Cotati council adopts Santerra Way specific plan, certifies EIR; TOC analysis included for future rezoning

The Cotati City Council on a 4-0 vote certified the final environmental impact report (EIR) and adopted an update to the Santerra Way Specific Plan, setting land-use parameters and an implementation path for development near the Cotati smart train station.

The resolution, adopted as agenda item 12A, approves the updated Santerra Way Specific Plan and the EIR that analyzes the plan area plus additional parcels that would be eligible for future Transit‑Oriented Communities (TOC) rezonings under regional guidance from ABAG/MTC. The council’s action expands the plan boundary to include three additional parcels along East Cotati Avenue and directs staff to return with municipal‑code amendments needed for implementation.

Why it matters: the update replaces a 2001 plan intended for a different market and infrastructure era and is designed to guide development for roughly the next 20 years. The plan aims to make the station area more flexible for mixed use and housing while analyzing, in advance, potential environmental impacts should the city later rezone adjacent parcels to comply with TOC policies and retain access to regional One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) funding.

City staff and consultants said the update reflects market, regulatory and transit changes since 2001. Noah Hausch, director (staff), introduced the item and said ABAG/MTC’s TOC guidance prompted the city to add parcels within a half-mile of the station into the EIR analysis so council could make future rezoning choices without needing another environmental review.

Luke Lindenbush, supervising planner for consultant 4Leaf, described the plan area as roughly 25 acres where the 2001 plan proved overly prescriptive. He said the update emphasizes flexibility for residential, commercial and mixed‑use development, modern circulation around the station, and implementation steps rather than site‑level zoning rules. The presentation and the EIR assume a planning‑period buildout that would add housing capacity beyond previous assumptions; the EIR analyzed an approximate additional buildout modeled in the document.

Council discussion and public testimony focused on emergency access, infrastructure capacity and neighborhood impacts. Jeff Filiquet, chief of the Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District, told the council the updated circulation concept — including a rear, circular access path behind buildings and closer apparatus access — improves emergency response compared with the current one‑way access and that new development would be sprinklered. Filiquet said he was “very comfortable” with the plan’s evacuation and response approach but cautioned that no design eliminates all choke points in an evacuation.

Public commenters included property owners and prospective developers who supported the update as necessary to attract investment; several neighbors expressed concern about potential through traffic, the design of an emergency‑vehicle access (EVA) that could open onto Breen Way, and parking and transit service. Patrick Krause, a nearby homeowner and HOA president, said the neighborhood favored the plan overall but worried that removing a fence to create EVA could increase unwanted pedestrian access behind homes.

On infrastructure, the council pressed staff on water and sewer capacity. Greg Scott, public works director/city engineer, said the water and sewer capacity study examined this project plus other entitled developments and identified an existing storage deficiency that the city has planned in its capital improvement program. He and planning staff said the EIR analysis modeled roughly 750 additional homes in the plan area and TOC parcels and concluded that the projects could be served if the city implements planned infrastructure improvements; staff noted the analysis assumes a mix of project types and that density bonuses could change final demand and would be evaluated project by project.

The plan incorporates TOC density ranges and parking rules that reflect state and regional policy: minimum residential densities in TOC areas (the draft plan cites a minimum of 25 dwelling units per acre and typical maximums in the 35‑du/acre range), commercial floor area ratios of about 1.0–3.0, and TOC‑aligned parking guidance (including an average of about 1.5 spaces per residential unit as a planning benchmark and a commercial maximum referenced in the MTC guidance). The council and staff stressed that TOC rezonings of parcels outside the core specific‑plan boundary would be a separate future action and are voluntary; the EIR analyzed them now to avoid repeating environmental review later and to preserve eligibility for OBAG funds if the city chooses to rezone.

Councilmember concerns also covered neighborhood character, potential loss of existing commercial uses (for example, the car wash parcel) and how nonconforming uses would be treated. Staff said property owners would not be forced to redevelop or change current uses; existing nonconforming uses may be allowed to continue and make routine repairs but could not expand beyond current footprints if the use becomes disallowed under later zoning. Redevelopment would be required to comply with the adopted plan and zoning in effect at the time of application.

The council’s motion to adopt the resolution and certify the EIR passed unanimously, 4‑0. Staff will return with implementing zoning amendments, design standards and project‑specific review procedures; additional public outreach and technical coordination with agencies including SMART, Sonoma County Transportation Authority and the Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District will continue as implementation proceeds.