Santa Rosa: Infrastructure and Urban Planning

[ddxv]

Bicycle bridge back!

The bicycle bridge is back.

Despite misgivings expressed by some council members over the estimated $20 million cost of the bridge over Highway 101 at Santa Rosa Junior College, the issue of planning money comes before the council on Tuesday.

The city needs to prepare a report for Caltrans on the proposed pedestrian and bicycle bridge to link SRJC and Coddingtown Mall neighborhoods. The $400,000 price would be paid from redevelopment funds, Measure M tax money and regional transit funds.

Press Democrat

[kylenelson]

Santa Rosa council funds study of bicycle and pedestrian bridge


By KEVIN McCALLUM
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Published: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 3:00 a.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 10:52 p.m.


Page 1 of 2
Santa Rosa will spend an additional $400,000 studying a controversial bridge over Highway 101 for bicycles and pedestrians.

The City Council on Tuesday approved funding for the 18-month study, which is essentially a permit from Caltrans for the project, estimated to cost up to $20 million.
Bicycle advocates, Santa Rosa Junior College students and residents of the areas to be served by the bridge voiced strong support for the council's decision.
“I'm really excited that we're moving forward on this bridge that so many of us have been waiting so many years for,” Junior College neighborhood resident Julie Chasen said.
The council appears to have overcome some of its earlier resistance to spending more money studying what some have seen as an unnecessary and expensive pet project of the cycling community in general and Councilman Gary Wysocky in particular.
Scott Bartley alluded to some of the acrimony that developed late last year when the new majority on the council appeared poised to block further funding for the project.
There was some “pretty intense negative energy about this project” back then, Bartley said, adding that he hopes backers can find a way to put that behind them.
“I think we really need to get it into a positive place,” Bartley said. “Negativity is not where a project of this significance can survive.”
It will be years before the city can attract the funding needed to construct the bridge, he said.
The city has spent more than $390,000 to date on the project, which envisions a curvaceous 15-foot-wide span from Elliott Avenue on the east side of Highway 101 to Edwards Avenue on the west. The precise design and layout would be determined later after community meetings and negotiations with property owners.
The next phase of the funding will come from $200,000 in Measure M transportation funds, $100,000 in Redevelopment Agency funds and another $100,000 in regional transit funds.
A handful of residents objected to the city spending additional money on the project. Kay Tokerud, a frequent critic of redevelopment agencies, objected to funding of something she saw as unnecessary.
“If those funds weren't spent on this project, they would be spent on other projects that could possibly be more important,” she said.
But the majority of speakers at Tuesday's council meeting expressed strong support. Some argued the bridge, like the New Deal public works projects of the Roosevelt era, would help create much needed jobs.
Barbara Moulton noted that it fits together perfectly with the city's goals of reducing greenhouse gases, improving air quality and locating a second SMART commuter rail station on Guerneville Road.
“Not only is this project a fabulous project on its own merits … the synergy between this project and all the other good projects that Santa Rosa is engaged in is stunning,” Moulton said.
The Coddingtown area is poised for significant, high-density growth in coming years, Councilwoman Susan Gorin said. The Association of Bay Area Governments sees up to 7,600 more people living in that area of the city in coming years, and those folks will need more transportation options, she said.
“Even if we don't get there quickly, we know that the area is going to grow,” Gorin said.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article...9656?p=1&tc=pg

[ElDudarinodotcom]

Welcome to the forum Kyle.

The bridge would definitely be a great benefit to the neighborhood, especially to the SRJC students from the West side that want to ride to class. However, the city better make sure it actually happens after spending $400,000 or else people will be up in arms about the money spent.

[ddxv]

Originally Posted by ElDudarinodotcom

Welcome to the forum Kyle.

The bridge would definitely be a great benefit to the neighborhood, especially to the SRJC students from the West side that want to ride to class. However, the city better make sure it actually happens after spending $400,000 or else people will be up in arms about the money spent.

That's a lot of money for studying

[kylenelson]

Originally Posted by ddxv

That's a lot of money for studying

Hey thanks for the welcome! It is a lot of money but im really hoping it stimulates the economy and salesfor that area. its going to have huge potential after the remolding is done.

Has anyone heard any news on the possible Target filling in the old Gottschalks or about the new Cheesecake factory or PF changs?

[ElDudarinodotcom]

Originally Posted by kylenelson

Has anyone heard any news on the possible Target filling in the old Gottschalks or about the new Cheesecake factory or PF changs?

I haven't heard anything since August, but as far as I know they are moving forward, albeit slowly. Target said they would begin construction in 2012, but nothing is concrete. However, I think the BJs brewery is definitely moving forward.

[kylenelson]

Originally Posted by ElDudarinodotcom

I haven't heard anything since August, but as far as I know they are moving forward, albeit slowly. Target said they would begin construction in 2012, but nothing is concrete. However, I think the BJs brewery is definitely moving forward.

I talked to some workers at coddingtown on black friday and a lot of them said that Cheesecake Factory is going to build where the old lodge was and was suppose to start sometime next year. who knows though.
That will be nice to have a target there. Did you read that they are going to begin construction in an article? if so do you know where i can find it?
Yes it looks like after they are done with the remolding BJ's is gong to coming in and open up sometime next year!

[ElDudarinodotcom]

Futrell gets extension to buy former AT&T building in Santa Rosa

By KEVIN McCALLUM
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 7:33 p.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 7:33 p.m.



Santa Rosa has given a developer more time to complete the purchase of the long-vacant former AT&T building downtown.

The city's redevelopment agency had hoped to complete the $1.9 million sale of the building — which the agency purchased for $3 million in 2007 — to developer Hugh Futrell by year's end.

Futrell and his partners hope to transform the empty five-story concrete eyesore into a 10-story glass-clad mixed-use tower dubbed Museum on the Square. It's the city's highest profile, highest priority downtown development project.

But some thorny planning issues put the project behind schedule last year, requiring a second six-month escrow extension, which was granted Dec. 20. The sale agreement now gives Futrell until June 29 to complete the transaction.

Futrell says he probably won't need that much time. He and his partners — who have invested $1 million in the project to date — now expect to complete the purchase and move forward with construction by the end of April.

“We would not be making this kind of investment in the asset if we were not still seeing a green light for the project,” Futrell said.

Redevelopment agency officials say they are comfortable granting the extension because Futrell is making significant progress toward his goals.

Design drawings are complete and under review by the city, and Futrell has pre-leased 75 percent of the commercial office space planned for the building, said city redevelopment specialist Frank Kasimov.

“Those are substantial steps. He has made a very large investment in making this a reality,” Kasimov said.

The project ran into its first setback in 2010, when the city took months to decide whether to allow future tenants to drive through the city transit mall to access the building's parking. The city ultimately agreed to grant the access, and the change forced a minor redesign.

Then early last year software maker Metier Ltd. backed out of the project after initially agreeing to lease at least one floor of the building.

Futrell has since found a replacement tenant, which he declined to name, citing a confidentiality agreement with the firm. The other tenant remains TLCD Architecture, a partner in the project.

The two companies plan to occupy three of the four commercial floors.

Having 75 percent of the commercial space pre-leased puts the project on firm footing to secure the required funding, Futrell said. The project has been estimated at $23 million.

One key hurdle remains: Securing new market tax credits for the project, which would entitle lenders to receive credits against their income taxes. The federal government offers the credits to encourage investment in low-income communities.

The remaining hurdle would be to secure the construction and permanent loans for the project, Futrell said.

Much work remains, but Futrell said the project has reached a critical phase.

“We're at the point now where discussions become agreements and favorable indications become documents,” Futrell said.

The abolition of redevelopment agencies in the state, which seems likely given last week's state Supreme Court ruling, shouldn't pose a threat to the project because the deal is a “pre-existing contract” that has to be honored, Kasimov said.

“It's a very transformative and exciting project for our downtown and our city,” Kasimov said.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article...in-Santa-Rosa-
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[ddxv]

SMART train construction gets started in Santa Rosa



Jon Kerruish, SMART's access control manager, and Stacy and Witbeck, Inc. employees Scott Bowdish, Bobby Chavis, and Nick Slama check the elevation of the railroad crossing at 3rd Street near Railroad Square in Santa Rosa on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012.

By DEREK MOORE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at 1:16 p.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at 1:16 p.m.

Construction on the SMART commuter rail system through Sonoma and Marin counties got underway Tuesday.
Photo Galleries

SMART Line - Santa Rosa To San Rafael

The work included surveyors taking measurements at Railroad Square in Santa Rosa and crews putting up signs announcing that construction is taking place.

The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit Board of Directors on Monday voted unanimously to approve a $103.3 million contract with Alameda-based Stacy and Witbeck Inc. and Herzog Contracting Corp. to build the first phase of the project.

Service is expected to begin in late 2015 or early 2016.

[ElDudarinodotcom]

Hansel launches $21 million expansion

Hansel Auto Group
By CATHY BUSSEWITZ
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Published: Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 7:36 p.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 7:36 p.m.

At a time when many retailers are struggling amid a sluggish economy, local car dealer Hansel Auto Group is embarking on a major construction project at the southern gateway to Santa Rosa.

The company broke ground this month on a $21.3 million expansion that will erect five new buildings and remodel an existing structure on a 9.5-acre site along Highway 101.

The investment comes as auto retailers slowly climb out of a pit.

Car dealers sold 1.2 million new cars and light trucks last year in California, up 10 percent from 2010 but still just half the volume they enjoyed before the recession.

But low construction costs and low interest rates, combined with a sense of optimism about car sales, convinced Hansel Auto Group that it was time to expand.

“I have significant confidence that our industry will return, so I'm investing in the future,” said Henry Hansel, president of Hansel Auto Group.

Once the Corby Avenue project is completed in 12 months, it is expected to generate an additional $3 million annually in city, county and state sales tax revenue, Hansel said.

If the estimates hold, Santa Rosa's chunk could be $495,000 in additional sales tax revenue, according to City Councilman Jake Ours.

“It's huge,” Ours said. “I'm sure glad it's in Santa Rosa. It adds jobs, it adds lots of tax money, all the things that we have fallen behind in. So we owe the Hansels a big ‘Thank you.'”

At a time when many retailers are struggling amid a sluggish economy, local car dealer Hansel Auto Group is embarking on a major construction project at the southern gateway to Santa Rosa.

The company broke ground this month on a $21.3 million expansion that will erect five new buildings and remodel an existing structure on a 9.5-acre site along Highway 101.

The investment comes as auto retailers slowly climb out of a pit.

Car dealers sold 1.2 million new cars and light trucks last year in California, up 10 percent from 2010 but still just half the volume they enjoyed before the recession.

But low construction costs and low interest rates, combined with a sense of optimism about car sales, convinced Hansel Auto Group that it was time to expand.

“I have significant confidence that our industry will return, so I'm investing in the future,” said Henry Hansel, president of Hansel Auto Group.

Once the Corby Avenue project is completed in 12 months, it is expected to generate an additional $3 million annually in city, county and state sales tax revenue, Hansel said.

If the estimates hold, Santa Rosa's chunk could be $495,000 in additional sales tax revenue, according to City Councilman Jake Ours.

“It's huge,” Ours said. “I'm sure glad it's in Santa Rosa. It adds jobs, it adds lots of tax money, all the things that we have fallen behind in. So we owe the Hansels a big ‘Thank you.'”

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article...lion-makeover-

[kylenelson]

Coddingtown submits plans to build new Target store

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ & KEVIN McCALLUM




A rumor that has been circulating through Coddingtown Mall for years finally may be coming to fruition.

The mall's owners, Simon Property Group and Codding Enterprises, have submitted a proposal to tear down the former Gottschalks building at Coddingtown and build a new single-story Target store on the south side of the shopping center.
The proposal was presented to the city on Jan. 31 and is scheduled to go before the city Design Review Board on Feb. 16. No formal decision on the proposal will be made at that time.
“It's just a chance for the Design Review Board to take a look at it and provide feedback,” said Bill Rose, senior planner for the city.
City officials welcomed news of the project.
“It's exactly the kind of new development that we were hoping to get in Santa Rosa,” said Chuck Regalia, the city's director of community development. “And I'm really optimistic that we'll be able to work out any design issues and help the Simon and Codding group move this forward.”
The proposal is the latest step in a transformation at the mall, which struggled during the recession and is still dotted with empty storefronts.
The changes began to accelerate in 2010, when Whole Foods opened a grocery store at the mall after a two-year delay. In April, the mall began a major renovation project that has updated its northern entrance and will add a new BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse later this year. In August, JCPenney completed its own $4 million, eight-month make-over project.. . .

Read more about this at: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article...1350?p=1&tc=pg

[ElDudarinodotcom]

sounds like good news

[kylenelson]

Originally Posted by ElDudarinodotcom

sounds like good news

Yeah that will be nice for Black Friday! Wish they would speed up the downtown projects they have proposed. Atleast they broke ground for the smart project

[ddxv]

Petaluma

Friedman's signs agreement to open store in Petaluma
By JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Monday, February 13, 2012 at 4:54 p.m.

Sixty-six years after getting its start in Petaluma, Friedman's Home Improvement announced Monday it plans to return to its hometown with a store in a proposed shopping center on the city's eastside.

David Proctor, Friedman's chief financial officer, said the three-store chain had been searching for a Petaluma site for about five years and signed a 35-year lease with developer Merlone Geier Partners to become the anchor tenant at the Deer Creek Village Shopping Center, proposed for Rainier Avenue at North McDowell Boulevard.

Petaluma has yet to approve the proposed shopping center, which earlier was to house a Lowe's home improvement store. But Proctor said Friedman's hoped to break ground on the site this summer and to open next year.

“There's plenty of time,” he said. “The city of Petaluma needs to evaluate the documents in front of them and make a decision. We certainly want to come back.”

Friedman's would be the main tenant of the 36.5-acre, shopping center, which would include 344,000 square feet of commercial space, mostly retail, as well as a gym, banks, offices and restaurants. Friedman's would occupy about 120,000 square feet, according to a drawing on the developer's website.

The new Friedman's store could create nearly 100 jobs and could generate $30 million to $35 million in annual sales, Proctor said.

The site would increase the company's size by about a third. The company currently employs 320 people, with stores in Santa Rosa, Ukiah and Sonoma.

Petaluma's City Council is scheduled to vote Feb. 27 on whether to certify an environmental impact report on Deer Creek and give the project city approval.

But the city Planning Commission last month rejected the report, saying it didn't address issues related to the planned Rainier underpass for Highway 101.

Five of six planning commissioners said the report failed to look at traffic impacts in the area if the only improvement to Rainier Avenue is the underpass.

They also said the report didn't address whether it's “reasonably foreseeable” that a long-planned Rainier Avenue freeway interchange would be built.

Mayor David Glass said Monday that Petaluma long has needed a home improvement store and he welcomed Friedman's return to city.

But he said he was concerned about air quality issues the new development could create.

“We're still a long way short of opening up a retail site there and selling product,” Glass said.

Proctor said Friedman's wasn't ready to say how long it would be willing to wait if the city approval process drags on.

“As far as our tolerance for delay, we certainly hope it's sooner rather than later,” Proctor said.

Brothers Benny and Joe Friedman opened their first store in Petaluma on April 6, 1946, and sold only 75 cents worth of scrap metal that first day.

Despite that day's meager returns, the company thrived. The original store on East Washington Street at the Petaluma River was destroyed in a fire in the 1970s. Friedman's is the largest locally owned home improvement retailer on the North Coast.

Lowe's had been a proposed anchor tenant for Deer Creek since 2004. But the North Carolina-based retailer pulled out last October, blaming the slow pace of the city's permit review process.

The withdrawal came as Lowe's announced it would curb new development and close under-performing stores nationwide. Proctor said industry sources told him Lowe's pulled out of all projects nationwide that hadn't yet broken ground.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com

[ddxv]

and this for Petaluma

SMART to buy a (draw)bridge
By BOB NORBERG
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Monday, February 13, 2012 at 4:46 p.m.

SMART handout
Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit officials are planning to buy a used drawbridge in Galveston, Texas, to replace the district's swing bridge over the Petaluma River that, while historic and repairable, is badly in need of replacement.
Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit officials intend to buy a used drawbridge in Galveston, Texas, to replace the 109-year-old swing bridge over the Petaluma River.

Rather than launch a $20 million rehab of the aging structure at Haystack Landing, and then perhaps spending $30 million to replace it in 20 years, SMART says that for $20 million it can buy and install the used bridge and have it last 75 to 80 years.

“I was looking for a different solution than retrofitting it,” said Farhad Mansourian, SMART's general manager.

SMART says it will have daily commute rail service on the line within four years.

The Texas bridge is on the BSFN Railway line linking the Texas mainland to Galveston Island. It was built in 1985 and is being replaced by a new vertical lift bridge to increase the channel width.

“It is a really solid bridge,” said Bill Gamlen, SMART chief engineer. “We will have to do some mechanical upgrades, but it is a very stout bridge. The BNSF doesn't want to get rid of it, but the Coast Guard is driving the replacement.”

It is called a bascule drawbridge, meaning it uses a counterweight to lift the “leaf,” or rail bed, into an almost vertical position. It is on the historic vehicle causeway that was converted to a rail line.

Gamlen said the new bridge would open or close in about 90 seconds, instead of the 2½ to 3 minutes needed for the swing bridge.

It also is long enough to allow the Petaluma River channel to be widened from 56 feet to 87 feet, and allow SMART trains to cross at higher speeds.

The bridge over the Petaluma River was built in 1903. It uses a 5-horsepower electric motor, fabric belts and bevel gears to pivot slowly on a turntable that is 10 feet in diameter.

“One of the problems with the swing bridge is the reliability,” Gamlen said. “I have been out there and have seen it take three or four tries to get it closed.”

SMART's long-range plan was to rebuild the bridge knowing it would need to be replaced within 20 years.

The 26-year-old bridge in Galveston can be purchased for $4.2 million and shipped to Petaluma by rail, then refurbished and reassembled on new supports for an additional $14 million to $16 million.

That would create a crossing good for about 80 years, district officials said.

Parts of old swing could be used in other areas on the SMART line, primarily at creek crossings and to replace existing wooden trestles.

“We have a consultant looking at where it might fit and what opportunities we might have,” Gamlen said. “We would hate to spend money to dispose of it, and it is a historic element, we would like to keep it in the corridor.”

Mansourian said SMART needs to move quickly because the Galveston bridge is being dismantled this week. The SMART board is being asked to waive the competitive bidding process to buy the bridge, and then seek bids from BSNF Railway Co. and Union Pacific Railroad to transport it by rail to Petaluma.

The board is meeting at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at San Rafael City Hall.

You can reach Staff Writer Bob Norberg at 521-5206 or bob.norberg@

pressdemocrat.com.

[ElDudarinodotcom]

good news but it may be better to post those in the Sonoma County development forum
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1386334

[ddxv]

Originally Posted by ElDudarinodotcom

good news but it may be better to post those in the Sonoma County development forum
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1386334

Oh, my bad. I posted them in Sonoma County now.

[ddxv]

Where's the hand?

Santa Rosa board OKs scaled-back Plaza plan
By KEVIN McCALLUM
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Friday, February 17, 2012 at 4:03 a.m.

Artist's rendering from ELS Architects of Santa Rosa Plaza's B Street entrance.
A more conservative remodeling of Santa Rosa Plaza won tentative approval from a city board Thursday but also criticism that it didn't do enough to help bridge the barrier the mall creates between the east and west sides of downtown.

Simon Property Group returned to the city's Design Review Board on Thursday for feedback on what it called a "completely fresh" approach to the facelift it wants to give the brick-covered mall, which opened in 1982.

Gone are the large, bright, square facades at the east and west entrances to the mall, which board members last year likened to "billboards."

They've been replaced with more modest updates. A three-foot cornice will be added to the existing archway off B Street, and the brick around the existing entry will be reclad with tan concrete tiles.

"It's not an aggressive counterpoint to the downtown and the historic district. It's more of a comfortable and traditional approach," Jamie Ruskin of ELS Architects said of the new design.

Several board members praised the plan as welcome improvements. But two were sharply critical of the failure of the plan to do more to improve "connectivity" through the mall, including the board's former chairman, who was demoted over the issue.

"I'm disappointed," Ken MacNab said after the meeting. "If people can't get to their employment on the other side of the mall, I don't know what incentive there is to get on that train."

Passengers using the future SMART train station in Railroad Square will need to walk through the mall to get from one side of downtown to the other or, if the mall is closed, will have to walk around it.

MacNab was chairman of the design board when it required a connectivity study as a condition of approval of a portion of the project the mall hoped to complete before Christmas.

The mall objected to that requirement, and later withdrew its application, claiming it wouldn't make the exterior improvements at all if it had to go through the design review board. Mayor Ernesto Olivares demoted MacNab in October over the decision. The City Council overturned the decision in December, sharply rebuking the board for overstepping its authority and failing to work collaboratively with the mall.

Councilman Jake Ours said he was pleased Simon Property Group had decided to submit a new application.

"They must have heard what we said because we did say we screwed up pretty badly," Ours said Thursday.

Asked about the mall's change of heart, Kelly Hartsell, a Simon regional vice president, said "because of our relationship with the city, we didn't want to walk away."

She acknowledged the mall was frustrated with the previous process. Much of what the 700,000-square-foot mall is trying to do, such as improving lighting and accentuating the entrances, should help draw people into and through the mall, she said.

"We really feel like we are adding connectivity as part of the redesign," Hartsell said. You can reach Staff Writer Kevin McCallum at 521-5207 or kevin.mccallum@pressdemocrat.com.

[Mike155294]

In everyone's opinion, when the economy has picked back up, how tall do you think is appropriate for downtown SR? I say 18 then tapering off as you leave the square. Thoughts?

[ElDudarinodotcom]

Originally Posted by Mike155294

In everyone's opinion, when the economy has picked back up, how tall do you think is appropriate for downtown SR? I say 18 then tapering off as you leave the square. Thoughts?

18-20 stories sounds good, but don't get your hopes up. Lets see if anyone can actually get something built to the current 150ft limit before talking about raising that number.

Here is a shot of the new Sutter Hospital from January. There are several more good shots in the link below.



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http://www.flickr.com//photos/smfnb/...53967917/show/