County seeks community input on developing former Sutter Hospital site

Sonoma County officials are seeking community input on a set of guidelines for future development of the former Sutter Hospital site on Chanate Road in Santa Rosa.

A public hearing is scheduled for Oct. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building, 1351 Maple Ave., Santa Rosa.

Supervisors in August signed off on a plan to sell or lease the 117-acre complex, vacated by the hospital last year, to a developer for a mixed-use housing development. Between now and the end of the year, staff are creating a set of basic standards any potential developer must meet in order to buy or lease the property.

“Given that the supervisors said they want multi-unit housing, we want to take the opportunity to ask the community what else they would like to see there,” said Tawny Tesconi, director of the county’s General Services Department. “What kind of amenities would the neighborhood want? How about walking trails, parks or a gathering place?”

The property, praised by supervisors as one of the most valuable pieces of county land, would have to be rezoned and some of the buildings would need to be torn down because they are seismically unsafe.

Supervisors have endorsed requiring some of the housing to be affordable, but they have not specified how many units could be built or how many would have to be designated as affordable for low- and very-low-income people.

Tesconi said she expects the county to launch the request-for-proposals and qualifications process by the end of the year.

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ahartreports.