Scale down Healdsburg resort or put it to vote, critics urge

<p>Opponents of Saggio Hills, the proposed Healdsburg luxury resort and housing development, are urging city officials to approve a scaled-down version or subject the project to a referendum.</p><p>They have submitted a plan to the City Council calling for 27 homes, rather than the 70 proposed by developers, but still allowing the 130-room, five-star resort that would generate the lucrative bed taxes that make Saggio Hills so enticing to city officials.</p><p>Robert Green of Saggio Hills Development Co. said it would be "completely infeasible" financially to cut back by so many homes.</p><p>A number of residents are suggesting Saggio Hills be placed on the ballot so voters can ratify or reject the City Council's eventual action.</p><p>"It's a huge project for a small town. Everyone seems to think (a referendum) is a fair way to go. Let the public speak," said Warren Watkins, who heads up Healdsburg Citizens for Sustainable Growth, the group proposing a smaller version of Saggio Hills.</p><p>But the council members who will vote on the project express misgivings about the possibility of a referendum.</p><p>"We were elected to do this job. We have the most information of anyone out there about this project," Vice Mayor Jim Wood said late Wednesday following a meeting that stretched more than four hours. "We deserve the opportunity to continue to study it and make a decision."</p><p>He said if citizens gather the signatures for a referendum, it would lead to a potentially confusing campaign with money spent on both sides to try and persuade voters to approve it or turn it down.</p><p>Councilman Mike McGuire said the council is "trying to broker the best deal possible, not just for the budget, but for residents of Healdsburg."</p><p>He said the debate over the project is no longer about issues but personalities. It would "even get worse" with a referendum, he said.</p><p>Councilman Gary Plass said he believes that if the council approves Saggio Hills, voters would give it the green light in a referendum.</p><p>Critics say Saggio Hills is a model of sprawl and will erode Healdsburg's small-town ambiance. Supporters say it is a quality project on land that has long been designated for annexation and development, as well as inside the voter-approved urban growth boundary.</p><p>Plass said he supports Saggio Hills because of the benefits it will provide beyond the approximately $4 million in annual bed-tax revenue.</p><p>Developers of the 258-acre project just north of town are proposing to donate 37 acres for a community park, 14 acres for affordable housing and about an acre for a firehouse, along with $4 million toward some of the public amenities.</p><p>Only three council members are voting on Saggio Hills. The two others have disqualified themselves because of potential conflicts of interest.</p><p>"The issues seem too monumental for three City Council members," resident Heidi Marino told the council in urging a ballot measure.</p><p>Over the course of a half-dozen public meetings, the council has sought to pinpoint the details, including the timing of the construction of the affordable-housing units and possibly dispersing them beyond the 14-acre site being donated for that purpose.</p><p>The council is also looking for assurances that the developers have the financial backing to proceed.</p><p>Council members want more environmentally friendly features incorporated too, such as solar panels and rain catchments.</p><p>And council members said this week that they want the development team to contribute more toward the firehouse, so the city doesn't bear the brunt of equipment and staffing costs.</p><p>There will be at least three more public hearings, with the next scheduled for July 14.</p><p>You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 521-5214 or clark.mason@pressdemocrat.com</p>