Wine Country Times

The voice of concerned citizens chalked up a victory during a Sonoma Council meeting at the beginning of February as a unanimous vote doomed a project that has previously gained approval in December 2018.

By a 3-0 vote with councilwoman Amy Harrington recusing herself due to potential conflict of interest, approval mixed residential/shopping project was rescinded and the application was denied, the The North Bay Business Journal reported. There were only four council members sitting for the vote following the resignation of Rachel Hundley on Jan. 31.

The project, known as the Sonoma Gateway Project, had been opposed by a group of citizens called the Friends of the Broadway Corridor. The vote was part of a city agreement with the group in which the city also paid $85,000 in court costs. The lawsuit was based on the lack of an environmental study for the project produced by Broadway and MacArthur LLC based out of Austin, Texas. The project area has a history dating back to the 1860’s in which Cumberland College was located. The most recent occupant was Sonoma Truck & Supply.

The proposed project, reflecting a portion of Broadway’s reputation as the gateway to the city, was comprised of 3,500 square feet of commercial space and 33 residential units, eight of which were going to be one-bedroom affordable housing.

People living near the project were opposed early on, calling for an environmental review. The council denied an appeal of the project’s approval leading to the lawsuit against the city. The project is currently dead in the water, but Mayor Logan Harvey is holding out hope that the baton can be passed, and the project revived at some point.

“Now we’re in a place where we’re looking for a new developer for the site and so we’re excited to see a new project come forward that will meet the needs of the city,” Harvey said. “We’re hoping to see that soon.”