My Goals for Petaluma
One of Petaluma’s iron front buildings in the historic downtown. There is an overlay proposal to allow this 3 story building to be surrounded by 6 story buildings.
My platform primarily revolves around how growth and development is currently handled in Petaluma. While I am running as a candidate in District 6, I believe the future of Petaluma hinges on a clear city-wide vision. The high-level steps to improve our development future are:
Managed Growth
We must create stronger design and zoning protections to ensure our historic downtown remains the treasure that defines Petaluma’s downtown. This includes capping height limits at the current 4 stories and 45 feet. I say “No” to a six story hotel in our historic downtown, and the accompanying “six story overlay” over our historic center that would permit this hotel to be built. Let’s not ruin the one part of town that is already the most desirable destination for residents and visitors.
General Plan: Make sure Petaluma’s 20 year General Plan (to be finalized in 2025) has clear direction on best-in-class urban design, preserving historic character and a sense of place, and create an environment for LOCAL businesses to thrive.
Master Planning & Design Guidelines: When we invest in making land use plans for areas of our city, and make design guidelines for what we want our buildings to look like, we are no longer at the mercy of developers and we can proactively guide future developments on our terms.
We need to bring more city planning functions in-house and rely less on outside consultants. Virtually all of our “city planning” has been outsourced for over a decade, and the results of this can be felt in our daily lives. There is a lack of connection between what Petalumans want and the direction of property development
- Build the Caulfield Connector to reduce congestion on D Street and Washington Street.
- Change zoning rules so that affordable housing can be built more inexpensively and make it the least expensive type of housing to build, all while keeping it beautiful and in scale with our existing neighborhoods through design guidelines.
- Reduce permit fees and shorten approval times for small projects to help local businesses get established and thrive, and make it easier for homeowners to build ADU’s on their property.
- SDAT – Beginning in 2020, a group of experts from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) analyzed Petaluma’s needs. It was called SDAT, the Sustainable Design Assessment Team. Through numerous meetings with the public, hundreds of Petalumans gave their feedback. This reimagining process resulted in a detailed 58 page report on what Petaluma needs to create a more sustainable and livable city. With a clear vision such as the SDAT Report, we have the starting point to not react to ad hoc development proposals that show up from rich out-of-town developers.
Community Involvement
You can download the entire SDAT report at this link.
- Engage the People of Petaluma: The vision for the future of land use and development in Petaluma needs to be informed by the people. That means authentic engagement with our community (workshops, scale models, story poles), because those two-way conversations are where a true “community vision” can evolve.
- Inform the public as soon as possible about proposed major developments so that they have a chance to give input to public officials.
- Make sure that the public is heavily involved in decisions regarding the fairgrounds, ensuring that any development there benefits the community rather than outside private interests.
- Promote safe streets and make them safe for students to bike and walk to school. It is not a matter of making driving a car more difficult (we still need to fix the potholes and synchronize the traffic lights), it is a matter of making other ways of getting around town more desirable for many routine trips.
Community involvement in decision-making about public spaces and housing development is key for me. I will work to engage residents in shaping sustainable urban planning that preserves Petaluma’s historic charm and promotes a visually pleasing environment for all.
Green Spaces
There are developments in the planning process to put over 600 homes and over 1100 new parking spaces here.
Did you know about this?
Do you approve?
- Focus on the preservation of green spaces, I will actively oppose reckless development projects that threaten the natural beauty of Petaluma, while protecting and enhancing the city’s remaining open spaces for future generations.
- Stop future development near our riverbanks and creeks, and re-establish riparian habitat for native species to protect against sea rise where possible.
- Establish a Petaluma River Greenway that runs from Lynch Creek to Corona, preserving some of our most sensitive habitat within city limits. In addition, it will create habitat for native species and more recreational space for Petalumans, and importantly, it would help with flood control in our downtown by not paving it over.
- Encourage the planting of native trees throughout the city and ensure there is a strong tree ordinance that aids in tree maintenance and preservation.
- Work with Petaluma residents and nonprofits who are already protecting and restoring our green spaces and waterways.
- Eliminate the use of toxic pesticides by our city in parks and along roadways.