No seat for Santa Rosa on SMART board

Santa Rosa was passed over Thursday night for a seat on the board of Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit, meaning the largest city along the future commuter line will remain without direct representation on the board during the crucial final stages of the $660 million project.

Rohnert Park Councilman Jake Mackenzie and Cloverdale Councilwoman Carol Russell won near-unanimous support for reappointment to four-year terms on the 12-member SMART board during the meeting of the Sonoma County Mayors and Councilmembers Association.

Santa Rosa Councilwoman Erin Carlstrom, who represents the city on the Sonoma County Transportation authority, had sought one of the two open seats. But only Santa Rosa Mayor John Sawyer supported her for the post at the selection committee meeting. Russell was approved unanimously and Mackenzie received eight votes, Sawyer said.

Sawyer said he wasn’t surprised by the vote, given that the county’s nine city councils had already voted for their preferred representatives in recent weeks. He said he was confident Santa Rosa will still receive good representation on the board, but hoped the city could win a seat the next time one is up.

“I’m hopeful that in two years other cities will see the value of having Santa Rosa have a seat at the table,” Sawyer said.

Sawyer and other council members had expressed a desire for Santa Rosa to have direct representation on the SMART board to improve communication with the rail agency as the initiation of rail service, expected by the end of 2016, draws closer. The largest city along the rail line is slated to have two stations, one downtown in Railroad Square and another on Guerneville Road near Coddingtown mall.

The city is keen to have a say in how those stations are designed and linked with city services, such as bus service and bike paths.

Past city councils have also expressed strong interest in the development of vacant properties west of the downtown station. The parcels, one of which is owned by SMART, are seen as prime locations for transit-oriented, mixed-use housing and even a food and wine center.

Those plans have stalled, and with less than two years before rail service is supposed to start, concern is growing that the first thing passengers disembarking in Santa Rosa will see is a patch of dirt.

Supporters of Mackenzie and Russell’s continuing on the board said that the board has the success of the entire rail project at heart when it makes decisions. They also noted that Supervisor Shirlee Zane, who represents large portions of the city, sits on the board.

To ensure the city gets direct information about the board business, Sawyer said he plans to propose that the City Council appoint someone to be a liaison to the board.

Carlstrom would do a fine job in that post, as would Chris Coursey, who used to work as a spokesman for the rail project, Sawyer said.

You can reach Staff Writer Kevin McCallum at 521-5207 or kevin.mccallum@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @srcitybeat.