Poll: Are You Excited About SMART's Decision to Build "Downtown?"
The SMART board gave the green this month to build Rohnert Park's station near the shuttered State Farm Insurance. The move comes a year after the City Council proposed the relocation.
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The deal is sealed: The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit station will be built in Rohnert Park's City Center, on the same side of the tracks as the former 33-acre site of State Farm that shut its doors last year, leaving Rohnert Park without one if its biggest and most historic employers.
The move cost the city's General Fund $27,000, and SMART is forking out an additional $500,000 for construction costs on the new site.
City Manager Gabe Gonzalez, the City Council and SMART boardmembers have all stated publicly that they're excited about the possibilities the train could bring — transit-oriented development, increased property values, new businesses and finally, the possibility of a "downtown" here.
Despite the elimination of what could fund a development there — redevelopment dollars — Gonzalez is optimistic about bringing life to the area, which in recent years has seen mild growth, first with the development of the library and the Department of Public Safety, and most recently with the popular Friday Night Farmers Market.
"The new location is near our City Center area, which is recognized as the heart of Rohnert Park," Gonzalez said in a memo to SMART. "The city plans to encourage development in this location, and may be well-positioned to receive regionally controlled grant funds in the future to aid that effort."
SMART boardmembers cheered the move Wednesday, when they made the final decision.
"I think it’s a very smart move," said Sonoma County Supervisor Shirlee Zane, who also sits on the SMART board. "This is the best thing for the city of Rohnert Park."
Zane pointed to the proximity of the future SMART station to area mobile home parks, Sonoma State and City Center Plaza, as positives for the new location.
"There is a sense that this is a superior location for the future of the city of Rohnert Park," said Mayor Jake Mackenzie. "State farm still sits there, but we hear there are negotiations and designs going on."
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LP
6:29 pm on Thursday, February 16, 2012
Having the station there makes sense. It is closer to the area where most services are. It is also within walking distance of the buses (although hopefully they will reroute them). It will be nice to have this alternate form of transportation. Since RP lacks a formal downtown, perhaps this will help form one.
LongTimeLocal
9:29 pm on Thursday, February 16, 2012
um, well, if RP really had a downtown I might summon up an opinion. It doesn't so 'other' it is.
robert aherne
8:21 pm on Friday, February 17, 2012
I hope folks like it, because they are paying for it.
RA
Sandy Murphey
10:23 am on Saturday, February 18, 2012
I'm glad this is happening, and gives an option for public transportation. I think this will help improve the city's image, and makes a lot more sense than Cotati's Round About
plan which was mercifully cancelled due to the pulled funding fiasco. How long is it expected to take?
Veronica Velez
8:11 am on Saturday, February 25, 2012
Let's' celebrate that something is changing. I love the new location idea. I took the GG
transit from the old location for years. Nothing going on there but good pizza at Mary's. The new loction can grow into a quaint shopping experience if businesses see the revenue potential in the row of buildings opposite the Library.
Mark Kalagorgevich
10:27 am on Sunday, February 26, 2012
This is a superior site with more room for adding parking and access to more businesses, library, and public safety offices. Now to create great plans for the rest of the site: a downtown park/public square, high density housing and commercial space similar to adjacent property immediately north?
Jamie
12:21 pm on Sunday, February 26, 2012
If the train has to come through RP then this location ("downtown") makes sense. I am not at all excited about SMART...We have better and more important things upon which to spend our hard earned money.
G Man
3:00 pm on Sunday, February 26, 2012
If we wanted a downtown, public square, and high density housing, we can move to SF. Why are We trying to recreate that here? Does anyone truly believe SMART will ever turn a profit?