42877Since we live in one of the Bluest parts of the country, the way to make a difference (besides just complaining) is to work to flip a Red district Blue!

Sister District does great work to...

Your post contains a few incorrect/inaccurate statements that I would like to address:

You should try the CVS lot. Unlike Rite Aid and Whole Foods, it is public parking and never full.



Pine...

There isn't a "proposed" housing development for this project concept yet, just a feasibility study to determine an approximate land value based on a selected possible development scenario:

Some apartments for persons without cars, even deed restricted, and lease restricted, and coming without a parking space associated with the apartment.

And some very small studios, in the...

42503According to the financial feasibility study that was presented to the city council on June 6, 2017, the estimated value of the land (based on it's mixed use development potential) was either...

thank you for laying this out.
i am a green zone/open space/agricultural advocate (which means higher density in town) given that i want more housing.
the key is compromise. we have stagnation...

The reality is that there is a dire need for housing. I was born in Sebastopol, have a Masters degree and am a working professional, and it is really difficult to find housing in Sebastopol let alone...

You just made a great argument for building housing in town. Then the elderly, mobility challenged etc.will actually live close to services and won't need to drive and park.

Parking is NOT the key...

I love the idea of this project. Perhaps they could be "walk up" apartments for the un-autoed among us. In the heart of town - new vitality to an already friendly place. Of course there would need to...

oh yeah there is. It's impossible to argue that there's enough housing in the area - and there's nothing unique about this area in that way. There's not enough housing for people. This is too much...

A few thoughts on Pine Grove Square:

1. This shouldn't be an "or" proposition (housing or parking). I think there is an "and" solution (housing and parking). If you look around downtown, there are...

This article in today's Sonoma Sun while specific to the City of Sonoma highlights the seriousness of the housing crisis in Sonoma County and Sebastopol and why housing projects like this one in...

I appreciate your concern about having a friendly downtown environment for walking and biking. I spoke out publicly against the hotel and would have done the same about the CVS but I was living out...

I completely disagree with your low opinion of Concilman Slayter and our elected officials. I think our City government did absolutely the right thing and represented their citizens (us) well in the...

Since parking seems to be your biggest issue, I'm guessing you live outside of town and rely on your car to get here. I live downtown, two blocks from Pine Grove and one block off that "unhealthy"...

'we' don't (have to live in a city) but some obviously would like to. And in a county where more miles per person are driven than almost anywhere else, a little more in-town living would be something...

It sounds like whether this project will actually be a public private partnership is still up in there air. But as an another local example of public private partnerships, here is a recent Close to...

Google public private partnerships and housing and you will find a ton online about this to build housing, so it would appear to be a common practice and not just something taken from "Trump's...

This project was planned way before the election. So I doubt if there was any influence by the Trump administration. I have no real issue with public private partnerships if it benefits the public.

Yes - agreed! Walking a block or so to your car, or walking to town or bus, bike, uber/lyft to town!

I really don't understand all the complaining about parking. In the 18 years I have lived here, I have never not been able to find a parking spot. And I rarely park in that lot. I go to town at...

I remember when the train tracks ran through where this parking lot is now. As much as I'd love to keep the small Sebastopol charm, not like to increase traffic, and am concerned about parking, what...

I was at the meeting, too. What the council asked the consultants to study a project that accommodated the project's parking demand. So that would replace the current general use parking spaces.
...

I disagree. Boston's downtown core thrived when they stopped cars from coming there. We are two-footeds and it is healthy for us to walk. I have never seen the large CVS parking lot, open to all,...

Very good point. Let's hope this is affordable housing for lower middle class and Section 8 folks.

Housing is more important than parking. Cars are a big problem. Walking is part of the solution. I lived in the Boston area decades ago when the city decided to close the downtown core to traffic. At...

there is also a special noise-dampening wallboard available. It is called "quiet rock" or something like that.

You bring up some very good points. These issues are important and should be part of the conversation about this development.

1. Comparison to Pellini - Pellini closed at the beginning of the...

Shepherd -
My comparison of the Pellini property to Pine Grove pertains to the essential ingredient of this entire ventire, it's economic viability. In order for someone to put up the millions? of...

And I mentioned before, I am very much in support of redeveloping this parcel to housing mixed-use, but do understand that downtown needs parking and that some businesses contributed to the purchase...

increasing infill in the town rather than creating sprawl out of town sounds like a great idea! it is also supportive of emerging lifestyles/values, and yes, aging baby-boomers.

Has there been...

Tommy's thoughtful response differentiating the Pellini & Pine Grove Sq. properties makes a lot of sense to me. Comparing those two properties would be like comparing boysenberries and...

The Pellini property and Pine Grove Sq are different: 1st, the City owns Pine Grove Sq, so they have the power to do what they want with it. The City did not own the Pellini property, with much less...

As I understand it (my wife, Linda Herman :beauty:, is the project consultant for the city) the project will provide for the project's parking requirements.

Question: Why would this tract be more attractive to a developer than the Pellini parcel was, which sat, right across the street, unwanted, for how many years? And why didn't we end up with a nice...

https://www.WaccoBB.net/forums/waccobb/keep90days/2017-02-27_17-25-20.png

Housing or parking: What’s the best use of the Burnett parking lot?
By Amie Windsor, staff writer, [email protected]...

I have not had the time to study this proposal in detail, since my boysenberry harvest starts next week. I do
want to note that the parking lot by CVS is for all who want to use it, wheter or not...

I live a few blocks from downtown, an easy stroll, and there is always parking in my neighborhood.

I think converting the parking lot into a mixed-use development with housing and commercial space is a great idea. Increasing density in our towns and cities is the only way we can accommodate a...

Hopmonk doesn't own the large parking lot. The City does. Hopmonk only owns the small triangular lot near it's entrance.

I think the City's thinking is that the displaced parking spaces can mostly...

This is a great idea! Yeah for housing over parking! There are many many many many many likely objections to any development like this. No new housing will ever be built anywhere in California, if...

Even though I occasionally park there, I like the idea, especially the 'mixed use' part. Just so long as the storefronts aren't shuttered for habitation which seems to be the case on the west...

Here's an update from Conrad Bishop, whose wise and witty posts I always enjoy!

Please join me in wishing him a speedy and complete recovery!

Barry


...

Barry, I did the HCG diet for 30 days, before reading the Eat to Live book of Joel Fuhrman, M.D., and becoming convinced I should follow that plan instead of doing a phase 2 of the HCG. Fuhrman has...

I'll just jump right in here to state that the last encyclopedic reply seems excessively long and off topic at times. I've come to the knowledge that eating a plant-based diet is perfect for me, and...

Barry's question related to weight loss diets. Believe me, I could jump right in here and debate the weighty (no pun intended) issues of animal agriculture, factory farming, animal rights, etc., but...

The Divorce Diet worked the best for me: Being too stressed-out and furious/griefy to choke anything down. Lost 15 lbs in about 5 days. I kept it off, too, until love re-entered the picture and I...

See our worthy discussion about whether ICLEI and Agenda 21 goal is "political oppression" or Sustainable Development here:...

The City Council rejected the CVS/Chase design last night! :Clap:
See the PD article here.

I saw the tanks video, and shivered. Tanks a lot. (Sorry.) I saw this happen once before, in Spain, in 1969 -- the first time we spent a summer bumming around in Europe. Our B&B in Madrid was...