Council tables annexation talk

Last night, the Sonoma City Council voted unanimously to table the discussion of the possibility of annexing a portion of urbanized Springs areas into the City of Sonoma. This action ends the discussion for now, and leaves open the possibility of entertaining discussions at some future, undetermined date.
Of the many issues presented, both in public comment and in discussion among the council members, two concerns consistently recurred. One was the length and complexity and cost of the project, which Sonoma City Planner David Goodison had outlined in his detailed report. He defined the process as a “reorganization,” consisting of nine steps. Principal considerations for the city to study include the level of political support for such an expansion, the fiscal sustainability of the resulting municipality, and the revenue impacts on the County and other affected agencies. Goodison said the process would take from two to four years.
The other concern frequently mentioned from the public, and among council members, as well, was that the possibility that the council’s discussion itself might unfavorably influence the County’s decision to fund the Springs improvements project. About this, Mayor Joanne Sanders said, “I’m just blown out of the water at the fact that public discussion is being sabotaged by the threat of pulling money that is already ours. That is wrong. It’s really hard for me to accept that.” She drew applause when she commented that it shouldn’t take 15 years to put in sidewalks. She said she, herself, would call the County’s bluff, but she understood why Springs residents do not want to risk losing all the work they’d done to get their improvements in place. “So I’m going to support tabling the discussion and call the County to task to fulfill their commitment to the community. Supervisor Brown committed to approving the amendment on March 18,” she said, “and I’m going to be waiting for that day to show up. Because I don’t think this vote would have gone the same way had that threat of March 18 not have been there. We would be moving forward with the discussion; I know it.”
REMINDER: The City Council meeting will be re-broadcast in its entirety on SVTV Channel 27 at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. today.