Southeast Greenway
CITY COUNCIL
July 25, 2023
BACKGROUND
The California Department
of Transportation (“Caltrans”)
owns ~58 acres of property
that was originally acquired to
construct the extension of
State Route 12 between
Farmers Lane and Spring Lake
Regional Park (“Property”)
On August 20, 2014, the
California Transportation
Commission (CTC) adopted a
resolution to rescind the
freeway adoption, allowing the
Property to be transferred or
sold.
Previous Actions
Taken by
Council
17 June 2014
City Joined the Southeast Greenway
Community Partnership
• City of Santa Rosa
• Sonoma Water
• Southeast Greenway Campaign
• Sonoma County Regional Parks
• Sonoma Land Trust
• LandPaths
7 July 2015
Council adopted Resolution No.
28666 approving an MOU among
the Partnership and Caltrans
9 July 2019
City certified an Environmental
Impact Report for the Southeast
Greenway
Southeast Greenway Property
Partnership has mapped
the excess land into tracts,
of which 3 tracts are zoned
as “developable” (tracts 1,2
and 4B) which Caltrans will
retain for housing
development
City desires to purchase all
remaining tracts ~49 acres
of the Property for public
park purposes Preliminary
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Recent
Developments
Completed mapping and title work
Caltrans approved mapping
California Department of General Services Approved
the Sale of ~49 acres of Excess Lands to the City as
mapped
Began negotiating an Easement with Sonoma County
Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District (OSD)
over the Southeast Greenway Property
Began negotiating a Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) with Sonoma Water for necessary Utilities within
the Southeast Greenway Property
Appraisal of Southeast Greenway Property
City Staff and Caltrans Staff level sign off appraisal Awaiting Caltrans Headquarters approval of appraisal
PUBLIC PURPOSE
Next steps in the
acquisition process and a
requirement by Caltrans
includes:
Declaration by City
Council that the
Southeast Greenway
Property will be used
for a public purpose in
perpetuity
Approval of a deed
restriction upon
transfer of the
Property for same
Public Purpose
Continued
The Southeast Greenway Property may include:
bicycle and pedestrian paths
community gardens
parks
sport courts, fields and playgrounds
opportunities for community gathering space
water supply and utility infrastructure
creation of walkable neighborhoods
dog parks
disc golf
community/cultural areas
A Public Master Planning Process where the
community will have ample opportunity to express
their desires for the future Southeast Greenway
Project will be led by the Recreation and Parks
Department after acquisition.
Establishment of Park Land Requirements for Development Parcels Development of one or more
dwelling units located within the
Developable Parcel Lands are
required to comply with Santa Rosa
City Code Sections 19-70.020
through 19-70.050
Caltrans requests that the
retained Developable Parcels not
be required to comply with these
Code Sections only pertaining to
park land dedication.
Staff recognizes that future
residents will be adequately
served with park land from the
adjacent Southeast Greenway
Project and recommends no park
land dedication.
Acquisition Funding
The Campaign and Land Trust have retained a mixture of grant funding and donations for the purchase of the Southeast Greenway Property.
Significant Grant funds expire in October 2024
Funding Agency:
Sonoma County Ag and Open Space $1,000,000
State Coastal Conservancy $ 500,000
Community Foundation Sonoma County $ 225,000
Mead Foundation $ 35,000
Individual Donors of Campaign and Land Trust $ 285,000
If the Property appraisal is approved by Caltrans Headquarters, Staff will then work with Caltrans to negotiate a Purchase and Sale Agreement (“Agreement”) within price and term parameters approved by Council in closed session To meet Caltrans’ requirements, Staff requests approval of the proposed resolution which also includes requests for the following:
Authorization for the Real Property Manager to negotiate the Agreement Authorization for the City Manager to execute the agreement, approved as to form by the City Attorney
California Transportation Commission (CTC) will hear the item for final approval, potentially as early as January 2024
Next Steps
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended by Real Estate Services, the Transportation and Public Works and Recreation and Parks Departments that the Council, by resolution: 1) declare that the future Southeast Greenway Property will be used for a public purpose in perpetuity; 2) approve a deed restriction to be recorded upon the transfer of the Southeast Greenway Property for same; 3) declare that the future development of one or more dwelling units located within the Developable Parcels (as described below) shall not be required to comply with Santa Rosa City Code Sections 19-70.020 through 19-70.050 pertaining to park land dedication; 4) authorize the Real Property Manager to negotiate the price and terms of the agreement; 5) authorize the City Manager to execute the agreement with the California Department of Transportation for the Purchase and Sale of the Southeast Greenway Property.
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