Name: Petaluma City Council meeting, Apr 14, 2025
Start: 2025-04-14
Location: City of Petaluma

City Council

Mon, April 14, 2025

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Meeting summaryAI-generated

City Council Special Meeting — April 14, 2025

This was a special session of the Petaluma City Council focused entirely on a General Plan update workshop. All seven councilmembers were present. The meeting ran nearly six hours, ultimately extending past 11:00 p.m. before adjourning just before midnight, with portions of the agenda carried over to a future meeting.

General Plan Update: Areas of Change, Land Use Designations, and Alternatives

This workshop continued the Council's ongoing work to shape Petaluma's Draft General Plan, specifically to gather Council feedback that will guide staff in developing a preferred land use map for the city. Special Projects Manager Heather Hines led the presentation, which was divided into five segments — each covering a distinct geographic area or land use topic — with public comment invited after each segment.

Segment 1 — Maker/Microbusiness Designation; Upstream and Downstream River-Adjacent Areas; River Park Area

Two members of the public spoke: Richard Thompson and Mary Dooley. The minutes do not detail the specific content of their remarks or the Council's subsequent discussion. These topics relate to how land along the Petaluma River corridor and areas suited to small-scale manufacturing and maker spaces should be designated in the new General Plan.

Segment 2 — Downtown Area; Station Area Mixed Use Designation; Downtown SMART Station Area

Three people spoke: Ali Gaylord, Darren Racusen, and Jill Lowrey. Again, specific comment content is not captured in the minutes. Council discussion followed. These topics are significant because they address how the city will plan for density, mixed uses, and transit-oriented development around the downtown core and the existing SMART rail station — areas with considerable development potential.

Segment 3 — East Washington Corridor; Petaluma Boulevard North Corridor; Petaluma Boulevard South Corridor

One person, Lehua Stuart, spoke during this segment. The three corridors discussed represent major commercial and transitional zones in the city where land use changes could have significant neighborhood impacts. Council discussion continued after public comment.

Segments 4 and 5 — Continued to a Future Meeting

Because discussion ran long, the Council voted 7-0 to extend the meeting past 11:00 p.m. (moved by Councilmember Cader Thompson, seconded by Vice Mayor Nau), but the remaining two segments of the presentation were ultimately not completed and will be taken up at a future meeting.

Vote to extend meeting past 11:00 p.m.: Carried 7–0. Yes: Barnacle, Cader Thompson, DeCarli, Nau, Quint, Shribbs, McDonnell. No: None.

*Note: As a workshop, this session produced no binding decisions. Its purpose was to give staff direction from the Council to inform the preferred land use map. The minutes do not record the specific guidance or direction the Council gave on any individual topic.*

Key Takeaways

No final decisions were made — this was a direction-setting workshop to help staff draft a preferred land use map for Petaluma's General Plan update.

Key planning areas discussed include the Petaluma River corridor, downtown and the SMART station area, and three major commercial corridors (East Washington, Petaluma Boulevard North and South) — all of which could see significant land use changes under the new General Plan.

The meeting ran out of time: two of the five planned presentation segments were not reached and will be continued at a future Council meeting.

Public participation was limited but present, with six community members speaking across three segments; specific concerns raised by speakers are not detailed in the official minutes.

Residents interested in General Plan land use decisions should watch for the follow-up meeting, which will cover the remaining areas of change not addressed on April 14.

AI-generated summary from voice-to-text transcript. Not the official record. Verify important details with the source documents linked above.

Agenda items (1)

Procedural (1)

1ProceduralContinued Discussion of Areas of Change, Land Use Designations, and Land Use Alternatives to receive feedback and direction from the City Council to inform development of a preferred land use map as part of development of the Draft General

Additional votes recorded in minutes

Motion to Continue Meeting Past 11:00 p.m.

Aye 4

Brian BarnacleAye

Janice Cader ThompsonAye

Karen NauAye

Kevin McDonnellAye

Verbatim transcript available

2 transcript segments indexed

CITY OF PETALUMA, CALIFORNIA SPECIAL MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL & PETALUMA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT SUCCESSOR AGENCY (PCDSA) City Hall Council Chamber 11 English Street Petaluma, CA 94952 MINUTES Monday, April 14, 2025 SPECIAL SESSION 6:00 P.M. CALL TO ORDER – SPECIAL SESSION - 6:00 P.M. Mayor McDonnell called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. • ROLL CALL PRESENT: Mayor McDonnell, Councilmember Barnacle, Councilmember Cader Thompson, Councilmember DeCarli, Vice Mayor Nau, Councilmember Quint, Councilmember Shribbs ABSENT: None • PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE • MOMENT OF SILENCE AGENDA CHANGES AND DELETIONS (TO CURRENT AGENDA ONLY) None. WORKSHOP 1. Continued Discussion of Areas of Change, Land Use Designations, and Land Use Alternatives to receive feedback and direction from the City Council to inform development of a preferred land use map as part of development of the Draft General Plan The Mayor explained that staff's presentation would be broken into five segments, covering defined topics within each segment. After each presentation the Mayor will open public comment on those items included in the presentation segment. Heather Hines, Special Projects Manager presented the staff report. Mayor McDonnell opened the public comment on the first section, which included the following topics: • Maker/Microbusiness Designation • Upstream River-Adjacent and Outlet Area • Downstream River-Adjacent Area • River Park Area. The following people spoke: Richard Thompson Mary Dooley

Mayor McDonnell closed the public comment. Council discussion followed. Mayor McDonnell opened the public comment on the second section, which included the following topics: • Downtown Area • Station Area Mixed Use Designation • Downtown SMART Station Area The following people spoke: Ali Gaylord Darren Racusen Jill Lowrey Mayor McDonnell closed the public comment. Council discussion followed. Mayor McDonnell opened the public comment on the third section, which included the following topics: • East Washington Corridor • Petaluma Boulevard North Corridor • Petaluma Boulevard South Corridor The following people spoke: Lehua Stuart Mayor McDonnell closed the public comment. Motion to continue meeting past 11:00 p.m. made by Councilmember Cader Thompson, seconded by Vice Mayor Nau. Vote: Carried 7-0 Yes: Councilmember Barnacle, Councilmember Cader Thompson, Councilmember DeCarli, Vice Mayor Nau, Councilmember Quint, Councilmember Shribbs, Mayor McDonnell No: None Absent: None Recused: None Council discussion continued. The remaining sections of the item were continued to a future meeting. ADJOURNMENT Mayor McDonnell adjourned the meeting at 11:58 p.m.