Petaluma approves draft EIR on Rainier connector

Petaluma's long-debated Rainier Avenue cross-town connector moves another step forward this week after the City Council approved a draft environmental impact report on the controversial traffic-relief plan.|

Petaluma's long-debated Rainier Avenue cross-town connector moves another step forward this week after the City Council approved a draft environmental impact report on the controversial traffic-relief plan.

Several council members expressed concerns about how flood-related impacts could be mitigated, given that the .65-mile four-lane roadway plan is in the center of land that has flooded several times.

Although Mayor David Glass and Councilwoman Teresa Barrett complained that the funding for the project isn't secure and said it may not deliver the traffic relief it promises, they joined the rest of the council in a unanimous vote to begin work on a final report.

Once a final EIR is written, the council will vote on whether to certify it, a major hurdle to the project being built.

Another hurdle is money, as much as $88 million the city doesn't have yet to build the roadway.

The project calls for Rainier Avenue to extend from North McDowell Boulevard under Highway 101, over the Petaluma River and railroad tracks, and connect to Petaluma Boulevard North.

Construction could begin as soon as 2017, city staffers say, but that is dependent on Caltrans' finding $90 million to pay for the 101 widening through that stretch.

Councilman Gabe Kearney noted that making the project 'shovel ready' was key, so that when Caltrans widens Highway 101 through north Petaluma, the city can also start its section of the Rainier connector.

Glass said the east-west connector isn't likely to solve Petaluma's traffic congestion.

Petaluma residents have long complained of a lack of connectivity between the east and west sides. With limited connectors — Corona Road, Old Redwood Highway, East Washington Street and Lakeville Street, the promise of another northern crossing has loomed for decades, often stagnant with a lack of political will.

Opponents argue it will not solve the traffic problems, could worsen flooding and would open the door for new development on several hundred acres of vacant land near the outlet center.

Barrett said the project won't meet its goals of relieving traffic congestion.

'It's not clear that this would do that, and that is incredibly troubling,' she said. 'I can't tell you how troubling that is  … You're looking at a project that act doesn't fulfill what … we're undertaking it to do.'

Four years ago, the city split off a highway interchange from the connector portion of the long-term plan.

The city has committed about $8.5 million to building the infrastructure beneath Highway 101 that would allow Rainier to be built as Caltrans completes its widening, without requiring 101 to be elevated.

David Keller of the Petaluma River Council urged the council to reject the draft EIR for what he called numerous inadequacies.

He said developers have been salivating for a decade to get a 'free or cheap ride to development' with Rainier, and he suggested throwing the plan out completely.

'That flood plain land is a great opportunity,' he told the council. 'Buy it. Take it out of circulation, use that as a central park, use the funding you would have to pay for mitigation to make a down payment on those properties.

'Do something creative out of this,' he said. 'Do it right or don't do it.'

You can reach Lori A. Carter at 762-7297 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @loriacarter.

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