Attachment 1 - General Plan and Inclusionary Housing Ordinance Annual Review for 2025

GENERAL PLAN AND INCLUSIONARY
HOUSING ANNUAL REVIEW FOR 2025

PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL REPORT
Attachment 1
I
. GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REVIEW ............................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 3 GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENTS IN 2025 ...................................................................... 4 GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION ............................................................................. 4 HOUSING ELEMENT .................................................................................................. 5 Population ............................................................................................................. 5 Residential Growth and Development...................................................................... 5 Housing Needs and Affordability ............................................................................. 8 Housing Element Goals, Policies and Programs ........................................................ 9 LAND USE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ............................................................. 13 General Plan Priority Areas and Populations ........................................................... 13 Land Use - Non-Residential Growth and Development ............................................ 15 Downtown, Arts, Tourism, & Events ....................................................................... 18 Economic Vitality ................................................................................................. 19 Economic Conditions & Trends ............................................................................. 23 CIRCULATION, OPEN SPACE, CONSERVATION, AND GREENHOUSE GAS REDUCTION 24 Transit Network .................................................................................................... 24 Active Transportation Network .............................................................................. 27 Creek Stewardship ............................................................................................... 32 Greenhouse Gas Reductions ................................................................................ 35

URBAN DESIGN, CULTURAL AND TRIBAL CULTURAL RESOURCES, HISTORIC PRESERVATION, AND ART AND CULTURE .................................................................. 41 Urban and Environmental Design .......................................................................... 41 Cultural and Tribal Cultural Resources and Historic Preservation ............................ 41 Public Art Program ............................................................................................... 43 SAFETY , CLIMATE RESILIENCE, NOISE, AND PUBLIC SERVICES AND FACILITIES .......... 46 Wildland and Urban Fire ....................................................................................... 46 Emergency Preparedness and Evacuation .............................................................. 48 Fire Services ........................................................................................................ 53 Fire Service Statistics ........................................................................................... 54 Fi
re Protection ..................................................................................................... 54 Fire Protection and Service Enhancements ............................................................ 54 Police Services .................................................................................................... 55 Police Service Statistics........................................................................................ 57 Water Supply ....................................................................................................... 57 Water Conservation and Efficiency ........................................................................ 58 Wastewater ......................................................................................................... 58 HEALTH, EQUITY , ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, AND PARKS .......................................... 60 Health, Equity and Environmental Justice .............................................................. 60 Children and Families ........................................................................................... 61 Parks and Recreation............................................................................................ 63 Parks Condition Assessment and Prioritization Report ............................................ 67 II. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE INCLUSIONARY HOUSING ORDINANCE ............................. 68 III. HOUSING ELEMENT GOAL APPENDIX 2025 ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT .................. 70 3 I. GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REVIEW

INTRODUCTION

The Santa Rosa General Plan 2050 was adopted in June 2025. It describes the City’s aspirations and identiﬁes strategies for managing growth, preservation, and change. The General Plan is required by State law and has a long-range focus, looking 20 or more years into the future. The General Plan provides the policy framework to guide decision-making, as well as the funding of public improvement projects, including parks and streets.

Staff prepare the General Plan Annual Review Report to provide members of the public and the City’s decision makers with information related to progress with implementing the General Plan and meeting City goals. This General Plan Annual Review Report looks at the 2025 calendar year. The City is required to provide this report to the State Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI), formerly the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), each year per Government Code Sections 65400 and 65700.

This report also includes an annual review of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance as required by local ordinance.

4 GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENTS IN 2025

Per State law, General Plan Amendments can be considered no more than four times per year. On June 3, 2025, the City Council adopted a General Plan Amendment package, which included the three projects summarized below.

Housing Element Amendment. An amendment to the 2023-2031 Housing Element was adopted to reﬂect a transfer of Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) units related to the annexation of 34.93 acres on Lance Drive, and to correct two clerical edits.

Dutton Avenue General Plan Amendment. An amendment to the General Plan land use diagram was approved to change the land use designation for 3150 Dutton Avenue from Medium Density Residential to General Industry.

General Plan 2050. A comprehensive update to the City’s General Plan 2035 was adopted.

The General Plan 2050 includes each of the State mandated elements, or topics, and multiple optional elements including Economic Development, Health, Urban Design, Greenhouse Gas Reduction, and Historic Preservation.

GENERAL PLAN IMPLEMENTATION
The Santa Rosa General Plan
2050 contains six topical chapters
covering numerous elements, and
hundreds of goals, policies, and
actions which guide the daily
decision making of City staff, the
City Council and City boards and
commissions. The following
sections address City progress
toward implementing General
Plan elements, goals, policies,
and actions.

5 HOUSING ELEMENT
Population
The California Department of Finance (DOF) estimates that Santa Rosa had 178,452 residents as of January 1, 2025, representing a 0.8 percent increase from the 2024 population of 177,043.

Residential Growth and Development
In 2025, building permits were issued for a total of 847 residential units, excluding ﬁre- rebuild replacement housing units.

Of the 847 residential units issued building permits, the distribution was as follows:
• 739 consisted of Multi-Family Units
• 61 consisted of Single-Family Dwellings
• 47 consisted of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) or Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADUs)
447
625
1400
1157
297
847
2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
# UNITS ISSUED BUILDING PERMITS

6 Several notable residential projects in the planning or building process during 2025 are highlighted below.

Tierra De Rosas
Tierra De Rosas, located at Sebastopol Road and West Avenue, continues to move forward with construction. The project includes a mixed-use community featuring affordable housing, market-rate housing, retail space, and a public plaza designed to serve as a neighborhood gathering area.

Casa Roseland – Tierra De Rosas
Building permits for the project have been issued in phases. On January 23, 2025, grading and building permits were issued for Casa Roseland, the 75-unit affordable housing building. Site work and vertical construction activities are currently underway, consistent with those approvals. On September 25, 2025, grading permits were issued for the public plaza improvements.

The development represents a signiﬁcant investment in the Roseland area, delivering much-needed affordable housing along with new public and community-serving amenities.

Lance Drive
The Lance Drive Housing Development received Planning approvals in 2024 to construct 672 units of multi-family apartments, 98 small lot single family dwellings, 4,800 square feet of community serving retail and an outdoor plaza on a 34.29-acre site. This project is located in the City’s northwest quadrant within the boundaries of the North Station Area Speciﬁc Plan. Building permits have been issued for Phase One, which constitutes 372 units of multifamily housing, including 20 units affordable to very low-income households, and approximately 5,000 square feet of commercial space near the intersection of Lance Drive and Guerneville Road. This Phase is currently under construction.

7 Lance Drive-Artiﬁcial Rendering Lance Drive Site Plan Meadow Creek Townhomes
Meadow Creek Townhomes is a 62-unit subdivision of a 4.78-acre parcel, located at 533 Bellevue Avenue, within the Roseland Area/Sebastopol Road Priority Development Area.

The project consists of ten 5-plex buildings and two 6-plex buildings for a total of 62 single- family attached homes, as well as common open space areas. The Tentative Map for this project was approved in July of 2025, and Design Review was approved in September.

Meadow Creek Townhomes – Artiﬁcial Rendering

425 Humboldt
The 425 Humboldt Apartments project received Design Review approval in March of 2025 to construct a seven-story mixed-use building featuring 299 residential units, ground ﬂoor commercial uses, and 185 parking spaces. The project is currently under building permit review for grading, foundation, and site improvements.

8 425 Humboldt – Birds Eye View 425 Humboldt – Courtyard Rendering Pullman Lofts
Pullman Lofts (Third Phase) is a 6-story apartment building with 69 units and 21 parking spaces, to be located at 700 Wilson Street. The project will include additional off-street parking at 720 Wilson Street and 726 Wilson Street, with a surface-level parking lot providing 52 spaces for residents of all phases of the Pullman Lofts development. The project received Design Review approval in March of 2025.

Pullman Lofts (Third Phase) Artiﬁcial Rendering
Housing Needs and Affordability
The Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) is the State of California required process that seeks to ensure cities and counties are planning for enough housing to accommodate all economic segments of the community. Each city and county must then adopt a housing element that demonstrates how the jurisdiction can accommodate its assigned RHNA through its zoning.

The following table compares the RHNA numbers for Santa Rosa with building permit issuance by income category to illustrate the remaining need near the end of the Housing

9 Element reporting period. In 2025, the City issued building permits for a total of 847 residential units.

Units Issued Building Permits by Income Category
2023 – 2031 (6th RHNA Cycle)
Income Category Very Low Low Moderate Above
Moderate
Total
2025 Units Issued 64 60 15 708 847
2022* -2024 Units
Issued

327 358 75 1,865 2,625
Total Units Issued in
6th Cycle*

391 418 90 2,573 3,472

RHNA Objectives 1,252 701 771 2,602 5,326

Total Remaining RHNA
by Income Level
861 283 681 29 1,854
*The Housing Element 6th Cycle period for RHNA began June 30, 2022, and includes units that were issued up until January 31, 2023. Units permitted during this timeframe count toward the 6th Cycle RHNA.

Housing Element Goals, Policies and Programs
The Housing Element outlines the City’s eight-year housing plan and its commitment to meeting the housing needs of everyone in the community. Covering the planning period of January 31, 2023, through January 31, 2031, the Housing Element establishes goals, policies, and actions aimed at expanding the housing stock and providing a wider range of housing choices for all Santa Rosa residents. Themes of equity, inclusion, and anti- displacement are woven throughout the document and reﬂected in numerous actions designed to ensure that Santa Rosa remains an equitable city, particularly for residents who are most vulnerable.

As part of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) discussion, the 6th Cycle Housing Element identifies six goals supported by corresponding policies, programs, and quantified objectives necessary to achieve the City’s RHNA targets. Each goal is listed below, followed by highlighted program accomplishments from 2025 that demonstrate progress toward meeting these goals. A full list of programs advancing Housing Element goals is provided in the Housing Element Goal Appendix at the end of this report.

10 Housing Element Goal H-1: Encourage the development of housing to meet the needs of all Santa Rosa residents.

In 2025, the City Council adopted an ordinance establishing Missing Middle Housing (MMH) as a permitted use. MMH allows a variety of lower intensity housing types at higher residential unit counts than permitted under base zoning. The MMH Combining District was applied broadly to walkable areas within the City.

The ordinance also establishes a streamlined review process for MMH projects.

Developments that fully comply with applicable development standards are permitted by right and are exempt from design review. Projects located within Historic Preservation Districts require a Landmark Alteration Permit.

Planning staff ﬁnalized development of a Tiny Homes on Wheels ordinance in 2025, which would allow these habitable accessory structures with a Minor Conditional Use Permit in single-family zoning districts. All impact and water/sewer connection fees would be waived for these units, allowing a substantially more affordable permanent housing option throughout the City.

Housing Element Goal H-2: Conserve and improve the existing affordable housing stock.

Preservation of at-Risk Housing Units has been a priority criterion for the City’s Housing Authority over the last two years. In September 2025, the Housing Authority approved rehabilitation loans to two affordable housing projects.

The Zane-Wolff Veterans Village, located at 665 Russell Avenue, received funds in the amount of $489,228. The project was completed in 2019 under a County of Sonoma initiative to demonstrate the efficacy of “tiny homes” to address homelessness and housing affordability for extremely low-income households. The Village includes 13 homes that are restricted to Veteran households at 30% of Area Median Income (AMI) and a manager’s unit restricted to a Veteran household at 80% of AMI. Each home is an approximately 250 square-foot, detached dwelling with built-in furniture, a kitchenette with a refrigerator and induction stovetop, and a full bathroom with roll-in shower. All units are wheelchair accessible. The units include front porches and are oriented facing a common outdoor courtyard. There is a larger common room on the project site where group programming and services take place; this space is also available to residents and has a full kitchen and laundry facilities. The rehabilitation funds will be used to complete the work necessary to convert the development from a temporary use permit to a permanent, multifamily use permit under the City of Santa Rosa Zoning Code. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years.

11 Apple Valley Scattered Sites is a scattered-site project involving 228 existing affordable rental units across ﬁve properties in Santa Rosa: Olive Grove, Paulin Creek, Papago Court, and two fourplexes on Apple Valley, all of which are owned and managed by entities within Burbank Housing. This project received rehabilitation funding in the amount of $2 million.

The rehabilitation project will include replacement of ﬂooring, cabinetry, appliances, HVAC, doors, windows, rooﬁng, ﬁre safety systems, and site improvements. Per-unit rehabilitation costs are estimated at an average of $60,000 to $140,000, depending on the condition of the site on which each unit is located. By accepting the City’s funding award, the project is required to maintain the affordability of these units for a 55-year period.

Rehabilitation for the West Avenue Apartments, a 40-unit rental unit development located at 1400 West Avenue, started in 2025. The improvements consist of site improvements and community building and interior and exterior apartment building renovations. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years.

Housing Element Goal H-3: Increase special needs housing opportunities and supportive services for lower income households, families with children, seniors, persons with physical and developmental disabilities, farmworkers, female-headed households, and people who are experiencing homelessness.

In September 2025, the City’s Housing Authority approved $2 million in funding for the construction of Ridley Avenue Family Apartments, a 50-unit family project located at 1801 Ridley Avenue. This project will
result in 49 units for households
earning between 30% and 60% of
Area Median Income (AMI) and
will include six units set aside for
emancipated youth leaving the
foster care system. The project
qualiﬁes as a Large Family
development under the HCD
standards with 43% of units
having two bedrooms and 27% of
units having three bedrooms.

Project-based housing vouchers were administered for 63 units serving people experiencing homelessness in the South Park Commons and Cannery at Railroad Square developments, both of which were completed and occupied in 2025. The South Park Commons project includes 61 units restricted to Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low- Income households for a period of 55-years. The Cannery at Railroad Square development Ridley Family Apartments - Renderings

12 provides 113 units that are restricted to Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low-Income households for a period of 55-years.

The City continued to partner in the operation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Veterans Affairs Supportive (VASH) Program in 2025. The HUD-VASH program, established in 2008, is targeted at serving homeless veterans. Since 2009, the City’s Housing Authority has administered 429 HUD-VASH vouchers. Of these 429 HUD- VASH vouchers, the City’s Housing Authority has issued 98 project-based vouchers to support the development of veterans housing projects within Sonoma County.

Housing Element Goal H-4: Ensure equal housing opportunities for all residents, regardless of their special characteristics, as protected under state and federal fair housing laws.

Residential developments that are funded by City Housing Authority funds are required to comply with all state and federal housing laws. In 2025, the City continued to fund and provide referrals to Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, a non-proﬁt that provides services in Sonoma County, including counseling services to homeowners and renters who have experienced discrimination based on their membership in a protected class.

The City provided the second year Action Plan for Fiscal Year 2025/2026 to HUD, detailing how the City and Housing Authority will address housing and community development needs and address fair housing issues. The City continues to collaborate with the County of Sonoma and the City of Petaluma to identify and resolve fair housing issues and related contributing factors.

Housing Element Goal H-5: Reduce or remove government constraints on the maintenance, improvement and development of housing, where feasible.

In March 2025, the City Council adopted an ordinance to streamline and enhance the Landmark Alteration Permit (LMA) process for properties located in the City’s eight Preservation Districts and for properties designated as local landmarks and to consolidate the Cultural Heritage Board and Design Review Board duties and composition into a single Design Review and Preservation Board. These efforts help to reduce processing times and costs for the development of new residential projects, and modiﬁcations to existing housing.

As part of the General Plan 2050 implementation effort, the City Council adopted an ordinance in December 2025, to support ﬂexible housing types and density goals. The deﬁnition of the multifamily land use was updated to reﬂect parcel use rather than

13 structure type, allowing detached units to qualify as multifamily if located on the same parcel. Amendments also exempt the construction of detached multifamily units, duplexes, half-plexes, and up to two single-family attached units from Design Review.

These Zoning Code changes allow additional conﬁgurations of multifamily development that were not previously allowed and reduce both the time and cost for applicants.

Housing Element Goal H-6: Develop energy-efficient residential units and rehabilitate existing units to reduce energy consumption.

In 2025, all residential projects constructed or rehabilitated in the city were required to comply with the California Building Code, including CALGreen requirements for new residential units and residential additions. These regulations incorporate extensive energy-efficiency standards designed to reduce energy use in new and upgraded housing and include improved insulation, high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, advanced lighting standards, and water-saving ﬁxtures.

As detailed in earlier sections of this report, numerous residential construction and rehabilitation projects either advanced through construction or were completed in 2025.

Collectively, these efforts increased the supply of housing units built or modernized to meet current energy-efficiency requirements. As a result, the City continued to make measurable progress toward reducing energy consumption in its housing stock.

LAND USE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
General Plan Priority Areas and Populations
A number of policies and actions in the General Plan direct the City to concentrate efforts on historically underserved communities and/or core neighborhoods in order to advance key objectives of environmental justice, social equity, and complete communities.

The Plan identiﬁes several Equity Priority Areas throughout Santa Rosa, where residents suffer most from economic, health, and environmental burdens, in which the City is to establish development priorities to provide amenities such as parks, community centers, and cultural facilities.

Twenty-one Areas of Change are established in the General Plan, to focus efforts on addressing housing, services, connectivity, and additional infrastructure to develop complete neighborhoods. Areas of change were identiﬁed for focus due to the existence of underutilized or undeveloped land or a dated development pattern where new

14 infrastructure, services and/or amenities would result in complete neighborhoods with more attractive livable environments.

The City is in the process of preparing a Speciﬁc Plan for South Santa Rosa, which includes both Equity Priority Areas and Areas of Change, in an area that has experienced a lack of intentional planning efforts for several decades.

South Santa Rosa Speciﬁc Plan
The preparation of the South Santa
Rosa Speciﬁc Plan implements
Action 2.1.1 of the General Plan
2050 by responding to changing
community visions for the Santa
Rosa Avenue corridor and
Moorland areas, which have not
seen a comprehensive planning
effort si nce the 1980s when the
County of Sonoma adopted the
South Area Plan. Economic and
market conditions have also
changed dramatically in the nearly
50 years since the adoption of the
County's Area Plan, the extent of
which are being studied as part of
the Spe ciﬁc Plan process. The
preparation of the South Santa
Rosa Speciﬁc Plan also
implements Action 2 -1.4 of the
General Plan 2050 by serving as
the Speciﬁc Plan that would serve
as the foundation for any future annexation of any portion or all of the Plan Area. Although the Speciﬁc Plan is not directly associated with a proposed annexation of the Plan Area, the Speciﬁc Plan will include the evaluation of existing City and County services including ﬁre and police, water, wastewater, stormwater, transportation, and parks.

The City released the Land Use and Circulation Alternatives in Winter of 2026 and is currently soliciting feedback from community stakeholders in order to create a Preferred Alternative, which will outline land use and circulation changes to achieve goals identiﬁed

15 by the community. Adoption of the Speciﬁc Plan and the associated Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is anticipated to occur in early Winter of 2027.

Land Use - Non-Residential Growth and Development
Non-residential projects that are currently in the planning or building process are highlighted below.

Round Barn Hotel
3555 Round Barn Boulevard was
previously developed with a hotel
which partially burned down during
the Tubbs ﬁre. The hotel is in the
process of being rebuilt and the new
detached lobby is in the building
permit process. The new 1 -story
lobby building is approximately 2,690
square feet, with a proposed
landscaped courtyard area of
approximately 2,039 square feet.

Ceres Community Project
The Ceres Community Project is a new two-story 19,474 square-foot culinary and youth development facility, which will produce and distribute medically tailored meals to those in need throughout Sonoma County, and provide education about healthy eating. The development includes a courtyard and an
edible garden for culinary staff and
volunteers in the Youth Development
Program to craft healthy meals to be
delivered to community members in
medical need. The project is located at
1237 Apollo Way. Building permits for this
project were issued in July of 2024, with
construction completing in early 2026.

Ceres Culinary Facility – Courtyard View
Round Barn Hotel Lobby

16 Ceres Culinary Facility – Street View
Stonehouse Inn
The Stonehouse Inn, proposed adjacent to the famous Stonehouse building along Highway 12, is proposing to expand by constructing a 70-room hotel building on the 1.28-acre property. The hotel will have a rooftop courtyard, exterior enclosed patios, a ground-level reception area and a parking garage. The project also includes various modiﬁcations to the existing site, including the construction of a pool, restrooms, a gym and a maintenance building. The existing Stonehouse building, currently a 14-room boutique inn, will be renovated into a 5-room inn, for a total of 75 rooms onsite. There will be 77 total parking spaces, site retaining walls, planters, hardscaping, new fencing and access gates. This project is currently under Planning review, and the application is expected to be scheduled for review authority decision in early 2026.

Stonehouse Inn– View from Highway 12

17 Stonehouse Inn – View from Courtyard/Pool
Dave & Busters
Dave & Busters is a popular restaurant and entertainment chain that combines a full- service restaurant, sports bar, and large arcade under one roof. They operate over 160 locations throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada. In February of 2025, Dave & Busters received approvals from the City to open a location in the Santa Rosa Plaza, to be open from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.

Thursday, and 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Tenant improvements and exterior improvements
were completed throughout
2025, and the business
opened its doors to
customers in early 2026. By
expanding entertainment
and dining options, Dave &
Busters is anticipated to
attract visitors of all ages to
the downtown area.

18 Downtown, Arts, Tourism, & Events
Tourism, sports, and entertainment were advanced through the completion of the United Soccer League ( USL) Market Opportunity Report, the hiring of a full -time Arts and Events Specialist, and the transition of all Courthouse Square special-event permitting to in-house operations. Arts, culture, and public life were further expanded through the completion of the Public Art Strategic Plan, including the Art Walk, Art Mapping Project, and Art Roundtables. With centralized event permitting and
dedicated staff, S anta Rosa signiﬁcantly increased its capacity to host, promote, and manage community events.

In July 2025, the City of Santa Rosa reclaimed management of Courthouse Square, a role previously administered by the Chamber of Commerce. This transition enabled increased in-house oversight, improved coordination across City departments, streamlined permitting processes, and closer alignment with City operational standards.

In the Summer of 2025, the City piloted Second Sundays, an initiative to bring family- friendly programming downtown and activate Courthouse Square in partnership with the weekly certiﬁed Farmers Market. Four Second Sundays events occurred over the course of the season and brought a variety of partner agencies and non-proﬁt organizations to the events offering games and activities for children of all ages.

The Arts & Culture team serves as the central point of coordination for permitting civic sites, special events, ﬁlm productions, and neighborhood block parties. This approach streamlines processes while supporting safe, accessible, and vibrant community programming.

19 Through the Community Promotions Program and Santa Rosa Tourism Business Improvement Area (SRTBIA) funding, the City provided support to 22 events in 2025, including the Wednesday Night Market, Santa Rosa Marathon, Museum of Sonoma County, Matsuri Festival, SoCo Market, Luther Burbank Holiday, and Pride Festival.

Entertainment Development
In the fall of 2025, Planning and Economic Development staff launched an effort to create designated Entertainment Zones in the City’s downtown. These zones would allow customers to purchase “to-go” alcoholic beverages from local bars, restaurants, and breweries and enjoy them outdoors in public spaces such as street corridors and Courthouse Square. California State Senate Bill 969, which went into effect in January of 2025, allows cities and counties to adopt ordinances to permit Entertainment Zones with deﬁned boundaries, regulations, and hours of operation. Planning and Economic Development staff collaborated with the Police Department to develop concepts for Entertainment Zones in the Courthouse Square and Railroad Square areas. These zones would operate Friday through Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Staff engaged business owners and community members to gather feedback. Following the Council’s direction during the January 2026 Study Session to pursue Entertainment Zones, staff will prepare a draft ordinance and management plan, with implementation anticipated in late 2026. The primary objectives of this initiative are to create a more enjoyable downtown experience for residents and visitors and strengthen the economic vitality of the City through increased retail revenue.

Economic Vitality
In 2025, the City of Santa Rosa advanced a comprehensive and data-driven economic development program aligned with the City’s General Plan goals to create a business- friendly, vibrant, inclusive, and resilient local economy. The City focused on strengthening small businesses, expanding workforce and entrepreneurship pipelines, investing in downtown and commercial corridors, supporting arts and tourism, and building the analytical foundation needed to guide future growth and investment. The City’s Economic Development efforts and progress made in 2025 implement several actions and policies under General Plan Goals 2-5 through 2-9.

Throughout the year, the City signiﬁcantly strengthened the foundation for long-term economic vitality through strategic planning, market analysis, and direct business support.

These efforts were supported by the establishment of a formal Annual District Based Survey and quarterly economic reports, which provide consistent data to guide policy, investment, and service delivery.

20 Conditional Use Permit Streamlining
In 2025, Planning and Economic Development staff began working on an initiative to streamline the Conditional Use Permit process, with the goal of making it more predictable and less costly for applicants and business owners. The primary goal of this initiative is to support economic development within the City, by making it easier to establish and expand businesses.

The proposal includes three main elements:

1. Create a new Director Level Conditional Use Permit process, allowing certain uses to be reviewed and approved administratively rather than requiring a public meeting or hearing, unless one is speciﬁcally requested.

2. Reduce the level of Conditional Use Permit (Director, Minor or Major) required for certain uses, helping to shorten timelines, lower costs and improve overall efficiency, while still maintaining appropriate review and oversight.

3. Update the Temporary Use Permit section of the Zoning Code to allow for a broader range of temporary activities, including pop-up retail and interim activities for vacant or underutilized sites and buildings, helping to activate spaces and encourage reinvestment.

The draft proposed changes have been made available for public review online and are expected to go before the City Council for decision in April of 2026.

Economic Data & Reporting
M a jo r ec o no m ic a n d ma r k et st ud ie s w er e c om p l et ed t o g uid e C it y in v e s t m en t a nd p o l ic y decisions, including retail, office, and grocery sector analyses, a Target Industries Report, a Market
Opportunity Report for USL, and a Downtown Inﬁll
Housing economic and ﬁscal study. To support
interpretation of this data and ensure policy decisions were grounded in local and regional trends, the
City retained Dr. Robert Eyler to provide ongoing
economic analysis and advisory support.

To strengthen transparency and accountability,
the City distributed a citywide Annual District
Based Survey and completed two Quarterly Economic
Reports. These tools provide timely insight into business conditions and district -level trends and allow staff

21 to monitor economic performance, identify emerging challenges, and align programs and investments with real-time conditions.

Business Services, Entrepreneur Support, and Access
Direct business support and access to economic activity was signiﬁcantly expanded in 2025 through the creation of comprehensive business services. The City completed the Physical One Stop Shop and entered into a contract with Searle Creative to develop a Virtual One Stop Shop, creating a centralized and accessible platform for business resources and services. The Small Business Ombudsman role was established, and the Business Concierge Program was launched to provide hands-on guidance to entrepreneurs navigating permitting, licensing, and business growth. The City also expanded access through the Rise and Thrive Program and Business ExpertXpress workshops.

Entrepreneurship and microenterprise were further supported through the development of the Permit Ready Program, which is designed to streamline approvals for small-scale development. Additionally, in November 2025, the Council adopted an ordinance to allow Food Vendors to utilize carts and other types of non-vehicular conveyances. This includes long-term vending in carts on private property, permit exemptions for home restaurants, as well as permit exemptions for small food vendors that only sell uncut produce and prepackaged foods such as fruit or chips. Furthermore, the City in partnership with the County Environmental Health Department, established a new Food Vending website to provide information and resources in English and Spanish on all types of food vending and other micro food businesses including Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations (MEHKOs), Street Vending, and Food Trucks. This website is located at srcity.org/foodvending.

Collectively, these programs lower barriers to entrepreneurship, support home-based and micro-businesses, and increase access to technical assistance for underserved and aspiring business owners.

22 Additionally, partnerships have been established with the Economic Development Collaborative, Redwood
Credit Union, Exchange Bank, and Summit Bank,
to identify and promote available funding sources for
small business owners through the Business Concierge
Program.

Business ExpertXpress Workshop
Workforce & Upstream Investment
In 2025, the City strengthened workforce and economic resilience by implementing contractor training and licensing programs, establishing stronger ties to workforce pipelines, and expanding tools to track economic conditions across all City Council districts. The City also established partnerships with the Small Business Development Center and GoLocal, contracted with the North Coast Builders Exchange to provide contractor licensing programs, and launched an intern program to cultivate future workforce talent. Ongoing business surveys, the Annual District Based Survey, and quarterly economic reporting ensured that district-level trends, business challenges, and service gaps were consistently monitored and addressed.

Infrastructure & Long-Term Investment
Signiﬁcant progress was made in strengthening downtown and commercial district infrastructure through the establishment of the Downtown Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District (EIFD). This long-term ﬁnancing tool will support infrastructure investments that catalyze private development, enhance walkability, and promote sustainability. Economic and ﬁscal conditions downtown were further clariﬁed through the

23 completion of the Retail, Office, and Grocery Analyses and the Downtown Inﬁll Housing Study, which now guide future redevelopment and investment strategies.

Economic Conditions & Trends
Workforce and Labor Statistics
As of August 2025, the unemployment rate in Santa Rosa was 4.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis. Average wages in Santa Rosa were reported at $29 per hour, with an average annual salary of $61,235. Sonoma County’s average annual salary was $64,201.

Santa Rosa accounts for approximately 37 percent of all jobs located within Sonoma County.

Commercial Real Estate
During the fourth quarter of 2025, the Santa Rosa retail submarket recorded a vacancy rate of 5.5 percent, with approximately 670,000 square feet of retail space listed as available.

Market rents for retail space in Santa Rosa averaged $30.00 per square foot, reﬂecting a year-over-year rent change of 2.6 percent. The industrial submarket reported a vacancy rate of 7.8 percent, with roughly 970,000 square feet of industrial space available and approximately 22,000 square feet of industrial space under construction. Average industrial rents in Santa Rosa were $16.30 per square foot. The office submarket vacancy rate was 7.2 percent, with approximately 790,000 square feet of office space available and no office space reported as under construction. Average office rents in Santa Rosa were approximately $26.00 per square foot.

By the end of 2025, there were 11 vacant retail storefronts available for lease in Downtown Santa Rosa, representing less than ﬁve percent of properties within the Downtown Action Organization and Railroad Square Association boundaries. The Santa Rosa Plaza Mall accounted for approximately 18 percent of downtown retail square footage. Citywide, Santa Rosa reported 1,091 retail vacancies totaling more than 627,000 square feet of vacant retail space, along with 737 vacant industrial properties and 941 vacant office properties.

Business and Economic Activity
Taxable sales data indicated a 2.8 percent decrease in Santa Rosa from ﬁscal year 2024 to ﬁscal year 2025. During the same period, taxable sales decreased by 1.7 percent in Sonoma County and by 0.7 percent statewide. Business license data reﬂected new and reinstated licenses across multiple sectors, including retail, restaurants, contractors, land development, recreation, and entertainment.

24 CIRCULATION, OPEN SPACE, CONSERVATION, AND GREENHOUSE GAS

REDUCTION
Transit Network
The General Plan calls for expanding transit service, coordination of transit services with other transit operators, and encouraging ridership through marketing and promotional efforts. The City’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy identiﬁes transit as important for affordable housing, density, carbon reduction and improved transportation options. The City’s Transit Division manages ﬁxed route service, paratransit service, and other transit- related programs. The City’s Transit service plans are detailed in the City’s Short-Range Transit Plan (SRTP), which is updated every three to ﬁve years and adopted by the City Council. The SRTP refreshes and details a 10-year vision for the City’s transit service and transit capital program. The planning process involves signiﬁcant public engagement and data analysis to evaluate opportunities to diversify, improve and better integrate transit services. CityBus is currently
positioned to update the CityBus
Short-Range Transit Plan in 2026 to
improve service connections to
SMART and improve coordination
with Sonoma County Transit.

The Marin Sonoma Coordinated Transit Service Plan (MASCOTS), initiated in 2024, is a multi-agency planning effort to comprehensively analyze transit service in the Highway 101 corridor and recommend changes to optimize the transit network. The plan involved collaboration among nine transit and funding agencies to create a more connected, frequent transit network in the North Bay.

Advancing Accessible Infrastructure and Documents
The Transit Division continues to work with developers and review development projects along transit corridors, requiring infrastructure (such as ADA bus stops, shelters, signs, trash, or benches) when appropriate. Transit Division staff evaluate bus stops for accessibility barriers based on development projects, feedback, and larger City corridor projects. The Division has funded and designed upgrades to the Transit Mall kiosk, including those for accessibility, for future implementation. CityBus has started translating critical documents to Vietnamese, as changes in Santa Rosa demographics showed a signiﬁcant increase in the Vietnamese population in the area.

25 Transit Hubs
The General Plan calls for the development and improvement of mobility hubs as locations for multi-modal transportation. The Santa Rosa Transit Mall, which continues to receive facilities upgrades, is the busiest Transit Hub in the North Bay. In addition to local CityBus ﬁxed route service, downtown Santa Rosa is served by ﬁve regional bus transit providers (Sonoma County Transit, Golden Gate Transit, Mendocino Transit, and Amtrak), and one regional commuter rail (SMART). Along with integration with transit operators, CityBus relies on and seeks to integrate with the bicycle and pedestrian network to improve ﬁrst and last mile connections. The City is set to receive Regional Measure 3 funds for CityBus transit hubs, located at Coddingtown, Montgomery Village, and the Downtown Transit Mall.

These funds are expected to be allocated in 2026 or 2027.

The General Plan also recommends increasing residents’ access, especially in lower income areas, to transit hubs, and plans for several new transit hub and transit park-and- ride locations. This includes one in south Santa Rosa, which is also expected to be recommended in the South Santa Rosa Speciﬁc Plan.

Wayﬁnding
On February 19, 2025, the City alongside the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), unveiled pilot transit maps and signs to improve wayﬁnding between the half-mile route from the Transit Mall and the downtown SMART Station in Railroad Square. The pilot program provides text in English, Spanish, and Traditional Chinese. The signs and maps are part of a larger Regional Mapping and Wayﬁnding initiative aimed at making it easier to ride transit in the Bay Area. Santa Rosa was chosen as one of two cities to debut and test this wayﬁnding system. The overall goal is to connect the Bay Area so that, whether traveling by bus, rail, ferry, or a combination of modes, wayﬁnding systems are consistent and easy to identify across all nine counties. MTC continues to gain feedback on these signs and maps.

26 Fixed-Route Bus Service and Paratransit Service
The City of Santa Rosa provides the greatest number of local ﬁxed-route bus service and demand-responsive paratransit service trips in Sonoma County. CityBus seeks to return to pre-pandemic service levels with three corridors (four routes) operating on 15-minute frequency during weekdays, six routes operating on 30-minute frequency and a remaining four routes operating on 60-minute headways. Currently, most routes begin service between 5:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. Monday – Saturday, and ﬁnish service between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. On Sundays, service operates between 10:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Fixed-route ridership totals were 1,507,573 in ﬁscal year 2024-25, up from 1,419,471 in ﬁscal year 2023-2024, but still down from pre-pandemic level of 1.8 million during ﬁscal year 2018- 2019. Paratransit ridership totals were 29,786 in ﬁscal year 2024-2025, up from 28,452 in ﬁscal year 2023-2024; but down from the pre-pandemic level of 35,000 during ﬁscal year 2018-2019.

CityBus maintains a diverse portfolio of fare options. Fare options include a cash fare, 24- hour passes, ticket books, and a 31-day pass. Discounts or free fares are provided for SRJC students, veterans, youth, seniors, Medicare card holders, low-income adults, and persons living with a disability.

CityBus Programs
The Youth Unlimited Rides (UR Free) program has vastly exceeded ridership projections.

Prior to the UR Free program, youth ridership accounted for about 10% of CityBus ridership with about 198,000 rides per year (pre-pandemic). Following initiation of the UR Free Program in July 2021, youth ridership exceeded pre-pandemic levels within three months.

During the ﬁrst year of the program, youth took a total of approximately 250,000 trips.

Ridership peaked in the fourth year of the UR Free Program, with May 2024 youth ridership hitting a monthly high of 50,489 rides and annual ridership for FY 2023-2024 reaching 456,867. With youth ridership essentially remaining ﬂat for 2024-2025 at 438,403, it suggests that this program has fully matured in ridership expectations.

The CityBus Unlimited Rides pass program for employers, housing developers and institutions provides deeply discounted passes to employees, residents, and program participants. The pilot program, started in 2024 between the City and Sonoma County allows employees to ride both CityBus and Sonoma County Transit for no fare by showing an employee ID. This program is expected to continue. Transit staff will continue to pursue more of these partnerships. Additionally, a two-hour transfer policy allows unlimited transfers for riders within two hours from the purchase of a ride. Riders can transfer to SMART, Golden Gate Transit or Sonoma County Transit and receive a transfer credit using paper transfers or Clipper.

27 Clipper Transit Card
Clipper is the all-in-one regional transit card for the Bay Area. Clipper Cards hold transit passes, cash value, or any combination of the two. Cash value works on all participating transit systems, while Clipper passes and tickets are speciﬁc to each system. Clipper has four different card types; adult cards (full fare), youth/senior cards (half-fare), Regional Transit Discount Card for people living with a disability (half fare) and Clipper START (for low-income persons for half price on single rides). Additionally, Clipper has a BayPass, which is a pilot program designed as an all-Bay Area operators pass for groups. In ﬁscal year 2023-2024, approximately 11% of CityBus trips used Clipper to pay their fares, which is an increase from 5% pre-pandemic, in 2024-2025 this trend generally continued with 9% CityBus trips using Clipper to pay their fares.

In December of 2025, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) upgraded the Bay Area’s transit fare system with Clipper 2.0 (Next Generation Clipper). It introduces open-payments (credit/debit/phone), instant value loading via a cloud-based system, interagency transfer discounts, and better online management for youth/senior cards among other potential beneﬁts. Clipper 2.0 will continue to offer the existing discount fare options like Clipper START (low-income riders), Clipper Youth, Clipper Senior Card and Clipper Access (for people living with a disability). CityBus staff worked to install Clipper

2.0 equipment and support the program’s rollout. Although the impacts of the transition have been minimal, CityBus has elected to stave a marketing push of the Clipper program until once Clipper 2.0 is more fully implemented. Once fully implemented, likely in 2026, Clipper 2.0 will allow for an accumulator transit pass to be utilized.

Active Transportation Network
On April 30, 2025, the City released the Final Active Transportation Plan, as recommended by Action 3-2.9 of the General Plan. The Active Transportation Plan was adopted by the City Council on July 8, 2025, and replaced the 2018 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. This plan recommends improvements to the City’s active transportation network in response to community output and changes in bicycle technology. These improvements are intended to increase vibrancy and livability for those walking or biking, improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce collisions through various traffic calming measures. In 2025, the City received several grants to help with transportation safety projects, and the Transportation and Public Works Department has been actively working to implement the Active Transportation Plan since its adoption.

28 Active Transportation Infrastructure
The City’s Active Transportation Plan recommends a total of 197 miles of new bicycle facilities or upgrades to existing bicycle facilities. In 2025, the Transportation and Public Works Department added several miles of new bicycle facilities, including (approximately):
• 4 miles of Class II facilities
• 4.5 miles of Class IIB facilities
• 1.4 miles of Class IV facilities

New Class IV Bicycle Lane - Cleveland Avenue
Additional infrastructure improvements completed in 2025 include:
• Installation of 120 new bicycle racks
• Installation of two Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons • Installation of a High Intensity Activated Crosswalk at Piner High School • Multimodal safety improvements on Santa Rosa Avenue
• Several road diets to improve safety in the community for all road users • Completion of the Hearn Interchange Overcrossing project

29 Stony Point Road – RRFB High Intensity Activated Crosswalk – Piner High School

Bike Rack – Mendocino Avenue
Transportation and Public Works staff previously conducted a walking audit with Robert L.

Stevens Elementary School, who expressed interest in a new mid-block crosswalk in front of the campus to improve access. In May of 2025, staff created a pop-up crosswalk using

30 temporary materials and attended a school drop-off, helping students use the “new” crosswalk. It was taken down after drop-off; however, it was very well received, and the school formally requested a permanent crosswalk. Staff are currently in the process of designing a new ADA crosswalk in the same location.

Transportation Planning, Programs, and Events
The City is partnered with the Sonoma County Transportation and Climate Authorities (SCTCA), Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM), and Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) in implementing Redwood Bikeshare, a regional electric bike-share program serving Sonoma and Marin counties. In Santa Rosa, Redwood Bikeshare was launched in February of 2025. The City continues to work with SCTA, TAM, and SMART to identify and open new hub locations.

Redwood Bikeshare Hub – Downtown SMART Station
City staff also worked with SCTCA to develop the South Santa Rosa Community Based Transportation Plan, which was completed in December of 2025. Staff and the SCTCA worked with community members to identify transportation gaps, barriers, and issues in each area and developed a list of transportation projects and solutions to address them.

The plan also provides solutions to support efforts by the City to pursue funding to

31 implement the recommended projects and programs. SCTCA will continue to alert City staff to new funding opportunities for the identiﬁed projects.

On May 10, 2025, the City, in collaboration with the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition and Bikeable Santa Rosa, hosted the second annual Bike-In Block Party in Courthouse Square.

This free event included all-ages activities, live music, bike safety information booths, and bike mechanics providing tune-ups.

4th Street – Bike-In Block Party

Bike Santa Rosa Painting – Bike-In Block Party

32 The group also hosted the annual Bike to Work Day Energizer Station on May 15, 2025. The station, located at Prince Gateway Park, provided snacks, refreshments, and swag for community members biking to work and throughout Santa Rosa.

Bike to Work Day Energizer Station – Prince Gateway Park

At their 2025 Golden Spoke Awards Gala, the Sonoma
County Bicycle Coalition awarded Transportation and
Public Works Director Dan Hennessy, Transportation
Planner Torina Wilson, and Active Transportation
Planner Alexander Oceguera as the 2025 “Civic Bike
Leaders of the Year ” for the Department’s
achievements in advancing bicycle and pedestrian
infrastructure and commitment to sustainable, safe
mobility.

Creek Stewardship
The City’s waterway conservation and stewardship
activities continued in 2025. The Creek Stewardship Program (CSP), a partnership with

33 Sonoma Water, helped care for more than 100 miles of creeks within the Urban Growth Boundary. The program continued to initiate and support:
 Outreach and educational activities regarding storm water pollution prevention and the many beneﬁts that healthy creeks provide to the community.  Public participation in the care of creeks and the involvement of volunteer Creek Stewards who adopt a speciﬁc reach of creek.
 Cleanups, maintenance, and enhancement of creeks and the creek trail system.

In ﬁscal year 2024-2025 the CSP organized
educational and stewardship activities such as
creek walks, school presentations, community
activities, creek restoration projects, and
volunteer creek cleanups. In total, 10,237 City
residents, including 8,073 youth, participated in
educational and stewardship events, resulting in
3,353 hours of volunteer community service and
8,248 hours of creek-based education. In total,
these partners engaged in 411 educational
outreach and stewardship activities on 25
different creeks.

One hundred thirty-nine volunteer creek
cleanups occurred on creeks throughout the City. Over 1,228 cubic yards of trash and debris were removed from waterways by the City’s Storm Water and Creeks section, with help from youth corps, contractors, and volunteers. Most of the trash originates from areas where people live and congregate along creeks and under bridges. The Storm Water & Creeks section partnered with Catholic Charites, Sonoma County Probation Department, and law enforcement to facilitate the cleanup of debris from 196 active camps and 264 abandoned camps along City waterways. Over 580 hypodermic needles were collected and safely disposed of during these cleanup efforts. Additional cleanups of waterways were conducted by Sonoma Water, City Parks, and the City’s Transportation & Public Works Department staff.

Storm Water & Creeks staff responded to residents’ reports regarding trash, trail needs, ﬂood concerns, and other creek-related issues. Security fencing structures under bridges were maintained and repaired to prevent access and camping that leads to the accumulation of trash and other pollutants in waterways. Volunteers re-stock pet waste

34 bag dispensers, which along with trash cans, help keep the creeks and creekside trail system clean.

The Storm Water & Creeks section continues to work toward restoring 1.3 miles of Colgan Creek in southwest Santa Rosa to transform an engineered ﬂood control channel into a healthier creek ecosystem. Construction of the third and ﬁnal phase started in 2025, to increase ﬂood protection, enhance habitat, improve water quality, and provide recreational opportunities. Storm Water & Creeks and Capital Projects Engineering made considerable progress on construction of Phase 3 of the project, which will connect Phases 1 and 2 of the project and restore an approximately 2,500-linear foot reach of the creek between Boron Avenue and Dutton Meadow.

Colgan Creek Restoration Phase III
Phase 3 construction will complete restoring the natural ecological value of Lower Colgan Creek as a critical part of the Laguna de Santa Rosa and Russian River watersheds; prevent future property damage by upgrading the creek from a 25-year to a 100-year ﬂood capacity; and expand community involvement, education, and riverine stewardship through programs for project-based learning, community art, and hands-on volunteerism.

Speciﬁcally, the project will re-contour meanders into a straightened creek channel, re-

35 grade the creek cross section to a more natural ﬂoodplain geometry, and install a series of pools, riffles, and log structures for habitat and water quality improvement. In addition, the project will remove invasive plants and install over 9,000 locally appropriate native plants to create a healthy riparian corridor. The project also includes a strong environmental education and outreach component that will link nearby schools and members of the public to the creek restoration project through in-class and ﬁeld-based educational programming, student-led citizen science, volunteer creek cleanups, community art projects, and volunteer planting days, in addition to paid maintenance work with local youth corps programs.

Consistent with the goals, policies, and actions in the General Plan (Policy 5-2.7 & Actions 5-2.17, 5-2.12, 5-9.28, 5-9.29), in calendar year 2025, 342 new LID features were completed representing 16 different public and private projects within the City of Santa Rosa. To date, there are 161 projects that represent a total of 1,917 LID features within City limits.

Greenhouse Gas Reductions
On June 3, 2025, the Council adopted the General Plan 2050 which included an update to the City’s Climate Action Plan, adopted in 2012. The City’s updated Climate Action Plan, called the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reduction Strategy,
describes how the City can reduce GHG emissions by 40%
below 1990 levels by 2030, by 85% below 1990 levels by
2045, and achieve carbon neutrality on this timeline.

In response to public interest, the Climate Action
Subcommittee (comprised of three Councilmembers),
committed to regularly scheduled quarterly meetings.

These meetings provide Staff and the Council with direction to implement the City’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction
Strategy and offer a forum for public participation and education.

Efforts considered by the Climate Action Subcommittee in 2025 included:
• Existing City codes, City policies and procedures related to the planting and maintenance of trees on private property, public right of way, and city owned property
• City-wide ﬂeet Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Master Plan and Parking Division Electric Vehicle Project Updates

36 • Status Update on the 2012 Community Climate Action Plan and 2013 Municipal Climate Action Plan, including activities related to Active Transportation Planning and Zero-Waste Programs
• Sonoma County Regional Protection Authority brieﬁng on energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction programs available to residents, businesses and public agencies
• Update on artiﬁcial turf ban investigation
• Development of the City’s Comprehensive Integrated Pest Management Policy • Update on the Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Strategy The Subcommittee also received presentations from the Regional Climate Protection Authority (RCPA) on RCPA’s Sonoma Climate Mobilization Strategy, a Countywide 2018 greenhouse gas inventory, and an update on countywide transportation improvements aimed at reducing reliance on single-occupancy vehicles. These presentations and continued collaboration are part of an effort to improve regional coordination of Climate and Transportation Planning.

The City’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy is comprised of ﬁve objectives, implemented through 17 measures, which are fulﬁlled through new or continued municipal programs, regulatory programs, education, outreach and coordination programs. The ﬁve objectives, coupled with on-going or completed efforts, are described below:

Decrease Community-Wide Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and Increase the Use of Zero- Emission Vehicles and Equipment.

In 2025, Planning and Economic Development staff were awarded a grant from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to
develop a Transportation Demand Management
(TDM) ordinance. This ordinance will identify a
range of strategies that new developments must
incorporate to reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT)
and parking demand, directly supporting the GHG
Reduction Strategy objective to decrease
community-wide VMT.

In addition, staff from Planning, Transit, Active Transportation, and Parking collaborated with SMART and MTC to evaluate and implement improvements to station access and circulation to increase SMART ridership. These efforts align with the Strategy’s measure to “explore ways to ensure that transit hubs in the city, especially the Transit Mall, Downtown

37 SMART Station, and North SMART Station, are active, safe, and efficiently accessed by local transit.”
To support greenhouse gas reduction goals and
implement General Plan Action 3-6.35 - Review and
amend the City’s Building Code and Zoning Code to
facilitate the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, the Council adopted an ordinance in
December 2025, to establish Electric Vehicle (EV)
charging as a permitted accessory use in all zoning
districts and to allow EV charging as a primary use with a Minor Conditional Use Permit in commercial and industrial districts. EV charging infrastructure would also be exempt from Design Review requirements.

Planning and Economic Development Department staff continue to provide expedited review for all EV charging stations and to require EV charging infrastructure in all new residential projects. Santa Rosa Water and Transportation and Public Works ﬁnalized an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Master Plan which was adopted by the Council in November 2025. Among other things, this plan will chart a roadmap for the City’s mandated compliance with the California Air Resources Board’s Advance Clean Fleets Rule and Innovative Clean Transit Rule. Expanding charging infrastructure while ensuring continuity of operations will be a critical component of expansion of zero emission vehicles in the city-wide ﬂeet in the future.

EverGreen, a 100% renewable energy option generated locally from solar and geothermal sources and offered by Sonoma Clean Power, powers the City’s Battery Electric Bus (BEB) ﬂeet. The City’s ﬁrst BEBs began revenue service in January 2023. In late 2025, the City took delivery of six additional BEBs, which entered service in February 2026. The City expects to receive another six BEBs in Spring 2026. These BEBs were purchased with a combination of Federal Transit Administration formula and competitive grant awards combined with various State and local awards and funding allocations.

38 Reduce Community-Wide Energy Use and Transition to Carbon-Free Energy Sources.

The GHG Reduction Strategy and General Plan include a measure to “Evaluate and adopt changes to the building code or other municipal codes and policies to require new nonresidential and residential buildings to achieve high performance energy efficiency and to minimize GHG emissions through adoption and implementation of new codes that do not mandate a speciﬁc energy efficiency technology but rather offer various options for achieving the desired energy performance levels and GHG emissions reductions (including but not limited to all electric appliances).” During 2025, Planning and Economic Development Department staff began work on an updated REACH Code, requiring additional options to reduce GHG emissions associated with new development, consistent with the California 9
th Circuit Court ruling.

In 2025, the City continued using EverGreen from Sonoma Clean Power, which supplies 100 percent locally generated renewable energy to all City buildings.

Achieve a Zero-Waste Future for Santa Rosa.

The City continues to require compliance with the Zero Waste Food Ware Ordinance on a project speciﬁc basis through Planning application and Building permit review. The Zero Waste Food Ware Ordinance requires that:
• Polystyrene foam and PFAS-containing food service ware are banned from sale, distribution, or use.
• Food service accessories may only be provided upon request. • Dine-in establishments must use only reusable food ware and accessories. • Dine-in establishments must provide three-bin waste sorting (garbage, recycling, organics) with clear signage.
• Food facilities must follow the City’s carryout bag rules. • City facilities and City-sponsored/permitted events must comply with the ordinance.
• Retailers may not sell or provide products containing polystyrene or PFAS.

In addition, as required by Greenhouse Gas
Reduction Strategy, City staff require that new
development and proposed renovations requiring a
building permit have sufficient and appropriate
room to store waste bins, including for organic
waste.

39 Water Use Efficiently and Enhance Drought Resilience.

The General Plan includes an action which requires the City to continue to provide ﬁnancial incentives for water-use efficiency improvements and look for opportunities to increase the value of incentives and the types of programs with available incentives.

In 2025, the Water Use Efficiency Section continued to deliver a number of customer rebate and incentive programs that promote both indoor and outdoor water use efficiency.

These rebates and incentives help to offset the cost of material purchases for various residential and commercial/industrial and institutional upgrades. In 2025, the following rebates and incentives were utilized by customers:
• The Cash for Grass program resulted in removal of nearly 49,000 square feet of turf with an estimated water savings of approximately 1.6 million gallons annually. • Additionally, Santa Rosa Water continues to seek out funding opportunities to enhance customer offerings. Most recently, in 2024 Santa Rosa Water was a sub- grantee to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s WaterSMART Water and Energy Efficiency Grant (Phase 1) under Sonoma Water. This funding was leveraged to offer residential customers a “no-cost” direct installation program for high efficiency toilets and low-ﬂow faucet aerators and shower heads. Per the grant terms, the Bureau covered 45% of the project total of just over $1.8 million. In 2025 Santa Rosa Water completed the installation of more than 900 high efficiency toilets between CII, multi-family and residential customers via this direct install program.

Promoting water efficiency through public education, incentives, rebates, technical assistance, customer programs, and information about indoor and outdoor water use efficiency measures is a key action in the General Plan.

In 2025, the Water Use Efficiency Team hosted or participated in a number of direct community outreach events to promote customer incentives and services aimed at saving water. These included: Earth Day, The EcoFriendly Garden Tour, The WaterSmart Expo, the Saint Patrick’s Day 5K run, and Halloween at Howarth Park. Collectively these events reach thousands of community members annually.

The Water Use Efficiency Team also offers customers educational opportunities to empower customers with the know-how to make meaningful water saving changes at their respective properties. In 2025, two public webinars were co-hosted by the Santa Rosa Water and the County of Sonoma Master Gardeners. Topics included: Right Plant Right Place and Ready for Rain.

40 In the form of technical assistance, Water Use Efficiency staff offer WaterSmart Check-ups for all customer account types. This direct customer engagement enables property owners to become familiar with their water usage, directs them to register for the City’s WaterSmart Portal to track usage, helps them troubleshoot potential leaks, and offers free low-ﬂow ﬁxture upgrades. In 2025, more than 800 indoor and outdoor WaterSmart Check- ups were completed.

Enhance Sustainable and Carbon-Free Practices Community-Wide.

The GHG Reduction Strategy includes a measure to require tree planting and other landscaping in new development and redevelopment, as well as including greening elements, in alignment with Action 5-6.22 of the General Plan.

The City Code includes objective landscaping standards for both new development and redevelopment, as well as tree replanting requirements for all types of tree removal, with additional requirements required when trees are removed to accommodate new development. City staff continue to apply these requirements when reviewing development projects to ensure they include sufficient green space and trees.

The GHG strategy also includes measures to amplify the street tree network by increasing the number of street trees in the public realm, consistent with General Plan Action 5-6.19.

The Recreation and Parks Department oversees the placement and maintenance of street trees throughout the City. City staff continue to review new development and redevelopment projects to ensure that native trees and shrubs are included in the public realm and throughout the project site.

In 2025, Planning and Water staff established a process to regularly monitor and report on climate action efforts and implementation of the GHG Reduction Strategy, as required by the General Plan. This effort will produce a public-facing dashboard that includes Citywide GHG inventories dating back to 1990, the tracking of all 17 measures in the GHG Reduction Strategy organized by the implementing programs, and program-level details including status, responsible department or division, and relevant updates. Quarterly updates to measure status will be posted directly to the dashboard.

41 URBAN DESIGN, CULTURAL AND TRIBAL CULTURAL RESOURCES,

HISTORIC PRESERVATION, AND ART AND CULTURE

Urban and Environmental Design
Goal 4-1 of the General Plan calls for the preservation and enhancement of Santa Rosa’s community character through attractive urban and environmental design and intentional development. City staff continues to work closely with developers to ensure that new projects strengthen and emphasize community focal points, visual landmarks, and features that contribute to the identity of Santa Rosa. The design concepts and standards of the Zoning Code and Design Guidelines help to ensure the visual quality of architecture, landscaping, and site features, particularly in Historic Preservation Districts and hillside areas. Staff reviews projects in keeping with these standards, resulting in development that enhances the visual quality of Santa Rosa, such as the project describes below.

Tierra De Rosas Plaza
The Tierra De Rosas Plaza is a one-acre public
plaza, part of the Tierra De Rosas master
development, which will serve as a public
gathering place for the community. The Plaza
will be open to the public for recreation,
entertainment, and a gathering place. The
Plaza will include shaded seating areas, trees,
and drought resistant open lawn space, adding
green pace, and sustainable features to the
Roseland neighborhood.

Cultural and Tribal Cultural Resources and Historic Preservation Tribal Cultural Resources
As outlined in the General Plan 2050, the City remains committed to ongoing collaboration and consultation with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and Lytton Rancheria on both Capital Improvement Projects, including infrastructure, public facilities, and parks, Tierra de Rosas Plaza - Landscape Plan

42 and private development projects. The City’s designated Tribal Liaison works closely with City staff and Tribal representatives to support effective communication throughout project development and review.

This collaborative relationship helps protect tribal cultural resources through project design, the incorporation of resource protection measures, and including archeological and tribal monitoring during the early stages of construction.

Historic and Cultural Resources
The Stewart Cannery at Railroad Square,
a new 100% affordable apartment
complex, held its grand opening on May
1, 2025. The development provides 128
units for families earning between 30%
and 80% of Area Median Income (AMI),
and 25% of the units set aside for
residents experiencing homelessness
with on-site wraparound services
provided. The project is located in the
Railroad Square Historic District and
preserves much of the historic Del Monte Cannery building.

In December 2025, the City relaunched the Self-guided Historic Walking Tours in partnership with the Historical Society of Santa Rosa. These tours guide participants through four of Santa Rosa’s Historic Preservation Districts, highlighting the history of the City’s oldest neighborhoods and their distinct architectural styles. Historic Preservation districts included in the tour include the Cherry Street, Railroad Square, St. Rose, and West End neighborhoods. Historic walking Tour were previously provided in a brochure format during the 90s and 2000s and have been updated into a Google Map format. Many of the original artworks and brochures were saved and are viewable as part of this tour. A section of the website is dedicated to Ross Parkerson, a local historian, volunteer, and former City employee, involved with historic preservation who created many of the artworks of historic buildings across Sonoma County. The tours can be accessed at srcity.org/HistoricWalkingTours.

43 Public Art Program
The mission of the City of Santa Rosa’s Public Art Program is to champion artistic expression and amplify community voices through a diverse range of public art experiences that support an empowered, inclusive, and thriving community.

The Public Art Program encompasses the following core areas:

Temporary and Permanent Public Art – Including murals, sculptures, collection management, and ongoing maintenance of the City’s public art assets.

Art Exhibitions – Exhibitions presented at City facilities including the Finley Community Center and City Hall, as well as through the National Arts Program, which celebrated its 22nd year in 2025.

City-Hosted Cultural Events – City events included Live at Juilliard, which celebrated its 30th year in 2025, and the annual Earth Day celebration.

Live at Juilliard (2025)
Public Art in Private Development – Managing public art requirements associated with private development, including review of proposals, oversight of installation, and processing of in-lieu fees in accordance with City policy.

Marketing and Communications – Efforts include management of City-branded Arts & Culture social media accounts, online advertising, newsletter, and the development of printed materials such as art maps and program brochures.

44 The Public Art Program’s strategic planning process, initiated in 2019 and completed in February 2021, established key goals and objectives to guide the future of public art in Santa Rosa and implements Action 4-4.1 of the General Plan. As the City moves beyond the FY 2021–2024 Strategic Plan period, the program is well positioned to build on this foundation. With staffing stabilized and renewed investment in program infrastructure, the team looks to continue to implement the strategic plan to guide the next phase of growth and initiatives to support the creative economy.

Temporary Art Expansion – In 2025, Santa Rosa expanded the use of temporary public art as a ﬂexible and innovative tool to activate public spaces, support artists, and foster community connection. Temporary installations allowed the City to pilot new locations, formats, and partnerships while responding to evolving community interests. The expansion of temporary art installations implements Action 4-4.2 of the General Plan by broadening representation and celebrating the diversity of Santa Rosans through creative expression.

In April 2025, the City presented Earthbound, a temporary public art exhibition at Courthouse Square exploring environmental themes and sustainability through contemporary art. Timed to coincide with Earth Day programming, the exhibition transformed a central civic space into an accessible outdoor gallery that encouraged dialogue, reﬂection, and public participation while highlighting the intersection of art, environment, and civic life.

“Inquire Within” by Joel Stockdill and Yustina Salnivoka

45 Building on this momentum, the City installed a temporary Art Walk in October 2025 for a two-year period, extending from downtown through Railroad Square. The Art Walk features lighted, kinetic, and interactive works by regional and national artists and served as a pilot for broader geographic
distribution of public art, longer installation durations, and increased collaboration with local businesses and property owners.

Collectively, these initiatives reinforced Santa Rosa’s commitment to creative placemaking and the strategic use of public space to enhance vibrancy, attract visitors, and strengthen the City’s arts and culture ecosystem.

Public Relations and Marketing – Action 4-4.8 of the
General Plan encourages the use of art as a means of
public outreach and engagement. In mid-2024, the City
transitioned from the “Out There Santa Rosa” marketing
identity to Santa Rosa Arts & Culture to streamline
branding, improve clarity, and establish a direct
connection between City-led creative programs and the
public. This shift strengthened recognition, improved
access to resources, and reﬂected a more uniﬁed
approach to public art, cultural programming, and
community engagement.

Outreach strategies included paid social media
advertising outside of Sonoma County and neighboring
regions. From 2023 to 2025, the Arts & Culture web page experienced a 904% increase in users and a 1,100% increase in event interactions, reﬂecting signiﬁcant growth in community reach and engagement.

Facebook interactions increased by 93% from 2024, with 525.5k views. Instagram had a

25.5k reach, increasing 25% from 2024.

Dew Drops by CJ Rench – Temporary Art

46 Internal Partnerships – The Public Art Program strengthened cross-departmental collaboration to enhance program impact and integrate art into broader City initiatives, including:
• Santa Rosa Water – Lower Colgan Creek Restoration Project; Big Belly Trash Can Project (Streets to Creeks)
• Santa Rosa Police Department – Brookwood Mural
• Santa Rosa Fire Department – Fire Station 5, Intersecting Inﬁnity public art installation Arts Roundtable – In October 2025, the City launched the Arts Roundtable, fulﬁlling the Public Art Strategic Plan’s directive to establish a non-governmental advisory framework that encourages open community dialogue around arts and cultural development. At the kickoff Arts Roundtable, located at Santa Rosa Arts Center, we convened artists, residents, and cultural stakeholders to discuss key topics such as community engagement, arts programming and neighborhood identity. The Arts and Culture team along with APPC look to continue into 2026, rotating locations across City districts.

Arts Roundtable

SAFETY , CLIMATE RESILIENCE, NOISE, AND PUBLIC SERVICES AND

FACILITIES
Wildland and Urban Fire
Updated Fire Hazard Maps
On February 24, 2025, Cal Fire published updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone Maps, which were adopted by the City in the spring. The Santa Rosa Fire Department then sought to redraw the City’s existing Wildlife Urban Interface (WUI) boundary to align with the updated severity zones. The original WUI was developed and adopted in 2009, and there have been

47 substantial changes to both the built and natural environment since. Fire Department staff worked with GIS staff to shift the City’s proposed WUI boundary to include any new High or Very High zones. Staff also identiﬁed speciﬁed areas to contract the WUI boundary due to the reduction of the severity.

This resulted in staff developing a proposed WUI boundary that the public can view on the Fire Department’s website.

Proposed WUI Map
To support public outreach efforts, Fire staff will hold community meetings in early 2026 to review the proposed changes and address questions or concerns from the community.

Mailers will be sent to property owners notifying them that their properties are proposed to be newly added to, or removed from, the Wildland Urban Interface. Following the community meetings, the updated WUI map will be presented to the City Council for adoption.

48 Community Wildﬁre Protection Plan
The Santa Rosa City Council approved Santa Rosa’s
Community Wildﬁre Protection Plan (CWPP) on September
18, 2020. This 5-year community-based plan focuses on
identifying and addressing local hazards and risks from wildﬁre in the City’s Wildland Urban Interface areas. The plan determines what is at risk and provides a road map of actions for the community to address the wildﬁre threat.

Upon the conclusion of the existing 5-year plan this year, the Santa Rosa Fire Department enlisted an experienced
consultant to update the existing CWPP . The Fire
Department is currently in the initial stages of the plan update process, gathering the data and information needed to support the consultant’s work. SRFD also solicited interest and compiled a comprehensive list of community members that will be a part of the Department’s Steering Committee. Next steps include ﬁnalizing data sets, scheduling on-site interviews and Steering Committee introductions with the consultant.

Emergency Preparedness and Evacuation
Multijurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan
On November 30, 2021, the Council adopted the Sonoma County Multijurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan (MJHMP). The City elected to participate in the development of an MJHMP recognizing that hazards cross jurisdictional and political boundaries. The beneﬁts of taking a multijurisdictional approach to hazard mitigation planning include the ability to pool resources and eliminate redundant activities within a planning area that has uniform risk exposure and vulnerabilities, creating opportunities for coordination and collaboration, and the ability to create stronger grant applications by joining with other agencies.

The MJHMP includes two volumes. Volume 1 contents apply to all partners and Sonoma County in its entirety. Volume 2 includes an Annex, or chapter, for each of the participating local agencies and special districts. The City of Santa Rosa Annex, found in Volume 2 Chapter 3, addresses City-speciﬁc vulnerabilities to natural hazards such as earthquake, ﬂood, and wildﬁre and includes mitigation action items to minimize the effect these natural hazards have on people, property, and natural systems.

In 2025, City staff continued to coordinate with other County jurisdictions, including the County of Sonoma, to prepare an update the 2021 Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan. Updating the City's Hazard Mitigation Plan every ﬁve years ensures continued eligibility for the maximum amount of state and federal disaster relief funds.

49 The public draft of the MJHMP update was released for community review in Fall 2025 and was submitted to the California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) in January 2026.

Following CalOES review, the draft MJHMP will be submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for preliminary approval and will be scheduled for City Council adoption in Fall 2026.

Some of the City’s recent and ongoing actions to identify, address, and prioritize mitigation projects related to ﬂooding, drought, wildﬁres, and other potential hazards are:
• Permanent construction of Fire Station 5, located at the southeast corner of Stagecoach Road and the Fountaingrove Parkway, was completed in 2025.

• Santa Rosa Water is in the ﬁnal stages of drafting the ﬁrst Storm Drain Management Plan, which will contain strategies to mitigate ﬂooding and the effects of ﬂooding in the City.
• The City continues to collaborate with FEMA as FEMA updates ﬂood maps for Santa Rosa Creek and its key tributaries. FEMA initiated a ﬂood mapping project for the Santa Rosa Creek Watershed as part of a nationwide effort to better identify ﬂood risk. In 2025, FEMA published preliminary maps that show areas with varying levels of risk, including high-risk zones known as Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs).

FEMA ﬂood maps are anticipated to be ﬁnalized in 2027.
• City Council reviewed and accepted the Final Water Supply Alternatives Plan in October 2023. The plan identiﬁed a suite of adaptive options for increasing the City’s water supplies by 2045 to enhance water supply resiliency and reliability, particularly in times of drought and/or catastrophic events. As recommended in the plan, the Water Department is identifying funding opportunities, planning for capital investments, conducting hydrogeologic feasibility studies, and scoping the environmental pathway for identiﬁed conceptual projects.

50 Evacuation Analysis
General Plan Action 5-5.17 requires that “The City shall analyze the capacity, viability, and safety of evacuation routes and evacuation locations throughout the city under a range of emergency scenarios and incorporate the results, as necessary, into the Safety Element of the General Plan. This analysis will be completed as part of the City’s Annex to the Sonoma County Multijurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan in 2026.” In 2025, City staff ﬁnalized a contract for professional services to conduct an evacuation assessment. The evacuation assessment will provide an estimate of roadway capacity constraints during evacuations, potential impacts to the roadway network under evacuation scenarios, and changes in travel times associated with build out of the General Plan. The work will also provide guidance for how the City can incorporate the assessment's recommendations into the General Plan Safety Element. This project will also include community outreach and engagement and is anticipated to span a period of six months.

Emergency Management Program: The City of Santa Rosa’s Emergency Management program continued to strengthen preparedness, coordination, and operational readiness throughout calendar year 2025. Work in 2025 focused on advancing long-term initiatives that began in prior years while further institutionalizing lessons learned from recent disasters. These efforts directly implement Goal 5-5 of the General Plan 2050 to ensure Santa Rosa is prepared for future emergencies and reﬂect the City’s role as the largest jurisdiction and a core coordination hub within the Sonoma County Operational Area.

Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Modernization: In 2025, the City continued implementation of a multi-year Emergency Operations Center modernization effort funded through a federal earmark. This project transitions Santa Rosa from a shared, space- limited, and largely ad hoc activation posture to a more durable, scalable, and rapidly deployable emergency coordination model capable of supporting extended operations.

Work completed or advanced in 2025 included continued coordination on site layout, design, and utilities for EOC support space and modular facilities and electrical upgrades and infrastructure improvements to support emergency power, communications, and staff operations. Coordination with IT and Facilities staff occurred to ensure redundancy for communications systems and compatibility with future technology. Procurement planning for EOC furnishings, equipment, and staff workstations was advanced, along with planning for ﬂexible staffing conﬁgurations to support partial, extended, or multi-operational period activations. These investments integrate hazard mitigation and climate resilience

51 considerations into capital planning and signiﬁcantly improve the City’s ability to sustain emergency coordination during prolonged incidents.

There were no incidents requiring activation of the Emergency Operations Center in 2025.

Preparedness, planning, and coordination activities continued throughout the year to maintain readiness.

Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) and Emergency Planning: Action 5-5.1 of the General Plan directs staff to maintain and periodically update the City’s Emergency Operations Plan. Emergency Management continued to reﬁne and operationalize the City’s Emergency Operations Plan in 2025, with an emphasis on real-world usability rather than static document updates. This approach reduces startup time during activations, improves staff conﬁdence, and supports consistent performance regardless of staffing availability.

Key accomplishments included: continued integration of EOP concepts and procedures into training and exercises, development and reﬁnement of EOC position-speciﬁc playbooks, checklists, and job aids, clearer separation between the EOP as a policy and coordination framework and operational tools used during activations. In addition, Emergency Management ﬁnalized and tested updated Damage Assessment tools and workﬂows to support rapid situational awareness and state and federal reporting and continued advancement of disaster recovery planning components, including debris management coordination, volunteer management protocols, and FEMA Public Assistance cost recovery workﬂows.

Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP): In 2025, Emergency Management continued updating departmental Continuity of Operations Plan annexes to strengthen the City’s ability to maintain essential services during emergencies and extended disruptions.

Work conducted in 2025 included: coordination with City departments to review and update COOP annexes, an emphasis on IT system resilience, data access, and system restoration priorities, planning for alternate work arrangements and alternate facility strategies, and preparation for a future multi-department COOP exercise to validate assumptions and identify gaps.

Evacuation Planning, Alerting, and Temporary Evacuation Points (TEP): Emergency Management coordinated closely with the Fire Department, Transportation and Public Works, IT, and regional partners throughout 2025 to improve evacuation readiness and operational coordination. These efforts support safe and effective evacuations and reinforce land use and infrastructure policies that prioritize emergency access, redundancy, and public safety.

52 Key efforts included: continued reﬁnement of evacuation coordination procedures and interdepartmental roles, ongoing coordination on evacuation alerting workﬂows and zone- based evacuation messaging, expansion, organization, and management of Temporary Evacuation Point supplies and equipment. Additional activities in 2025 included: staff training on TEP activation, operations, and demobilization, TEP drills conducted with care facilities and selected neighborhoods to test coordination and identify improvements, and the integration of evacuation considerations into exercises and planning beyond wildﬁre- speciﬁc scenarios.

Sonoma County Operational Area Coordination and Leadership: As the largest city in Sonoma County, Santa Rosa plays a central role in Operational Area emergency management. In 2025, Emergency Management continued active participation and leadership in regional coordination efforts, including participation in the Sonoma County Emergency Council, ongoing engagement in the Emergency Coordinators Forum hosted by the Sonoma County Department of Emergency Management, regular participation in Operational Area coordination calls. Emergency Management also provided direct input into countywide emergency planning and recovery framework development and served as a consistent point of coordination between City departments and Operational Area partners.

The City of Santa Rosa is an active participant in countywide emergency management and hazard mitigation planning, with City staff contributing across departments and disciplines.

Training and Exercises: Emergency Management planned, led, and participated in multiple exercises in 2025 designed to test coordination, decision-making, and information ﬂow. Exercises conducted in 2025 emphasized identiﬁcation of operational gaps and real- world readiness improvements rather than plan validation alone.

Staff coordinated a dam failure and inundation tabletop exercise involving Emergency Management, Water, Recreation and Parks, Transit, Transportation and Public Works, Planning and Economic Development and Storm Water and Creeks. Emergency Management also participated in a regional community preparedness tabletop exercise with local governments, volunteer organizations, and community-based organizations.

Community Outreach and Preparedness: Emergency Management continued preparedness outreach efforts in 2025, building on programs established in prior years, in compliance with Action 5-5.3 through 5-5.4 of the General Plan. Outreach emphasized practical preparedness actions, evacuation awareness, and relationship-based engagement. Activities in 2025 included: participation in the Wildﬁre and Earthquake Expo

53 at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, preparedness presentations and coordination with senior living communities, including Oakmont Village and Spring Lake Village, and continued support for neighborhood-level preparedness through Communities Organized to Prepare for Emergencies (COPE) and Map Your Neighborhood (MYN) programs.

Community Resilience Facilities and Partnerships: Emergency Management continued participation in community resilience initiatives that support residents before, during, and after disasters. Efforts in 2025 included participation in planning and coordination for the Roseland and Southwest Santa Rosa Community Resilience Center and participation in broader stakeholder discussions exploring resilience hubs throughout the City. There was continued coordination with nonproﬁt and faith-based partners, including the Salvation Army and Sonoma County Community Organizations Active in Disasters.

Emergency Management contributed a municipal emergency management perspective to county-led development of a Countywide Emergency Feeding Plan in 2025, supporting coordinated disaster feeding operations across jurisdictions. This effort complements the City’s ongoing collaboration with community resilience partners, including CERES and Community Partners Investments, to strengthen preparedness, response, and recovery capabilities for vulnerable populations.

Flood Risk Mapping Coordination: Emergency Management coordinated with Storm Water and Creeks and Planning and Economic Development staff during FEMA’s release of Preliminary Flood Maps for the Santa Rosa Creek watershed in 2025. Work focused on outreach coordination, public engagement, and interdepartmental alignment in advance of the formal FEMA appeal process.

Fire Services
The Santa Rosa Fire Department provides ﬁre services to the City of Santa Rosa, with resources deployed from 10 ﬁre stations that cover approximately 42 square miles. Among the challenges facing the City and the Fire Department is the wildland-urban interface. This area is in the City’s north and east quadrants which includes several high and very high severity zones as determined by CAL FIRE. This includes areas devastated by the 2017 Tubbs and Nuns Fires and the 2020 Glass Fire. Another concern is the increasing volume of calls for service, which has risen by about 12% over the past three years, resulting in an average of 97 calls per day. The Fire Department is completing a Standards of Cover and Community Risk Assessment. The scope of this study included assessing the current ﬁre protection system operations, response capabilities, staffing, and other resources necessary for delivering services to the City. This project focused on the emergency services system delivery that included, response capabilities, response time analysis, resource locations, available resources to serve the city, staffing, and workforce.

54 Fire Service Statistics
The Fire Department responded to 31,629 calls for service in 2025, up from 28,358 in 2024.

The 31,629 calls for service prompted 39,040 total responses by Fire Department apparatus. Of these calls, a total of 21,034 (66.5 percent) were for emergency medical incidents. The Department provides emergency services for ﬁre, medical, hazardous material, and urban rescue incidents, responding with 11 paramedic engine companies, two advanced life support squads and two paramedic ladder truck companies from 10 strategically located ﬁre stations. There were 592 ﬁre incidents last year that resulted in $5,095,711 in ﬁre loss and $30,694,358 total value saved. City growth and density impact Fire Department service delivery. Traffic congestion and longer response distances continue to cause delays to Fire Department response times. Action 5-11.5 of the General Plan directs the City to “identify and provide necessary enhancements and/or resource needs to achieve a response time of under six minutes anywhere within the service area.” In 2025, the Department’s emergency resources arrived on scene within six minutes of dispatch 81.51% percent of the time, representing improved response times with the addition of the two paramedic squads funded through a SAFER Grant.

Fire Protection
The General Plan calls for collaboration with other local jurisdictions for the provision of some ﬁre services when it improves service levels and is cost effective. The Fire Department is part of the Redwood Empire Dispatch Communications
Authority (REDCOM), a Joint Powers Authority established in 2002 under the California Joint Exercise of Powers Act to provide centralized emergency Fire and EMS dispatching to emergency response agencies within Sonoma County.

The Santa Rosa Fire Department also has moved to a drop boundary model with the Sonoma County Fire District and the Sonoma Valley Protection District. This is designed to ensure the closest, most appropriate ﬁre resources are dispatched to an incident regardless of jurisdictional boundaries for critical incidents. Additionally, the Fire Department participates in a Mutual Threat Zone which is a joint response with the Sonoma County Fire District and CALFIRE to cover speciﬁc wildland/urban interface areas.

Fire Protection and Service Enhancements
Measure H is a local countywide funding measure designed to support the Santa Rosa Fire Department by providing stable, dedicated revenue for ﬁre protection, prevention, and emergency medical services. The measure helps maintain and enhance

55 services. In 2025, the Fire Department placed Engine 9 and Battalion 2 in service. It also provided funding for two Fire Inspectors. This added 14 new positions.

The paramedic squads funded through the SAFER grant continue to provide critical enhancements to emergency medical response in our community. By placing additional paramedics in service, the Santa Rosa Fire Department can respond more quickly to medical emergencies, reduce response times, and improve patient outcomes, especially during peak call volumes. These squads also help keep ﬁre engines and ladder trucks available for other critical incidents by handling medical calls more efficiently. However, SAFER grant funding is temporary, and as it sunsets, exploring options to secure long-term, sustainable funding will be essential to maintain these vital services and continue delivering the high level of care our community relies on.

Police Services
The General Plan emphasizes collaboration with local jurisdictions on police services and calls for expanded community engagement through community-oriented policing. In alignment with this vision, the Police Department works closely with County partners, allied law enforcement agencies, neighborhood associations, City departments, and community-based organizations. These partnerships are leveraged to develop best practice strategies related to traffic safety, violent crime reduction, impacts associated with service resistant homeless individuals, and overall community engagement.

The Police Department also participates in the Sonoma County Public Safety Consortium, which utilizes a multi-agency Computer Aided Dispatch and Records Management System.

This collaboration supports the creation of a regional records database and improves access to county, state, and federal records.

The Department is an active member of the Santa Rosa Violence Prevention Partnership, a coalition of numerous community-based organizations supported by City staff. Police leadership contributes to the Partnership’s Operation and Policy Team, providing guidance and coordination on violence prevention efforts.

On April 8
th, 2025, the Department held the grand opening ceremony of its new Downtown Substation at the Santa Rosa Plaza, established to signiﬁcantly enhance SRPD's presence in the Downtown Core, speciﬁcally Old Courthouse Square, Railroad Square, and the historic West End Neighborhood. The SRPD Downtown Enforcement Team (DET) will be based out of the substation, allowing for faster response times and more opportunities for community engagement. The substation will also be accessible to officers 24/7 for report writing and other investigative needs, ensuring that the Department can efficiently serve the community at all times.

56 Santa Rosa Plaza Police Substation
In the long term, the substation aims to become a resource hub for community members, where they can access information and complete online reports. Plans are also being considered to eventually have a public lobby staffed by a Volunteer in Police Services (VIPS) and a Community Service Officer.

Additionally, the Police Department partners with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Safe Streets Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Regional Task Force. Detectives from the Violent Crimes Investigations Team and the Narcotics Team serve on these task forces, which focus on violence reduction and addressing the opioid crisis throughout Sonoma County.

The Department also led the establishment of the inRESPONSE Mental Health Support Team and continues to oversee the program. This multidisciplinary team includes a licensed mental health clinician and a homeless engagement specialist, supported by system navigators who assist individuals in navigating the complexities of the county’s mental health system and securing necessary resources. The inRESPONSE team works with mental health providers across the county to enhance the level of care available to the community.

The Police Department remains committed to community-oriented policing by assigning officers and sergeants to deﬁne patrol beats across the city. The city is divided into nine beats, enabling officers to build familiarity with neighborhood dynamics and community needs. Through these efforts and ongoing collaboration with community partners, the Department strives to ensure that Santa Rosa remains a safe place to live, work, and play.

57 Police Service Statistics
The General Plan sets a priority on prompt
police response to emergency calls. In 2025,
the Police Department’s 911 Dispatch Center
handled 179,397 calls for service, and police
personnel responded to 111,164 of those calls. During the year, the Department investigated 12 homicides and eight fatal traffic collisions. Officers seized 321 ﬁrearms during criminal investigations. Of these, 107 were personally manufactured ﬁrearms, or “ghost guns, ” which lack serial numbers and are increasingly used in felony crimes citywide.

Calls for service are classiﬁed into priority levels, with the majority designated as Priority 1, 2, or 3. Response times and investigative clearance rates continue to be affected by staffing shortages and the city’s growth. The Department’s goal is to respond to Priority 1 calls within six minutes.

• Priority 1: Incidents in progress that pose an immediate threat to life or property. 2025 median response time: 6 minutes, 11 seconds, representing a 5% improvement over the previous year.

• Priority 2: Incidents with the potential to escalate into Priority 1. 2025 median response time: 10 minutes, 57 seconds.

• Priority 3: Nonemergency incidents are not in progress or those not requiring an immediate response. 2025 median response time: 23 minutes, 39 seconds.

Water Supply
General Plan Policy 5-9.1 requires the City to “ensure water quality, water service delivery, and wastewater treatment are sufficient to meet the needs of current and future residents.” The City’s water supply consists of water supply from Sonoma Water, groundwater, and recycled water. In addition, the City implements an aggressive water conservation program that reduces current demand to help assure that future water demands are met.

In a normal water year, the total water supply available to the City is approximately 31,540 acre-feet per year (AFY). Santa Rosa’s water use was 17,172 acre-feet in 2025, representing a signiﬁcant decline over the last forty years.

58 Water Conservation and Efficiency
The City has promoted water use efficiency programs for more than 30 years and has invested nearly $24 million to upgrade approximately 59,000 toilets with ultra-low-ﬂow and high-efficiency toilets and replace over 4.3 million square feet of high-water use turf landscapes with low water use landscapes.

The City also promotes innovative water use efficiency programs, such as offering rebates for rainwater harvesting, graywater reuse, and sustained reduction of water usage. Water Use Efficiency staff hold workshops on rebate programs for water efficient home ﬁxtures, irrigation upgrades and turf removal. The City’s cumulative water use efficiency efforts between 2010 to 2024 alone resulted in savings estimated above 12,000 acre- feet. Further, because of the City’s programs and state and local requirements, the City’s per capita demand for potable water has decreased by 50 percent over the past 35 years, decreasing from 177 gallons per capita per day in 1990 to 88 gallons per capita per day in 2025.

In 2025, Water Use Efficiency utilized the advanced metering infrastructure system to identify and follow up on over 450 water waste issues.

Wastewater
Santa Rosa Water operates the Regional Water Reuse System which serves the residents in Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Cotati, Sebastopol, and unincorporated areas of Sonoma County. The hub of the Regional Water Reuse System is the Laguna Treatment Plant (LTP), which recycles wastewater from homes and businesses throughout the region. In 2025, 7.16 billion gallons of sewage received treatment, an average of 19.62 million gallons of sewage per day.

During the winter, in times of high rainfall and correspondingly high ﬂow into the plant, Santa Rosa Water is permitted to discharge its tertiary treated recycled water into the Laguna de Santa Rosa. However, recycled water discharges are kept to an absolute minimum to support Santa Rosa Water’s goal of 100% beneﬁcial reuse of both recycled water and biosolids.

Throughout the year, an average of 12 million gallons per day is sent to the Geysers Recharge Project high in the Mayacamas Mountains. The Geysers steam ﬁelds are the largest geothermal operation in the United States. Recycled water injected into the earth generates enough electricity for up to 100,000 households in the North Bay Area.

During the growing season, recycled water is used to irrigate over 6,600 acres. About 80% of this land is agricultural, growing hay, pasture grasses, wine grapes, turf, and vegetables.

59 The remainder is used to irrigate urbanized areas, including parks, schools, ballﬁelds, and a golf course. Most of the land is privately owned, giving landowners an opportunity to replace groundwater use (part of our drinking water supply) with recycled water. In 2025, Santa Rosa Water beneﬁcially reused 939.4 million gallons of recycled water for agricultural users, 154.9 million gallons for City farms, delivered 330 million gallons for urban irrigation and sent 5052.83 million gallons to the Geyser’s Recharge Project.

The Laguna Treatment Plant facility also receives septic waste, landﬁll leachate, and high strength wastes (primarily grease and food production waste) from Santa Rosa and surrounding communities. Annually, over 37,000 wet tons of solids are treated to Class B standards and dewatered to 16-percent solids content. Approximately 64-percent of the biosolids are applied on local farmland while 28-percent is further treated off-site by a private operator, and in some years, a small amount is disposed in the landﬁll. In 2025, the City applied 21,071 wet tons of biosolids.

The Council adopted Capital Improvement Program (CIP) includes various improvements to the LTP and reuse system so that adequate capacity to treat and reuse General Plan anticipated wastewater volumes is maintained. The current system rated capacity is 21.34- million gallons per day which is anticipated to be sufficient in the future. Previous planning and environmental work identiﬁed projects to be implemented as growth occurs. These future projects will expand the system capacity to 25.89 million gallons per day which meets General Plan projections for Santa Rosa and regional partners. In 2022, construction started on the Disinfection Improvement Project at LTP which replaces the existing ultra- violet disinfection system
and adds a diversion wet
well and pump station. The
project is near completion
and is undergoing ﬁnal
operational testing. Once
completed, the upgraded
system will be able to
disinfect a peak ﬂow of 70
million gallons per day.

Disinfection Improvement Project – Laguna Treatment Plant

60 HEALTH, EQUITY , ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, AND PARKS
Health, Equity and Environmental Justice
In December 2025, the City Council adopted an ordinance requiring health impact assessments for nonresidential projects of 100,000 square feet or more in Equity Priority Areas to identify and address any potential negative health implications of the project, as described in Chapter 6 of the General Plan.

City staff continue to focus on improved outreach methods to engage to all communities within the City, as described in General Plan Action 6-3.1. This action focuses on engaging all community members, particularly those living in Equity Priority Areas, low-income populations, and individuals with limited English proﬁciency, in City planning and decision- making processes by using culturally appropriate and accessible channels. These improved outreach methods include partnering with community-based organizations and neighborhood groups with established trust and cultural competency with non-English speaking communities for long range planning efforts including the South Santa Rosa Speciﬁc Plan, in addition to various others City initiated efforts including services, events, and Capital Improvement Projects.

Tobacco Retail License (TRL)
General Plan Policy 6-2.3 aims to disincentivize and reduce harmful addictive behaviors, including implementation of Action 6-2.9, which encourages the exploration of potential restrictions on tobacco and alcohol retailers. On June 4, 2024, the City Council adopted an ordinance requiring all businesses selling tobacco products within the City to obtain a Tobacco Retail License (TRL), a specialized license that mandates compliance with local, state, and federal tobacco laws. Once of the key provisions of the ordinance is that to obtain a TRL, the business must be an existing tobacco retailer in Santa Rosa operating lawfully on August 6, 2024 – the date that the ordinance was adopted- thus capping the amount of tobacco retailers within the City. This license requirement went into effect on January 1, 2025, and eligible businesses were required to apply for licenses by January 31, 2025. Licenses are valid for 18 months and need to be renewed every ﬁscal year on July 1st.

This initiative supports public health initiatives set forth in the General Plan by prohibiting new tobacco retailers throughout the City and therefore potentially reducing harmful impacts of tobacco use on the community.

61 Conditional Use Permit Streamlining & Grocery Stores Throughout 2025, the Planning and Economic Development Department worked on an initiative to streamline the Conditional Use Permit Process. The Department is proposing modiﬁcations to permit requirements for commercial land uses, including stores selling fresh food. The proposed changes support Action 6-6.5 of the General Plan, as they reduce permit requirements for grocery stores in several zoning districts throughout the City. The draft proposed changes have been made available for public review online and are expected to go before the City Council for decision in April of 2026.

Children and Families
In-Home Childcare
Recognizing childcare as a critical workforce
support, the City established partnerships with
regional childcare agencies, including First 5
Sonoma County and 4Cs of Sonoma County, to
better understand barriers facing providers and
working families. Through these discussions,
the City identiﬁed challenges related to licensing,
zoning, permitting, and startup requirements and,
in response, created an In-Home Childcare Guide
to clearly outline the steps for launching a licensed
home-based childcare business. These
efforts represent upstream investments in
workforce stability, family support, and long-term
economic resilience.

This initiative implements General Plan Actions 6-

8.5 through 6-8.8, by supporting the approval of development of new childcare facilities throughout Santa Rosa.

62 Violence Prevention Partnership
The Santa Rosa Violence Prevention Partnership (The Partnership) is funded through Public Safety and Prevention (PSAP) Tax (Measure H) proceeds and provides funding for staffing and program operating costs, as well as grants to
non-proﬁt organizations to fund programs
related to Prevention, Intervention, Diversion,
Re-Entry, and Healing.

Measure O funds preceded Measure H, and
since 2006, the Partnership has provided more
than $11,000,000 to local community-based
organizations and schools. Together, The
Partnership and CHOICE grant funded
programs work together towards our shared
vision, that Santa Rosa emerges as a strong, resilient and interconnected community where all residents are safe, healthy, and thrive. In 2025, The Partnership eight local agencies began implementing the ﬁrst year of their CHOICE Cycle XII funding, totaling $750,000. In addition to the CHOICE Grant Program, The Partnership implements other strategies to reduce and prevent violence and gang activity in Santa Rosa. In response to acts of increased violence in the community during the last three years, The Partnership revised its ﬁve- year strategic plan in early 2023 and over the past two years, built out intervention programs and services that allow staff to interrupt and prevent violence in the community. This includes the development and launch of the Safe Campus Intervention Program in December 2023, the Clean Slate Tattoo Removal Program in December 2024, the Street Outreach and Crisis Response Team in January 2025, and the Teen Culinary Job Training Pilot Program in June 2025.

With funding leveraged by the Sonoma County Probation Department, The Partnership continued implementation of the Guiding People Successfully (GPS) referral program in 2025. GPS provides critical funding for system-level improvements to The Partnership’s referral system, while also supporting evidence-informed prevention and intervention programs, including services such as case management, in-home counseling, work readiness training, and paid work experience. For FY 2024-2025, this includes 211 non- probationary youth and 15 youth on probation. Of the 226 total referrals received, Partnership staff made 244 referrals out to a variety of programs and services. Eighty-ﬁve percent of youth referred directly to programs and services successfully completed programming. Find more information about The Partnership online at www.srcity.org/santarosapartnership or on Facebook and Instagram.

63 Parks and Recreation
The General Plan directs the continuing acquisition and development of neighborhood and community park facilities, along with special use facilities, throughout the City. The following Section includes highlights of park planning and improvement efforts in 2025.

Dutch Flohr Neighborhood Park
Dutch Flohr Neighborhood Park,
in Northwest Santa Rosa
underwent a complete
renovation. The primary focus of
the project was to replace two
existing play areas, bring them
closer together, provide updated
and more interesting play
equipment and improve the
accessibility of the pathways throughout the park. Speciﬁc new features include an assortment of climbing structures, spinning features, swings, a popular zip line and sand play area. Fitness equipment, game tables and new picnic areas are also included in addition to the new pathways, landscaping and tree planting throughout the site.

Construction began in July 2025 and was completed in February 2026.

Roseland Creek Trail Improvement Project
The future Roseland Community Park site sits between Burbank Ave and McMinn Ave and across the street from the Roseland Creek Elementary and Roseland Accelerated Middle schools. The approved Master Plan for the park calls for a network of pathways and a variety of park amenities, as well as the preservation of signiﬁcant natural areas including the enhancement of Roseland Creek that runs through the 18-acre site. In the Fall of 2025, an initial segment of pathway was installed along with a crossing and ﬂashing beacon at Burbank Avenue to provide improved bike and pedestrian connection across the site for the neighborhood to better and more safely access the schools.

Dutch Flohr Neighborhood Park

64 Roseland Creek Trail
Howarth and Galvin Park Tennis Court Renovations
Plans for major court renovation projects at both Howarth and Galvin Community Parks were ﬁnalized and approved at the end of 2025. The projects are scheduled to proceed independently in 2026 with a notice to proceed for the Howarth Park work issued for March 2, 2026, with project
completion anticipated in
July. The construction
schedule for the Galvin
Park court renovations is
pending a successful
contract award and
anticipated to get
underway in May or June.

Kawana Springs
Community Garden
Construction of a new community garden is the ﬁrst phase of the approved park Master Plan for the future Kawana Springs Community Park to the east and upstream of Kawana Springs Creek. The new garden will comprise approximately .75 acres and provide for up to 100 or more garden plots. The design includes a picnic area, storage sheds, a small parking area and drop off zone to facilitate deliveries of garden materials, a pedestrian crossing, and a multi-use pathway extending to the corner of Kawana Springs Road and Meda Ave.

Construction drawings were ﬁnalized and a contract awarded in late 2025 with a Notice to Proceed for construction of the garden is anticipated to begin May 1, 2026.

Howarth Park Tennis Courts

65 Kawana Springs Community Garden Site Plan
South Davis Neighborhood Park
The playground renovation project is planned as the ﬁrst phase of the amended Master Plan that was approved by City Council in 2023. Based on public input collected during the Master Planning process, detailed design drawings were developed and approved in 2025.

Construction of the playground improvements and associated pathways is anticipated to begin in March of 2026.

South Davis Neighborhood Park Playground Improvement Design Drawings Martin Luther King Jr. Neighborhood Park
The master plan for Martin Luther King Jr. Neighborhood Park and improvements to the adjacent Newhall Trail was approved by City Council in February of 2026. The project included a series of three community meetings to help guide the master planning process.

Funding for the project is through the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development’s Inﬁll Infrastructure Grant program. Project delivery in 2026/27 is planned to follow a design-build process pending City Council approval in March of 2026.

66 Martin Luther King Jr. Neighborhood Park Master Plan Southeast Greenway Acquisition and Planning
The City assumed ownership of the 49-acre, future Greenway site in the fall of 2024. The Transportation and Public Works Department received a Priority Conservation Grant through the Metropolitan Transportation Committee to help fund a community driven master plan for the Greenway. Pending a successful outcome to an RFP process, master planning for the project is anticipated to begin in the Spring of 2026.

Southeast Greenway Land Use Map

67 Parks Condition Assessment and
Prioritization Report
A draft of Phase II of the Parks Conditions
Assessment Report was completed in 2025, and
ﬁnal reﬁnements of the document are anticipated
to be completed in Spring of 2026. The report is
already a valuable planning tool to help prioritize
and guide capital improvements and deferred
maintenance projects throughout the Parks
system.

68 II. ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE INCLUSIONARY HOUSING

ORDINANCE
The City’s Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (Ordinance) was adopted by the City Council in October of 2019, which amended the Housing Allocation Plan, enacted in 1992. The purpose of the Ordinance is to expand the supply of housing available to lower income households.

The Ordinance requires that each year, the Department provide a review of the program, addressing the following items:

1. The number of allocated units, both on and off site, issued building permits during the time period covered by the report.

The Inclusionary Housing Ordinance deﬁnes an ‘allocated’ or ‘inclusionary’ unit as a newly constructed "for-rent" or "for-sale" dwelling unit that: (1) is provided by a developer to in compliance with the ordinance; (2) is reserved for occupancy by lower- or moderate- income households; (3) is subject to affordability and occupancy restrictions for at least 55 years; (4) matches overall development in exterior design, materials, and quality; and (5) reﬂects a similar unit type and bedroom mix as the overall residential development.

In 2025, building permits were issued for a total of 23 allocated units (20 units for very-low- income households, two units for low-income households, and one unit for moderate income households) to satisfy the requirements of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance.

2. The number of qualifying units, owner/builder units, accessory dwelling units, very low-, low- or moderate-income units and mixed-use units issued building permits during the time period covered by the report.

Between January 1 and December 31, 2025, building permits were issued for 661 qualifying units subject to the requirements of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. These units either resulted in the provision of allocated units (described above), or the payment of housing impact fees (described below).

In 2025, building permits were issued for 186 units that are exempt from the requirements of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance, including:
• 47 Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)
• 64 very low-income units
• 60 low-income units
• 15 moderate-income units

69 No building permits were issued for mixed-use units in 2025.

3. The amount of housing impact fees collected.

In 2025, $1,436,870 in fees were collected as required by the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. This includes $1,257,641 in Housing Impact Fees, and $179,229 in Commercial Linkage fees. This total fee amount represents a slight decrease from 2024, when a total of $1.52 million in fees were collected.

4. The amount of acreage by land use category dedicated to the City.

No land was dedicated to the City in 2025 to comply with the requirements of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance.

5. A listing of any staff recommendations, with regard to changes or revisions to the adopted program to improve its effectiveness and/or administration.

The Inclusionary Housing Ordinance was updated in December 2019. Planning and Economic Development and Housing and Community Services staff continued implementation of this Ordinance in 2025 without issue. There are no staff recommended changes at this time.

70 III. HOUSING ELEMENT GOAL APPENDIX 2025 ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT GOAL H-1: Encourage the Development of Housing to Meet the Needs of All Santa Rosa Residents H-1 - Adequate Sites: City staff ensure adequate sites are available for the development of a variety of housing types for all income levels, including single and multi-family units, mobile homes, transitional housing, and homeless shelters. The 2023 Housing Element identified vacant parcels available for construction of residential units at various densities. Staff continue to track capacity to achieve RHNA as new residential projects are proposed, approved, and constructed ensuring that any reduction in residential capacity is identified, and offset, as required by State housing law and the City’s remaining available sites. The city adopted a Missing Middle Housing Ordinance in December 2025, which increases the residential densities on many sites located within walkable neighborhoods.

H-2 - Lot Consolidation and Small Site Development: LEAP funds were utilized in late 2024 to work with a consultant on several Housing Element programs, including program H-2. This project consisted of outreach to several developers and jurisdictions in California to help with the development of the Lot Consolidation and Small Site Development program. Staff aims to launch the program in 2026 which will include informational brochures on mixed-use development, incentives for development, and further information on lot consolidation and small site development. Additionally, a Missing Middle Housing Ordinance was adopted in December 2025, which will incentivize development of smaller sites in walkable areas of Santa Rosa. City staff maintain the Development Feasibility Tool that displays site-speciﬁc development standards for properties throughout the City which can be used to identify lot consolidation and small site development opportunities. The City’s Zoning Code has been updated to reduce permitting requirements for Small Lot Subdivision developments in Priority Development Areas (PDAs) and to allow streamlined review of two-unit residential projects to further incentivize lot consolidation and small site development.

H-3 - Encouraging Housing in Mixed-Use Projects: Surveys were conducted in July 2023 and in January 2024 with local developers to understand how to encourage residential units within mixed-use projects. City staff are working on developing additional incentives from the survey results. The City’s Zoning Code has been amended to streamline the application process for mixed-use residential projects and broaden the zoning districts where mixed-use developments are allowed. The recently adopted Missing Middle Housing Ordinance allows for new Mixed-Use developments to be approved without discretionary planning review in identiﬁed walkable areas of the city.

71 H-4 - Opportunity Development Areas: The City’s regulatory framework and fees continue to incentive higher-density and affordable housing developments in Santa Rosa’s Priority Development Areas (PDAs). Multi-family developments in commercial or multi-family zoned areas within any of the City’s PDAs require no use permit approval and are eligible for a streamlined design review process. In addition, these proposed developments are eligible for environmental review streamlining under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), based on the certiﬁed environmental impact reports (EIRs) covering the North Station Area, Roseland Area/Sebastopol Road, and Downtown Station Area PDAs. The City’s fee schedule reﬂects Council adopted fee reductions for multi-family developments within the Downtown PDA, and for affordable housing developments Citywide. In 2025, the City was awarded a two grants from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), totaling $450,000, to update the North Station Area Speciﬁc Plan (a PDA), and revise vehicle parking requirements for both the Downtown and North Station Area PDAs which will further incentivize residential developments within two of the City’s ﬁve PDAs.

H-5 - Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs): City staff continue development of a Pre-Approved ADU program to launch in 2026 to comply with the requirements of AB 1332 to provide streamlined ADU services for the community. Staff and the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) continue to permit ADUs within areas of the City covered by a Sewer/Water Agreement without requiring a Utility Certiﬁcate, resulting in signiﬁcant time and cost saving for property owners. The City's Website and Zoning Code for ADU regulations are translatable into multiple languages beyond the typical bilingual translation. The City utilized LEAP funds in late 2024 to work with a consultant on several Housing Element programs, including program H-5. This project included outreach to several developers for feedback on the City’s ADU process and promotional materials, leading to the development of new ADU information handouts and checklists to assist homeowners and developers. These materials will be published in 2026.

H-6 - Innovative Housing Options: A Missing Middle Housing Ordinance was adopted in December 2025, increasing allowances for residential densities and development conﬁguration options in walkable neighborhoods throughout the city. During 2025, City staff ﬁnalized an ordinance to allow both Tiny Homes on Wheels and Housing Cooperatives, which is scheduled to be reviewed by the City Council in March 2026. Tiny Homes on permanent foundations are currently allowed by-right on parcels that allow for single-family detached housing uses and accessory dwelling units. The City adopted an ordinance in December 2025 that allows multiple detached single-family units on a parcel to quality as a multi-family use which broadens City regulations to allow multiple detached residential units, including Tiny Homes on permanent foundations, to be located on one site.

H-7 - Prohousing Designation: On July 14, 2023, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the City of Santa Rosa had received the State of California’s Prohousing Designation from the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). City staff continue to follow the requirements to retain the Prohousing designation and is preparing to reapply for the designation for the next cycle in January 2027.

H-8 - Sites Identiﬁed in Previous Cycle: The Housing Sites Inventory has been added to the City’s Public and Internal GIS systems to ensure staff and developer awareness. The three sites identiﬁed in the 6th Cycle Housing Element which had been

72 included in previous housing cycles, allow multifamily uses by-right at a density of 30 units per acre per acre, consistent with this Housing Element Program. Staff are currently preparing a resolution that memorializes these three sites as eligible for ministerial approval in cases where the housing development project includes a speciﬁed level of affordability, to comply with a recent request from HCD.

H-9 - Large-Lot Development and Subdivision: City staff continue to offer Pre-Application Meetings to provide applicants with an interdepartmental staff review of preliminary or conceptual design applications, especially for large lot developments and subdivisions. These meetings are intended to provide a better understanding of the City’s permitting process and, through early consultation, troubleshoot project issues for potentially complex development proposals. These meetings are currently available at no cost to the applicant. City staff continue to provide guidance to applicants for ministerial subdivisions allowed under State law. Previously conducted outreach to developers and California jurisdictions to develop the Large Lot Development and Subdivision program will result in the publication of informational brochures, including available incentives, for mixed-use development, higher density development, and further information on subdivisions and large site development later in 2026.

GOAL H- 2: Conserve and improve the existing affordable housing stock.

H-10 - Code Enforcement Activities: The city continues its support for the Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP) with assistance from Code Enforcement, the Fire Department, and administrative staff. Staff will also continue exploring opportunities for program expansion through grant funding. Areas currently part of the NRP include Apple Valley, Aston Ave, Corby Beachwood, Heidi Place, Olive/Corby, South Park, Sunset McMinn, and West Ninth. Although the previous years proposed addition of an Outreach position was not achieved, two pilot programs were established: the Vacant Building Vacant Lot Program (VBL) and the Graffiti Abatement Program (GAP), which currently have two limited-term staff positions. The city is exploring the expansion of NRP neighborhoods to include the Roseland neighborhood, a predominantly Latino and Spanish-speaking community. Currently, the West End, Cherry Street, St. Rose, Railroad Square, Burbank Gardens, and Ridgway are not part of the NRP but are addressed on a complaint basis by Code Enforcement.

Vacant buildings and lots, if unmaintained, can contribute to blight in both residential and non-residential neighborhoods. These properties can lower property values, attract illegal activity, and create health and safety hazards. The VBL Program aims to assist property owners in bringing their properties into compliance with established standards through educational resources and outreach. The GAP seeks to reduce graffiti on private property, restore aesthetic appeal, and promote community safety and pride. It uses a proactive approach to educate residents and business owners about the importance of prompt graffiti removal and the different types of graffiti. The program balances enforcement with a strategic, consistent, and scalable approach. By leveraging community and City partnerships, residents, and volunteers, the program provides additional resources to support enforcement efforts and assist those repeatedly victimized by graffiti.

73 H-11 - Housing Conditions Survey: A Housing Conditions Survey of properties located in the City's Neighborhood Revitalization Program area was completed in July 2024. In advance of the survey work, a website was created to provide outreach and information on this project: https://www.srcity.org/4004/Housing-Conditions-Survey . Additionally, a letter was prepared- both in English and Spanish- and mailed to all occupants and property owners in the Neighborhood Revitalization Program area. The letter provided context for why the city was conducting a survey, a date range for when the survey work was anticipated to take place and directed recipients to the website and contact information for staff. A total of 3,978 letters were mailed. Inspectors walked and surveyed 1,617 properties and determined properties' rehabilitation need based on HCD's Sample Housing Condition Survey form, which includes the following ﬁve categories of survey review: foundation, rooﬁng, siding/stucco, windows and electrical. The City’s survey excluded the electrical component of this form since this would have required access to residents' private property; all surveys were conducted from the public right-of-way. Including the categories of 'dilapidated' and 'substantial' , the survey demonstrated that the rehabilitation need is 3.6%. The results of this survey can be relied upon for the City to obtain future State and Federal funding for rehabilitation programs in the City.

H-12 - Housing Rehabilitation: The City launched a CalHome Mobile Home Rehabilitation loan program in early 2026, with awards up to $50,000 for low-income households earning 80% or less of Area Median Income. Staff continue to evaluate opportunities for additional funding as they become available through HUD and HCD and continue to utilize local, state and federal funds to help rehabilitate affordable housing units. The Zane-Wolff Veterans Village, located at 665 Russell Avenue, received funds in the amount of $489,228. The project was completed in 2019 under a County of Sonoma initiative to demonstrate the efficacy of “tiny homes” to address homelessness and housing affordability for extremely low-income households. The Village includes 13 homes that are restricted to Veteran households at 30% of Area Median Income (AMI) and a manager’s unit restricted to a Veteran household at 80% of AMI. Each home is an approximately 250 square foot, detached dwelling with built-in furniture, a kitchenette with a refrigerator and induction stovetop, and full bathroom with roll-in shower. All units are wheelchair accessible. The units include front porches and are oriented facing a common outdoor courtyard. There is a larger common room on the project site where group programming and services take place; this space is also available to residents and has a full kitchen and laundry facilities. The rehabilitation funds will be used to complete the work necessary to convert the development from a temporary use permit to a permanent, multifamily use permit under the City of Santa Rosa Zoning Code. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years. Apple Valley Scattered Sites is a scattered-site project involving 228 existing affordable rental units across ﬁve properties in Santa Rosa: Olive Grove, Paulin Creek, Papago Court, and two fourplexes on Apple Valley, all of which are owned and managed by entities within Burbank Housing. This project received rehabilitation funding in the amount of $2 million. The rehabilitation project will include replacement of ﬂooring, cabinetry, appliances, HVAC, doors, windows, rooﬁng, ﬁre safety systems, and site improvements. Per- unit rehabilitation costs are estimated at an average of $60,000 to $140,000, depending on the condition of the site on which

74 each unit is located. By accepting the City’s funding award, the project is required to maintain the affordability of these units for a 55-year period. Rehabilitation for the West Avenue Apartments, a 40-unit rental unit development located at 1400 West Avenue, started in 2025. The improvements consist of site improvements and community building and interior and exterior apartment building renovations. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years.

H-13 - Mobile Home Park Preservation: The City continues to administer and enforce the Mobile Home Conversion Ordinance in City Code Chapter 6-67.

H-14 - Mobile Home Park Rent Control: The City continues to administer and enforce the Mobile Home Rent Control Ordinance.

This program is utilized Citywide within all of the 16 Mobile Home Parks to help protect mobile homes as an affordable and secure housing option in the city.

H-15 - Preservation of At-Risk Housing Units: City staff, on a routine basis, connect with affordable housing developers to assess needs for properties. Additional affordability restrictions are applied by extending the date before units can transition to market-rate rents, as a condition for granting loan extensions to projects that are nearing the end of their affordability loan term and are unable to repay their loan. This process is to ensure ongoing affordability and to not lose any units to market rate conditions.

H-16 - Santa Rosa Housing Trust: Preservation of at-Risk Housing Units has been a priority criterion for the City’s Housing Authority over the last two years. In September 2025, the Housing Authority approved loans for three affordable housing projects, described below:

Zane-Wolff Veterans Village - located at 665 Russell Avenue, received funds in the amount of $489,228. The project was completed in 2019 under a County of Sonoma initiative to demonstrate the efficacy of “tiny homes” to address homelessness and housing affordability for extremely low-income households. The Village includes 13 wheelchair accessible homes that are restricted to Veteran households at 30% of Area Median Income (AMI) and a manager’s unit restricted to a Veteran household at 80% of AMI. Each home is an approximately 250 square foot, detached dwelling with built-in furniture, a kitchenette with a refrigerator and induction stovetop, and full bathroom with roll-in shower. The rehabilitation funds will be used to complete the work necessary to convert the development from a temporary use permit to a permanent, multifamily use permit under the City of Santa Rosa Zoning Code. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years.

Apple Valley Scattered Sites - a scattered-site project involving 228 existing affordable rental units across ﬁve properties in Santa Rosa: Olive Grove, Paulin Creek, Papago Court, and two fourplexes on Apple Valley, all of which are owned and managed by entities within Burbank Housing. This project received rehabilitation funding in the amount of $2 million. The rehabilitation project will include replacement of ﬂooring, cabinetry, appliances, HVAC, doors, windows, rooﬁng, ﬁre safety systems, and site

75 improvements. Per-unit rehabilitation costs are estimated at an average of $60,000 to $140,000, depending on the condition of the site on which each unit is located. By accepting the City’s funding award, the project is required to maintain the affordability of these units for a 55-year period.

West Avenue Apartments - a 40-unit rental unit development located at 1400 West Avenue, started in 2025. The improvements consist of site improvements and community building and interior and exterior apartment building renovations. The City’s funding award for this project requires that these units remain affordable for 55 years.

In 2025, the City’s Housing Authority awarded $2 million in funding for the Ridley Avenue Family Apartments - a 50-unit family project located at 1801 Ridley Avenue. This project will result in 49 units for households between 30% and 60% of Area Median Income (AMI) and will include six units set aside for emancipated youth leaving the foster care system. The project qualiﬁes as a Large Family development under the HCD standards with 43% of units having two bedrooms and 27% of units having three bedrooms.

H-17 - Affordable Housing Tracking: City staff utilize multiple systems to track affordable housing, including by housing type, income level, and sources of funding. Staff continue to develop additional processes to improve data tracking and increase the number of reports available displaying the City’s progress on the construction of affordable housing units and in achieving the city’s RHNA.

H-18 - Inclusionary Housing: City staff continue to administer and enforce the Inclusionary Housing requirements outlined in City Code Chapter 21-02 by requiring executed deed restricted on-site affordable units, or the payment of in-lieu fees, for new residential developments. City staff have evaluated the possibility of requiring on-site inclusionary (affordable) units and are not recommending any changes to current requirements.

H-19 - Essential Housing Bond Financing Program: The City is a member of two Joint Powers Authority programs to help target affordable housing projects. Staff have worked with the California Community Housing Agency (CalCHA) and the California Statewide Communities Development Authority (CSCDA) to create middle income rental housing. The programs work to provide for gradual conversion of units to lower income as market rate tenants move out. The CalCHA partnership has a 390-unit complex with 1/3 of the units as Low Income, 1/3 of the units as Medium Income, and 1/3 of the units as Moderate Income. The CSCDA partnership has a 277-unit complex consisting of 1/3 of the units as Low Income, 1/3 of the units as Median Income, and 1/3 of the units as Moderate Income. An additional California Special Districts Association (CSDA) partnership consists of a 180- unit complex with 1/3 of the units as Low Income, 1/3 of the units as Median Income, and 1/3 of the units as Moderate Income.

GOAL H-3: Increase special needs housing opportunities and supportive services for lower income households, families with children, seniors, persons with physical and developmental disabilities,

76 farmworkers, female-headed households, and people who are experiencing homelessness.

H-20 - Support Affordable Housing Development: City staff is bringing forward an ordinance in 2026 that will update the Zoning Code and permit requirements for residential land uses and supportive services that serve various special needs groups including Residential Care Facilities, Farmworker Housing, Supportive Housing, Transitional Housing, Low Barrier Navigation Centers, Emergency Shelters, Reasonable Accommodations, Medical Service - Health Care Facilities, and Adult Day Care.

The City’s Housing Authority approved $2 million in funding for the construction of Ridley Avenue Family Apartments, a 50-unit family project located at 1801 Ridley Avenue in September 2025. This project will result in 49 units for households between 30% and 60% of Area Median Income (AMI) and will include six units set aside for emancipated youth leaving the foster care system.

The project qualiﬁes as a Large Family development under the HCD standards with 43% of units having two bedrooms and 27% of units having three bedrooms.

H-21 - Funding for Affordable Housing Development: Project-based housing vouchers were administered for 63 units serving people experiencing homelessness in the South Park Commons and Cannery at Railroad Square developments, both of which were completed and occupied in 2025. The South Park Commons project includes 61 units restricted to Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low-Income households for a period of 55-years. The Cannery at Railroad Square development provides 113 units that are restricted to Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low-Income households for a period of 55-years.

City staff continued to partner in the operation of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Veterans Affairs Supportive (VASH) Program in 2025. The HUD-VASH program, established in 2008, is targeted to serve homeless veterans. Since 2009, the City’s Housing Authority has administered 429 HUD-VASH vouchers. Of these 429 HUD-VASH vouchers, the City’s Housing Authority has issued 98 project-based vouchers to support the development of veterans housing projects within Sonoma County.

H-22 - Housing for Persons with Disabilities: A draft ordinance is scheduled for Council action in March 2026, to improve standards related to Medical-Service Health Care Facilities that provide residential care to people requiring varying types of medical assistance, including individuals with disabilities. This ordinance also includes updates to the Residential Care Facility land use to improve standards and add exemptions for 24-hour non-medical residential care and incidental medical services to facilities such as Assisted Living Facilities, Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly, and Alcohol or Other Drug Facilities. A reduction of permit requirements for Supportive Housing, which aims to bring housing and services to target populations, is also proposed with this draft ordinance. The City adopted a Missing Middle Housing Ordinance in December 2025 to expand housing options that address a range of community needs. The ordinance allows these housing types in areas with convenient access to daily services.

77 H-23 - Housing for Farmworkers: A draft ordinance is proposed for adoption in 2026 to update land use and permit requirements to align with State law and further reduce permit requirements for single family and multifamily types of Farmworker Housing. As needed, City staff continue to engage developers to discuss potential sites for affordable housing, including Farmworker Housing. Additionally, a recently constructed and now occupied project, Mahonia Glen, includes 99 units (26 units for extremely low-income, 22 units for very low-income, and 50 units for low-income households) is providing 43 dedicated units for permanent Farmworker Housing.

H-24 - Housing for Persons Experiencing Homelessness: A draft ordinance is proposed for adoption in 2026 would introduce the land use “Low-Barrier Navigation Center” as another form of Emergency Shelter that focuses more on providing services to those facing homelessness. This draft ordinance clarifies parking requirements for Emergency Shelters (not exceed residential or commercial uses in the same zone), and reduces permitting requirements for Transitional Housing, a type of shelter for a 6 to 24-month period.

Project-based housing vouchers were administered for 63 units serving people experiencing homelessness in the South Park Commons and Cannery at Railroad Square developments, both of which were completed and occupied in 2025. The South Park Commons project includes 61 units restricted to households Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low-Income households for a period of 55-years. The Cannery at Railroad Square development provides 113 units that are restricted to Extremely Low, Very Low-, and Low-Income households for a period of 55-years.

The City of Santa Rosa secured an award of new funding from the County of Sonoma that will allow the City’s Safe Parking Program to remain fully operational through June 2027. Acting on recommendations from the Sonoma County Department of Health Services (DHS), the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved a combined $979,040 in Measure O and Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) funds to support this community program. The Safe Parking Program provides individuals experiencing homelessness with a secure and stable place to stay overnight while connected with vital services, case management, and pathways to permanent housing. The newly awarded funding ensures continued consistency in services for participants working toward long-term housing stability.

H-25 - Housing for Extremely Low-Income Households: The Council will review a proposed ordinance to update and reduce permitting requirements for Supportive Housing and Transitional Housing in early 2026. City staff continue to conduct annual outreach with the developer community and service provider community, as well as outreach to residents.

The city also has Public Services program funds that are used for homeless services to help fund local homeless support

78 centers including beds for interim housing and day services and a local program for homeless women and children. The homeless outreach team is funded annually and works with local nonprofits. City staff continue to provide support to developers that house formerly homeless individuals and homeless dedicated units. The city also participates in the HOME American Rescue Plan and conducts outreach on homeless prevention services.

H-26 - Housing for Senior Households: The City Council will review an ordinance in early 2026 that will exempt Residential Care Facilities that operate as Assisted Living Facility or Residential Care Facility for the Elderly from overconcentration requirements which will allow for more facilities in the city. Staff are currently working with developers to provide awareness of proposed changes to incentivize additional Senior Housing units. City staff continue to promote and utilize the State Density Bonus, the local Supplemental Density Bonus, reduced parking requirements in the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan, and streamlined application process in Priority Development Areas.

H-27 - Housing for Large Households: The City continues to promote the Streamlined Design Review process for affordable housing projects citywide and for large residential, lodging, and childcare land uses in Priority Development Areas. The city will continue to review additional ways to provide incentives through this program and others.

The project qualiﬁes as a Large Family development under the HCD standards with 43% of units having two bedrooms and 27% of units having three bedrooms.

GOAL H-4: Ensure equal housing opportunities for all residents, regardless of their special characteristics, as protected under state and federal fair housing laws.

H-28 - Building Community Acceptance: New developments proposed near residential neighborhoods require neighborhood meetings early in the application process to engage the public about proposed developments including higher density projects in single family areas. Notices are sent to both owners and renters of properties in a minimum 600-foot radius of the proposed site, and notices and services are translatable to any language, as requested. Higher density residential developments continue to undergo a formal design review process, which typically includes conceptual, or pre-application, design review meetings where members of the community can provide feedback related to the project design. These meetings and the application review process provide an opportunity for education and an opportunity for increasing acceptance through design changes.

The Housing and Community Services Department held the Annual Action Plan Public Meeting in May 2025, to obtain community feedback on the Fiscal Year 2025/2026 Annual Action Plan. This plan outlines the distribution of federal Community

79 Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME), and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) funds.

H-29 - Fair Housing Services: Residential developments that are funded by City Housing Authority funds are required to comply with all state and federal housing laws. In 2025, the City continued to fund and provide referrals to Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, a non-proﬁt that provides services in Sonoma County, including counseling services to homeowners and renters who have experienced discrimination based on their membership in a protected class. In Fiscal Year 2024/2025, 270 households were served.

H-30 - Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing - Anti-Displacement Strategies: The City currently utilizes a Fair Housing Plan, adopted in Spring 2024, to address the Fair Housing issues in Santa Rosa and the requirements of HUD. City staff continue to coordinate implementation of Housing Element Programs: H-4, H-8, H-9, H-15, H-17, H-18, H-19, H-20, H-21, H-23, H-24, H-28, and H-30 as described in this Annual Review Report, to affirmatively further the anti-displacement strategies identified in this program. In addition, the City staff continue to develop and implement strategies to expand low-barrier, low-skill job opportunities, through forming partnerships with the Small Business Development Center and GoLocal, implementing contractor training, licensing programs and forming stronger ties to workforce pipelines partnerships. City staff created comprehensive business services, including a small business concierge program, and partnered with regional childcare agencies to identify barriers and create a guide to help residents launch licensed home-based childcare businesses, supporting families and workforce stability. The City recently published informational handouts for potential food vending businesses to help support new business formation, and job growth, and has amended the City’s Zoning regulations to reduce permitting requirements food vending businesses. Changes which would allow streamlined review for numerous job creating industrial and commercial uses are underway (pending Council review in April 2026) to further incentivize economic activity and job opportunities.

H-31 - Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing – Place-Based Revitalization Strategies: City staff currently meet monthly with School Administrators as part of the Safe Routes to Schools Task Force to focus on walking and biking issues for students.

Staff conduct school walking audits, meet with parents at schools in Equity Priority Areas, and field public comment at community meetings for ways to incorporate and improve the City's active transportation programs. City staff work with the SCTCA (Sonoma County Transportation and Climate Authorities) on a regular basis regarding various projects across the city and meet with Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) staff regularly through roles on regional advisory boards. Staff

80 prioritize grant searching to conduct city-led projects within Priority Development Areas (PDAs) and Equity Priority Communities.

The City continues to support the following programs: Park- A-Month, Violence Prevention Partnership, Volunteers in Police Service, The Violence Prevention Awareness Series, Public Art in Private Development Ordinance, and Public Art Program.

A total of $750,000 in funding was approved for the Choice Grant Program to implement community-based services from January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2027.

City staff continue to promote the reduced fees and permitting requirements for Child Care facilities. As reference above, staff published a Guide for In-Home Childcare facilities, in English and Spanish, addressing permit, application, and operating requirements.

City staff conducted outreach to local high schools to incorporate ideas from students into Placemaking Strategies within the General Plan 2050, which was adopted in June 2025.

In 2025, the City’s Summer Work Experience Program for Teens had 258 participants who put in over 26,000 hours of community service in 11 different volunteer programs. For staff, 70 of 78 staff were once CITs (Counselors in Training), which are part of the Work Experience Program. A total of 20 new temporary staff were hired last year, 16 of which had been CITs in the Work Experience Program.

The City's Capital Improvement Program is currently operating in its five-year financial plan as set by the City Council. Current projects include bridges and other structures, creeks and drainage systems, work at the Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant and other City facilities, upgrades to parks, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, sanitary sewer collection system, street network, traffic signals and systems, and the water distribution system.

City staff will continue to review new Place-Based Revitalization Strategies. The City Council holds a public hearing during the first quarter of each year to solicit budget priorities from the community. This input, combined with information given directly to the City Council or City Manager, and from specific staff project requests, is evaluated and prioritized based on need and the amount of funding available.

The Public has the opportunity to weigh in on CIP projects during the budget cycle. Additionally, public comment is utilized for prioritizing walking and biking projects, specifically through the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board. The City works to

81 complete all Priority 1 CIP projects as soon as possible which include projects that are grant-funded, disaster recovery, public safety, or environmental-related, mandated/required, and fully funded.

The City continues to support the updates to the Wayfinding systems Downtown that support and promote civic spaces and downtown businesses. In 2025, all signs in the Wayfinding Program for Businesses were updated with a header that symbolizes the Railroad Square.

The City joined the MTC Bay Area regional Wayfinding transit signage pilot program in 2025 to help create a regional relationship between rail and bus systems. This sign program provides signage in Mandarin, English, and Spanish and helps establish easier access to the transit system and directly link the City to regional transit systems, formulating a regional sense of belonging. MTC and City staff are currently seeking feedback on the signage and the necessity of an expansion to the program.

City staff continue to participate in Rise and Thrive, a quarterly networking meeting for business support agencies who provide assistance to underserved and underrepresented business populations. The Business ExpertXpress event, held in 2025 was tailored specifically for entrepreneurs and small business owners in their first year of operation or those preparing to open soon.

It provided an opportunity to connect directly with seasoned professionals and local resources. The recently established Business Concierge Program provides business owners with the expertise and support needed to succeed. Administered by the Small Business Ombudsman, this program offers assistance in areas such as location selection, business planning, technical support, securing financing, obtaining the necessary permits and licenses to open, and facilitating the resolution of any issues that arise during the construction process.

H-32 - Tenant Protection/Eviction Prevention Measures: The City continues to fund and refer residents to the Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, a non-proﬁt that provides services in Sonoma County, including counseling services to homeowners and renters who have experienced discrimination based on their membership in a protected class. In Fiscal Year 2024/2025, 270 households were served. City staff continue to explore programs and policies implemented by other jurisdictions that have been successful in addressing the displacement of residents as part of larger policy projects.

H-33 - Real Property Transfer Tax: The real property transfer tax is used to fund Homeless Services by the City. The City’s budget for Fiscal Year 2025/2026 allocated $2.1M of real property transfer tax, which is divided equally between Homeless Services and the Housing Trust.

H-34 - Participation in the Mortgage Credit Certificate Program: The Mortgage Credit Certificate Program is not currently an active program administered by the City. The program began accepting applications in October 2023 and closed to new applications in January 2024, lending $548,000 before being suspended due to fiscal limitations. This is a revolving loan fund, and

82 the program will continue to fund additional households as loan payments are made.

H-35 - Community Land Trust Program: In 2024, it was determined there was no secured, ongoing funding to dedicate to such a program; however, the City staff will continue to research the possibility of developing a Community Land Trust Program.

H-36 - Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program: The number of vouchers that can be administered is a direct result of funding provided by HUD and the cost of the rental market in Santa Rosa. As of February 2026, the Housing Authority is authorized to provide up to 1,925 Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, exceeding the minimum number of vouchers (1,903) identified in this Housing Element program.

GOAL H-5: Reduce or remove government constraints on the maintenance, improvement and development of housing, where feasible.

H-37 - Application Streamlining and Compliance with Senate Bill 35 (Streamlined Affordable Housing): The City continues to support the following:
• Streamlined Design Review for 100% affordable housing projects • Streamlined Design Review for projects in Priority Development Areas that are 10,000 Square Feet or greater for Residential, Lodging, or Childcare land uses

In early 2025, the City adopted housing legislation that went into effect in 2024. With this process, the City staff created and updated checklists for various streamlining bills including as Senate Bill 1123.

H-38 - Zoning Code Amendments: A draft ordinance is scheduled for Council action in March 2026, which includes updates to meet the goals and actions of Program H-38. This proposed ordinance includes amendments to Farmworker Housing, Residential Care Facilities, Medical Service – Health Care Facilities, Low-Barrier Navigation Centers, Reasonable Accommodations regulations, and updates parking requirements for Emergency Shelters, allows ADUs on real historic properties, and redefines families, shared living residences, and group homes in the Zoning Code Glossary.

H-39 - Revised Parking Standards: City staff are working on proposed Zoning Code changes to vehicle and bicycle parking requirements within the North Station Area and Downtown Station Area to comply with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Transit Oriented Community (TOC) Policy. The City utilized LEAP funds in late 2024 to work with a consultant on several Housing Element programs, including Program H-39, resulting in recommendations for reduced vehicle parking requirements in various scenarios for different areas of the city. City staff continue to evaluate options and will coordinate with various departments prior to moving forward with any of the recommendations. City staff work annually to implement various housing bills from the State and continue to ensure that any parking-related bills are codified, as necessary.

H-40 - Design Review Findings: City staff continue to process streamlined design review applications for residential, lodging, and childcare projects in Priority Development Areas (PDAs) that are 10,000 square feet or more and for projects citywide that

83 have 100% affordable housing units restricted to households earning no more than 60% of Area Median Income. In December 2025, the City Council adopted reduced design review requirements for all two-unit housing developments and adopted standards for Missing Middle Housing, allowing for additional, larger unit housing projects to benefit from ministerial design review based on objective standards. City staff continue to update internal and external checklists for different types of by-right housing that the State requires.

GOAL H-6: Develop energy-efficient residential units and rehabilitate existing units to reduce energy consumption.

H-41- Energy Efficiency in Residential Development: In 2025, all residential projects constructed or rehabilitated in the city were required to comply with the California Building Code, and CalGreen requirements for new residential construction and additions. These requirements incorporate extensive energy-efficiency standards designed to reduce energy use in new and upgraded housing. Requirements include improved insulation, high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, advanced lighting standards, and water-saving ﬁxtures. As detailed in earlier sections of this report, numerous residential construction and rehabilitation projects either advanced through construction or were completed in 2025. Collectively, these efforts increased the supply of housing units built or modernized to meet current energy-efficiency requirements. As a result, the city continued to make measurable progress toward reducing energy consumption in its housing stock.

H-42 - Water and Wastewater Priority: On September 26, 2023, the City Council readopted Council Policy No 200-20, “Provision of Priority Water Service to Residential Developments with Affordable Housing Units” and Council Policy No 200-21, “Provision of Priority Sewer Service to Residential Developments with Affordable Housing Units.” California Government Code Section 65589.7 enhances the priority granted to lower-income housing by requiring public agencies that provide water or sewer services to adopt written policies and procedures for providing priority service to residential developments with lower-income housing by July 1, 2006, and at least every five years thereafter. The City Council adopted Policies 200-20 and 200-21 on October 17, 2006, and re-adopted these policies on August 30, 2011, December 5, 2017, and again on September 26, 2023. The City of Santa Rosa, to the extent practical, will provide water and sewer service when sufficient water supply, distribution and collection transmission capacity, and treatment and disposal facilities are available to accommodate the demand approved by the City within the service area. Approval of applications for connection to the City’s water and sewer system shall not be based on the presence or absence of affordable housing or low-income households.

Santa Rosa City CouncilMarch 24, 2026

Santa Rosa City Council
March 24, 2026