Late Correspondence (Uploaded 07-08-2025) — Santa Rosa City Council, July 8, 2025

From: Jen Klose
To: CityCouncilListPublic; Smith, Maraskeshia
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Support for Mendocino District Project Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2025 12:46:43 PM
Attachments: 2025 0703 Mendocino District Coalition Support Letter.pdf Hello Mayor Stapp, Vice Mayor Alvarez, Councilmembers, and Madame City Manager:

Please accept the attached coalition letter in support of granting Cornerstone a relief from default and an additional extension to pursue what we believe to be a transformational project.

Cornerstone has proven itself to be committed to Santa Rosa. We think it's important to move forward its plan, which is part of a visionary plan that includes all of Cornerstone's downtown property. We have confidence that Cornerstone will wrap up the litigation that has been the source of delays within the next nine months and be able to proceed.

Thank you for your consideration.

In community,
Jen
Jen Klose, J.D. [she/her
] | Executive Director
Schedule a meeting with me
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GenerationHousing.org
427 Mendocino Ave, Suite 100 | Santa Rosa, CA 95404
707-900-GENH [4364] v | 310-663-6037 m | 707-570-8768 f

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From: Milo Trauss
To: City Council Public Comments; CityCouncilListPublic Subject: [EXTERNAL] Support for housing - Item 16.2. Vote against Staff"s recommendation Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2025 1:10:14 PM
Dear City Council,
Cornerstone is making an unprecedented and highly desirable investment in Santa Rosa in the form of their Mendocino District proposal and the City ought to facilitate its production.

I encourage the City Council to vote against Staff's recommendation to buy back a key parcel for this development. Cornerstone is nothing short of an excellent community partner for the city. They have a track record of responsible development and are playing a big part in contributing to the City's prosperity. It makes no sense to tie the future of this proposal to the outcomes of two completely unrelated projects. Even so, the City could elect to modify terms to allow for increased timelines so that all the projects may be completed.

This high density housing is exactly what Santa Rosa needs and it is where Santa Rosa needs it - in the urban core. It will be a game changer for the city.

Please make the right decision with a grand vision in mind - not constrained by technicalities.

If trust is an issue with Cornerstone (which it should not be) there are other ways to get assurances besides making this proposal impossible.

Thanks,
Milo
Milo Trauss (he/him)

From: Andrew Ha
To: City Council Public Comments; CityCouncilListPublic; Pauline Block; Jordan Grimes Subject: [EXTERNAL] Letter of Support for Mendocino District Project Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025 9:44:57 AM
Attachments: Mendocino District Letter.pdf
To whom this may concern,
My name is Andrew Ha and I'm writing on behalf of Greenbelt Alliance, an organization dedicated to advancing sustainable land use and climate-smart development in the 9 county Bay Area.

We would like to express our support for the Mendocino District Project, which has now been certified by our Development Endorsement Program. This is item 16.2 on the City Council meeting agenda for July 8. We believe that this project will provide much needed sustainable housing to Santa Rosa and hope that the City Council would agree.

Thank you so much for reviewing this project and we hope to see it break ground soon. ––
Sincerely,
Andrew Ha
(he/him)
State and Regional Resilience Associate
Greenbelt Alliance
827 Broadway Ste 310 | Oakland, CA 94607
Telephone:
(415) 543-6771 ext. 322
greenbelt.org | Facebook | Instagram | X
From Surviving to Thriving: Greenbelt Alliance’s New Strategic Plan Read our vision for the next five years: greenbelt.org/strategic-plan

It is also worth noting that the project is resilient to both wildﬁre and ﬂood risks. The Mendocino District exists outside of the 100 year ﬂood zone map and its central location in the city drastically lowers its risk of wildﬁre.

According to GreenTRIP—a free online tool created by Transform that models traﬃc and greenhouse gas impacts of residential projects in California—the Mendocino District project development will result in:
● 16,292 fewer miles driven every day compared to the Sonoma County average. ● 57% fewer GHG impacts every day compared to the Sonoma County average. ● 82% less parking use every day compared to the Sonoma County average.

Greenbelt Alliance believes the Mendocino District project will provide much needed SMART, high-density housing in Santa Rosa and we are proud to give this project an endorsement! We hope its approval will inspire cities in Sonoma County and around the Bay Area to be audacious and redouble their e
ﬀorts to grow in more sustainable ways.

Sincerely,

Andrew Ha
State and Regional Resilience Associate
Greenbelt Alliance

From: Adrian Covert
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 Cornerstone
Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025 1:53:25 PM
Attachments: 07.03 Cornerstone.pdf
Greetings Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
Please see the attached letter from Santa Rosa YIMBY regarding Agenda item 16.2 (Cornerstone) at this Tuesday's upcoming Council meeting.

Sincerely,
Adrian Covert
Local Lead
Santa Rosa YIMBY
July 3, 2025

Santa Rosa City Council
100 Santa Rosa Avenue, Room 100
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Re: Agenda item 16.2
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
On behalf of Santa Rosa YIMBY, I write to share our strong strong support for Cornerstone Properties’ continued development of the project at 410 B Street and 427 Mendocino Avenue and to respectfully request you reject the staff recommendation to repurchase the site.

Santa Rosa YIMBY is an all-volunteer association of local residents passionate about building Santa Rosa into an affordable, vibrant, low-carbon city for all. We strongly believe Cornerstones’ continued development of this combined site is by far the best suited to advance these goals.

Cornerstone’s combined site project offers a generational opportunity to build up to 1,000 units in the heart of downtown with a diverse affordability mix ranging from high- end, to workforce and affordable units. These sorely needed units will help the city meet its local and state-mandated housing production goals while supporting teachers, nurses, and essential workers who often fall outside income-restricted housing thresholds. The project also provides desperately amenities to the downtown neighborhood, including a grocery market and childcare facilities. Separating the sites will result in fewer units, less vibrancy downtown, and a missed opportunity for Santa Rosa to bring more people, workers, and shoppers into its downtown core.

Few constituencies in Santa Rosa want more housing with greater urgency than YIMBY members, and we share the frustrations caused by project delays. However, the dispute delaying this project is nearly resolved—separating the parcels and restarting complex processes for the surplus land act and entitlements will delay progress, not expedite it.

Cornerstone alone has approximately 2,650 units in the pipeline in Santa Rosa—nearly half our current RHNA obligation. This profound commitment to our city is reﬂected in Cornerstone’s other actions, including lending its facilities to ﬁre relief efforts in 2017 and its consistent support for nonproﬁt and community organizations across the region.

Cornerstone’s combined-site proposal at 410 B Street and 427 Mendocino Avenue isn’t just a badly needed housing project, it’s a transformative opportunity to revitalize and reimagine downtown while providing sorely needed housing and amenities to struggling residents while also improving the city’s ﬁscal outlook. We respectfully request the city reafﬁrm its partnership with Cornerstone and allow the project to move forward as envisioned.

Sincerely,
Adrian Covert
Local Lead
Santa Rosa YIMBY

From: [email protected]
To: CityCouncilListPublic; City Council Public Comments Cc: [email protected]; "Andrew Ha"; "Jordan Grimes" Subject: [EXTERNAL] Public Comment on Agenda Item 16.2, "Mendocino District" - July 8 City Council Meeting Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025 4:15:29 PM
Dear Honorable City Council.

I am an architect and member of the Greenbelt Alliance Climate Smart Development Endorsement Committee.

I am submitting this letter as an individual in support of Cornerstone's proposed 862 unit residential project, Mendocino District, located in downtown Santa Rosa, on Cornerstone’s parcels at 411 and 427 Mendocino Street, and the adjacent 410 B St. parcel, APN 010- 045-025, a City of Santa Rosa property formerly agreed to be sold to Cornerstone for this development.

This project was reviewed and unanimously endorsed by Greenbelt Alliance’s Climate Smart Development Endorsement Committee on June 18, 2025.

This visionary project to introduce 2 high rise residential buildings housing 862 families will enormously energize the downtown of Santa Rosa, stimulate small businesses in the area, sustain existing services and shops, and provide more incentives for improved public transportation.

Quality developments, higher
density, increased foot traffic will make Santa Rosa a more attractive destination for locals and visitors alike. And of course, 862 units is a great step towards meeting Housing Element goals.

I urge the City Council to NOT consider rescinding the sale of the 410 B St. parcel to Cornerstone.

Lee Mei, MD, AIA

From: Eric Shott
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2, Support for the Mendocino District Date: Friday, July 4, 2025 1:10:44 PM
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers - I'm writing to express my strong support for the proposed Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties and to urge the city council to reject the proposed parcel buyback. I don't understand why the City would want to delay or scuttle this project.

Housing is needed in Santa Rosa, and infill is the best and most environmentally friendly approach. With the new law limiting CEQA, hopefully there will be more ability to require more low income/teacher/first responder housing and still allow the developer to make a decent
profit. Breaking up this project would be a huge loss for downtown and only delay and downsize progress on housing and downtown revitalization.

Without places for people to live we cannot expect people in Sonoma County, or CA for that matter, to be able to focus on environmental protection including reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

When you can't find housing or can barely scrape by, reducing greenhouse gas emissions or otherwise protecting the environment will not be very high on your priority list.

Thanks for your consideration
Eric Shott
Santa Rosa
Jennings Avenue
From: Lauren Fuhry
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 - Support the Mendocino District Date: Saturday, July 5, 2025 9:17:14 AM
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
I'm writing to express my strong support for the proposed Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties and to urge the city council reject the proposed parcel buyback.

Breaking up this project would be a huge loss for downtown and only delay and downsize progress on housing and downtown revitalization. Please keep up the momentum with downtown revitalization by not proceeding with the parcel buyback! Sincerely,
Lauren Fuhry

Montgomery Village
From: Alexandria F
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 - Support the Mendocino District Project Date: Sunday, July 6, 2025 12:49:53 PM
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
I'd like to share my support for the proposed Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties and to urge the city council to reject the proposed parcel buyback. We should be doing all we can to support projects that add desperately needed housing near transit and local destinations.

This kind of project supports so many city goals all at once, and I would love to see more people enjoying downtown Santa Rosa, and all it has to offer. I love being able to walk and
bike to most of my destinations, and would love more people to have that opportunity as well! Thank you!
Alexandria, Burbank Gardens
From: [email protected]
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 - Support the Mendocino District Date: Sunday, July 6, 2025 6:12:23 PM
Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
I'm a Santa Rosa resident, living in the Doyle Park neighborhood, and I support strong action to alleviate our housing crisis. That means removing barriers and sometimes provide support for developers that want to build new units, whether market rate or affordable.

The Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties proposes to do just that, delivering hundreds of much-needed units and increasing density in our city center, which, for a city this size, has been kept artificially low for decades.

Suburban residents in the edges of town, who themselves might not visit downtown often, might be opposed at the idea of 24-story buildings, but this density provides customers and economic activity to the downtown area. This will revitalize existing businesses and attract new ones, creating a vibrant town center that benefits everyone. This type of density also supports the virtuous cycle of increased transit use, and aligns with our climate goals since it is the most environmentally-friendly way to live.

I encourage the council to reject the proposed parcel buyback, which would break up the project and possibly kill it altogether.

I very much appreciate the work the council has already done in promoting housing construction, and hope that it continues making it easier to build.

From: JeddParker
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Please support the Mendocino District Project (Agenda item 16.2) Date: Sunday, July 6, 2025 8:37:00 PM
Greetings!
I strongly encourage you to support the Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone.

Please reject the proposed buyback. The buyback would only add to the budget woes and delay the much needed housing and downtown revitalization.

Thank you -
Jedd Parker
Santa Rosa
95405

From: Remi Tan
To: CityCouncilListPublic; City Council Public Comments Subject: [EXTERNAL] Public Comment on Agenda Item 16.2 - July 8 City Council Meeting Date: Monday, July 7, 2025 9:45:51 AM
Dear Honorable City Council.

I am an architect and member of the Greenbelt Alliance Climate Smart Development Review Committee.

I am submitting this letter as an individual in support of Cornerstone's proposed 862 unit Mendocino District project located on the former City of Santa Rosa property at 410 B St. APN 010-045-025 being
considered on this meeting, and two adjacent Cornerstone parcels at 411 and 427 Mendocino Streets.

The project was recently unanimously endorsed by Greenbelt Alliance Climate Smart Development Review Committee on June 18, 2025
The project will provide much needed middle income housing and will be 15% affordable housing.

The
project's downtown infill location near shopping, 0.6 mi from the SMART train station, and adjacent to 10 bus lines as well as it's 75 bicycle parking spaces will help reduce automobile pollution and traffic and aligns with the bike and pedestrian plan. The SMART train will allow residents to commute to job centers in Marin County and connect with SF and the East Bay via Golden Gate Transit buses and ferries.

I urge the city council not to rescind the purchase agreement for 410 B St. If Cornerstone loses this parcel, it will not be able to build a project as dense as this on the remaining parcels and the city will lose the high quantity of transit oriented development residences as well as affordable housing units that are currently proposed.

Cornerstone has already finished schematic design, so loss of the city parcel would mean the project will have to be redesigned on the other parcels which will further delay completion.

I also urge the city council to remove the requirement on this sale that Cornerstone needs to progress on other projects in the city. Cornerstone is having difficulty progressing due to the financing challenges of high interest rates, supply chain inflation, and weakening economy due to the federal tariff uncertainty on those other parcels.

If the city takes the parcel back any new developer will face similar economic challenges as Cornerstone, and on the single parcel will not be able to build as densely, plus the new developer will need to start from scratch on the design and approvals process, further delaying completion of a reduced sized project.

T
hank you for your consideration,
Remi Tan, AIA, LEED AP BD+C
Architecture, Green/Sustainability Consulting, and Real Estate Investment

From: Brian Gong
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 - Support the Mendocino District Date: Monday, July 7, 2025 9:58:02 AM
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
I strongly support the proposed Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties and urge the city council to reject the proposed parcel buyback. Cornerstone’s combined site project offers a generational opportunity to build up to 1,000 units while also providing amenities like a grocery store and childcare facilities.

Santa Rosa, with almost 200,000 residents, should have a downtown with a real skyline and this project will help transform downtown into the vibrant district that we all deserve.

Breaking up this project would be a significant loss for downtown and delay progress on housing and downtown revitalization.

Cornerstone’s proposal at 410 B Street and 427 Mendocino Avenue is a transformative opportunity to revitalize downtown while providing housing and amenities to residents and improving the city’s fiscal outlook. I respectfully request the city reaffirm its partnership and allow the project to proceed as envisioned.

Sincerely,

Brian Gong
Resident (Fox Hollow Neighborhood by Piner High)
From: Remi Tan
To: CityCouncilListPublic; City Council Public Comments Subject: [EXTERNAL] Public Comment on Agenda Item 16.2 - July 8 City Council Meeting Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2025 9:28:11 PM
Dear Honorable City Council.

I am an architect and member of the Greenbelt Alliance Climate Smart Development Review Committee.

Cornerstone has already finished schematic design, so loss of the city parcel would mean the project will have to be redesigned on the other parcels which will further delay completion.

T
hank you for your consideration,
Remi Tan, AIA, LEED AP BD+C
Architecture, Green/Sustainability Consulting, and Real Estate Investment 650-291-3097
From: Andrew Ha
To: City Council Public Comments; CityCouncilListPublic; Pauline Block; Jordan Grimes Subject: [EXTERNAL] Letter of Support for Mendocino District Project Date: Thursday, July 3, 2025 9:44:56 AM
Attachments: Mendocino District Letter.pdf
To whom this may concern,
My name is Andrew Ha and I'm writing on behalf of Greenbelt Alliance, an organization dedicated to advancing sustainable land use and climate-smart development in the 9 county Bay Area.

Sincerely,

Andrew Ha
State and Regional Resilience Associate
Greenbelt Alliance

From: Melissa Hough
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Agenda Item 16.2 - Support the Mendocino District Date: Tuesday, July 8, 2025 7:32:42 AM
Dear Mayor Stapp and Councilmembers,
I'm writing to express my strong support for the proposed Mendocino District Project by Cornerstone Properties and to urge the city council reject the proposed parcel buyback.

Breaking up this project would be a huge loss for downtown and only delay and downsize progress on housing and downtown revitalization.

Santa Rosa is in huge need of more bodies downtown - living, walking around, buying things from the various stores. Many cities show that by having dense housing and mixed-use buildings, there is proven to be more money inflowing into the city and essentially subsidizes the rest of the city. Backing the Cornerstone project would be a huge step towards gaining more funding for the city. It's a win-win for all!
Thank you,

Melissa Hosking, Santa Rosa resident

Santa Rosa City CouncilJuly 8, 2025

Santa Rosa City Council
July 8, 2025