Residents urge Riverbank council to slow 'Riverwalk' planning, cite cost and infrastructure concerns

Several Riverbank residents used the meeting’s public-comment period to urge the City Council to delay decisions on the proposed Riverwalk project and related developments until voters can weigh in.

A resident who said she attended a July 9 Riverwalk presentation told the council she was “very concerned” by project data and raised questions about farmland loss, sprawl, wildlife impacts and, most prominently, water and sewer infrastructure. She told council members she believed an infrastructure cost of $90,000,000 was associated with Crossroads West and expressed uncertainty whether Riverwalk costs were included in that figure. She said federal funding had been canceled and warned the financial burden “falls on the city of Riverbank” and, ultimately, local taxpayers.

Another speaker who identified himself as living on the western edge of the proposed project said he had canvassed voters and reported most do not want the development. He urged the council to “listen to your constituents” and to provide a “thorough analysis” of traffic and other impacts. Both callers asked the council to allow voters to decide the urban limit initiative before approving Riverwalk.

Speakers asked how day-trippers and unsheltered people might use a river-side pathway and who would monitor litter or safety impacts. Council members acknowledged the concerns; no council action or vote on Riverwalk took place at the meeting. The public-comment speakers requested follow-up meetings with council members and urged the council to “slow down” before taking any approvals that would commit the city to large infrastructure costs.