Petaluma council set to weigh tax measure, development projects

The Petaluma City Council will tackle several issues at Monday’s meeting, including a formal vote to put a 1 cent permanent sales tax increase on the ballot, and a discussion over allowing an eastside apartment complex to expand by nearly 100 units.

Council members voted last meeting 5-2 to put the tax hike question before voters in November, but the issue needs a second, usually routine, vote before it can move forward.

The council will also discuss writing a ballot argument in support of the sales tax hike and a rebuttal argument if any opponent submits an argument against the measure.

The tax would be a general tax, meaning it needs a 50 percent plus one majority to pass. All proceeds would go into the city’s general fund to be spent however the City Council decides.

In an effort to reassure voters the money would not be spent primarily on employee salaries, pensions and benefits, the council is expected to list a series of “priorities” that voters have said are important.

Those include the Rainier Avenue cross-town connector and interchange with Highway 101, road and sidewalk repairs, flood protection and storm drainage.

It will also list city-identified priorities including “restoring public safety position” and relocating or remodeling police and fire department buildings.

Council members have said they would account for the tax proceeds separately from the greater general fund, keep a separate budget and audit the expenditures publicly each year.

Also, the council will formally approve the Riverfront mixed-use project at 500 Hopper St., which it tentatively supported last month. Several representatives from construction trade unions have urged the council to delay the project for additional environmental study. The city’s environmental report concludes there are no health hazards at the site.

Another project may be more controversial.

Developers of the Addison Ranch apartment complex at 200 Greenbriar Circle off North McDowell Boulevard south of East Washington Street want to add another 98 apartments to its current 224.

The complex, previously called Petaluma Greenbriar Apartments, was lost to foreclosure by its former owner, who filed plans to convert the buildings into privately owned condos. But virtually no improvements were made to the complex during the time Bijan Madjlessi received tens of millions of dollars in loans for it, according to residents.

Madjlessi was accused of bank and wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy in a federal grand jury indictment following a three-year investigation into the implosion of Sonoma Valley Bank.

He was found dead in May when his Mercedes sedan was found in a ravine off Shoreline Highway in Marin County.

During the time he owned the apartments, they fell into disrepair and became a hot spot for police and a thorn in the side of nearby residents.

Although the new owners have significantly rehabilitated and overhauled the complex, some nearby residents remain leery of expansion and nearly 100 new units.

The developer sought to build 98 new units in 22 new buildings, but city code limits the maximum to 89 units.

Neighbors have also expressed concerns about additional traffic the expansion could bring and design issues.

The council will also discuss in closed session several ongoing or anticipated lawsuits.

Those include the Lafferty Park lawsuit, another filed by advocates for the disabled over access issues, and city claims against the state over redevelopment.

It will also discuss two potential lawsuits considered by two former employees: Dave Sears, a former police lieutenant who claims he was fired illegally and Andrea Waters, a former firefighter who says she was harassed and forced out of the department.

You can reach Lori A. Carter at 762-7297 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @loriacarter.