Greenway Project Achieves Key Milestone
This summer, we reached many positive milestones on the road to acquiring the Southeast Greenway property.
First, we’d like to thank the many Greenway supporters and volunteers who filled City Council Chambers on July 25th and urged the Council to support a resolution that finalized the City’s requirements to complete acquisition of the Greenway property. City Council members were pleased to see this outpouring of support and thanked everyone in the audience for their work!
The Council approved proceeding with negotiations with Caltrans to purchase approximately 49 acres of the old Highway 12 Right-of-Way for the future development of the Southeast Greenway. They unanimously approved a Resolution requested by Caltrans that included several important declarations:
- The Southeast Greenway Property will be used for a public purpose in perpetuity, with a deed restriction upon transfer from the state.
- The City’s Real Property Manager is authorized to negotiate a purchase and sale agreement within price parameters agreed to by the Council.
- The City Manager is authorized to execute the agreement as approved by the City Attorney.
Since then, Caltrans Headquarters has approved the appraisal of the property, giving the go-ahead for negotiating a Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA). City Real Estate staff are now busy working on the PSA and many other pre-acquisition activities. These include completing a conservation easement with the Sonoma Ag + Open Space District and Sonoma Water, and completing boundary survey work to prepare the Deeds for transfer of title.
The Greenway Campaign wishes to thank the City Council, the City’s Real Estate, and Recreation and Parks departments, and the following Greenway Partners who are working so diligently to make this purchase possible – Sonoma Land Trust, Sonoma Ag + Open Space, Sonoma Water, and Sonoma County Regional Parks. It’s inspiring to see so many organizations and agencies working together, built on the foundation of community support that we’ve developed over the last many years. Thank you all!
