Laurie Alderman
Public Comment Consent Calendar “grantwriting”
Good evening, members of the City Council.
This item is yet another critical matter buried on tonight's consent calendar that must be pulled for separate discussion and a formal agenda vote.
I am speaking tonight regarding the grant writing expense for the Highway 116 roundabout financing item on your agenda, and how it directly intersects with the upcoming entitlement extensions for the housing projects behind Lowe’s.
The staff report for the grant-writing item states that the city has assembled $4.8 million in secured or expected funding. However, it explicitly admits that we are still at least $2 million short just to build the core elements of the roundabout. Even in a best-case scenario with future speculative awards, we face a substantial funding gap.
My concern is how this structural deficit creates a compounding loop of developer delays. The city’s inability to fully fund and construct this critical infrastructure bottleneck is precisely what allows developers to return to this chamber asking for extensions on their entitlements. By next February we will see Cotati Village I requesting an extension because the site cannot move forward for pulling the building permit within the three-year deadline. , and we know Cotati Village II is just six months behind them.
This begs a fundamental question about our city's long-term planning and fiscal strategy: How long are we going to continuously chase grant monies for stalled projects? This is just to pull permits… what if we have more situations after pulling permits like what is with the Cotati Hotel?
By perpetually extending these entitlements, we tie the city's infrastructure priorities to developers who are not building. The lack of funding impedes the roundabout, and the lack of a roundabout excuses the developer from performing. Instead of allowing these projects to sit in perpetuity, shouldn't we develop a new, realistic plan and let these entitlements expire? If a project cannot move forward without the city chasing millions in un-secured grants year after year, then the current plan is not working. It is time to let the planning slate reset so Cotati can pursue development that aligns with actual infrastructure timelines.
I urge the Council to stop the cycle of endless extensions, look critically at the real numbers of the Highway 116 funding gap, and consider sunsetting these stalled entitlements. I urge the council to use the monies not on grant writing for possible grants, but for more practical and solid planning on the area.