Sonoma hotel project needs more study, City Council decides

A controversial Sonoma hotel project that has highlighted the tension between tourism and preserving small-town character is going to require more study, the Sonoma City Council agreed Wednesday.

The environmental impact report for the hotel on West Napa Street, first proposed in 2012, needs more work, according to council members, meaning it will be at least early 2018 before the project comes back for potential approval.

Council members agreed the study should be expanded to potentially add housing, something the developers suggested was worthy of consideration, but not necessarily something that will be part of the project when all is said and done.

The $40 million project is planned on an L-shaped site behind the Lynch and Sonoma Index-Tribune Buildings, a half block from the historic Plaza.

The 62-room hotel, spa and 80-seat restaurant with 115 parking spaces, proposed by Kenwood Investments, has become a lightning rod for the ongoing debate over whether too many tourists and too much traffic are overwhelming Sonoma.

“It’s very important to take the time we need to have something we can live with,” Sonoma resident Georgia Kelly told the council Wednesday. “Tourism is becoming a lot more important than the residents who live in the town.”

“It’s been the spirit of our proposal all along to work with the community,” Kenwood Investments President Bill Hooper told the council, adding that if the residents want more work on the EIR, the company is willing.

The council unanimously voted to send the matter back to the Planning Commission to further study traffic and pedestrian impacts as well.

The chief executive officer for Kenwood Investments is Darius Anderson, a principal in Sonoma Media Investments, which owns The Press Democrat and The Sonoma Index-Tribune, among other media outlets.

Initially, Anderson proposed a project with almost twice the square footage, which sparked a ballot measure by opponents to limit the size of new hotels to ?25 rooms.

Following the measure’s narrow defeat in 2013, Anderson returned with a revised project that eliminated an events center and second restaurant.

But the revisions did not placate critics who view the hotel as a tipping point, a further impingement on the historic and revered plaza, which they say many residents avoid because of congestion and traffic.

Many residents said the project is too big, or should include some affordable housing at a time when people are struggling to pay rent or buy a house.

Others, particularly those in the hospitality industry, say Sonoma hasn’t built a new hotel in more than 15 years and needs more lodging.

The project’s supporters say the developers and the architect listened to the community, changed the design and the hotel will be a good neighbor to the Sonoma Plaza.

The applicants estimate that over its initial five years, the project will generate $9.7 million in occupancy, property and sales tax revenue.

The three-story, four-star boutique hotel will likely have similar rates to the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, The Lodge at Sonoma Renaissance Resort and MacArthur Place Hotel and Spa, according to Hooper.

The approval of the environmental review process is a penultimate step before the project can gain entitlements, including a use permit.

In April, the Planning Commission on a 5-1 vote certified the environmental impact report, finding that any potential impacts could be reduced to less than significant level.

But a group of citizens headed by former Mayor Larry Barnett appealed the decision to the City Council.

Barnett on Wednesday said, “We’re pleased the applicant joined us to take a step back.”

Last month when the City Council held a public hearing to consider the appeal, more than 30 residents spoke, with an overwhelming majority opposed to the project.

Opponents cited the lack of a housing element, greenhouse gases, not enough alternatives, the loss of about 50 trees, sewage and infrastructure problems, and traffic and plaza impacts, according to The Sonoma Index-Tribune. Proponents touted living wages for the employees, less sewer and traffic impacts than apartments and the need for more hotel rooms.

You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 707-521-5214 or clark.mason@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@clarkmas.