Future of Russian River area redevelopment becomes clearer
Johnson's Beach and Resort in Guerneville, along the Russian River
PD FILE, 2008Published: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 3:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 10:52 p.m.
Pathways along the Russian River for pedestrians and cyclists. A bigger plaza in Guerneville. A theater. A community center. And a social services center.
Reliable wireless service from Guerneville to Monte Rio. More plants and trees. Clean public restrooms. A drop-in center for the homeless. A teen center. And, of course a skateboard park.
The list of redevelopment projects that could revive Russian River communities with an infusion of about $8 million a year could go on and on. And it does, because the strategic plan approved by Sonoma County supervisors is 91 items long.
Long on ideas. And at the moment, short on funding. But making progress toward consensus.
The 5,000 people in the lower Russian River communities have long been at odds over how best, and whether to, improve Sonoma County’s most impoverished area, said Ken Wikle, chairman of a Russian River Oversight Committee appointed by supervisors.
“We have consensus among the seven communities that considered themselves separate in the past,” Wikle told supervisors. “The people who were naysayers to everything were relatively quiet.”
In addition to Guerneville and Monte Rio, the area includes Rio Nido, Villa Grande, Vacation Beach, Northwood and Guernewood Park.
Over the past few years, the county has funded a total of $2.25 million in redevelopment projects in the river area. They include renovation of the Rio Nido fire station and Monte Rio community center and refurbishing of Guerneville River Park. Projects in the works include Fife Creek Commons and replacement of aging water pipelines for the Sweetwater Springs Water District.
Wikle said that although the county redevelopment authority has already spent some money, a long term plan was deemed necessary in order to gauge community sentiment.
“It is not required by redevelopment law, but it is something that we wanted to do so there would be some sort of pulse taking of the community,” Wikle said.
The task now is to move forward, taking advantage of the redevelopment money that comes from increased property taxes linked to development and also seeking other ways to continue improving the Russian River area.
The strategic plan “is very broad in scope, and redevelopment is but one tool,” said Kathleen Kane, executive director of the Community Development Commission. “It goes beyond redevelopment.”
Government-sponsored, taxpayer-supported redevelopment projects won’t be able to fund all 91 proposals, Kane said, so “we will need to attract private investors into the area.”
Lloyd Guccione, a river area activist who has been a self-appointed community watchdog on redevelopment issues for four years, said “this is one of those plans that brought people together with its process, but there are also downsides to it, unfortunately.”
He fears that projects proposed by business and commercial interests will dominate funding while those dealing with neighborhood and youth projects will get short shrift.
“Redevelopment is a banking enterprise that wants a return on its investment,” Guccione said. “The community, unfortunately, has not gotten concerned, interested or excited about redevelopment.”
Although county supervisors established the Russian River Redevelopment Area in 2000, plans for the river have not translated into projects, particularly when compared with similar efforts in the Sonoma Valley and the Roseland area of west Santa Rosa.
Supervisor Valerie Brown, whose Sonoma Valley district has Highway 12 sidewalk and road improvements under way as part of its redevelopment, said “it was kind of a miracle” that the Russian River area was finally ready to embark on pursuing funding rather than arguing about projects.
“We watched dueling agendas at the podium” for years, Brown said.
Efren Carrillo, the new west county supervisor, said the business community, the environmental community and the Spanish-speaking community have waited a long time to see the emergence of a “remarkable consensus in this plan.”
However, he worries that so many laudable ideas are chasing after so little funding.
Under the redevelopment area’s strategic plan, the county can undertake up to $8 million in projects annually over the next four decades. However, under state community redevelopment law, the county must also meet criteria that focus on removal of physical blight, reversal of economic blight or creation of opportunity for housing and employment.
To pay for redevelopment projects, the county issues bonds that are repaid with interest using redevelopment funds. As assessed values of properties increase over time, the additional property taxes are allocated to finance more activities within the project area.
Dan Fein, who chaired the committee that drafted the strategic plan, said environmentalists and business leaders agree that “ecotourism is what attracts people here and it’s what puts us on the map.”
A top priority among projects should be those that reduce river pollution by improving wastewater, septic and water systems, Fein said. Also a priority are projects that improve flood control so the rising Russian River doesn’t periodically put homes underwater and put businesses out of commission.
In addition, Fein said the Russian River area needs reliable wireless if cottage industries that rely on electronic communication are to take off.
“We want to attract more people to work from their homes, like attorneys, accountants and people who sell stuff on eBay,” Fein said.
You can reach Staff Writer Bleys W. Rose at 521-5431 or bleys.rose@pressdemocrat.com.
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