From: Cate Steane
To: CityCouncilListPublic
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Gas Station Ordinance Study Session Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2026 11:52:39 AM
Honorable Council Members:
I would like to share a few thoughts after listening to yesterday's study session on the gas station ordinance.
Mayor Stapp opened with the question of whether this law is still serving us. What he did not share was where the question comes from. No doubt the Council has passed dozens of ordinances since 2022. Why should this one be up for reconsideration? As he noted, this ordinance was a point of pride for the City when it was passed. In whose view is it not still serving the people of Santa Rosa?
The conditions that led to the passage of this ordinance, as stated in the ordinance, remain the same:
· we are in a climate emergency
· we are committed to a strategy of transition away from fossil fuels · gas stations and fuel storage locations become brownfield sites when they are abandoned
· common contaminants found at gas stations threaten the public health, safety, or welfare of neighboring communities
· underground gasoline storage tanks are potential sources of contamination of soil, surface water, and aquifers
· there are 44 operating gas stations within City limits, 41 of which are in City areas that have been identified as having the highest concentration of people of color and/or people living in poverty.
One thing that has changed since the ordinance passed is the development of hundreds of units of housing around the intersection of Petaluma Hill Road and Kawana Springs Road, perhaps 2000 feet from the location of Costco’s gas station. So the number of people at risk for exposure to fossil fuel infrastructure-related contamination in that area has increased significantly.
In 2022, Santa Rosa staked out the position that it will no longer increase the existence of fossil fuel infrastructure within city limits. I have heard no evidence of any shortage of fuel pump availability in Santa Rosa. Indeed, the Council recently permitted the expansion of the number of fuel pumps in the face of ferocious citizen opposition. I cannot remember the last time I had to wait for even one car in order to pump gas in the City. Why would we retreat from this commitment now? If there is a reason, Council members need to be more transparent about it.
From the study session, letters you received, letters to the editor in The Press Democrat, and the size of the opposition to the Elm Tree Station, I hope you have seen that many Santa Rosans are still paying attention and care deeply about this issue. We vote, and we walk precincts for candidates whose first priorities include public health, safety, and the environment. Happy election year.
Sincerely,
Cate Steane
, Santa Rosa CA 95401