I want to represent my community. We, as immigrants
[21:21] feel fear to speak up, however, we highly support this
[21:25] new law. I personally support a new law of no collaboration with
[21:29] ice in petaluma, because I will feel safe.
[21:35] I would like to respectfully ask all the members of our city council to please
[21:40] pass this new law so my immigrant community can be
[21:44] protected from ice. You should not
[21:48] say god bless america if you don't care about your neighbor.
[21:53] peace to all. Thank you. Thank you, renee zeto to
[21:57] be followed by gloria mcallister.
[22:02] good evening, renee cevo with the sonoma county sanctuary coalition.
[22:07] due to trump's enforcement practices and repression,
[22:11] there is an entire community in petaluma living
[22:15] in terror and extreme emotional distress. That is why
[22:20] most of them are not here. There's nothing more frightening
[22:24] than being forcibly separated from your family, than
[22:28] potentially being indefinitely incarcerated in, in
[22:33] inhumane conditions. Studies conducted by
[22:37] the immigrant legal resource center, as well as other,
[22:41] uh, well-respected organizations affirm the obvious
[22:46] that immigrants don't feel safe dealing with local officials,
[22:51] especially law enforcement. There is no trust,
[22:56] and that puts everyone in danger when people don't want to
[23:00] report crimes or serve as witnesses to crimes. Thank
[23:04] you very much, gloria mcallister to be followed by eric vasquez.
[23:12] good evening to all of you. My name is gloria
[23:16] mcallister and I have lived in peta since 1990.
[23:20] I'm also a lead coordinator for pet los mutos.
[23:25] it breaks my heart to see our immigrant community
[23:29] grow fearful, so fearful that they feel unsafe
[23:34] participating in their own cultural celebrations. Their
[23:38] children ask why, why can't we go out there to,
[23:42] to enjoy our culture? It's time to help our immigrant
[23:46] community return to their tranquil lives. They deserve peace,
[23:50] they deserve protection. I urge our council members to pass a citywide
[23:55] non cooperation ordinance. Now, important
[23:59] immigrants are low ab their law abiding citizens.
[24:03] they are our neighbors. They are our friends. Les
[24:08] recognize their contribution for making our petaluma
[24:12] much better. Le they deserve kind and fair justice. Thank
[24:16] you eric vasquez, to be followed by kat zaro.
[24:24] good evening, mr. Mayor and council members. My name is eric vasquez, and
[24:29] I stand here today in solidarity with our community, urging you to place
[24:33] a non-cooperation ordinance on our agenda so migrant workers in this
[24:37] city can stop living in fear. If this federal administration
[24:41] has taught us anything, it's that we can no longer afford the niceties
[24:46] in the face of clear threats to our neighbors livelihoods. It was
[24:50] this council just last year that first took up a resolution protecting
[24:55] our immigrant neighbors. Unfortunately, it wasn't unanimous.
[24:59] that hesitation was rooted in the fear that protecting people
[25:03] would be a liability to our funding. Those fears
[25:07] didn't come true. Our county sued the court sided with
[25:11] us, and petaluma still stands. A non-cooperation
[25:15] ordinance takes that hesitation off the table. For good.
[25:20] dozens of cities and counties have already stopped sharing resources with
[25:24] federal administra immigration enforcement. Thank you. Thank you
[25:28] kat nazario to be followed by kirk lot.
[25:32] hi, my name is kat nario and I'm a granddaughter of immigrants, the
[25:36] fought against fascism and imposing force and a threat to our civil liberties and freedoms.
[25:41] this town is riddled with an unjust displacement of first indigenous peoples. And
[25:45] the chinese laborers who built the railroads, shaped the rivers and tended to our land
[25:50] when they were deemed no longer valuable, they were forced out. This isn't a
[25:54] distant past. And in this last year, the leadership acknowledged the hard work of those
[25:58] families and the wrongs of displacement by dedicating a park and erecting a plaque.
[26:02] the immigrants currently in this community is what keeps it going. They grow our food,
[26:07] they create our wine, they make our restaurants, stores, schools and communities run.
[26:12] I know this community will protect them with everything they've got. So whether this council
[26:16] chooses to cooperate with ice or not, the and to be there
[26:20] on the right side of history or the wrong, I know this community will protect them,
[26:24] come hell or high water. Here is the moment to protect this community in real
[26:28] time. Show you've learned from the lessons of the past instead of dedicating a park
[26:32] and a plaque in 50 years down the road. Thank you so much. Thanks. Thank
[26:37] you kirk locke, to be follow.
[26:45] uh, thank you, uh, mayor mcdonald and members of
[26:49] the council. Uh, as you well know, I've been in business here in petaluma
[26:54] for 41 years, starting august of, uh, this month, next month.
[26:59] in that time, we've seen this community grow. We've seen diversity
[27:04] expand. Uh, it wasn't always that that case at
[27:08] one time there were a lot of chinese actually helping to build, um,
[27:12] petaluma, and yet they went away because of the 1882 exclusion
[27:16] laws and anti-chinese sentiments. We don't wanna
[27:21] see that happen again with any other immigrant communities. I think it's
[27:25] our responsibility as citizens of, uh, petaluma to make
[27:29] sure that we fight for our immigrant communities. Immigrants
[27:34] are the ones that built the us. Our 250
[27:38] year anniversary would not happen
[27:42] if it wasn't for immigrants. And they come from all over the world.
[27:46] and we need to continue to inspire future
[27:50] generations. Thank you of immigrants. Come, uh, thank you. Thank and our next speakers,
[27:54] naar ahman, and, uh, to be followed by antonio jimenez.
[28:00] hello, mr. Mayor. Uh, city council members. Um, my
[28:04] name is naar. I graduated casa grande. I went to school
[28:08] in kenworth in the old campus, by the way. And I graduated
[28:13] in mcdowell school where my parents live down the street
[28:17] from where I went to elementary school. So I'm from
[28:21] this community and, uh, I represent a bunch of
[28:25] organizations, uh, the north bay organizing project, jobs of justice, uh,
[28:29] healthcare workers for peace, equality, and community empowerment.
[28:34] I'm a healthcare worker, but most importantly, I represent seven,
[28:40] seven generations. My great-grandmother,
[28:44] my grandmother, my parents, my cousins, and their
[28:49] children. So seven, uh, we're part of this community.
[28:53] and, uh, what, what I'm gonna say is, uh, I'm, I'm really busy
[28:58] and, um, I'm not gonna stand by and watch as,
[29:02] uh, detention centers are being built on top of japanese internment camps
[29:06] being built on top of bureau of land management. Thank
[29:11] you. So, uh, I yield my time to the next person,
[29:16] and antonio jimenez to be followed by elena feldman.
[29:27] good evening, honorable counsel. Tonight I stand before using the alias antonio jimenez.
[29:31] because I'm a child of undocumented ignorance and I feel for the safety of my family. If I
[29:35] were to show my face while I tell my story. I grew up in the ammo administration when
[29:39] even the first black president meant a record number of deportations of my people. I grew
[29:43] up in the california of the early two thousands when undocumented immigrants couldn't hold the driver's
[29:47] license. And myself and my siblings feared every like it might be the last time we ever
[29:52] saw our parents. I grew up feeling inferior in my own country, my birthplace, because
[29:56] I quickly learned that some people deserved more protections because of the color of their skin. It's
[30:00] never been about legality. Speeding is also illegal and might add more recklessly
[30:04] dangerous to others. If the retroactive punishment for speeding 30 years ago was the relinquishing
[30:09] of your fourth amendment rights and being kidnapped and shipped off to a concentration camp, would you willingly
[30:13] accept that? Because you shouldn't have broken the law. My family has been paying their taxes in
[30:17] petaluma for decades, and I'm right there behind them. I urge you to adopt a
[30:21] non-cooperation ordinance and be on the right side of history. Thank you.
[30:26] thank you elena feldman to be followed by eric leland.
[30:36] hello, my name is elana, member of the sonoma county
[30:40] sanctuary coalition. I've been a resident in the petaluma community
[30:44] for more than 22 years. I'm here this evening to speak on
[30:48] behalf of my immigrant community, the hands that harvest the
[30:52] food on our table, the hand that hold those of our sick and
[30:56] our elderly when they're in nursing homes and hospitals. I'm here today because our
[31:01] community is under threat. The very people who sustain us are
[31:05] living in fear. The constant threat of ice, ice, the
[31:09] domestic terrorist organizations spreading across the united states,
[31:13] fueled by hate, corruption, prejudice, and lawlessness continues
[31:17] to grow, attaining new facilities to cage human beings
[31:22] in inhuman conditions, kidnapping our neighbors with no
[31:26] due process, no judicial warrants, hiding their identities
[31:30] behind masks, armed with guns, tear gas, batons, perpetrating
[31:35] violence with no remorse. The whole world is watching. How is this happening?
[31:39] thank you eric leland to be followed by dennis
[31:43] posade. Hi, my name
[31:47] is, uh, eric leland. Um, I served on a, uh, uh,
[31:52] committee for, uh, public safety, uh, in town. And
[31:56] I'm a legal observer trainer. Um, it's, it's important that
[32:00] we all understand that all of us here, everyone in the daes, everyone behind me,
[32:04] um, works together for community safety. Public safety is community safety.
[32:09] we keep each other safe. You may not be aware, but there's literally
[32:13] thousands of people in this community doing various mutual aid and support
[32:18] for, um, each other, uh, in this town on a daily basis, right,
[32:23] because of this crisis. So I urge you to put on the agenda,
[32:27] the non-cooperation ordinance at the soonest possible
[32:31] moment. And for all of you this time, not most
[32:35] of you, but all of you this time to support that ordinance when it comes up.
[32:39] thank you. Thank you dennis
[32:44] ske to be followed by jennifer boyle
[32:49] test. I, okay. Um, thank you for allowing me to speak.
[32:53] um, I'm dennis ske. I amm from petaluma. Um, I,
[32:57] uh, I'm also the grandchild of immigrants.
[33:02] and, um, I, uh, I treasure most of my one grandmother
[33:07] that, um, um, when she sent my dad to school,
[33:11] the first day she got a letter back from the teacher saying, amal can't even
[33:15] write his name. Uh, she sent a note back saying, that's
[33:19] why I'm sending him to school. Probably not quite,
[33:23] uh, spelled right. Um, I was coached all throughout my
[33:27] career, you know, it wasn't like it is now. Uh, but, but, uh, you know, I was told to
[33:32] lie low, don't make waves. Um, and, um, um,
[33:36] do the best you can. Uh, I think that's a slavic thing anyway, uh,
[33:41] but, uh, have, uh, great respect from my grandparents. And I'm pretty sure
[33:45] that none of them were educated. They were so uneducated at that point in time
[33:49] that, uh, that, that someone committed a mistake in the progress. And
[33:53] thank you. Thank you
[34:00] jennifer boyle to be followed by tina yonkers. Good evening
[34:05] mayor. Sea council and staff. Um, diverting a little bit
[34:09] off the topic, but
[34:14] onto, we have experienced for some time
[34:18] now the weaponization from large bad actor equity
[34:22] mobile homeowners against the most vulnerable
[34:27] mobile park residents here in petaluma. The unfair
[34:32] consumer business practices, the imbalance of wealth and weaponizing
[34:36] the fair market increase application, the weaponization of
[34:40] the closure conversion process mandated by state
[34:44] law ab 2 7 82, using the legal systems for
[34:49] frivolous lawsuit, one after the other. And of course, the
[34:53] strategy of bringing down any resident who stands up for
[34:57] their rights must never be rewarded by any city
[35:01] or country. We remind all of the
[35:05] thank you. Thank you, tina yonkers should
[35:10] be followed by mark kimberly.
[35:14] good evening. We remind all those
[35:18] arbitrators resulted in zero rewards once the
[35:22] park opened up their books. Using the mnio
[35:28] standard method of discernment, little woods park owners
[35:33] serve the residents again on july 3rd with
[35:37] a fourth attempted arbitration increase. Does it make sense
[35:41] that three years with this applied attempt to close the
[35:45] park, three appeals to zero awards they received,
[35:50] received in the past three arbitration attempts a new lawsuit against the
[35:54] city, as well as other lawmakers against the city that would attempt
[35:59] their arbitration even take place. These large
[36:03] equity owned owners warned all of us that
[36:07] we do have to keep up with their demands or they will litigate
[36:12] or, or will be forced to submit to their actions. Thank
[36:16] you very much. Thank you, mark kimberly to be followed by susan hussey.
[36:23] mark, are you in the house? He was.
[36:28] okay. Um, susan hussey to be followed by kaitlyn
[36:32] quinn. Susan, are you in the house?
[36:42] are you susan? No. Okay. No. Susan going once,
[36:46] twice. Thank you. Um, caitlin quinn,
[36:50] hello to, to be followed by. Hi, uh, uh, swan haer. Thank
[36:54] you all for the time. I am here. I'm not here speaking for anybody, but I am a school board
[36:58] trustee with petaluma city schools. Y'all, we did this so long ago in petaluma
[37:02] city schools. It's really not that hard. It's pretty straightforward. No one should be cooperating
[37:06] with ice unless there's a judicial warrant. That's just common sense. I fear.
[37:10] um, it's not radical, it's not leftist. Um, I'm also the president of planned
[37:15] parenthood, northern california workers united. We have seen a huge downturn
[37:20] in our patients coming to see us and getting necessary. Healthcare people
[37:24] are terrified. And if this little thing that takes you all 15
[37:28] minutes can make even two people feel safer, isn't that worth it? Yes,
[37:32] it is. So I thank you all for your time and I know you'll do the right thing. At least most
[37:36] of you I have not a lot of faith in a few of you .
[37:41] thank you. I swan hauser.
[37:48] four days ago, the sebastopol chief of police told a concerned
[37:53] resident that ice is law enforcement. If this is accurate,
[37:57] ice should be held to the standards of other law enforcement agencies, but it's
[38:01] not. Instead, lawlessness and contempt for human life
[38:06] appear as standard policy within ice. Brady tillett wrote
[38:10] from the california city detention center that the rule of law does not exist
[38:15] inside detention for me or for the countless others I've met during my
[38:19] time in ice custody. Ice is not law enforcement.
[38:23] the eighth amendment of the constitution protects every prisoner's right to get
[38:28] medical care. Yet again and again, we're faced with direct reports
[38:32] of medical neglect across ice detention facilities. Ice is
[38:36] not law enforcement. I think this council values
[38:41] the law, especially when the law reflects our collective values of inclusion, diversity,
[38:45] and respect for all residents. We are asking this council to place a non-cooperation
[38:49] ordinance on the agenda for action as soon as possible and to adopt it into law. Thank
[38:54] you. Thank you. Okay. At this point, we'll move over to our
[38:58] remote, uh, callers and I'll ask the city clerk to bring in our remote callers.
[39:04] yes. The first speaker will be jennifer k. Please
[39:08] go ahead with your comment. ,
[39:21] I just got the unmute notice, but this is not jennifer k this is darren kuson. So,
[39:26] um, I'll jump into my one minute and get it outta the way. Just following up on the hotel
[39:30] incentive program that was discussed at our last meeting, uh, morgan
[39:34] hill's similar tot rev share incentive program was referenced
[39:39] as kind of a model. And it was interesting digging into that. It was actually a developer
[39:43] partnered with appalachian as the hospitality group that rolled that out
[39:47] in morgan hill. And, you know, if they've brought that idea to petaluma,
[39:52] great, let's assess it. But in morgan hill, they did get hard cost figures.
[39:56] so in that instance, it was mohi was the name of the hotel in morgan hill that
[40:00] needed a rev share agreement. And they got firm cost figures
[40:04] on what the hotel needed, how much gap there was to fill with the tot,
[40:09] uh, rev share agreement. So if we are gonna do the same thing and jump
[40:13] into the, you know, appalachians plan, let's make sure that we demand
[40:18] good cost figures, uh, as well. Thank you.
[40:24] the next speaker is alan w
[40:29] please unmute yourself and make your comment. Hi. Yes, thank you. My
[40:33] name's alan wolves and I'm a lifelong sonoma county resident. I'm requesting
[40:37] that you as soon as possible, agendize and then pass a non-cooperation ordinance
[40:41] with ice against ice. Dozens, if not hundreds of cities and
[40:46] counties in california, including the county of sonoma and santa rosa, have taken
[40:50] this really important step to protect their community members from this lawless fascist
[40:54] organization. I don't need to go over all the systemic abuses
[40:58] that ice has committed against both undocumented and documented residents
[41:02] who they just suspect of being immigrants. We have to do everything
[41:06] in our power to stop this abuse and protect our community members. The
[41:10] trump administration announced four days ago, they're stepping up work site immigration enforcement
[41:15] operations. So the time to do this is right now, please
[41:19] show your community that you care about all of its members. Thank you.
[41:29] and that concludes our online, our zoom participants,
[41:33] and then that closes, uh, general public comment.
[41:38] and, um, with that, that brings it up to council comments. And I think I'm just gonna
[41:42] add a, a little editorial note right here, um,
[41:46] regarding ice out. I, uh, I appreciate you being here.
[41:51] I appreciate the meetings I've had with dennis and the other leaders of, um, the,
[41:55] uh, the effort and, um, and,
[41:59] and, um, clear clearly. Um, one I and I,
[42:03] I look out in the audience, I see many of my friends, um, who I've chatted with about
[42:07] this. And, um, we're all very concerned regarding
[42:11] protections for the immigrant communities in california. I mean, and
[42:15] frankly, for our own basic civil rights. Um,
[42:20] it's a horrible state we're in right now in response to
[42:24] growing concerns about the federal government seeking to entangle states and local
[42:28] agencies and immigration enforcement, um,
[42:32] in ways that do not comport with the law. The state of california legislator
[42:37] has recently enacted an, uh, bill, uh, s sb five
[42:41] 80, which will require california attorney general to, to develop
[42:45] and publish model policies that demonstrate how state and
[42:49] local agencies should interact with immigration enforcement in a manners
[42:54] that are lawful and consistent. And we've been invited to,
[42:58] um, join into that conversation with them. I think this
[43:02] has gotten statewide attention that this needs to happen on a statewide level.
[43:06] and, and that's an important part. Um, I think
[43:10] I it's fair to say, um, you know, we see you, we hear you
[43:16] this, um, past weekend, 4th of july, big opportunity for
[43:20] speech making. The mayor gets to make speech. And I just wanna drop two of the quotes
[43:25] that I used in my 4th of july at our, here in our petaluma
[43:29] historic museums, um, event. One was jesse jackson.
[43:34] america is not a blanket, one piece of unbroken cloth. The same color, the
[43:38] same texture, same size. America is a quilt. Many patches,
[43:42] many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven together and held by
[43:46] a common thread. And the other one that I left with was
[43:51] americanism, is a question of principle of idealism of character.
[43:55] it is not a matter of birthplace or creed or line of descent.
[44:00] that's teddy roosevelt. So, um, I think, uh, I,
[44:04] we hear you. And with that, I'd like to, uh, have council comments. Start with council
[44:08] member cater thompson. Thank you. Um,
[44:13] the mayor and I signed an agreement to, um, put this on, uh, an
[44:17] agenda. And so I'm assuming we're gonna be,
[44:26] we will be moving forward with that. I'm not sure when it's gonna be on the agenda. I'm
[44:30] kind of curious about time timing and maybe we could have a conversation
[44:34] about that. And I think I'm just going to leave
[44:38] that as my comment. I mean, many of us are
[44:43] actually, um, children or grandchildren of immigrants. They came here and they, they
[44:47] left their country for the very same reason why many people left their country
[44:51] because they were, they were not welcomed. And
[44:56] my grandmother came by herself three years later. She went through the siberian
[45:00] rail through japan into seattle, and then to minneapolis
[45:04] where he worked at the shipyards. And then they all moved to
[45:08] petaluma in the early 19 hundreds. Um, immigrants,
[45:13] we've made this country and we wanna continue being part of it.
[45:17] and we don't wanna be separated out. Um, that's who we are.
[45:21] we're in horrible times right now. I mean, even soccer
[45:26] can't be played with the horrible person trying to
[45:30] make the rules . Um, and we can fight this and we need to fight it locally,
[45:35] but we also need to fight it at the state level. 'cause the state needs to get on
[45:39] parity with the cities, um, and start working with us. And another point
[45:43] is I also graduated from kenilworth, the old one,
[45:47] along with you. And, um, let's see, a few other things. Um,
[45:52] the mobile home parks, when people talk, they're being terrorized,
[45:57] um, by these corporations trying to buy up these parks, kicking people
[46:02] out and just taking the land. And so we're
[46:06] all in this together, and we will bring this back soon.
[46:10] um, and I do want to, you know, reiterate that it's important that we do work with the state, see
[46:14] what their language is so we can incorporate that and incorporate our language also in ordinance.
[46:18] thank you. Thank you.
[46:25] decorum, please. Um, councilman barnacle.
[46:30] uh, thank you, uh, mr. Mayor. Thank you everybody in the audience. Um, I hope everybody
[46:34] had a, um, a pleasant long weekend. Um, I appreciate council member cater
[46:38] thompson and the mayor bringing forward a, an ordinance, uh, request or an agenda request item.
[46:42] um, certainly look forward to supporting that. Um, I appreciate, uh,
[46:46] everybody who's here tonight. Um, most importantly, I appreciate all the work you're
[46:50] doing outside of the city hall to keep people safe, make people feel safe as to the extent
[46:55] that you can. Um, and while I'm not always there with you, I'm very
[46:59] much appreciative of you and, um, uh, moved by your story, by the
[47:03] stories I'm hearing and moved by all the work you're doing. So thank you very much.
[47:07] um, on a, my report out from some of my other, uh,
[47:12] committees, um, planning commission met, uh, a couple
[47:16] weeks ago, and we, um, adopted a commercial
[47:20] sort of streamlining pilot for one, one parcel where an owner wanted to,
[47:24] um, basically make it easier to bring in, um, more smaller tenants.
[47:29] um, I think it has, uh, applications for other parcels, uh,
[47:33] throughout the city. Um, so I'm looking forward to seeing how that rolls out.
[47:37] um, and we also, uh, um, adopted
[47:41] a resolution recommending to the council to allow pools and spas at,
[47:45] um, the, uh, the scott ranch
[47:49] property, um, where they're, uh, the 28 units that are there. Basically every
[47:54] other single family home in petaluma is allowed to have pool spas, hot tubs, things
[47:58] like that. But not those 28 for some reason. Um, and then,
[48:02] uh, on sonoma clean power, we opened up the business
[48:06] one stop shop, which, uh, really happy about. Uh, it's, um,
[48:10] up at five 30
[48:15] e street in santa rosa. And this is, um, a loan that the, uh,
[48:19] sonoma clean power made to, um, uh, a group
[48:23] of people, but really led by, uh, he, hector velasquez, the executive
[48:27] director of the hispanic chamber of commerce of sonoma county, to create
[48:32] a one-stop shop, really focused on multicultural, um, business support
[48:36] services. Um, a lot of, um, it's sort of fitting tonight, but a lot of,
[48:40] uh, people who, you know, english is their second language, it's tough to make
[48:44] sense of permit applications and things like that. And this center is basically a
[48:48] place where you get sort of, uh, white glove services with
[48:52] business advising formation, licensing and permits, loan readiness, access
[48:57] to capital marketing and visibility. Um, they have a green
[49:01] room where you can go in and film your commercial. They've got, uh, workshops
[49:05] and clinics and a coworking space. Um, and so it's just getting off the ground right now.
[49:09] um, but really excited about it. And it'll be working with our economic development department,
[49:14] the chambers of commerce around sonoma county and things like that to really, um, bring
[49:18] more, uh, business support services for early entrepreneurs.
[49:23] um, and their, their tagline is, entrepreneurial spirit has no color, gender, or
[49:27] ethnicity. It has fire, passion, and resiliency. Um, so I really,
[49:32] I'm proud of that investment that we made. Uh, and then the final thing, um,
[49:36] we finished the fair thank you to all the staff who work there, um, and helped make it
[49:40] possible, and all the patrons, um, I think I saw my first ever mosh pit at
[49:44] the petaluma fair . So, um, that was cool, uh, first for everything.
[49:48] um, and also, I just wanna say thank you to council member now for, um, really
[49:53] just going above and beyond. She was there volunteering for like a week leading up to
[49:57] the fair, at least, um, to, uh, bring,
[50:01] you know, basically revive this, this long unknown
[50:05] little parcel of a flower garden and just being everything,
[50:10] uh, like mrs. Petaluma or miss petaluma in terms of, um,
[50:14] loving the fair and, um, really bringing the spirit of it.
[50:18] and I think the, the energy and the commitment to, um, community was
[50:22] ever present, um, with that. So thank you very much.
[50:27] yay.
[50:32] council member shrives. Uh, thank you.
[50:36] um, just for the folks out there, my father was an immigrant, and my, uh, on
[50:40] my mother's side, her, her parents were immigrants and, uh, had similar fears
[50:45] when they arrived. Um, so yeah, so I feel you. Um,
[50:50] also, I went to the fourth, uh, uh, celebration with
[50:54] the bell ringing at the museum. And one of the, the most interesting and inspiring,
[50:59] uh, statements was by a brigadier general who actually lives here in town.
[51:03] and one of the things he talked about, he's also a historian, and basically
[51:08] brought up the point that there was like over 50 signers on their declaration of independence,
[51:12] and most, if not all, suffered greatly through
[51:17] the war. And afterwards, many losing their lives, kicked
[51:21] outta their homes, went bankrupt, everything taken away from them.
[51:25] and they were on the run and had had to, uh, be out in camps, in, in various ways for,
[51:29] uh, home, basically homeless for a while. Um, so lots of suffering from, from
[51:34] the process. So just that was inspirational here, that, that these, our folks, our for founders,
[51:38] um, took it upon themselves knowing that that was going to happen to them, but they
[51:42] did it anyway. So yeah, we need to take action. So one of the
[51:46] things I did, um, well, I went to, um, a workshop on, uh, ai tools
[51:51] and, uh, and they said, oh, government could really use this. It was by, um, a, a,
[51:55] a stanford, um, professor type person. And they said, for regulations,
[52:00] permits, data searches, reviews, and the like, and even ordinances. So
[52:04] I went to this morning and I asked ai about, um, can
[52:08] you create an ordinance, ordinance for ice? And,
[52:12] uh, so I did, um, and I found out more information. Turns out
[52:17] they have recently doubled the number of, uh, quota
[52:21] for ice to capture right now, uh, doubling on a daily basis, like
[52:25] 2000 people quotas now is being set. The other thing I found out
[52:29] is that, um, the detentions are anywhere from a month to
[52:33] over a year, and that over 90% of the folks are
[52:38] actually deported. So it's really sad and bad. Look at what they're doing.
[52:42] similar to brown shirts of nazi germany. Really terrible.
[52:46] so, um, anyway, so I asked, uh, a google ai
[52:50] to come up with, uh, an ordinance, uh, particular for petaluma to
[52:54] help strengthen the ordinance that was already supplied to us. So I have that here.
[52:58] I'm gonna pass it over to legal so they can take a look at it and maybe make,
[53:03] make what you suggested stronger.
[53:08] okay. On, um, other business, um, north bay watershed,
[53:13] uh, reuse or so, authority has decided to, uh,
[53:17] rename themselves to north bay water resiliency authority,
[53:22] change the word resiliency so that we can start working on,
[53:26] um, collecting water, distributing water, and,
[53:30] um, and then reusing water. So, uh, they're expanding their, their mission tremendously.
[53:35] so the resiliency is, is crossing over into other missions of generalist
[53:39] water supply and as well as the mission that I'm also on the north bay
[53:44] watershed association. So sea level rise, groundwaters water supply.
[53:48] um, so there's gonna be more groups working on, um, our current issues, uh,
[53:52] all around water, uh, in combination with sonoma, uh, water
[53:57] agon open space. I happen to be the, uh, vice chair of that at the recent meetings. And there
[54:01] we had just converted over to zoom meetings there also. And, um,
[54:06] there was a grand jury report by the sonoma county grand jury giving
[54:10] huge praise to ag and open space about what one of the best organizations we
[54:14] have here in the county, delivering on the, the taxation monies that we've been delivering
[54:18] and how it's being used and how that staff is doing a great job of
[54:22] preserving agriculture, which also adds to our improving our water
[54:26] supply here in the county and our watersheds. Um, there was another
[54:30] meeting, um, in town here at the downtown, uh, about the vacancies. And
[54:35] so a citizen group has come together, so to be aware of that, and they're going
[54:39] to help, uh, the city along. Um, and there's lots of discussions, pros and cons
[54:43] of carrot and stick, um, approaches to how we can change vacant lots,
[54:47] maybe even vacant stores into more productive units here in town. So there's a stu uh,
[54:51] a citizen effort to help out with the city on that. Um,
[54:55] and then finally the aquas community is, uh, um, developing and, uh,
[54:59] that's why they asked me to join. So I've, I'm a subcommittee there to help, uh, out the, the
[55:03] new aquas community to create more community and better relationships here in town.
[55:08] so I'll be supporting that effort here also, in addition to the other duties I have.
[55:12] um, so that's the report I have today. Thank you, council member.
[55:16] now. Um, thank you mr. Mayor. Um, for my council liaison report
[55:20] tonight, I have two committee reports. First, the public safety advisory committee
[55:25] had a presentation and discussion regarding the petaluma
[55:29] police department's annual military equipment use, which the report
[55:34] will be given to the city council on august 3rd. And the public is welcome
[55:38] to national night out, held at our fairgrounds on august 4th,
[55:42] where they can see and ask questions about our military
[55:46] equipment. Also at our public safety meeting, the subject to petaluma
[55:51] having four flock license plate readers were brought
[55:55] up once again. So tonight I bring the subject to the attention of the city
[55:59] council to possibly have on a future agenda
[56:03] for discussion. As a reminder to all that, the pet police department's
[56:07] policies are on our city's websites. The sonoma county
[56:12] homeless coalition has had a few meetings in the last month. The director of
[56:16] health services gives us updates to the committee members regarding
[56:20] the changes happening in funding and consolidating services,
[56:24] mental health services act, which then set in
[56:28] june. The goal is to minimize the impacts on individuals who depend
[56:33] on these services that are being impacted by the federal pets. On
[56:37] a positive note, I wanna thank our city's park and rec staff. I
[56:41] think most of them have left drew still here for not just the wonderful
[56:45] 2026. Fair thank you council member barnacle, because
[56:49] I couldn't have done it without staff. And our, uh, contractor
[56:54] dibel, um, I, the wonderful 2026
[56:58] fair was put on by our staff. An awesome
[57:03] firework show was put on by our parks and rec staff. So thank you
[57:07] for a great show over the weekend on saturday.
[57:11] and I heard lots of, uh, positive comments regarding both
[57:16] from community members. Awesome. After the museum's
[57:20] annual bell ringing, I stopped in at numerous local parks and took
[57:24] photos because those were locations to see the fireworks,
[57:28] all the parks looked amazing and lots of community enjoying them, praising
[57:32] how well our parks looked. So like
[57:37] the song saturday in the park, it must have been 4th of july.
[57:41] thank you, city staff. Thank you to the mayor and council member cater
[57:45] thompson this evening for the announcement of a future agenda item regarding
[57:50] ice. It is very close to my heart. My ancestors
[57:54] were the blue eyes, spaniards that came up through mexico and built the missions
[57:58] and were the early californians and hard workers, and were not appreciated.
[58:04] my other ancestors were also farmers, irish and swedish.
[58:08] life was not easy for these people. And we wanna go into
[58:13] the future making it easy for our community to feel
[58:17] safe at night and the day. Thank you very much. Thank you,
[58:22] vice mayor. Good evening, everybody. First at airport
[58:26] commission, we did have a conversation about non-air airport uses and,
[58:30] uh, storage at the, uh, at the airport, um, to try to kind
[58:34] of better assess, you know, a lot of stuff from the city is stored and used there. And so the
[58:38] airport commission would like to know kind of how that, how that balances
[58:42] out. Um, that conversation's gonna end up coming back, uh, 'cause there
[58:47] was not a clear ending to that conversation. Uh, I'd also like to congratulate
[58:51] the, uh, pendulum area pilots, associations, and, which are all mostly commissioners.
[58:55] and everybody else in that group, uh, for their big airport bash, they had a couple weekends ago
[59:00] and they had a little over 2000 people out to the airport. Lots of little kids
[59:04] out there to see airplanes, um, you know, enjoy the aviation community and see
[59:08] what it's all about. So they did a great thing there. Uh, they have
[59:12] completed step one of the taxiway project, the first five
[59:17] day closure of it. There's another one coming up later this month. And then the taxiway
[59:21] should be finished. Uh, business can resume there, runway's open.
[59:25] and, um, over at parks and rec, we received a presentation
[59:30] from an eagle scout who wants to do a project and adding a, uh, batting cage out
[59:34] there to one of the little league fields. And so he's been working with staff on that,
[59:38] and that's a project that looks like it's gonna happen. So that's pretty cool. It's pretty ambitious
[59:42] for that, um, for that little guy. And then, um, you know, I'd like to thank
[59:46] staff for getting through the fair. I know they worked very hard, um, long extra
[59:51] hours to make it happen and give that to the community. So thank you for that. At
[59:55] ag and open space, um, probably the biggest highlight from that, that john didn't mention was
[59:59] the board of sups. They, uh, passed a resolution to support the ag
[1:00:03] industry and further a, uh, you know, kind of a working economic plan
[1:00:07] to help them and ensure that that, you know, is prioritized and, and those,
[1:00:11] you know, farmers are taken care of in the county. And then, um, hope everybody
[1:00:16] enjoyed the 4th of july, and thank you again to parks and rec for the fireworks. It was a great show.
[1:00:20] hope everybody was able to enjoy that. And then, um,
[1:00:24] you know, I know there's, uh, been a lot of rising concerns about data centers
[1:00:28] around, and, you know, I'm going to be, um, you know, if it
[1:00:32] needs to be a council discussion, I think it should be. But I'm gonna be meeting with staff to try to
[1:00:36] work out if that's even possible here. Um, what steps can be taken
[1:00:41] and then, you know, if we're all good, we're all good, but if it needs to come to council, we'll have a
[1:00:45] discussion about that. And then I do appreciate everybody that came here tonight. And
[1:00:49] I do believe that everybody sitting up here wants the best for our immigrant community.
[1:00:54] and I think that we're very fortunate to have our police department. Um, they work
[1:00:58] very hard. They work very close with everybody, and I know that they care about
[1:01:02] the immigrants a lot as well. So, thank you. Great point.
[1:01:06] thanks for doing that. And I know, um, all the chiefs are on board, um,
[1:01:11] and, and they get the same message we do. I mean, it's, it's,
[1:01:15] it's ice that is not policing that we need to worry about. I do want to
[1:01:19] note my liaisons and other appointments. Um, jan, uh, june 29th, I attended
[1:01:23] a five year anniversary of the petaluma office, immigrant immigration institute
[1:01:27] of bay area. I was there five years ago when it opened. And the big change is how
[1:01:32] many more lawyers they have doing that civil rights work. They just won a
[1:01:36] case in san francisco federal court. An immigrant was arrested during his citizenship
[1:01:40] hearing. I mean, when you tell these stories, it's just powerful. Um, on
[1:01:45] june 24th, um, I led a, a discussion with the assistant city
[1:01:49] manager with los cen, um, our, uh, community, uh, latino community
[1:01:54] for, uh, latinx leadership. And they brought together in our council chambers,
[1:01:58] uh, quite a few to hear a status of the city. Um,
[1:02:02] uh, also attended the a api, uh, coalition in the north bays, uh, event,
[1:02:06] uh, with my friend kirk lott here. And, um, and it's
[1:02:11] just important that we constantly network and see and be seen with each
[1:02:15] other. And that's how we get further. I attended a county
[1:02:19] food convening and as a council member now mentioned, federal cuts are
[1:02:23] coming, um, this year. And the food is gonna be a crisis as
[1:02:27] both snap and calfresh are, are, are gonna be reduced, and that impacts
[1:02:32] the poorest. And, um, so the county is trying to step into that space.
[1:02:37] um, and I also spoke at the petaluma lodging associations and,
[1:02:41] uh, they appreciate hearing more about what the city's economic development programs
[1:02:46] could be because as we know, costs are outpacing revenue right
[1:02:50] now. Um, I got to, got to mc the
[1:02:54] santa rosa symphony here at our library. That was kind of fun. Um, I
[1:02:58] also, uh, help with the chamber's leadership graduation class. And then,
[1:03:02] um, um, there's just so much going on here. I'm glad to hear
[1:03:06] all the praise for the fair this year. And I want to thank the city manager as well as
[1:03:11] staff for that. And with that, uh, do you have anything to report tonight?
[1:03:16] I'll keep it short, but I wanna recognize our community. We see you, we hear
[1:03:20] you, and we stand united with you. And you can hear that from our council. So thank you.
[1:03:25] um, also want to, um, announce that this wednesday
[1:03:29] at six o'clock here in council chambers, uh, staff will
[1:03:33] be holding the howard street improvements community meeting. Um, next year we're
[1:03:37] gonna be replacing sewer and water mains upgrading curb ramps and reconstructing the
[1:03:42] pavement on howard between a and west. Um, so we are,
[1:03:46] um, gonna take this opportunity to, um, improve the safety and accessibility
[1:03:50] for all road users on howard. And, um,
[1:03:54] we're excited, reengage the community. Hope that you, um, can
[1:03:58] either be at the meeting or, um, share your
[1:04:03] feedback online. And, um, translation services
[1:04:07] will be available upon request. Thank you very much.
[1:04:13] thank you. So, uh, now, and let's not break the decorum. Thank you for being
[1:04:17] here tonight. We're gonna move into business items if, uh, you wish to, uh,
[1:04:22] exit. Thank you.
[1:05:08] okay. Um, moving on to the consent calendar for the evening.
[1:05:12] um, I take a look at up and down the diets
[1:05:16] and see if anyone wishes to pull any item from consent calendar.
[1:05:21] and seeing none, we'll move to any questions on the consent calendar,
[1:05:26] um, or comments might I say. And, um, I think it
[1:05:30] is important to note that we added that future agenda item that, uh, council member
[1:05:34] cater thompson. And, and I think we've all heard that's in
[1:05:38] the works time, time uncertain, but we're looking forward to it.
[1:05:44] uh, question vice mayor. No, that's, did you wanna talk about your,
[1:05:50] um, not at this time. Okay. So, um,
[1:05:54] let's, uh, open it to public comment and I'll ask the clerk if there was any comments
[1:05:59] on the consent calendar. We did not receive any
[1:06:03] comments ahead of the meeting. I'll note that there are eight people in the zoom meeting.
[1:06:07] uh, and at this time I will start a 32nd clock.
[1:06:11] whoops. Oops. Uh, I'll start at 36
[1:06:15] o'clock. Members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker card to my,
[1:06:20] if they have not already done. So members of the public attending online should
[1:06:24] raise their virtual hand, and those attending via phone should press star nine
[1:06:28] to raise their hand. Speaker request received after this
[1:06:32] time may not be accommodated.
[1:06:49] sorry about that. My, I lost my mic. Uh, we didn't receive any cards
[1:06:53] and I don't see any raised hands. Okay. Thank you very much. And that
[1:06:57] closes public comment on the consent calendar, looking for motion.
[1:07:02] I'd like to move items one through six on the consent calendar. Thank you. Motion by
[1:07:06] shrives. Second and second by cater thompson.
[1:07:10] and with that a roll call, vote please.
[1:07:15] barnacle. Aye. Cater thompson? Yes. Di
[1:07:20] carly? Yes. Now? Yes. Shrives? Yes.
[1:07:24] mcdonald? Yes. Motion cares unanimously. Thank you.
[1:07:30] and, um, if you were, uh, here at the beginning of the game, um,
[1:07:34] you would've noted that we've moved our workshop, which was listed as the next item,
[1:07:39] uh, down in the order. And we are now moving to, um, public hearings
[1:07:43] matters for the consideration. A resolution awarding a design build
[1:07:47] contract to alton construction for the petaluma public safety project. And
[1:07:51] I'd like to in invite george gogan, uh, project manager to,
[1:07:55] uh, come on up.
[1:08:01] just gimme a second. I'll try to set this up.
[1:08:07] and for a project this size, we have the honor of having two chiefs in the room. Thank you for being
[1:08:12] here. Wanna
[1:08:16] make sure he does it right, .
[1:08:39] alright. Uh, good evening, mayor. Council members,
[1:08:43] uh, staff and members of the public. Um, tonight we are asking,
[1:08:47] my name is paul gagan, um, senior project manager, oma public works.
[1:08:52] um, tonight we are requesting that city council adopt the resolution, awarding
[1:08:56] the design build contract for the petaluma public safety
[1:09:00] facility project to alton construction. Uh, this is a major milestone for
[1:09:05] the city. Uh, the project has completed, uh, entitlements received approval of
[1:09:09] the design intent, and gone through a competitive, um, design build procurement
[1:09:13] process. Tonight's action authorizes the city to enter into an agreement
[1:09:17] with alton and move the project into final design and construction.
[1:09:24] so, quick project overview that the pro the project is located at the intersection
[1:09:28] of kennelworth drive and johnson drive at the fairgrounds. And we'll
[1:09:32] bring together a new police headquarters, fire department headquarters, uh,
[1:09:37] a new fire station number four, and a dedicated emergency operations center all
[1:09:41] in one coordinated public safety campus. Uh, the new police headquarters
[1:09:45] will replace the existing police station while fire station four will be an
[1:09:49] additional forestation that expands the city's emergency response capacity.
[1:09:55] a little history here on how we got here tonight. So this project being several
[1:09:59] years in the making and has moved through a series of planning, funding,
[1:10:03] design, and public approval milestones. The project began
[1:10:08] with measure u in 2020, and the city's commitment to invest in
[1:10:12] public safety. That was followed by an operational analysis and
[1:10:16] the 2023 public safety facilities master plan, which
[1:10:20] identified the need for an additional fire station, significant improvements to the
[1:10:24] city's police facilities, and a preferred strategy
[1:10:28] of bringing those functions together in a centrally located
[1:10:32] consolidated facility. In november, 2023, staff presented
[1:10:37] council with a preliminary vision of that project. That version occupied approximately
[1:10:41] five acres, uh, included about 73,000 square feet of
[1:10:45] building area relied on a phased delivery approach that would not have been completed
[1:10:49] until 2035. And it carried a total project cost of approximately
[1:10:53] 142 million on construction costs of 120 million. Uh, council,
[1:10:57] council naturally pushed back and the direction was, uh, staff was
[1:11:01] instructed to pursue a more affordable and deliverable project with a better schedule
[1:11:06] and a smaller footprint. So, in response, the city knuckle
[1:11:10] down through 2024 and 2025. The city shifted
[1:11:14] to a design build delivery method, reduced affiliate size by optimizing
[1:11:18] shared spaces, simplified the construction approach by utilizing a tilt
[1:11:22] up concrete construction and established a target construction cost of approximately
[1:11:26] $55 million. In 2024, measure h was
[1:11:30] approved, which provided an additional funding source for the project. In 2025,
[1:11:35] the city presented the revised project to the planning commission and city council.
[1:11:40] that version reduced the site footprint by approximately 1.5 acres.
[1:11:44] uh, it reduced the building size by about 42%, and it
[1:11:48] brought the construction costs in line with our $55 million target.
[1:11:53] and, uh, it established a target completion date of 2028 for the
[1:11:57] entire facility. Uh, the city then completed the basis of design
[1:12:02] detailed programming, environmental review, and the entitlement process. Earlier this
[1:12:06] year, council approved the financing strategy and the city completed a
[1:12:10] competitive design build procurement process. So tonight's contract award is the
[1:12:14] next major step in this timeline. If approved, the project will move into
[1:12:18] a final design, permitting and construction with occupancy targeted for mid 2028.
[1:12:26] I'll just quickly, um, talk about design build here. 'cause this
[1:12:30] is not how we typically deliver projects in the city. Uh, we usually go to design,
[1:12:34] bid, build, or redesign it, then we put it out to build, to bid, and then it gets built.
[1:12:38] uh, this project is, is slightly different. So I'll just quickly explain. Uh, every project goes
[1:12:42] through a life cycle of, um, sd drawings, which is schematic design.
[1:12:46] then you have design development, which is the engineering, to get that schematic design
[1:12:51] into reality. Then you have your cd phase, which is your construction documentation, where
[1:12:55] you submit through, um, building and you get your permits to build. So the city's already
[1:12:59] completed the schematic design and portions of early design development. On this project,
[1:13:04] we've defined what the facility will look like, how it will function, how it's laid out,
[1:13:08] and the materials and performance standards that we expect. Those
[1:13:12] requirements are captured in what's called bridging documents. So alti is not starting
[1:13:16] over. Its team will take the approved vision and complete the detailed
[1:13:21] engineering permitting and construction documents needed to build it. The benefit
[1:13:25] of this design build is that the designer and the contractor work together under one contract,
[1:13:29] giving the city a single point of responsibility for completing the rest of
[1:13:33] the project. Um, so for
[1:13:37] the procurement method of design build being slightly different, the city used a two step
[1:13:41] competitive procurement process. First, we issued a request for
[1:13:45] qualifications to identify design build teams with the experience, financial
[1:13:50] capacity and safety record and technical expertise necessary to deliver
[1:13:54] a project of this size and complexity. The qualify teams
[1:13:59] were then invited to respond to a request for proposals based on the
[1:14:03] city's bridging documents and contract terms. Three proposals were
[1:14:07] received and publicly opened all in construction. In partnership with pbk
[1:14:11] architects submitted the lowest responsive responsible bid amongst
[1:14:15] the approved design build entities. Staff reviewed alton's proposal,
[1:14:19] confirmed its responsiveness and qualifications, and received no
[1:14:23] bid protests.
[1:14:28] so therefore, for those reasons, staff recommends that council adopt the
[1:14:32] resolution, awarding the design build contract to alter construction in the amount of $51,573,911,
[1:14:40] and authorize the city manager to execute the agreement. Uh, two things about
[1:14:44] this number. You might notice it is slightly more than what was shown on the previous
[1:14:48] page. Um, that's because, um, we, uh, we
[1:14:53] based the award off of the base bid. Um, this number includes add alternates.
[1:14:57] uh, essentially if we didn't, if this came in over our budget, we were willing to make some cuts to
[1:15:01] get it back on their budget. But, um, the other thing about the number you may have noticed
[1:15:05] is it's below the 55 million threshold. So we have plenty of room and bandwidth to add
[1:15:09] back those, uh, those items. Uh, they include additional ballistic protection,
[1:15:14] um, some day lighting devices to allow, uh, natural light into the heart of the
[1:15:18] facility for wellbeing. And, um, it's kind of a fancy fire protection system to protect
[1:15:23] all our data and servers and things like that in the event of a fire so you don't get destroyed,
[1:15:27] uh, with water. Um, so that's, that's the method
[1:15:31] behind the procurement and the numbers. And, uh, just before I, I close out here,
[1:15:35] uh, this was a, a huge effort. I came in here in 2024 and
[1:15:40] I've had the pleasure of working with so many fantastic staff and people across the
[1:15:44] board. So I just want to sh a big thank you to our police and fire departments, uh, public
[1:15:48] work staff who assisted me every day through this, uh, our planning department,
[1:15:52] andrew triple was fantastic with mike janick and this through all our entitlements,
[1:15:56] uh, our finance team, our legal team, uh, we had to pretty much rewrite the
[1:16:00] entire contract, which was, you know, no easy ordeal. So me and dylan had plenty
[1:16:05] of early mornings working together, uh, going through that. Uh, also wanna
[1:16:09] thank our city manager's office, uh, all our consultant teams, uh, our planning commission,
[1:16:13] city council for the guidance and direction on the design and the members of the public who, uh,
[1:16:17] brought the project to this point and made it possible. So, tonight's action
[1:16:23] just before I close, tonight's action is significant. It moves the city from planning, talking
[1:16:27] about dreaming, hoping, wishing we had a public safety facility to actually delivering
[1:16:31] one in about 12 months time. It's gonna look very different out there to fairgrounds. You're gonna see
[1:16:36] walls stood up a roof going on this building, and in basically
[1:16:40] two years from today, we should be having a ribbon cutting. So it's, uh, it's a pretty exciting time.
[1:16:44] so, uh, I'll be here to answer any questions that come up. And, uh, I have these two great
[1:16:48] general members beside me as well. And I'm sure you guys will, will help out where I needed. So thank you.
[1:16:53] thank you very much. Great presentation, generational project. It's
[1:16:58] a fun one to have under our belts. Chiefs, anything to add at this point?
[1:17:02] thank you. Um, counsel, any questions?
[1:17:08] um, see none. Let's go to, uh, public comment.
[1:17:12] we have not received any comments ahead of the meeting on this item. We do have eight attendees
[1:17:16] online, uh, at this time. I'll start a 32nd clock.
[1:17:21] during these 30 seconds, members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker cards to
[1:17:26] my desk. Members of the public attending online should raise their virtual
[1:17:30] hand. Those attending, uh, via phone should press star nine to raise their
[1:17:34] hand. Speaker request received after this time may not be accommodated.
[1:17:56] so, um, following our, uh, practice, I will ask, uh, the clerk any
[1:18:00] hands up? No hands up. Just one card. Thank you. So our speaker
[1:18:04] tonight, mac thompson. Um, it, it's yours for three
[1:18:09] minutes, . All right. Thank you. It's really nice to see you
[1:18:13] all. Nice to be here tonight. And, uh, uh, my name's mac
[1:18:17] thompson. I'm the union president for the petaluma firefighters, uh, local
[1:18:21] 1415. I've been a employee here in petaluma firefighter for
[1:18:25] 19 years. Uh, and actually my first month
[1:18:29] of working here, uh, I was asked to paint, uh, shovels gold,
[1:18:33] uh, to break ground for the casa grande hotel
[1:18:37] site. And, uh, and that was exciting. Um, we
[1:18:42] had a plot of land and that was also a dream. Uh, but right now
[1:18:46] we have all done the work. And, and, and I'm here
[1:18:50] tonight to really acknowledge how much work has been put into this, uh,
[1:18:54] and how much pride I see from all of us, um,
[1:18:58] uh, in, in getting to where we are today. I know we still have a lot of work to do,
[1:19:02] uh, and, and, and excited about that work to come.
[1:19:07] uh, but really acknowledging the incredible leadership of the city manager flynn
[1:19:11] and the assistant city manager, cochran, uh, the entire city council
[1:19:15] and city staff, and all of the layers of community involvement
[1:19:20] with the planning commission and different, different community members involved.
[1:19:24] uh, but also the incredible leadership of chief shock and chief miller.
[1:19:29] um, and, uh, my fellow, uh, firefighters and, uh,
[1:19:33] police officers and, and, and, uh, public safety that are here to serve.
[1:19:37] uh, the amount of work that goes into this is, is incredible and takes all
[1:19:42] of us. And, and in talking to all of you about this project, I know
[1:19:47] that there's a pride in this, but it also is personal and something that we
[1:19:51] all take. We all look at it as something that we really care about. And that
[1:19:55] is, uh, that is unique. I think that being, uh,
[1:20:01] a labor leader in this community, knowing that we
[1:20:05] are able to support this city and to feel supported by this council
[1:20:09] and by the, the leadership of this city, uh, is an incredible feeling. And
[1:20:13] it's really exciting. So I just wanted to come here to acknowledge all of the teamwork
[1:20:17] and, uh, really acknowledge how far we've come and, uh, and look
[1:20:21] at the horizon. And, and, and thank you all for, for, for all of your work. So
[1:20:26] thank you. And thank you. And with that, that
[1:20:30] closes, um, public comment on the item, bring it back to council. Any comments? Council
[1:20:34] member now? Um, well a little deja vu because I was there
[1:20:38] 20 years ago when those gold shovels were being painted. And, um,
[1:20:43] I wasn't a hundred percent supportive of that project because I wanted
[1:20:47] a new police station and I wanted a fire station. And I knew
[1:20:51] we had a location perfect for it on that corner of the fairgrounds
[1:20:55] parking lot. So do we have a, a groundbreaking, uh, ceremony date
[1:21:00] chiefs? I, I'm ready for that gold shovel again
[1:21:04] after the staff schedule. , we gotta get through this. Anyway.
[1:21:09] I have to, I'm excited to see the, the plaque with all of your names on it, on the side of the
[1:21:13] door. Well, you have to get reelected . Um,
[1:21:17] anyway, thank you to staff for doing this because this is, I've
[1:21:21] been advocating for this for before I ran for council 20 years
[1:21:25] ago, so thank you so much. And it's gonna be so important to
[1:21:29] our, um, community going forward
[1:21:33] and for generations. So thank you council memberships.
[1:21:38] uh, yeah, this is a true milestone and so if that, I'd like to just
[1:21:42] move the item. Let's move forward. Okay. Uh, note motion
[1:21:46] by strips, uh, council member barnicle. I'll, I'll second the motion.
[1:21:50] I also just wanna say, um, september 29th, 2007, 608,
[1:21:56] 6,854 days ago. That was when we broke ground on the last,
[1:22:01] uh, attempt at this. So, um, you are right, it is very personal. It's the stuff we
[1:22:05] don't wanna let continue to get kicked down the road. Um, I also just wanna note
[1:22:09] that a few things that we did on this, there were so many people that came together to
[1:22:13] focus on doing something big. And that's what happens when we're all one team
[1:22:18] as a city. And I, um, I just really, uh, respect the
[1:22:22] city manager's office, the city attorney's office, all of the, the leaders, the labor
[1:22:26] leaders, the chiefs, everybody who, everybody who's come together to support this project.
[1:22:30] 'cause it really is a full team effort. Um, and then the other thing is, is we had to do
[1:22:35] something differently to get it done right? We moved to a design build contract. And,
[1:22:39] um, I just think as a city, we have to not be so set in our ways of like, what's
[1:22:43] the municipal code say? And what does our charter say? And think about ways that we can bucket sometimes
[1:22:47] to get something done. Um, because that's ultimately why we're elected. That's what,
[1:22:51] um, why we all want to work in, in public services to get s**t done.
[1:22:55] um, and so I just appreciate that we, um, that we did that, that we thought outside
[1:23:00] the box and now we're moving forward with what is truly a generational project.
[1:23:04] um, and I would be remiss to not say with all these folks here is that
[1:23:08] we gotta focus on revenue. Um, 'cause this stuff all costs money and we just need to
[1:23:13] continue to, um, increase our property tax base, grow our sales
[1:23:17] tax base, grow, all the, the different ways that we fund all this, um, important work. Um,
[1:23:21] 'cause our city's, um, this is gonna be here to, to support our city, you
[1:23:25] know, 50, a hundred years out. And, um, that's gonna require revenue. So
[1:23:29] thank you council member cater thompson.
[1:23:34] um, I don't really have anything to add except I hope those, um, shovels are
[1:23:38] ready, . And, um, that's it. I mean, this
[1:23:42] is great. I mean, this has been, I mean, for me, I've always wanted it at the fairgrounds and it's
[1:23:46] probably been two plus decades and I'm gonna be alive to see it
[1:23:50] happen. And so, you know, when you start gauging things by your age, um,
[1:23:54] it's kind of exciting to see how things actually come about. You might have
[1:23:58] a vision, um, and it could be on any project and it just takes
[1:24:03] a lot of time. And this is coming at the perfect time, um, with everything that
[1:24:07] we're doing at the fairgrounds. It's centrally located and I think, uh,
[1:24:11] we have the community support on this. Thank you. Certainly the council support. I, I
[1:24:15] hope vice mayor. Uh, just
[1:24:19] a quick question for mac. I'm just wondering how the gold paint held up on those shovels, if we can reuse
[1:24:23] them , but, um, you know, otherwise though, I, you know, we,
[1:24:27] we want to give police and fire the best that we can. And so looking forward to that. Thank
[1:24:31] you. And, um, uh, I just want to note to paul, I mean, thanks
[1:24:36] for, uh, being the point man on this. And I know that success comes from following
[1:24:40] the schedule. The staff report says spring, I heard mid 2 28. Tonight.
[1:24:44] I'm thinking if we stay on schedule, we stay on budget and we get it built.
[1:24:48] and now we're all, um, excited for get it built part. So with
[1:24:52] that, uh, we have a motion and a second from strips and barnacle
[1:24:57] and like a roll call. Vote barnacle. Aye.
[1:25:02] cater thompson. Yes. To carly? Yes. Now, yes.
[1:25:06] sch shrimps. Yes. Mcdonald. Yes. Motion carries unanimously.
[1:25:10] thank you.
[1:25:41] okay, moving on. Our next order of business is resolutions, ordering abatement of
[1:25:45] nuisances consisting of hazardous vegetation, rubbish growing on
[1:25:49] public and private property, and ordering the fire department to abate such
[1:25:53] hazardous vegetation and rubbish and helping us,
[1:25:58] helping us with this. Today is amy c sge,
[1:26:02] sge sigge sge. Tough. Thank you very much. It's a tough one for being here. You're our fire marshal
[1:26:06] and uh, this floor is yours. Thank you very much. Well, it's a tough act to follow.
[1:26:11] um, but good evening mayor, vice mayor, council, city manager and staff,
[1:26:15] as well as our community before you. Tonight is our second hazardous
[1:26:19] vegetation abatement hearing for the 2026 season. This hearing covers
[1:26:24] just two additional properties identified after our initial hearing that continued
[1:26:28] to present a wildfire risk. Staff has completed all noticing requirements
[1:26:32] and provided the property owners multiple opportunities to voluntarily abate the hazard.
[1:26:37] we are requesting adoption of the resolution authorizing the city to proceed with
[1:26:41] abatement only if the properties remain out of compliance after the established deadline.
[1:26:45] and I'd be hap happy to answer any questions you have. Thank you very
[1:26:49] much. Any questions? Council member schibs? Yeah, in
[1:26:53] the, in the report, it seemed like there was a, a possible suggestion that is it really worth
[1:26:58] doing this whole process? Uh, because there's only two properties that really need abatement
[1:27:03] and that the cost of doing those two is less than the actual cost
[1:27:07] of the program. So, um, there's a benefit cost ratio here that was
[1:27:11] implied as maybe worthwhile or not. But I see this as a, um,
[1:27:16] a possible, um, good thing, uh, that it's working.
[1:27:20] 'cause it being, it's working, people are complying. So I just wanted to just bring that up, that,
[1:27:24] that it is such a good program that, um, it's been very cost effective
[1:27:28] and that was only a couple properties available. Is there any comments you'd like to make
[1:27:32] on, um, how that program, how you feel the program is working and,
[1:27:37] uh, is it worth continuing this effort? So I'd just like to hear you, uh, talk
[1:27:41] about it a little bit. Sure. Um, it is a very laborious process
[1:27:45] for fire prevention staff, um, to, we have, you know,
[1:27:49] as, as you're aware, our initial list is quite lengthy. There are a lot of parcels
[1:27:53] that have been identified over the years as, um, regularly
[1:27:57] out of compliance with our weed abatement and our hazardous vegetation program.
[1:28:01] um, that being said, uh, it's an important step that
[1:28:05] we take. Um, as we all know, the risk of wildfire in our community
[1:28:09] is real and present and only seeming to get worse, um, every year.
[1:28:14] and so it's, we've taken additional steps this year, including
[1:28:19] more staff time, um, making personal calls to every
[1:28:23] single property that, um, was being considered to be sent for
[1:28:27] city abatement, which resulted in a lot of a additional voluntary compliance.
[1:28:32] and so that's a, a, a plan that will continue. I'm proud that we
[1:28:36] only have nine properties we've sent to city abatement thus far this year, um,
[1:28:40] which is greatly reduced from years past. And so, um, our,
[1:28:44] our program is working, our community is becoming more and more aware of the risk.
[1:28:48] I think, um, there is, with the amount of reports that
[1:28:52] we get from concerned residents and citizens, um, asking
[1:28:57] us to look at this property or that property for abatement, I think the concern is
[1:29:01] high and it's important that we respond to those concerns.
[1:29:05] good. Thank you. And the next one, uh, question would be, um, compared to, 'cause you also
[1:29:10] inspect buildings as well as open areas. So, um,
[1:29:14] how's that compare, uh, looking at buildings and the amount of effort to put there
[1:29:18] and the amount of safety that that generates versus from wildfires? So,
[1:29:22] um, can you do a comparison between the tomb at all in in cost time
[1:29:26] value, or an increase in safety? Sure. We,
[1:29:30] our fire inspectors do mostly building inspections
[1:29:35] all year round for general fire knife safety as well as our coupa
[1:29:39] hazardous materials, safety and compliance. Um, that's most of
[1:29:43] what we do. Our weed abatement focus really ramps up in
[1:29:47] may, june, july, um, and continuing through those hotter months. So it's
[1:29:51] a more concentrated effort, uh, where we truly look
[1:29:56] at vacant parcels, um, under a, a stricter lens that don't
[1:30:00] contain buildings. Most of what we do is, is focused on building inspections
[1:30:04] throughout the year. So this is a concentrated effort during, you know, the, the high
[1:30:09] high fire season, which we know is continuing, continuing to expand to more
[1:30:13] of a year long issue. But during those hot summer months when the rains
[1:30:17] have ceased and we're starting to get those tall high grasses, that's really where we
[1:30:21] need to look at, especially where our wild land urban interface interacts with the edges of our community
[1:30:26] and where fire might take hold and spread if we were to have a wildfire threat in
[1:30:30] our borders. So it's, as far as the, the effort,
[1:30:34] that's kind of what I'd say it's, it's more of a month, a shorter month
[1:30:39] focus for our weed abatement program versus our annual fire
[1:30:43] building inspections. Good. And then to save any time and money is, uh, any worthwhile
[1:30:47] properties we could take off the list instead of keeping 'em on the list? Yes, we
[1:30:51] have been taking buildings off of, or parcels off of the list, um,
[1:30:56] especially folks who reach out to us and, and say, hey, I've been doing a
[1:31:00] really good job with my property, come and take a look at it this year. If, if they have been
[1:31:04] compliant, um, we will remove them from the list. So we don't wanna just see it continuing to
[1:31:08] expand. We, we do wanna take properties off, especially we've had properties,
[1:31:13] uh, parcels on the list that have since been developed. It no longer really applies to
[1:31:18] a highly concentrated residential area. Um, there are certain cases where
[1:31:22] that's true and we work with code enforcement on those, but, um, we are trying to shorten that list.
[1:31:26] it has gotten quite long. . Thank
[1:31:30] you. Other questions? No other questions. Let's go to, uh, general public
[1:31:34] or to public comment on the item.
[1:31:39] uh, we did not receive any comments ahead of the meeting and we have seven
[1:31:43] attendees on zoom at this time. I will start a 32nd clock
[1:31:47] during these 30 seconds. Members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker
[1:31:51] cards to the clerk's desk. Members of the public attending online should raise their
[1:31:56] virtual hand and those attending via phone should press star nine to raise
[1:32:00] their hand. Speaker request received after this time may not be accommodated
[1:32:10] and we do not have any hands raised and I have not received any cards.
[1:32:14] okay, then, uh, that closes public comment on the
[1:32:19] item and back up the council and council member shrives,
[1:32:23] I'd like to move the item second. Second. We have a second from, uh,
[1:32:27] gator thompson. And a motion from shrives and a roll call vote
[1:32:31] please. Barnacle. Aye. Cator thompson?
[1:32:35] yes. Yes. Di carly? Yes. Now
[1:32:40] yes. Trips? Yes. Mcdonald? Yes. And motion.
[1:32:45] thank you very much for being here tonight. The motion passed. Thank you.
[1:32:51] um, our next item is, uh, resolutions confirming the annual engineer's
[1:32:55] report and ordering the levy and collection of assessments
[1:33:00] within the city landscape assessment districts for the year 26 27.
[1:33:09] and to help us with that, we have deanna bradford, our senior management analyst list.
[1:35:03] well, there is nothing better than a room full of people waiting for you to get something online.
[1:35:08] ,
[1:35:13] should we start? We have, yes, please.
[1:35:58] all right, here we go. Good evening, mayor, council members
[1:36:03] and community. Tonight we are providing an update on the city's landscape
[1:36:07] assessment districts or leds. Leds are one of those local
[1:36:11] government topics that sounds simple at first. Landscaping,
[1:36:15] maintenance, neighborhood improvements, and then very quickly becomes
[1:36:19] parcel boundaries. Assessment rates, service levels, fund balances, and enough spreadsheets
[1:36:23] to make even a committed excel user reconsider their life choices.
[1:36:28] but at the core, this work is about something very visible and very important,
[1:36:33] maintaining the shared landscapes that help shape the character of petaluma neighborhoods.
[1:36:38] these districts help fund landscaping trees, pathways,
[1:36:42] medians, irrigation systems, and other common areas, residency every
[1:36:46] day when maintained well. They support neighborhood pride, walkability,
[1:36:51] shade, beautification, and the sense that our public spaces are being cared
[1:36:55] for. This
[1:36:59] slide outlines the four main reasons we are here tonight. First, this is
[1:37:03] the final step in the annual lad process. Each year, the city
[1:37:07] council reviews, the district's confirms assessments and completes the required
[1:37:11] steps to continue maintenance services. Second, we are sharing
[1:37:16] what we learned through community outreach. Staff worked hard to reach property
[1:37:20] owners in several ways. And while we remain hopeful that someday every
[1:37:24] public notice will be read immediately and with great enthusiasm we learned,
[1:37:28] it helps to provide information in multiple formats. Third
[1:37:32] fiscal year 27 represents a reset moment for the lad program.
[1:37:37] the city has paid off the current program deficit associated with these districts,
[1:37:41] which allows us to reset the financial baseline and focus more clearly on current
[1:37:46] services, current costs, and what e district can realistically support.
[1:37:51] lastly, we will discuss what comes next, a new petition based
[1:37:55] pathway to higher service levels that puts our community members in the driver's
[1:37:59] seat forward thinking, irrigation improvements, opportunities to work with
[1:38:04] our nonprofit partners and continue to asset documentation to prepare
[1:38:08] for a comprehensive capital assessment. So tonight is both a closeout
[1:38:12] point and a starting point.
[1:38:17] over late 2025 and early 2026, staff conducted a
[1:38:21] comprehensive outreach campaign to 1,121. Parcel owners
[1:38:27] outreach included district web pages, faqs, postcards,
[1:38:31] door hangers, webinars, youtube videos, emails, council presentations,
[1:38:36] and surveys. The goal was to provide multiple ways for property owners
[1:38:40] to learn about landscape assessment districts, how they're funded, the
[1:38:44] services they provide, and why the city is discussing them. Now,
[1:38:48] participation was admittedly limited across the 1,121
[1:38:53] parcels. There were 83 webinar attendees, 73 survey
[1:38:57] responses, and 202 youtube views. These results show that
[1:39:01] while the city successfully reached many residents, not every property owner
[1:39:05] chose to participate. We did find that this was a common outcome for
[1:39:09] technical topics such as assessment districts. The outreach also
[1:39:14] confirmed that district priorities vary. Some neighborhoods support higher service
[1:39:18] levels and are willing to consider increased assessments while others prefer
[1:39:22] to maintain current service levels and avoid additional costs. Based on this
[1:39:26] feedback, staff refined the program to focus on a petition based pathway.
[1:39:31] districts with demonstrated property owner interests can pursue higher service levels through
[1:39:35] the proposition two 18 process. While districts without clear support
[1:39:40] are not required to do so, this approach creates a path for improvement
[1:39:44] that is driven by property owner interest rather than imposed citywide.
[1:39:52] this slide groups the districts into three categories based on anticipated
[1:39:56] service reductions highest, high and moderate. The key
[1:40:01] takeaway is that the districts are not all in the same financial position. Some face
[1:40:05] immediate challenges because maintenance costs are outpacing available revenue
[1:40:09] while others remain more stable, but require ongoing monitoring. The
[1:40:13] highest risk districts have the largest funding gaps, and in most cases, no
[1:40:18] annual inflator to keep pace with rising costs. These districts
[1:40:22] are expected to see significant service reductions in fiscal year 27.
[1:40:27] the high and moderate risk districts generally have annual inflators,
[1:40:31] but those increases are not keeping pace with actual costs. While service
[1:40:35] reductions are expected to be less severe, they're likely still noticeable.
[1:40:40] this risk-based approach helps staff prioritize resources where financial concerns
[1:40:44] are greatest while planning proactively for districts that remain sustainable
[1:40:48] today, but could face challenges in the future. In short,
[1:40:52] this slide is the fiscal weather report for the leds. Some areas are
[1:40:56] partly cloudy, some are stormier, and a few districts may just need us
[1:41:00] to check the roof before it rains.
[1:41:05] so you want a nicer neighborhood? Good. This slide is for
[1:41:09] you. The key point is that higher service levels require both
[1:41:14] district interest and parcel owner approval. The city cannot
[1:41:18] increase assessments or services on its own. The process begins
[1:41:22] with a property owner request, ensuring the effort is community driven.
[1:41:27] next, a petition signed by at least 25% of parcel owners
[1:41:32] demonstrate sufficient interest before additional work begins. Because the
[1:41:36] cost of the proposition two 18 process is paid by the district, this
[1:41:40] threshold helps ensure resources are invested where there is a strong likelihood of success.
[1:41:45] once the threshold is met, staff prepares a preliminary scope and cost
[1:41:49] estimate based on the improvements requested, such as enhanced maintenance, irrigation
[1:41:54] repairs, tree work, or general beautification and engineers.
[1:41:59] engineers analysis then evaluates the proposed assessment property
[1:42:03] benefits and assessment structure. The district then proceeds through the proposition
[1:42:07] two 18 ballot process where property owners decide whether to approve
[1:42:11] the increased assessment if approved, the enhanced service levels implemented.
[1:42:16] if not, the district remains at its current service level. This process provides
[1:42:21] neighborhoods with a clear property owner driven path to higher service levels
[1:42:26] for districts that are ready to begin. The petition is now available@cityofpetaluma.org
[1:42:32] slash leds.
[1:42:36] through the outreach process, many property owners express concern about
[1:42:40] longstanding deficits that had accumulated in their districts. In
[1:42:44] response, the city is eliminating approximately 768,000
[1:42:48] in accumulated lad program deficits. This gives each
[1:42:52] district a clean financial starting point, allowing future discussions to focus
[1:42:57] on current service levels, current costs in which each district can realistically
[1:43:01] support rather than past shortfalls. While eliminating deficit will
[1:43:05] not immediately improve landscaping, it creates the final financial
[1:43:09] foundation needed to move the program forward. With this reset,
[1:43:14] the focus shifts to three priorities. Maintaining appropriate service
[1:43:18] levels, managing rising costs for labor, fuel, water,
[1:43:23] materials, and contracted services. And investing in ivis invisible
[1:43:27] improvements such as healthy landscaping, irrigation repairs, weed
[1:43:31] control, and plant replacement. It is important to note that eliminating
[1:43:35] the deficit does not create new ongoing funding. Each
[1:43:39] district must still operate with its an available assessment revenue unless
[1:43:43] property owners choose to support a higher level of service through the proposition two
[1:43:48] 18 process. Fiscal year 27 is not a cure-all, but it
[1:43:52] does provide a fresh start for the lad program.
[1:43:56] this slide outlines the next phase of work. First, modernizing
[1:44:00] irrigation systems. Rather than simply replacing existing equipment,
[1:44:05] staff will prioritize water efficient technology and improvements that support the long-term
[1:44:09] health of the city's urban canopy, especially during times of drought.
[1:44:14] second, expanding our nonprofit partnerships to help in enhance
[1:44:18] landscaping, shade, beautification, and climate resilience while stretching our
[1:44:22] limited resources. Third, preparing for a comprehensive capital assessment
[1:44:27] by documenting led assets, including irrigation, infrastructure, trees,
[1:44:31] plantings, pathways, medians, and other maintained features.
[1:44:36] together these efforts move the program from financial reset to long-term
[1:44:40] strategy by improving infrastructure building partnerships and creating the asset
[1:44:44] data needed for informed future planning.
[1:44:49] the lad program is entering a new chapter by eliminating the
[1:44:53] accumulated deficit, the city is providing a clean financial foundation for the
[1:44:57] future. Staff has completed extensive outreach, gathered community
[1:45:01] feedback, identified district risk levels, and established a clear property owner
[1:45:05] driven pathway. For districts that wish to pursue higher service levels
[1:45:10] for the first time, interested neighborhoods now have a clear roadmap to shape
[1:45:14] the future of their district through the petition process. Rather than
[1:45:18] a one size fits all approach, communities that are ready to invest in enhanced
[1:45:23] landscaping and neighborhood improvements can choose to move that conversation forward
[1:45:27] before that work can continue. Staff recommends that the council approve the fiscal
[1:45:32] year 27 lad assessments, ensuring each district can
[1:45:36] continue operating within its available revenues while these long-term improvements move forward.
[1:45:40] this effort is about protecting neighborhood investments, improving transparency,
[1:45:45] and building a more sustainable, responsive, and community driven lad
[1:45:49] program. Thank you. And we are happy to answer any questions.
[1:45:54] thank you. Appreciate you bringing the item back to us. Any questions up from here
[1:45:58] from the diocese?
[1:46:03] uh, um, I guess I have a question. Council member cater thompson. Um, on
[1:46:07] the slide there were, um, areas that are not part of the landscape
[1:46:11] district mentioned. So are we talking about reducing those services also
[1:46:15] existing that are not connected to this program?
[1:46:20] we are only talking about, um, parts of the neighborhoods
[1:46:25] that are included in the lad program. Nothing else. Okay. I didn't
[1:46:29] know the park place neighborhood was included in an assessment district.
[1:46:33] is it? Park place is one
[1:46:37] of our districts. So there are areas within park place that are a part of the assessment
[1:46:42] district, but the entirety of the subdivision would not be in the districts.
[1:46:50] thank you. Council member schibs? Um,
[1:46:54] yeah, so one of the, um, uh, only concerns I had for the whole program,
[1:46:58] uh, I'd like the way it's set up that it is initiated now by the, the petition process.
[1:47:03] but in the report it didn't mention that it would have to go through this pretty long process
[1:47:08] here. And one of the steps was an engineering report and then getting
[1:47:12] the petitions and there was a price tag put on it. 7,000 to like $25,000
[1:47:16] of staff time to, to do this. And many of these leds, the total
[1:47:21] cost for the whole annual care is a lot less than that. So we're talking
[1:47:25] it would take five years of current payments to even pay for the study
[1:47:29] to raise the price, even a few dollars. Is there any way we can
[1:47:33] reduce that down or simplify it? Uh, so that the folks in each of these
[1:47:37] leds, um, know that if they start this process, it can be
[1:47:41] completed. Um, uh, it'd still be financially
[1:47:46] balanced between dollars in and, and, and, and services obtained.
[1:47:52] one of the challenges with the prop two 18 process
[1:47:56] is the necessity to have a special versus general benefit analysis completed.
[1:48:01] and so depending on the complexities of any given district, that's where the majority of
[1:48:05] that cost comes from. So if you have a smaller district that has, you
[1:48:09] know, 20 parcels in it, that's a much easier assessment to do than a district that
[1:48:13] has 445 parcels in it. So the pri the primary
[1:48:17] cost driver of that is the complexity of determining, determining what elements
[1:48:22] will be within that district, and then how each parcel owner
[1:48:26] benefits from those as from those assets within that district.
[1:48:30] so there's a cost
[1:48:34] that cannot be avoided in that, but the long-term benefits of going through
[1:48:39] that analysis and setting these districts up now so
[1:48:43] that they can be successful for the next 30 years is worth that cost.
[1:48:47] the path that we're on right now, if districts do not choose to go through
[1:48:51] the prop two 18, we'll be continuing diminished returns. They will see less
[1:48:55] and less and less service because the costs are not going to go down. But if we
[1:49:00] don't increase those assessments, the service level has to go along with those set
[1:49:04] assessments, right? So anyway, I'm hoping that, uh, folks will wake
[1:49:08] up and realize, ah, we will put a little bit more money in to get the service that we really need down long
[1:49:12] term and they'll start this whole process up. Um, now that we've, uh,
[1:49:16] got this pretty well completed, um, given that we, we have like close to
[1:49:20] 50 leds now, um, now that you've, we've learned a
[1:49:24] lot about this process and the legal requirements and all that, um, in
[1:49:28] the future, should we look at leds as a really a way to
[1:49:32] go or should we think about different ways of doing it? Hoas or even
[1:49:36] just city park and just make 'em part of the city park and, and take care of it that way? So
[1:49:41] do you have any opinions now that you've gone through this process?
[1:49:45] I think both for the city of petaluma and several cities across the state of california,
[1:49:50] we've learned the fallacies of landscape assessment districts. Uh, if
[1:49:54] I had the key to the city, I would never write another one. .
[1:49:58] um, there are other similar cost sharing mechanisms
[1:50:03] that exist. We do have a community facilities district at riverfront
[1:50:07] that appears at this point to be a much stronger financial,
[1:50:12] um, program for making sure that our community stays safe,
[1:50:16] clean, you know, all of the things that we were hopeful that leds would do. Um, but
[1:50:20] they do provide a stronger roadmap than all of the concerns that have
[1:50:24] been raised with leds over the past 30 years. Thank you. That's
[1:50:29] all the questions I have. Uh, thank you. I had a, um, a couple in
[1:50:33] and a couple opinions too. Um, I, I think that the finance
[1:50:37] districts you talk about, I think they just, their leds, they just incorporated all
[1:50:41] the better lessons we learned so that we don't get burned on finance. And
[1:50:45] I think we find that in any kind of sprawl, um, subdivision development
[1:50:49] is that we don't have enough money later. The property taxes don't generate enough
[1:50:54] to co cover services, which is why they took the landscaping out
[1:50:58] of the property tax and put it back on the owner. And then that's not even turning
[1:51:02] out that well. But, but once we do today, we've, like in many industries,
[1:51:06] we've learned the lessons of the past. Uh, I'm okay with this raise. I
[1:51:10] appreciate that you raised every llad to the maximum
[1:51:14] and that turned out to be about 15%, uh, uh, increase on everybody.
[1:51:19] um, but then I appreciate that you showed the slide that showed those first 10.
[1:51:24] uh, they don't, they, they don't have enough money in them to,
[1:51:28] to do the service they get today. So I
[1:51:32] asked in the questions, did we send them a letter saying your
[1:51:37] landscape assessment district will look worse next year. Is that,
[1:51:41] is that a direct letter we send? Uh, that letter hasn't been sent, but it is
[1:51:45] being drafted. So community members can look forward to those letters and there'll be different iterations
[1:51:49] of those letters because each of those, uh, 42 active districts ha are
[1:51:54] in, have different circumstances. So some of them will not see
[1:51:58] a reduction in their services. Just that first group, that first group's gonna see, it's gonna be really a lot worse.
[1:52:02] the middle group will say it's a little bit worse in the bottom group, amy. It was just right.
[1:52:06] yes. But, um, but that's the, the, the
[1:52:10] answer for the two 18 here. Thinking at 15 to 25,000
[1:52:15] per group, um, I I
[1:52:19] I see a tr I see a tremendous public backlash to us telling them
[1:52:23] that they need to put together upfront money into this.
[1:52:28] and, um, you know, a lot of assessment district work is done on, uh, distributed
[1:52:32] over property tax over a longer period and stuff like this. But the shock value of 15 to
[1:52:36] 25,000 just to get it, you know,
[1:52:40] to pay you another $50 a month or a hundred dollars a month per parcel,
[1:52:45] that shock value, like you're noting, I mean, we're, we're gonna, we're gonna be revisiting
[1:52:49] this issue with very unhappy people because either it'll all have fallen
[1:52:53] to brown and weeds or they're gonna pay $25,000.
[1:52:58] and I, I, I don't envy that pr campaign and
[1:53:02] I know it will end up here. Um,
[1:53:06] um, I I I, I think
[1:53:12] I need, we need to drive them to the table, but to people to, to know that their
[1:53:17] their landscaping, their neighborhood values are dropping because of this. And
[1:53:21] I think that's the comment we'll hear is the neighborhood value is dropping. Um,
[1:53:25] but I think we also need to figure out how rock solid
[1:53:30] two 18 is. Can we do a citywide, um,
[1:53:34] di minimis if the, if if it's less than a hundred dollars per year,
[1:53:38] can we do a one action without a new, can we do a drive
[1:53:42] through and say, if, if, if there are no new developments in this subdivision
[1:53:47] and it's a completed subdivision from 25 years ago, can we assume
[1:53:51] that there's no basic difference in the benefit nature? You know, uh, can we, can we
[1:53:55] cut out that whole, anything you can do to knock that 25,000 down to
[1:53:59] something that won't get us shot or you shot , um,
[1:54:05] would be really helpful. 'cause I, I see this as a real
[1:54:09] pending problem, but I, I'm really glad you got the, this year's to its maximum
[1:54:13] levels for every, uh, group. And
[1:54:17] I'd like to ask the clerk if there are any, uh, comments, public comments. We
[1:54:21] did not receive any comments ahead of the meeting. We do have nine people
[1:54:26] in the zoom still at this time. I will start a 32nd clock during
[1:54:30] these 30 seconds. Men, members of the public attending in person should bring their speaker
[1:54:34] cards to my desk. Members of the public attending online should raise
[1:54:38] their virtual hand and those attending via phone should press nine
[1:54:42] to raise their hand. Speaker request received after this time may not be accommodated
[1:54:49] and I have not received any cards and I do not see any raised
[1:54:53] hands. Thank you very much. That will close public comments on
[1:54:57] the item. And, um, that brings us to, um, council
[1:55:01] motions. And there are, um, a, you know,
[1:55:05] a number of them and, um, if we are ready for voting on this,
[1:55:10] then um, I'd like a motion for the, um, no
[1:55:15] recusal resolution.
[1:55:22] so moved. Thank you. Motion by barnacle. Second. Second by di carly.
[1:55:26] and for the no recusals we have roll call vote barnacle.
[1:55:31] aye. Cater thompson. Yes. Di carly? Yes. Now?
[1:55:35] yes. Shrives? Yes. Mcdonald? Yes.
[1:55:39] motion carries unanimously. Alright, I'll be recusing be probably the
[1:55:43] next one because I live too close. And, uh, we will see
[1:55:47] a series of recusals based on council members living in the proximity with where
[1:55:52] they need to recuse. So this is the, I'd like a motion for the,
[1:55:56] um, resolution with barnacle. Recusing. I'll move that. I'll
[1:56:00] second then we have a motion by cater thompson. A second by now. And roll call vote please.
[1:56:05] barnacle. Recused. Uh, cater thompson. Yes.
[1:56:09] di carly? Yes. Now? Yes. Shrives?
[1:56:13] yes. Mcdonald? Yes. Motion carries unanimously. Let's
[1:56:17] invite council member barnacle back and ask, uh, vice mayor di carly to, uh,
[1:56:21] weigh in. Um, I'll be recusing for where I live too.
[1:56:26] thank you. Make the motion. Second. We have a motion by cater thompson.
[1:56:30] a second by now. Roll call vote barnacle.
[1:56:35] aye. Cater thompson? Yes. De carly recused
[1:56:39] now? Yes. Shrives? Yes. Mcdonald?
[1:56:44] yes. Motion carries unanimously. Wonderful. And let's invite, uh, council
[1:56:48] member shrives to announce recusal. And I'm, uh, recusing
[1:56:52] 'cause I live in the same neighborhood as the st. James estates.
[1:56:56] I'll move the item. I'll second that.
[1:57:03] we have a motion by now and a second by cater thompson. May, may we have a roll call. Vote
[1:57:08] barnacle. Aye. Cater thompson? Yes. Di carly?
[1:57:12] yes. Now yes. Bbs is
[1:57:16] recused and mcdonald. Yes. And we invite,
[1:57:21] uh, council. Thank you. And we invite council member shri back. And I'll
[1:57:25] be leaving for much the same reasons
[1:57:36] and I'll make the motion. All right. So now we'll be looking at the areas that mary mcdonald's affected by,
[1:57:40] um, motion by councilwoman caterer thompson. We have a second. I'll second. Second by
[1:57:44] councilwoman. Now. Roll call, vote please. Barnacle aye.
[1:57:49] gator thompson? Yes. Di carly? Yes. Now?
[1:57:54] yes. Shrives? Yes. And mcdonald. Recused. Motion carries
[1:57:58] unanimously. Invite the mayor back into the room.
[1:58:04] do we need to do one for the quint recused, or can we assume that that's part of the
[1:58:08] no, recusal. Recused. Okay, so
[1:58:13] I'll make the motion on five. We don't need to. We don't need to. All
[1:58:17] right. Um, let me defer to the clerk here and, and ask have we covered
[1:58:21] all the resolutions needed? I'm thinking it would be safer just to include
[1:58:25] the quentin one right now without here. Let's do one more unless you
[1:58:29] guys wanna just assume that first one was. So I'm looking for a motion
[1:58:33] for, for, uh, council member quint. I'll make some motion for attachment five.
[1:58:38] resolution. Second. Second. So we have a motion by cater thompson. And a
[1:58:42] second by barnacle. And a roll call. Vote please. Uh,
[1:58:46] barnacle. Aye. Cater thompson? Yes. Di carly? Yes.
[1:58:50] now? Yes. Repps? Yes. Mc mcdonald?
[1:58:54] yes. Okay. Motion carries you unanimously. Thank you. All
[1:58:59] right, well, thank you very much, melinda. That's, uh, always an adventure.
[1:59:03] . Appreciate the presentation. Yeah.
[1:59:11] and now, um, we have our workshop for the evening. And thank you all
[1:59:15] for, uh, andrew, uh, allowing the lineup change in this.
[1:59:20] to bring this one as the main event for the evening. At this time,
[1:59:24] it's a recommendation to the city of petaluma council to receive staff presentation,
[1:59:28] public comment, and conduct a workshop concerning the north petaluma,
[1:59:32] north smart station priority development area and specific plan,
[1:59:37] proposed vision and preparation of the specific plan associated environmental
[1:59:42] impact report. And leading this
[1:59:46] augusta team is tom ford, principal planner and andrew,
[1:59:50] uh, triple planning manager.
[1:59:55] and this may take a second to get all the microphones and computers in
[1:59:59] the right place. And let us know when you're ready.
[2:03:04] thank you.
[2:04:29] no, um, if it's agreeable to the group, we might take an
[2:04:33] adjournment for five minutes and, and give the team a chance to pull it together here.
[2:04:38] and so, um, madam clerk, will you put us in adjournment
[2:04:42] for five minutes?
[2:04:49] okay. We are back in session now, and we are, um,
[2:04:53] about to start our conversation on the petaluma north smart station
[2:04:57] priority development area specific plan proposal, uh,
[2:05:02] in the form of a workshop. So that's, that's us
[2:05:17] and welcome team. Good evening, mr. Mayor.
[2:05:21] council members. We're really happy to be here tonight and share, uh,
[2:05:26] the vision that we have for the specific plan area. I'm tom ford. I'm the
[2:05:30] project manager on behalf of the city, and I'm joined by annie
[2:05:34] ryan, our consultant from perkins. And will, who's the lead designer on a lot
[2:05:38] of what you're going to see. Um, when we sent out the staff
[2:05:43] report last week, um, we had attachment six, which was, um,
[2:05:47] 60 slides. And this afternoon we decided to condense
[2:05:51] it a little bit. So we went through and we did two things. We weeded some things
[2:05:55] out to make it, not that they were superfluous, but that they were
[2:06:00] per perhaps not needed. And then we also took a land use discussion
[2:06:04] that's more about implementation. After we receive, uh, go ahead from
[2:06:08] you folks on the vision, uh, we can, we have those slides, but we'll
[2:06:12] pause at the end of the, we've now shortened it to 40.
[2:06:16] and when we get to that, we'll pause it. And if you wanna see those later during your discussion, we
[2:06:21] can bring them up. So,
[2:06:25] so I'll be brief. I just have a very, uh, quick overview and then I'm
[2:06:29] gonna turn it over to annie. I want to just talk about the specific plan, background,
[2:06:33] what we've done to date, uh, then we'll have annie's presentation and then with
[2:06:37] public comment. Um, and you guys can have a discussion and hopefully we can leave
[2:06:41] here tonight with either the vision we're bringing to you or your, um,
[2:06:46] thoughts on how we might amend that vision. So the specific plan
[2:06:50] area is about, uh, 1060 acres from washington street
[2:06:54] all the way up to, uh, about where, um, the
[2:06:58] brewery is. I , I usually know the name of that. Yes. Uh, lagunitas.
[2:07:03] and on the, on the other side of mcow, it's scott street. So it goes all
[2:07:07] the way up there. And then, um, in the middle, the metropolitan transportation
[2:07:11] commission has identified a half mile radius that they call the
[2:07:15] toc, the transit oriented communities area. So there's some pretty focused,
[2:07:20] uh, policies that need to be put in place for that area specifically, but
[2:07:24] then also for the entire specific plan. Um,
[2:07:28] looking at it from the citywide, you can see that it's
[2:07:33] somewhat, um, remote in that it's across a freeway, it's across a river,
[2:07:37] and, um, it, it's on the other side of town and it's
[2:07:41] adjacent to your other, um, uh, pda
[2:07:46] priority development area as identified by mtc. And you'll be having a separate
[2:07:50] planning effort, uh, for that very soon.
[2:07:55] where we are in the process, we're just a little bit behind. We are exactly where the
[2:07:59] red arrow is. We're trying to get, we're in that knuckle between developing all
[2:08:03] of the options and alternatives and thoughts and coming to you folks with what we
[2:08:08] think our preferred vision is. We want to see if you can either bless it or, or
[2:08:12] amend it. And then we'll go forward and perkins and will will go off and write
[2:08:16] a specific plan. They have a consultant that works for them that'll start to do
[2:08:20] the ca documentation and we'll be back in the fall with a draft
[2:08:24] plan. So our goals are to implement the, uh,
[2:08:29] pending general plan, uh, implement metropolitan
[2:08:33] transportation commission policies for that, that trans transit oriented
[2:08:37] communities area, um, to create a unique identity and
[2:08:42] sense of place. And we've heard a lot from the community about what they think about what the
[2:08:46] sense of place is now and how ideas they have for changing it.
[2:08:50] and then the last piece is that once the specific plan gets written is
[2:08:54] in place, it'll, uh, create the regulatory structure that you can then implement
[2:08:58] development, implement, uh, public improvements, and start to see change
[2:09:03] over the 20 year course of the specific plan horizon
[2:09:09] planning process. To date, we did, um, a pretty extensive, um,
[2:09:13] existing conditions analysis. We had a lot of stakeholder interviews and outreach to community
[2:09:17] members, um, with community, um,
[2:09:21] workshops and such. And using the stakeholder information we've developed with perkins,
[2:09:25] perkins and will has developed a vision, some ideas about land use and
[2:09:30] improving circulation networks. Uh, we had a planning commission
[2:09:34] session. We gave detailed, um, re uh, reporting
[2:09:38] on that in the, in the, uh, staff report. So
[2:09:43] the community engagement has been pretty, pretty robust to date.
[2:09:47] in addition to some focus group meetings at the very beginning, we met with
[2:09:51] city staff on december 4th. Uh, the leaders of, uh, city
[2:09:55] staff, like public works, a lot of people to get a lot of ideas about what
[2:09:59] we can do about flooding, what we can do about traffic, things like that. We had the
[2:10:03] community open house on december 10th, um, and then we
[2:10:07] also had pop-up workshops, uh, lumon such as that.
[2:10:11] and then, uh, back at, um, the community center on
[2:10:16] march 21st, we had a community workshop where perkins and will led
[2:10:20] exercises with people to really, uh, small group exercises to
[2:10:24] look at how we might, um, think about the vision for what
[2:10:28] is identified in the staff report as the focus areas. Um, in
[2:10:32] addition to that, we were here in november, um, to speak with you about a
[2:10:36] community outreach partners working group. That working group was assembled largely
[2:10:41] along the lines that you, uh, gave direction on. It has about 15
[2:10:45] members. We've had three meetings, and the fourth one is going to be next monday
[2:10:49] to incorporate what we hear from you tonight and give perkins and will
[2:10:53] some additional ideas.
[2:10:58] so, um, recently you hired a new economic development director
[2:11:02] and that person, uh, put on her hat and really went out to the community and sort of
[2:11:06] dug down a little deeper than we had already gotten with some of the outreach, and really
[2:11:11] started talking to some of the business owners and, uh, businesses
[2:11:15] out there and came away with some takeaways. These are, we, uh,
[2:11:19] discussed in the staff report and they're, um, on the screen right now.
[2:11:28] and so then as we said in the staff report port, we
[2:11:32] narrowed it down to seven, um, things that we'd like you to give us direction
[2:11:36] on, if possible. A couple of planning efforts that we'd like to, uh, sunset
[2:11:41] just because we feel like this specific plan happening in 20 26, 20 27
[2:11:45] will enable us to, uh, update the planning area
[2:11:50] for those. Um, we want you to think about taking the
[2:11:54] mtc assigned plan area and converting it
[2:11:58] slightly to, um, adopt to the measure y, um,
[2:12:03] boundaries that were for the unincorporated part of the, the
[2:12:07] land north of, um, corona road. Then we
[2:12:11] also want to see, we're gonna, andy's got a lot of material to show you,
[2:12:16] um, if we're on track with what we see as these focus development planning in
[2:12:20] the, in the, uh, the, the three focus areas, the transit village, the health
[2:12:24] district, and the mcdowell corridor. And then put in
[2:12:28] place bold, um, urban design policies and a framework for
[2:12:32] really placemaking and community building tools. And lastly,
[2:12:37] uh, if you can, um, approve the vision or, or amend it in whatever way
[2:12:41] you please. After discussion, we'd like to go away and prepare the specific plan,
[2:12:45] bring that back in about in the fall as a draft with a draft
[2:12:49] eir. And with that I'm gonna turn it over to annie. Um, like
[2:12:53] I said, she'll go through most of the slides and then we'll get to a stopping point. And if you want
[2:12:57] to see more, we'll bring it up later. Thanks, tom.
[2:13:02] hi everyone. I'm annie ryan. I'm an urban designer with perkins and well, it's nice to be here with you
[2:13:06] all this evening. Um, I am going to try to
[2:13:10] be quick, uh, but we can talk about all of this, um, in as much detail as you would
[2:13:14] like after. Um, I'm gonna start with some context and then we'll talk a little bit about engagement, what we've
[2:13:18] heard, what we're hearing. Um, and then I'll move into the proposed version. So just
[2:13:22] a little orientation, as tom said, it's about a thousand acres. We've got some
[2:13:26] key boundaries, um, established by 1 0 1 corona road, washington
[2:13:31] boulevard, maria drive. Um, and it's sort of, it's, you can really see the, the shape,
[2:13:35] right? It's sort of the, it balloons out around the station area. So it's capturing this half
[2:13:39] mile, um, transit area. And then this entire corridor, it's about two miles
[2:13:43] that runs all the way down north mcdowell till you get to washington. Um, and
[2:13:47] uh, I think it's important to note some, some features here. Um,
[2:13:51] 'cause these become drivers of the plan and how we think about, uh, the east side. So there's,
[2:13:56] I said there's 1 0 1, there's petaluma river, um, there's smart line,
[2:14:00] and you know, these are all connectors in their own right, but they also are, are barriers
[2:14:04] and these are big, you know, pieces of infrastructure, um, or geographic
[2:14:09] features that that can be crossed, but with great challenge or sometimes not, not crossed at all.
[2:14:13] and so I think it's important to just sort of take this in as we think about the east side,
[2:14:17] how people experience it today, and also how it's sort of perceived in, in overall petaluma.
[2:14:22] um, so what's happening in the plan area today? Um, it's, it's
[2:14:26] a pretty remarkable place. This is a very unique part of the city. There's
[2:14:31] a lot of existing assets here. You know, we start with smart station, the smart pathway.
[2:14:35] these are tremendous assets. Um, huge economic potential,
[2:14:40] um, and investments that the city has made. Um, there are some really well-defined,
[2:14:44] really well sort of understood neighborhoods here that provide homes
[2:14:48] to really wide diversity of people. Um, that includes several manufactured
[2:14:52] home neighborhoods that are just vital sources of affordable housing, especially for our, our
[2:14:56] seniors. Um, there are open spaces, creeks, trails, throughout the plain area, including,
[2:15:01] including the very beloved, um, lynch creek trail. You know, these are really great
[2:15:05] assets. We don't find these very often in cities around the bay area.
[2:15:09] um, and there's also, I just wanna point out, you know, these sort of what we're calling vital community
[2:15:14] resources. So we've got petaluma valley hospital, the petaluma valley, petaluma health
[2:15:18] center. Um, these are really critical, um, sources of service,
[2:15:22] not just for the east side, of course, not just for petaluma, but from at a regional stage. So
[2:15:26] these are, these are really important assets to point out. Um, and,
[2:15:30] you know, when we think just about the, the, the business, the commercial side of the east side,
[2:15:34] I mean, there's a really, really rich legacy of local entrepreneurship here. Um,
[2:15:38] small businesses that have gone very global. I mean, lagunitas is like,
[2:15:42] of course a , a well known example, but there's so many different industries
[2:15:47] and businesses that have sort of taken root here. Um, the name makers alley
[2:15:51] is getting used. Um, you know, there's, there's a real sense of place here that I think this plan is
[2:15:55] well equipped to help, um, see forward to the next, the next many decades.
[2:16:00] um, and I just wanna underpin too that, you know, this is a real job center. There's a
[2:16:04] lot of important jobs that, that happen here. And so this plan needs to be very, very cognizant
[2:16:09] of how it doesn't, um, disrupt, dismantle that. And that really finds a way to
[2:16:13] continue to be an important job center for, for the city and for the region.
[2:16:17] um, the, the east side, you know, many, many great things, but it's not without
[2:16:21] its challenges. Um, this is an exhibit from the, the pending general plan
[2:16:25] update. Um, the areas you see in pink, or what are referred to as equity priority
[2:16:29] areas. So, um, as defined in the general plan, these are areas comprised of
[2:16:33] lower income residents, um, that are disproportionately affected by environmental pollution
[2:16:38] and other negative health impacts. So you can see, I mean, it's quite clear, right? A huge
[2:16:42] amount of, um, that category of, of area, um, falls within our, our
[2:16:46] plan area. So for any kind of planning effort here, um, we really, we
[2:16:50] need to be thinking about this, um, at the forefront. It's not just business as usual. This is a planning
[2:16:54] opportunity to repair real harm that's occurring in the plan area today.
[2:16:59] uh, so whether it's higher pollution rates due to the proximity of 1 0 1, um, or high
[2:17:03] concentrations of seniors that are living, living in areas that experience a lot of flooding or
[2:17:07] have sort of traffic, um, and, and, and, um, uh, road roadway issue,
[2:17:12] roadway safety issues, you know, equity has to be a major driver for this plan.
[2:17:16] um, so I wanted to just, you know, we can't walk through the plan right now, but maybe we can kind of quickly all
[2:17:20] do this together on screen virtually, um, to sort of just get our minds in, in place
[2:17:24] and, and think about this place a little bit. So there's a lot of amazing things happening, right? We
[2:17:28] have the new smart station, the pathway, I mean, these are tremendous assets and
[2:17:32] getting more and more popular every day. Um, so much connection to
[2:17:36] nature. I mean, the parks are really, it's so fun how they all have different characters.
[2:17:41] I mean, I was really love it. I'm not from petaluma, but I really have loved getting to know this
[2:17:45] area. 'cause I just find it so tremendous. All these different types of open spaces that weave throughout
[2:17:50] the neighborhoods, um, these diverse businesses. It's so, um,
[2:17:54] interesting to see the variety, um, and how they all have stories. And we've
[2:17:58] gotten to connect with a lot of people at workshops and hear about sort of what these businesses
[2:18:02] mean to them, um, and what they mean to, you know, their, their families in petaluma.
[2:18:07] um, and there are some serious challenges. And I would just say the constant
[2:18:11] refrain we hear is about safety on our streets and in our public realm.
[2:18:15] um, the road quality is not conducive to pedestrian trips, to bicycle
[2:18:19] trips. Um, all of you, I'm sure have probably know this intersection
[2:18:24] very well. I mean, these are, these are serious hardships. And so when we're talking about transit oriented development,
[2:18:28] we have to think about an environment that is actually encouraging people, um, safely to, to
[2:18:32] use that transit. Um, and I, you know, I just wanna point out like it's all
[2:18:36] ages when we're talking about this type of infrastructure. We're thinking about kids, we're
[2:18:41] thinking about people pushing strollers, um, elderly folks, like when we design
[2:18:45] for all ages, um, that's where we see sort of our safest, um, greatest outcomes on
[2:18:49] our streets. Um, there's some really interesting and important, uh,
[2:18:53] environmental features here, right? So we have creeks that are running all the way through.
[2:18:57] they go through sort of various stages of, of naturalization to what you're seeing on the left, like
[2:19:01] very culverted and sort of, um, engineered, um, pretty significant
[2:19:05] flooding issues that are a constant refrain as well. We've heard a lot from public works about the flooding
[2:19:09] challenges, but residents and business owners as well. And then also just wanna flag, you know, the heightened
[2:19:14] wildfire risks. One of the earlier presentations today was talking about that urban wildland interface. I
[2:19:18] mean, that we are right on the sort of front lines here in this plan area.
[2:19:22] so what did we hear? Um, , I mentioned this, but I would say
[2:19:27] like the biggest highlights really are around mobility, around people feeling safe
[2:19:31] to use, um, to, to get out of their cars and to be able to walk and
[2:19:35] bike and, and, and do so, um, with, with their children as well. Um, this
[2:19:39] sort of, um, refrain, this constant refrain for wanting more green space, wanting more connection
[2:19:43] to nature, but also just wanting places where they can socialize and be with
[2:19:48] their families, be with friends, a place to, to meet up after work. Um,
[2:19:52] you know, this is a residential area, but it's also a place, um, where, where people come
[2:19:56] to work. And so having those types of spaces and places, um, is really critical.
[2:20:01] um, I would say from all of that sort of feedback we are
[2:20:05] seeing, um, we've sort of latched onto these four priorities, right? So this
[2:20:09] idea of really maximizing the station as a community asset, um,
[2:20:13] thinking about north mcdowell as a place that puts people first. So not just something that
[2:20:17] you are driving through or moving through, but actually a place that can be a destination
[2:20:22] in its own right. Um, thinking about local industries sort of
[2:20:26] anchoring the place and really creating a strong sense of place that where makers and
[2:20:30] breweries and all of these sort of creative enterprises are really flourishing together.
[2:20:34] um, and then I would say, you know, thinking about nature and climate, it, it's
[2:20:38] gotta be at the forefront. I mean, just thinking about why people wanna live in petaluma, it's
[2:20:42] because you can be sort of immersed in nature, but, um, we can't control
[2:20:46] nature. And so thinking about how we do this in a, in a sensible way and thinking long term is
[2:20:51] critical. Um, and so with all of this feedback, uh, we have sort of
[2:20:55] this emerging vision, which I can just read to you, um, a vision statement. So
[2:20:59] the petaluma north station specific plan area will be a resilient, connected,
[2:21:03] and vibrant place where housing, jobs, and recreation come together in
[2:21:07] a walkable, nature oriented district that supports health, community, and
[2:21:11] long-term economic resilience. It's about complete neighborhoods and distinctive
[2:21:16] mixed use hubs that will offer homes, jobs, and daily amenities within a short
[2:21:20] walk or ride transit corridors that will be active and welcoming with
[2:21:24] art public spaces and human scale development that supports ridership and car
[2:21:28] optional living creeks and green streets that will form ecological spines,
[2:21:32] linking people to open spaces, managing water cooling neighborhoods,
[2:21:36] and protecting from wildfire risk and a thriving ecosystem
[2:21:41] of different businesses that will be supported by a mix of amenities that generate vibrancy
[2:21:45] and enable people to live near their work, school and families.
[2:21:49] so these are all great, these are words . So we need to turn these into,
[2:21:54] um, in, into strategies that can, that it can inform a place. And so we
[2:21:58] start to think about design pillars. Like I I'm an urban designer, so this is gonna get a little,
[2:22:02] a little artsy, but, you know, we think about these pillars to kind of drive decisions about how we would think
[2:22:06] about things like land use. Um, and so these pillars, um, that we've latched onto are environmental
[2:22:11] resilience, circulation and access and housing economy in place.
[2:22:16] and what could that start to look like? So when we think about a big picture, urban
[2:22:21] design framework, I think there's three big ideas that we're trying to sort of bring, bring
[2:22:25] to life here. The first one being distinct neighborhoods. So a really contextual mix
[2:22:29] of housing and jobs and everyday uses that are all sort of coalescing
[2:22:33] together, and you really have a strong sense of place with that development. There needs to be a playfulness
[2:22:37] in how we think about these future development coming forward. Um, green
[2:22:42] stitches, which are this idea of, you know, bringing our creeks and parks and trails,
[2:22:46] all of these sort of moments of nature, having them work together so that they become places
[2:22:50] that are connecting, um, the larger fabric that they really can be, the stitches that hold it
[2:22:54] all together. And then, um, the circuits, which is what you see in orange or sort
[2:22:58] of the reddish color, um, these are what we're calling people priority routes. So
[2:23:02] these ideas of, um, networks that are connecting all neighborhoods no matter where you
[2:23:06] live on the east side to transit, to open space, and everyday uses. And it's going to
[2:23:10] use a combination of public streets, trails, um, connections
[2:23:15] between new development, all ways to get people around safely.
[2:23:20] um, and so I'll, I'll try to just kind of quickly walk through, like, what could this start to be
[2:23:24] as a specific plan? Like if we think about taking these big picture sort of concepts
[2:23:28] and now translating them to, um, to standards and, you know, p priorities,
[2:23:33] but ultimately standards and, and, uh, guidelines. Um, and so when
[2:23:37] we think about environment and resilience, what we could imagine is establishing an overlay
[2:23:41] zone, um, whether it's for fire hazard, um, or for flood hazards, sort of
[2:23:45] thinking through how development in these areas needs to be, um, uniquely responsive
[2:23:49] to those conditions. Um, we can think about our streets being multipurpose, so
[2:23:54] whether they're there to, um, actually help buffer from fire spread. You know, we can think
[2:23:58] about the spacing of trees, um, how they trees, pla placing trees can be wind
[2:24:02] buffers, um, but also flood management. So how we can start to think about our tree, our
[2:24:06] streets as being places that hold water, that slow it down, that recharge
[2:24:10] the aquifer. Like all of this can be multipurpose and multifunctional, um, and
[2:24:14] can look really, really great as well. Um, we can think about our open spaces being
[2:24:18] very multifunctional. So there's already this huge network of open spaces, but now we can start to think about
[2:24:23] potentially new open spaces, um, in new parts of our, uh, our plan area.
[2:24:27] so these are conceptual, but the idea is that we wanna have a framework that we can build from
[2:24:31] circulation and access. You know, I, I talked about the, the mobility concerns, the
[2:24:35] safety concerns. It's all about creating a network that is human scale that
[2:24:40] encourages people to walk. And wherever we are finding, um, areas for new
[2:24:44] development, we're really impo. We're bringing, we're super imposing this walkable
[2:24:48] framework, um, first and foremost, so that we get, um, an environment where people,
[2:24:52] um, are feeling like they can live without their cars if that's what they choose to do.
[2:24:56] um, all of this has to be thought about in a way that preserves the
[2:25:00] integrity of the district. So what you see at number five, this idea of, um, improved
[2:25:04] freight access and industrial and business park areas. This is directly relating to what
[2:25:08] we were hearing in that, um, it, it, it echoes the feedback that was received in
[2:25:12] the memo from the business community that there's really important work that's happening here. And so when
[2:25:16] we think about safe streets, these are streets that have to work for many different users,
[2:25:21] um, housing and economy in place. You know, what do we mean when we think about land
[2:25:26] uses here? Um, there has to be some context, some intention behind it.
[2:25:30] um, and what we've started to, to sort of coalesce around is this idea of
[2:25:34] character areas. So thinking about these sort of zones or like smaller sub areas with
[2:25:38] the plan area that could start to have their own unique character,
[2:25:42] um, that's directly informed by the streets that sort of abut them, but
[2:25:47] also the surrounding land uses. So I'll just sort of quickly walk through. But, um,
[2:25:51] you know, this idea of like a maker's alley where we're really focusing, um,
[2:25:55] an intensive sort of effort to, to support the jobs support sort of
[2:25:59] industry there. Um, the corona transit village is, is of course the area
[2:26:03] right around the smart station. Um, it's includes
[2:26:07] quite a bit of un um, incorporated area that does not have a lot of development today. So
[2:26:12] we really need to be thinking about to develop there. What does that actually want to be? And
[2:26:16] could that be? Um, and then moving down mcdowell, we of course have sort of the
[2:26:20] immediate station, right? Um, the heart of the station is what we're calling it. Um,
[2:26:24] a sort of central zone in the middle. Um, and then all the way at the bottom. Um, we have
[2:26:28] what we're referring to as the community and health hub. So this idea of really creating a
[2:26:33] strong sense of purpose that is sort of anchored by the lucchese complex,
[2:26:37] but also the, the hospital. So what could this look like? I'm
[2:26:41] just gonna sort of splash some images on the screen, but this idea of a maker's alley
[2:26:45] that is really about bringing together places for people where, where people work, but also places
[2:26:49] where people can enjoy in what sort of interesting
[2:26:53] businesses and industries are occurring here. Places that workers want to spend time at after
[2:26:57] work places that you want to come to on the weekends, um, places that really celebrate,
[2:27:02] um, the industries that make this area special. The station could be this very vibrant
[2:27:06] place that, you know, is, is capturing the fact that there are gonna be so many people arriving by foot
[2:27:10] by bike. Sort of what could that sort of immediate, um, sort of, uh,
[2:27:14] capture area start to feel like central mcdowell
[2:27:18] could start to be a place that maybe has some interstitial moments. So ideas of sort of taking
[2:27:23] advantage of maybe, um, larger setbacks, um, uh,
[2:27:27] uh, uh, parcels that maybe are underutilized that could start to become places for
[2:27:31] smaller pockets of open spaces, places for rest. Um, starting to think about how we
[2:27:35] sort of take advantage of these, these smaller moments as part of a larger system.
[2:27:40] um, and then lastly, the health and community hub. You know, this is really civic, uh, a civic
[2:27:44] type of sub area where we have large convergence of people coming together,
[2:27:48] um, but also places that need to, you know, sort of support that, that larger
[2:27:52] population thinking about retail and, and such. So this
[2:27:57] is a very conceptual sort of land use plan that gives you a sense of how, um, we could start
[2:28:01] to think about these types of land uses arraying, um, in the plan area. So
[2:28:05] this focus on very walkable, um, 15 minute neighborhood centers, of course,
[2:28:09] as something that comes straight from the general plan. So this is an opportunity to really see that through,
[2:28:14] um, prioritizing the job centers as places of, of, of employment.
[2:28:18] um, thinking about a diversity of housing options, and especially thinking about housing, um,
[2:28:22] that is really focused around transit. How, how can we maximize that transit asset,
[2:28:26] um, and encourage as many people as possible to, to take advantage of it. Um,
[2:28:30] and then thinking as well as just about a, a sort of a full diversity of uses, um,
[2:28:35] in, in areas where there is the greatest potential for change. So starting to identify,
[2:28:39] um, opportunity sites. So just some
[2:28:43] sort of precedent imagery to kind of, um, put some image to to, to those
[2:28:47] words. And, and what I, um, we'll try to sort
[2:28:51] of move through quickly now is just what does this actually start? Like how could we start to do
[2:28:55] this, right? Like a specific plan. Um, this is a very large area, it's a thousand
[2:28:59] acres. So it's not about mass change , it's about really thinking
[2:29:03] through intentionally where are the opportunities where more change is potentially needed.
[2:29:08] um, and, and then where there are opportunity sites that maybe are underutilized
[2:29:12] or, or wanting to be something more. And many of these actually were raised as part of
[2:29:16] the general plan process. And so what we've, um, brought here, uh, this
[2:29:20] evening are these sort of three focus areas. The first being the transit village, which
[2:29:25] is parcels right around the, uh, the transit, the smart station, um,
[2:29:29] the health district, which I mentioned is sort of the area that captures, um, sort of the zone
[2:29:33] around the lucchese, uh, complex, but then specifically the, um,
[2:29:37] shopping center across the street, an opportunity or a change area that was identified in the general
[2:29:42] plan. And then the segment of north mcdowell is sort of the remainder in between,
[2:29:46] um, that captures a few sort of, um, smaller opportunity sites along the street.
[2:29:51] so if we think about starting to, um, translate sort
[2:29:55] of these higher level principles into land use strategies, um, we could look at
[2:29:59] something like this, what you see conceptually here. So we're imagining, um,
[2:30:03] walkable blocks that start to, um, connect the sort of new unincorporated,
[2:30:08] uh, new development in the unincorporated area that you see just sort of north of the
[2:30:12] station, um, into the sort of larger fabric, right? Starting to, to connect with
[2:30:16] neighborhoods that are across, uh, corona road. We're thinking about a really diverse mix of
[2:30:20] uses. Um, a mix of housing types in particular. So enabling, um,
[2:30:25] a lot more affordability, more workforce housing people able to live close to where they
[2:30:29] work, and always sort of thinking about how are we supporting transit? How are we
[2:30:33] enabling this station to be, um, to, to, to be the, the asset that the city
[2:30:37] had sort of dreamed of when, when it was first announced that there there could be a, a second smart station
[2:30:41] in petaluma. Um, and of course, thinking about active uses, how do we
[2:30:45] bring in open spaces? Um, all of this is sort of coming
[2:30:49] together in a sort of complete sort of land use framework.
[2:30:53] um, moving further down, this is, um, sort of zoomed in around the health district.
[2:30:58] so thinking here about, um, you know, future connections that could be brought
[2:31:02] into the plan area that double, um, as I mentioned before, these sort of flood management
[2:31:06] streets that are sort of dual purpose, not just creating more walkability, but also, um,
[2:31:10] improving our resilience. Um, we're thinking about streets scape enhancements, of course
[2:31:15] along north mcal, um, just sort of overall improving the
[2:31:19] experience of that street. Um, and then I wanna just sort of focus your attention to,
[2:31:23] um, what you see in the, the darker purple. So these are mixed use areas,
[2:31:27] um, identified as change areas in the general plan, uh, these land use
[2:31:31] designations. We are just sort of bringing from the general plan to this, uh, to
[2:31:35] this plan. But starting to think through how might these, um, sort of, uh,
[2:31:40] land use blocks these existing shop. One of them, the larger one of course, is the
[2:31:44] existing shopping center. How can these start to be integrated with their surroundings? So if we think about
[2:31:48] sort of, um, a green edge along, um, uh, the, the larger
[2:31:53] shopping center, like how can that start to be something that now connects to, to lucchese park?
[2:31:59] um, and then the last piece I wanna talk about is that that third area I mentioned, sort of the segment
[2:32:03] of north mcdowell, that that is right in between the station and,
[2:32:07] and east washington. Um, and so really what's driving the change here, what we
[2:32:11] wanna be thinking about is how do we just think about a street that works for
[2:32:15] everyone? How are we sort of balancing all these needs? Um, right now it's a street of course, that's
[2:32:19] very focused on vehicles, but we can think about bringing in these other users
[2:32:23] into the design of a future street that is not going to compromise. Um, the ability
[2:32:28] for all these other users to coexist like that is really the beauty of, of really well
[2:32:32] designed streets as that they can balance and work, um, for everyone.
[2:32:36] um, and so just to sort of remind ourselves, right, like we have these sort of five, um,
[2:32:40] character areas that we've established around, um, the plan area.
[2:32:44] and so these character areas can start to inform the qualities, um, and
[2:32:49] experiences of these different segments of both north mcdowell but also corona
[2:32:53] road. So we can think about a design of a street that is responsive to the land uses
[2:32:57] that are on either side of it, and how all of that can work on, on the street itself
[2:33:02] without compromising, um, you know, things like level of service and its ability to to
[2:33:06] to work as a, as a viable street.
[2:33:10] um, and so just to sort of conceptually give you a a sense of this, right, this is, um, an
[2:33:14] existing like typical cross section for north mcdowell. So you can see lots of vehicle,
[2:33:19] lots of space for vehicles. There's, um, five travel lanes plus sort of a,
[2:33:23] a bus turnoff space. So a lot of distance that people are having to cross, um, by foot if
[2:33:27] they're crossing the street. Very little planting or shades. So when you're walking
[2:33:31] along the sidewalk, it's a narrow sidewalk and it doesn't really have a lot of shelter from the elements.
[2:33:36] um, and then we've got sort of limited and uneven bike facilities. Um, this particular
[2:33:40] cross section was cut where we have this sort of shared use path, like a, it's really
[2:33:44] just a concrete band that sort of, um, sits adjacent to the sidewalk.
[2:33:48] so not really giving much to most people, most users of the street.
[2:33:52] um, so how can we start to think about, you know, putting forward a new vision that sort of
[2:33:57] re reprioritizes a little bit, redistributes thinks about everyone getting to benefit from
[2:34:01] this corridor. Um, and so,
[2:34:05] you know, this, this is the logic, right, that we're really shifting the priorities from cars
[2:34:09] to people and really to, to the planet, thinking about how this street can be something that's
[2:34:13] gonna live long term, um, and, and be very viable in that way.
[2:34:19] so with that, I think these are rephrased versions of the key recommendations
[2:34:24] that tom, um, kicked us off with. And, uh, I think
[2:34:28] we can move to questions.
[2:34:34] okay. Great presentation. Thanks. Uh, I
[2:34:38] appreciate you, uh, um, ta cutting that slide count in half.
[2:34:43] . I know that causes us to have many questions and, and things like this, but,
[2:34:47] uh, but I, I think we got a good gist of it there. And, uh,
[2:34:51] who on council has a question I wanna lead with?
[2:34:57] I will start, um, council member barnal. So appreciate this presentation.
[2:35:01] it's the second time where I've seen some of it. 'cause I was on the planning commission. Um,
[2:35:07] so, and it's nice to see the land use coming, coming
[2:35:11] out too. Um, can you talk about the, on the
[2:35:15] mobility, the, the part about maintaining freight access and things like that
[2:35:20] and, um, you know, some of the other mobility topics that we were
[2:35:24] talking about of, you know, bringing down the number of lanes and things like that. There's
[2:35:28] quite a few cars on this proposed growth. I would hard, it's hard to see that
[2:35:32] coming down. So that's the one thing I'm sort of grappling with when we've thought about
[2:35:36] this street in particular, this is the one where we're like, it's gonna be a road,
[2:35:40] you know. So can you just talk about what your thoughts are of how that actually would transition
[2:35:45] and things like that? Yes, I can, I can start and then I'm gonna, um,
[2:35:49] pass it off to my, uh, colleague and friend at fair and pierce as well, uh, to back
[2:35:53] up what I'm saying with some authority. But, um, I would just say that in our sort
[2:35:57] of preliminary studies, we've looked at many, many different, we we're
[2:36:02] cutting cross sections of this entire corridor and looking at different conditions and you
[2:36:06] know, there's, there's a lot of excess, um, that
[2:36:10] there are multiple travel lanes, um, in both directions. But then also these turn
[2:36:14] lanes, there's sort of extra spill out space, um, because in general
[2:36:19] probably there was just, the space was there and so it was taken and given to the vehicles and there
[2:36:23] probably wasn't too much, um, thought, thought beyond that. Um,
[2:36:27] but what's critical is like, we have to think about how people are using this street
[2:36:31] to get to the properties, right? Because it's not just that, um,
[2:36:36] cars are, are driving down and turning at intersections, there's driveways, there's curb cuts.
[2:36:40] I mean, like, it is very important to think about this as an important conduit for commerce.
[2:36:44] and so what we're looking at is sort of, it's two-pronged. We're of course we
[2:36:48] need to model this and like we, we can rely on data, I think to, to some extent to
[2:36:52] help us understand, um, what are the volumes and what can sort of be, um,
[2:36:57] adjusted there. Um, but we also need to be thinking about like overall as
[2:37:01] an entire network, does it actually support us, you know, in terms of like
[2:37:05] overall congestion, right? Does it actually support us to have all of this space for vehicles
[2:37:09] when there can be more sort of thoughtfully, uh, designed ways that we're sort
[2:37:13] of coordinating our movements? Um, and we, we feel like there
[2:37:18] are very good precedents that we can learn from at this. Um, so kelly, I don't
[2:37:22] know if you would like to sort of give your thoughts on that too.
[2:37:26] sure, I can, I can add on, um, to that. So yeah, based on initial
[2:37:31] analysis that we've done, which is just looking at existing conditions, we'll still need to look at like future
[2:37:35] growth and I'll take that into consideration. But, um, yeah,
[2:37:39] based on the, the analysis of existing conditions, we've, we're exploring a few different different
[2:37:44] options and that's in tandem with, uh, public works staff about what might
[2:37:48] be, oh, excuse me. Could you speak a little closer to the mic? Oh, sure. So I can, I think I have a
[2:37:52] tendency of speaking too close, so I tried to adjust this time, but thank you for the feedback council
[2:37:56] member. Um, yeah, so working in tandem with, with public works staff
[2:38:00] around what, um, is palatable, what might be feasible and coming up with,
[2:38:05] um, starting to explore what potential solutions might look like. And that will, we'll
[2:38:09] continue, we're kind of at the, the start of that process. And so we'll continue as
[2:38:13] we build out the plan and get some buy off from you all on the vision tonight. Um, dive
[2:38:17] a little bit deeper into that and look at, uh, projections for, for future
[2:38:22] growth, knowing that a lot of the future users, if they're coming from
[2:38:26] the train station, are not gonna have a car they're gonna be getting here on foot, um, and
[2:38:30] maybe biking using the bike share that's at the station. Um, and so
[2:38:34] yeah, the, the type of user that might be, uh, using this corridor in the future
[2:38:38] might be using a different mode. Or what are some other strategies that, um,
[2:38:43] you know, where, where, where's freight getting off of the highway right now? Is there an opportunity
[2:38:47] for them to get off at the, you know, the redwood highway, uh, exit
[2:38:52] and travel down north mcdowell? So kind of taking the, um, the
[2:38:56] business owner feedback that, um, we, we've received into account and
[2:39:00] trying to better understand and dive deeper where, how are they using the corridor? And so,
[2:39:04] and we think there are opportunities to balance all these different users.
[2:39:09] um, there are a lot of creative solutions out there that other cities have, have done.
[2:39:13] so we can, we can certainly look elsewhere and don't need to reinvent the wheel, um,
[2:39:17] but all within the context of what the local community here would
[2:39:21] like to see. And, um, yeah. Cool. Thanks.
[2:39:26] um, couple other questions. Uh, I really appreciate the sort
[2:39:30] of, um, maker micro at the, where
[2:39:34] currently the post office is. I think that's a nice, um, balance and
[2:39:38] a nice way to sort of establish some sense of identity and place, um, from
[2:39:42] the station as you arrive at the station and you realize like,
[2:39:46] oh, there's all these great, you know, maker micro businesses down there that I should go check
[2:39:50] out. You don't necessarily get that feel with the, uh, post office
[2:39:55] and, and a fire station there. Um, how do you
[2:39:59] actually create that, the demand for those businesses and things like that, right? Like,
[2:40:04] um, it feels like a chicken and the egg situation a little bit where like, you know, you've
[2:40:08] gotta have the spaces and you gotta have it. Um, but also you need the businesses to come
[2:40:12] into. Can you talk a little bit about how these sort of places come to come to be?
[2:40:17] I can, I can take a stab at this. Um, it's very complicated and it
[2:40:21] is, well it is very chicken and egg, but I think part of it is like signaling to
[2:40:26] the, to future, um, applicants that
[2:40:30] you're, this is an option that's on the table now. So sort of even just
[2:40:34] the first step that you all took with establishing that land use designation is really huge because now
[2:40:38] that indicates to a different sort of market that this is a type
[2:40:42] of, um, development, this is a type of use that is going to find, you
[2:40:46] know, um, a home here. Um, so I think that that is a first
[2:40:51] step. I think also thinking through like what, um, are the inherent
[2:40:55] needs of those types of businesses and then ensuring that we can put forward
[2:40:59] standards and guidelines in the specific plan that maybe make that more friendly to them.
[2:41:03] um, I know we think a lot, um, other projects that we've worked on in the bay area
[2:41:07] along the peninsula in particular where there's, you know, el camino real has, I think
[2:41:11] kind of a similar fabric and, and sensibility about how it's trying to preserve certain types of
[2:41:15] uses. Um, we've looked a lot at how we can, um, uh,
[2:41:20] d encourage that type of, we call it production, distribution and repair. So this idea
[2:41:24] of light industrial that, um, wants to be
[2:41:28] close to other light industrial, like you want to see that clustering. Um, but part
[2:41:32] of the reason that they want to be close to one another is because they tend to need to share certain types
[2:41:36] of resources like surface parking or like loading space. And so all of
[2:41:40] that, a specific plan is really well equipped to help put in place
[2:41:45] standards and guidelines to help, um, sort of problem solve some of that, I would say.
[2:41:49] um, and so all of those can be ways to sort of help just ease the burden
[2:41:53] a little bit on, um, on the developer or the existing business, what
[2:41:57] have you. Um, that those are, those are ways that we can kind of help encourage those things to,
[2:42:01] to percolate. I don't know, andrew, if there's more you wanted to add to that. I think I
[2:42:05] want to add also that, you know, certainly the work, the time that we spent in the, in
[2:42:09] the plan area, we're seeing where these businesses have located, right?
[2:42:13] these, these highly entrepreneurial business activities, many of them are very,
[2:42:17] very stable and very committed to, um, where they're located
[2:42:22] along mcdowell boulevard. So, so it's great to see that sort
[2:42:26] of that in the dna of the plan area and to be able to build up
[2:42:30] on that by celebrating them, uplifting them and, and kind
[2:42:34] of bringing them forward in that way that blends them as businesses, as
[2:42:38] entrepreneurs, as incubators, but then also creating that attachment
[2:42:43] that annie showed in some of her imagery where you're creating those sort of
[2:42:47] third spaces for employees to come out to socialize
[2:42:51] with one another, to celebrate the work that they're doing and more fully engage
[2:42:55] in the, um, in the community. Great. And then one
[2:42:59] final question. Um, so when we
[2:43:04] talked about this at planning commission, there was some, I brought up some points that like, there's
[2:43:08] actually quite a few like large heavy duty parking lots
[2:43:12] essentially there, right? Whether it's, there's like a truck stop, there's the,
[2:43:16] um, the post office recology, I saw ecology's logo
[2:43:20] there. Like are we envisioning long term that we want to continue to have these large,
[2:43:24] like heavy duty parking lots, you know, businesses, obviously
[2:43:28] critical businesses to our community, or are we, do you, do we envision those moving
[2:43:33] to a different corridor in the city or something like that? Long term?
[2:43:38] I think we, so we, what we have done and those comments, um, you, you hopefully see
[2:43:42] the, some of the changes that reflected in the land use plan. Um, 'cause you were very astute
[2:43:47] to point out that they're these sort of key, um, sites that are producing a lot
[2:43:51] of greenhouse gas emissions, right? There's a lot of like truck idling, like these are sort of not conducive to
[2:43:55] this like livable green, um, like corridor experience that we're
[2:43:59] trying to achieve. Um, and so I think in some cases, potentially some of those opportunity
[2:44:03] sites, um, we, we see, um, this
[2:44:08] specific plan as being able to put forward a vi a vision to see those change into something that
[2:44:12] is maybe a little bit higher and better used, something that is maybe multi-purpose.
[2:44:17] um, but I think, uh, in terms of, um, the, to your second
[2:44:21] point about, you know, are, are all of these things going to go away? I think that's part of
[2:44:25] a bigger question about sort of the, the actual sort of character and vision. Um,
[2:44:29] overall, like that has not been something that I would say this plan is sort of
[2:44:33] strongly, um, pushing forward wholesale. Yeah, sure. Thank you. I appreciate
[2:44:38] that. Thanks. That's all for me. I, that
[2:44:42] council memberships. Yeah, I've got a fairly long list
[2:44:46] of stuff, uh, questions and comments. Do I but they're more blend them
[2:44:51] deep. So do you want me to wait till andrew or after it now?
[2:44:55] go for it. Alright. Okay. Um, first I just want
[2:45:00] to thank, uh, nicola fry. I think, uh, senator, one of the nicest, uh, emails
[2:45:04] with a list of comments. So I'd like to make sure the staff really
[2:45:09] pays attention. Uh, I liked a lot of the stuff that, that she listed down in there, maybe
[2:45:13] even using a little ai I suspect to help, um, get the consistency going,
[2:45:17] uh, through the different sections. But, uh, most of the comments I thought were very
[2:45:21] valuable to, to, uh, look at. So please look at her comments for sure.
[2:45:25] um, the other email I received that was very interesting was about water flow, vernal pools,
[2:45:30] um, water catchment systems and the like, and the whole water flow, the diagrams
[2:45:34] that you showed really did not show that well at all. Um, and
[2:45:38] I think we, uh, you even show development of housing on places that absolutely should
[2:45:42] not have housing. 'cause it's actually a pond and a vernal pool
[2:45:46] on some of these spots. And I don't think you'll be even allowed to even get close to housing on
[2:45:50] a couple of these spots. So you really have to pay attention to the actual vernal pools
[2:45:55] out there on that. Um, the, um, there's
[2:45:59] a piece of property we're trying to upgrade to like three stories. And I've, and that's part of the
[2:46:03] area that I've canvassed when I was, um, going the last time I was going for, uh,
[2:46:08] this position. And after talking several of the houses there, right on the
[2:46:12] fence line, absolutely hate the idea of three stories looking out
[2:46:16] over and they will fight you tooth and nail over it, um, on
[2:46:20] that one. So, um, the recommendation and, and I have friends who actually live in the, one of
[2:46:24] those old, really old houses right on corona road right there. And,
[2:46:28] um, after talking with them, uh, a couple discussions actually that would
[2:46:32] be a really good area for a, um, uh, a manufactured
[2:46:37] home such as geo ship box bowl and various other manufactured homes could
[2:46:41] be actually placed there in a community setting. Um, and that would be a,
[2:46:45] a, a separate its own little fi a five minute community
[2:46:49] that could be created in that spot, maybe even with cots services that
[2:46:54] going in that would be a blend from everybody from, um, moving in
[2:46:58] from the homeless all the way up to single families, uh, a single folks,
[2:47:02] um, to maybe even some seniors, all even these basically tiny
[2:47:06] homes. So that would be a good spot for that. So I just want you to think about that
[2:47:10] as a possibility. And then that area right behind those, those couple
[2:47:14] of those older homes, the one that is actually almost, uh, looks like it may need to
[2:47:18] be pulled down, but it's historic house right behind there is actually, it turns into
[2:47:23] a lake in wintertime, uh, when the wet rains are flowing. It's actually a good place
[2:47:27] for a, um, a drain basin for recharge is
[2:47:31] a possibility. And there's, uh, and wildlife frequent that spot in
[2:47:35] wintertime. So you really have to pay attention to that particular spot. It's been documented, um,
[2:47:39] to have a very high value as a vernal pool for wildlife.
[2:47:44] so, um, please pay attention to that spot, which is right part of that 10 acre area
[2:47:48] that's in there, um, in the areas in the, uh,
[2:47:52] transit, um, uh, mixed use type area.
[2:47:56] um, you had some retail lined out and I think there's gotta
[2:48:01] be more than retail in in those sections. There needs to
[2:48:05] be a lot more of community meeting spaces in that transit, uh,
[2:48:09] housing area. So instead of just building up and putting lots of housing in, not just
[2:48:13] retail, but there needs to be more gathering spaces. And
[2:48:17] my recommendation is a library annex. The library folks want to get in there
[2:48:22] but actually build out a library annex that does more than library.
[2:48:26] it's actually a gathering spot, um, for people to come in and do
[2:48:30] things, uh, together, crafts for kids, hobbies, make it a
[2:48:34] separate, almost a community center as well as a library. So a mini community
[2:48:38] center there, uh, as well as a library that has multiple uses for, for that
[2:48:42] community. Um, so that has to be incorporated and which means
[2:48:47] that you have to think of much more holistic people centered. I know you
[2:48:51] talked a little bit in your reports about the people centeredness of it all. I think you need to up up at
[2:48:55] one more level. I think nicola fry mentioned that several times in, in the
[2:48:59] verbiage and in the pattern, more people centered entirely, uh, not just
[2:49:03] housing, uh, that needs to be put in and not just high density housing.
[2:49:08] oh, it's gonna work. Um, so, uh, and it needs to be a better plan with,
[2:49:12] um, where you're gonna put the housing, how, what the shapes gonna be. And I think
[2:49:16] even if you pre-design a, uh, an actual 3d
[2:49:21] structure, what it might actually look like as part of the plan development that you're
[2:49:25] doing a 3d structure, what that property might look like just from viewpoints
[2:49:29] might be helpful to actually see what it might end up being. If it's three, four or
[2:49:33] five stories, what that looks like from different angles, that should be easy to do using
[2:49:37] 3d modeling now. So that should be part of your plan development.
[2:49:42] um, and so I really wanna make sure, and then the, the
[2:49:46] person that it shouldn't be blocked out, okay, parcel by parcel has to be bought
[2:49:50] and then each one, each parcel gets, gets developed differently by a different developer.
[2:49:54] no, it needs to be planned out so that holistically gets developed maybe by
[2:49:58] a single developer. Let's work on that. The other
[2:50:02] area in that transit area, because the, uh, touching that little circle that's
[2:50:07] going around is, okay, this is absolute rule, okay? If it touches that little circle, it gets to include it if it
[2:50:11] doesn't touch it. And so it makes it kind of weird shape to that areas.
[2:50:15] if we're going to include most of it, there's a couple properties not in there, let's go ahead and,
[2:50:19] and let's try to include those properties and allow that to make it a more uniform
[2:50:24] so they have choices on those properties to join or not join into
[2:50:28] this, the transit so that they can do things or whether they can develop even into
[2:50:32] turn into retail. 'cause it's right there on the edge there. Um, for these private properties,
[2:50:37] they're, they're stuck there. It's like, okay, I've got this farmstead and, and
[2:50:41] I'm surrounded by these five story buildings are all around me. You destroyed my, my,
[2:50:45] my living habitat and yet you're now allowing me to do it and sell my
[2:50:49] property to do the same thing. So let's make sure that all those properties in that
[2:50:53] block of right by on, on that eli road, there's two or three of those parcels
[2:50:57] not included. Let's get those included. So it's blocked out as to what
[2:51:01] it actually does and or transition or, or back off. But
[2:51:05] it needs to be, um, uh, shaped so that those property owners also have
[2:51:09] options for their future, otherwise they are stuck in a place where they
[2:51:14] don't want to live anymore. Right? Okay. So that's the area there.
[2:51:18] um, uh, just as a comment, uh, just really look at the
[2:51:22] 2013 master plan for the transit. I think there's a lot of stuff that you
[2:51:26] used in your plans. I think you looked at it, there's a lot of, um, wednesday
[2:51:31] copying, but a lot of use. You use a lot of the same language and concepts and ideas.
[2:51:35] so that was a really good report. So look at it again and make sure those are included in that.
[2:51:40] and maybe even let's copy some of that for even our
[2:51:44] downtown station. Also. Maybe we can even just say, oh, let's just copy it down there and let's
[2:51:48] do the same thing, uh, for the downtown to kind of upgrade the whole master plan
[2:51:52] for the smart stations while you're doing this. That's, that's just like, could ai
[2:51:56] just do that automatically develop your report? Let's copy it for the downtown,
[2:52:00] do it. Thank you. Five minutes, seconds later, it's done. Deal. Can you do that?
[2:52:05] so whatever. Um, then on the, um, okay, then
[2:52:09] I'm looking at the district. Okay, it's almost all in district one,
[2:52:13] councilman j canada thompson may have to go out to a thousand more
[2:52:17] homes to, to do it if it stays in district one. So maybe
[2:52:21] we need to divide that out and push out, so eventually, not this round,
[2:52:26] but plan out maybe for the next round of voting in four years from that,
[2:52:30] as people move in, we're going to have to redistrict our voting for districts,
[2:52:34] uh, one, two, and then probably six across the way. Have to shift the
[2:52:38] lines a little bit to accommodate that large population growth in
[2:52:43] that area. So think about that as you're doing this, thinking about who's gonna
[2:52:47] live there, how many folks are gonna live there, and how we actually divide up the folks by voting district
[2:52:51] and school district. Seems like a lot of folks will go to the law, make sure we
[2:52:55] have law principal and superintendent for the school district really engaged,
[2:53:00] involved in how he's going to take over these students and plan ahead does is his schools
[2:53:05] capable of, of absorbing that many young people. If young people move into
[2:53:09] this place, I'm not sure he has the capacity to do that, so let's make sure
[2:53:13] that happens. I didn't see anything about the school system supporting the,
[2:53:17] the, the population density. Um, there, there was a,
[2:53:21] um, uh, what was mentioned was actually building a sidewalk and bike path on washington
[2:53:27] just east of, uh, mcdowell. So there was one little line mentioned
[2:53:31] there. You even showed a picture of that particular corridor in your, in your slideshow here.
[2:53:35] um, but you mentioned it, but you didn't say how that might
[2:53:39] actually work. So you have to transform washington street in that section
[2:53:44] and that whole ditch in that section and how are you going to, how are you gonna actually put in a bike
[2:53:48] path and, and a sidewalk and make that work
[2:53:52] right into that intersection to get people from our, from the area where
[2:53:56] I live, right? Right there down into the malls. So
[2:54:01] that was a concern that I had. Um, and then there was another one of
[2:54:05] the bike path you listed out that actually going across lynch creek where there is no
[2:54:09] bridge. So do we need to build a bridge? And that's location that you're located
[2:54:13] on your maps because you have a line dotted line. It's gonna go from here right across
[2:54:17] lynch creek, right into the, uh, housing development there, creekside, and
[2:54:21] then, and then turn around and come on down and, and get across, uh, mcdowell washington
[2:54:25] intersection so I can see them on, on a couple of the streets. That
[2:54:29] might work if it's a side streets, but you have it going right through a housing development
[2:54:34] and, and over a creek that there's where there's no bridge right now. So how does that
[2:54:38] actually work? Uh, so make sure you get, you clear that up. Um,
[2:54:43] at the smart station, uh, especially near meridian, the meridian is going to
[2:54:47] have a little bit of like a store or something, a little gathering spaces there, but mostly for the
[2:54:51] residents. And how are you going to, I looked at your slides, beautiful slides of
[2:54:55] what a makerspace and not makerspace, but a gathering spots around
[2:54:59] the smart station might look like. Where is that actually gonna
[2:55:03] go? What actual space is that gonna fit in? Is it gonna be on the other
[2:55:07] side of the tracks? Is it gonna be part of the meridian property? Is it gonna be part of the
[2:55:12] triangle that's there? So why, where exactly can that space that you show
[2:55:16] these beautiful settings where people are gathering, what does that actually look like in
[2:55:20] that space? What does it shape? Is it gonna be this long
[2:55:24] trek of these separate little buildings? And how are people actually going to get there to that spot
[2:55:28] because the train tracks are right there. So you've prevented an idea,
[2:55:32] but I don't see the how to implement it in the actual space that exists
[2:55:37] there. So nice words. I wanna see implementation process
[2:55:41] as part of your plan that's part of that station to make it so that people get off
[2:55:45] the train and how do they physically get across the tracks or, or down down the, the
[2:55:49] path to wherever this space is and who else is going to be there to
[2:55:53] gather. So a nice concept, what's what's the reality
[2:55:57] reaction gonna look like, right? So make it make it more real because you have lots
[2:56:01] of nice words in this whole plan, all these beautiful things that you're going to produce,
[2:56:05] but the implementation, I'm going, huh, how so I wanna
[2:56:09] see a lot in your plan, how and where exactly you're gonna put something.
[2:56:14] um, same thing with the, that goes down to where, um, you go to the
[2:56:18] health district where you're gonna transform maybe the, uh, the plaza a little bit and
[2:56:22] that and uh, uh, rainier road as it crosses, um, under rainier because
[2:56:26] there is a proposal for a, um, some development across the freeway.
[2:56:31] so how are you going to tie that into that section across rainier and
[2:56:35] there's spaces there, the dog park right there. Uh, is that gonna transform
[2:56:39] or not? You didn't even mention the dog park and what that might turn into. So where's
[2:56:44] that go? What's happening there? So, um, and that road and what, how rainier
[2:56:48] is, so if that development goes in or not goes in assuming it, it's gonna eventually
[2:56:52] go in. Um, if, if that's gonna be the part of the plan. Uh,
[2:56:56] 'cause that's what's in the books, what's being proposed now, it's, it's sort of been been asked for.
[2:57:01] so how are you going to incorporate that into this whole system? Because you're gonna have a bunch
[2:57:05] of housing across that freeway in, in the plants, but it, it's not in your plans.
[2:57:10] so please add it, make sure it's there and how, how are you gonna connect it
[2:57:14] all and make those people happy and what they come across and how are they going to gather
[2:57:18] and participate in all this? Um, and then, um, there's
[2:57:22] of course connecting that. And then there's all the bike path we want to produce in the whole greenway area there,
[2:57:26] which I think should be part of your plan, uh, since you're so close to the freeway.
[2:57:30] but that, that may not be part of your, um, mission. 'cause the line where the lines
[2:57:34] are drawn. Um, there wasn't much talk about, um, how you're
[2:57:38] going to get the, um, the other forms of transit besides just
[2:57:42] buses going and the train going. There's gonna be a whole lot of, um, where
[2:57:47] we're gonna be be moving into autonomous vehicles, shared ride vehicles,
[2:57:51] uh, various, uh, electrified handicapped vehicles coming in.
[2:57:56] wheelchairs included, encapsulated, uh, compartments. But there's very
[2:58:00] little discussion on how you're going to incorporate all of that type of
[2:58:04] movement. You included pedestrians and bikes, but you didn't include, include handicap
[2:58:08] and you didn't include, uh, microcar or autonomous vehicles. Um,
[2:58:13] and, um, uh, so there's, there's forward thinking. The, um, there's,
[2:58:17] even if you really wanna look forward at calistoga recently, they had,
[2:58:22] um, um, a data center that was proposed. Part of the data center
[2:58:26] was an autonomous drone to carry people around as part of that project
[2:58:31] in calistoga that was just proposed to calistoga, which included that type of
[2:58:35] modern transport. Um, so, but that, that's a whole
[2:58:39] nother topic there to think about, but how are you gonna include autonomous vehicles, buses
[2:58:43] and cars that are coming as part of the transit
[2:58:48] oriented community so that they can get from there to the other areas where
[2:58:52] they're going to work and back home again. So, so
[2:58:56] that has those concepts need to be included. Um,
[2:59:01] and then the other one is on the, uh, you had nice ideas about the maker space,
[2:59:05] but if you go down there, am I riding my bike down there? I've visited some of the industries. I've actually bought things
[2:59:10] that in those industrial park di in that whole section, and it's pretty industrial
[2:59:14] looking. A lot of maker shops that are pretty, uh, the buildings are very,
[2:59:19] um, um, they're, they're a little bit squareish and, and,
[2:59:23] and so they don't look as friendly and a nice, there isn't. Uh, there's very little nice you have, uh,
[2:59:27] um, the farm stand there, which is, uh, for the marijuana that's being retailed,
[2:59:32] it'd be really nice if there was a, a, a cafe, a marijuana cafe
[2:59:36] added next door maybe that they could convert and, and do something with. So
[2:59:41] the needs gathering spot. I know griffo, I've been there a couple times to events and they're
[2:59:45] trying their best to create that into a event type area, but it's not really that
[2:59:49] friendly to get there and do things there. So how are you actually going to
[2:59:54] put the words you're saying about making this huge makerspace all this beautiful stuff
[2:59:58] so that all these beautiful buildings you sewed doesn't look like that at all? How are
[3:00:02] you gonna make that happen and how are you gonna get people to actually make it work to
[3:00:06] get there and back again? You have a lot of great theories and, and hopes
[3:00:10] and dreams. I'm talking about conversion in reality here for a
[3:00:14] lot of this stuff. Okay. Um, alright,
[3:00:19] that's actually my list. And will you be able to submit the
[3:00:23] list so that uh, we can, um, well, well, well, you see is handwritten yeah, yeah.
[3:00:27] brainstorm ideas. But if, if you want me to type turn it in. Do you like me to type this up for you?
[3:00:32] ? I think it would be actually helpful to get the con context. Okay. I get context.
[3:00:36] I can type this all up. Um, thank you.
[3:00:40] um, I think I, you know, I, I was gonna jump in here for a minute and
[3:00:45] I, one of the things I heard from the council is that, uh, the
[3:00:49] plan looks lovely. Um, there's, I mean, the vision side of it is
[3:00:53] really bold and, and good stuff, but my mind being
[3:00:57] the engineer is, is like, well, how do we recruit the investment that fulfills the
[3:01:01] vision? You know, where's, where are the tools that connect? Um, many
[3:01:05] of the things I think the public feedback in is really a referendum
[3:01:10] on what's good and what's not good in my community at this time. And, and
[3:01:14] the remedy being asked is fix what's already wrong.
[3:01:18] and, um, that's, that's difficult for a futuristic plan
[3:01:22] to address a retroactively a problem, but that's what the public kind of
[3:01:26] wants to hear. Um, many of the things like, uh, stormwater improvements
[3:01:30] in front of the shopping center, um, the green stitches that we called them, um,
[3:01:35] you know, if there was redevelopment, if there was a residential property, uh,
[3:01:40] proposal onto that, we could nick them. But I think
[3:01:44] that, um, the street is the high end, so property water
[3:01:48] doesn't drain to that side. All of their stormwater improvements would be towards the freeway side of
[3:01:52] the property. And, um, so it would be treating street water, which would
[3:01:56] be awesome because that's where the crap is that you want to filter in
[3:02:00] your bio retention soils. And, um, but
[3:02:04] all of that is city subsidy. All that is
[3:02:09] fixing it retroactively. And so it bothers me, the plan focuses so much
[3:02:13] on that. 'cause the more we focus on that, the more interested we'll
[3:02:17] be to put that burden on developers. And the more we put it on the developers, the
[3:02:21] less likely that any of the vision comes true, because we burdened a developer with
[3:02:25] the historic problem. So I would love to see policy that clearly distinguishes
[3:02:30] that the improvement makes things, makes itself
[3:02:35] better, but doesn't maybe go into the community. And it has to be explained
[3:02:39] to the public why that those two things can't happen at the same time.
[3:02:45] um, but, um, I, I think also the big assumption
[3:02:49] is, is that, uh, we're creating something that will happen. That there
[3:02:53] will be growth because of this and maybe lots of growth because of this.
[3:02:57] I, I, I'm not that optimistic. I think the plans, we've done
[3:03:01] many, many quality plans, but they disconnect
[3:03:06] with the abilities of developers to, um,
[3:03:10] change. And, um, those ugly tilt up warehouses we
[3:03:14] look at there, griffo's doing something inside of it, but there's essentially no
[3:03:18] outside, uh, beneficial rollout. So he gets the maker
[3:03:23] space and his business does well and that, and that's good,
[3:03:27] but to tear down the one next to it to have a courtyard is highly unlikely.
[3:03:32] we would visualize that , we would like to have that. But
[3:03:36] the way retrofits works, I don't, I I see the more modest
[3:03:40] things happening rather than the, the bold. I think
[3:03:45] then the question is, is does the city stake out the intent for
[3:03:49] the city to be bold? You know, um, a lot of these, uh,
[3:03:53] could form assessment districts, you know, uh, redevelopment
[3:03:57] districts, uh, a red district, you know, um, uh,
[3:04:02] redevelopment, um, 0.2. So, um, you
[3:04:06] know, what are the, what are the chances that business owners would get together and do a thing?
[3:04:11] and those are kind of the conversations that I feel need to be had and,
[3:04:15] and, uh, maybe aren't, uh, fully fleshed out yet.
[3:04:20] when we talk about the annexation area,
[3:04:24] um, I think that we are pushing
[3:04:28] urban or at the station into rural, away from the
[3:04:32] station, and there needs to be a tapering or a, a transition.
[3:04:36] so I would assume there'd be parklands at the perimeter of that arc that
[3:04:41] are clearly identified. And right now it looks like streets carve up the hole of the,
[3:04:45] the circle. And I think we could be more specific that
[3:04:49] more density stays near the existing road corona
[3:04:54] and it tapers out, which would mean it tapers out towards,
[3:04:58] um, eli and doesn't connect
[3:05:03] to eli. And if there were more park lands
[3:05:07] along the trail there, would that even be an, an, um, an annexation
[3:05:12] or would the city and we should identify to people whether a park owner
[3:05:16] would arise, or it would be
[3:05:20] a landscape assessment district that, um, that has the
[3:05:25] perimeter of that circle area. You know, we need to figure out
[3:05:29] ownerships while we're, while we're making a vision, let's figure
[3:05:33] out who's really gonna be burdened by or benefited by
[3:05:37] those decisions. Um, I concur on the, the
[3:05:41] freight con, uh, conditions along mcdowell. We had this discussion there, but again,
[3:05:46] I would suggest that it's more nuanced than that.
[3:05:50] um, there's a dense business community at both ends
[3:05:55] of, uh, this study zone, but in the middle, it's a dense residential
[3:05:59] area, and I would rather that trucking didn't go
[3:06:03] from one commercial area through the residential into the next commercial
[3:06:08] with that. And I think that can be done by, um, tapering
[3:06:12] road width in there. So it was obvious if you come off washington, you return
[3:06:17] to washington. If you come off old redwood, you return to old redwood and
[3:06:21] you want to do it where you don't impinge on the businesses. You, you're
[3:06:26] sensitive to the comment they made about good freight, but you're also
[3:06:30] sensitive to the fact that maybe traffic counts in that middle part would allow for a narrower
[3:06:34] road and the narrower road would encourage trucks not to come
[3:06:38] through that area. Um,
[3:06:42] and a general plan comment that I've made a number of times is
[3:06:46] that I worry we're losing, um, grocery store
[3:06:51] potential. When we talk about, when we talk about, um,
[3:06:56] how to redevelop an area. If someone, like,
[3:07:00] say they're doing down in san rafael proposing a big housing project on top of
[3:07:05] a safeway, well then you are creating a food ghetto. And the same can be said
[3:07:09] of other types of use in that area. So when we
[3:07:13] call something maker, I mean, I really appreciate that we're identifying it and
[3:07:17] zoning it kind of away from those non those use.
[3:07:21] are we zoning in any food for the residential?
[3:07:26] and, and again, not just the pretty picture, but why would anyone do that?
[3:07:30] I mean, or put differently, what's the investment motivation?
[3:07:37] um, there were discussions, uh, about stakeholder input
[3:07:41] and things and uh, and I want to make sure that, um,
[3:07:45] our nonprofit affordable housing partners are consulted. Each
[3:07:49] of them has a different model. Some, some suggest, um, that
[3:07:53] 50 units is a buildable space. Others are saying n no, at this point, a hundred
[3:07:57] is the minimum buildable space. It's important that we achieve affordable
[3:08:02] housing. I think the only way we can do that is if we talk to those folks
[3:08:06] about the different models and find out which one might work. And
[3:08:11] some of this zone, um,
[3:08:15] I, I did like, uh, council member sch shrimp's comment on, uh, manufactured homes, but,
[3:08:20] um, and there's a real nice one in kadi where they, they,
[3:08:24] the city had a little property and they put, they dropped in five houses real quick, uh, for
[3:08:28] affordable housing, right on east ka. Um,
[3:08:32] how do we zone that? How do we objective design then? How
[3:08:37] does, how does that get in where that's a good thing?
[3:08:42] partially, I'm asking because you don't know which property is interested in what development.
[3:08:47] so how do you put a pallet out? And I think I'll
[3:08:51] actually ask that one as a question. You know, of all the things we're doing, how
[3:08:55] do we make sure they're attractive? How do we recruit the
[3:08:59] investment?
[3:09:05] um, I can, I can start, I don't know that example. Um, I don't
[3:09:09] know how it would comply with whatever the existing,
[3:09:13] like zoning was there. Um, I think there's
[3:09:18] a lot of opportunity with a specific plan to get creative. Um, I
[3:09:22] think what we also, I, I mean it's very heartening to hear, I'm sensing an
[3:09:26] interest in trying things differently, um, because there's a desire
[3:09:30] to maybe see some different outcomes and not just keep rolling the dice and see
[3:09:34] what happens. So I think this is actually a really good opportunity.
[3:09:39] um, I think in terms of, um, sort of creative housing production
[3:09:43] types, um, I think it's a question of like, how much do you need the
[3:09:47] specific plan to actually codify like different standards for development
[3:09:51] versus just having be, you know, the city having better
[3:09:55] conversa d different types of conversations with developers, sort of get gauging
[3:10:00] interest, understanding what are their pain points. Um, I would want to
[3:10:04] think about dense, like if we look at the specific plan and what tools are available there, we could think about density.
[3:10:09] are there sort of thresholds that are just not working for those types of products?
[3:10:14] um, it oftentimes with those, I I, I don't, again, I don't know exactly
[3:10:18] what this project is, but sometimes, um, looks can be deceiving. And so
[3:10:22] you can have, um, these types of manufactured, um, or sort of, uh, uh,
[3:10:26] sort of pre-designed, you know, offsite products that are brought in. They're
[3:10:31] very, very dense. Um, and so they might not be compliant with, um,
[3:10:35] density thresholds, even though they are single family, you know, they're very small
[3:10:39] lot, they might be stacked units. And so while they look like, um,
[3:10:44] great, you know, sort of modest density, um, they, they might not
[3:10:48] be. And so they might not be compliant with, with some of the, the density thresholds that exist. So
[3:10:53] I would, I would, we'd need to look at that, but this is very much the kind of thing that
[3:10:57] I would perkins and well would love to bring forward into a specific plan, like if there's appetite
[3:11:01] for this. Um, that's something that, that is very exciting to us,
[3:11:05] I guess. Um, thank you. And that's, you know, you're right. It's, uh, it's about being
[3:11:10] creative and, and it's about the partnerships that get formed between different developers
[3:11:14] and different property owners. Um, I guess my question is, I, which
[3:11:19] I asked, uh, in council questions to staff early, um, can
[3:11:23] we get anything to entitlement or a by right level?
[3:11:28] so much of development is, um, challenged
[3:11:32] by not knowing exactly what this means. And I think the better
[3:11:36] the vision, um, appears, the
[3:11:40] less the vision is specific, and it leaves us in a,
[3:11:44] it leaves a developer in a place where they're uncertain of a project.
[3:11:49] and, you know, our growth rate has been quite slow. We have not built many houses
[3:11:53] like 99 houses last year, of which only 30 were market rate. So,
[3:11:58] um, what do, what do we do to get
[3:12:02] it very specific on the properties? What can be built
[3:12:06] and what are the hurdles that we should be trying to solve here?
[3:12:12] that's a, I think, a really important question. And it's, it's a question that we're asking,
[3:12:16] not just of the specific, of this specific plan project. We'll also be asking
[3:12:20] that same question of the downtown station area, um,
[3:12:24] transit oriented communities update project, and we're asking it through the
[3:12:29] petaluma zoning reform project. So I think it's one certainly that
[3:12:33] I, and, and several others are thinking about and talking about on a daily
[3:12:37] basis. I, I think that a, a strong
[3:12:41] vision is important. You, you want to have a vision that inspires,
[3:12:46] you want to have a vision that encourages people to invest.
[3:12:50] you know, to your point, um, how, how do we get people to invest?
[3:12:54] part of that is because they see that you're very committed to the future of
[3:12:58] an area through your vision and, um, through your,
[3:13:03] your policies and such. However, I I think
[3:13:07] that some of the conversation we have to have through zoning reform and through
[3:13:11] these other projects is how, how do
[3:13:15] you set forth what you want, but not to such exquisite detail
[3:13:20] that it can't be achieved. And so I, and
[3:13:24] perhaps a great example of that is when we look at the downtown smart station
[3:13:29] and the work that was done in the 2013 tod master plan
[3:13:33] that was very highly specific about what was wanted for the
[3:13:37] smart site. And if that is what is established as the community's
[3:13:42] vision for that site and the community's expectation,
[3:13:46] and a developer looks at that, then then the, the developer's making that
[3:13:50] decision on the front end without ever consulting you, they're looking at it and saying, well,
[3:13:55] that's not the product we develop, or that's, that's not going to pencil.
[3:13:59] and so they're not even brought into it to explore further and to, to,
[3:14:04] um, see if that's a project that they want to pursue. So
[3:14:08] I do think it's finding that balance, it's creating those opportunities. It's having some
[3:14:12] objective standards in place to make sure that you get, you know, some of the things that
[3:14:16] you want. But then it's also indicating through your vision and through your policies
[3:14:20] that you are flexible and that you are looking for those creative moments
[3:14:25] and opportunities for people to invest in your community. Yeah, I
[3:14:29] appreciate how well we've done that in the general plan. I'm just wondering, is there
[3:14:33] a philosophical or a technical difference when you get to specific plan where you should
[3:14:37] be trying to narrow that? So you do have specific investment
[3:14:42] encouraged? Yes. Yes. I
[3:14:46] mean, that's, that's the value of the specific plan is that we can start to
[3:14:50] think about actual places and what are the sort of conditions that
[3:14:54] seem to be evident there that then lend themselves to a certain development
[3:14:59] type. Um, so we can establish things like scales,
[3:15:03] um, you know, thinking about sort of how large blocks might want to be. And
[3:15:07] those blocks should be sized to be thinking about a development type that can be self-park
[3:15:12] or that, um, works well with other types of, um, like development
[3:15:16] types that we see in the market today. Like we can sort of align ourselves to be
[3:15:20] market ready. Um, and then what you're describing is like, we don't, we don't
[3:15:24] need to just think about what's currently getting built because that's already outdated. , I mean, so much of like
[3:15:28] what developers look at, they're looking at the past, like they don't have crystal balls. They don't,
[3:15:32] they're very risk averse. Um, but what you're describing is people that want
[3:15:37] to be creative and recognizing that this current system is not actually getting
[3:15:41] us, um, the types of, um, new neighborhoods that we wanna see
[3:15:45] that, that people wanna live in. There's a, there's a market for it, but maybe the market is not delivering on
[3:15:49] that. So how can we then think about possibly, um, some strategies that
[3:15:53] are, that are a little bit different? Um, so we'd need to look at that. I mean, the kati example you're
[3:15:57] describing, I would love to look into that. I think there, there's definitely precedence that we can start
[3:16:01] to, to think about. Um, but I think we also need to think about maybe what is the role
[3:16:05] of this specific plan where it's sites or it's more specific, it's
[3:16:10] more location specific, and then what needs to happen at a city level, at a
[3:16:14] policy, you know, citywide policy level. And maybe it's finding some balance there.
[3:16:19] thank you. Um, council member now.
[3:16:24] um, thank you. Um, I have some land use
[3:16:28] questions and I'm looking at the study session,
[3:16:33] page 14 in that area right
[3:16:38] across from the smart station,
[3:16:42] there's a gold area that says higher intensity
[3:16:47] residential. Can you tell me what
[3:16:51] ha is that two story, three story? What, what are we talking about?
[3:16:55] higher intensity residential. What are we, what are we thinking
[3:17:00] about? Yes. So this, um, and I apologize
[3:17:04] 'cause we were sort of trying to like truncate the presentation . Right, I understand. But then I understand in
[3:17:08] the process we've now made it longer underst to understand. Yeah. So I can, I can, um, I can
[3:17:12] explain this. So what you're seeing on that slide, and I think I was sharing the screen
[3:17:16] and now, now I'm, is it gold not, um, yes, it's a,
[3:17:20] it's slide 41 computer so they can see what you're looking at.
[3:17:25] do you wanna see what I'm looking at? Reha? Oh, reshare. Okay. It's the study
[3:17:29] session. Oh, shoot. But I'm not, we got it. I know, but I'm
[3:17:33] not sharing screen. Sorry. The study session planning commission. So I should 14?
[3:17:40] yes. Uh, can you see it?
[3:17:46] I can't see it attorneys wide.
[3:17:50] it just has, it has a legend. And this on the left side
[3:17:54] it says housing economic economy and place.
[3:17:59] yes, yes, yes. Okay. So plan priorities. Yes.
[3:18:03] walkable 15 minute community. Yep. You know, neighborhood. Um,
[3:18:07] so think about this as we're wading into actual land use designations.
[3:18:11] and so first it's just about sort of relative use and relative intensity.
[3:18:16] and so that sort of marigold color that you're, you're correct. Highlighting.
[3:18:20] yes. So the idea is that, um, is the area that is most
[3:18:24] proximate to the station. Correct. And so we would, um, you
[3:18:28] know, that's an opportunity to think about a higher intensity, but it's agnostic
[3:18:32] to stories. Like when you're asking about is this three stories, is this four? This is
[3:18:36] just thinking about overall we wanna see a bit more, um,
[3:18:41] more, more intensity of use closer to the station and then it
[3:18:45] feathers out. And then the idea exactly is that as you move further
[3:18:49] out, that intensity would reduce. And then what you're seeing actually in
[3:18:53] sort of a hatched sort of rim at the farthest edge
[3:18:57] of the, um, plan area, the sort of green hatch, um, is this
[3:19:01] idea of really a reestablishing a buffer land. Because
[3:19:06] when we think about what this land is today, it's effectively,
[3:19:10] um, it, it's so undeveloped that it really does serve as pretty significant
[3:19:14] open space and transitional space between our more urbanized, you know, part
[3:19:18] of petaluma, um, and, and the perimeter. Um, and so that
[3:19:22] having that transitional space is, is really important for so many different reasons for fire,
[3:19:27] for wildfire risk. Correct. Um, just in, from an ecological standpoint, how we think
[3:19:31] about, I mean, petaluma is so well known for the urban growth boundary, right? Like
[3:19:35] we need to maintain these, these thresholds and, and there's a reason for that.
[3:19:39] and so, um, that, that is sort of the intent there is the feathering
[3:19:44] or the sort of transitioning from the center out. So help
[3:19:48] me with that. Is it zoned ag? Correct. Right now, um,
[3:19:52] the entire unincorporated area, I believe is a mix of agricultural
[3:19:57] residential. It's county, county land use designation. Okay. So it's a mix
[3:20:01] of ag residential and, um, I think just very low density residential.
[3:20:06] so what would the lot size be if we're, we're talking about single family homes,
[3:20:11] are we, is it acreage or is it because
[3:20:15] it can't be dense? 'cause we're feathering out. So what would the
[3:20:20] parcel size be? So I might go to the next
[3:20:24] where we actually show the land use designation. Does that make, so, um,
[3:20:28] what you're seeing now on slide 52, it
[3:20:32] says rural residential yeah. Would be sort of translating now the general
[3:20:36] plan update land use designations, how could those potentially
[3:20:41] apply here if we were to take those designations? And so the feathering that's
[3:20:45] occurring, um, it starts with the town center mixed use, which is the purple
[3:20:49] that you see, right? Um, and I believe that's a four story maximum.
[3:20:53] um, it goes then to high, closer to the street, correct?
[3:20:58] yes. Corona. Um, and, and most, you know, this is within like a five minute walk
[3:21:02] of the station. So it's really thinking about, um, that proximity and then it
[3:21:06] would feather, it could feather out to what is, um, high density residential
[3:21:10] in the general plan, which is, I believe also four story maximum. Okay.
[3:21:14] but again, um, it, the, what we maybe didn't sort of talk about enough
[3:21:19] is the m-t-c-t-o-c policy, which establishes,
[3:21:23] um, minimum densities that need to be sort of achieved in order to
[3:21:27] stay available for, for future funding. So we have to stay within that framework, but it's an average.
[3:21:31] okay. And so I think that's really, really critical to understand is that this is not
[3:21:35] uniform monolithic. It's about how do we just maintain, um, what
[3:21:40] mtc establishes is a 25 dwelling unit per acre average. Um,
[3:21:44] and so that can be applied in many different types
[3:21:48] of ways. Um, and it, that feathering approach that several people have mentioned feels
[3:21:52] like right. A really good way to think about that, start higher and
[3:21:57] then move out. Okay. Um, the other thing is the pathway.
[3:22:01] would it go all the way to login lagunitas? I hear that complaint
[3:22:06] quite a lot from people that are taking a smart up to go to lagunitas.
[3:22:10] they don't wanna walk on mcdowell, they wanna walk on a nice
[3:22:15] path. Sonoma has paths like that between I think their wineries
[3:22:19] and, and, and subdivisions, and they
[3:22:23] want to walk on that, you know, a bike. Yeah. And the
[3:22:27] brody ranch residents, they also want to use a path that takes them
[3:22:32] to lag anitas or in house across the street. So is
[3:22:36] that path gonna go? So, um,
[3:22:41] not maybe that, let me define the path. Okay. First of all, yes, we
[3:22:45] definitely want people walking and biking to lag anitas that I think should be a goal goal overall.
[3:22:49] um, and so right now, the smart pathway, the alignment, it's on the
[3:22:53] other side of the smart rail from where the lag anitas parcel is,
[3:22:58] and there's no, it's very difficult to punch through, you know, like how you would
[3:23:02] bridge that or tunnel. So, um, what this plan could bring forward
[3:23:06] though, um, is, uh, we could use some of the extra space
[3:23:10] that is actually on the other, that is on the log anita side of the smart rail line.
[3:23:15] um, there's actually city owned land that runs sort of, it's,
[3:23:19] it's almost, we could think of it as like frontage. Um, it's like access space to
[3:23:23] get to the smart path or to get to the smart rail. Um, and so we've been
[3:23:27] looking at that as maybe an opportunity to basically create a second,
[3:23:31] um, pathway that would be on the other side of the rail line that would get you right to log anita. It would get
[3:23:35] you into the sort of industrial district. So people that are commuting, you know,
[3:23:39] you could really imagine commuting, um, in a much more sort of human
[3:23:44] oriented way. Um, but also potentially we could think about mcdowell
[3:23:48] as, you know, if there was a ability to maybe redistribute a
[3:23:52] little bit of space, it does not take much, um, to create a really viable
[3:23:57] safe, um, uh, vertically separated is what we call them bike
[3:24:01] paths. So you have some sort of physical barrier between the path of travel for
[3:24:05] the bike and the cars. Um, that could also be an option. And maybe they both could be, you
[3:24:10] know, I mean, I think like that's sort of what we're trying to bring forward is that, um, there's, there's
[3:24:14] a lot of different spaces where we could imagine introducing that type of connection here,
[3:24:18] especially north of corona. Yeah, I was happy to see that you had skippy's.
[3:24:22] um, another area that, um, I have frequent is
[3:24:26] there's a church hidden in that industrial area, attended
[3:24:30] a few funerals, and as a community space, I've
[3:24:35] seen, you know, people gather there. Um, and then
[3:24:39] there's also a little hidden gem called central milling
[3:24:43] that a lot of people come for bread flour
[3:24:47] and for pizza flour and for cooking classes. So that,
[3:24:51] that's another tourist draw up to this area, but it's
[3:24:55] not really a walkable right now. So I'd like to really see some
[3:25:00] walkable areas. And then of course, we have the pallets of fruit at the
[3:25:04] far end. So anyway. Thank you. And, um,
[3:25:08] I look forward to hearing from the stakeholders.
[3:25:12] can I bring in public comment at this point? I think. All right. Council member schb,
[3:25:18] just one more item I forgot to mention. Um, I did look at the 2013,
[3:25:23] um, report for the, uh, transits, uh, for the, uh,
[3:25:27] smart train. And looking at the on page, it actually ended
[3:25:31] page 83, which is three dash 11 in the report. Um,
[3:25:35] there is a list, and it's a long list of all the businesses
[3:25:40] in that entire makerspace with their retail demand,
[3:25:44] retail sales and leakage, uh, surplus type thing.
[3:25:49] so there's actually numbers, lists of all the businesses and numbers, which I did not see in this report.
[3:25:53] and wanna just make sure that you have all of the businesses
[3:25:57] in this area listed and we know, and then, oh, maybe there's
[3:26:01] a lot more connections that could be made for the, for all these little businesses. Um,
[3:26:05] as we mentioned, like a, the bakery, which I've been to, which is a beautiful little,
[3:26:09] um, uh, cookery, um, stations in there for, for teaching cooking of
[3:26:14] baking. Um, so yeah, so how do we get there? And if we don't, there's
[3:26:18] even a, a, um, in the mac beds, there's a place where they make, uh,
[3:26:22] wall beds, fancy things for the hotels, very high end quality
[3:26:26] type things. So how do we get people to walk in and look at that, look at those beds,
[3:26:30] there's a little showcase there, but it's hidden. So there's all sorts of little businesses
[3:26:34] there, um, that people need to know about. Uh, most people don't,
[3:26:38] don't even know it's there. So let's, let's make sure that that is part of your report as to
[3:26:42] what's available to go, go buy or see in that area.
[3:26:47] thank you. Council member. Uh, carly,
[3:26:53] uh, no thank you for your report. Um, I'm curious in the area that's being
[3:26:57] considered for the transit village, was there any outreach done to the people
[3:27:01] who, whose properties those are, or whose homes those are that are looking
[3:27:06] at being very affected by this? Yes. We're just getting ready to reach
[3:27:10] out to them as a, as a collective, but right now,
[3:27:14] two me two property members in that area are on the working group.
[3:27:18] so they've been coming to the meetings, I think they're here tonight too, and giving us input.
[3:27:23] and they've also been giving us anecdotal stories about other property owners, but
[3:27:27] we're trying to establish a, a meeting with all of them. We've also
[3:27:31] already started talking with lafco about what would that process be like if the
[3:27:35] council, future council wants to annex that. So they've
[3:27:39] started giving us advice for what we need to do for contacting
[3:27:43] owners, contacting registered voters, and, um, doing
[3:27:48] a municipal services review. I realize tonight is
[3:27:52] a workshop and there's no voting action here, but why would we not invite all
[3:27:56] of those property owners, you know, to have a say in, in this as it is a
[3:28:00] workshop, they're invited to
[3:28:04] anything that we do, I can't make them come. But yes, we, we put out notice
[3:28:09] about this. And also one of the working group members who I said is a
[3:28:13] property owner in there, he's been doing outreach. He's been responsible for bringing people,
[3:28:17] for instance, to the march 21st workshop. But we haven't
[3:28:21] actually convened an organized meeting with all of the
[3:28:25] property owners that we can get into the room at one time. Mm-hmm . I just, I just think it
[3:28:30] would be more the right thing to do to tell them ahead of time, because I spoke to
[3:28:34] a couple that had no idea that tonight was happening, um, you know,
[3:28:38] who could not make it. But, um, I think if we're proposing
[3:28:42] massive changes to people's lands that they should know about it.
[3:28:47] and then, um, why is it
[3:28:51] that we're allowing the 2013 plan to expire
[3:28:56] or being asked to let it expire? Is that the todd plan,
[3:29:01] the 2013 todd plan? Yeah. Yeah. It's largely because mtc,
[3:29:05] the metropolitan metropolitan transportation commission has advanced their
[3:29:10] transit thinking and their public, their published policies, if
[3:29:14] you will. And the grant that's actually funding this needs to
[3:29:18] adhere to what their policies are. Now, the toc, the transit
[3:29:22] oriented communities policy, so everything we're doing about the four
[3:29:26] pillars of that are, um, density, housing, um,
[3:29:30] station access, and, um, policy. So we're
[3:29:34] actually adhering to more relevant policy right now.
[3:29:41] how much do we anticipate that this new plan is going to cost from start to finish?
[3:29:46] someone from the city might know, or, or anybody,
[3:29:51] the planning process or to develop the, the vision, pardon
[3:29:55] the planning process or to develop the vision. I mean, all of it to end up at
[3:29:59] the end with a plan in our hands for, for this area. Oh, well, right now
[3:30:03] we're working just with the 1 million, um, $150,000
[3:30:07] grant from mtc, and that's all that's been identified so
[3:30:11] far. So we're proceeding along those lines. Do we anticipate it
[3:30:16] may cost more? It we do not.
[3:30:20] I heard something . Okay. And then
[3:30:25] did we reach out to the consultant that created the
[3:30:29] 2013 plan coming into this?
[3:30:36] no, we haven't done, so the plan was adopted by the city. Um,
[3:30:40] so in terms of reaching out to that consultant, it's, it's, uh,
[3:30:44] it's not a plan that we wouldn't typically consult with them.
[3:30:49] okay. Because, so this, you know, this 2013 plan I'm talking about, you
[3:30:53] know, it includes both, um, both stations and it's actually, it
[3:30:57] won an award, um, that because it was such a good plan and, um,
[3:31:02] you know, even though it, you know, the $1.15 million
[3:31:07] is, is a grant, it's still still tax dollars. It's not free money.
[3:31:12] um, you know, I, I think that that 2013 plan is
[3:31:16] something we should really be looking at as, as the foundation. Um,
[3:31:20] you know, and starting with that and, and changing it as we need to, it's only 10 years old
[3:31:24] or 13 years old, you know, we probably should have reached
[3:31:28] out to the consultant that performed it. Um, I think that would've made sense.
[3:31:33] I think that would've probably saved money for the city, um, because
[3:31:37] it's largely a lot of it is what we're talking about tonight, you know, and the area itself
[3:31:41] hasn't really changed all that much. It's, it's had a little bit
[3:31:45] of development, but it's at large, it's, it's pretty much the same area, pretty much the
[3:31:49] same buildings, um, pretty much the same footprint. And so,
[3:31:54] you know, I, um, I think that plan is actually really important. I wish that would've
[3:31:58] been, I mean, I went and found it. I read through it, wish that would've been included in
[3:32:02] everything that we were given tonight. And then, um,
[3:32:09] so then let's see,
[3:32:16] you know, um, councilman shrives mentioned, you know, some of the level of detail
[3:32:20] in that 2013 plan, and, you know, that that includes, um, market
[3:32:25] demand, regional demographics, income demographics, retail market
[3:32:29] overview, impact of future retail employment overview, expected market for land
[3:32:33] use. Um, a couple other things. I mean, it's, it's very
[3:32:37] detailed and it, and it tells you exactly what that plan is going to do, how it's going
[3:32:42] to affect the area, um, in a, you know, good way or bad way, whatever,
[3:32:46] you know, whatever they considered at the time. But it tells you what's going to happen right there in great detail.
[3:32:50] is that something we're going to see in this plan?
[3:32:57] are you gonna, well, you're gonna see our vision implemented. I can't explain
[3:33:01] why the 2013 plan hasn't been implemented yet.
[3:33:05] right. But I'm looking, I mean, I'm looking for vision with substance, you
[3:33:09] know, with, with actual studies to say, this is what our vision is going
[3:33:14] to do for your city. And they included several things that they studied
[3:33:18] that show that. So I'm asking if, if you're going
[3:33:22] to include that. Yes. I don't know that we'll
[3:33:26] be able to get to the detail that the council member explained with each business being, you
[3:33:30] know, leakage and retail leakage, because some of that analysis has already been
[3:33:34] done, and it's in the existing conditions report. But there will be
[3:33:38] other chapters besides vision. Like what is, what are the development
[3:33:43] standards? What are the public realm standards? How do you achieve the vision either through
[3:33:47] private development or public development, right? But
[3:33:51] I mean, we've, we've really focused slightly on developing an economic
[3:33:55] plan and really driving home that that is, you know, kind of at the center
[3:33:59] of our, our town that controls everything that, that affects the health of our town.
[3:34:04] you know, um, I, I, I think that's something we would all really want
[3:34:08] to see is, is that level of detail and looking what at what this plan is
[3:34:12] actually going to do. So, um, and then
[3:34:17] as far as sense of place and view sheds go, are we
[3:34:21] identifying view sheds and what, like what do those actually look like and what,
[3:34:26] what are you trying to preserve and keep in place in your vision?
[3:34:32] um, I would, I believe the general plan
[3:34:37] probably has some, um, guidance on
[3:34:41] v sheds view court, like protect, uh, view corridors,
[3:34:45] corridors to be preserved. This specific plan would need to adhere to those.
[3:34:50] um, at this point, we are not put, like, this vision
[3:34:54] that we presented doesn't propose alternative or additional view
[3:34:58] corridors. But, um, I mean, that's certainly
[3:35:02] something that could be discussed. I mean, if it,
[3:35:07] if it's a vision, we should see what we're trying to preserve, right? Sure.
[3:35:11] yeah. You know, like, I mean, I, I can tell you standing on
[3:35:15] mcdowell kind of across from the new, the new development that's going up by the train depot,
[3:35:20] um, you can't see the snow mountains anymore. You know, and, and
[3:35:24] really that sense of place and white people move here and live here. I
[3:35:28] mean, that's, that's very important to them. That's, that's a lot of white people live here, is
[3:35:32] so they can look around, they know they're in petaluma, they know they're in our valley, and they can see the mountains
[3:35:36] and the hills and, you know, looking at some other
[3:35:40] aspects of what's proposed here, I think you lose a lot of that. And so
[3:35:45] I, I really would encourage, we, we actually look at and define
[3:35:49] what sense of place is here, what we're actually trying to preserve in this vision.
[3:35:55] and then, um, kind of moving on to
[3:36:00] mcdowell and redesigning that street, just in the last few years,
[3:36:05] we spent, I think around $12 million or so, maybe,
[3:36:10] you know, repaving that entire road. And that is the
[3:36:14] only major road that we've actually paved in, in the five
[3:36:18] year plan. Actually, that's incorrect. We paved maria,
[3:36:24] we've paved garfield. So, but those aren't major roads like mcdowell
[3:36:28] maria. I mean, it's, it is a significant
[3:36:32] road, but it's not like mcdowell either way. Point take, point taken. Let's move
[3:36:36] on either way. We just spent $12 million on it now. We're already talking about
[3:36:40] redesigning it, and there's lots of other very important roads in town, heavily
[3:36:45] trafficked, you know, used that. People every day ask, when is this gonna get repaved?
[3:36:50] and so I don't understand what, like, why are we actually looking at
[3:36:54] repaving that? Well, it's definitely more than repaving. It's, it's
[3:36:59] a, it's a 30, 40 year vision. So while repaving,
[3:37:03] there's like, we can think about maintenance and just ensuring that our public facilities,
[3:37:07] our roads are kept to a certain minimum standard of quality.
[3:37:11] um, this vision is about proposing an alternate
[3:37:16] like identity for that street. So it goes beyond repaving. And that, that would
[3:37:20] be the reason. I'm gonna interfere here for a second. Um, this, this is a vision.
[3:37:24] this is not a project. So I, I think in terms of priority and expenditures
[3:37:29] and things, and that's why my question earlier went to to this about like, how
[3:37:33] do these things actually occur? 'cause I concur with you. The people want their streets paved
[3:37:38] and you can't do a complete vision without showing the
[3:37:42] completeness of this area, but you're not funding a project for it. That conversation about
[3:37:46] funding and priority and projects around town will have a
[3:37:50] different date. I'm just pointing out that we've already spent a significant amount of
[3:37:54] money there. You know, the vision probably shouldn't include it.
[3:37:59] um, you know, and so that, that would be your input on it as you prefer the vision
[3:38:03] as it is versus a different, it's not a question of other things.
[3:38:08] I mean, I understand that the vision of connectivity and, and there is, there
[3:38:12] is the path along the railroad tracks, there are other trails. There's, you know,
[3:38:16] what's been proposed on corona. I mean, there's, there's a lot of connectivity
[3:38:20] already in place or going in place. There's, there's bike lanes on mcdowell.
[3:38:25] we had to buy a special street sweeper just for it. Corona has
[3:38:29] a project associated, or no project associated with it, and improvements.
[3:38:33] and the vision will occur with a project. Mcdowell would have to be
[3:38:38] investigated independently as a priority unless it was funded by a project. Like
[3:38:42] if the post office converts, then you can nick the post office developer for the
[3:38:46] adjoining, um, improvements of your vision. So you wanna
[3:38:50] talk about what vision is. I think that's where you wanna focus there, right?
[3:38:54] no, that is, I mean, I'm, I'm focusing on the vision and I'm saying we, we've already
[3:38:59] just done something here. I don't think we need to redesign it.
[3:39:03] so, um, and that,
[3:39:07] that kind of does it for my questions. I'll save the rest of her comments. Council member
[3:39:11] cater thompson. Well, um,
[3:39:16] I look at soma village in roar park, and I see the housing around there, and I see how
[3:39:20] that area has really become really vibrant over
[3:39:24] the last 10 years. It's a real difference. And then I look at
[3:39:28] this area and, well, first of all, I just wanna say the downtown smart
[3:39:33] station development, and this should be looked at very differently. There
[3:39:37] are two different animals. One is close to a downtown, and the other
[3:39:41] one is an industrial area and housing. And so you really can't
[3:39:45] compare the two. Um, so as far as, um,
[3:39:50] this project, and I'm just gonna specifically talk about
[3:39:54] the land that needs to be annexed in, um, I feel as
[3:39:58] though we have to be really sensitive to the rural area. Um, but I
[3:40:02] think we, we don't have enough housing in this community and we need
[3:40:06] housing. And what I'd like to see is that more dense toward,
[3:40:10] um, the rail station. I wanna see a lot more green space though,
[3:40:15] and I'd like to see, um, single family homes on the
[3:40:19] outer area with smaller yards, but a lot of green space
[3:40:23] that people actually, um, can go to. And I look at mcnear park, you
[3:40:27] know, before, um, you know, it, it was a gathering space.
[3:40:32] and so I look at this area as a space that needs, um,
[3:40:36] gathering. I'm not talking about ball fields, but I'm just talking about, um, picnic
[3:40:41] areas. And so people will actually use these areas as part of their,
[3:40:45] um, living instead of big backyards.
[3:40:50] um, I don't really wanna see huge homes here. I wanna see modest homes
[3:40:55] that are for sale, first time home buyers. Um,
[3:40:59] I would wouldn't mind seeing some, you know, maybe quads, lots there,
[3:41:03] you know, with not quad lots, but, um, development
[3:41:08] with, um, four units in one. Maybe
[3:41:12] look at something like that. Um, but I think we really have to be careful about
[3:41:16] feathering into the rural area and not, um,
[3:41:20] not overdeveloping. And I don't wanna see these, you know, big, huge, you
[3:41:24] know, 3000 square foot homes with, you know, three car garages.
[3:41:30] um, so I really wanna make sure
[3:41:34] that the water retention is with this area.
[3:41:39] um, it's an area of concern and I just really wanna see what
[3:41:43] we're gonna be doing, where the water's gonna be flowing,
[3:41:48] either onsite, does it go offsite, any of it,
[3:41:52] what happens with the water? And then of course, um, corona road,
[3:41:57] um, needs to be redone all the way up to eli.
[3:42:01] and then we need to look at eli kind of, so it incorporates eli and corona,
[3:42:06] so it incorporates into the rural area, into, um, urban
[3:42:10] areas. Um,
[3:42:15] I think I wanna just go into mcdowell since that seems to be a topic.
[3:42:19] when I look at transport, commerce, and dynamic street, those are
[3:42:23] three streets really close together. It's an industrial area. And if it
[3:42:27] was originally built and thought out a little bit differently, you probably would've had just one
[3:42:32] driveway going in and out. And so you're not having all this cross traffic.
[3:42:36] and so that's part of the problem with mcdowell, is you have too many driveways
[3:42:40] and yet they're going into the same area. And so figure a way of
[3:42:46] lessening the driveways. And so making it so,
[3:42:50] uh, mobility, um, is safer
[3:42:55] 'cause it's not a very safe street. It may have had a nice, you know, resurfacing,
[3:43:00] but the safest street itself is not safe. Go get out, go
[3:43:04] out of the cottages, the mobile home park, take a left. It's really not safe.
[3:43:09] and so what I'm looking for, um, mcdowell is safety improvements,
[3:43:14] less driveways, um, and safer
[3:43:18] for the public to walk because nobody wants to walk on mcdowell, um, because
[3:43:22] of those reasons. Um, it's when, um, sid commons
[3:43:26] was approved, there was a bridge access area there, and that should be incorporated in
[3:43:31] this. So we know that we can go from one side of the river to the other. And
[3:43:35] since that area was set aside, um, it should at least be considered.
[3:43:39] and c consider having, um, an access underneath the
[3:43:43] rail bridge so you can actually get to the smart, um,
[3:43:48] path. 'cause right now from this side of town, you really can't get to the smart
[3:43:52] path unless you go down the lich creek trail and then down pay ran and
[3:43:56] eventually get there. Um, so I'd like to see more interconnectivity there.
[3:44:01] um, I would like
[3:44:06] to see workspaces. So if you build small, let's go back to the, um,
[3:44:10] development area. If we go there, if you have workspaces, so
[3:44:14] you can have smaller houses, so people can actually leave their space and be able
[3:44:18] to work, but they don't have to necessarily be in their homes.
[3:44:23] um, I don't wanna see a, a co parking
[3:44:28] in this area. If there is parking, I'd rather
[3:44:32] have it. So it's not seen. And
[3:44:36] that's one thing about brody ranch, um, where the condos are.
[3:44:40] um, it's just a really blank asphalted area,
[3:44:45] and I think it could have been designed a lot better that you really don't see the cars. And
[3:44:49] what's the one on lavia on peta boulevard? I mean,
[3:44:53] the cars are underneath and they're really not seen.
[3:44:58] um, the gsa, the, the groundwater,
[3:45:02] um, committee that I'm part of, I know is talking to
[3:45:06] the cords, um, about recharge, even though that's
[3:45:10] not part of this project, it is interconnected. And so
[3:45:15] I think it's important that you, um, work with the gsa group
[3:45:19] just to make sure what, what they're talking about with the cordons
[3:45:24] on their property and the other properties up north of the rail
[3:45:28] of the rail station. Um,
[3:45:33] and that's probably all I have to say now. Um, but I will
[3:45:38] have more comments later. Okay. I want this. Well, one thing, I mean,
[3:45:42] it needs to be really vibrant, and I think that's what we're really looking for. How do
[3:45:46] you interconnect mcdowell? Now we have sidewalks
[3:45:50] going up north, so it's not as daunting
[3:45:54] as it is walking up mcdowell from washington street.
[3:46:00] so I think we can make it a much better corridor and
[3:46:04] a much safer corridor. And I think we can get the housing that we need.
[3:46:08] you know, we here, we, we have, we have a city that people
[3:46:13] can't buy a house. People can't downsize from a house.
[3:46:17] and so I think this area has a lot of opportunities and, uh, but
[3:46:21] most importantly for me is really feathering into the rural area. So it doesn't look
[3:46:25] like it's, um, I don't want three, four stories and I don't want huge houses
[3:46:29] right into the rural area. I'd rather see more internal green space.
[3:46:35] thank you. Let's go to public comment and have the clerk help us out here.
[3:46:40] we did receive two public comments, uh, ahead of the meeting, and those are posted online.
[3:46:46] we also have eight attendees in the zoom meeting. Thank you.
[3:46:51] um, at this time I will start, oh, well, I'll start at 32nd
[3:46:55] clock. And during these 30 seconds, members of the public attending in person should bring their cards
[3:46:59] to my desk. Members of the public attending online should raise their virtual
[3:47:04] hand, and those attending via phone should press star nine to
[3:47:08] raise their hand. Speaker request received after this time may not be accommodated.
[3:47:24] okay, I do have two hands. That's frank cordem and veronica
[3:47:29] olson.
[3:47:44] okay, thank you. Um, public comment on the item tonight. And,
[3:47:48] um, let's see. We have a number of speaker cards
[3:47:53] here, and we will allow those speakers, um, to speak first, and
[3:47:57] then we'll go back to the clerk. And the clerk clerk will bring in our zoom people.
[3:48:02] and at this time, um, we have, and on
[3:48:06] an item we would allow all speakers. So first speakers, julie groves,
[3:48:10] and our second speaker is nicola fry.
[3:48:16] and is, uh, well, do I have one minute or three
[3:48:20] minutes? Three minutes? You have three minutes. Okay. Um, so I have
[3:48:25] first thank you on all these, these comments are very, very
[3:48:29] helpful and, and I am, um, repeating,
[3:48:33] oh, sorry. And I'm repeating some of the things that you have mentioned,
[3:48:37] so I appreciate that. So I've submitted a plan to manage
[3:48:41] four water issues, um, in a strip of land that runs from
[3:48:45] the corona smart station all the way up to eli. And on,
[3:48:50] um, if you put up that slide that you mentioned on page 14,
[3:48:54] um, it, it shows part of that strip of land
[3:48:58] right along the, uh, the tracks, um,
[3:49:02] within the, within that circle. And I'm, and I'm
[3:49:06] proposing extending that. Um, and that would,
[3:49:11] that strip of land would be part of the, the voter approved
[3:49:15] expansion land. And it continues to strip that, as I said, that
[3:49:19] is already identified next to the train station.
[3:49:23] um, it addresses, um,
[3:49:27] primarily the, the vernal pools that, um, would also
[3:49:32] help with aquifer recharge. And we've talked
[3:49:36] the, the word resiliency was used earlier. It also at
[3:49:40] the end, near the, um, where we're
[3:49:45] planning to have more building, it decreases the runoff into the pet ofri
[3:49:49] river. And at the end, closer up to eli, it
[3:49:53] can address the flooding that occurs regularly, um, at five
[3:49:57] four oh oh old redwood highway, which is city annex land.
[3:50:02] um, and I, and I wanna give credit to steve
[3:50:06] a of the planning manager of sonoma county regional park, who called our attention
[3:50:10] to the significance of these few remaining vernal pools.
[3:50:15] um, and, and then the information you have, it shows a picture of
[3:50:19] those pools. And I picture it. I appreciate that. That's been mentioned by several of
[3:50:23] you. And, and you identified john, that the,
[3:50:27] um, that there may be other vernal pools further along corona
[3:50:31] road that may need to be identified also. Um,
[3:50:36] and so the, our, our family would welcome
[3:50:41] the opportunity to fa facilitate, um, discussions about funding
[3:50:45] and mitigation, um, among the interested parties.
[3:50:49] um, some of who, many of who have already made site visits, including the landowners,
[3:50:54] gsa, people from g-s-a-r-c-d-c, open space
[3:50:58] parks, um, several of you and others have already
[3:51:02] have already visited this land to see, see what's involved. So
[3:51:07] I'm here if anybody has questions, and I wanna thank all of you for your attention
[3:51:11] to all of these, all of these details.
[3:51:16] thank you very much. Thank you. Our next speaker is nicola fry,
[3:51:21] to be followed by doug auer.
[3:51:40] hi. Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate them.
[3:51:44] um, those were five of the nine proposals that I put together. The wording
[3:51:49] form them came from a lot of discussions that we had as
[3:51:53] the working group, but also were many, many meetings
[3:51:57] I had with residents who live in the area, both coffee meetings
[3:52:01] and larger meetings, and in between meetings and all sorts of discussions that
[3:52:05] I had with lots of residents in the area. As petaluma
[3:52:10] continuous implementing the general plan, the climate action framework,
[3:52:14] and the north station specific plan. I believe we have an
[3:52:18] opportunity to reimagine one of the city's most important transportation corridors,
[3:52:23] the north mc d boulevard from corona road to washington street.
[3:52:28] for decades, this corridor has been designated primarily to move vehicles,
[3:52:32] but the future of north mcdowell should be about moving people safely,
[3:52:36] efficiently, and sustainably. I believe north mcdowell
[3:52:41] is the missing link. As the city connects many of the investments this
[3:52:45] council has already made, you've invested in smart, you've
[3:52:50] adopted a general plan that encourages complete neighborhoods and housing near
[3:52:54] transit. You're planning a vibrant north station district, and we're,
[3:52:58] and you're committed to ambitious climate zones. What we need now is that
[3:53:03] corridor that brings these investments together. South mcdo
[3:53:07] boulevard and the other traffic projects have already shown that this is possible
[3:53:11] improvements like roundabouts, traffic, calming, landscaping,
[3:53:16] and safety accessible pedestrian crossings have demonstrated that we can
[3:53:20] improve safety and mobility at the same time. And north
[3:53:24] mcal deserves that same word, forward thinking approach.
[3:53:28] imagine a treeline boulevard with protected bicycle lanes,
[3:53:33] wider sidewalks, safer accessibility crossings,
[3:53:37] landscape medians, and mon modern roundabouts with a where appropriate
[3:53:43] a quarter that connects the neighborhoods to schools, businesses, parks,
[3:53:48] and the smart station, while creating a welcome northern gateway
[3:53:52] to petaluma. This isn't a transportation project,
[3:53:57] it's a housing project, an economic developments project,
[3:54:01] and a climate project. I encourage the
[3:54:05] council to work with input from residents and begin developing a
[3:54:09] comprehensive north mcdowell corridor plan that lines transportation,
[3:54:15] housing, economic development, and public space into one unified
[3:54:19] vision. Let's make north mcdowell more than road.
[3:54:23] let's make it the quarter that connects petal plans with its future.
[3:54:28] thank you. Thank you,
[3:54:32] doug auer to be followed by dwayne bellinger.
[3:54:47] good evening. Uh, mr. Mayor, uh, members of the city council. My name is doug
[3:54:51] ledor. I represent the, uh, partnership that owns
[3:54:55] the two parcels on corona road that I think have been referred to by a couple
[3:54:59] of council members this evening. Uh, the address is four 70 and
[3:55:03] 4 98 corona road. Um, our parcels
[3:55:08] are within the sphere of influence, uh, within the urban growth boundary and
[3:55:12] lie about a quarter mile east of the transit center. Uh, I
[3:55:16] wanted to first thank the consultant team. Um, I think the process thus far has been very
[3:55:21] transparent, um, collaborative and, uh,
[3:55:25] accessible to everybody. Um, while we're at a very
[3:55:29] preliminary stage, I wanted to offer two constructive comments regarding the consultants
[3:55:33] presentation on the map that was, uh, up there just
[3:55:37] a moment ago. Um, the focus area, one transit village
[3:55:41] map, it shows a, uh, conceptual open space hub that
[3:55:46] runs kind of north and south on the eastern side.
[3:55:50] um, the way it shows on the plan, it just
[3:55:54] bisects our property, which would really limit our ability to
[3:55:58] develop it. Um, during that workshop meeting, um,
[3:56:02] in march, the group that I was with, uh, discussed, kind
[3:56:06] of focused on maybe a transition as that crosses
[3:56:11] corona road. Um, we were looking at an enhanced pedestrian
[3:56:15] pathway that would lead and ultimately connect to sonoma mountain
[3:56:19] parkway trail and turnbridge park. Um,
[3:56:24] we could probably accomplish this by expanding one side of a
[3:56:28] residential public street with a green belt or a pass, um,
[3:56:32] which, uh, this basically would preserve design flexibility, allow
[3:56:36] the street to meander naturally and encourage a creative site plan.
[3:56:40] I'm definitely in favor of open spaces or maybe, uh, a pocket park of
[3:56:44] some kind, but bisecting this parcel, um, with
[3:56:49] a, a huge open space hub would make it very difficult to deliver the
[3:56:53] type of housing that I think you're looking for. Um,
[3:56:57] additionally, uh, the land use map showed the front part of our
[3:57:01] property is medium density residential, the back portion as lowest intensity
[3:57:06] residential, which being a quarter mile from the transit center
[3:57:10] I don't think makes sense. I think it would be, uh, beneficial to
[3:57:14] look at, uh, zoning the entire piece, medium density residential.
[3:57:19] but as councilman sibs mentioned, um, limiting the height to
[3:57:23] two stories which would preserve the neighbor's privacy,
[3:57:27] uh, yet you'd still be able to yield additional housing units. Um,
[3:57:31] I think toc policies are pretty clear. Uh, jurisdiction
[3:57:35] should increase residential capacity on parcels located within
[3:57:39] a half mile of the transit center. And I think our land provides you that opportunity.
[3:57:44] um, thank you for your time and I can answer any questions that you might have.
[3:57:49] thank you very much. Thanks. Uh, dwayne bellinger to
[3:57:53] be followed by darren kuzen.
[3:57:59] uh, good evening council members. Uh, first of all, I wanna say that, uh,
[3:58:03] uh, the, the terms I enjoyed hearing, uh, transit oriented,
[3:58:07] uh, village, uh, trans, uh, transit centered mixed use, urban mixed
[3:58:11] use neighborhood shopping centers. I wanna say that all of those beautiful
[3:58:16] and they need a shopping center. They need a market. You
[3:58:20] can't have walking community that doesn't have a market.
[3:58:24] and we went to put into crony eli, they put in, um, uh, the, um,
[3:58:28] leghorn market and at this point for, for fewer
[3:58:32] houses. But if it's gonna be walkable, we need to at least a portion of it
[3:58:36] reserved, maybe even just two acres. Um, the, um,
[3:58:43] the other thing I'd like to say is that, uh, the, um, issue
[3:58:47] about the rural, I turned in a map that addresses the rural use. The people
[3:58:51] who live along. Um, eli, if you look at the map,
[3:58:55] all of them would have a choice to continue as is if they were annexed into
[3:59:00] the city, they'd be also able to add granny units at some time in the future.
[3:59:04] once the utilities are in. What I wanted not see happen is if we try to make
[3:59:08] a circle out of what was um, uh, vallejos lot, 300
[3:59:13] we will end up with making the same mistake was made across the gentleman who just spoke
[3:59:17] that property there, as you see, it's, has a flood problem that wasn't
[3:59:21] settled when the rest of the property was annexed. It's got, uh,
[3:59:25] a no no sidewalks because of that lack of planning. And
[3:59:30] the worst part of it, I think, is that monica's street was closed
[3:59:34] off to being an access to the rest of the city. And I, I
[3:59:38] think it's too large. He could probably tell you that whether monica street could be used
[3:59:42] for a walkway for the children to walk into the other neighborhoods
[3:59:46] and other than walking on corona, which probably won't be fixed for
[3:59:50] some time, I asked in my map, I asked to have a, a walking trail on
[3:59:55] corona. I could um, I could explain why it is the trail
[3:59:59] on, uh, along the rail is on the side. It's on, it's because it's
[4:00:03] delivering freight. It's delivering seeds on the other side, um, that
[4:00:08] the other side of the rail is saved for use to deliver,
[4:00:12] um, rail, uh, rail material. So they put the walkway on the,
[4:00:16] um, north side. Um, what other question?
[4:00:21] um, oh, in, in terms of, uh,
[4:00:25] concentrations, uh, the, the state is expecting us to average in the neighborhood
[4:00:30] of 20 per unit, uh, per acre. And that's, that's
[4:00:34] gonna be difficult to get it designed properly so that it doesn't look like,
[4:00:39] uh, the, the area that we, uh, built, uh, more recently,
[4:00:43] uh, we, we've gotta have, uh, possibly toler buildings but spaced apart.
[4:00:47] so you can see between them and, and give you a feel of, um, uh,
[4:00:51] a a nice modern city not, uh, with, with the
[4:00:55] ground may be covering no more than 80% of any lot.
[4:00:59] anyway. Thank you very much. Thank you darren
[4:01:03] zen to be followed by morgan bellinger.
[4:01:11] thank you mayor and council. And I think from the council's commentary, it's pretty clear everyone
[4:01:15] wants to jump past visioning into implementation. 'cause that's where all the exciting things happen.
[4:01:20] I think a discussion of land use right now, whether it's the general plan or this specific plan,
[4:01:24] were hindered a lot by not understanding what the zoning code is gonna be.
[4:01:28] I would assume the specific plan will be like the cpsp and have its own zoning designations,
[4:01:33] not necessarily one-to-one with our, our izo updates are gonna be,
[4:01:38] so the one that always sticks out to me, whether we're talking general plan or this plan is make or
[4:01:42] micro business, what does that mean? Uh, the general, I mean the name means nothing.
[4:01:46] I get the vision that is invoked by that. But when you look at the actual general
[4:01:50] plan land use designation, it's the same as business park except for a couple uses. So
[4:01:55] what is our eventual, like, what are hints of a potential zoning designation
[4:01:59] that get you there? And I think you could say that about any of these designations.
[4:02:03] you know, we've talked a lot about, uh, design standards. That's something that came up at planning commission.
[4:02:08] I think we've hoped for that citywide. And when we say the word objective design
[4:02:12] standards, we wanna be careful whether we're talking like design guidelines or objective design standards
[4:02:16] for projects that are streamlined under residential projects that are exempt from
[4:02:20] discretionary review to get really clear about what design standards we're talking about. And then
[4:02:24] are those baked into the zoning designations or are those more citywide
[4:02:28] or where do those live in this specific plan? Because when we talk sense of place,
[4:02:32] it's another thing that gets really nebulous without some of that specificity. Uh,
[4:02:37] I like saying sense of place, but it's important to codify like what
[4:02:41] is this place? So we are on the agricultural boundary, we are next to this industrial
[4:02:45] area. We are next to rail. What is that invoke or look like?
[4:02:49] I like the discussion of feathering as we get toward the edges. There's kind of balancing that
[4:02:53] with what we sold voters to even expand this area in the first place, right? It
[4:02:57] was kind of like there was a purpose to doing that. So if we wanna, so I think there's a balance there
[4:03:01] to strike. Uh, and then when it comes to industry and economics, I think
[4:03:06] it is really important to understand who's there and what the capacity is. I would love
[4:03:10] to have grocery stores on every block, but you need a lot of people to support a grocery store that
[4:03:14] actually works and makes money. So, you know, the leghorn shopping center is already right there.
[4:03:18] I'm not sure you're gonna build one in this housing, even if you get 1000
[4:03:22] to 2000, 3000 people that it can support another grocery store and
[4:03:26] you're not that far from the rest of town. So I think an economic component of this, if
[4:03:31] it's an existing condition in the general plan with statistics we can pull from. Excellent.
[4:03:35] and I think when we cross reference plans like that, it is important to have exact
[4:03:39] references. So if you say this is already in the general plan, we already went over that, we don't need to analyze
[4:03:44] that great point right to it. Uh, and we're gonna get there. This is vision.
[4:03:48] I'm just saying for that future plan, we wanna make sure that we integrate these things effectively. But
[4:03:52] I think a real economic stress test of like, here's the amount
[4:03:56] of people we think we're gonna inject per the eir, which will need a some kind of number
[4:04:00] established, uh, what does that mean for actual demand and industry
[4:04:05] impacts? And then yeah, how do we define when we say we want
[4:04:09] these small business rows and everything? What does the zoning code look like to get there? Thank
[4:04:13] you. Thank you morgan bellinger to be followed by
[4:04:17] tom scott.
[4:04:25] uh, good evening. It's great to see this coming together.
[4:04:29] if we get this right, we have an opportunity to make a dent in decades of redlining by
[4:04:33] growing vibrant housing supply. I was disappointed to hear
[4:04:37] a council member relay the story of a neighbor to proposed medium or high density
[4:04:42] zoning saying they would fight tooth and nail against a three story building
[4:04:46] next door. The state has spent the last 20 years taking away
[4:04:50] those teeth and those nails. Most recently with sb 79. Look
[4:04:54] at what's happening in brisbane as of july 1st, the trend of the state
[4:04:59] encouraging housing near transit is only going to intensify over the lifetime of this specific plan.
[4:05:03] but more importantly, measure y and measure b are the foundations for focus
[4:05:07] area one and looking at the enormous margins by which they passed.
[4:05:12] I don't understand why we would entertain such a strange attempt at a hyper-local tooth
[4:05:16] and nail filibuster with those measure y and be foundations. And with
[4:05:20] the state's new orientation towards housing, I question what role unelected
[4:05:24] neighbors with parcels whose zoning isn't changing, have and approving housing on adjacent lots
[4:05:28] that they don't own. I think it'll be helpful to get specific about how they'll be impacted
[4:05:34] if I own a house next to a proposed three story apartment building. The only things that'll
[4:05:39] change about my quiet enjoyment of my home are parking, noise, privacy, and shadows.
[4:05:44] we have a noise ordinance, curtains and fences. I don't know what we can do about
[4:05:48] those pesky shadows. Uh, that brings us to the real issue.
[4:05:53] uh, I hope the plan can include specifics eventually about street parking management.
[4:05:57] nobody owns city street parking in front of their house. And the idea that someone can block
[4:06:01] the will of the voters and the state because someone might
[4:06:06] park there is absurd. Let's implement parking maximums and unbundled
[4:06:10] parking, require overnight parking permits on nearby streets
[4:06:14] and distribute those permits equitably. I know that's very in the
[4:06:18] weeds for a visioning exercise, but when building community support,
[4:06:22] it's important to outline the tools available that we can use to achieve housing justice.
[4:06:28] also, I have a couple of quick, much less severe ideas. Is there a potential
[4:06:32] for a high school anywhere near this, maybe north or east
[4:06:37] of it? It's sad that the nearest options are miles away and
[4:06:41] it seems like a good opportunity for a tech maker or ag integration with a new school.
[4:06:46] and then I appreciate the mayor's comments about grocery access. I think it's critical when imagining
[4:06:51] walkable communities to consider residents getting off the train
[4:06:55] and stopping for dinner ingredients as they walk home from work, although not
[4:06:59] as council member kate thompson mentioned one with a cf parking.
[4:07:03] uh, again, thank you very much for your work on this
[4:07:07] and thank you and tom scott,
[4:07:13] uh, letters for the council that I will give to the
[4:07:17] clerk. Thank you.
[4:07:24] I just wanted to say, uh, thank you for your time tonight and,
[4:07:28] um, I just mainly wanted to come here and hear you deliberate about this subject
[4:07:33] and find out what your different, different opinions are and
[4:07:37] what your positions are. I do have one unusual,
[4:07:41] um, idea that I thought I'd present tonight,
[4:07:46] which is to believe it or not, get a ukrainian tank.
[4:07:50] there's been 4,000 of them captured in, in ukraine by russia, by
[4:07:55] ukrainians from russia. And, uh, I think it would be just
[4:07:59] incredibly strange and, and, uh,
[4:08:05] and it, it, it would kind of put pum
[4:08:09] on the map as far as, um,
[4:08:14] I don't know. I just think it, it represents the, the fight for freedom that that
[4:08:18] has been missing in this country for a long time in a very strange way.
[4:08:22] and, uh, it's an interesting idea. I I just wanted to throw
[4:08:26] it out there. It's not, uh, set in stone, obviously
[4:08:30] , but, uh, we send ships over to europe for ln
[4:08:35] with lng, and so I thought one of them could come back and I thought the ukrainians
[4:08:39] would love the idea of getting more support from the united states
[4:08:43] for, uh, weapons and various things that they might need. It's an
[4:08:48] amazing story, what's going on over there. I think it just, it just really
[4:08:52] fascinates me. Anyway, thank you and I enjoyed hearing
[4:08:56] you deliberate. Thank you. Bye again. With
[4:09:00] that, do we have any hands on zoom for us? We do.
[4:09:04] our first speaker on zoom will be frank cordo,
[4:09:14] if you'd like to unmute and make your comment.
[4:09:26] it looks like we might be having some technical difficulties. He is unmuted,
[4:09:30] but we can't hear you, frank. Um, this is frank cordem.
[4:09:35] can you hear me now? Yes, we can hear you now. Your three minutes starts now.
[4:09:39] uh, I appreciate all the comments of the council members recognizing
[4:09:43] the importance of groundwater recharge and vernal pools
[4:09:48] and, um, I think, uh, I would look along
[4:09:52] with my sister julie groves. I appreciate the opportunity working with all the stake various
[4:09:56] stakeholders, including the groundwater sustainability
[4:10:01] agency and friends of the peloma river and, um,
[4:10:05] resource conservation district and the open space district. Um,
[4:10:10] see if there's ways to protect some of these resources and, uh, and
[4:10:14] improve the health of the aquifer, the peloma valley aquifer.
[4:10:19] um, and I won't repeat the, the council
[4:10:24] members were very eloquent, so I won't repeat what they've had to say, but
[4:10:28] I do want to, uh, note that this is
[4:10:32] the, the property that's being considered for development is basically at the edge
[4:10:36] of the community separators that I think are a valuable resource in
[4:10:40] an era when, um, uh, open spaces
[4:10:44] under siege and not properly valued as, as,
[4:10:48] um, for the benefits that it provides. And so
[4:10:53] I, I appreciate the council's efforts to kinda keep
[4:10:57] that the future development, which is inevitable for this area
[4:11:01] under control. Um, so thank you very much.
[4:11:07] thank you frank and veronica olson,
[4:11:13] please unmute and make your comment.
[4:11:31] veronica, you there should be an option to unmute.
[4:11:36] we can't hear you
[4:11:47] well, veronica,
[4:11:56] we can't hear you.
[4:12:08] and that's our first technical difficulty. I understand.
[4:12:12] and she has not managed to weigh in at this point.
[4:12:18] then she did send a comments comment and, uh, okay. Counsel
[4:12:22] advises me that some comments were received from veronica and, uh, um, if
[4:12:27] there is more we be welcoming and, and a any further
[4:12:32] comment, but lacking the ability to connect with the, the speaker right
[4:12:36] now, we will close public comment on the item and bring
[4:12:40] it back up to council. Um, and,
[4:12:45] um, I, I see, uh, staff would like to weigh in first.
[4:12:49] yes, good evening, mayor council members, heather heinz, special projects
[4:12:53] manager. I just wanted to provide a little bit of, um, context
[4:12:58] with the existing tod plan from
[4:13:02] 2013. Um, so
[4:13:07] we're in a much different situation than we were in in 2013
[4:13:12] with regard to this station. Um, this specific plan is
[4:13:16] definitely building on that existing plan. Many
[4:13:20] of the priorities, the recommendations from that
[4:13:24] specific plan are things that the community has continued to
[4:13:28] echo and that annie covered as part of her presentation. There's
[4:13:32] a lot of things that have changed. One, we have the station, um,
[4:13:37] two, we have a new pda in this area, which we did not have in 2013.
[4:13:43] we have the, um, new measure y that was passed
[4:13:47] with the urban growth boundary that got into a little bit more, um, specificity
[4:13:51] about, um, potential annexation area. We,
[4:13:55] um, two out of three of the priority, um, opportunity
[4:14:00] sites around the corona station have already been developed since the development
[4:14:04] of the tod. Many of the transit improvements on mcdowell
[4:14:09] have been completed. The, um,
[4:14:13] the mop along the smart rail has been completed. So there's a lot
[4:14:17] in the existing plan that has been, uh, either
[4:14:21] augmented or completed. And so this specific plan building
[4:14:25] off of that as opposed to ignoring or erasing
[4:14:30] it, when you also look at the 2013 tod,
[4:14:34] the downtown station had about 40 pages about,
[4:14:38] uh, vision and, um, you know, those beautiful pictures
[4:14:43] that are in that, in that plan. Whereas the corona station
[4:14:47] had like five pages. So this is really giving
[4:14:51] this petaluma north station its moment, its attention, the additional
[4:14:55] detail in, into it. So just wanted to make sure
[4:15:01] we didn't take the opportunity to think about that specific plan and that this is
[4:15:05] actually building on it and giving it some of the attention that
[4:15:09] it warrants to take it to the next level. It also, this was,
[4:15:14] um, released as an rfp by the city, so there was opportunity for
[4:15:19] a whole range of consultants to submit and be selected for this to build
[4:15:23] off of it as well. So I just wanted to add that as a little bit of follow up.
[4:15:29] thank you very much. Um, I think we've had a, some good public
[4:15:33] comment. Appreciate that and a good bit of, uh, council dialogue tonight.
[4:15:37] so I'm sure we're, um, trying to synthesize our last, uh, thoughts and last pro
[4:15:41] last questions probably too. I'd like to start with council member barnacle. Well,
[4:15:46] I separated my questions and comments, so I, um, I do have some
[4:15:50] more, uh, extensive stuff. First, thank you to everybody who commented
[4:15:55] in particular nicola and julie for submitting such well thought out,
[4:15:59] um, commentary. Um, and to heather for the background, um,
[4:16:03] when we were looking at the first station project and like literally a catalyst for
[4:16:08] me running one of the lacking pieces was a vision for around this area.
[4:16:12] and it was the lack of consistency between the zoning code and the general plan and
[4:16:16] the stationary master plan and things like that. All that stuff created this like
[4:16:20] chaos of like, well, I don't know what they wanted. Well, this one said this and this one said that.
[4:16:24] so, um, I totally echo what what heather said there. Um,
[4:16:28] it actually really brought back a lot of the sort of traumatic public commentary
[4:16:33] from that process. Um, so thank you. Um, so jumping
[4:16:37] into my comments now, um, um,
[4:16:42] some of the public comments talked about this, but I think one of the things
[4:16:46] about this is like, just as a council, we and the community needs to understand this is
[4:16:50] like, this is a huge community asset. It's not a neighborhood asset. Like
[4:16:54] this is a regional asset. And, um, when you live next to something
[4:16:58] that's desirable, you need to plan to share it. Um,
[4:17:02] and that's like how I feel about this. Um, having worked on the
[4:17:06] first smart campaign intentionally and tabled and called like phone banked
[4:17:11] and worked with your father, um, on this, um, the vision
[4:17:15] was for these walkable communities centered around transit. And that's what we get to plan
[4:17:19] out here. This is like literally the, the vision that like, you know, I didn't
[4:17:23] love trains. I didn't campaign for this because I love trains. I com
[4:17:27] campaign for it because I love walkable communities. So, um, this is
[4:17:31] like an amazing opportunity for us to think about this. Um,
[4:17:37] the, I think a few things that come to mind for me, um,
[4:17:42] the, there's a few parcels that I think are gonna need some
[4:17:46] real thought, uh, in terms of how we make this happen. Um, I don't
[4:17:50] think the whole thing, but I think there's a few of 'em that really do. Uh, one is the,
[4:17:55] the usps building. Like we really need to think about how we
[4:17:59] pry that away from the hands of the federal government. How we
[4:18:03] like, bring in some, you know, maybe large institutional tenant or
[4:18:07] something like that, that wants to be there for a considerable period of time
[4:18:11] and, and put in money and, and be the anchor tenant. But I feel like there's
[4:18:16] some sort of like, you know, I don't want to get too much into the implementation, but
[4:18:20] like give us a little bit of a playbook for how we actually go about that because,
[4:18:25] um, I don't see how we create an identity of the makerspace
[4:18:29] without a few things happening. And that parcel just feels so damn
[4:18:33] critical to actually making, making that sort of vision start to come to life on
[4:18:37] that alley, um, or corridor area. Um,
[4:18:41] the second one that I just didn't see in here again is the rainier at
[4:18:45] 1 0 1 going under the highway, like that strip right there
[4:18:50] is this place where there's a ton of people that will funnel down
[4:18:54] and that's gonna be a, there's gonna be a amazing river access
[4:18:59] that's created there. And so like we have to
[4:19:03] think about that last little stretch there where the petaluma transit facility
[4:19:07] is. And then there's another series of small things, and then there's the,
[4:19:11] um, the egg the egg shop. Like how do we make
[4:19:15] that like a welcoming, you know, walk into that area or
[4:19:20] way to transition into that space because that to me is this,
[4:19:24] um, this real, uh, nexus for a lot
[4:19:28] of people to be reemerging back toward the corridor or leaving the
[4:19:33] corridor, passing through the corridor. So, um, and then the
[4:19:37] third area is just the shopping center and thinking through like, how do
[4:19:41] we start to transition this large, probably 40 acre shopping center
[4:19:46] into something. I like the idea of focusing over by lou casey and
[4:19:50] starting to give it some edge and things like that. Um, but I'm
[4:19:54] excited about all those prospects and I would just, uh, encourage
[4:19:59] a little more going deeper on a few of the real, like sticky
[4:20:03] wicket hard, hard topics versus like trying to do everything.
[4:20:07] um, the other thing is I think our maker industrial stuff
[4:20:11] is, a lot of it is just us getting out of our own way.
[4:20:16] um, I think we do need to have some like street design
[4:20:20] standards for this area because obviously they've been
[4:20:24] desi like the design was not for spilling out into the street
[4:20:28] and you know, places like henhouse like sort of had to like go
[4:20:32] against the grain a little bit. And I think the same with, uh, the cannabis dispensary.
[4:20:36] you know, like all of that was, there is like truly industrial space and we're seeing that
[4:20:41] griffo and henhouse and lagunitas. They like, wow, actually people want to come
[4:20:45] here. Um, but it's really hard to do certain things there. And
[4:20:49] I know from talking to places, like I would encourage you to go talk to griffo about
[4:20:53] their experience and trying to have events there and things like that because
[4:20:57] they're still in the middle of a fight, you know, or not a fight, but like
[4:21:01] in the middle of like, I don't think I can do this because of the city's process or
[4:21:05] the city's zoning code. And I don't know all the details of it, but like, it's a, it's a
[4:21:09] health story where like a business tried to be innovative and creative and create this space
[4:21:14] and it's like, I want that and they can, right? And so, um,
[4:21:18] like a lot of it I think is just us getting out of our own way, um, and
[4:21:22] being more flexible and even encouraging that sort of thing.
[4:21:26] um, otherwise those parking lots are just gonna be parking lots, fronting things. We
[4:21:31] need to figure out how we activate 'em. Um,
[4:21:36] then, uh, we talked some about buffers. Um,
[4:21:41] I would prefer to, like, I try not to say what I don't want.
[4:21:45] so, um, but in this case, I don't know how to say it. Like, uh, I
[4:21:49] don't want the big concrete walls that just sort of like create this like,
[4:21:54] you know, really sort of militaristic wall of like, that's
[4:21:58] the city and this is not the city. And we see it down at like south gate, down on, on
[4:22:02] lakeville where the house is, and then there's just this big wall that sort of
[4:22:07] walls off the land and like talk about view sheds and like what's the view shed
[4:22:11] when you're looking at a concrete wall. So I'd love to see us try and like
[4:22:15] do some more integration there. I like the idea of like a green buffer along the edge
[4:22:19] of the, the city properties and stuff. But, um,
[4:22:23] I certainly would hate to see like a big concrete wall around it, you
[4:22:28] know, and like that's the city and out there's the county. Um, I think it really sort of like
[4:22:32] that's what will, in my opinion, like start to really sort of undermine
[4:22:36] the, the integrity of the view sheds and the, and the, just the, the ambiance
[4:22:41] of everything, not necessarily people living there. Um,
[4:22:47] uh, a couple of the council members, I think council member cater thompson talked
[4:22:51] about some of the areas, like outside of the study area, like down under the, the,
[4:22:55] at the, the crossing and whatnot. You're not able to look at that, right? Like
[4:23:00] you're specifically focused in the study area. Right. Okay. Um,
[4:23:04] if so, I've got a few extra things to throw in there. Um, so
[4:23:08] then I just want to get to the housing piece of it. And, uh, I think,
[4:23:12] um, and I think this goes to the, the jobs piece
[4:23:17] of it too is just like, uh, one of the big
[4:23:21] things that we've seen is just like a lot of our greenfield
[4:23:25] growth has not been economically viable long term, right there.
[4:23:29] um, I don't want to see us extending infrastructure out for
[4:23:33] things that where the tax base is not gonna actually cover
[4:23:38] the infrastructure long term. Like let's use this as an opportunity to not
[4:23:42] just like, um, build it because it's easy and the neighborhoods will accept
[4:23:46] it. Um, but like, let's actually like learn from the, the failures
[4:23:50] of, of our current development paradigm and realize that like, you
[4:23:55] know, we need to have, um, some sense of density and walkability and things like
[4:23:59] that to, um, to really encourage it narrow streets. I'd
[4:24:03] like us to design for like 15 mile an hour streets in this area. I don't think
[4:24:07] we're gonna continue to go out. So if we think about this as like
[4:24:11] the final hurrah of, of streets in petaluma maybe is like,
[4:24:16] you know, think about it that way at least, right? If like, what does a 15 mile an hour street look
[4:24:20] like? It probably is very narrow, um, with a, with a sharp edge.
[4:24:24] um, I think we can minimize private open space to encourage more
[4:24:29] of a public lifestyle. Um, so, uh,
[4:24:34] you know, small, lots less open space, things like that, um, really
[4:24:38] sort of like resonates with me. I don't think that this is, I don't think we're designing
[4:24:43] for, um, all the people who currently live here. We're designing for the people
[4:24:47] who might live here. So, um,
[4:24:51] I appreciate council member strips always coming back to advanced mobility. And, um,
[4:24:55] to me like that's like one of the big unknowns in the future
[4:25:00] of, of all this is like autonomous vehicles and like,
[4:25:04] it's like walkability and all that stuff like that really helps with like being a one car household
[4:25:08] or being in, you know, living without a car. But like when we think about the impact of autonomous
[4:25:12] vehicles on people and people who are trying to like eliminate fixed costs
[4:25:17] and eliminate insurance costs and things like that, like eliminating your transportation
[4:25:21] costs and just paying for an autonomous, you know, ride every once in a while,
[4:25:25] like that's the potential, like that's truly disruptive. And so, um,
[4:25:30] I mean, waymo's already approved to come to petaluma. It's just a matter of having a
[4:25:34] business case for it. So, um, I, uh, I'm not saying this
[4:25:39] plan's gonna give him a business case, but I do think, um, it, it
[4:25:43] can contribute to it. Um,
[4:25:47] and then, yeah, I think those
[4:25:51] are my big points. Um, I
[4:25:55] appreciate the comment about not bisecting the property in general. I
[4:25:59] want to create as much flexibility as we can to, um, to see,
[4:26:04] you know, as much affordable by design housing products as we can see.
[4:26:08] um, and, uh, I think you
[4:26:13] nailed the land use designations for, for me personally. So
[4:26:17] thank you. Thank you. Uh, council member
[4:26:21] cater thompson. Um, I agree with council member brian
[4:26:25] barn's comments, um, but I just wanna bring, come back to, um, we don't really want this
[4:26:30] to be a food desert. You don't have to have huge grocery stores. They
[4:26:34] can be smaller. Um, you know, maybe you're not gonna get all your items,
[4:26:38] but you have your basics there. And so I think that that's really important.
[4:26:42] um, and I just think that, um, you know, with the, I do want more flexibility,
[4:26:48] um, and when we were talking about the land, um, and the
[4:26:52] moderate size homes, I'd like to see small and moderate, um,
[4:26:56] lots, I mean smaller lots, but, um, moderate and smaller homes,
[4:27:01] um, combination. And I am,
[4:27:05] I'm really not looking forward. I I'm not looking at apartments in this area.
[4:27:09] I'm looking at more condos for sale housing is really what
[4:27:13] I'd like to, um, see in this area. So people have an opportunity to
[4:27:18] move back to this city and actually live here, such as my grandkids
[4:27:22] and other people. Um, I think that's just
[4:27:26] really all I have to say except the, um, I realize that with sid commons
[4:27:30] that that's not part of this, but I think we need to look at the bridge access
[4:27:35] and going underneath the rail bridge just as the larger picture
[4:27:39] of, um, mobility, um, with, within the general
[4:27:43] plan that would incorporate, um, that into this plan also.
[4:27:47] thanks. And just for the audience at home, that's a pedestrian
[4:27:52] bike. Um, bridging it is a pedestrian bike and
[4:27:56] maybe emergency vehicle bridge is all, I mean, it's basically
[4:28:00] just a bridge so you can get across. It's not a road. It's not a road.
[4:28:04] okay. No, thank you vice mayor di carly.
[4:28:10] thank you. The, uh, the first thing I would like, I would like to address is,
[4:28:14] you know, housing in the, the, what's being called the transit village,
[4:28:18] um, you know, in, in land use with the general plan, we've done a
[4:28:23] lot of back and forth and, and, you know, a lot of negotiating on how to reach
[4:28:27] our numbers. And we did, and I think we exceeded them. Um, but
[4:28:31] I, you know, something like going beyond the current urban, urban
[4:28:35] growth boundary should be a last resort. If we don't have enough housing
[4:28:39] in town, if we can't get enough infill, if we didn't meet our numbers, um,
[4:28:44] you know, we had measure y to renew the urban growth boundary.
[4:28:48] I, I supported that. I think it's been a great thing for petaluma, but I think, uh, in part
[4:28:52] it was a little deceptive to add areas of potential expansion
[4:28:56] because most voters, I believe, were under the impression that
[4:29:00] we were renewing the boundary, not adding to it, which is
[4:29:04] what we're talking about right now. And so, you know, we, we
[4:29:08] shouldn't be building over there, you know, everybody up here loves to talk about
[4:29:12] how they wanna preserve and save farmland and protect our rural character.
[4:29:17] that's a few hundred acres of farmland. That's, that's its own
[4:29:21] little pocket of it between eli, the railroad tracks and corona of farmland.
[4:29:26] and, you know, once that's gone, it's gone and we shouldn't
[4:29:30] be expanding into it. There's, there's no way to feather that
[4:29:35] off and make that, you know, more palatable.
[4:29:39] I think. Um, it's, it's, you're gonna be looking at development no matter what.
[4:29:44] and for the mtc standards, it's gonna have to be extremely dense.
[4:29:48] so there's, there's not gonna be kind of what's talked about up here
[4:29:53] of all these small homes everywhere. It's, it's gonna have to meet a minimum standard for
[4:29:57] the city to qualify for grant money, otherwise we don't qualify for it.
[4:30:02] and, and part of me wonders if that's the whole reason we're doing the plan anyway,
[4:30:06] is just to do grant is just to get grant money and, you
[4:30:10] know, so is this, is this for petaluma? Is this what petaluma really wants or is this to
[4:30:15] get more grant money for transit? It, and,
[4:30:19] you know, I appreciate the comments. I didn't know anybody else that's gonna bring this up. But, um,
[4:30:24] talking about water and those lower areas that flood,
[4:30:28] um, it is a recharge for the aquifers down there. And that soil
[4:30:32] throughout those few hundred acres is, is a very sandy soil. It
[4:30:37] absorbs water like crazy. And water's an extremely important asset
[4:30:41] around here. And I don't think we should, I don't think we should choke off the
[4:30:45] aquifer's potential to recharge itself. So, you know, it's
[4:30:49] not just the lower area that floods annually during the winter, it's,
[4:30:53] it's that entire area. And then if we build over it, we're also
[4:30:57] gonna have the problem of runoff from it as well.
[4:31:02] then, um, you know, another, another problem with looking
[4:31:06] at putting housing over there is one I mentioned I think during the
[4:31:10] economic plan, but, um, if we
[4:31:14] put housing next to industrial, which lagunitas is very close, it's
[4:31:18] almost right on the other side, you, you introduce the potential
[4:31:23] for problems between housing and industrial. You know, in
[4:31:27] my example last time, which is happening right now, is over on first street, you have alex
[4:31:31] ice cream and they're leaving and they have some reasons
[4:31:35] for it, but they've been getting hounded for months and months and months because at
[4:31:39] some point the city allowed housing to be built right next to them, and then the
[4:31:43] noise they create to do their business became a big problem for the residents there.
[4:31:48] and I can understand people being upset about noise, but this was a situation
[4:31:52] that should have never been. And so we shouldn't
[4:31:56] be encouraging housing near industrial areas in places
[4:32:01] of business where there's gonna be noise, where there's gonna be smells, where there's gonna be work
[4:32:05] at all hours. You know, we shouldn't be doing that.
[4:32:09] I do appreciate that, um, that this plan
[4:32:13] does really look at the businesses that are existing and, you know,
[4:32:18] promotes, promotes finding ways to make, you know, to help them out, to
[4:32:22] create opportunities for new businesses. Um, I would like to see,
[4:32:26] you know, the, the rail is such an important asset in petaluma. I
[4:32:30] I think it would be foolish not to look at more ways we can be creative and try to utilize
[4:32:34] that for freight. You know, that would help smart, that would help our economy,
[4:32:39] um, that would do a lot of things. Um, but anyway, I do appreciate the
[4:32:44] emphasis on trying to help businesses. I think that
[4:32:48] at this point, we shouldn't take the 2013 plan off the table.
[4:32:53] thank you, heather, for filling in some stuff on that, but I don't think we should
[4:32:57] be taking it off the table. I mean, it's very, very much in line with what we're talking
[4:33:01] about tonight. I think if we use that as the foundation, I think that
[4:33:05] would save us a lot of money and, you know, and a lot of headache too.
[4:33:10] um, because that area is largely unchanged, you know, the station is built.
[4:33:14] I mean, I think the big difference was the 2013 plan as far as
[4:33:18] the corona station went, emphasized that, um, through
[4:33:22] their findings that this was mostly gonna be a park and ride station and
[4:33:26] not housing oriented. And so obviously now there's, there's development
[4:33:31] going on where they had proposed parking in their plan,
[4:33:35] but, um, you know, that's, that's really the major difference. And then there's a huge
[4:33:39] emphasis on obviously the downtown station. There's actually, I mean,
[4:33:43] it's, that is probably the best plan that I've read through. It's a little over 200
[4:33:47] pages long and it's extremely detailed. It's extremely thoughtful.
[4:33:52] it has design standards in it, you know, mostly for downtown.
[4:33:56] and it, and it gives a vision of what petaluma wants to see, you
[4:34:01] know, at least at the downtown station. But I would love in
[4:34:05] this plan coming forward to see actual design standards and what we want this to
[4:34:09] look like, and not leaving it up to whichever developer
[4:34:13] comes along, you know, what, what their vision is for it, because it
[4:34:17] should be what petaluma's vision is. And so I, I
[4:34:21] really don't think we should be taking the 2013 plan off the table. I think actually between
[4:34:25] now and the next time this comes back, that plan should be sent to
[4:34:30] all of us. Everybody should look at it, read through it, really understand what we're
[4:34:34] being asked tonight to let expire and go away. Um, I think it's actually a
[4:34:38] very, very important plan that would be great for petaluma.
[4:34:43] and then, you know, I, I kind of wanna emphasize again,
[4:34:48] um, that this vision also includes some, you
[4:34:52] know, some real stuff in it. Um, as far as different demographics
[4:34:56] and what's gonna happen with the market and what the actual impact of this plan could
[4:35:00] be. I think that's, that's extremely important. We can't,
[4:35:04] I, I don't think we should be approving a plan without knowing what that plan's going to actually
[4:35:08] do. And then, um, I wanna see more
[4:35:13] emphasis on, you know, what view sheds and sense of place we're trying to
[4:35:17] preserve and what that actually means, you know, because again, that's, that's why people live
[4:35:21] here. That's why people move here. And I think that
[4:35:25] the people that are here are the ones that we really need to be taking care of.
[4:35:30] you know, it's, they, they make a huge investment to move here, to live here, and
[4:35:34] they all wanna be here, and we, we need to respect that.
[4:35:39] and then as far as, you know, again, I'll go into mcdowell.
[4:35:43] I don't, I don't think we should be looking at or redesign there. Um,
[4:35:49] I don't, I don't think that should be part of the vision. There's a lot of connectivity in that area and
[4:35:55] putting more emphasis into something. We just spent $12 million redoing,
[4:35:59] uh, we shouldn't, we shouldn't be. And so that's,
[4:36:03] those are my main comments about it. Um, you know, as far as,
[4:36:10] as far as what you want us to actually consider tonight, the 89
[4:36:14] plan, um, does seem largely completed. You know,
[4:36:19] I I, I don't see any reason at this point to keep that
[4:36:23] the 2013 plan. Like I said, I don't think we should be taking off the table. We should,
[4:36:28] we should be considering making that the foundation for this and keeping it.
[4:36:33] and then, um, you know, the third one about including
[4:36:37] the transit village for annexation, I don't support that.
[4:36:42] I think that's farmland. And I think we need to keep that farmland,
[4:36:46] uh, focused development planning on transit village and healthy health
[4:36:51] district sub areas. Yeah, I mean, I can see a lot of that being necessary.
[4:36:55] um, I mean, as far as the grocery stores go, we have one safeway
[4:37:00] few minutes away, another safeway, maybe less than 10 minutes.
[4:37:04] aras a trader, joe's a grocery outlet going in. There's palace of fruit, there's
[4:37:09] a couple little quickie marts. I mean, there's, there's a lot of stuff within a few minutes
[4:37:13] of this area. And you know, I think if we were gonna even look
[4:37:17] at putting a grocery, another grocery store in there, some type of market, we'd have to look at
[4:37:21] how those would be impacted. And then,
[4:37:26] you know, the next one, mcdowell, I don't support that.
[4:37:31] um, you know, and then maybe,
[4:37:35] yeah, I don't know. I mean, the next two are I've, I've kind of mentioned already, but those
[4:37:39] are my main comments on this. Thank you very much.
[4:37:43] um, council member now. Um, thank you. Um,
[4:37:49] first off, mcdowell has to be safer. So
[4:37:53] I'm all for safer streets. And, um, I forget which
[4:37:57] councilman cater thompson about less driveways, because
[4:38:02] if you have gone into henhouse or over to the farmhouse,
[4:38:06] it, it's very confusing and I like to see
[4:38:10] that improved. And, um, I would
[4:38:14] also like to see, um, our first time
[4:38:19] home buyers have an opportunity to have a supply to purchase
[4:38:23] something that's not over a thousand square feet, that
[4:38:27] they're smaller. Um, some of my, um, very favorite
[4:38:31] people are first time owned buyers in the brody ranch subdivision,
[4:38:36] and their kids go to corona creek and to meadow school.
[4:38:40] and I, they're, they're very happy and that neighborhood,
[4:38:44] they just wanna walk to log and need us. And, um, it is a
[4:38:48] real tourist opportunity. We have griffo who has bands that
[4:38:52] play out in their parking lot. We've got the farmhouse, we've got
[4:38:56] the henhouse, we've got lag anitas, we've got this central
[4:39:01] milling and skippy's can expand. It's a market.
[4:39:05] I mean, you go in there and you can buy pretty much everything on your shopping list and I can get
[4:39:09] my clover products. So, um, we do wanna look
[4:39:14] at those opportunities and maybe even a shuttle
[4:39:18] that they could work on. I don't know who, how then they would
[4:39:22] pay for it, but connecting that neighborhood to those local
[4:39:27] businesses and to the smart station. Um, and
[4:39:31] it would be a great mixed use area, um, where you have
[4:39:35] restaurants and then above the restaurants you have the,
[4:39:39] you know, uh, a tenant and you have, um,
[4:39:44] like we have downtown in the industrial area off of first street acas
[4:39:48] cafe that would be perfect in that little area, which is a community
[4:39:52] hub that people go and have coffee in their neighborhood.
[4:39:56] so there's lots of opportunities. I, um, really like the things
[4:40:00] that council member bartle had to say for his vision and, um,
[4:40:05] the other council member. So I'm looking forward to seeing this, come back and see what
[4:40:09] we can do in the future. Thank you. Thank you. Council member schibs.
[4:40:14] okay. Thank you for the reports and all the discussions. I agree with just about everything that's
[4:40:18] been said. Um, I'd just like to add on what, uh, um, um, council
[4:40:22] member alex was saying about the, um, the roads.
[4:40:27] I sort of agree with the north mcdo section that since we just put that money in, but we, what
[4:40:31] we didn't do was actually from, uh, the section that's actually just south
[4:40:35] of there that goes all the way to washington street, that was not repaved and redone.
[4:40:39] and that is actually fairly the more dangerous section for transport
[4:40:43] by both walking and by bike because I've been on that area
[4:40:48] a lot. Um, so that the graph that you showed might be a
[4:40:52] good concept for the section between washington and then all the way to
[4:40:56] the trained, uh, tracks where they cross. 'cause that's about where, where things are are change over.
[4:41:01] so I, I'd like to keep that concept in there. But more important than
[4:41:05] that road is the corona road, um, that was also mentioned.
[4:41:10] we need to have that concept developed and we need to work with the county
[4:41:14] to make sure that the road all the way to, um, adobe road and all
[4:41:19] the way to, uh, pum boulevard, what does that redesign actually look like
[4:41:23] to support all this new housing? And part
[4:41:27] of that new road has gotta be these pathways and all these
[4:41:31] students that are gonna be living there, there's no school in that little section. None was being mentioned,
[4:41:35] or just where are they gonna go to school and how are they going to get there
[4:41:39] by walking and biking. What pathway is there
[4:41:44] to go from that little section to where they need to be in
[4:41:48] a safe manner so that they're not have to be driven. So that
[4:41:52] path has to be established as a key safe routes to school program.
[4:41:56] how they, how they make that happen. So that, that is absolutely critical,
[4:42:01] uh, that they get through a neighborhood. Um, and then over to the area. So they can go
[4:42:05] to the law school district or to the corona school or to the junior high school.
[4:42:09] that all needs to be mapped out now. Uh, so that there, that those routes
[4:42:13] are established. Um, uh, I also like to comment about the, the, the
[4:42:17] feathering, but I'd like to enhance that. Feathering would be nice as on the edges,
[4:42:22] not the brick walls that were mentioned, but we need to have gardens and trees
[4:42:26] that lead up to non fencing backyards,
[4:42:31] which then leads up to more landscaping in a backyard, which then goes
[4:42:35] to a single family house, which then leads to maybe a, a two
[4:42:39] story, then three story inland. So that feathering up needs to be not just the buildings, but
[4:42:43] also the landscape needs to be feathered right down to the rural area.
[4:42:48] and maybe even include commun a community garden area in the area as a community
[4:42:52] space to, that folks can work on, on those areas so that we actually have
[4:42:56] rural actual production in these areas that are on these edges.
[4:43:01] okay. Then on, um, there's another idea
[4:43:05] that's come up. I saw, uh, earlier at another city did, um,
[4:43:10] these parcels, unless you organize it, well all gonna be bought
[4:43:14] one at a time, but by a developer or some prospector that's gonna go, okay,
[4:43:18] I'm just gonna buy the land and just to sit on it and I'm gonna force people to be buy a lot more
[4:43:23] or pay a lot more for it later down the road. 'cause I, I'm gonna control this land. I've seen that
[4:43:27] happen in other cities. Whereas one city said, no, we're not doing that.
[4:43:31] we're gonna form a development corporation nonprofit,
[4:43:36] quasi-governmental private, and it's a nonprofit and they
[4:43:40] actually like sponsored with the bank and they go out and, and say,
[4:43:44] okay, we're gonna buy all the land from all the people at equitable price and,
[4:43:49] and nobody gets a dime until everybody agrees to pay the equitable price.
[4:43:53] so we need to have this corporation, nonprofit buy all the land ahead of time
[4:43:57] now and then work with the developer to get it developed.
[4:44:02] maybe even a design build type of design as we go forward. So
[4:44:06] that process needs to be put in place now. 'cause if you could leave it up, always
[4:44:10] leave the parcels out there, whoever wants to come develop, come develop, no, that's not gonna work
[4:44:14] at all. That's gonna be a crazy mishmash of craziness that we don't
[4:44:18] want to go toward. So that way that, that's a, I want to reemphasize that
[4:44:22] process. The purchasing and the development plan needs to be organized,
[4:44:26] holistic, singular entity in the middle before
[4:44:30] it's released to developers. Okay. Then on the um,
[4:44:35] um, I mentioned the corona road and what, what is not included in the master plan,
[4:44:39] which is in the circle was the auction house and that property there
[4:44:43] that's inside that circle. What, what are your plans for that
[4:44:47] property? Is that gonna be housing? Is it going to be park? Is it going to
[4:44:51] stay the way it is? Because right now it's used as a parking lot for trucks, um,
[4:44:55] um, uh, a base of hotdog restaurant and occasionally may
[4:44:59] be used even as an auction house once in a while. Um, but that, that's a one of those
[4:45:03] properties that, okay, it's up for grabs as to what could it be, could it be a complete wetlands
[4:45:08] area as a park part of the greenway? Could it be that? But that
[4:45:12] has to be included in, 'cause that's part of that circle right there.
[4:45:16] um, then on the, um, oh one
[4:45:20] recommendation ahead of time, since all this makerspace and we're talking about all these
[4:45:24] places that may and, and all these mobile homes that we
[4:45:29] are talking about. I don't know how many of us actually walked it or biked in this and
[4:45:33] actually gone through all these neighborhoods to really feel it and see it. So maybe
[4:45:37] we should have the whole council get on bikes and, and take a ride and
[4:45:41] go down all these streets on a day and, and, and really see it. Or at
[4:45:45] least a group of folks work group, whatever you have should actually physically go
[4:45:49] out there and see it together as a group and talk about it as they're going and make
[4:45:53] a, a whole day tour out of it. Nice easy bike ride tour of these areas.
[4:45:58] so I'd like to see that happen with your work group and with you guys actually do that so that you understand
[4:46:02] what it's like to bike and walk in these areas.
[4:46:07] 'cause then you gotta feel it. You just can't look at it from a map and, and think about it. No, you gotta feel
[4:46:11] these things. So I really highly recommend you actually get out there, um, maybe with
[4:46:15] some of us and let's take a tour. Um, so otherwise I like everything that
[4:46:19] that's been said and what, what you're working on and let's make it all happen as soon as possible.
[4:46:23] so those are my comments. Thank you. Thank you. And we are at now at nine minutes to
[4:46:28] 11 and I'm gonna try and bring it in under the wire so we don't have to have a vote for
[4:46:32] after 11. Um, first, um, I, I thank, uh,
[4:46:36] council member di carly for, uh, saying such kind things about the 2013
[4:46:40] report. I'll get to go home and tell my wife who was on that committee,
[4:46:44] um, that she did a great job. Um, she did think that the corona
[4:46:49] station effort was kind of a little ticktack onto the edge of the big thing
[4:46:53] downtown. Um, but that, that's how that works. Uh, and I would concur, um,
[4:46:57] on the park, um, and, um, community gardens,
[4:47:02] uh, and we have the showcase for that, that sunrise community gardens is the gem of the city
[4:47:06] for, for gardens and the it's in the work area to could
[4:47:10] be replicated. Um, also in the ugb,
[4:47:14] uh, I mean, we told the voters we were reducing the
[4:47:18] possible annexations by three quarters and we only left in the one who
[4:47:22] we thought had value because of the corona station. So we really reduced
[4:47:27] all potential encroachment into ugb when we did that,
[4:47:31] um, when we in our public messaging there. Um,
[4:47:35] and broadly I would agree with, um, what, uh, council member barnacle and
[4:47:39] cater thompson mentioned. Um, and then I did like, uh, council
[4:47:44] member shrives bringing up biking because, uh, when rebuilding had their
[4:47:48] big workday, uh, I like to get out and thank the work crews and an awful lot of 'em from
[4:47:52] the mobile home parks. And so I just bike on across and, and there I am in
[4:47:56] doodling around the middle neighborhood. So I've got a good feel for that. But also,
[4:48:00] um, you know, you're a bicyclist too. Um, we can shoot
[4:48:04] up the smart trail to smart's offices for a meeting so we can
[4:48:08] attend. And thank god for the e-bike. I arrive polite. But, um,
[4:48:13] the, uh, but we have great access and I want to continue
[4:48:17] to have the group have great focus on mobility. Um, but now healthy
[4:48:21] petaluma's offices is in the smart offices. And so, you know, that's
[4:48:25] another business meeting I get to go to that's easy access. Uh, we had
[4:48:29] this county supervisor debates at, uh, healthy petaluma or at, um, petaluma
[4:48:33] health center and, uh, able to bike to that pretty darn easily too.
[4:48:38] we're making pieces come together in this town. It's very cool. Um,
[4:48:42] also we had transit day at the jc and, and we, we biked over
[4:48:46] to that and, um, uh, uh,
[4:48:51] if I wasn't here tonight, I would've been watching, uh, the, the game
[4:48:55] . Don't say the answer, anybody who was watching, I'm got that taped. But
[4:48:59] I would, um, I would've been at either hen house or beyond the glory who
[4:49:03] have, uh, big screens for sports events like that. And I would've biked to those
[4:49:07] events. Um, today for lunch, um, we wanted a bike somewhere
[4:49:11] two nine or diner was closed for lunch today, monday we went to
[4:49:15] pen grove market. Pen grove market would be the ideal installation
[4:49:19] to drop in. I mean, it's, it's a little boutiquey. It means, um,
[4:49:24] uh, things, but actually shockly prices are good at the pen grow market. So
[4:49:29] they'll tell two niner, I said this, but, and this weekend I was in the city
[4:49:33] and my sister-in-law made pizzas with dough from skippy's or from central milling.
[4:49:37] central milling. Uh, we have a gem going on in this area, um,
[4:49:42] but I wanna make sure that the, that the plan has the tools that
[4:49:46] drive investment into the area. I love the vision, um,
[4:49:50] and it's a good vision and I think we will be able
[4:49:54] to create the vi the, the future from
[4:49:58] this plan. I'm looking forward to it and um, I'll
[4:50:02] make a quick few. Thank you. Quick comments. Um, I just wanna say in 1998 when the ugb
[4:50:07] was, uh, voted in by the voters, this land was designated
[4:50:11] as an area that was gonna be annexed. And then the other thing is, if you
[4:50:15] wanna bring agricultural back, you wanna talk about people complaining, wait
[4:50:20] till the poop of the cows start and the wind goes south. And plus
[4:50:24] we have property owners that have property rights and if they wanna sell their property, they have
[4:50:28] a right to, these are not agricultural, um, they're not used
[4:50:32] as agricultural today the way it was in the past.
[4:50:37] and um, and that's a good one. And I read that
[4:50:41] just something like a pen grove market. I mean, that's what you really need in an area
[4:50:45] like this. Something small that actually has coffee and everything. So council member barnacle
[4:50:49] one last one. Graduate together. Okay. Yeah. Um, I appreciate you
[4:50:53] bringing up the ugbi just, I really take issue with the idea that we did some sort of a
[4:50:57] bait and swish on voters with the ugb. Like we had multiple meetings, council
[4:51:01] member di carly where we were talking about this, where we pulled certain things back
[4:51:05] and we put it right here for a very intentional reason. It was noticed over
[4:51:09] and over again. It was written as such. And so, um, like we really
[4:51:14] shouldn't be misrepresenting the council and, and the transparency we brought to the ugb
[4:51:18] process, um, secondarily, um, park and ride
[4:51:22] stations overwhelmingly don't perform as well as mixed use stations do
[4:51:27] in the network on smart and, and just in general. They just don't. So if
[4:51:31] we're learning from experience and learning from examples, we should be trying to build mixed
[4:51:35] use more vibrant, um, stations if we care about
[4:51:39] smart being an actual like, um, a, you know,
[4:51:43] long-term piece of infrastructure that is cost effective. Um, and
[4:51:47] then finally, you know, just having gone through my election in 2024,
[4:51:52] I talked to people in lavia that live right next to hunt and barron's. I talked to people who
[4:51:56] moved in right adjacent to clover and um, they love
[4:52:00] living in petaluma and they don't want the industrial things to leave. They want, they
[4:52:04] love living in petaluma because they have those industrial uses here.
[4:52:08] and so I think that more than people moving here and then saying, I want log
[4:52:12] anitas to shut down, they're moving here because they want to live next to log anitas.
[4:52:17] and I think that we'd like, there's a reframe on all this stuff and
[4:52:21] the benefits of living close to where you want to be. And, um, I just,
[4:52:26] I wanted to drop those things in. Let me just check with staff here.
[4:52:30] um, have you guys gotten an earful? Any, do you need to drive a question
[4:52:34] or? We, we've done it all for one evening.
[4:52:40] my decision , you know, andrew just brought up
[4:52:44] something. It would be great to maybe get mike,
[4:52:48] mike, it would be great to get more, um,
[4:52:52] clarity on, on what you guys feel about the plan area
[4:52:56] taking on the annexation area. Can you put the,
[4:53:01] is there a slide that you have with a specific thing you want? Or
[4:53:05] is it, there was the seven things that council member di carly referenced. I imagine
[4:53:09] you're asking about one of those
[4:53:13] 2013. I think that the,
[4:53:17] I think we have clarity on all the other items. The reason we want maybe a straw
[4:53:22] poll on, on planning for the annexation area is because
[4:53:26] that's a significant investment of, of the budget in that
[4:53:30] planning. So if you were to give us, yeah, let's do that. Right. Okay.
[4:53:34] so I think we talked a lot about the annex, uh, the annexation area, and we
[4:53:38] talked about a lot of different things going on with it. But the base question that staff is asking us to weigh
[4:53:42] in on, and we'll do it in a straw poll, is do we want to continue
[4:53:47] exploring and, and crafting the annexation area? And so
[4:53:51] as, um, uh, hands up if you want 'em to continue. So 2, 3, 4,
[4:53:55] and be clear. Okay.
[4:53:59] and hands up if you wish them to drop it from the, the we.
[4:54:04] we have, we have five votes. Sorry, but thank you. Okay. We clear? Thank you.
[4:54:08] we're very clear. Excellent. Thank everybody
[4:54:12] for staying tonight. And there's a, there's a lot of going on, going on, so I appreciate
[4:54:16] y'all being here. And mr. Mayor charlie,
[4:54:21] we still do have this second public comment period. So we are moving into,
[4:54:25] um, thanking, thanking your team for being here and, and, uh, and
[4:54:29] we're, and we're set. And, um, do we have to, and it is 11
[4:54:33] mayor. Yeah. All right. I'll make a motion to, we have a motion extend the meeting
[4:54:38] past 11. Wait, wait, how many minutes?
[4:54:42] uh, yeah. Um, so through, through the public comment period.
[4:54:47] and um, there we go. So we have a motion. I need a second. I'll second. We
[4:54:51] have a second by now. A motion by cater thompson. And uh, can we do this by a claim?
[4:54:55] so we do this by a claim. All those in favor say this doesn't anything up there either online, right? This
[4:54:59] is your moment to say aye. Okay. Aye. 11 because
[4:55:03] we don't even even know if they're online. Okay, good. So then we are how many
[4:55:07] cards? 11 and there's 13 people
[4:55:12] online. Okay. So, um, we are
[4:55:16] opening the continued public comments for the evening and um,
[4:55:20] we have checked online and we have, uh, no hands raised
[4:55:24] online for this. So I will read your name and I give you a,
[4:55:28] a count of five. And it's maria perez. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
[4:55:35] nicole sandoval, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Pamela,
[4:55:39] er. Thank you.
[4:55:44] um, gabby ortiz.
[4:55:50] nico fry. Yeah. You wanna come speak on ice out?
[4:55:54] yes, I do. Come on down. , come
[4:55:58] on down. I'm around. Is your turn
[4:56:07] and
[4:56:12] because these were the general comments where everyone got one minute I reset the
[4:56:16] clock to one minute. Okay. Thank you. And, uh,
[4:56:21] is the clock ready? And the speaker's ready? Go. And here we go. Okay.
[4:56:26] I'm here tonight to ask you to see an opportunity where today you can only
[4:56:30] see a parcel of weed infested unused land
[4:56:34] just south of the meridian housing development between north mcdowell
[4:56:38] and the smart rail line. It is a small city
[4:56:42] owned triangular parcel. Well, it may seem insignificant.
[4:56:48] I believe it has the potential to become the front door to the proposed north station
[4:56:52] neighborhood or the new north east side of petaluma.
[4:56:57] as our community invests in the north station plan, implements the general
[4:57:01] plan and continues to promote housing near transit. This is exactly
[4:57:05] the kind of space that should become a public asset, not simply remain
[4:57:09] vacant and unused. Imagine a small park with
[4:57:13] shade trees, native landscaping, benches, bicycle parking,
[4:57:18] public art, and rain gardens that capture the storm water.
[4:57:22] it could provide a welcoming place for residents, especially those living in the nearby
[4:57:26] mobile home parks. Thank you commuters, cyclists and visitors. We were one, one
[4:57:30] minute while creating a recognizable gateway to this growing
[4:57:35] district. This parklet area supports many of the goals of the city,
[4:57:40] has already a dock. Thank you nicola. We are at one minute
[4:57:44] minute and you are one minute. So you've run your time.
[4:57:49] thank you. Okay. Uh, michael trione
[4:57:53] is our next speaker, alex mensing.
[4:57:59] nancy shin erickson, uh, maria perez.
[4:58:05] maria said that. And,
[4:58:10] uh, unnamed person and sierra moran.
[4:58:15] and, and with that we'll close the public comment, the continued public comment,
[4:58:20] and, uh, adjourn the meeting. Thank you all very much.