'Mission' Development Dies on a Tie Vote

The proponents of a large new downtown development made little progress with the City’s Planning Commission at its special meeting on Thursday evening. It wasn’t for lack of fortitude, however, as the meeting ran a full four hours, just on the one topic.
The primary concern was the project size. Designed to stretch off East Spain Street deep into the block behind the Mercado, on First Street East, the two- and three-story development would house some 23 apartments and 5,720 sq ft of retail/office space. The requirement for 51 parking spaces on-site, 11 spaces short of the number required by the city’s development code, is an indication of its size. Also of concern was its perceived incompatibility with the historic area including the St. Francis Solano Mission and the Blue Wing Inn; the proposed project would open onto East Spain Street next to Anne Appleman’s flower shop.
The only issue actually before the Commision was whether to certify the Environmental Impact Report (“EIR”) for the project, dubbed “Mission Square,” as proposed by architect Bill Willers on behalf of Marcus and David Detert. But the meeting’s focus was not so narrow, as thirteen opponents spoke at length as to what they saw as problems with the development itself. Even the California State Parks chimed in, writing that “Visitors to Sonoma come because of the history and charm of our unique area. The naming of this development even tries to capture this thought. The height of this development is invasive to the aesthetics which the City of Sonoma and Sonoma State Historic Park strives [sic] to preserve and needs to be scaled down.”
In the end, the commission took two votes. The first was a three-to-three tie on a motion by commissioner Randy Cook to certify the EIR “as is.” However, as city planner David Goodison noted, the commission “can not take an affirmative action on a tie vote.” On the next motion, the commission voted unanimously to direct the proponent to develop a project alternative that better incorporated the mitigation measures recommended in the draft EIR.
Willers told the commissioners that because of the significance of those measures, it will be an entirely different project next time it comes before them. “I won’t just cut off an entire floor and move a building back,” he said. The next hearing date for this matter has not been set.