Asti, the tiny community two miles from Cloverdale, is going to be eligible to receive city utilities, but there will be tight restrictions on development.
That was the upshot of a Cloverdale City Council meeting Wednesday as council members wrestled with the specifics of an urban growth boundary they are crafting for the November ballot.
Brushing aside criticism that extending sewer and water to Asti could lead to sprawl south of Cloverdale, council members agreed to limit any new construction at Asti to winery-related uses.
Council members also expressed a desire to protect surrounding vineyards at Asti, the former home of the historic Italian Swiss Colony winery now occupied by Asti Winery.
The ballot language is to be decided at Monday's council meeting as the council rushes to meet deadlines to put a growth measure on the Nov. 2 ballot.
City Council members want the option to extend utilities to Asti, as well as an industrial area surrounding Redwood Empire Lumber and the Lampson Tractor showroom. They said it will help retain businesses and jobs.
"We want to keep them. We certainly want them here," said Councilman Joe Palla of Asti Winery, which has requested city services for future expansion.
Cloverdale is the only one of Sonoma County's nine cities without a voter-approved urban growth boundary. It is seen as a way to control development on city fringes, create in-fill development and preserve agriculture and community separators.
Once approved, the boundary would be good for 20 years and subject to change only by voters.
Besides potentially annexing land all the way to Asti, the other outstanding issue before the council has been whether to include the western hills in the city limits.
The council agreed to allow about a half dozen large hillside lots to be eligible for city services and allow limited development in exchange for the property owners devoting most of their land to public open space.
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