The Sonoma Valley Wildlife Corridor Needs Your Help! Please attend the public hearings regarding the development alternatives for the Sonoma Developmental Center. From your Land Trust’s executive director Eamon O’Byrne:

Last week’s release of the proposed alternatives for SDC redevelopment is unfortunately a stark demonstration of how much needs to change in public planning processes to meet today’s realities. Each alternative is predicated on the idea of how much development can be squeezed in at SDC within various rules (often built on outdated concepts and information), rather than beginning with the values we want SDC to embody in the future. Now is the time to rethink how we build for the future — how we create vibrant, equitable communities that embrace the stewardship of the essential natural systems that we need to ensure the health and well-being of all communities within Sonoma Valley. We urge our community to attend the public meetings on November 13 and 17 and share your perspectives on the future of SDC and the wildlife corridor that sits within it.

Register for the November 13 meeting here: https://dyettandbhatia.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYvdeqopjksH9WSm0ml5nN1evaOGrARPZOP

Zoom link for the November 17 meeting: (no registration needed) https://sonomacounty.zoom.us/j/96931443054?pwd=UFAxc2o1bHRTRW9waWxSR2NCdDZqZz09

Additional info from Sonoma Index-Tribune: https://www.sonomanews.com/article/news/major-wildlife-corridor-cuts-through-sonoma-developmental-center/

If you’re unable to attend one of the meetings, please leave a comment on the County's official SDC website by visiting: https://www.sdcspecificplan.com/contact

Below are specific points that you may use during these meetings if you wish:

1. It is critically important that any development proposal for the Sonoma Developmental Center property protects the wildlife corridor located there.

2. Carefully planned (avoiding the northern portion of the SDC property along Sonoma Creek) and equitable redevelopment of the SDC property, that includes protecting the wildlife corridor and affordable housing, is possible.

3. None of the currently proposed SDC development alternatives describes in any detail how the wildlife corridor will be protected, nor do they support the SDC Specific Plan’s guiding principles.

4. It’s clear that, at this point in time, the public planning processes are inadequate to address today’s challenges. We need to start over and create a new model for how we plan SDC’s future. This can serve as a go-forward model for the County. We seek a new development plan that focuses on the wildlife corridor and meets the vision for creating a community in partnership with that corridor.